Among the Mad by Jacqueline Winspear

Posted on by marjorieseidenfeld

Maisie Dobbs, psychologist and private detective, is tapped once again, and this time it’s for help with a case of chemical terrorism. It appears an individual has written a letter to British officials, spewing dissatisfaction on how certain factions of society have been treated and threatening harm to them and many others if action is not taken. Because Maisie herself has been named in this letter, she is brought onto the case, and it is quickly apparent that the author of this letter is suffering, has experienced tragedy, but is also extremely dangerous.

I love this series. I have erred by reading it in completely the wrong order, but because they are so well-written, they are also excellent as stand-alone novels. They serve both as detective/murder-mysteries and historical fiction narratives, and as a series provide vivid details of life in spanning from before the first World War to after the second. This particular one takes place in December, 1931, and one can feel not only the desperation of the Depression that has impacted so many, but also the residual psychological impact of the “Great War.”

Before we had the term “PTSD,” soldiers were diagnosed with “shell shock,” and it was really the first form of trauma that had been even remotely acknowledged. This story describes well how so many, mostly men, were affected by being in the trenches: hearing bombs go off just next to them, feeling explosions blow off body parts, seeing friends killed before their eyes. And so many of them were not allowed to process this trauma, but were forced, because they happened to be physically “ok,” to jump back in to the fighting because the armed forces just needed bodies. And the repeated trauma made for extremely vulnerable men returning to their homes after the war. Their vulnerabilities could manifest in extreme disconnection from their prior personalities, from their families, from their very souls, as is described in this story.

While I think one can skip around a bit, I would recommend beginning the series with the first one, which is called Maisie Dobbs, by Jacqueline Winspear, as it gives an important foundation to the series. And if you can, it is probably best to go in order, but there are a great many books in the series –  it may take you awhile! But the writing is solid, the plots are clever, and Maisie is a strong, ethical and wise character to stick with.

Ina Garten: A Memoir; Be Ready When the Luck Happens

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In this memoir, Ina Garten, of Barefoot Contessa fame, shares her story, her breakthrough into the world of epicurean cuisine. And while she shares some vignettes of the challenges she faced along the way as well as the hard work and long hours she put in – especially in the beginning of her career -it is clear that she was fortunate enough to frequently happen to be in the right place at the right time, both in her personal life and her professional life.

I had heard much ado about this book, and so had very much been anticipating reading it… which made it doubly disappointing when I found myself giving up on it around page 100. I so rarely abandon books, but I decided it was not worth my continuing to plow through the pages of Garten’s self adulation. I found it repetitive and dull and kept waiting for the bigger stories that would make the book worthwhile. Perhaps I should have stuck with it, as there may have been more glamorous parts, but honestly, glamour doesn’t impress me as much as genuine reflection. Even when Garten discloses difficulties with her father’s temperament, which of course must have been painful, she keeps it, I felt, at the very surface. We don’t really get to the heart of it, what it really meant to her and to her family more than it meant much time for her in her room, avoiding him. It feels like she tried to paint a picture for us, but it was in a vague black and white. I was seeking color.

Again, perhaps I gave up too early, but I will live with that. I’d love to hear your reactions, particularly if you’ve read it and loved it!

Can You Keep a Secret? by Sophie Kinsella

Posted on by marjorieseidenfeld

Emma Corigan has a secret: she is terrified to fly. And when her flight home to London from Glasgow suffers some major turbulence and she is convinced she is going to die, she pours out all of her deepest, darkest secrets to the total, albeit handsome and kind-eyed, stranger sitting next to her. She does not die, to her utter shock, but she does return to her life and to her frustrating job where she feels unappreciated and thwarted by her supervisor and her peers. Little does she know that the quiet, unassuming man to whom she’s poured out her soul will reappear in her life, and surprise her in more ways than she can imagine.

While this story is light and fairly formulaic, it is also entertaining and exactly the kind of therapeutic distraction I needed over these past couple of weeks (the inauguration, the absurd executive orders, clemency for the January 6th attackers, — the list is endless). We need fun reading like this in this moment and this was exactly that. It provides just enough tension, just enough amusement, just enough sarcasm to raise both grin and eyebrow, but not so much that you have to use too much of your brain to get through. Emma is sweet, kind, and sensitive – trying to move her life forward while not stepping on others’ toes, which can be challenging in the business world. But she finds unconventional means of advancement and unusual ideas from the real world and she uses them to her benefit.

And, of course, there is a happy ending. Which is not guaranteed in the real world. Another reason to indulge here!

Yes, this is not high brow literature – but it’s good clean fun right now. A healthy escape!

Mary Jane by Jessica Anya Blau

Posted on by marjorieseidenfeld

Mary Jane is very excited. She has been hired to babysit for the summer for a very cute little girl who is shy and a bit awkward, just like she is. While she might have joined her friends at sleep away camp, as she had done last summer, she knew she was quite unhappy there, feeling like she longed for time alone, perhaps to just sit and read rather than always having to follow the group who rarely included her anyway. What she isn’t expecting is the unusual dynamic in the family she will be around, how different they are with each other from what she is used to at home in her quiet, reserved household, and how much she will grow.

This is a beautiful, if a bit unrealistic coming of age story, which takes place in the 1970’s, at a time of evolving and clashing cultures and philosophies. Mary Jane has grown up in a very Christian, repressive, uncommunicative family, where her father never speaks, and her mother speaks only to command and instruct. Suddenly, for her babysitting job, she is thrust into a family where folks hug and kiss and demonstrate love naturally, and stereotypic norms are ignored. While many might be thrown by this, Mary Jane embraces it fully. And even while she does try to instill some order into the chaos that is this family’s home, she loves the way they love, she appreciates the openness in their communication. And while she does not fully abandon her own values, she finds a way to combine the best of both.

The characters here are what truly engage the reader. We immediately love Izzy, the exuberant 4-year old Mary Jane cares for. We love her for her enthusiasm, her raw sweetness, and her fear of the witch who she needs to lock out of her room. We love the glamorous couple that Mary Jane must cover for, as we learn of their very human struggles with fame and how that has disrupted and corrupted their lives. And we love Mary Jane, as she is often the “adult in the room,” even as she herself must play two different people, trying to figure out how she can be her true self.

And while the ending may be a bit idealized, it is still worth the read – it is engaging, fun, thoughtful, and will have you reminiscing about the 70’s if you were alive in that time.

Night Music by Jojo Moyes

Posted on by marjorieseidenfeld

Laura is nearly out of patience, having waited on the ungrateful, sickly Mr. Pottisworth for so many years, with only the hope that he will leave his home, her dream house facing the lake, to her and her husband, Matt. While she has her doubts, Matt seems to retain his confidence that this house will become theirs, and that the plans they have for it will come to fruition.

Meanwhile, on what feels to be another planet (the city of London), another family has just been devastated by the untimely death of the father. The mother, Isabel, who, although loving, has been swept up in her career as a musician, traveling often for performances, rehearsals, and leaving the details of her children’s lives to their nanny. Her husband’s death, and their sudden financial reality has brought this to a skidding halt, and she realizes now that it is up to her to be the grown-up in the room.

The way in which these two families’ lives collide becomes the talk of the small town, but also becomes a reawakening of sorts for all of them.

It took me a bit of time to get into this story, and I believe it was because I did not, initially, completely like the central characters. While I felt compassion for their tragedies, I felt as if they each took no responsibility for their circumstances, as if they were detached from their own realities. Of course, for example, Isabel was not responsible for her husband being killed in a car crash, but it was certainly on her to know her family’s financial situation and the details of her children’s lives. Likewise, Laura was absolutely not the cause of Mr. Pottisworth being so cruel and ungrateful, but she knew better than to rely on her husband and his plans,  as he had proven unworthy of trust in the past. Only when they each began to take control of their lives did I begin to form some respect for them and perhaps connect more with their stories.

I think my favorite character, in fact, was Kitty, Isabel’s brave daughter, who actually took control of the family’s situation immediately and only gradually was allowed to become an adolescent again. She was the one who named their reality, cared for those around her, connected with their new community, and called out injustice when she saw it. While she was only 15 years old, she bore the burden of being the responsible one when no one else was. 

This is definitely a worthwhile read, but it may take a minute to buy in, as it did for me.

The Phoenix Crown by Kate Quinn and Janie Chang

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How are four very different women with widely varying histories drawn together in the middle of an earthquake in San Francisco? From the beginning, we meet Gemma, a soprano newly arrived to join the Met Opera Company for a stint in the chorus. We also meet Suling, a young woman promised by her opium-addicted uncle to a much-older doctor, who is saving her pennies by doing extra work as an embroiderer to try to make her escape. These two form an unlikely alliance, along with Gemma’s housemate, Alice, a research botanist to uncover a shocking criminal.

Once again, along with Janie Chang, Kate Quinn has created powerful, unusual, and vulnerable characters for us to love. These women I’ve described, along with a fourth – Gemma’s friend, whom she thought she was following to San Francisco, but who seemed to have deserted her for Colorado – all have creative personalities, complicated circumstances, and strong loyalties. And the twisty plot binds them together into an unlikely kinship that enables them to be there for each other until the very climax of the story.

And while the story does fall into that trap of tying the ends up just a bit too neatly, it also feels right to do so in this case.

I really enjoyed this one. I’d love to hear what you all think!

 

The Lies that Bind by Emily Griffin

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It is summer 2001 and Cecily has been living in NYC for 4 years now. She’s been working for a small newspaper and has made a couple of friends, but her life feels like it’s just been put on hold since her breakup with her boyfriend, Matthew. Since her best friend in the world is still back home in Wisconsin, she feels she needs to get out of her own head, and, leaving her cellphone at her small apartment, she takes herself to a nearby bar, alone. She is truly not looking to meet anyone – it’s far too soon for that – but as it happens, someone does join her at that bar, and they immediately just click. What happens from there begins a journey that takes Cecily through a maze of both lies and truths that she learns she will ultimately have to sort out for herself.

While this story is a bit of a stretch in terms of plausibility, if you’re able to sort of “go with it,” it’s an easy, fun read that is mostly satisfying. I think what saves it is that we really come to like our protagonist, Cecily, even as we suffer her naivete, her blind trust in what those around her tell her. While we can guess what is happening, she doesn’t – and it feels almost like watching an accident that is waiting to happen where you want to yell, “Watch out!!” but cannot. The point is, we do care enough about her to want to yell. (At least I did.)

So while this is not the great American novel, it is a lighter read that broke up some of the more intense novels I’ve read recently. Gotta do that sometimes!

 

 

 

 

How the Light Gets In by Joyce Maynard

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Even though her ex-husband has now passed away, and there is much water under the bridge, she still has difficulty moving past that fateful moment when it felt like her entire life changed: when her youngest child, Toby, suffered a brain injury after being found face-down in their pond for who-knows-how-long. She cannot help but think what would have been had her husband not fallen asleep that day when he was supposed to be ensuring his safety? But as her life unfolds, she begins to learn to appreciate the beautiful person Toby becomes, rather than mourn who he might have been.

This is ultimately a beautiful story, but I feel that it takes unnecessary work to get there. There is quite a bit of repetition, such an unfortunate belaboring of points that the story could have been told in a much more succinct and effective way. Whether it was the writing or the editing – likely a combination of the two – I believe it is a drawback of this book.

Nevertheless, there is a lovely story underneath all this tautology. The unfolding of Toby’s story as told through Eleanor’s perspective is truly meaningful. Many overlook or dismiss Toby because he does not speak or walk or dress the way his peers might; but those who see him for who he is have the honor of getting to know someone who is warm, honest, loyal, and who is the kindest person they will ever know. He pays attention to details that few notice. He sees the potential in folks that others don’t see, appreciating what it is like to not be seen. And he accumulates family, friends, and fans along the way who deeply appreciate who he is. 

I believe this book is worthwhile, but you have to be willing to accompany Eleanor, Toby and their extended family on this long journey, even with all its detours and corollaries.

 

 

 

This Used to be Us by Renee Carlino

Posted on by marjorieseidenfeld

Dani and Alex used to be in love. Dani and Alex used to have the kind of marriage where communication was rarely even necessary because they could read each others’ minds. Now, it seems, that what’s on their minds is that the other is just wrong and they are speeding, headlong into divorce. As they work out the details of this new life with their two boys, they find they may be able to actually communicate on a whole new level.

This is a sweet story that will have you engaged from the very start. It is told from both Dani’s and Alex’s perspective, which deepens our understanding of both how they became a couple and their demise. We empathize with their overtures to connect as well as their despair when they feel defeated. We also hear their attempts to move forward with their lives, and how they are impeded by their deep love for each other. 

I will warn that you will experience a major emotional rollercoaster here, as there are sudden twists and unexpected dips that will throw you. Nevertheless, you are well cared for by the author; even when you are grieving, you are handled gently and beautifully.

I liked this book quite a lot – I believe you will as well.

The Cactus by Sarah Haywood

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Susan is pretty confident she knows what she likes: she likes order and predictability, she has found a career that suits her skills, and while her childhood has been challenging, she’s even managed to maintain a decent relationship with her complicated family. Nevertheless, when her brother, Edward calls her to tell her that her mom has died, Susan is quite shocked. She knows that her mom has had two strokes, that she’d been a bit out of sorts, but she’d been living solidly on her own, albeit with the inconsistent “help” from her brother Edward. Susan is a realist, though, and understands that this is what happens. What she cannot understand is how her mother could have come up with the terms of her will she is now hearing read, once the funeral is over. Susan is convinced there is foul play and is determined to fight her brother over this – battling again, as they’ve done their whole lives. Only this time, it will be before the eyes of the court. There are just a few complications that may hinder her in the process…

It is hard to believe this is a debut novel, as it is as delightful and entertaining as its characters. Susan’s character, in particular, is one that I believe will stay with me for awhile. While Susan prefers to be alone, she is also a deeply kind person, and though blunt, she is always honest. Sadly, she has learned from life that others can bring pain, so she has built a shell around herself. Much like the cactus, she has grown thorns not to pose a threat to others, but merely to protect herself. But as she gradually begins to let others in – her neighbor, her brother’s friend, even her annoying aunt – she begins to see that it is not always to her detriment.

I would highly recommend this book – it is engaging story, with lovely characters, and your heart will melt for Susan and her predicaments. I look forward to Haywood’s next project!