Jane Austen in Boca, by Paula Marantz Cohen

Jane Austen in Boca by Paula Marantz Cohen
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Over the past couple of decades, it seems that numerous books come out in groups: Jane Austen books (those with Jane Austen in the title and/or as an updated version of an Austen book), animal books (following the success of Marley & Me, The Art of Running In the Rain, and Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World, as well as other groups.

One of the Jane Austen-based books that I've just reread is Jane Austen in Boca by Paula Marantz Cohen.

I originally read it maybe 20+ years ago when my dad sent a box of large-print books that he figured I'd like. (We have similar tastes; I'll be rereading the other books that he sent in the near future.) Jane Austen in Boca was one of the books.

In this twist on Pride and Prejudice, Carol Newman discovers that Norman Grafstein's wife has died. Carol's husband was a childhood friend of Norman's son, and lives in Boca Raton, where her husband's widowed mother, May, lives. Carol immediately decides she has to set May up with Norma.

The book takes off from there, and involves May's friends, Flo and Lila, as well as other men.

If you love Jane Austen's books, and are looking for a modern light-hearted twist, Paula Marantz Cohen's Jane Austen in Boca just might be the book you're looking for.

View all my reviews

Caught, by Jane Schwartz

Caught by Jane Schwartz
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

There are times when I just want to read (or reread) a book that's interesting and a quick read. Caught by Jane Schwartz is one book that does it for me.

On the surface, Caught deals with the world of pigeon chasers in Brooklyn during the 1950s. Louie is a young girl who is introduced to pigeons on roof-tops through her brother and brother's friend. When the group is found stealing birds from a man who stole from them, Louie is the only one officially caught, then dragged to the local pigeon store. After this trip, Louie meets up with Casey, who owns a large flock in the neighborhood. Casey, who is in his late-30s, needs a chaser, and hires Louie on.

The surface story deals strictly with the birds, Louie and Casey's relationship on the roof, and Louie's family's concern about Louie's time on the roof. As with any decent story, though, there are various layers to sift through.

At the end, though, Louie's mom and step-father decide to move, taking Louie and her brother with them. While Casey promises to come visit, the reader knows that this will never happen, that their relationship is over, and that Louie's chasing days are over.

While the ending may be inevitable, the events leading up to the last page will stick with the reader, making this a book to read, set aside, and read again at a later time.

View all my reviews

The Color Chartreuse, Etc, by Jane Hallock Combs

The Color Chartreuse, Etc by Jane Hallock Combs
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Who doesn't love reading about quirky family members? But then, most of us are related to quirky family members; that, or we are the quirky one, right?

The Color Chartreuse, Etc, by Jane Hallock Combs, is full of quirky family members. Many of the essays here were read on NPR station WKMS in Murray, Kentucky, as well as appearing in several newspapers.

Disclaimer time: I do appear several times in The Color Chartreuse, Etc, as Jane Hallock Combs was my mom. So, maybe I'm a little partial to many, if not most of the essays. I have a feeling, though, that even without that family link, I would laugh at many of these essays.

Why? you ask. Fair question.

Example: Cousins Anna Mae and Ezra, who, during WWII, held off a Nazi invasion with a baseball bat - when they weren't literally tearing their house apart; Greg, who didn't want the tooth fairy tip-toeing into his room to leave money for the tooth under his pillow, and sat in his bedroom doorway with a baseball bat to keep the tooth fairy out; Greg, who after breaking his leg, had a double-legged cast on, and, unable to help Mom at the laundromat, leaned out the Volkswagon's sun-roof, giving a passionate speech to passers-by about being "a poor little boy with a broken leg who just wanted to hep with the laundry!"; and more. There's the time the school bus went to take Mom to school, after her brother told her that the road being taken was the road to heaven...

If you want a good laugh, this is the place. The Color Chartreuse, Etc, by Jane Hallock Combs, has enough laughs to help you through the day.

View all my reviews

The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, by C.S. Lewis

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Most of us have books that we've been meaning to read for a while, and never quite get around to. For me, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis was one of those books.

A family member had mentioned the book - actually, the whole set of Narnia books - for years, to the point that it became a running joke for us. But finally, I decided to give it a go.

The book takes place in an almost magical wardrobe during World War II, when four siblings are sent to stay elsewhere. As the children explore the house, the youngest child, Lucy, discovers a wardrobe that, when one goes deep enough, turns into another reality. When she comes back out, her siblings figure she has imagined it. They soon realize the truth.

Once inside Narnia, the siblings meet many characters and are drawn into a battle of right-vs.-wrong, and are subtly changed in the process.

C.S. Lewis's classic book is a quick read, and definitely worth reading. After finishing The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, I will be going on to finish the rest of the series, as well as recommending it to others.

View all my reviews

Help Thanks Wow: The Three Essential Prayers, by Anne Lamott

Help Thanks Wow: The Three Essential Prayers by Anne Lamott
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Like many people, I have favorite writers. So when I rediscovered Help Thanks Wow: The Three Essential Prayers by Anne Lamott where I'd placed it on one of my bookshelves (years ago), I figured it was past time to read it.

Like many of Lamott's other nonfiction books, Help Thanks Wow: The Three Essential Prayers deals with her liberal Christianity, her ways of praying, and her favorite prayers, which, as one can guess, include "Help, Thanks, (and) Wow."

This short book is filled with Anne's quirky humor, how she relates to others, and how she prays for both herself and others.

Is you're a fan of Anne Lamott and are looking for a quick, satisfying read, Help Thanks Wow: The Three Essential Prayers should fit the bill nicely.

View all my reviews

Before Women Had Wings, by Connie May Fowler

Before Women Had Wings by Connie May Fowler
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Before Women Had Wings by Connie May Fowler is an intense novel dealing with poverty, generational abuse, and hope of escape. Avocet Jackson, nicknamed Bird, is the younger of two sisters (with an older half-brother) living in Florida with their mother, Glory Marie.

After their father's death, the family moves to Tampa. While they had been poor before the move, they slid further into povery, as Glory Marie began drinking heavily, and becoming more and more abusive.

This book, a quick read, is based loosely on Fowler's early life. making it a slightly harder read. But in the end, when Glory Marie lets an elderly friend, Miss Zora, take the sisters into her care, one sees that life might be getting a little better.

While the book might be difficult to read in spots, Connie May Fowler's Before Women Had Wings is well worth the read.

View all my reviews

Rise and Shine, by Anna Quindlen

Rise and Shine by Anna Quindlen
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Some books are enjoyale enough that it's easy for one to reread. For me, Rise and Shine by Anna Quindlen is one of those books.

Bridget Fitzmaurice is a social worker who lives in her sister Meghan's shadow. Meghan is the popular host of Rise and Shine, "the country’s highest-rated morning talk show," until the Monday morning when she says several forbidden words into an open mic.

Within days, Meghan is off the air, has had her marriage implode, and finds her life falling apart.

Bridget's life gets difficult, too. She becomes pregnant by her much older boyfriend, who doesn't want kids. She also helps Meghan's son, Leo, get a summer job, where he is shot and left paralyzed. The book then ties all these loose ends together in a realistic way.

The characters in Rise and Shine are believable, quirks, warts and all, making it a satisfying read.

If you're looking for a good read, Anna Quindlen's Rise and Shine is one to check out.

View all my reviews