The Secrets of Midwives is the debut novel by Sally Hepworth, author of The Things We Keep. I read this book in one sitting, just couldn’t put it down. It tells of three generations of midwives, who all have great love and respect for each other even if they have chosen slightly different paths. This is a good, somewhat predictable, easy read, full of details of midwives lives. Secrets, past and present are slowly revealed to keep the reader engaged…
The Dream Lover by Elizabeth Berg is historical fiction based on the life of writer George Sand. George Sand, whose real name was Aurore Dupin Dudevant was the first woman writer in France to become an international bestseller. She dressed as a man, smoked cigars, had many lovers and friends, both men and women, and led a fascinating life split between Paris and the French countryside. Berg is a wonderful writer, she brings Sand to life on the page and…
A Paris Apartment by Michelle Gable is historical fiction based on the life of Marthe de Florian, a renowned courtesan painted by Giovanni Boldini, one of the masters of the Belle Epoque. After her death, her grand daughter shut up her apartment and fled Paris during WWII. It was discovered more than 70 years later full of artwork, furniture and much more that would draw millions at auction. The novel is set in modern day Paris where April Vogt of…
The Bookstore by Deborah Meyler had the potential to be a good book; a love story to old fashioned bookstores, and to New York City itself. Esme, fresh from London, on a scholarship at Columbia, falls in love with rich, blue blooded Mitchell and that’s where everything goes wrong. Mitchell is such a creepy, unlikable character, it was impossible to believe Esme would fall for him and keep coming back to him. I wish it had been more focused on…
The Well of Lost Plots is a Thursday Next novel by Jasper Fforde. I haven’t ready the whole series, but so far this is my favorite. Jurisfiction officer Thursday Next is pregnant, her husband has been eradicated and she has been relocated into an unpublished book in the Well of Lost Plots where plot devices are sold on the black market, a misspelling vyrus can mean total destruction for all, and someone is trying to erase her memory. Fforde’s imagination…
Daughter of Fortune is a book that shows Isabelle Allende’s incredible gift for storytelling,. It tells of an orphan girl raised in Chile by an upper class family, then stealing away on a ship to follow her lover to California at the height of the Gold Rush of 1849, in the process she undergoes many changes. An epic novel, well written and filled with wonderful characters, history, adventure, romance, friendship, family, self-discovery and all you could want from a great…
H is for Hawk by Helen MacDonald is a beautifully written memoir filled with nature writing, history, poetry and much more. It defies all genres and stands alone as a brilliant work of literature. It was written during an intense period of grief after the author lost her father and comes to terms with her own depression through training a goshawk named Mabel. She refers often to TH White, author of The Once and Future King, who also trained a…
The House at Tyneford by Natasha Solomons is set at a beautiful English country house by the seashore, where 19 year old Elise takes a post as a maid to flee Vienna at the start of WWII. She leaves behind her family and a life of privilege to become a servant in a foreign land. At first lost and lonely, she finds friendship in unexpected places and the beauty of Tyneford House grows on her. Full of historical details, Solomons…
Someone by Alice McDermott is a deceptively simple novel about the life of Marie Commeford, an ordinary girl growing up in pre-Depression era Brooklyn. This is a beautifully written book full of observations of everyday life with all its ups and down. It is a slim novel, and I would have loved even more character depth, but a lovely read nonetheless.
The Things We Keep by Sally Hepworth is a novel about a young woman Anna, only 38, diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s. She is placed in an assisted living facility with older people and one younger man named Luke, only 41, who also has Alzheimer’s. While their memories quickly begin to fade, they find unexpected happiness with each other. A sad, tender and compassionate look at this disease and how it affects families as well. Not as good as Still…