Novels Now

It had to do with knowing we were opening ourselves up, cutting ourselves open at our guts and letting the others see inside us in ways we couldn’t even see ourselves. It had to do with beginning to imagine opening ourselves up not only to each other, but also to the whole world. Because wasn’t that what we were hoping? That someday the things we’d squirreled away behind our little white gloves would be right out there on the bookshelves for anyone to see, our souls so pitifully disguised by our tortured prose? -From The Wednesday Sisters, page 82-

Frankie, Linda, Kath, Brett and Ally meet each Wednesday in a park near Ally and Frankie’s home. It is there they talk about raising children and being married, until one day, Linda - honest and direct - pushes them to write, and thus begins the Wednesday Sister’s writing group…a place where each woman will discover exactly who she is and what she wants.

The Wednesday Sisters is set in the late 60’s - on the cusp of the woman’s movement, in the middle of the civil rights movement, and during a time when traditional values began to be challenged. Meg Waite Clayton has given us five women, all different and yet similar…women with their own dreams, aspirations, doubts, and fears. Together they demonstrate what is best about women’s friendships - gentle support, cutting honesty, and fierce loyalty. It is a time of growth, not only for the country, but for these women who have set aside their own dreams to support the dreams of their husbands, but who now want something for themselves. Along their journey the reader witnesses their struggles and sadnesses, along with their joy.

I found myself unable to stop reading this engaging novel. So much about The Wednesday Sisters rang true to me. I loved how Clayton captured the frustration and exhilaration of writing, the fear and desire to share what one has written, and the joy of being part of a writer’s group. I could relate to Ally’s fears of never having a child, Linda’s drive to change the world, Frankie’s fear of rejection, Kath’s pain of a failed relationship, and Brett’s secrets which she covers with her white gloves. Clayton has done something amazing with her cast of characters - she has encapsulated women at their best and worst, with all their shortcomings and strengths…and has given us a novel with which women will identify. At the end of this novel, I did something I rarely do - I sobbed. Not because of sadness, but because I felt touched by the lives of these women.

The Wednesday Sisters is a must read for women. Highly recommended.

Jill A. Davis

246 pages

Back of the Book:

“Emily has a tendency to live with one foot out the door. When her mother dramatically announces, “They’ve found a lump,” Emily gladly leaves behind her career, her boyfriend, and those pesky, unanswerable questions about who she is and what she’s doing with her life to be by her mother’s side. But back in her childhood bedroom, Emily realizes that she hasn’t run fast or far enough—especially when she opens the door, quite literally, to find her past staring her in the face”

My thoughts:

This was a fun, lighter read. Emily is in therapy and is trying to deal with the fact that she runs every time she faces the tough questions but honestly, she doesn’t seem crazy to me. I think her witty inner dialogue keeps her from going over the edge with her dramatic mother (who is hilarious too), her father who is too laid back and her sister who just goes shopping rather than dealing with life. I didn’t think that this book was too heavy, though it does deal with some tougher issues such as death, marriage, children, cancer and family relationships. I’d recommend it to anyone in the mood for a chuckle. (3.5/5)

The Wednesday Sisters by Meg Waite Clayton
Contemporary Fiction
2008 Ballantine Books
Finished on 5/28/08
Rating: 3.5 (Good)
ARC - Due out on June 17

When a friend calls to me from the road
And slows his horse to a meaning walk,
I don’t stand still and look around
On all the hills I haven’t hoed,
And shout from where I am, What is it?
No, not as there is a time to talk.
I thrust my hoe in the mellow ground,
Blade-end up and five feet tall,
And plod: I go up to the stone wall
For a friendly visit.

~Robert Frost

Product Description

Friendship, loyalty, and love lie at the heart of Meg Waite Clayton’s beautifully written, poignant, and sweeping novel of five women who, over the course of four decades, come to redefine what it means to be family.

For thirty-five years, Frankie, Linda, Kath, Brett, and Ally have met every Wednesday at the park near their homes in Palo Alto, California. Defined when they first meet by what their husbands do, the young homemakers and mothers are far removed from the Summer of Love that has enveloped most of the Bay Area in 1967. These “Wednesday Sisters” seem to have little in common: Frankie is a timid transplant from Chicago, brutally blunt Linda is a remarkable athlete, Kath is a Kentucky debutante, quiet Ally has a secret, and quirky, ultra-intelligent Brett wears little white gloves with her miniskirts. But they are bonded by a shared love of both literature – Fitzgerald, Eliot, Austen, du Maurier, Plath, and Dickens – and the Miss America Pageant, which they watch together every year.

As the years roll on and their children grow, the quintet forms a writers circle to express their hopes and dreams through poems, stories, and, eventually, books. Along the way, they experience history in the making: Vietnam, the race for the moon, and a women’s movement that challenges everything they have ever thought about themselves, while at the same time supporting one another through changes in their personal lives brought on by infidelity, longing, illness, failure, and success.

Humorous and moving, The Wednesday Sisters is a literary feast for book lovers that earns a place among those popular works that honor the joyful, mysterious, unbreakable bonds between friends.

I was chatting with my next door neighbor last weekend and she mentioned that when her children were little, she and several other mothers in the neighborhood would get together for coffee every morning. The woman who lived in our house back in those days would hang a quilt (decorated with a coffee cup) out on the front porch to invite the other mothers to stop by for coffee and a visit. Oh, how I would’ve loved to have had a group of friends to get together with when I was a young mother. I was a single mom, working and going to school, so we missed out on the whole playgroup thing. It wasn’t until my daughter was in 3rd grade that I became a stay-at-home mom, but by that time we were living on an acreage, far removed from a neighborhood full of other young families. I was always a bit envious of those moms who got together on a regular basis, sharing advice on teething, potty-training, and how to deal with a picky eater. However, I did have a couple of very good friends to whom I could turn with my questions, as well as offering my own helpful suggestions when asked. I don’t know how any young mother can survive those early years without the love and support of at least one good friend.

Over the years, I’ve learned that friends come and go, especially when one moves around as much as I have. However, I still keep in touch (though not as often as in years past) with maybe a half-dozen friends that I knew from school. I have about the same number of very good friends who live nearby. Each is the kind of friend who would drop everything and rush to my aid if I needed them - even in the middle of the night. I also have several close friends that I’ve come to know from online book groups (we now go back more than 10 years!), as well as all the wonderful people I’ve met since I began blogging two years ago. In many ways, these online groups are much like the gatherings of my neighbor’s era. We chat about the weather and what we’re reading, share tidbits of news about our children (and grandchildren), discuss our aches and pains and illnesses (our own and those of our loved-ones), and offer up virtual hugs and comfort when one of our pets, children or parents dies. So, between my face-to-face friends and my Internet friends, my life is richer than ever before, even in the absence of a front-porch coffee gathering occasioned by the hanging of a signal quilt.

Meg Waite Clayton offers a story of friendship and loyalty, set against the backdrop of the women’s movement. I could easily have been a six-year-old daughter of one of the characters. I have a vague recollection of segregated want-ads and 18-year-olds gaining the right to vote, yet there is probably a lot about the women’s movement that I take for granted. Clayton’s passion for research is apparent, as she incorporates pop culture and historical facts throughout the narrative, and I enjoyed learning about how it felt to be a young woman and mother during the late Sixties and early Seventies.

I was a little put off by the cliché of yet another friendship book in which one woman has marital problems, another struggles to have a baby, and another faces a serious health issue. However, it was this particular character’s illness that drew me deeper into the book, making me care just a little more than I had up to that point.

Recent “friendship books” have centered around book groups, so it was refreshing to read about a group of aspiring writers, thus getting a glimpse into the unfamiliar world of would-be novelists rather than the more familiar world of readers. I have never felt inspired to try my hand at writing a novel (no NaNoWriMo for me!), but I’ve always been intrigued by the way in which a novel comes to be. Like a beautiful painting, it almost seems like it’s been magically created, rather than being the result of long, hard days of solitude and hard work performed under the omnipresent threat of (sometimes brutal) rejection.

The women in The Wednesday Sisters had an annual tradition of watching the Miss America Pageant, something I’ve never been a fan of and I can honestly say I’ve never watched it more than once (and don’t have any lasting memory of any of it!). However, over the years, I’ve watched many hours of the Johnny Carson show, so it didn’t surprise me that my favorite scene from the book was when the women got to attend one of his shows. I won’t spoil the book with an explanation of why they were there, but it was definitely a highlight!

I know I’ve said it in other reviews, but I have to say once again that timing is everything. It’s at times like this that I really hate rating a book. I should know by now that late May is not a good time for me to read anything of substance. I should either re-read an old favorite or continue with some lightweight mystery series. I should also know that sitting in a hospital waiting area or a room in ICU is not conducive to quality reading. Having said that, I believe this book has the potential to be a popular choice among reading groups, as well as one that friends will want to share with one another. It reminds us of the value of true friendship, without resorting to sappy sentimentality and stereotypes. Don’t be put off by my middle-of-the-road rating. Lesa has written a lovely review that I encourage everyone to read. And honestly, how can anyone not like a book that includes the following epigram (from one of my favorite authors and book):

Where there is great love,
there are always miracles.
— Willa Cather,
Death Comes for the Archbishop

Be sure to check out Meg’s website! Someone’s put a lot of effort into it and I enjoyed it both before and after reading the book.

Looking For Salvation at the Dairy Queen
By Susan Gregg Gilmore
Completed May 24, 2008

Looking for a light but entertaining poolside read this summer? If so, then I would recommend Susan Gregg Gilmore’s debut novel, Looking For Salvation at the Dairy Queen.

It’s the story of Catherine Grace Cline, the preacher’s daughter, of Ringgold, Ga. Catherine Grace had been planning her departure from her one stoplight town as long as she could remember. The first part of the book explored her childhood, including the loss of her mother, her befriending of the town “floozy”, the trials and tribulations of being the preacher’s kid, and all creatures big and small in this sleepy Georgia town. The last half of the book was about Catherine Grace’s exodus to Atlanta and eventual return to Ringgold because of a family tragedy. Was big city life all Catherine Grace hoped it to be? Or did she decide that small-town life was perfect after all? I won’t tell you Catherine Grace’s decision, but I think you may have fun reading her journey of self-discovery – with Dilly Bars from Dairy Queen as her therapy.

Personally, I related to Catherine Grace. I fled to more “metropolitan” cities – Macon and Atlanta – to attend college and was bewitched by the allure of these Southern cities. I stayed in Georgia for eight years and loved every minute of it. But the reality of aging parents 500 miles away wielded its ugly head, and I made the decision to move home. I am glad I did. There is, after all, no place like home.

Looking for Salvation at the Dairy Queen is the quintessential Southern book. Gilmore’s writing style was fun and approachable but serious when it needed to be. If you like reading about Southern towns, characters and culture, then this is the book for you. I look forward to reading more from this promising new Southern writer. ( ) 

I had a couple of other books lined up to read before Belong to Me. However, when I allowed myself the pleasure of reading the first chapter of this book, I was immediately sucked in and I couldn’t put it down.

The characters in this story are so real and uncontrived that I found myself wishing I lived in their neighborhood.

I had no idea when I received the ARC of this book that this was a second in a series. The author does a wonderful job of filling the reader in on any previous history and this book worked well by itself.

I thoroughly enjoyed Marisa de los Santos writing style. She paints beautiful pictures and her characters are masterfully written. She also has us exactly where she wants us with her characterizations. I loved Cornelia with her spunky and real personality and I even ended up liking Piper Truitt. Piper’s character especially had me thinking about putting myself in another person’s shoes. I will be on the lookout for more books by Marisa de los Santos because I loved this one. (5/5)

This second book by Marisa de los Santos is about friendship and family, and we see the highs and lows of both in the characters’ lives in this novel.

Cornelia and her doctor husband Teo move in to the ‘perfect’ neighborhood, but the women who live there are very slow to accept former city-dweller Cornelia. In fact, she sticks out like a sore thumb at her first dinner party, wearing a little black dress while the others are wearing pastels and linen slacks. It seems that the circle of friends not only dress alike, but also have an unwritten code for conduct and proper behavior as well. The ‘queen bee’ of the neighborhood, Piper, seems bent on criticizing Cornelia about everything from clothing to lawn care. While we see Piper at first as overly critical and a perfectionist, we later see her as a loving, compassionate woman as she cares for a sick friend. The development of her character as the book progesses was one of the most interesting to watch.

Cornelia does make friends with Lake, a woman who does not live in the neighborhood. Relieved to finally have someone to talk to, Cornelia spends more and more time with Lake and her gifted 13 year-old son, Dev. Dev was an interesting character to read about as well. He starts spending quite a bit of time with Cornelia and Teo at their house and through them meets his first girlfriend, Clare.

The chapters were structured such that each one was from only one character’s perspective and alternated mostly among Cornelia, Piper, and Dev. I thought this worked very well. By the end of the book, I felt that I knew and liked all the main characters in the story. Belong to Me is the second book by Marisa de los Santos, and apparently some of the characters in this novel were also in her first book, Love Walked In. I haven’t read that one, but definitely plan to after really enjoying Belong to Me. This book does stand alone, though, as I didn’t even know it was a continuation of sorts until after I had finished it.

Released 4/1/2008 by Harper Collins.

2008, 388 pp.
Rating: 4/5

Belong to Me by Marisa de los Santos
Contemporary Fiction
2008 HarperCollins Publishers
Finished on 3/13/08
Rating: 4.5/5 (Terrific!)

ARC - Due out on April 1, 2008

Book Description

Everyone has secrets. Some we keep to protect ourselves, others we keep to protect those we love.

A devoted city dweller, Cornelia Brown surprised no one more than herself when she was gripped by the sudden, inescapable desire to leave urban life behind and head for an idyllic suburb. Though she knows she and her beloved husband, Teo, have made the right move, she approaches her new life with trepidation and struggles to forge friendships in her new home. Cornelia’s mettle is quickly tested by judgmental neighbor Piper Truitt. Perfectly manicured, impeccably dressed, and possessing impossible standards, Piper is the embodiment of everything Cornelia feared she would find in suburbia. A saving grace soon appears in the form of Lake. Over a shared love of literature and old movies, Cornelia develops an instant bond with this warm yet elusive woman who has also recently arrived in town, ostensibly to send her perceptive and brilliant son, Dev, to a school for the gifted.

Marisa de los Santos’s literary talents shine in the complex interactions she creates between these three women. She deftly explores the life-altering roller coaster of emotions Piper faces as she cares for two households, her own and that of her cancer-stricken best friend, Elizabeth. Skillfully, de los Santos creates an enigmatic and beguiling character in Lake, who draws Cornelia closer even as she harbors a shocking secret. And from the first page until the exhilarating conclusion, de los Santos engages readers with Cornelia, who, while trying to adapt to her new surroundings, must remain true to herself. As their individual stories unfold, the women become entangled in a web of trust, betrayal, love, and loss that challenges them in ways they never imagined, and that ultimately teaches them what it means for one human being to belong to another.

I loved this book. I loved the vividly depicted characters and how the author slowly allows the reader to get close to them. Even the prickly ones. I love the unique, quirky names de los Santos has chosen: Cornelia, Teo (Mateo), Deveroux, Aidan, Piper, Lake, Rafferty, and Kyle. Each name fits its respective character perfectly, and as I think back on the story, I can quickly envision each and every one.

And to think I almost gave up, sure that it was going to be nothing more than another book about women’s friendships. Not that there’s anything wrong with that sort of book, but I just finished Elizabeth Noble’s Things I Want My Daughters to Know and felt I needed something a bit more substantial. Well, I wound up getting it. Sure, Belong to Me borders on fluffy chick-lit, but the writing is oh, so beautiful. Not lyrical in the sense of Pat Conroy or Rick Bragg, but beautiful, descriptive phrases that force you to pause and go back for a second reading. And no wonder: It turns out that Marisa is also an award-winning poet.

This is a book about love & friendship, trust & loyalty, and ultimately the strength of family ties. The subplot dealing with Elizabeth’s cancer is realistic and tender, yet doesn’t dominate the entire story. The blossoming friendship between Piper and Cornelia reminded me just ever-so-slightly of Susan Sarandon and Julia Roberts’ characters in the movie Step Mom. I found myself getting teary-eyed on several occasions, yet this isn’t a depressing read. More than a guilty pleasure, this intimate and engaging read is the perfect book to curl up with on a rainy, spring afternoon and one you’ll want to share with all your girlfriends. I’d love to read a sequel, as I’m already missing Cornelia, Piper, Dev and Clare, but it may be another year or two before the author publishes another book. (And who knows if she plans to continue with Cornelia’s story.) But as luck would have it, I missed her debut title (Love Walked In), which just happens to be the prequel to Belong to Me. I know what I’m buying tomorrow at work!

Things I Want My Daughters to Know by Elizabeth Noble
Contemporary Fiction
2008 HarperCollins Publishers
Finished on 3/7/08
Rating: 4/5 (Very Good)
ARC - Due out on April 8th

Publisher’s Blurb:

Barbara had always been the backbone of her family. Warm, funny, and loving, her four daughters adored her and relied on her. Faced with the reality of leaving them before any of them are ready, Barbara writes letters to each of them, and a journal about the things she wants them to know.

Facing their first year without her, drawing on the wisdom in the legacy she has left behind, her girls might just find a way to cope with their loss. And in coming to terms with their bereavement, can they also set themselves free to enjoy their lives with all the passion and love each deserves?

As she did in The Reading Group, The Friendship Test, and Alphabet Weekends, Elizabeth Noble pairs humor and poignancy in a tale about love, loss, and family.

Book Description:

How do you cope in a world without your mother?

When Barbara realizes time is running out, she writes letters to her four daughters, aware that they’ll be facing the trials and triumphs of life without her at their side. But how can she leave them when they still have so much growing up to do?

Take Lisa, in her midthirties but incapable of making a commitment; or Jennifer, trapped in a stale marriage and buttoned up so tight she could burst. Twentysomething Amanda, the traveler, has always distanced herself from the rest of the family; and then there’s Hannah, a teenage girl on the verge of womanhood about to be parted from the mother she adores.

But by drawing on the wisdom in Barbara’s letters, the girls might just find a way to cope with their loss. And in coming to terms with their bereavement, can they also set themselves free to enjoy their lives with all the passion and love each deserves?

This heartfelt novel by bestselling author Elizabeth Noble celebrates family, friends . . . and the glorious, endless possibilities of life.

It’s been over two years since I read Elizabeth Noble’s The Reading Group and I wound up giving this new release the same rating. Now I’m wondering why I never got around to reading her other books (Alphabet Weekends: Love on the Road from A to Z and The Friendship Test). While her books aren’t great works of literature, and the characters are easily forgotten after a few days, they’re likable people cast in believable situations. Things I Want My Daughters to Know is an enjoyable story (not too terribly sad or maudlin, given the subject matter) that I looked forward to settling back into after a busy day at work. I enjoyed the contemporary British setting and would almost compare Noble’s writing to that of Robin or Rosamunde Pilcher’s, although it lacks their lyrical descriptions of the landscape and home life. Nonetheless, this is an entertaining comfy, fluffy read. Fans of Patricia Gaffney, Kristen Hannah, Joanna Trollope, Debbie Macomber, and Marcia Willet won’t be disappointed!

Betts McGee fled her childhood home of Charleston, SC, after the sudden death of her mother, which drove a wedge between her and her fiance, J.D. Betts moved to New York City, became a successful financier and raised her son, Adrian. For almost 20 years, Betts never spoke to her father, sister or estranged fiance. That is, until her company sent her back to Charleston on assignment - and she must deal with her ghosts from the past, including J.D., who still has feelings for Betts.

This is my first novel by Dorothea Benton Frank, and I have to admit that I was slightly disappointed with the plot in Bulls Island. On the surface, it sounded like fun “poolside reading” - but the plot did not move quickly enough to keep this reader interested in the story. It was nearly half way into the novel before Betts actually arrives in Charleston. First, the reader must deal with her son’s departure to college and Betts’s fling with another man before the reader gets what she’s been waiting for: the boy-meets-girl tension that dangled from this story for nearly 150 pages. When we finally get there, the book rushes through the storyline. The whole plot was choppy and disjointed to me.

While the plot was not up to par, I did find Frank’s writing style easy and fun to read. Her depictions of Southern landscapes rival Nicholas Sparks or Sue Monk Kidd. I felt the humidity, smelled the river and watched the grass brown right with the characters. As a fan of books set in the South, I found these parts of the book to be the best.

Would I read another book by Dorothea Benton Frank? Only after doing some more research on what other readers have thought about her stories and examining what the plots have to offer. I am guessing that fans of her writing might enjoy Bulls Island. For others, I think you can safely pass on this tale. (3/5)

It seemed impossible that you could stand in a kitchen making hot chocolate and grilled-cheese sandwiches with your best friend dying in the next room, the voices of her children tangled up with the voices of your own, that you could butter bread and watch, through the window, the trees relinquishing their leaves and hear the silvery tumble of water into a kettle, and be suddenly aware that what resided at the heart of every shape and sound was peace. A rightness hovering above all that was wrong, shimmering, like heat rising from a street in summer. -From Belong To Me, page 85-

Marisa de los Santos has penned a novel filled to the brim with laughter, tears, friendships, dreams, and love. It is a novel so genuine and real that I found myself nodding and thinking ‘exactly!’ over and over again.

Cornelia Brown moves with her oncologist husband, Teo, from the city to the suburbs - envisioning a perfect life complete with manicured lawns. Instead she finds a world filled with a grounding reality; a world more rewarding than she could ever have imagined.

All of Santos’ characters are authentic - flawed and all too human at times, they wiggle their way into the reader’s heart. Piper, Cornelia’s queen-bee next door neighbor, introduces Cornelia to the neighborhood with biting judgment tinged with anger - but, later reveals herself to be a person filled with self doubt, a character whose depth and honesty made me love her. Dev, a thirteen year old boy with an absent father, embodies the awkwardness of adolescence mixed with a maturity beyond his years. Lake, Dev’s single mother, holds a devastating secret - one that will rock all the characters to their core when it is uncovered. Santos draws her male characters splendidly…Teo, Toby, Rafferty and Tom all made me wish I lived in Cornelia’s neighborhood.

Santos is an award-winning poet (and best selling author of her first novel: Love Walked In), and her love of language shows in her radiant descriptions and acute ear for dialogue. Santos builds the tension slowly, revealing her characters chapter by chapter, until the final and unexpected end. Belong To Me is not just Cornelia’s story, but the story of all women - and it ultimately reveals the redemptive power of love and forgiveness.

This was a novel I resisted putting down for even a few minutes. It is Women’s Fiction at its best. I loved it, and I can’t wait to read Love Walked In.

Santos is a talented writer - one who will touch the reader’s heart and make you wish the book will never end.

Belong To Me is highly recommended. Rated 5/5.

Catherine Grace Cline was 6 years old on the hot summer day that her mama went to pick berries, fell into the river, and died. The indelible influence of growing up in a small town without a mother makes Catherine long for the day that she can leave Ringgold, Georgia behind her.

When I received the ARC of this book I thought I was in for a fun, light-hearted read. It was that. It was charming, humorous and fun but it was also touching. The evolution of Catherine’s relationship to her sister, father, Sunday School teacher, and next door neighbor, Gloria Jean made reading the whole book worthwhile. However, I enjoyed getting to know the residents of Ringgold, warts and all, and I enjoyed the way that the author drew the story to a close. (4/5)

I found this to be a very interesting story of the complexity of family relationships. It deftly illustrates how no decision we make is without repercussions for our family members.

Deborah chooses to shoulder the responsibility for Grace’s actions and inadvertently touches off a chain reaction of events that leads to family confessions about pressure, expectations and what it means to be accepted and loved in a family.

It also explores the pros and cons of living in a small town where everyone knows you and your business.

Overall, I think this is a very solid read and I will look for more books by Barbara Delinsky. (3.5/5)

I had a love-hate relationship with this book. I loved the fact that we see Tully and Kate from a young age and we get a sense of what makes each girl tick.

I hate the fact that Tully is such a selfish jerk and I find it hard to believe that anyone could maintain a friendship with her for that long.

This was a touching story in places but I feel like I have read this story before. For example, I guessed early on in the story what would happen to Kate and I was exactly right.

As mom to a teen-aged daughter, I felt like the author did an excellent job of portraying how painful and turbulent these years can be. However, toward the end of the book I felt like it was manipulated to make me cry and it irritated me because I did cry. I have to say that this book was just ok, despite the soggy tissues.(3/5)