Hi. I hope everyone is staying well. It appears re-openings and activities are picking up and summer could be busy after all. We’ve had some nice days but also quite a bit of rain, which has made the foliage here go crazy. The lilac bushes are in full bloom and the smell is lovely, even Stella, at left, thinks so.
It’s high pollen time, so if I come down with headaches and sniffles I’ll try not to immediately think of Covid-19. I’m still social distancing … though I’ve been hitting some tennis with friends, which I’m finding is a sport that’s relatively safe, if you only touch the ball with your racket and use the hand sanitizer before and after you play. The virus cases here have dropped off significantly.
Meanwhile I was considering whether to put out a summer reading list this year for myself, but I sort of like to pick up whatever is on my mind at the time. I’m an avid mood reader and tend to keep my reads under wraps till I post about them … as if it’s a big surprise, ha. Will you be making a summer reading list this year?
Meanwhile, it’s almost prime back-deck reading season here and I’ll likely be mixing in faster plot-based reads with slower literary fiction. It’s a kind of mix that usually works at this time of year. Though have you ever noticed that e-readers aren’t the best for reading in the sunlight? I can’t see a thing on the screen. So it’s back to print books for the deck. And now I’ll leave you with reviews of a few books that I finished lately.
The Falling Woman by Richard Farrell /Algonquin Books /out June 23, 2020
Synopsis: This debut novel tells the story of a middle-age woman — Erin Geraghty — who plans to attend a retreat for cancer patients in California but the plane crashes en route and the NTSB investigator, Charlie Radford, is tasked in the aftermath with identifying the 123 bodies and figuring out if a lone survivor at the hospital is indeed for real. But before he can interview the woman, she checks out and no one knows where she’s gone.
My Thoughts: I enjoyed this quick read, which I’d describe as thoughtful suspense lit. It’s told in alternating chapters from the two main protagonists’ viewpoints, describing in interesting detail their backstories. Erin is the woman scheduled to take the flight who’s been through many rounds of chemo for the past year for pancreatic cancer. She’s a lawyer in the DC area with a husband and two grown kids. But under her ordeal with cancer, she’s become tired of her marriage and recalls an affair she had years ago. Charlie, meanwhile, is a former pilot who loves flying but no longer can due to a heart ailment. His wife wants him to commit to having kids and buying a house, but he’s been resisting, and when the crash happens, he becomes consumed with his job of investigating his first big crash site.
These two characters held my interest, especially Charlie who seems so earnest and wants to do right by those who lost their lives, but then is hampered by rumors of a lone survivor. Eventually Charlie and Erin’s stories intersect and the suspense builds well … as to whether Erin was on the flight and survived and whether Charlie will get to the truth of what happened and announce it at the crash hearing. The ending is a doozy that will have you turning the pages quickly to get to.
I liked the novel’s themes of fate, randomness, privacy … and the miracle of life, which it offers up with an enticing sensibility. You might not like or agree with everything these characters do … but I found it was their decision to make. My only minor critique is there’s a bit of repetition of Charlie’s work manta to follow the evidence and be objective. But I was okay with the premise — not fretting too much over whether the crash situation seems implausible … you’ll likely need to suspend some disbelief … to see other points it’s making. Such a miraculous kind of premise reminded me a bit of Stephen Kiernan’s novel “The Curiosity” about an ancient man trapped in ice who comes to life … you just go with the possibility of it and see where its wonder will take you.
In disclosure: I received an e-galley of this novel from the publisher Algonquin Books to review. Thanks for making it possible.
Rodham by Curtis Sittenfeld / Random House / 432 pages / May 2020
Synopsis: This is an alternative history kind of novel in which the life and political career of Hillary Rodham Clinton is re-imagined as if she and Bill had gone their separate ways instead of marrying.
My Thoughts: I’m probably in the minority about this novel, which I listened to as an audiobook, as I was expecting to like it much more since I usually really like Curtis Sittenfeld’s novels as she is a great storyteller. But I guess I’m in the camp who liked the first part of the novel with the young grad school age Hillary and Bill together at Yale and then in Arkansas … but when they split and the alternate history of their lives in the story starts … I thought as it went on …. it went sort of off the rails. Some of the plot turns become a bit ludicrous … how she knocks off Carol Moseley Braun’s run for the Senate … and then near the end does a stump speech with Trump at one point … and how she asks to sleep with a scoundrel-version of Bill decades later when he asks her to a private dinner … then gets angry when he doesn’t.
Some parts seemed believable as Hillary and other parts not so much. Surely the ending is good and Hillary’s strong independence, her smarts and her stance on issues … but having her let Trump give an endorsement speech in her run for the presidency threw me into the DTs. I was a bit surprised too how it differed from real life political events and sequences and didn’t care too much for all the personal stuff … but I did like how the story highlights the double standards female political candidates endure in the U.S. compared to their male counterparts. It’s just crazy the sexism in politics and in running for U.S. office and the presidency. Hillary faced it all when she ran in 2016 … awful stuff, which the novel really re-affirms. You realize once again the almost impossible threshold for a woman to become president, due to underlying sexist notions, that the country is still awaiting its first … here embarrassingly in the twenty-first century.
All in all, it’s a semi-sympathetic portrayal of Hillary … not fully, there are mistakes. But the portrayal of Bill Clinton is pretty damning, as a narcissistic predator. He comes off seemingly worse than even Trump. It’s a bit awkward … such a biographical fictional sketch of Hillary who’s still an active public figure these days. Some parts in the novel I liked about Hillary’s thoughts and how she affects people’s lives around the country (there’s a woman she befriends who’s going through cancer treatments) and yet other parts I didn’t like as much … and thought better of Hillary in reality. So you decide if this one is for you.
Sea Wife by Amity Gaige / Knopf / 270 pages / 2020 / April 2020
Whoa this is a marriage-on-the rocks kind of story between a husband — Michael — who suggests that his family of 4 (with kids ages 7 and 3) take a year away from their home in Connecticut to sail around the Caribbean near Panama. His wife — Juliet — has had problems with depression (stemming from issues in her childhood) and feels rotten for not completing her PhD dissertation on the poetry of Anne Sexton. While the husband Michael, who’s a sailing enthusiast from childhood, is eager to have the family go, and seems like a libertarian in his political views and a Trump supporter … which is one of things that causes he and his wife to argue. Still they seem to love each other from their college days (as well as their cute kids) … just not at the same time.
As the family begins their sailing trip, it becomes interesting with them voyaging among islands and encountering various people and nature along the way. They also experience their fair share of troubles: with weather and the boat. It’s a story told in alternating paragraphs between Juliet (while on the boat and also at times looking back later on what happened) as well as Michael’s views from his sailing logbook entries. So from fairly early on you know something wrong has happened on the trip … but you don’t know exactly what till near the end.
You get Juliet’s and Michael’s backstories too and it shines a light on all the nooks and crannies of their marriage and the nuances as it sort of combusts. The young creative daughter Sybil also plays a pretty playful role in the story (not to mention the baby Georgie) and their sailing adventure, whose outcome affects everyone on the boat. Needless to say, the family doesn’t end up making the trip to the one year mark. Kudos to the author — who cleverly intertwined the dialogue of the husband and wife and made it into an engaging story. After giving this 4.5 stars on Goodreads, I will have to go back and read the author’s 2013 novel “Schroder” sometime in the future.
Ps. I read both the print copy of Sea Wife and listened to the audiobook of it, which is superbly done by Cassandra Campbell (as Juliet), Will Damron (as Michael), and Emily Eiden (as Sybil). I especially recommend the audio version as the back and forth segments from the characters are excellent; they really play off one another’s conversations in interesting ways.
That’s all for now. What about you — have you read any of these and if so, what did you think?
Things are just beginning to open up here in southern New York. For instance, restaurants are only open for outdoor dining
I must admit that the Hillary book seems a bit strange. But I can believe the Trump thing. For most is his life he was a Democrat who mostly supported democratic candidates.
Stay safe.
Hi Brian: that’s a good point: I was wondering why the author of Rodham would put Hillary & Trump together for an endorsement …. but early on he was a Democrat so I guess that’s why, though they make very strange bedfellows — so to speak. The book made me feel a bit awkward since it bended the history of a real person and I guess I wasn’t fully prepared for that.
It’s good that New York is being cautious where you are. Some states apparently are seeing a spike in cases. Stay well to you too!
It was certainly a very curious read. Reading in Australia and not knowing the US political scene as well, I got confused by not knowing what bits were real, or based on a real event, but changed, or which bits were completely made up. So I think some of the nuance and double-plays and sleight of hands were missed by me. That’s what it felt like anyway, that I was missing enough information to really enjoy what Sittenfeld was trying to do.
Yeah Brona I can see where the novel is a pretty insider view of what happened in U.S. politics since the Clintons came on the scene in the late ’80s to the present. Then Sittenfeld twisted those sequences & politicians around. So I can imagine it would be confusing from afar.
I enjoyed The Sea Wife (eBook) and looking forward to trying Rodham as well.
Hi Diane: it seems we are on the same wavelength about which books to read. So glad you liked The Sea Wife. The audio of it was awesome! Stay well.
Thank you so much for these reviews, especially for the review of Rodham. I’ve been very curious about it.
Yeah Deb, I’d be interested to hear what you think of Rodham once you get to it. I think some have loved it while others have liked just parts of it. The reception seems a bit mixed. Enjoy your weekend.
Hillary Clinton is a hero of mine and I have enjoyed Curtis Sittenfeld’s books in the past but I can’t bring myself to read this one. The other two that you reviewed sound interesting to me and are possibilities for the reading list.
We’re still self-isolating and wearing our masks when we go out here in Southeast Texas. So far, so good. Stay well.
Thanks Dorothy, you too. I’ve also liked Hillary so perhaps I might be a bit overly sensitive to a fictional story about her. So perhaps that’s probably I liked some parts of the novel but not other parts etc. It’s not exactly an easy ride. Enjoy your reads & garden!
All the books you talked about here sound good. I really do want to make a summer reading list because what book blogger doesn’t? I DO enjoy the act but I hardly ever follow my own list. I probably will though. Even if it’s just to get my mind off all the news.
Reopening. Craziness here. Lots opened. Some business are taking it very seriously because they want to stay open. Others, throwing caution to the wind and not taking any precautions. Well, they won’t have my business. If I venture out, it will only be to places that have taken the extra measures seriously.
My co-worker is retiring at the end of this month. She had planned to retire right when we got sent home to quarantine but then stayed on because it was crazy. I am going to take her out at the end of the month. It will be slightly dangerous but I need a proper meal and a cocktail to go with it.
Hi Ti, perhaps it’ll be all right to go out to eat … if there’s distancing. We are still wearing masks the rare times we go inside at public stores. I’m worried about California; hope it doesn’t spike a lot. I’ll be interested to see your summer reading list. The lists are fun to make & think about. I have about 20 on my TBR list right now, perhaps I could wheedle that down to 10 for the summer list. take care there.
While some things have opened and more will soon, as far as I can see the virus is still quite rampant in Los Angeles County, so I am staying home for a while longer. I will read Rodham, in fact I just ordered it, because Sittenfeld is one of my favorite authors and I admire these “alternate biographical” novels she does. I thought American Wife was brilliant and I want to see what she did with Hilary. I can see, however, how you could have objections to the story.
Hi Judy, it seems wise to shelter in place still as the numbers there still seem high. I finally got my hair done last week (first since Feb) … though everyone there was wearing masks & the haircutter even had a mask & face shield, so it felt somewhat safe with all the hand sanitizer too. But I don’t plan to go out much here, even with lower numbers. Some of the story about the Clintons was good storytelling & interesting … and Hillary still was pretty admired … but parts of the story might’ve made it a mixed bag … or at least for me. A friend of mine worked for them & knew them … and I might tell her … be cautious! Cheers.
Those lilac bushes are so beautiful, I can almost smell them from here. Thanks for sharing!
Hi Katherine, thanks for stopping by! Yeah these big lilac bushes are all over the parks here … and they smell pretty amazing. The purple color is pretty nice too. Can’t complain. Wish you well.
Wow, your lilacs are so pretty! Mine don’t even have flowers on them yet. The dog is very cute too. I hope you have a great week and enjoy your books!
Hi thanks AJ. Our Lab dog Stella is a lush for compliments. And the lilac bushes around town here are going crazy … it’s an amazing smell. I hope they last awhile. Enjoy your week.
The lilacs are beautiful… I can practically smell them! One downside of being in FL is that I miss my favorite northern spring flowers. I’m still deciding whether to bother with a summer reading list this year. My reading taste is so variable these days, it’s hard to know what will appeal. Maybe an aspirational list?
My daughter read Rodham a couple weeks ago. She enjoyed it more than you did, but I’m not rushing to put it on my list. I just got a copy of Sea Wife and am very much looking forward to reading it. Think I’ll try to get a copy of the audio as well and make it a read/listen combo. Cassandra Campbell is such a great narrator.
Glad you’re able to enjoy tennis again. We have a pickleball court for our community, so we’ve tried that a few times. It’s pretty hot here now, so that’s an early morning or near sunset activity!
Great to hear from you JoAnn. Oh Sea Wife is Very good as an audio, I hope you like it. You Must get the audio, ha! I liked Sea Wife better than Rodham (though I’m still glad I listened to Rodham (I was very curious as to where she was going with it). Sea Wife is cleverly done. It reminded me very slightly of Delia Ephron’s Siracusa for some reason– maybe just the different characters & the trip aspect of it. I hope you are enjoying the pickleball … though I can imagine it must be very hot there now, good for a swim!
I’m adding The Falling Woman to my TBR. I could stand to read a thoughtful mystery right now. I love the photo of your lilac. Ous are all bloomed out and the remains are brown and ugly. We are supposed to have good weather this week. Something to look forward to. Have a good week. My Sunday Salon post
Hi Anne: thanks for stopping by. I think you might enjoy a quick read like The Falling Woman; it kept the pages turning. And I’m hoping all the lilac bushes around town will last another week or two. We’ve had quite a bit of rain! Enjoy your week … and I plan to stop by your site soon. cheers.
Interesting reviews! I don’t think I could handle an alternate Clinton history because every day I already wish she were president instead of Trump. I’m enjoying the blooms and also sniffling. I was told that upper respiratory is more likely allergy since Covid is lower respiratory. There is some comfort in that.
Hi Sarah! Yeah I hope you just have allergies. The pollen here is very high now — and probably where you live too. It’s windy too. The Clinton novel has a better ending but it’s a different match-up along the way. The 2016 election will live in infamy. It’s still a real shame for the U.S. We must work for change this Nov.
I’ve been looking forward to reading someone’s thoughts on Rodham and so glad to read it here. I actually feel a little more inclined to read it now but maybe I should read up on her biography a bit first. I’m not typically a fan of alternate history but this does sound intriguing.
Several places are opening up here as well but our counts are going up, not down. Most likely, we’ll continue to stay home through the summer.
Hey Athira, it seems the virus counts in the States are spiking in various places, Ugh. Stay safe! The Rodham book has a lot in it … if you like political kinds of novels you might give it a try. It also has quite a bit on the Clintons personal life which might or might not be your cup of tea. It had some hits & misses for me.