Worthy of Wearing

Worthy of Wearing

by Nicole M. Caruso
Non-Fiction - Fashion

208 pages

SUMMARY:
With frequent photos of everyday women displaying their personal style, author Nicole Caruso addresses why you are worthy of wearing nice clothes, how to clarify your personal style within a catholic context and how to curate a worthy wardrobe.

MY THOUGHTS ON THIS BOOK: 

Nicole Caruso is the rare devout Catholic who also knows serious fashion, having worked for high-end fashion brands in NYC. Rather than rejecting her innate love of fashion as she grew deeper in her Catholic faith, she sought ways to integrate it. The result is an outlook that loves God and seeks the good, true and beautiful - even in fashion. A unicorn in both the fashion and catholic worlds!

Caruso carries with her some viewpoints from the fashion industry but overall is startlingly Catholic. This was a great book to check my own perspectives on fashion and style. You can not accept everything that is put forth from the fashion world, but there is something of value there. Knowing that you are worthy to seek out and wear nice fabrics and clothes is uplifting. An interest in fashion can be holy as you intentionally bring beauty with yourself wheresoever you go - even if it is just a mid-western suburban neighborhood or the inside of your own home.

This would be a great book to share with teens and budding fashionistas. It does not directly address the pitfalls in fashion but it does carve out and highlight the good, while framing it within the context of the Catholic faith.

RECOMMENDED FOR: Catholic fashionistas seeking to integrate their love of fashion with their Catholic faith. Women who feel unworthy of fashion because of body shape, age or other factors, but who are open to a nudge - and perhaps a new viewpoint.

Advanced Style

 

Advanced Style

by Ari Seth Cohen
Non-Fiction - Fashion/Coffee Table Book

240 pages

SUMMARY:
This fashion book is mostly photos of stylish older women (ages 70-100) taken on the streets of NYC. It evokes an age and sensibility where people dress to be seen in public. Styles include Old World Glamour, Proper 5th Avenue, and true Bohemian Avant Garde fashion.

MY THOUGHTS ON THIS BOOK: 

Another great fashion and people-watching book found through a recommendation from Nicole Caruso. Seeing carefully styled clothing and accessories on older bodies really helps you appreciate the styling all the more. 

This book is a healthy reminder that fashion doesn't have to go out the window at a certain age. True fashion is not just for the young and thin. Women can have fun with fashion throughout their lives. Things change and become more challenging certainly. But you still have control over how you present yourself. And clothing and accessories speak to the older woman's character and style more strongly because she knows herself and isn't concerned with copying others at that point in life. 

A fun bonus: almost all the outfits in this book were modest to compliment an aging body. Fashion does not have to equal sex appeal - as this book amply demonstrates. Fashion can be about creating beauty and interest in the world. Celebrating wonderful fabrics and textures. Layering cheerful color and whimsy. Demonstrating truly sophisticated dressing styles developed and earned over a lifetime.

Advice and quotes from the women fill the text of the book and exude reverence and respect for aging. I LOVED that! Some quotes that stood out to me:

     It pays to invest in quality: it never goes out of style.

     My philosophy is that fashion says "me too" while style says "only me".

     Sunglasses are better than a face-lift. They hide the ravages of time and let you spy. 

     We must dress every day for the theatre of our lives. 

I was inspired by many of the women in this book. I want to dress like some of them, especially the Proper 5th Avenue ladies! Their style is timeless and ageless and always appropriate. So good!

It was disappointing to see an interview with stripper Dita von Teese included in the back of the book. It let the book down. While Dita and I share an appreciation for the same Old World Glamour fashion style, she is not someone that I admire. Including her brought down the tone of this otherwise supremely classy book.

I sought out more books by this author (who seems to focus on old-age fashion) and found another through the library - Advanced Style: Older and Wiser. But I was disappointed by it. It scraped lower in his photography barrel and entered creepy, depressing territory.

RECOMMENDED FOR: Fashionistas. People who appreciate when others dress to be seen. People who appreciate the fashion wisdom of older women.

Bill Cunningham: On the Street

 

Bill Cunningham: On the Street

by The New York Times
Non-Fiction - Fashion/Coffee Table Book

384 pages

SUMMARY:
Coffee table book on street-fashion in NYC over the course of 50 years as documented by Bill Cunningham, a man who also photographed the high-end fashion world.

MY THOUGHTS ON THIS BOOK: 

This is the ultimate people-watching book! An amazing street-fashion book found through a recommendation from Nicole Caruso. It is a definitive fashion book for me. I got it from the library, but wish I owed a copy for our house.

Bill Cunningham was apparently a legionary figure on the New York fashion scene. He photographed many of the famous fashion house shows and knew everyone-who-is-anyone in the fashion world for over five decades. But he also did a really cool and interesting thing... he rode his bicycle around NYC and documented fashion as it was worn on the streets for 50 years until his death. After his death, his vast collection of street photos were edited into this amazing coffee table book which documents the evolution of trends and NYC street fashion for half a century. It is the ultimate people-watching book!

It is fascinating to see how fashion house influences (easily spotted by the knowing Cunningham) were translated into everyday wear and how trends evolved over time. Reading this book cover to cover, I feel like I received an education in the history of fashion.

Note for Parents: This is a secular fashion book and there are a few photos from Gay Pride marches on the streets of NYC. The accompanying commentary assumes a liberal worldview. It certainly doesn't linger there but FYI if you have young eyes around. The purpose of the book seems to be to just document the more memorable fashion moments that a person would see walking down the streets of NYC. Use your own discretion with this book.

Bill Cunningham seems like a fascinating person in his own right. I would love to learn more about him. The introduction about Bill included this limited but tantalizing background: He was beaten for trying on his sister's dresses as a child but remained a devout catholic and close to his parents all his life. He seems to have chosen austerity and abstinence as his personal path, but connected with the beauty of fashion on a profoundly deep level. In any event, he kept his private life extremely private and fashion insiders seemed to respect that and him. He saw himself as an unimportant observer and hated attention. Lots to unpack about his life and photographs, which he himself did not consider art.

RECOMMENDED FOR: Fashionistas. People who love people-watching!

Iris Apfel: Accidental Icon

 

Iris Apfel: Accidental Icon

by Iris Apfel
Non-Fiction - Memoir/Fashion

176 pages

SUMMARY:
Iris Apfel shows off her wardrobe, jewelry and fashion sense in this book, which is a great combination of full page photos, stand alone quotes and traditional text pages. The traditional text pages contain advice and stories from her life. They are actually few and far between leaving the reader wanting more but still highly satisfied with what has been offered.

MY THOUGHTS ON THIS BOOK: 

Oh, my goodness! I discovered this book from Nicole M Caruso's blog. Great find!

Similar to Lilly Pulizer (although a different ascetic), Iris is a breath of fresh air and fun originality. She is the real deal creatively and is also shockingly mentally grounded. Not tawdry or lewd. This book is even free from the normal fashion pitfalls - she was married only once and enjoyed a long, happy marriage until her husband's death. She doesn't devote any pages to glorifying sexual deviance or alternative lifestyles. Art enhances her life but doesn't run it. Would I wear her clothes? Probably not. But seeing her and reading her advice compels me to think about my own fashion and dress intentionally and with joy. A great result!

She has a unique combination of whimsy and deep knowledge of fabrics and fashion design which elevates her off-the-wall choices. It's wacky, but there is something there. She clearly dresses for herself but with a cultivated eye which is refreshing.

Avant garde and off-beat but in a pleasing way. Not grotesque or intentionally disturbing. I loved her advice too. In one section, she talks about working to become accepted as part of a group and then once you are accepted, you can be pleasingly different within the group. She said it better but there was a lot of wisdom there.

Funny and unexpected. This is a book to be savored, not read in one sitting. Read a few sections, feel your mood rise and go on to something else before returning.

RECOMMENDED FOR: Fashionistas. Readers looking for inspiration and fun!

Favorites of 2023

It was a year of pleasurable and indulgent reading... here are my favorite books read in 2023!

Adult Non-Fiction

The Husband Hunters: American Heiresses Who Married into the British Aristocracy by Anne deCourcy
Non-Fiction – 352 pages

Towards the end of the nineteenth century and for the first few years of the twentieth, a strange invasion took place in Britain. The citadel of power, privilege and breeding in which the titled, land-owning governing class had barricaded itself for so long was breached. The incomers were a group of young women who, fifty years earlier, would have been looked on as the alien denizens of another world - the New World, to be precise. From 1874 - the year that Jennie Jerome, the first known 'Dollar Princess', married Randolph Churchill - to 1905, dozens of young American heiresses married into the British peerage, bringing with them all the fabulous wealth, glamour and sophistication of the Gilded Age. Anne de Courcy sets the stories of these young women and their families in the context of their times.

Based on extensive first-hand research, drawing on diaries, memoirs and letters, this richly entertaining group biography reveals what they thought of their new lives in England - and what England thought of them.


The Long Weekend: Life in the English Country House, 1918-1939 by Adrian Tinniswood 
Non-Fiction – 344 pages

As WWI drew to a close, change reverberated through the halls of England's country homes. As the sun set slowly on the British Empire, the shadows lengthened on the lawns of a thousand stately homes. In The Long Weekend, historian Adrian Tinniswood introduces us to the tumultuous, scandalous and glamorous history of English country houses during the years between World Wars. As estate taxes and other challenges forced many of these venerable houses onto the market, new sectors of British and American society were seduced by the dream of owning a home in the English countryside. Drawing on thousands of memoirs, letters, and diaries, as well as the eye-witness testimonies of belted earls and bibulous butlers, Tinniswood brings the stately homes of England to life as never before, opening the door to a world by turns opulent and ordinary, noble and vicious, and forever wrapped in myth. We are drawn into the intrigues of legendary families such as the Astors, the Churchills and the Devonshires as they hosted hunting parties and balls that attracted the likes of Charlie Chaplin, T.E. Lawrence, and royals such as Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson. We waltz through aristocratic, and watch as the upper crust struggle to fend off rising taxes and underbred outsiders, property speculators and poultry farmers. We gain insight into the guilt and the gingerbread, and see how the image of the country house was carefully protected by its occupants above and below stairs.

Through the glitz of estate parties, the social tensions between old money and new, the hunting parties, illicit trysts, and grand feasts, Tinniswood offers a glimpse behind the veil of these great estates -- and reveals a reality much more riveting than the dream.

Adult Fiction

The Wreath (Kristin Lavransdatter #1) by Sigrid Undset (Tina Nunnally Translator)
Historical Fiction – 305 pages

The Wife (Kristin Lavransdatter #2) by Sigrid Undset (Tina Nunnally Translator)
Historical Fiction – 402 pages

The Cross (Kristin Lavransdatter #3) by Sigrid Undset (Tina Nunnally Translator)
Historical Fiction – 430 pages

In Kristin Lavransdatter (1920-1922), Sigrid Undset interweaves political, social, and religious history with the daily aspects of family life to create a colorful, richly detailed tapestry of Norway during the fourteenth-century. The trilogy, however, is more than a journey into the past. Undset's own life—her familiarity with Norse sagas and folklore and with a wide range of medieval literature, her experiences as a daughter, wife, and mother, and her deep religious faith—profoundly influenced her writing. Her grasp of the connections between past and present and of human nature itself, combined with the extraordinary quality of her writing, sets her works far above the genre of "historical novels."

Death in the Clouds (Hercule Poirot # 12) by Agatha Christie
Cozy Murder Mystery – 330 pages
 

A woman is killed by a poisoned dart in the enclosed confines of a commercial passenger plane. Flying from Paris to London. From seat No.9, Hercule Poirot was ideally placed to observe his fellow air passengers. Over to his right sat a pretty young woman, clearly infatuated with the man opposite; ahead, in seat No.13, sat a Countess with a poorly-concealed cocaine habit; across the gangway in seat No.8, a detective writer was being troubled by an aggressive wasp. What Poirot did not yet realize was that behind him, in seat No.2, sat the slumped, lifeless body of a woman. How could this happen with the world's No. 1 private detective on board?

The ABC Murders (Hercule Poirot # 13) by Agatha Christie
Cozy Murder Mystery – 228 pages
 

When Alice Ascher is murdered in Andover, Hercule Poirot is already on to the clues. Alphabetically speaking, it's one down, twenty-five to go. There's a serial killer on the loose. His macabre calling card is to leave the ABC Railway guide beside each victim's body. But if A is for Alice Asher, bludgeoned to death in Andover; and B is for Betty Bernard, strangled with her belt on the beach at Bexhill; then who will Victim C be? 

Click here for my thoughts.
 

Murder in Mesopotamia (Hercule Poirot # 14) by Agatha Christie
Cozy Murder Mystery – 264 pages
 

An archaeologist’s wife is murdered on the shores of the River Tigris in Iraq. It was clear to nurse Amy Leatheran that something sinister was going on at the Hassanieh dig, something associated with the presence of ‘Lovely Louise’, the wife of the celebrated archaeologist Dr. Leidner. But she couldn't pinpoint it. In a few days’ time Hercule Poirot was due to drop in at the excavation site. With Louise suffering terrifying hallucinations, and tension within the group becoming almost unbearable, Poirot might just be too late… 

Click here for my thoughts.

Death on the Riviera (Superintendent William Meredith #4) by John Bude  
Cozy Murder Mystery – 242 pages

This classic crime novel from 1952 evokes all the sunlit glamour of life on the Riviera, and combines deft plotting with a dash of humour. When a counterfeit currency racket comes to light on the French Riviera, Detective Inspector Meredith is sent speeding southwards out of the London murk to the warmth and glitter of the Mediterranean. Along with Inspector Blampignon, an amiable policeman from Nice, Meredith must trace the whereabouts of Chalky Cobbett, crook and forger. Soon their interest centres on the Villa Paloma, the residence of Nesta Hedderwick, an eccentric Englishwoman, and her bohemian house guests among them her niece, an artist, and a playboy. Before long, it becomes evident that more than one of the occupants of the Villa Paloma has something to hide, and the stage is set for murder. 

Click here for my thoughts.
 

A Lady's Guide to Fortune-Hunting by Sophie Irwin
Fiction – 325 pages

Kitty Talbot needs a fortune. Or rather, she needs a husband who has a fortune. Left with her father’s massive debts, she has only twelve weeks to save her family from ruin. Kitty has never been one to back down from a challenge, so she leaves home and heads toward the most dangerous battleground in all of England: the London season. The only thing she doesn’t anticipate is Lord Radcliffe. The worldly Radcliffe sees Kitty for the mercenary fortune-hunter that she really is and is determined to scotch her plans at all costs, until their parrying takes a completely different turn. This is a frothy pleasure, full of brilliant repartee and enticing wit—one that readers will find an irresistible delight. 

Click here for my thoughts.

The Shepherd of the Hills by Harold Bell Wright 
Fiction – 304 pages

Originally published in 1907, Wright shows the passions and the life-and-death struggles of the people living in the Ozark Mountains circa 1900. The shepherd, an elderly, mysterious, learned man, escapes the buzzing restlessness of the city to live in the backwoods neighborhood of Mutton Hollow in the Ozark hills. There he encounters Jim Lane, Grant Matthews, Sammy, Young Matt, and other residents of the village, and gradually learns to find a peace about the losses he has borne and has yet to bear. Through the shepherd and those around him, Wright assembles here a gentle and utterly masterful commentary on strength and weakness, failure and success, tranquility and turmoil, and punishment and absolution. 

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Young Adult Fiction

The Shadow of the Bear (A Fairy Tale Retold #1) by Regina Doman 
Young Adult Fiction – 208 pages

Once upon a time... In New York City, a young, secretive street tough who calls himself, Bear, lands on the doorstep of two teenaged sisters. On the one hand Rose is delighted with his surprising knowledge of literature, poetry, and music; on the other hand Blanche is afraid of his apparent connections to drugs, murder, and a hidden treasure. Even as Blanche learns to trust him, her fears that Bear's friendship threatens their family prove terrifyingly true. 

Click here for my thoughts.

Black as Night (A Fairy Tale Retold #2) by Regina Doman 
Young Adult Fiction – 292 pages

Way after midnight in New York City, a girl runs down the streets, looking for someplace to hide ... is there anywhere she can go to escape? Is there anyone who can help her... now? This dark but fulfilling sequel to The Shadow of the Bear is based on a familiar fairy tale "Snow White and the Seven Dwarves" from the Brothers Grimm. Circumstances have placed Blanche Brier entirely on her own this summer in New York City while Bear is wandering through Europe and her family is on vacation. Blanche is fast becoming the focus of a terrifying play of evil forces. Even the refuge she takes among some lively Franciscan friars does not protect her from dangerous attacks. Rather, they continue to escalate as she struggles to persuade a sick and aged man from killing himself. Discovering Blanche's disappearence, Bear and Fish cut short their European vacation and join up with Rose to begin scouring New York City looking for Blanche. But the same malevolence that is lurking over Blanche seems to be hunting them as well and drawing them all togther into a death trap until it seems that all hope is gone. Yet during this time, the desires of Blanche's heart are being clarified - and so are Bear's. A black night. Tested faith. Honest love.

Waking Rose (A Fairy Tale Retold #3) by Regina Doman 
Young Adult Fiction – 354 pages

"I love him more than poetry... I love him more than song."
Ever since he rescued her from Certain Death, Rose Brier has had a crush on Ben Denniston, otherwise known as Fish. But Fish, struggling with problems of his own, thinks that Rose should go looking elsewhere for a knight in shining armor. Trying to forget him, Rose goes to college, takes up with a sword-wielding band of brothers, and starts an investigation into her family's past that proves increasingly mysterious. Then a tragic accident occurs, and Fish, assisted by Rose's new friends, finds himself drawn into a search through a tangle of revenge and corruption that might be threatening Rose's very life. The climax is a crucible of fear, fight, and fire that Fish must pass through to reach Rose and conquer his dragons.

The Midnight Dancers (A Fairy Tale Retold #4) by Regina Doman 
Young Adult Fiction – 226 pages

Why live in the light, when the night seems so irresistible? Rachel Durham, 18, is tired of her father and stepmother’s staid morality and pristine prosperity. The summer of her senior year, she’s more than ready for a walk on the wild side, and the door opens - literally - when she and her eleven sisters and stepsisters discover a secret passageway out of their historic home on the Chesapeake Bay. At night, boys in boats and a forbidden island beckon from the shore, and Rachel and her sisters jump aboard. The night becomes Rachel’s true world, and her daytime life becomes a disposable mask. Her puzzled father tries to tow his daughters back into line by enlisting the help of Paul, a med student with a seasonal job juggling at the town festival. But Paul realizes that simply blocking the girls from their midnight parties isn’t going to solve the family’s problems. So he embarks on a risky balancing act to gain the girls’ trust – and to make Rachel see that splitting her life between night and light is a dangerous dance.

Picture Books

V is for Von Trapp: A Musical Family by William Anderson
Picture Book (ages 6-9) – 32 pages

V is for von Trapp: A Musical Family Alphabet gives a behind-the-headlines look at this real-life singing family made famous in the classic movie. Starting with their idyllic early life in Austria where their love of music and performing began, author William Anderson takes readers along on the family's courageous mountaintop escape from Nazi authorities to their new life in America and the famous von Trapp family lodge in the Vermont hills. Meet determined Maria, the dashing Captain, and their talented children; the famous von Trapps whose life story captivated thousands and continues to inspire with its legacy of hope and achievement.

A Lady's Guide to Fortune Hunting

 

A Lady's Guide to Fortune Hunting
by Sophie Irwin
Fiction
325 pages

SUMMARY:
Kitty Talbot finds herself in crisis when her long-standing engagement to a wealthy neighbor is broken. As the oldest daughter in a titled but poor English family, she throws herself into the upcoming social season with the sole aim of capturing a wealthy husband to save her family from financial ruin. But in the high-stakes game of upper-crust marriages of Regency-era England nothing is ever assured. Game on!

MY THOUGHTS ON THIS BOOK: 

This is a great debut novel by a new (2022) English author. It read like a professional book, not a sloppy debut novel or bad chick lit. Yay! It was an easy, light & fun read. It was also notably a clean book; I found it through ReadAloudRevival's adult recommendations. I would read more by this author.

Initially the book was a lot of fun but then I started disliking the heroine because she was too ruthless with other people's lives. There also seemed to be subtle messaging at one point that "kindness" was the most important thing in judging a person's goodness, even if they were a prostitute or had other obvious red flags.

However, once Kitty meets Lord Radcliff, she has a proper opponent and the game is on! It became fun to read again and I greatly enjoyed it. Predictable (a la Jane Austen) but still a highly pleasurable read. It occupied my mind through minor surgery and a brief hospital stay. So grateful!

This book gave me so much pleasure, it started me down a rabbit hole of reading non-fiction books about American women who married into the British aristocracy.

RECOMMENDED FOR: Fans of Jane Austen and Regency-era England! Adult readers who love to escape into the refinement of life in a previous era.

Murder in Mesopotamia

 

Murder is Mesopotamia

by Agatha Christie
Fiction - Cozy Murder Mystery

288 pages

SUMMARY:

Nurse Amy Leatheran accepts a post in the exotic middle east to care for the "nervous" wife of an archeologist on a dig in ancient Mesopotamia. Everyone believes Lovely Louise is a bit mad until she is actually murdered. Fortunately, Poirot appears on the scene and must determine which member of the small and remote archeological team is responsible for the murder.

MY THOUGHTS ON THIS BOOK: 

I'm finishing up my last 5 star review from this summer's reading on the first official day of fall. Slowing completing the transition of our home life from summer to school along with the changing season... 

 

Published in 1935, this book is classic Christie in all the right ways. Pure bliss.

Interestingly, the book is dedicated to Christie's archeological friends in Iraq and Syria. In 1935, Christie is now firmly in the second part of her life as an established author after her infamous disappearance in 1926 and subsequent divorce, followed by remarriage in 1930 to a new (archaeologist) husband. This book takes on a new and ultimately iconic setting for Christie - archeological digs. I love how she drew interesting and elegant elements from her own life and times and preserved them in her novels. While reading, I often paused to wonder how she personally viewed her characters and the situations in her books. Christie successfully maintained an enigmatic quality throughout her life.

This book is narrated by nurse Amy Leatheran with a forward by Dr. Giles Reilly (all characters in the novel). The forward sets the stage for the novel in an interesting and enjoyable way. The nurse narrator proved to be competent, reliable and extremely likeable as a character. I read the book in many bits and pieces by the pool (during my daughter's swim team practices) and sometimes had trouble remembering where I left off after days away, but it was always fun and relaxing to pick back up. Though, I was repeatedly surprised to remember that the nurse was the narrator and not Hastings!

Around page 75, I had a premonition of the ending (who the murderer was) which ultimately proved to be true. But I wasn't 100% sure until the final reveal. It was a fun adventure to read the novel regardless. Christie effectively creates an environment that is just fun to dwell within and ponder. The setting of this novel ignited my imagination and daydreams. 

 

Poirot doesn't enter the novel around page 78. He stumbles upon the scene while enroute between other locations and adventures. It is interesting that so much of the story occurs without him. I wonder if this was Christie's attempting to get away from his character even when required to write another "Poirot novel". I remember hearing that she came to dislike his character and favor Jane Maple, but had to yield to public demand for certain characters.

 

The book ends with all the main characters being gathered for a grand reveal. Everyone is shown to possibly be the murderer before the real murderer is unveiled. 

My random thoughts and observations from this book:

• The book makes professional women (ie the nurse) seem glamorous and adventurous without disparaging stay-at-home mothers.

• Poirot professes to be Catholic and states that monks and priests are not usual to him.

• The book had interesting physiological insight into age versus beauty in women.

• Around page 199, the statement is made that you can understand a person by the books they read.

• Around page 210, the statement is made that both women and nature abhor weak men. 

 

RECOMMENDED FOR: 

Fans of Agatha Christie and cozy murder mysteries! Adult readers who love to escape into the refinement of life in a previous era.

The ABC Murders

 

The ABC Murders

by Agatha Christie
Fiction - Cozy Murder Mystery

272 pages

SUMMARY:

Originally published in 1936, Poirot and Hastings are on the case again! This time they reunite to track down a serial murder who is terrorizing Britian by killing people in alphabetical order. First, Mrs. Ascher in Andover. Then, Betty Barnard in Bexhill. And so on... Can they assist Scotland Yard in bringing the culprit to justice and calming public fears? 

MY THOUGHTS ON THIS BOOK: 

Another summer, another batch of Agatha Christie books read poolside...belatedly adding one of my favorite books from this summer. Life was good by the pool!

This is one of the great Christie novels. Pure enjoyment. Such fun. A blessing in my life. It is one of the more famous Christie stories and deservedly so. Multiple movies and tv series have attempted to portray it.

I liked the first murder victim a lot. She seems like such a cool character - separating from an abusive husband, working for a living, staying married/faithful to her undeserving husband and even financially supporting him off & on. Strong and highly principled. Sharp tongued and in charge of herself, but still caring for others in her way. 

The novel features Poirot and Hastings again. Hastings is apparently visiting from Africa, where he lives with his wife. The wife remains in Africa tending their ranch, so Hasting functions in his old capacity as Poirot's right-hand man. Hasting also narrates this novel with a first person account; I was thrown off a few times thinking Poirot was speaking/thinking. 

This was a great poolside novel with good chapter breaks. I even took it out of the pool bag a few times to continue reading at home - rare & high praise! Interesting and likeable characters abound. My suspicions about the conclusion were aroused but I was guessing until the end. An easy and enjoyable novel! 

RECOMMENDED FOR: 

Fans of Agatha Christie and cozy murder mysteries! Adult readers who love to escape into the refinement of life in a previous era.

Death on the Riviera

 

Death on the Riviera

by John Bude
Fiction - Cozy Murder Mystery

242 pages

SUMMARY:

Detective Inspector Meredith and Sargeant Strang of Scotland Yard leave London's grey February weather for the warmth and tropical paradise of the French Riviera in pursuit of a notorious criminal. Joining forces with the local police force to uncover a currency counterfeiting ring, they are drawn into a murder investigation. The investigations lead them to interact with the inhabitants of the riviera - including a wealthy widow with a curious circle of dependents staying at her villa. Will Meredith and Strang find their criminal and help the local police force with their investigation?     

MY THOUGHTS ON THIS BOOK: 

Originally published in 1952 during the golden era of British Crime Fiction, this cozy murder mystery is escapism at its finest! It felt like an undiscovered Agatha Christie novel - but a bit more elevated and original than some of Christie's churned out thrillers!

 

This novel was a new combination of familiar and beloved elements - a rich tyrant and her dependents, the luxurious world of the rich, the post-WWII environment as well as young girls entering romances and trying to discern men's true character. It contains wonderful old-fashioned turns of phrase such as "a catholic collection of friends" to describe a character's wide social circle.

 

My biggest disappointment was how the mystery was resolved in the end. The resolution felt hastily thrown together as if it were not important. I guess the focus of the novel was creating the elegant and glamorous old-world atmosphere... which the author did amazingly. I reveled in the experience of reading this book but then was letdown in the end.

 

I guess this would be described as a historical novel, versus historical fiction, because it was actually written in the era it is depicting. I MUCH prefer this to modern 'historical fiction' which attempts to depict historical eras but inevitably ascribes modern values and practices to the characters. It is 100% better to just read an authentic novel from the era!

 

At one point, a character sails from Dunkirk and can still see rubble from the war. Imagine being alive in the 1950s - the scars of war that must have still been seen and felt! I also loved the direct communication and link between intentions/actions shown by the characters. Good and bad were obvious, rather than intentionally colored with modern shades of grey. It was refreshingly attractive.  

RECOMMENDED FOR: 

Fans of Agatha Christie and cozy murder mysteries! Adult readers who love to escape into the elegant lifestyles of the rich or the refinement of life in the post-WWII era.

The Shepherd of the Hills

 

The Shepherd of the Hills

by Harold Bell Wright
Fiction
348 pages

SUMMARY:

Set in the early 1900s, this novel explores the lives of the mountain people of the Ozark Hills with striking insight into human nature. Through the twists and turns of life, we meet a stranger who settles into the mountains and has a profound effect on its inhabitants. Human nature is laid bare and yet remains unpredictably and occasionally violent, just like the wilderness of the mountains.

MY THOUGHTS ON THIS BOOK: 

Our family is planning a trip to Branson, MO this summer and I stumbled across this book while researching the area. It is a great summer read! Originally published in 1907, it brings the people and place vividly to life revealing their inner turmoil, sacrifices, sufferings and joys amidst a strikingly beautiful and dangerous environment.

Most of the mountain characters speak with a regional dialect that is conveyed through their grammar and the spelling of their dialogue. This varies by character based on their level of education and sophistication. For example, one character says "Ain't nothin' to a flat country nohow. A man jes natually wears hisself plumb out a walkin' on a level 'thout ary down hill t' spell him." The reader needs to sound out words in their head and be okay not understanding everything. Bad grammar and spelling in literature are usually kryptonite to me, but for some reason, it worked in this novel. I didn't feel a significant language barrier and somehow made sense of it. 

 

I did struggle a bit with the inconsistent names (and titles and nicknames) used for characters. But, there is something about the novel that encourages the reader to be okay not understanding everything. There is a certain other worldliness to the life depicted. The novel encourages you to ponder life without any illusions that you will fully fathom it.

The author effectively shows us the inner life of many of these solitary mountain people in a way that invites pondering. I found certain passages devastatingly honest and profoundly insightful about human nature. Each reader will probably be touched by a different character or situation based on their own life experience. I was especially moved by the truths uncovered when the shepherd educates Sammy. Teaching in the backwoods, he revealed true culture and aristocratic values in a way that would be impossible amidst the glittery falsehood of city life. There is a lot to unpack there.

 

Overall, it was a surprisingly easy and gentle read. There were nice chapter breaks and I felt myself pulled into the quiet and slow life of the mountains. And at the same time, the sudden unpredictability of human behavior and nature kept me turning pages. It is a lengthy book, but I read it easily in about a week because I kept picking it up to see what would happen next.

 

The story is endearing and fascinating. These characters and their environment will remain with me for a long time.

RECOMMENDED FOR:

Adult readers seeking a soothing and interesting novel that will lull you into a slower mental pace. This is a great summer read!

 

The Shadow of the Bear

 

The Shadow of the Bear: A Fairy Tale Retold

by Regina Doman
Fiction - Modern Retelling of Fairy Tale
228 pages

SUMMARY:

This modern retelling of Briar Rose introduces the characters of high school sisters Blanche and Rose. Rose and Blanche were homeschooled in the country, but now live in NYC and attend parochial school following the death of their father. Amidst the big city life of NYC, they encounter mysterious Bear. We slowly learn about Bear's backstory, his conversion to the catholic faith and his brother Fish as adventure and danger unfolds!

MY THOUGHTS ON THIS BOOK: 

I attended university with the author's brother and tried to start this series a few years ago, but couldn't get into it. It definitely has a quirky homeschool vibe that initially turned me off. But I recently had to read a fairy tale story for a reading challenge and decided to revisit these books. Oh, goodness! They hit the spot and I fell in love with them! It is funny how books can hit you differently at different points in life.

 

This is a striking YA novel series. Wow! In a fresh, authentic and often quirky way, the novels depict characters coming of age, facing adventure and living out catholic beliefs in the midst of the broken modern world. Catholic teaching is translated into the modern vernacular life and experiences of young adults with striking realism. Captivating characters and moral reinforcement for young catholic adults! 

 

Excellent writing skills made this story feel organic and fresh. I largely forgot this story was a modern retelling of a fairy tale. But looking back, it was cleverly done. A lot of orthodox theology is baked into the story without feeling heavy-handed through realistic conversations and bold life choices taken by beloved characters. Homeschooling readers will probably find fun parallels to their own lives. But be aware that these stories do not pull punches when depicting a broken world and can get dark and violent in the tradition of the original Grimm fairy tales.

 

MY THOUGHTS ON THE SERIES:

In a nutshell: I loved the first four books and disliked the last two.

 

This is the first book in fairy tale series by Regina Doman. 

Here are my brief thoughts on the other books in the series.

 

#2 - Black as Night (2004)

This book is a retelling of Snow White. It is the story of Blanche and Bear's romance with Fish and Rose included. I loved reading about the friars that Blanche encounters in the story and imagining their lives. This is based off the author's own experience living and working with the Friars of the Franciscan Renewal in NYC. So cool! I also loved reading the author's notes at the end of this novel and hearing about her personal connection to the story.

I loved this book and was distressed that the series is going out of print, so I bought the entire series for our house. We are normally library people, so this is very rare and high praise from me!

 

#3 - Waking Rose (2008)

This book is a retelling of Sleeping Beauty. It is the story of Rose and Fish's romance with Blanche and Bear included. New side characters Paul, Alex and Kateri are also introduced. The book follows Rose to college that is a literary combination of Franciscan University of Steubenville and Christendom College. I loved seeing some only-at-Franciscan moments recreated in the novel. It was a really fun and unique treat to relive my college years. 

 

I was also blown away that this novel subtly addresses homosexuality and boys questioning their own manhood. It was subtle, so innocent readers might miss or overlook the references. Adult readers and readers who have experienced this struggle will pick up on it. This book could be a lifeline to male readers who experience, but don't know how to articulate or understand, this struggle. In the end, we rejoice with the male character who leans into his faith and finds the courage to embrace life fully as a man in a relationship with a woman. 

This was personally my favorite book in the series.

 

#4 - The Midnight Dancers (2008)

This book is a retelling of The Twelve Dancing Princesses. It follows Paul after college and tells his romance story with a new female character. I enjoyed it thoroughly and didn't mind the break from older established characters. 

 

It subtly contained a lot of hard but necessary truths for girls entering dating life!

#5 - Alex O'Donnell and the 40 Cyber Thieves (2010)

This book is a retelling of Ali Baba and the 40 Thieves. It tells Alex and Kateri's romance story with a blink-and-you-missed-it cameo by Rose & Fish.

 

I had a harder time with this book because it requires you to see Alex as a dashing hero versus a cringe-worthy weird boy. I was rooting for Kateri to run the entire time! I did not enjoy reading about Alex, who is mindbogglingly dumb and insensitive. The cyber crime storyline never engaged me and the novel never addresses that Alex's Dad does super shady stuff online.

This is the book I initially tried to read and it turned me off from the entire series. I do not recommend this particular book.

 

#6 - Rapunzel Let Down (2013):

This book is a retelling of Rapunzel. I've read in other reviews that Rapunzel's mother is a man-hating lesbian and that both a male and female character are raped in the story. The book is currently languishing on my nightstand unfinished. It seems even farther removed from the original series with all new characters and a significantly darker tone.

RECOMMENDED FOR:

This book series is written for Young Adults; I would give it to Middle School or High School readers based on their maturity level. Adult readers can also enjoy this series. These novels are a great find for young adults coming of age from an orthodox catholic perspective! But due to the sensitive topics addressed, I recommend parents read these books and form their own opinion before passing them along to children.

Last Bookshop in London

 

The Last Bookshop in London

by Madeline Martin
Historical Fiction - WWII
325 pages

SUMMARY:

Grace moves to London in 1939 with her best friend Viv and both young girls are eager to experience the big city and begin their lives there. However, as their lives and the war progress, things take unexpected turns. Grace finds work in a bookshop and eventually discovers the value to reading good literature against the backdrop of a momentous period of history.

MY THOUGHTS: 

I've been starving for good but light fiction lately... My nightstand lately is filled with non-fiction. All interesting subjects, but nothing that can sustain and compel my reading through the entire book. I feel like my reading has stalled out. I do also have The Brothers Karamazov by Dostoevsky, which is excellently written (an understatement), but often requires effort to read. I have been dying for easy fiction that is also well written.

This book was recommended by ReadAloudRevival.com Books for Mamas. I liked many of her children's book recommendations, so I gave it a try. At first, I was distrustful and weary of the stated innocence of the main character. I was anticipating that she would be "liberated" of her innocence later in the story - such is the way of most modern books. I didn't think clean chick lit existed. But eventually, I realized that this was a genuinely innocent book. Woah! Wholesome virtues like innocence, patience, hard work and forbearance are highlighted in various characters for their own sake. No modern values spin.

I loved the character of Mrs. Weatherford. She is a bit of a bossy busybody but in a good way. Intuitive and genuinely helpful. Not prideful, shrill or rude. She exemplifies calm authority, smart leadership and informed/organized planning.

I also loved that the heroine is constantly humble, perhaps due to her difficult childhood. She consistently seeks to make the current situation (whatever it is) better for both herself and others around her. She shows striking business acumen and personal bravery, but also breathtaking humility and respect for the people around her.

The novel had the feel of a Hallmark movie (before it went woke) but with a bit more depth due to the WWII setting. Unexpected twists happen and beloved characters die. Multiple characters experience redemption, unexpected friendships develop and everyone is shown to be a good person in the end. So it has that fairy tale feel. Though, of course, some characters are dead and the city of London is in rubble at the end of the novel.

I didn't completely lose myself in the environment of the book. Part of me held back, critical and evaluating. But this book is remarkable for what it is - clean chick lit. No bad language, sexual content or normalized bad behavior. Similar to Anne of Green Gables, many female readers will love this book and its heroine. It didn't totally satisfy me personally; I wish it had even more depth and reality. But, at least on paper, it was everything I wanted. 

RECOMMENDED FOR:

Middle school readers and older. Despite the Hallmark feel, the realities of war make this book questionable for younger readers. Adults with sensitive minds will probably not be troubled.