Review of Love Anthony by Lisa Genova

Rating - 4

 Olivia Donatelli moved to Nantucket after her autistic son died and she and her husband separated. Olivia is hoping to find answers and gain perspective on why he died. Beth Ellis gave up her editing job in New York City to marry Jimmy and move to Nantucket. Now after 14 years of marriage and three children, she discovers that Jimmy is cheating on her. Two women, each dealing with grief and life changes, have a chance encounter and that brief connection will change their lives forever.

Lisa Genova holds a PhD from Harvard in Neurscience. Her books combine a great story with explanations about the science behind certain mental conditions using language that her readers can understand. In this novel, autism is the issue underlying the story and after reading it, people will gain a new perspective on the disease that 1 in 88 children in the United States have. Genova has a gift for writing strong characters and bringing the reader right into the story. I highly recommend this book.

Review of Vanity Fare by Megan Caldwell

Rating - 4

 Molly Hagan's husband left her for a younger woman and now she finds out his business has just gone bankrupt. So now she has to find a way to support herself and her 6 year old son with no support from her ex-husband. Through a former colleague, she finds a job copywriting for a new bakery just opening up. Molly finds herself experiencing all of the ups and downs and "politics" in the business world, but she loves what she's doing and maybe has found romance in the process.

Vanity Fare is entertaining and funny and romantic. The premise of the new bakery is that it is opening near the New York Public Library, so the owner is trying to combine the idea of food and books. Molly suggests that each item in the bakery should be named after a famous book. In fact, the name of the bakery  is "Vanity Fare", a take off on the book of the same name.One of my favorite parts of the book were the food descriptions that opened each chapter in the book, such as "Portrait of a Ladyfinger" or "Tender is the Bite". At the end of the book, there are recipes for each of the bakery items. Molly is a strong character and faces her new life with trepidation and humor. I thoroughly enjoyed the book.

Review of Once Upon a Time There was You by Elizabeth Berg

Rating - 2

On their wedding day, even John and Irene had doubts about their marriage. Years later, divorced, dating other people, and living in different parts of the country, they seem to have nothing in common—nothing except their spirited eighteen-year-old daughter, Sadie. When tragedy strikes, Irene and John come together to support the daughter they love so dearly.
Berg is one of my favorite authors. She is a master at plotting, pacing and character development. Once started, it is usually impossible to put one of her books down. So, I was surprised at how disappointed I was with this book. The plot was disjointed and anti-climactic on many levels. I didn't like even one of the characters in this story, so it was hard to care how it turned out. I struggled to finish it.

Review of Sing You Home by Jodi Picoult

Rating - 3

 

Max and Zoe Baxter have tried for 9 years to have a child. After Zoe miscarried a child at 28 weeks, Max decides he can't handle it anymore and divorces Zoe. Zoe and Max go their separate
ways...Max lives with his brother and sister-in-law who belong to an evangelical Christian Church. After nearly being killed after a drunken accident, Max embraces the church's teachings and becomes "born again". Zoe meets and becomes best friends with the guidance counselor at the school where she performs music therapy, Vanessa Shaw. Vanessa is a lesbian and eventually, Zoe realizes she is too and the two women marry. When Vanessa and Zoe decide they would like to have a child, Zoe remembers that there are three frozen embryos left from when she and Max were trying to have a child. When she contacts the fertility clinic to use the embryos, she is told that she must have Max's permission since they are biologically half his. When Max discusses the issue with his pastor, the pastor convinces him that homosexuality is a sin and that the embryos shouldn't be given to people who live a sinful life. A court battle ensues.


This is a typical Picoult book that takes a controversial issue...in this case, homosexuality...  and presents the conflict from all points of view. The book is a fast-paced, emotional, instructive and entertaining read. Unfortunately, the story features too many sub-plots which were not fully explored and, at times, left unresolved. This would have been better if it were more tightly plotted.

Review of Brutal by Michael Harmon

Rating = 4
Young Adult

When her surgeon-mother leaves LA and goes to South America on a charity project, 16 yr. old Poe Holly goes to live with her father in the small town of Bender. Poe has never met her father who also happens to be the school counselor at her new high school. Poe doesn't know why her parents divorced. She is a rebellious teen who doesnt' get along with her mother and blames her father for never being there for her. Poe meets two new friends...Theo, the son of the mayor and "Velveeta", a troubled teen who is the perpetual target of school bullies.  Poe soon realizes that a major bully at the high school is Colby Morris, star football player.  Colby is brutal and untouchable...his father is well-connected. Poe sets out to prove that Colby and his friends are responsible for a near-fatal attack on Velveeta, thereby putting her own life in danger.

Harmon does a good job of keeping the action moving. Brutal was hard to out down once started. The characters aren't fully drawn; it's very hard to understand the motivations and actions of Poe's parents. Poe's constant rants about the hypocrisy of the school and adults is a little over-the-top and not always believable...she gets pretty obnoxious sometimes. However, the issues are timely, the characters are likable and there is lots for teens to relate to.

Review of Casting About by Terri DuLong

Rating = 3 

Monica and Brad have been married only a few months when Brad learns his ex-wife has been in an accident and he will have full custody of his 11 year old daughter, Clarissa. Monica has never been sure she wanted children and now must learn to care for an 11 year old child. Clarissa's life with her mother has been unstable since her mother is an alcoholic and it takes time for her to learn to trust Brad and Monica. Now Monica has her hands full being a newlywed, raising a pre-teen and running her own business, a yarn shop in the small town of Cedar Key.

This is a sweet, entertaining story of life in a small town, the importance of family and friends and the many faces of love. The dialog spoken by the characters seemed to be a southern dialect, maybe, but it didn't ring true and seemed stilted at times. Although this second book in the Cedar Key series can be read as a stand alone title, I think it would be more entertaining to read the books in order.  I'm looking forward to going back and reading book 1, Spinning Forward.

Review: The Other Mothers' Club by Samantha Baker

Rating: 4

A group of women...Eve, Clare, Lily, Melanie, and Mandy... form a group called "The Stepmothers' Support Group so they can discuss the issues they each face as stepmothers or soon to be stepmothers.
The story held my attention to the very last page. Each woman's story is different and will resonate with women facing some of the same problems. The setting is Great Britian and the author is British, so much of the vocabulary is British...occasionally, I wasn't sure what a character was referring to, but it was fun. A very readable and thought-provoking book.

Also published under the title: The Stepmothers' Support Group

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