Book Review: Marjorie Morningstar by Herman Wouk

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Marjorie Morningstar
by
Herman Wouk

Rating: 4 out of 5.

I first read Marjorie Morningstar about thirty-five years ago and, because I loved it the first time, I knew I wanted to read it again. At the time, I knew a little about Herman Wouk because I watched the 1970s miniseries The Winds of War, but I had never read his books, including The Caine Mutiny, winner of the 1952 Pulitzer Prize and Youngblood Hawke, which I would go on to read and also love!

Published in 1955, Marjorie Morningstar is a coming-of-age story about a young Jewish woman who wants to be a Broadway actress. Beginning in 1933, we follow Marjorie Morgenstern, a seventeen-year-old student at Hunter College, as she tries to break into acting. Her father, Arnold, has been working hard at his importing business and the family recently moved from the Bronx to Central Park West. Arnold wants the best for Marjorie, but he also wants to make sure she knows the value of money. And her mother, Rose wants nothing more than for Marjorie to marry a successful young man. Maybe that will happen. Marjorie’s active social life has already earned her many admirers.

From here we watch Marjorie as she acts in college productions and meets people connected to the acting business. There she makes friends with Marsha Zelenko who has lots of advice and convinces Marjorie to work at a camp across the lake from South Wind, an upstate resort that puts on productions. Although forbidden (Rose calls the place Sodom), they row over to South Wind and Marsha introduces her to the famed composer Noel Airman, ten years older than Marjorie. Their attraction to each other is electric and the two begin a long and tumultuous relationship. Noel is charming and clever, but he’s also unsettled and self-absorbed. Their relationship drives the story as Noel falters in his career and Marjorie realizes, despite her success in college, she will not make it on stage. The big question is if Marjorie and Noel will make it together.

Once again, I was fully engrossed in the story, but does it stand the test of time? There are some parts I didn’t like the second time around because of how dated they were, displaying prejudices and attitudes that do not fly in today’s world. But the psychology between Marjorie and Noel was great and I especially liked the family dynamics and conflicts, particularly between Noel and his father. I also liked reading about how Marjorie, and especially Noel, resisted family pressure to follow traditional roads to adulthood. Marjorie’s family was much more open to having her try acting, although they seemed to hope she would settle down and marry. But Noel felt pressure to follow in his father’s footsteps and he did everything he could to make sure that wouldn’t happen.

Not everyone appreciates long books, but I enjoy them because for me, they really show character development over time. This one was close to 600 pages, so be warned! Now, do I re-read Youngblood Hawke? Maybe this summer!

Check out these links for more about Herman Wouk and his books:

Remembering American author Herman Wouk, 1915 – 2019
Youngblood Hawke
What’s That Movie? Youngblood Hawke
Youngblood Hawke book covers—brown and orange dominate

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Book Review: The Rebel Romanov, Julie of Saxe-Coburg, The Empress Russia Never Had by Helen Rappaport

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The Rebel Romanov
by
Helen Rappaport

Rating: 4 out of 5.

About a year ago, I read The Romanov Sisters by Helen Rappaport and was fascinated. After I finished that, I went on to read Doctor Zhivago by Boris Pasternak and a lighter weight book, I Was Anastasia by Ariel Lawhon. Because of my interest, when I saw The Rebel Romanov, I knew I had to read it. I had never heard of Julie of Saxe-Coburg. I wanted to know how she fit into the Romanov dynasty and what happened to her. And the cover was intriguing!

I went in blind, as I usually do, and I quickly learned that Saxe-Coburg was a German dynasty in what was part of the Holy Roman Empire during the 1700s and 1800s. Their duchy was a major player in arranging royal marriages, to secure power and money. Saxe-Coburg was one of the poorest duchies and desperately needed funds. Julie’s mother, Countess Augusta Reuss of Ebersdorf, aggressively maneuvered to have her seven children marry into various dynasties in Europe. Years later, Julie’s niece (her sister, Victoria’s daughter) became Queen Victoria and married Prince Albert, Julie’s nephew, her brother, Leopold’s son. Leopold was the first King of Belgium. Complicated, isn’t it?

But what happened to Julie during this time? In 1796, when Julie was fourteen, her mother married her off to Grand Duke Konstantin. Konstantin was a Romanov, but with others in line, he was unlikely to become Tsar. Julie was ill-prepared for the rigid and isolated royal life in St. Petersburg, 1500 miles from home. Konstantin turned out to be a cruel brute and a philanderer and as soon as she could, she left Russia under the pretext of seeking health treatments. After she left Russia, she lived most of her life in Switzerland. Although she sought a life out of prying eyes, Julie also lived extravagantly, much to her money managers’ despair.

The Napoleonic Wars (1803 – 1815) added another layer of complication to these years: the Romanov sons commanded regiments and Julie’s brothers were fighting as well. And at one point, after Napoleon divorced Josephine, he was looking around the duchies for a new wife!

I enjoyed reading this account of a person I had never heard of, but it was less interesting to me than The Romanov Sisters. I liked reading about Catherine the Great, who was Konstantin’s grandmother. She was very involved in marrying her grandsons off to suitable wives, hoping to groom them for leadership and prevent her son, Paul, from becoming the future Tsar.

Although once married to a Romanov, Julie wasn’t much of a rebel or a major figure in history and less is known about her life. Because she wanted to live a private and secluded life, much of her correspondence was destroyed. Although the book is very well researched, Rappaport had less to work with. What I found most interesting were the heavy lines between Saxe-Coburg and England. And although many years ahead, it was interesting to think about what was to become of the Romanovs in the time leading up to the Russian Revolution in 1917.

I recommend The Rebel Romanov to readers who like European history and royal intrigue. And if you like Russian history, check out The Romanov Sisters by Helen Rappaport.

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Book Review: Behind Closed Doors by B. A. Paris

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Behind Closed Doors
by
B. A. Paris

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

If you like domestic thrillers, check out Behind Closed Doors, a story about a woman who seems to have the perfect marriage, but the truth of their relationship is locked inside their beautiful home.

Set outside London, we first meet Grace Harrington as a single woman in her early thirties. A successful buyer for Harrod’s, she has dedicated her life to raising her little sister, Millie, who was born with Down’s Syndrome. It’s a dream come true when she meets her future husband, Jack Angel, forty-one, smart, successful, and handsome. A lawyer specializing in protecting battered women, he’s never lost a case and is passionate about his job.

In the beginning, their courtship is like a fairy tale and they quickly become serious. Grace was nervous about how her sister would fit into their relationship, but Jack has been wonderful with Millie. Millie will soon turn eighteen and graduate from her school, and be Grace’s full responsibility. When Jack proposes three months later, he tells her, “I just want you to know that wherever we live, there will always be a place for Millie.”

From the beginning, something is off. Red flags are everywhere, even at their wedding and on their honeymoon. And now Grace is fully dependent on her new husband because Jack insisted that Grace quit her job. Together, they host dinners, go out to lunch with Jack’s friends, and visit Millie. Grace is never alone, until she’s behind closed doors…

I won’t include spoilers, but this is a very readable and fast-moving suspense novel that checks the boxes for domestic thrillers. I watched Grace get into a dangerous relationship and wondered how she didn’t see the warning signs! Blinded by infatuation, and vulnerable because of her situation with Millie, she makes mistakes that trap her in their home. With almost no resources, I hoped she would find an opportunity to break out of a dangerous marriage.

Like many books in this genre, you’re going to need to accept the facts as they’re given, and not question things that don’t make complete sense. Behind Closed Doors is a solid thriller with a story that keeps moving, a book you can read on a plane or the beach and not have to concentrate too much! But readers sensitive to violence with twisted, evil characters and storylines might not enjoy the story.

B. A. Paris is a Franco-Irish author who lives in England and is the author of eight novels. Behind Closed Doors was her debut novel, published in 2016. Learn more about Paris and her books here.

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Book Review: The Correspondent by Virginia Evans

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The Correspondent
by
Virginia Evans

Rating: 3 out of 5.

Ask ten people who come to the library what they are reading, have just read, or are waiting to read, and chances are five of them will say The Correspondent, Virginia Evans’s debut novel. The book is getting a lot of hype.

It’s an epistolary novel, so the only way you get to know the characters is through letters, emails, and notes. I wasn’t sure how I felt about that, but after a few correspondences between Sybil Van Antwerp and her family, friends, former colleagues, a neighbor, and a young boy, I had no problem with the format.

Set in Annapolis, Maryland, the book begins in 2012. Sybil, divorced and in her early 70s, is a stubborn and crochety sort. She wants to be connected to others, but bristles at close contact. In addition to her active correspondence, she’s writing an ongoing letter to someone named Colt. By writing letters, she’s able to keep her distance and protect a vulnerable side that we only fully understand by the end of the story.

We learn early on that Sybil is a bit of an unreliable narrator because she glosses over events that would raise concern with her family and friends if they knew the whole story. Although she divorced her husband, she remains close to his sister and frequently writes to her about books she’s read. She also writes to authors, including Ann Patchett and Joan Didion. So, a lot of different types of correspondence! Another important person in her life is Harry, her colleague’s son. He suffers in school because of his neurodevelopmental differences. He also has a hard time socially and is often bullied at school.

Several pressing events force Sybil to confront the thing that’s at the core of her difficulties, including an icy relationship with her daughter. By the end of the story, Sybil and the reader has a much more open understanding of her life.

I read The Correspondent for a book club and thought it was just okay. That’s despite the fact that I tore through it because I was very interested in the circumstances of Sybil’s life. It wasn’t until later that I started to feel like the story, despite the somewhat original format (although epistolary novels have been around for a long time), was contrived, driving home the message that we need to slow down and reach out to others. In addition, Sybil’s character didn’t ring true to me and she seemed much older than a woman in her seventies! I also felt that her letters to Ann Patchett and Joan Didon were a force. Sometimes I feel like publishers and editors know what will be popular and get writers to put together a story that will sell.

So definitely readable and good for a book club, but not a book I loved.

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Grammar Check revisited – using apostrophes after names that end in s

~ Book Club Mom ~ 25 Comments

When showing possession, I never feel confident about whether I should use just an apostrophe after names that end in the letter s (like James or Frances), or add an apostrophe and an s. I usually try to work around it by saying something like, “The book that belongs to James.” But that’s so formal. No one talks like that!

I had this rule all figured out a few years ago, but tonight I’m revisiting the subject.

In grammar talk, this is the possessive case of proper nouns. And guess what? There are two correct ways to do it, so no stress! Just be consistent.

Here’s what I mean and both are right:

James’s boat

James’ boat

This is all according to Grammarly, but if you want to dig deeper, check out this post from prdaily.com and chicagomanualofstyle.org. No free versions of the AP Stylebook are available online, but according to this article, “The Associated Press Stylebook says ‘use only an apostrophe’ for singular proper names ending in S: Dickens’ novels, Hercules’ labors, Jesus’ life.”

So there you have it. I’m not going to overthink it.

Does this rule trip you up? Leave a comment and tell me which style you use.

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Book Review: A Very Typical Family by Sierra Godfrey

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A Very Typical Family
by
Sierra Godfrey

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

I was looking for something quick and light to read and picked A Very Typical Family on a whim. I must admit, I liked the colorful cover! Superficial, I know. But I also love to read books that revolve around houses, especially old ones. This one fit the bill.

The story begins when Natalie Walker, who works for an architecture firm in Boston, receives a letter notifying her of an inheritance after her mother’s death. But she and her two estranged siblings can only take ownership of their childhood home in California, if they come together in Santa Cruz. Natalie has not spoken to Jake and Lynn in fifteen years. They can’t forgive her for what she did the night of the house party when their mom was away. Even her mother stopped talking to her. Can the three siblings work out their problems before the historic home is lost?

Both Natalie and Lynn show up, but Jake is nowhere to be found. Despite the chill between the sisters, it seems as if Lynn is open to working things out and they both want to find Jake. In addition to their estrangement, the sisters have major problems of their own. Natalie’s boyfriend, Paul has their lives planned out, but she’s not sure that’s what she wants, and he’s putting on the pressure. She also has a big problem at work. Lynn, who arrives with a teenage son, is very secretive about her life in New York and her temper flares when Natalie pushes to know more.

Despite the title, the premise of the book doesn’t seem very typical because the events that lead to their estrangement, and the years after the party, as well as other details are extreme. But what does seem typical to me is that their relationships follow the patterns of many family conflicts. I think the author does a good job showing the dynamics between Natalie and Lynn and how they need each other, especially to find Jake. As situations come up, we see how their typical sibling behaviors show realistic degrees of rivalry and power plays, but most importantly, love.

This is not a heavy book and I was glad to take a break from darker reads. Its uplifting resolution shows how even the most complicated relationship problems can be resolved. I recommend A Very Typical Family to readers who like stories about families and conflict.

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Book Review: Heartwood by Amity Gaige

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Heartwood
by
Amity Gaige

Rating: 4 out of 5.

A few years ago, I discovered the author Amity Gage when I randomly selected Sea Wife from my library’s bookshelf, a book I thoroughly enjoyed. Published in 2021, it was a New York Times Notable Book of the Year. I’d describe Sea Wife as suspenseful literary fiction that looks at the complexities of marriage and parenthood (read my review here).

A few weeks ago, my book club friend recommended Heartwood (thanks S!). I didn’t make the connection right away, but when I realized it was the same author, I knew I was in for a good book.

Heartwood is about the search and rescue efforts in of a missing hiker on the Appalachian Trail in Maine. The author combines the genres of a suspenseful police investigation with an in-depth look at marriage and family relationships and the story features several female characters who must face unresolved problems with their own mothers. Gage also explores the complex subjects of mental illness, substance abuse, suicide, gender discrimination, and racism, making Heartwood the kind of layered book I like!

Hiker Valerie Gillis, a nurse, is nearing the finish in Maine, but the last stretch goes through extremely difficult and dense terrain. State game warden Lieutenant Bev Miller is in charge of the search. She’s a veteran at missing hiker searches, with a high success rate. While her team of both park employees and volunteers comb the area, Bev and her assistants interview those close to Valerie, including her husband, Greg who has been following and meeting up with Valerie with supplies, and Valerie’s hiking friend, Santo. Meanwhile, Lena, a resident of an assisted-living community in another state, learns of the lost hiker and thinks it might be her estranged daughter. Now emotionally invested in the story, she follows the search closely. Lena, who is an expert forager, has an online forager friend named Terrible Silence and he, too, is interested in the story.

As the days pass, Bev and her team develop theories and suspicions and refuse to give up, despite the decreasing chances that Valerie could have survived an extended length of time. The author also includes Valerie’s journal entries, giving us a rounded-out understanding of what may be happening.

We also learn about the hiking community and the relationships that develop along the way, as well as the idea that many hikers are out there to work out personal problems, finding the solitude of nature and the camaraderie among hikers healing.

New discoveries and developments bring the story to a suspenseful finish at the same time as the characters face their own family crises. I tore through this book, both because of the suspense and the in-depth characters. I recommend Heartwood to readers who like literary thrillers like The God of the Woods by Liz Moore.

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Book Review: The Witch Elm by Tana French

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The Witch Elm
by
Tana French

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

I’ve read and liked three other books by Tana French, so I knew I would enjoy another one. Many of French’s books are from two series: the Dublin Murder Squad and the Cal Hooper books, but The Witch Elm is a standalone psychological crime novel set in Dublin. In this story, the effects of post traumatic stress disorder influence the main character’s ability to remember key events relating to a murder.

In his late twenties, Toby Hennessy had enjoyed a life of wealth, privilege, and luck and his friends liked to point that out. He had a great PR job at an art gallery and a girlfriend he hoped to marry. Even when he got caught up in an art scandal, he managed to talk his boss out of firing him. But Toby’s luck is about to change. When he discovers two men in his apartment, they brutally beat him and leave him for dead. Now he’s dealing with the aftermath of brain injury, including memory loss, a language disorder, and other physical weaknesses.

Out of the hospital, but still unsteady, Toby and his girlfriend, Melissa move in with his uncle, Hugo, who has terminal brain cancer. The Ivy House, in the family for generations, and a place where Toby and his cousins, Leon and Susanna spent summers while their parents traveled, continues to be a family gathering place. What Toby hoped would be a period of recovery and reconnection with Hugo during his uncle’s final months becomes a criminal investigation when a young family member unearths a human skull in the yard.

Detectives quickly identify the victim and, as they investigate, they delve into Toby and his cousins’ high school years. They uncover conflicting versions of the past, depending on who they ask. It doesn’t help that Toby has memory issues, and he thinks Leon and Susanna are holding back information. Soon Toby becomes a prime suspect, even to himself.

The mystery is what really happened to the victim and who is responsible. Along with Toby and the detectives, we untangle events and relationships from ten years earlier. While Toby insists these were happy times for him and his friends, his cousins tell a different story, underscoring Toby’s lucky life, but also showing how he has never understood how other people feel. The author takes us through a complex series of events that show who murdered the victim and why. The final chapters end in a shocking conclusion making you see the full effects of Toby’s PTSD.

I enjoyed this book, but at 526 pages, I thought it was overly long. But as with many books after I’ve had a chance to think about them, I thought Toby’s dilemma was original and interesting and that the author showed how peoples’ perspectives are different.

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Check out my reviews of these other books by Tana French:

The Likeness
The Searcher
In the Woods

Book Review: We Begin at the End by Chris Whitaker

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We Begin at the End
by
Chris Whitaker

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

Once I read All the Colors of the Dark by Chris Whitaker (read my review here), I knew I wanted to read another book by the author, so I selected We Begin at the End, a terrific story about complex characters who must navigate the challenges of love, family, grief, trauma, and moral decisions.

Set in the coastal town of Cape Haven, California, the story begins when Vincent King is released from prison, after serving time for the hit-and-run death of young Sissy Radley, his girlfriend, Star’s little sister.

Vincent was only fifteen when he went to prison, and he served additional time for a prison fight that ended in the death of another inmate. He has spent his life hating himself for what he did. Now in his forties, he returns to Cape Haven hoping to make a life for himself. Vincent has few friends, but his childhood friend Francis Walker (Walk) has stood by him. But Walk is now the chief of police and will soon face conflicting feelings about loyalty and the law.

A central character in the story is thirteen-year-old Duchess Radley, Star’s daughter, who calls herself an outlaw. She seems to live up the characterization, but as the story develops, we see a vulnerable child underneath, doing her best to act like she doesn’t need anyone. She takes care of her little brother, Robin and covers up for their mother, Star, whose alcohol addiction, job as a stripper, and string of boyfriends provide zero stability.

Whitaker tells the story through both Walk and Duchess, offering insight into two people whose unique impressions and feelings show how one situation or problem looks different to every person involved.

The author places his characters against the backdrop of the ever-changing town of Cape Haven, whose eroding coastline and economic downturn have created new pressures for the community. And when tragedy strikes, each must try to untangle the events to make it through. The story later moves to the wide expanse of Montana, where we hope for good things.

I really enjoyed this book, especially the idea that no one fully understands another person or a situation, how people make a lot of assumptions about who people are, only to discover how different they are beneath the surface. That sounds depressing, but I found it enlightening!

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TV Series Review: My Brilliant Friend Season 1

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After reading My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante, I checked out Season 1 of the HBO series. Created by Saverio Costanzo, the coming-of-age series is based on the author’s four Neapolitan novels and stars, Gaia Girace, Margherita Mazzucco, Alba Rohrwacher, and Irene Maiorino. The show is in Italian with English subtitles.

The show begins during the 1950s in an impoverished neighborhood of Naples. Season 1 closely follows the first book and depicts the lives of two friends, Elena and Lina, first as childhood playmates and later as teenagers and young women.

Lina’s genius and their close relationship, as the title suggests, is one of main subjects of the story, especially as the friendship changes. A key turning point occurs when Lina leaves school to work at the family shoe repair business. Elena and her teacher convince Elena’s parents to let her continue her studies and this becomes a source of tension between the friends. In addition, they must navigate generations-long feuds between families in the neighborhood, causing complex conflicts and alliances. The season concludes when Lina marries a man with ties to organized crime and we’re left wondering if the marriage will last.

I enjoyed seeing the book brought to life and thought the portrayal was excellent. I liked being able to see what the neighborhood and living conditions were like. I would describe the style of the series as slow-moving, but engrossing. There are also moments of violence, cruelty, and abuse that make it clear how difficult life was in the neighborhood. People were used to tragedy and loss and violence was part of their lives. A New Year’s Eve scene full of chaotic fireworks was particularly dramatic, emphasizing the fierce divides between the neighborhood.

I was sorry to see the season end and hope to watch the rest of the series. Do I read the next books first? I haven’t decided!

Click here to read my review of the book My Brilliant Friend.

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