It’s the 1950s and tradition reigns in America. For the most part the Kaufmans fit in. Except for Jo, who’s more interested in sports and playing with the daughter of their maid, both of which cause her mother no end of aggravation. Her younger sister Bethie was their mother’s favorite—pretty, popular, and destined either to marry well or be a star. For Jo, it’s her father who ... Read More...
The Body in Question
Standard courtroom drama fiction has never been a favorite of mine, but I recently read two novels that put such an interesting spin on them I’m changing my mind a bit. I’m calling them ‘courtroom drama plus’ because both came at the genre from an unusual perspective. The first was Miracle Creek, which I loved and the second is a new novel called The Body in Question. The twist ... Read More...
The River by Peter Heller
Books written by men and about men? No thanks. All about canoeing and camping? Hard pass. Set entirely in the wilderness? Nope. Peter Heller’s new novel, The River? 5 stars. Yes, you read that right. Nothing about this novel’s description appealed to me, but when my friend Susie recommended it I knew I had to let go of my prejudices and give it a go. 24 hours later I finished ... Read More...
Fruit of the Drunken Tree
Petrona used to live on a farm in Colombia, with her nine brothers and her sister. Then the paramilitary showed up, burned down their house and their fields, and took her father and her three oldest brothers. Now, she, her mother, three of her brothers and her sister live in shack in the slums of Bogotá. At 13 she is sent to work as a maid for the Santiagos, a wealthy family in ... Read More...
Mothers’ Week: Mother Country
Nadia’s life is not an easy one. She works not one, but two jobs—as a home attendant for an elderly man and as a nanny for a little girl. It’s necessary because she lives in Brooklyn while her daughter Larissa is still back in Ukraine. They’ve been separated for six years. Lonely years for Nadia as a non-English speaker, looked upon with distrust by the other Ukrainians she ... Read More...
Mothers’ Week: The Island of Sea Women
This coming Sunday is Mother’s Day so this week my reviews are focused on three books with very different perspectives on motherhood. Each offered something important in its own way and reminded me how, like so much of what women do, it is impossible to fit the role of mother into one finite slot. Off the coast of Korea’s mainland is an island called Jeju. There was ... Read More...
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