REVIEW Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald by Therese Anne Fowler

 

I grabbed this novel because I needed a novel that began with the Letter Z for my Popsugar prompt and had travelled to Montgomery, AL a few years ago for work, where I visited the Fitzgerald home. Zelda has always been somewhat mythologized and I didn't know a lot about her.  The novel is a fictionalized accounting of Zelda's life, beginning with her as a teenager in Montgomery, meeting Scott for the first time at the tail end of World War I. The novel ends with the disintegration of their marriage and Scott's death. 

I really enjoyed getting to know Zelda in this novel.  She's a Southern Belle from a distinguished family, sure, but she's pretty good at not letting people push her around. I was surprised at the things she did when she was living with her parents and then later on when she was travelling with Scott. Her life with her husband was beyond frustrating and I felt mad for her and bad for her at the same time, especially after she had their daughter, Scottie.  It was so heartbreaking. Fowler did a wonderful job making both Zelda and Scott believable characters.  Zelda shown in her own right during this novel, but I could also hear and experience her travails with Scott as they were happening, which is the hallmark of a good novelist. The novel uses solid voices and descriptions that all you to be in the moment with the characters.

The biggest thing that most people associate with Zelda was her mental health break struggles. These seemed to really take off in the later part of her marriage to Scott and this was so in the novel as well.  They didn't seem to manifest for three quarters of the book. However it seems that her physical health and marital struggles caused so much strain on her, that it eventually coopted her mental health as well, causing a break. Even then, I felt that Zelda was portrayed as more misunderstood - she was trying to assert her independence within a marriage to an insecure alcoholic who wanted nothing more than to control her and pigeonhole her into a specific role that he had assigned to her. 

I loved being brought on a whirlwind journey of the 20's and the Jazz Age and learning about this woman from a perspective that I hadn't before considered. 

REVIEW Heartwood by Amity Gaige

 

I needed something a bit quicker and lighter after that last one and I've been wanting to read this one for a while, so I picked it up. This novel focuses on 42-year old Valerie Gillis, a nurse who has disappeared in Maine while hiking the Appalachian Trail a hot minute from finishing on Katahdin, and the gripping search and rescue operation run by Beverly, a dedicated Lieutenant with the Maine Game Wardens (think Fish and Game officer). Beverly was one of the first women hired by the Wardens and, I think, the first woman to become a Lt in the agency. She's dedicated and determined and has been known for finding even the most lost of the lost, but in conducting this search, all of her teams (including flyovers and dogs) have come up empty. It also focuses on 76 year old Lena, a wheelchair bound woman living in an assisted living community that has been estranged from her own daughter, a nurse, for years.From the start there was a sense of urgency that is a subtle undercurrent. Valerie has a limited amount of food and water and isn't a very experienced hiker, so she and the people searching for her know that she is on seemingly borrowed time. As each moment slips by, so do the chances of finding her alive. 

I loved this book. On many levels. I love books set in the wilderness and hiking, both of which are loves of mine.  I've been working on doing all of my 48 4000 footers in NH for years so any book where the wilderness or hiking or both are main characters are a natural draw for me. The way that the book is told - shifting between the perspectives of the three women - is one of my favorite methods of storytelling and is very effective here. The women talk a lot about the hardships that they have suffered that have contributed to who they are as the search goes on - Bev being the first woman (and a tall one at around six feet tall), Lena with the relationship with her daughter and being wheelchair bound and Valerie slowly starving. For me, this was very interesting - I love a good backstory. The relationships between the women and their moms or daughters is also a large character in this novel.

I loved Bev.  I thought that she was compelling and I found myself pulling for her throughout all stages of the novel. The characters were  compelling and the book moved at a very fast pace. I read it in about three days tops. It's a page turner for sure.  

Def give it a shot. 

Links I love

 

I hope that everyone had a good week!  Still mending.,..but I think I'm on the mend.  The doctor said I'm not wheezing or have other weird noises coming from my lungs, which was decidedly NOT the case the last time that I was there so that's good.  Sleep, water and light walking for me until I'm better. I also now hate my inhalers but hey, they're necessary so whatever.  

My son has committed to UNH for college in the fall, so I'm starting to crochet a blanket with him in the school colors. I will hopefully have it done by then!

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• Readers still prefer print books - I certainly do. 
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• Want to read more - try these five tips.
• The finalists have been announced for the NYPL's young lions award. 
• Saturday was Indie bookstore day and here are some great ones from around the world.  I love The Bookery in Manchester, NH, Gibson's in Concord, NH, The Little Village Toy and Book Shop in Littleton, NH and Powell's in Portland, OR (I can spend like two days there).
• Solo time in nature is helpful for our health.
• Are you a doomer? I might be.
• Shakespeare's home was hidden in plain sight. For years.
• Was Rex Heuermann's wife in the know?
• One of my favorite local coffee shops is expanding.
• Does your library have its own reading list?
• Book Tok has released its first bestseller list. 
• For those of you that like Haruki Murakami (like I do), he has a new book coming out with a female main character. 

Please take some time to visit my Pangobooks store!

I'm currently reading Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald by Therese Anne Fowler and listenin to The Girls by Emma Cline. 

REVIEW Nobody's Girl by Virginia Giuffre

 

This posthumously published memoir presents us with a reckoning of trauma and sexual abuse that started when Ms. Giuffre was living with her father and ended with her being caught in one of the biggest sex trafficking rings that we are aware of - the one run by convicted pedophiles and traffickers Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. Ms. Giuffre reportedly died by suicide just prior to the memoir being published. 

The first half of the memoir details Giuffre's sexual abuse, first at the hands of her father and a family friend, and then at the hands of Epstein and Maxwell, who she meets after fleeing from her home and becoming employed at Mar-a-Lago, of all places. TRIGGER WARNING: this part of the book is horrific and discusses sexual abuse, so tread with caution.

Giuffre is able to escape from Epstein and Maxwell. She marries, has three children and relocates to live in Australia with her husband, their family and his parents. But Epstein and Maxwell's acts are still an insidious part of her life, even as she has seemingly moved onto another life. Giuffre, to her credit, feels called to hold her abusers accountable for what they did to her and to hundreds of other CHILDREN by testifying in court cases, giving interviews and filing lawsuits. 

I was hesitant to read this book because of the content, frankly but I ended up drawn into the book. I read it in two days.  It is a compelling tale of a young woman who is calling out her abusers and how wealthy, powerful people consistently use their privilege to avoid compliance with the law and hurt the children around them. Undoubtedly, Giuffre is brave for the steps that she took in advocating for herself and other trafficking victims and in writing this memoir, but I can't help but wonder at what cost. While writing seems to have arced towards redemption, her death makes me question whether it was truly therapeutic and helpful for her. This shouldn't detract from you reading this memoir - it is an important and well written one, albeit a hard one to read at times.

Definitely read this, but make sure to take care of yourself at the same time. 

REVIEW: Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo

 

This was a really interesting and much more emotionally trying book then I realized it would be when I selected it, but I'm so glad that I did. 

The main character is Lily Hu, a 17 year old girl growing up in 1950's San Francisco Chinatown. She's trying to navigate her romantic feelings for classmate Kathleen Miller and the expectation that she be a good "Chinese girl." In the 1950's being a lesbian and Chinese made people targets of homophobia and discrimination based upon a fear of Communism. However, Lily seems to have found a haven at a lesbian bar called The Telegraph Club. This novel explores Lily's struggles in navigating her coming of age and her identity.

Lily was such an interesting and authentic character.  And boy does she have a lot going on. She has to hide a major part of her identity while also fearing that her family will be deported as a result of the Red Scare, which was in full swing at this time. I loved that she was willing to take realistic risks and the novel offers an intimate look into the lives of people that lived during this time.  The city of San Francisco also plays a large role in this novel and Lo does a tremendous job of situating us in the city itself. 

The relationship between Kathleen and Lily is also pretty realistic. They're both pretty hesitant at first even though its obvious that they are both queer and attracted to one another.  They don't know how to talk about what and how they're feeling because at the time there wasn't really any language to talk about that. 

Malinda Lo did extensive research before writing this novel and lists her sources. Definitely read the Author's note - it's at the end of the novel but I would recommend reading it first so that you can set the novel in it's appropriate historical context. 

LOVED this novel and would highly recommend. 

Links I love

 

I'm still trying to kick this lung issue I have.  UGH, the flu really did a number on me.

• How fan fiction went mainstream.
• On writing about the American rural area.
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• The new Hunger Games Trailer is here.
• Have we been reading Toni Morrison all wrong?
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• Songs written by Bruce Springsteen that you didn't know were written by him,.
• 8 books written about characters seeking connection.
• Here's an article about the habits of super readers.
• There's a Fantasy and dark lit bookstore opening in Salem, MA and here's the kickstarter for it.
• An interview with Elizabeth Banks where she talks about the books that have shaped her. 
• Here are the winners for the 2026 Whiting Award for Emerging. 
• This novel on motherhood looks interesting.
• Bob Odenkirk talks about a near death experience.
• New film highlights skiing in Tuckerman's Ravine. 
• I'm a huge true crime fan. Here are this month's new true crime novels. 
• The top ten cities for coffee - in the US.
• 5 locations where tourists outnumber locals. 

I'm currently reading Nobody's Girl by Virginia Jiuffre and listening to Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey. 

Please visit my Pangobooks store!

REVIEW Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow

 

I would describe this novel as a unique take on a love story - but not romance - set in the world of video game design. It's about two childhood friends who become legendary game designers after attending college in Cambridge, MA in the late 90's. 

Sadie and Sam, the main characters, meet for the first time at 11 years old in the game room of a children's hospital in Los Angeles.  Sadie is there because her older sister has cancer and Sam is there because he was in a horrific and tragic car accident that crushed his leg. Almost silently, they bond over Super Mario Brothers, the game that Sam is playing when Sadie first encounters him. Because Sam has emotionally shut down - he hasn't really talked since he got there - the nurses are thrilled that Sadie has gotten him to come out of his shell and ask Sadie to keep visiting with him. Sadie's mother proposes that she use the hours towards her bat mitzvah community service requirement and so Sadie agrees, all the while sneakily getting the nurses to sign off on her hours, which they willingly do. WHile it is transactional, it's also genuine - Sadie is fond of Sam. The storyline spans over 30 years of Sadie and Sam's life and a continent as well, going from California, to college in Massachusetts and back and includes periods of estrangement and closeness. 

This is an intricate novel about male-female  friendship and stories - Sam and Sadie create elaborate video games with intricate stories as we read about their story.  I loved the development of the characters and the relationship between Sam and Sadie, which is also very much a character in the novel.  I also appreciated themes and discussions surrounding cultural appropriation (one of the games they create and develop is called Ichigo, based upon The Great Wave of Kanagawa and yet neither Sadie nor Sam are Japanese). 

I loved this book.  Add it to your library - it's well worth it. 

This book satisfied the Popsugar prompt of a platonic friendship between a guy and girl.