Sam Kemp is struggling to keep herself, her out-or-work husband, and her sarcastic teenager daughter afloat. After working out at the gym and feeling bad about herself compared to the other women, the "yummy mummies" as she calls them, Sam grabs her gym bag and hops in the car with her co-workers on her way to an important sales call. With her depressed, unemployed husband at home, her job is all important.

As she opens her gym bag to put on her one-inch comfy black shoes, all she spies is a … [Read more...] about Someone Else’s Shoes

Remember Sister Jean, the then 98-year-old Chicago nun who gained international fame during Loyola University’s men's basketball team’s journey to the N.C.A.A. Final Four in 2018? She’s got a new book out. 
Yep, at the age of 103 that sister is still captivating the world with her infectious smile, love of basketball, and approach to life. 
Reading her book feels akin to having her sit in your living room reminiscing about her life. What’s her secret to living such a long and fulfilling … [Read more...] about Wake Up with Purpose: What I’ve Learned in My First 100 Years

For historical fiction lovers, this one is a winner! One night in 1928, a whale washes up on the shores of the English Channel. By law, it belongs to the King, but twelve-year-old orphan Cristabel Seagrave builds a theater from the whale’s skeletal rib cage. Within the Whalebone Theatre, Cristabel escapes her stepparents and governess, and her imagination comes to life.

When World War II starts, Cristabel and her beloved younger step-brother Digby become British secret agents on separate … [Read more...] about The Whalebone Theatre

A little masterpiece is how I’m referring to this gem of a book. The protagonist, the other characters, the writing—all so unexpectedly WONDERFUL. I wish you could see me holding it next to my heart. … [Read more...] about Dinosaurs: A Novel

Reading these treasures that Marilyn wrote on scraps of paper, or typed out without censoring herself, or jotted down on  sundry items gives new insight into this cultural icon. More importantly, reading her words reminds us that she was much more than a "ditzy blonde" as she was often portrayed. In fact, she was well-read and thought deeply about life, love, and death. Utterly fascinating. … [Read more...] about Fragments: Poems, Intimate Notes by Marilyn Monroe

For those who can never get enough of the Kennedy’s, there’s a new book out just this week to satiate your passion for this storied family. It’s called White House By the Sea by Kate Storey. The book focuses on the Kennedy lives from the vantage point of their summer house at Hyannis Port, also known as the Summer White House, where for a hundred years America’s most famous political family has come to swim, play, celebrate, and bond. It is also the setting of so many events we remember: JFK … [Read more...] about White House by the Sea

Beware the Woman by Megan Abbott is a suspense novel that turns the age-old “woman in trouble” plot on its head.

I loved Abbott's other bestseller, The Turnout. I learned from my favorite NPR book reviewer Maureen Corrigan that Abbot has a Phd in literature and that she wrote her dissertation on the figure of the macho “tough guy” in the mysteries of writers like Dashiell Hammett. Corrigan says, “Abbott is one smart dame when it comes to sussing out the sexism inherent in those mysteries that … [Read more...] about Beware the Woman

The Power of Wonder!

Author Monica Parker in her new book The Power of Wonder reveals what wonder is, why we need it, and how to cultivate it in your life.

In our technology-obsessed world, Parker points out that many have traded wonder for the “facsimile of electronic novelty-seeking": scrolling on Facebook, Instagram, or whatever your current jam is.

Whether you’re aware of it or not, wonder spirals its way through our shared human experience. From artistic expression to religious … [Read more...] about The Power of Wonder

Hoover was THE best-selling author of 2022. The NY Times describes her books this way: Hoover is eclectic. She’s written romances, a steamy psychological thriller, a ghost story, harrowing novels about domestic violence, drug abuse, homelessness and poverty. Though her books are hard to categorize, most of them have an addictive combination of sex, drama and outrageous plot twists.

Her top-selling book, “It Ends With Us,” a drama about a florist who falls for a brooding, abusive neurosurgeon, … [Read more...] about It Ends With Us