Throwback Thursday Resurrected

“I wish there was a way to know you’re in the good old days before you’ve actually left them.”  —Andy (from The Office)

Remember when we used to throw it back on a rare, we’re-so-put-together Thursday? Those were the good old days, weren’t they? Clearly, I’ve actually left them. But hey, it’s Thursday and I’m throwing it back because, in the words of Rachel, our resident 2@27 darling, “it’s one of our favorite features.”

Despite being south of put together, I’d like to think we’ve stepped it up one small notch on reviewing new releases with greater haste. It’s fun to keep pace with avid, in-the-know readers. Sometimes it’s twice as nice to pick up a book you’ve been meaning to read. The ones with the familiar covers that adorn shelves and cry out for a few choice hours of your complete attention. I swear, I’ve heard Evelyn call me by name. Evelyn Hardcastle and Evelyn Hugo both. I responded to Hardcastle for this throwback sesh. And I’m so glad I did.

I loved Stuart Turton’s intricately crafted debut novel, The7 ½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle. It’s full of intrigue and perplexing questions that kept my mind on the hunt for answers. I mean really, whose interest wouldn’t become instantly piqued by a narrator who “wakes up in a dripping forest, wearing someone else’s dinner jacket, and, he soon realizes, somebody else’s body.” To complicate matters, the narrator has no memory. Add to the reality this fact: He can’t leave the estate he’s trapped in (aptly named Blackheath) unless he reveals the name Evelyn Hardcastle’s impending murderer. Plus, he’s on the clock. He has 8 days and 8 bodies or “hosts” to inhabit, or he can never leave the foreboding heath where secrets go to die. If you’re like Sharee and you’re ready for a  “suspense bender” right about now, why not begin with a visit to the dark, disorienting world of Turton’s isolated English manor? You won’t figure this mesmerizer out until the very end. In the immortal words of Charles Barkley, “I guarantee it!”

Posted by Tracy

Looks Over Books

“The suspense is terrible. I hope it will last.” —Oscar Wilde

I spent a few days in snowy Utah, wishing I was in Hawaii instead. My sisters and I headed to Seven Brothers, so we felt like we were in the Aloha State for a hot minute. The burgers were amazing. And the fries ranked well above salty guys. Naturally, Tracy and I exchanged looks over books. I confessed this little truth—I can’t help myself, lately I’ve been on a suspense bender. I thought I’d tell you about a couple.

Just so you know, me and Oscar Wilde are on the same keyed up page. Even when the suspense is killing me, I hope it will last. There’s a reason Tana French has been hailed as the queen of Irish crime fiction. Her latest, The Hunter, had me in knots. It has all the best elements: a scheme to find gold, a romance with a local, and the threat of losing everything. The Hunter was named one of the most anticipated books of 2024 with good reason. My only gripe with “one of the greatest crime novelists writing today,” was the barrage of f-bombs in her latest. Too many to count!!

My crime-fiction binge introduced me to Freida McFadden. Her psychological thriller, The Teacher, released last month. Not surprisingly, it revolves around an ugly rumor about a student-teacher affair. It ticks the sex, lies, and scandal boxes. This page-turner lived up to the mystery moniker—more than once, when I thought I had things figured out, I was surprised by a twist. If you’re looking for a read where you don’t see the ending coming, check this one out. Chances are, you’ll wanna talk about it with a fellow crime junkie when you’re done!

Posted by Sharee

The Lucky, The Brave, The Broken, and The Lost

“Books and doors are the same thing. You open them, and you go through into another world.” —Jeanette Winterson

Kristin Hannah is a pro when it comes to opening doors. We know this, right? She walked us into a part of history seldom explored—French women’s experience in World War II; she introduced us to the debilitating Dust Bowl era via Elsa Martinelli; and transported us to America’s last frontier in  Alaska’s Great Alone. In her latest novel, The Women, she planked us in 1960’s Nam. I’ve read plenty of historical fiction surrounding war in my day. But I’ve read next to nothing about Vietnam. (Of course, I watched my share fair of M*A*S*H, there is that.) I’m glad I got to enter the war-torn world of Indochina via a twenty-year-old nursing student named Frankie McGrath.

Hannah is a pro when it comes to shining a light on women who have been overlooked in certain parts of history. Of course, Vietnam is no exception. I didn’t realize many Americans refused to acknowledge women served as combat nurses in the conflict. Was Margaret Houlihan a figment of my tv’s imagination? Frankie is warmer than Major Houlihan. And more naturally compassionate. Both fictional characters serve as excellent nurses. In The Women, “each day is a gamble of life and death, hope and betrayal; friendships run deep and can be shattered in an instant. In war, [Frankie] meets—and becomes one of—the lucky, the brave, the broken, and the lost.” While I saw the ending of Frankie’s story coming, I appreciated Hannah’s sensitivity to the destructive nature of war long after the shells and bullets stopped flying. This doesn’t touch The Nightingale. But I’m glad opened the door to Kristin Hannah’s latest and learned about the sobering world of long-ago Nam.

Posted by Tracy

Our Favorite Anti-Aging Regimen

“Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty. Anyone who keeps learning stays young.”  —Henry Ford

Let’s give Henry permission to toot his own horn, shall we? Yes, he gave us cars en masse, but he reminds us that we don’t ever have to grow old. How did Clint Eastwood put it? “I don’t let the old man in.” (Did anyone just hear a two-note melody mimicking the sound of a coyote howling?)  Good books will keep you young, people. Good books are excellent teachers. 

I just learned about Oneg Shabbat, compliments of Lauren Grodstein. (Rae sent me Jenna’s pick We Must Not Think of Ourselves to add light to my days, love her.) Oneg Shabbat was the code name for a real-life group of historians, rabbis, writers, and trusted friends of Emanuel Ringelblum—they were dedicated to chronicling life in the Warsaw ghetto during the German occupation. Grodstein’s novel centers around a middle-aged professor named Adam Paskow. Before the invasion, Paskow “barely remembered [he] was a Jew.” Post 1939, the professor dedicated himself to teaching English in a cramped basement to bright children, falling for a roommate (unwittingly), and interviewing neighbors as part of the project. The interviews, like Adam’s heart, are substantive. They preach. And surprisingly, can uplift.

When Rae said this book was a winner, I never doubted. Not for one minute. Now I know the meaning of Oneg Shabbat—“a feeling of comfort and joy that is very hard to replace”—it can be experienced anywhere, even in the most deplorable circumstances. Even in a Jewish ghetto in 1942 Warsaw. Man, I feel lighter. Younger too.

Posted by Tracy

Subterfuge, Secrets, and Murder

“It takes 20 years to build a reputation and 5 minutes to ruin it.” —Peyton Manning

Yep. On Superbowl Sunday I’m quoting my boy Peyton. And why wouldn’t I? Today is about winners (including Jesus, of course.) You know who’s winning off the field—who’s got panache and a pen and not afraid to wield it? Alex Michaelides. It’s no secret we love the former screenwriter turned phenom of fiction. He’s the Greek Freak of psychological thrillers. If you haven’t read The Silent Patient, stop reading this post haste. Go grab yourself a copy of the bestseller sold in 50 countries. (A record breaker.) You’ll talk about those pages long after you close the cover. Guaranteed.

The point is Michaelides won’t need 20 years to build a reputation. Not even close. His second novel The Maidens was spellbinding. Lucy Foley gushed, “A deliciously dark, elegant, utterly compulsive read—with a twist that blew my mind.” This guy’s got it like Patrick Mahommes has got it. His latest, The Fury, was compelling. This observation won’t surprise anyone familiar with the Greek Freak: “Michaelides’s deliciously twisty and fiendishly clever third novel takes the classic locked-room mystery and delivers a fresh spin on the genre.” The story revolves around a likable former movie star, Lana Farrar. Old friends and old feelings surface when they visit Lana’s private island. Murder ensues. I agree with the reviewer who explained, “What sets the book apart is its innovative structure and the compelling voice of its narrator, Elliot Chase; wonderfully sinister and beautifully unreliable, he guides us—with sleights of hand aplenty–through this impressive and highly enjoyable tale of subterfuge, secrets, and murder.”

P.S. People are talking about The Fury’s audible narrator, Alex Jennings. Here’s a glimpse: “Jennings' impeccable accent keeps the already propulsive novel quite engaging and moving like a steam train about to run you over." I couldn’t agree more. Must be in the name!

Posted by Tracy

A Big Win

“Hope is such a wonderful thing until it isn’t.”

Rachel and I were in the same zip code for a few short hours last week. We’re both pretty spent. But even a few short hours with Rae is a shot in the arm. Oh, how I hope we live in the same post code someday. (I’d settle for a neighboring one and call it a big win.) Hope is always a wonderful thing. You can tell Amanda Peters I said that. I’m not trash talking Peters—she won my admiration with her novel The Berry Pickers. I mean, how many debut writers win the Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction and shortlist for Canada’s Atwood Gibson Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize? Not many.

I loved The Berry Pickers. Mi’kmaq is a word I’d never heard before—now I associate it with a four-year-old girl named Ruthie. Each summer, Ruthie’s family rhythmically travelled from Nova Scotia to Maine, harvesting berries to make ends meet. When Ruthie vanishes from the blueberry fields, heartache prevails (especially for Joe who saw his younger sister last). Her whereabouts remain a mystery for decades. Painful decades. I really enjoyed this stirring novel told from the two siblings’ point of view. I’m with the reviewer who said, "Peters skillfully manages to hold the reader’s attention from the first page to the last . . . The Berry Pickers isn’t a mystery, it’s a truth telling by characters you can reach out and touch—characters whose misfortunes, regrets, feelings, and redemption most readers will relate to." Kudos to you, Amanda Peters.

Posted by Tracy

Ticking Boxes

“After nourishment, shelter and companionship, stories are the thing we need most in the world.” —Phillip Pullman

You’re so right, Phillip. We desperately need stories in this crazy mixed-up world of ours. If they’re insanely good stories, all the better. I’ll take an inspiring narrative over nourishment unless we’re talking about tacos. Chips and guac too. I want to ask, what makes a story good for you? Originality? Unforgettable characters? Maybe you’re a fan of daring novels that push boundaries? Who doesn’t love the unputdownable? Anticipation and suspense are hard to resist. I’m a devotee of pages that make me feel and consider. And reconsider opinions. I love the power of deep thought—it keeps me on the path to self-discovery.

I don’t know about you, but I love when I finish a book and feel the need to talk about it. After the last line of R.F. Kuang’s Yellowface, I promptly phoned Rae to see if she’d read about June Hayward—a struggling, insecure writer who steals her dead friend Athena’s manuscript when opportunity presents itself. This is no ordinary friend, mind you. Athena Liu was a best-selling author whose rise to fame was meteoric. She was a standout among her Asian peers. June refuses to admit theft. Accusations fly. June’s rationale and responses are sometimes mind-bending to me. Here’s one of many: "It all boils down to self-interest. Manipulating the story...If publishing is rigged, you might as well make sure it's rigged in your favor." More than once, I felt exasperation. At times, June felt like an unreliable narrator, which didn’t alter the fact that Kuang’s novel was compelling, and I had to see where the literary chips would fall.

Yellowface ticks boxes. Originality: check. Unforgettable character: check. Pushes boundaries: check. I’m on the fence as to whether it was insanely good. But I’m glad I read Yellowface. Here’s what the incomparable Stephen King had to say: “This is a great read. Crime, satire, horror, paranoia, questions of cultural appropriation. Plenty of nasty social media pile-ons, too. But, basically, just a great story. Hard to put down, harder to forget.”

Posted by Tracy

Portable Magic

“What a wonderful thought it is that some of the best days of our lives haven’t even happened yet.” Anne Frank

Happy New Year! What a wonderful thought it is that some of the best books of our lives haven’t even been read yet. Looking back on 2023, books like Demon Copperhead, The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, Hello Beautiful, The River We Remember, and The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store were some of the best reads of my middle-aged life. Such a great reading year for this old girl. I hope 2024 is equally grand! If my Christmas haul is any indicator, I’m off to a remarkable start, I can tell. Let’s begin with the darling, the aficionado, the two at twenty-seven brainchild—my girl Rae’s perfectly wrapped hardcover under the tree was Anne Berest’s The Postcard. This biographical fiction has earned prizes and bright stars from thousands, but Rae’s stamp of approval is all I need. Can’t wait to dig in. Rae and I both received The Covenant of Water from our study abroad pal, Tam. I’ve heard nothing but amazing things about Verghese’s latest. (I need a vacay and some sunscreen to get after it.) The future looks bright.

I finished out the reading year the way I started it—with an author who was new to me. Daniel Mason, you are an absolute winner! The fact that Mason’s a real wonder boy shouldn’t come as a surprise. He is a physician who studied at Harvard and beyond, while writing novels and winning prizes (including Pulitzer Prize finalist). Oh, and he teaches literature at Stanford on the side. I mean honestly. Gifted in both the left and right hemispheres? I am here to tell you the man can write. There were moments in North Woods where I felt completely transported back to New England. Mason provides the history of a cabin-turned-home deep in Massachusett’s woods, dating back to Puritan times. We meet a succession of people who occupy the yellow house amid the ash, the elm, the hemlocks, and the unforgettable chestnut trees. (And apple-obsessed Osgood’s orchard.) Mason shines a light on a variety of memorable characters over the centuries. Some owners feel an uncanny connection to nature. Others to previous owners in their ghostly state. I have no words for the magic Mason creates. So I’ll defer to a trusted lit guru or two. From Anthony Marra: “North Woods is a sui generis work of pure brilliance… a universal story of loss and reclamation. It’s the best book I’ve read in ages.” Abraham Verghese had this to say: “North Woods is the most original and spellbinding novel I’ve read in ages. Mason makes bramble, brush, and orchard come alive with the spirits of their unforgettable former inhabitants. Their lives . . . had me glued to my seat.” From me: What a perfect way to finish up 2023.