Abandonment and Devotion

Book Review of "Neither Here Nor There" by Miriam Drori. Esty is 19 and unmarried, and that's practically an "old maid" in Jerusalem's Haredi (ultra-orthodox) community. However, the reason she hasn't agreed to marry anyone is that she knows the Haredi life is not for her. Once she's married, she might be trapped forever. Gathering … Continue reading Abandonment and Devotion →

The Taste of Passion

Book Review of "La Cucina" by Lily Prior. The story of this book, set in Sicily, is very simple. Rosa Fiore lives in a small Sicilian village. When the love of her life disappears, it is obvious that his refusal to marry someone other than Rosa led to his murder. Broken hearted, Rosa leaves her … Continue reading The Taste of Passion →

An Ex-Lover Ghost Story?

Book Review of "My Lover’s Lover" by Maggie O'Farrell. Sinead is – according to Marcus – “no longer with us.” That means that the room Sinead had in Marcus’ flat is now vacant, and Lily moves in. The question is, what else does all that mean – to both Lily and her budding feelings for … Continue reading An Ex-Lover Ghost Story? →

Take the Time to Travel with This Book!

Book Review of "The Time Traveler's Wife" by Audrey Niffenegger. This is such a well-known book it is almost redundant to bother summarizing the plot - especially since they made a movie out of it (which I refused to watch). However, for the uninformed, this is the story of Claire and Henry. Claire is an … Continue reading Take the Time to Travel with This Book! →

What is a "Portrait of America?"

Book Review of "Freedom" by Jonathan Franzen The Berglunds, Patty and Walter, are a typical suburban couple. This is their story, told from their early beginnings throughout their lives. The Berglunds live in a home they've renovated in a run-down neighborhood just outside St. Paul Minnesota. Soon others from the gentrification crowd join their surroundings, … Continue reading What is a "Portrait of America?" →

Very Carefully, Apparently

Book Review of "How to Talk to a Widower" by Jonathan Tropper. Two years after Doug and Hailey were married, Hailey died in a plane crash, leaving Doug her home in the suburbs, her angry son who doesn't want to live with his father because of his new trophy wife, a large settlement from the … Continue reading Very Carefully, Apparently →

Get Kissed by Kate and her Stories!

Book Review of "Me: Stories of My Life" by Katharine Hepburn. Usually, I don't read non-fiction and biographies are often iffy since you can never tell how much of it is true and how much is rumor or gossip. As for autobiographies, well, most non-writers with interesting lives usually need a ghostwriter, which often produce … Continue reading Get Kissed by Kate and her Stories! →

A Haunting Read

Book Review of "Anil’s Ghost" by Michael Ondaatje. Anil Tissera is a forensic archaeologist who was born in Sri Lanka (where author Michael Ondaatje also hails from). After having been an ex-patriot for nearly 15 years, a human rights commission asks her to investigate a gravesite in her home country. What she finds there, and … Continue reading A Haunting Read →

All about Alice; All about Us

Book Review of "After You'd Gone" by Maggie O'Farrell. Alice is a woman very much in love after a terrible tragedy happens to her. The book starts with the line: “The day she would try to kill herself, she realized winter was coming again”. With an opening like that, there’s no way you won’t want … Continue reading All about Alice; All about Us →

A Story of Vistas and Passions

Book review of "Ardor: A Novel" by Lily Prior. This is a story of love - misdirected love, unrequited love and love between people who, for one reason or another, never find a way to bring their mutual affection out into the open. What makes this story unusual is that at the center of this … Continue reading A Story of Vistas and Passions →