What surprised me about Delia Ephron’s novel, Siracusa, is that I loved despising all the characters, even the little girl. Typically, if I don’t like at least a few of the characters in a book, I’ll put it right down. But, the two couples who travel on vacation together are each compelling in their dysfunctionality. Married […]
Martha’s Vineyard, Island of Dreams by Susan Branch is a charming, original memoir relaying the author’s story of running away from California after her marriage collapses. Arriving on Martha’s Vineyard, she hastily purchases a tiny run down cottage. Her story of how she examines her life and moves forward is filled with naïveté, innocence, introspection and hard […]
Here on the blog the other Matchmakers and I share what we are reading, watching, or listening to quite frequently, but we don’t often hear from our other staff members all over the library system. Now, we will be sharing interviews from other staff members so that you the reader can see what we’re reading/watching/listening to […]
The World Happiness Report ranked Denmark as the world’s 2016’s happiest country which makes Helen Russell’s The Year of Living Danishly most timely. Russell and her husband moved to Denmark when he obtained a year appointment at Lego’s rural corporate headquarters. She was a little wary about the move, but as a journalist, specializing in lifestyle and travel, […]
Katherine Wilson’s debut memoir, Only In Naples: lessons in food and famiglia from my mother-in-law, is engaging and lighthearted. Naples, sometimes called the Appalachia of Italy, may not be the first place you consider when planning a trip to Italy, but this book may change that opinion. Don’t expect to visit all the sites and cultural destinations […]
Whether or not you’re going on a vacation this summer, you can take a fictional one with these titles! Summer Rental by Mary Kay Andrews The Family Beach House by Holly Chamberlain “Some houses have a personality of their own. Larchmere is that kind of place–a splendid, sprawling home with breathtaking views that open to […]
Get lost in the wilderness with these titles! Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer Finding Everett Ruess: The Life and Unsolved Disappearance of a Legendary Wilderness Explorer by David Roberts “Traces the life of the early twentieth-century adventurer, writer, and watercolor artist, describing his early years as a child prodigy, his solitary journeys through the […]
Some reviewers compare adventure writer Richard Grant’s Dispatches From Pluto: Lost and Found in the Mississippi Delta to Peter Mayle( A Year in Provence, and Frances Mayes( Under the Tuscan Sun). It’s true that Grant is an Englishman like Mayle with a great sense of humor and writes about the South in an often poetic way […]
In 2002, when she was appointed Paris Bureau Chief for the New York Times, Elaine Sciolino, author of The Only Street in Paris:Life on the Rue des Martyrs, moved to The City of Light with her family, planning to stay for 3 to 4 years. A decade later she and her husband still reside there. They moved […]
Today is New Year’s Eve. A day when people spend time reflecting on the past year and reveling in their favorite moments. In the spirit of reflection I’m going to be sharing with you my top 15 books of the past year, many of which I’ve already reviewed here. Choosing only 15 books is a challenge, but I think […]
