(I pasted these book reviews from another document, tried to widen the margins, and then messed up the whole thing, so I'm leaving it narrow.)
"Goosetown" by Joyce Dyer - The author spent her early years
in the now-gone
and attempts to reconstruct the people and places of that
time. With the help of her beloved Uncle Paul and various
archives, she comes to understand her past. Unfortunately,
very little happened. Painstaking detail is lavished on minor
events. True, a young cousin was tragically killed in an
accident, and there's the mystery of where a grandfather
disappeared for several years - but most of this left me
cold. I felt bad for not caring, but reading this was like
watching someone's endless vacation slides (and the book's
not even that long).
"Holly Would Dream" by Karen Quinn - Holly wishes her life
were like an Audrey Hepburn movie, but in reality things are
rapidly falling apart. Her live-in fiancee dumps her and she
has to stay with her homeless father in an animal shelter,
she's passed over for a promotion (at a fashion museum) in
favor of a well-connected airhead, and, well don't ask. At
this low ebb, she meets a handsome, kind billionaire. Except
he's taken! The plot eventually puts her and her father on a
ritzy Mediterranean cruise (where she lectures on fashion)
with said billionaire (and his - ugh - fiancee) and some
colorful characters. There's a subplot involving some Hepburn
gowns, the scenery is lovely, there are laugh-out-loud
moments, and the whole thing is a delight. It's an added
bonus when you can swoon along with the heroine over the love
interest (darn, he's fictional!).
"The Go-To Girl" by Louise Bagshawe - This British chick lit
novel has another swoon-worthy love interest, and a plucky
plain heroine who works in a film company (making for rich
office scenes) and lives with models. 372 pages went very
quickly.
"Simon & Schuster Mega Crossword Puzzle Book #3" ed. by John
Samson - This book went much faster than the first 2 in this
series. I had it on my bed, and did puzzles in the morning,
and puzzles before going to sleep, and it was done in about a
month.
"Please Excuse My Daughter" by Julie Klam - Julie Klam grew
up Jewish in a WASPy suburb, with a mother who took her out
of school for shopping trips (hence the title). This
upbringing left her well cared for but unprepared for life in
the real world. She marked time working in her father's
insurance office, had a gangster boyfriend, and then emerged
to find work in media and a boss who became her husband.
Money wasn't always rolling in, but they managed, and now
have a young daughter. Funny and likable (and it turns out
the author's a friend of 3 friends on Facebook).
"Fun With Dirk and Bree" by Alice Kahn - Laura Gloriana (nee
Gurvitz) is an '80s
famous by chronicling yuppie couple Dirk and Bree. When they
threaten to split up on television, she tries to save their
marriage and her career. I wasn't too interested in or
sympathetic to this cast of Bay Area characters, and the 1991
book seemed a tad dated.
"My Husband's Sweethearts" by Bridget Asher (really Julianna
Baggott) - The book jacket calls this a "sophisticated
romantic comedy" but I call it self-consciously cute. Lucy's
much older husband is dying, but he's been a cheater so she
goes through his little black book and calls in his exes for
a last good-bye. A few of them stick around, as well as his
newly discovered son from a former relationship. Eh, not
really believable.
"Getting In" by Karen Stabiner - I often read
CollegeConfidential.com for fun. I'm not a parent so I have
no horse in the race (though one nephew is in college and the
other will be in 2 years), but I find the frenzy over college
admission fascinating (maybe because of my own experience in
1969). This novel is like a fictional CollegeConfidential.com, with elite LA
private school students and their helicopter parents and
dedicated counselors, and the nearby public school where the
"perfect" daughter of Korean immigrants won't allow herself
to consider a future without Harvard. Loved it.
"Maiden Rites" by Sonia Pilcer - Most of this novel takes
place around
the milieu is very familiar. Hannah Wolf lives at home in
Flushing and goes to
She hangs out at the Columbia Bookstore hoping to meet
someone, and does (two someones, actually). Moshe is
hyperintellectual, horny and generally icky. He's sad in some
ways, too, but I really disliked him. And her. I don't have
to worry about hurting their feelings since they are
fictional. The book is subtitled "A Romance" but if that's
romance, no thanks.
