Between Two Kingdoms: A Memoir of a Life Interrupted by Suleika Jaouad I picked up this memoir on the recommendation of several people and sent it to my daughter who was on her own cross-country odyssey in a van with her dog. I just finished it myself as I travelled the Pacific Northwest with her. […]
The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz This was a fun read for the mere fact the author revealed so much about the world of being a writer and the ins and outs of the publishing industry. It was a world she displayed with authority and a healthy dose of sarcasm. She also wove two threads […]
The Privileges by Jonathan Dee The writing in this novel was very good: smart, witty, revelatory. The early chapters which depict a boozy wedding weekend and a mother getting through an endless day with her young children had me excited and optimistic about the reading journey I was heading on. Even the husband’s lack of […]
Animal by Lisa Taddeo I listened to Animal on audio which was really well narrated by Emma Roberts. That aside, once I got to the end, I had to immediately begin listening all over from the beginning. It’s that kind of book, so set aside plenty of time. This debut work of fiction is so original […]
The Trauma Cleaner: One Woman’s Extraordinary Life in the Business of Death, Decay, and Disaster by Sarah Krasnostein This book was prescribed in a bibliotherapy session and coincidentally read while cleaning out my own home of twenty years. Trigger alert if you are, or ever had to deal with a hoarder. The core word to […]
The Heart by Maylis de Kerangal The human organ at the center of it all, around which so much is attributed. The love, the imagery, the life – the heart is more than a pulsing muscle. This novel is successful in its ambition to capture everything, from the poetry of the heart to the science […]
This essay was originally published on Medium.com under the title “Returning East: Lessons Learned on a Pandemic Road Trip.” Whereas our trek West as our road trip began in January had been motivated by the urgent need to arrive, our return trip was intentionally drawn out, our desire to avoid returning to reality for as […]
The Resurrection of Joan Ashby by Cherise Wolas This is a big meaty book that allows you to inhabit a character’s mind as you would your own. Or at least that of a close friend with whom you are very intimate and familiar. This the story of a woman permitting the men in her life […]
This essay originally appeared on Medium.com. After reading my recent essay about “The Value of a Grown-up Gap Year” in Moms Don’t Have Time to Write, many people asked, “But, won’t you tell me where you actually went on this road trip?” And even as I nodded, “yes,” in my heart I knew where we went […]
Vera by Carol Edgarian This novel is an exciting, personal (fictional) account of the San Francisco earthquake and fire in 1906 from the point of view of a fabulous character—Vera Johnson is the illegitimate daughter of the city’s most prominent madame during an era of miners, con artists, loan sharks and hookers. The quest for […]
