The Golden Child by Wendy James

Posted on by marjorieseidenfeld
The Golden Child: A Novel: James, Wendy: 9781510737914: Amazon.com: Books

Charlotte is what many would call a “queen bee.” She is always at the center of activity– pretty, smart, and sporty, with many friends who admire her — while her older, yet more sedate sister, Lucy, seems happy just to hang on the sidelines. Their mother, Beth, has been preoccupied with their upcoming return from New Jersey to Australia, so while there have been some signals of trouble, it hasn’t felt like much more than normal “girl stuff” to her. Could it be that she’s missed something enormous, even in her own daughter?

This is a disturbing and yet utterly engaging novel that anyone who’s ever known or ever been an adolescent girl can relate to. (And if you’ve ever been a mom of one, it tugs at your heart strings like few stories do.) It highlights the cruelty of the adolescent girl dynamic, the targeting of others for random imperfections, quirks, or non-conformities and the ostracizing of others for the least infraction of an ever-changing, “accepted” norm. In the age of social media, it is magnified a million-fold and it is irreversible. And horrifying.

The writing here is crisp and engaging and the characters, while somewhat stereotypical, are still extremely plausible. The author also utilizes the technique of incorporating blog posts from the characters to interject their innermost thoughts, which adds both a deeper dimension and a clever diversion to the plot. It’s an intriguing read that keeps you turning the pages – with a satisfying twist of events right up until the very end.

This is not a “MUST READ” but it’s quick, slightly disturbing, and yet intriguing one, if you have the time.

The Brilliant Life of Eudora Honeysett by Annie Lyons

Posted on by marjorieseidenfeld
The Brilliant Life of Eudora Honeysett: A Novel: Lyons, Annie: 9780063026063: Amazon.com: Books

Eudora Honeysett is 85 years old and she is done. She is still of sound mind and, while she may have slowed down a bit, she still swims her daily laps at the community pool and she can still care for herself, by herself, thank you very much. She has seen how death can be an ugly, drawn-out affair, having witnessed her own mother’s experience- and that is not for her. So Eudora makes arrangements for her own plan of action. And she will not let anything deter her, not even her brand new and surprising friends, such as they are – the boisterous young neighbor called Rose, and the awkwardly emotional gentleman, Stanley.

This delightful novel is very much A Man Called Ove meets Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine. Eudora is a woman who’s had it tough, who has sacrificed much for others over the years, and at her older age of 85 is finally, if awkwardly, speaking up for herself. Much of her straightforwardness is cringeworthy, but, at the same time, it is so refreshingly stunning and true. And while one might expect her to repel others with her manner of speaking, she actually manages to endear them to her. (Could it be that our world is seeking this more genuine form of communication? That we are all just looking for honesty and kindness, rather than flattery or banality?)

The author has created utterly beautiful characters. Rose, Eudora’s 10-year old neighbor and adopted “BFF,” illuminates the pages of this novel. Her outrageously clashing fashion statements are clearly imprinted in the reader’s mind, and we cannot help laughing along as Rose enriches Eudora’s wardrobe (as well as her life) with color. As they are both unique in their own ways, they can appreciate each other for this – and accept each other as they are. And the relationship between them is tender and lovely and loving.

And, again, we meet another death doula! (I had never heard of this career path before the Picoult novel, and now here is the second novel with a death doula.) Once again, there is frank discussion about death and that one can choose to die with dignity and love and honesty instead of with machines and tubes and disconnection. So often, we are reluctant to face our mortality and so we do not plan for it. We deny the possibility, so we avoid discussing what we want. We do not complete the forms, we do not discuss our wishes. And then when it comes down to it, we end up where we may not want to be. The death doula can be the escort through this process of confronting those difficult conversations, those difficult moments, and to ease that time, for whenever it might arrive. For it will, of course, at some point, for us all.

This is a wonderful novel – on so many levels. Give yourself this gift – you will not be sorry!

The Missing Letters of Mrs. Bright by Beth Miller

Posted on by marjorieseidenfeld
The Missing Letters of Mrs Bright: An absolutely unputdownable feel good novel about love, loss and taking chances - Kindle edition by Miller, Beth. Literature & Fiction Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.

It is time for Kay to end her marriage. She does not have a solid plan of what she will do, but she knows it is time. Her life just has not worked out the way she’d hoped –she has not accomplished even half the goals she’d listed as a young and optimistic teenager. Maybe now is the time to begin to work on them. She’d enlist Bear to come with her to conquer some of these goals – Bear would understand, if anyone would. That is if Bear is ok. She hasn’t actually heard from Bear in months. As Kay seeks out her dear friend, she begins to also discover more about herself, and develop the courage to follow her own, true path.

This story is sort of “midlife crisis lite.” While Kay is truly going through a difficult time, and her decision impacts many around her, no one really seems to be that bothered by any of it. She herself is maybe a bit thrown, and while she has no idea what she’ll do for money or where she’ll live, she seems to not be worried about these details. Likewise, her husband is a bit shocked and maybe doesn’t get out of bed for a few days, but then bounces back so quickly that he’s already moved on by the time she’s returned for her things. Her daughter is bothered by it, but she is, in fact, mobilized out of her own quagmire of stasis, so it works out for her as well. It all fits just a little too perfectly.

On the other hand, this may be just the right tone for this moment, as Covid is still raging, as our country is still so divided, and as we are all struggling to make it through our days – maybe this is the one place where things can work out alright and life can fit back into place. Maybe that is what fiction is for?

Windfallen by Jojo Moyes

Posted on by marjorieseidenfeld
Amazon.com: Windfallen eBook: Moyes, Jojo: Kindle Store

Lottie and Celia are almost as close as sisters – in fact, they’ve been raised as sisters for the past few years, although Lottie is acutely aware that she is only with the Holden family as long as they continue to generously support her. However, when she and Celia stumble into the acquaintance of new, artsy friends at the Arcadia estate, Lottie’s eyes are opened to a new kind of freedom, a new way of living that just might present opportunities – or perhaps danger. She is not quite sure.

Fast forward to the present time, and we meet Daisy, whose life seems to be falling apart. Her partner has walked out on her and her infant daughter, and she is left to sort out their upcoming project of restoring a controversial estate -yes, Arcadia. Will she be able to navigate this overwhelming time in her life? Her sister does not seem to think so, but she must prove her wrong. She has to…

Here is another winner by Jojo Moyes. While it did not grab me immediately, I will admit, it grew more and more magnetic with each chapter. It may be that Lottie’s character, while complex and reserved, was so, perhaps, hardened by her circumstance that she was ever so slightly less likable and therefore less relatable. On the other hand, once we meet Daisy, we find her so much more of an open book, her emotions so raw and apparent, that she breathes a sort of spark into the story, enlivening it with her heart and energy. We love her from the start and root for her until the end. Both characters are beautiful in their own ways, of course, but they differ in how relatable they are, I felt.

Moyes beautifully depicts an undertone here of the social conflict between old/conservative thought and new/liberal perspective. The setting is a small, harbor town in England, where everyone knows everyone and families have long-held histories of judging others’ families for past ills. Arcadia, with its modern design, intrinsically represents– both physically and by its inhabitants — possibility, openness, and forward thinking. The town, and its people, are always whispering against those in Arcadia, fearing what it represents and rising up against it in various ways. And Lottie, for her part, becomes caught in between, at once part of Arcadia and then fighting against it, because of what it represents to her at different junctures of her life.

This is definitely worth reading. I don’t think it rises to a “Must Read” but it comes fairly close!

The Last Story of Mina Lee by Nancy Jooyoun Kim

Posted on by marjorieseidenfeld
The Last Story of Mina Lee: A Novel: Kim, Nancy Jooyoun: 9780778310174: Amazon.com: Books

It’s been two weeks since Margot has heard from her mother, Mina. She’s not answered her phone, nor has she called. And while they are not close, they are really each other’s only family.   So Margot now finds herself driving down from Seattle to Los Angeles, with her best friend, Miguel, to investigate. What she finds there leads her on a search for answers – answers about her mother’s fate, about her mother’s past, and about her own origins.

This is a book that I wanted to love. Mina was an immigrant of Korean origin who came to this country seeking what so many come to the US seeking – refuge from war, refuge from a painful, dangerous past, seeking opportunity. And like many, what she finds is obstacles. Barriers because of language, culture, and xenophobia. There is a universality to this story that I know is important to readers in this moment – important for us to understand the immigrant experience, to develop an empathy toward it, and to fully comprehend the urgency to open doors for immigrants in our country.

The story does accomplish this goal. However, it is so bleak and so unrelentingly tragic, that the reader develops almost a compassion fatigue while reading it. Mina’s life is so full of horror that it is almost unimaginable. The details that are leaked, almost like tears leaking from the eyes of someone afraid to show emotion, are devastatingly heartbreaking.  Mina is truly the hero of the story, as Margot comes to realize, but we are almost too exhausted to fully appreciate her.

There was also much in the way of repetition. Rather than introducing additional vignettes about the life of either Mina or Margot, or, more importantly, of their memories together while Margot was growing up, the author chose to recount the same scenes again and again from different perspectives. This sometimes added some depth, but occasionally grew old, and it would have added more, I believe, to create additional memories, shared times between mother and daughter, to give further insight into their complicated relationship. Margot was searching for more – and so was I as the reader.

I think this is an important story to tell. I wish I’d loved the telling of it more.