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After reading Anthony Horowitz’s Alex Rider series for two months, I thought I needed to diversify my reading. So this column is kind of all over the place. Hopefully, there will be something for everyone.
Let’s start with “Lessons in Chemistry,” by Bonnie Garmus. This was one of the hottest books of the past year: a New York Times bestseller, a GMA book club pick and the basis for an Apple TV series this fall. I’ll be honest with you. I thought this was going to be a rom-com. There is some romance, and there is some comedy. However, I was pleased to find that it took a deeper look at the roles of women in the 1960s. A Washington Post review I read sugar-coated the plot when it described the main character’s career as a research chemist taking “a detour when she becomes the unlikely star of a beloved TV cooking show.” Actually, her career took a detour when she was raped by a supervising professor in her PhD program. Sorry! That was a spoiler.
While I enjoyed the book, the level of misogyny made me cringe. Sort of like “Mad Men,” a television series I just never enjoyed. The book also takes a look at how women in business either lift up other women, or tear them down - again, very “Mad Men”-esque. I was disappointed that in the end (sorry - another spoiler), Elizabeth’s career was saved - not by her own merit - but by a benefactor. Sorry. This sounds like a negative review. It’s not. The book is thought-provoking and definitely worth reading.
Next is “A Dirt Road Life” by Lila Phelps. This first book in the series is “Family.” It’s free on Kindle and has just become available in paperback at Amazon. So, what makes this book special? Well, let me tell you. I had a best friend in high school. I really don’t have the words to convey in this format just what she and her family meant to me. If you and I could sit down together over a cup of coffee, I could share memories and tell stories, and you would begin to understand the special place they hold in my heart. In lieu of that, my friend’s middle sister, Lila, has written a memoir in a series of books that centers around the dirt road they lived on. This one will introduce you to the family that I hold so dear. This first book is a mere 64 pages, and believe me when I tell you that the love leaked out of my eyes on every page. Obviously, it will not affect you in the same way, but I hope you will read it. Get to know these people who mean so very much to me. Get to know that dirt road that, to me, feels like HOME.
“One of Us Is Dead,” by Jeneva Rose is free on Audible. It was okay. I don’t enjoy reading about toxic people. If you enjoyed “Big Little Lies” by Liane Moriarty, you will probably like this. One thing that stands out about “One of Us Is Dead,” is that the author seems to have a real beef with the Buckhead area of Atlanta. The area is almost its own character in the book, and is not presented in a favorable light. Basically, if you follow the author’s logic, the characters are toxic because they live in Buckhead.
“The Venice Sketchbook,” by Rhys Bowen, was exactly what you would expect. British girl meets Venetian boy, falls in love, and loses boy. Not once, but four times across the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s - when Venice believed that as a city of art and culture, it would be immune to the war in Europe. Told in a dual narrative, Juliette has kept the details of her life in Venice a secret for 60 years - until with her dying breath she sends her great-niece back to the city she loved with her sketchbooks and a set of keys. But why?
Until next month - Happy Reading!
Let’s start with “Lessons in Chemistry,” by Bonnie Garmus. This was one of the hottest books of the past year: a New York Times bestseller, a GMA book club pick and the basis for an Apple TV series this fall. I’ll be honest with you. I thought this was going to be a rom-com. There is some romance, and there is some comedy. However, I was pleased to find that it took a deeper look at the roles of women in the 1960s. A Washington Post review I read sugar-coated the plot when it described the main character’s career as a research chemist taking “a detour when she becomes the unlikely star of a beloved TV cooking show.” Actually, her career took a detour when she was raped by a supervising professor in her PhD program. Sorry! That was a spoiler.
While I enjoyed the book, the level of misogyny made me cringe. Sort of like “Mad Men,” a television series I just never enjoyed. The book also takes a look at how women in business either lift up other women, or tear them down - again, very “Mad Men”-esque. I was disappointed that in the end (sorry - another spoiler), Elizabeth’s career was saved - not by her own merit - but by a benefactor. Sorry. This sounds like a negative review. It’s not. The book is thought-provoking and definitely worth reading.
Next is “A Dirt Road Life” by Lila Phelps. This first book in the series is “Family.” It’s free on Kindle and has just become available in paperback at Amazon. So, what makes this book special? Well, let me tell you. I had a best friend in high school. I really don’t have the words to convey in this format just what she and her family meant to me. If you and I could sit down together over a cup of coffee, I could share memories and tell stories, and you would begin to understand the special place they hold in my heart. In lieu of that, my friend’s middle sister, Lila, has written a memoir in a series of books that centers around the dirt road they lived on. This one will introduce you to the family that I hold so dear. This first book is a mere 64 pages, and believe me when I tell you that the love leaked out of my eyes on every page. Obviously, it will not affect you in the same way, but I hope you will read it. Get to know these people who mean so very much to me. Get to know that dirt road that, to me, feels like HOME.
“One of Us Is Dead,” by Jeneva Rose is free on Audible. It was okay. I don’t enjoy reading about toxic people. If you enjoyed “Big Little Lies” by Liane Moriarty, you will probably like this. One thing that stands out about “One of Us Is Dead,” is that the author seems to have a real beef with the Buckhead area of Atlanta. The area is almost its own character in the book, and is not presented in a favorable light. Basically, if you follow the author’s logic, the characters are toxic because they live in Buckhead.
“The Venice Sketchbook,” by Rhys Bowen, was exactly what you would expect. British girl meets Venetian boy, falls in love, and loses boy. Not once, but four times across the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s - when Venice believed that as a city of art and culture, it would be immune to the war in Europe. Told in a dual narrative, Juliette has kept the details of her life in Venice a secret for 60 years - until with her dying breath she sends her great-niece back to the city she loved with her sketchbooks and a set of keys. But why?
Until next month - Happy Reading!
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