Being from Baltimore, I am closely aware of Baltimore as a character in Anne Tyler's books. This book is no different. This is a love story of sorts to Bmore, in how Winnie falls in love with her and the people who make it a rich, loving, quirky community. That said, it's not her best work, yet I adored it. Anne never misses the chance to develop characters that are flawed, yet still able to capture your heart. Winnie wants a community and never found it, not as an eleven year old, a newly married woman that didn't make that choice, as a widowed mother of two young boys, nor as a wife of a cranky uptight lawyer. Only when she is asked to take care of her son's ex-girlfriend's daughter, is she able to find herself and her purpose. Baltimore draws you back to her when you are gone, as Winnie finds out. Gritty, imperfect, weird as hell that generates the best people in the world. Going home. But only at this stage of her life, it's finally her choice. Thanks again, Anne. Another love letter to Baltimore.
0 Comments
Sister of Mine by Laurie Petrou is a well written and intriguing thriller. I thoroughly enjoyed this book about two sisters, who have secrets. Big secrets. Penny and Hattie, sisters orphaned at an early age and Penny, being the oldest, assumed the mother role. Penny marries Buddy and goes to live on his farm. Buddy is abusive, so Penny sets fire to the home with Buddy in it. Enlisting her sister’s help, there is the obvious cover up. Enter Jameson, a new man in the small town and the three become inseparable. But Hattie is attracted to Jamison and so it begins. Good character development and well written, this is a book that you simply don’t want to put down. It’s the perfect thriller book for summer, something that holds your interest and not too dense. Thank you to the publisher and #NetGalley for a pre-publication ebook in exchange for an honest review. Publication date is August 7! The Kill Jar: Obsession, Descent, and a Hunt for Detroit's Most Notorious Serial Killer was an enthralling book. I hate to admit it, but I enjoy a true crime story and this totally fit the bill. Well-written as part memoir, part true crime investigation, and part love story to a long lost Detroit, the book is a culmination of the author’s ten year obsession with one heck of a story. During the late 1970s, when child abductions seemed to be epidemic, Detroit had four child abduction-murders that were never solved. The author has spent ten years researching and obsessing over this set of murders, partly because of his proximity in age growing up in Detroit. The author sets his gritty story against his own violent childhood, a once vibrant Detroit, and quite possibly, his own narrow escape as a victim of abduction. He describes the dead end leads, dirty cops, pedophlia clubs, autopsy coverups, lots of “suicides," families of privilege who covered up for their children who needed help, as well as incorrect information dispersed to the public. It’s a sad, gritty tale, that leads us to some incomplete conclusions that the killings stopped when a couple of suspects were incarcerated or died. There is never a true conclusion, but we have an idea after the author puts many pieces of a puzzle together for us. Most, importantly, the author seems to heal from his own past and becomes a better father and man by addressing some of his own demons from his childhood during his researching this book. I loved this book and devoured it in two days camping in a beautiful lakeside site. It’s a solid five star book and highly recommend it to those who love true crime stories. Thank you to the publisher and #NetGalley for a pre-publication ebook in exchange for an honest review. Three Things About Elsie is a novel about aging, friendship, with a side of mystery. The first half of the novel had me interested, however, it was particularly hard to find much interest in sticking with the second half. I felt the novel dragged on and felt just flat and grey. I wasn’t much interested in learning about the third thing about Elsie. Elsie is the best friend of Florence, who is slowing loosing her memories as she ages. Long ago, Elsie’s sister and Florence’s friend, Beryl died by drowning and Florence seems to think it wasn’t an accident. She and Elsie attempt to solve their mystery of sorts, but in the context of an assisted living facility. This book is well-written with well developed characters, but it failed to WOW me. This is a book about the characters, their friendships and living with a secret. Sometimes a book will drag it's heels and make you want to quit it. Yes, Three Things about Elsie made me want to quit. It was, however, an Advanced Reader Copy, and really, the deal is, read on to give your opinion. I wish some of the revelations would have be given to the reader sooner, to hold their interest. I just didn’t care much by the time it was all revealed. My thanks to #NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review. Everyone is so busy, and too busy to enjoy the view. I know, because I have been there. I am hoping this new lifestyle will enable both Luke and I to enjoy the beauty of a cloud, the beauty of a manatee at water's edge, the tarpon simply making his way along his quest for dinner. Today, make a date with the outdoors. Look up. Smell. Smile. Live.
Nothing Good can Come from This is a series of essays that surprised me as really quite good. Revolving about the author's difficulty with drinking and quitting, it brings a poignant and entertaining series of stories. The book is well written, enjoyable and yet brings out a lot of emotions for the reader. I laughed out loud in parts and felt distressed by some of the situations of the author. The author tells us of her transition from social drinking to alcoholism to quitting drinking to distance running to cope. I felt the panic of her writing in those first days and weeks of being sober, and admired her staying with the plan. This is the life that many of us have known, either by self realization or by a friend or close relative. Alcoholism doesn't discriminate and might just be the mom next door. Four stars for this book. I enjoyed it and the essay format was conducive to our traveling. My thanks to #NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review. Our current home in Alva, Florida. We are at a Corps of Engineering Campground that is beautifully maintained. Sitting in a spot that we can see a beautiful sunset each evening with the dogs makes life pretty sweet. Thus far, we have seen tarpon (it's a fish), egrets, and an alligator. Enjoying this spot for the tranquility and beauty.
This man made a difference in my life, not that I think of myself as any sort of cook. His zest for life, his love of food, his quest for knowledge and his respect for people took him to places most of us never heard of, nor will ever see. This book shows us Mr. Bourdain's ability to share food with people around the globe respectfully, and intimately, His writing is witty, yet not raucous, subtle and raw in places. I pay my respects to a wonderful cook, writer, human and leader. He is missed.
The concept of this book was very attractive to me. I really wanted to like this book, but somehow this book fell flat for me. This book seems disjointed in parts, and follows a lot of threads, and can be difficult to follow at times. I caught myself going back to see if I had missed something, or to try to figure out how the author “got there”. The book is a memoir about the family who bought Jello-O patent & became ridiculously wealthy as a result. In 1899, the author's great-great-great-uncle bought the patent for $450 and it changed the family’s trajectory in social and wealth status. But, as the author attempts to tell us, with the change of social status came what she is calling the "Jell-O curse" which has followed the family for generations. There are mysterious illnesses throughout the family and in the factory making Jell-O. There was a lot of detail about hospitalizations, which was long winded, in my opinion. A bit of editing may have helped with this section. Overall, I guess this is an interesting look at an American staple for most of us growing up in the 1960’s. It seems like a lot of these uber rich families have issues, just like the rest of us, except they have much more privilege and access to health care. Oops. Maybe I just need to stop reading books that have a thread of whininess through them. Thank you to the publisher and #NetGalley for a pre-publication ebook in exchange for an honest review. Welcome to our little part of the world. We are Luke and Karen. We have two dogs, Chula and Max, who will be reporting from the field with us as we travel this great country in our camper ,first, and then our RV. We are newly retired and plan to be married sometime, just not certain when that might be. Stay tuned. We love to camp and currently have a great little A frame camper that we have enjoyed this last year. We have traveled away from Hurricane Irma up the west coast of Florida to Gulf Shores, Alabama, to Anastasia State Park around Jacksonville, Florida, and all the ways to the Florida Keys, twice. We have learned a lot and Luke is the camping expert. Me? I read. A lot. You will see travel pictures and reading pictures on this blog. And lots of doggie pics. We love our rescues and they love us. We hope to bring you a little bit of our our adventures and that you can learn from us along the way. |
AuthorReader, Traveler, Reviewer. Come join us as we travel the US in our RV. I review books. Archives
October 2019
Categories
All
|
Proudly powered by Weebly