Book Review: Single, Carefree, Mellow by Katherine Heiny

  

I love short stories. I read them and I write them, but I'll freely admit that short story collections are not most readers' first choice.  It's not easy to tell a complete story, to make the world of your characters seem full-blooded, in just a few pages, but when a short story is good, it tends to stick with me longer than some full-length mediocre novels. 

I sought out Katherine Heiny's Single, Carefree, Mellow at a library several towns away because of a story of hers I read years ago in an old New Yorker magazine. The story, "How to Give the Wrong Impression," included in this collection, is told in the second person and focuses on the relationship between two roommates, Gwen and Boris.  I fell in love with the end of the story when Boris finds Gwen cleaning the bathroom late at night while she's wearing an old pair of his boxer shorts.  The language is true and tender, and it is not only something I want to read over and over but it's a perfect example of the type of writing I strive to create.

Single, Carefree, Mellow did not disappoint. Every story was interesting and entertaining in a wonderful way. I flew through the book, then went back and re-read a few favorites. There are three really great stories that feature a woman named Maya, each at a different point in her life. There are nosy neighbors and precocious children and older husbands and loyal best friends. And there's a ton of infidelity. In fact, almost every story features adultery in some way or another. I usually hate when cheating is used as a major plot point but Heiny's characters are flawed and very aware of their mistakes. Like in the real world, no one is perfect and there's nothing wrong with that.

This was one of the best short story collections that I've read in the last few years.  Heiny is able to find humor in even the most ordinary situations, making Single, Carefree, Mellow a real joy to read. Heiny has a novel in the works and I'll definitely be keeping that on my radar for sure.
 

Book Review: The Virgins by Pamela Erens

I can't remember the last book I read that won me over with its tone and narration from the first page.  Taking place during the 1979-1980 academic year at a prestigious prep school in New Hampshire, Pamela Erens' The Virgins follows Aviva and Seung, a couple who has the entirety of Auburn Academy watching as they fall in love all over campus. Is their affection more of a distraction because he is Korean-American and she is Jewish? All signs point to yes, but there's much more to the story. 

The Virgins comes off as simultaneously retro and modern. Pay phones are a necessity and computers don't yet exist, but there's a current day feel in the way the teenage characters operate independently (perhaps that's just a result of the prep school setting).  Aviva is confident in her right to express herself as a sexual being.  Seung is a frequent dabbler in all sorts of recreational drugs. The sex throughout is frank and raw, but never raunchy.  The teens' emotions, fears and interactions are even more frank and raw. Every move, good or bad, makes them more human and even more relateable to the reader.

One of the best parts of The Virgins is that every word is perfectly placed and important to the story. The fact that Erens is able to make almost all of the characters in The Virgins sympathetic in some way is no easy task because so many of them are not terribly likeable.  The narrator, Bruce Bennett-Jones, a classmate of Aviva and Seung, is extremely unreliable as he tells the story as a third-party looking on from afar.  He's infatuated with Aviva, jealous of Seung, and unable to understand why he is not admired or popular among his peers even though he is from a prominent family.

Having Bruce Bennett-Jones as the narrator makes the book feel as though it's a glorified game of 'Telephone' in the best way possible.  Is Bennett-Jones making up these stories? Are they just tidbits of real tales that he's heard that he's spinning into what he wishes had really happened?    Either way, The Virgins is a quiet, tragic novel that makes you think twice about what is really happening behind every closed door and inside every person's mind.

Book Review: Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon

I read Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon in one night. Yoon's debut novel contains a mix of traditional chapters, gchat conversations, lists and graphics, and it hooked me immediately.  The story of Maddy, a girl who is literally allergic to everything and unable to leave the house, was real and captivating right from the start.  When she falls in love with the new boy next door, Oliver, she quickly  realizes that she could never have a 'normal' life with him.  She can't even touch him due to her health condition, and as their relationship grows, I truly felt for Maddy. Her world is small but she is relatively happy until she actually knows what she is missing.

I'm hesitant to say more because the plot twists in the second half of Everything, Everything are truly great and I would hate to ruin that for anyone. Trust me when I say that this is the perfect book to devour in a single sitting.

Harriet Wolf's Seventh Book of Wonders by Julianna Baggott

 

In many of the books that I read, the setting becomes a character.  Maybe the world is fictional but based on a real city so I can picture that skyline, those sidewalks, the noise that penetrates even through closed apartment windows. Sometimes an author details so vividly the home or office building where their main characters spend much time that I feel like I've walked through that front door before or sat at that conference room table.  The overarching theme in Julianna Baggott's Harriet Wolf's Seventh Book of Wonders is 'home,' either searching for one, dreaming of one, returning to one, etc. and my favorite parts of the book are her descriptions of the many places where Harriet Wolf has lived and survived before returning, finally, to her parents' house outside Baltimore, where she lives until she dies in the same room where she was literally born.

Perhaps that sounds morbid, but Harriet Wolf's Seventh Book of Wonders is actually a beautiful story of four women, three generations of the Wolf family. Harriet's story is told in a flashback diary entry way while her daughter, Eleanor, and her granddaughters, Ruth and Tilton, narrate from a present day when Harriet is no longer alive. The present day chapters are interesting, but I'll admit that it was Harriet's story that kept me captivated.

The main storyline of the book focuses on Harriet Wolf as the famous writer.  She wrote a series of six books that have a cult following and there are many devoted fans who believe that Harriet wrote a seventh book that is hidden inside the familial home.  Part of the novel is the 'search' for this seventh book but most of it is just delving into Harriet's past so that her family knows where she came from and why she was the way that she was.  There were so many twists and turns in this woman's life and she overcame so much, from lost love to growing up in a home for mentally disabled children to being an unexpected single mother later in life; these delicate tales that Baggott shares as Harriet almost have heartbeat of their own.

Early in the book, there was a passage that stayed with me:

"Each molecule of story is a universe--grotesque and stunning, all sunlit steam and engines laboring in the chests of trains and creatures with small pink hands and horns...."

A little further down, Baggott as Harriet writes,

"I hope, my dear readers, that your hearts haven't stiffened, rind-tough, or gone dowdy with flab--poor neglected hearts, a tragic crime. May you keep yourselves trimmed--hair, nails, suit jackets--but untamed within. (Be curious)."  (Page 72)

So much is said and so much can be learned from just those few lines.

It took Baggott almost 20 years to write this book, which is easy to believe after reading it. Every story loops back around in some way, every mention of a historic event is deliberate and meaningful to the story and when I finished Harriet Wolf, a book that had an unresolved ending to a certain extent, it didn't feel like there were loose ends.  I feel like every scene in the book probably played out in Baggott's mind hundreds of times before finalized.  It's not easy to write a book about downtrodden events and unfortunate individuals without being depressing but Harriet Wolf's Seventh Book of Wonders is full of compassion in the very best way.

Book Review: "Why Not Me?" by Mindy Kaling

I took Mindy Kaling's Why Not Me? on the road to Portsmouth, New Hampshire this weekend where I read it in two nights while curled up on the awesome hotel room couch (seriously, I wanted to steal this couch, throw it on the roof of my car and drive the three hours home with my arm out the window holding it down, trying to convince myself that I could actually catch it if it started to slide off the moving vehicle while speeding down the highway).  It's a great fast read, touching on serious topics but mainly containing dating and friendship-related stories that will make you laugh aloud.

This is Mindy's second book--I read her first book, Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?, when it came out a few years ago and enjoyed it but there is something about this new one that I really love. Mindy's voice is more confident and her essays are more evolved.  Overall, there is a maturity that was kind of missing from her last book.  Although there is a section on Hollywood beauty routines, this book is focused on a smart, strong woman who has had funny, crazy experiences and wants to share these tales with other women.

As I read, there were a few lines that really jumped out at me and compelled me to mark them with stickies.

• With regard to her dislike of weddings: "If you're my best friend and the only way I get to have dinner with you is by traveling thousands of miles, selecting a chicken or fish option, and wearing a dress in the same shade of lavender as six other girls, I will do that. I won't love it. But I love you." (page 27)
• On being at Dartmouth and wanting to join a sorority: "When I arrived at Dartmouth College in 1997, my attitude toward alcohol was that it was a delicious and dangerous treat that, when obtained, needed to be ingested quickly in case someone tried to take it away.  You know, the way a raccoon eats from a garbage can." (page 28)
• The section entitled "The Sexiest Thing That Has Ever Happened to Me." It's a short few paragraphs but definitely sexy and well worth the read. (page 93)
• The essay called "Soup Snakes" is about Mindy's relationship with B.J. Novak. There is a great anecdote about the play Doubt and B.J. falling asleep on Edward Albee but at the end, Mindy talks about her mother and that page is the most touching part of the book. (page 132)
• About a male acquaintance who might want more of a relationship but was sending mixed signals: "What did I do to deserve this? I was just a friendly thirty-four year old tv actress looking for a boyfriend who didn't have a neck tattoo." (page 150)
• On being brave: "I do idiotic things all the time and I say crazy stuff I regret, but I don't let everything traumatize me. And the scary thing I have noticed is that some people really feel uncomfortable around women who don't hate themselves." (page 221)
• How to be confident: "Work hard, know your shit, show your shit, then feel entitled." (page 223)

My main takeaway is that Mindy Kaling may be funny and sweet, but she also works hard, very hard, and probably harder than most people. This is definitely the read for you if you are looking for a confidence boost or if you love funny ladies who are great with words. And the behind-the-scenes photos that are included in some of the essays don't hurt either.


*Page numbers are from the hardcover version of Why Not Me? by Mindy Kaling.

Book Review: The Rocks by Peter Nichols

For the last few months, it seems like every 'Must-Read Summer Books' list included The Rocks by Peter Nichols. Over and over, this book has been compared to Jess Walter's Beautiful Ruins, and since most of the story takes place along the rocky cliffs of Mallorca, it's the quintessential beach read, if you aren't going on vacation this year and want to pretend you are sitting by the Mediterranean sea. It's not really a breezy book but I definitely felt transported just a few chapters in.

The Rocks starts off in 2005 with a short chapter detailing a tragic accident. From there, the book is told in descending order, moving backward from the present into the past where there are layers and layers of history between the four main characters.  Lulu and Gerald had been married for a very short time after World War II, but after an incident (details which are unknown to everyone), they separate, and although they live within a few miles of one another, they manage to only run into each other three times over sixty years. Luc is Lulu's son from her second marriage, and Aegina is Gerald's daughter from his second marriage.  The heart of this story lies with Luc and Aegina.

This book is lovely and heartbreaking and crushing all at once. As I read and the years went further and further back, I started to fear that Nichols wouldn't give the reader another 'present day' chapter at the end, but I was wrong to worry. The second-to-last chapter of The Rocks was the emotional payoff for which I'd been waiting.  It made me cry, and then later when I shared the end with my husband, I teared up again.

I think the thing that got to me most is that The Rocks is all about misunderstandings and missed connections. Life for Lulu, Gerald, Luc and Aegina would have been so different if they had known some big, important things. Maybe they could have had happier lives; maybe they would have been more miserable. There's no knowing and that's true in our real, everyday lives as well.

I will say that there are some slow sections. Every time a new year began, it took some time to settle into the new story that was being told. And there was a point when I had a bit of trouble keeping all of the names straight--there are a ton of supporting characters with interesting backstories and European names that start to sound alike around page 250. Keep going, push through and you'll figure out who everyone is eventually (or not, but as long as you remember the main foursome, you'll be fine).

Final verdict: yes, I'd recommend The Rocks, whether you're reading on a beach or not. 

Review: Funny Girl by Nick Hornby

I almost feel like I should write my review of Funny Girl by Nick Hornby in some kind of joke format.  From the book jacket, I thought I was starting a story about the crazy, wacky but wonderful world of entertainment in the 1960's but it was so much better than that. This is a behind-the-scenes look at the British entertainment business, folks, which is my way of saying it's much more interesting.

Our heroine, Sophie, nee Barbara, is the girl that every man wants, the girl that every other girl wants to be, and she's funny too. Sophie wants to be like Lucille Ball, but she basically gets her start in the television industry because she is honest with the writers about a terrible script when she goes out on an audition. From there, we follow her, her co-star and the show's writers as the comedy becomes a hit throughout the country, and while all that sounds kind of like the typical showbiz trajectory, it's really not.

Even though Sophie is the "funny girl," Hornby also lets his supporting characters shine and actually become people. It's fair to say that the book revolves around a very likeable Sophie but honestly, she's wasn't my personal favorite. Dennis and Tony, the show's producer and co-writer, respectively, were raw and human and open, and with his subtlety, Hornby makes you root for these people who not only make Sophie who she is, but also have lives of their own.

As I logged this book into my 'read' journal (yes, I have one; this is a no-judgement zone), I realized that this is the first book written by a man that I've read in several years, oddly enough. It is, however, the third Nick Hornby book that I've read and it was as honest and just plain fun as I expected it to be.  I officially recommend Funny Girl to anyone who is looking for a fast read, or who likes relateable characters or who is obsessed with I Love Lucy, or all of the above.

"The Age of Miracles" by Karen Thompson Walker

I'm a newcomer to audiobooks. I spend a decent amount of time on the road commuting to work though, averaging about 45 minutes each way, so last week, while NPR was having a seemingly endless on-air fundraiser and every other station was playing a Taylor Swift song, I picked up The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker on audiobook. I can say with great certainty that I'm hooked on books-on-tape, my friends.

The Age of Miracles is a good pick to listen to in a car as it follows a young girl and her family during a time when the world around them is changing. And I literally mean changing. Earth's 24-hour days are gradually growing longer as the planet starts to rotate slower and slower. This means that days can have 20 hours of burning sunlight and 20 hours of freezing, dark skies.  There are power outages, food shortages, radioactive light, strange physical ailments and an overall subdued type of panic.  No one, including the scientists, know what is going on and with everything in flux, it's almost impossible to move forward with real life.

There are really two stories occurring simultaneously in The Age of Miracles. Walker's 11-year old main character, Julia, is navigating her way through school, making and losing friends, falling in love with the boy around the corner and dealing with her parents' marriage. At the same time, the world seems ready to implode. The birds start to die, the weather is extreme and unpredictable, and society is losing its morale compass. These two stories didn't always seem like they were happening at the same time; at points, there were details missing that were really needed to make this a full-bodied, complete story.

Walker is a beautiful writer, with lovely sentences and delicate wording. I found myself so drawn into the book as it was being read to me that a few times, I arrived at my destination and barely remembered the drive at all. And there was one particularly anxious instance when, around dusk, I actually expected nighttime not to arrive, until I reminded myself that the world was only changing in the book.  The Age of Miracles transported me, if only temporarily.

I don't normally read books about catastrophes, or disasters, or sci-fi.  Maybe one of the reasons I enjoyed this novel was because the science is soft.  There are no technical terms or scientific explanations as to why these horrible things are happening to the planet. As the reader, I am just supposed to believe and move on.  And for the most part, I did.

Something that I bothered me a bit, although I admit that I may not have picked up on it if I wasn't listening via audiobook, is that Walker repeats several lines over and over.  The one that sticks with  me is "It still amazes me how little we knew back then."  It's for effect, obviously; this is a mantra that Julia is compelled to repeat as she looks back on how this whole disaster started, and as she looks ahead in extremely uncertain times.  My issue is that by the end of the book, adult Julia doesn't seem to know much more than she did when everything started.  What didn't they know back then that they do know by those last pages at the end?

This is a quiet, rather slow-moving novel about a girl trying to make it through a worldwide catastrophe unscathed.  I think most readers will be drawn in by the apocalyptic aspects, but it was Julia's story that really kept me interested in The Age of Miracles.

Book Review: Reunion by Hannah Pittard

I'll confess that this was the second time I checked out Hannah Pittard's Reunion from the library. The first time, I had to return it before I even had a chance to crack open the cover because someone else requested it (that two week loan period goes by quickly!). This time, I read it in a day and a half so yeah, you can say I liked it. 

Even though Reunion is a quick read, it's not full of levity.  The story takes place during a four-day period when Kate, our protagonist, and her two older siblings meet up in Atlanta to say goodbye to their father, who just committed suicide.  He was a difficult man and all three siblings, as well as many additional half-siblings and ex-wives on the periphery, have damaged or non-existent relationships with him.  His death comes at a time when everyone seems to be in some sort of turmoil and this added pressure causes all involved to reevaluate their own lives.

This book reminded me of why I dream of joining a really cool book club; as soon as I turned the last page, I wanted to call someone and to talk about it so I did the next best thing which is to scroll around online to read what other people thought.  Although the feedback was mostly positive, there were some negative reviews, and as it turns out, many of the things that those readers hated about the book were the things I liked the most. Kate isn't likeable and most of the time, I didn't really identify with her but ultimately, I'm not a reader who wants perfect characters or needs tied-up loose ends. True situations and messy relationships are what keep me interested.

If nothing else, Reunion reminds us that it's difficult to let go of the past, even if it's not really something you want to hold onto. It's hard to admit that sometimes it's easier to lie than to tell the truth, or that you can't always blame other people for your own mistakes. It's inevitable that we all will grow up, but no one ever said it's easy. That's a sentiment that Reunion definitely gets right.

Book Review: The Paying Guests by Sarah Waters

 
Word of mouth is really an amazing thing. If it weren't for the recommendation that I received several times from the same librarian than I never would have checked out Sarah Waters' The Paying Guests and I never would have thoroughly enjoyed (and may I say raced through) this almost 600-page book just to be systematically crushed by the ending. 

Despite my disappointment in those last 100 pages, I really did enjoy The Paying Guests.  Waters' writing is really beautiful and since the story takes place in 1922 England, she obviously did meticulous research to make sure she was accurate to the time. There's a sense of longing in every sentence: first for normalcy (a majority of the young men have been killed in World War I, including the central family's two sons) and then a longing for passion and love mixed in with what seems like the eternal search for acceptance and belonging.  So little seems to happen (almost the entire book takes place in a big, creaky, falling-apart house) but then again, so much also happens.

The premise of the book is simple but intriguing.  When Frances and her mother run out of funds/realize their debts are larger than they believed, they take in boarders, or 'paying guests.'  There's a strange mixing of private and public lives here and class is a major issue too. Frances and her mother are old money and part of the upper class in a London suburb. Lillian and Leonard, the boarders, are of the rising middle class, ambitious twenty-somethings who are relative newlyweds.  When Frances and Lillian start an affair, everything is turned upside-down.

And from there, the story takes an unexpected twist, or at least it was unexpected for me. I don't normally read thrillers but this book was really suspenseful in the best way, and quite passionate without being graphic in the least.  Eventually, these ladies get themselves into a predicament which Waters takes about 250 pages to explain in detail, and then it resolves itself in about two pages. There was so little payoff to this great lead-up.

So, The Paying Guests is enjoyable, but undeniably long. The end just doesn't live up to the rest of the book.

An Introvert's Heart Wants What It Wants

So perfect. I love the Bay of Magazines, always and forever.

 

Via Postsecret

Effects of Little Women

Without fail, I always cry when Beth dies in Little Women. Seriously, how can you not cry?

Also, I tear up when Jo refuses Laurie, and then again when Jo finds out that Laurie married Amy.  It just seems so unfair.

Don't judge.

 

Photo credit 

Books: Attachments by Rainbow Rowell

You know how sometimes you see the cover of a book and you know right then that you want to read it?  I felt that way when I saw the front of Rainbow Rowell's Eleanor & Park but it's been unavailable at the library for some time (and it probably will be for a while). Last week, I saw her first novel, Attachments, shelved in the adult 'Fiction' section at the bookstore and decided to buy it. I proceeded to read it in less than two days. Can you tell that I liked it?

Attachments has such a fun narrative, and no matter how flawed Rowell's characters are, they're just so damn likeable. Their feelings and actions throughout the book are true to real life in so many ways.  Plus, the book takes place during the Y2K 'crisis' (did you kind of forget about that because I definitely did) and it's really accurate with regard to the pop culture references, technology trends, and preoccupations from a decade ago.

Confession: I want to spend more time with these people, ahem, characters. I can totally see myself going to the movies with Beth, who's a film critic for the local paper in the book. And Lincoln? Even though he does a few questionable things, he reads like a dream throughout the book--sensitive, caring, smart and good-looking?! Personally, I'm already married to my own Lincoln but there's still a ton of appeal with this guy.  If I met any these characters at a party or at a coffeeshop, I'd want to be friends with them for sure.

So yeah, read Attachments.  As for Eleanor & Park, I'll probably wind up buying a copy. I mean, I don't normally shy away from fighting the pre-teens to get on the E&P library waitlist but if it's anything like Attachments, I'll be happy to have a copy in my bookcase after I read it. xo



Image courtesy of Rainbow Rowell's site

Daily Lit Challange

 

As a writer, it's so important to read as much as possible. I've been concentrating on writing short stories lately so it's the perfect time to delve into the art.  I plan to read one short story or creative nonfiction essay per day in 2014. These pieces will be sourced from literary magazines and journals,  online and hardcopy, as well as from story collections, and I'll try to include a link to the original work whenever possible.  You can access the list via the tab in the right column of the main page of this blog (or right here).

And every weekend, I'll write about my favorite story of the week. Lucky you.

I'm really excited about this--I just hope I can keep it up for the entire year. Most importantly, there's really no downside to reading a wide variety of great fiction and nonfiction.  If you have any recommendations, please leave a comment or send me a message--I'd love to hear what you think! xo

Summer Reading: 'The Middlesteins' by Jami Attenberg

I finished Jami Attenberg's 'The Middlesteins' last week and I'm still thinking about the book. It ended abruptly for me, but that's only because I wanted more of the story, not because it wasn't a natural stopping place. I loved the way she wrote about her characters in the present while bringing in important things from the past and the future.  And most importantly, the book was extremely honest, which I really appreciated as a reader/writer who tries to be very rational in my own real life dealings.

Nothing in 'The Middlesteins' was sugar-coated except maybe for some of Edie's unhealthy snacks (oh yeah, see what I did there?)  The story rotates around Edie, the Middlestein matriarch who is slowly killing herself with a food addiction. With all of the essays I've seen around lately on likeable characters in fiction, I can honestly report that I didn't really like any of the main characters, meaning that I don't want to be best friends with any of them. But they were all flawed and rounded-out in wonderful ways, and I felt like I was reading about actual humans, people who exact in the same world that I do. People are not perfect; it isn't fun to write about problem-less characters.

Every single person in the book reminded me of someone that I know or used to know. I'm not entirely sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing but Attenberg's beautiful writing made me want to keep reading about the Middlestein family. xo



Photo courtesy of Attenberg's Tumblr account. Such an awesome display in Amsterdam.

Weekend Recap: Nada Edition

I did not take one photo this entire weekend. There were very few visually-stimulating moments in the last few days, but we did manage to make it through without completely melting. Other than attending a bridal shower for a dear college friend, the highlight was realizing that I acquired five new cookbooks in the past month.

A few were birthday presents.  The Giada book was given to my mother-in-law as a gift and she didn't think she'd use it and passed it along to me. And I won the Baked: Explorations cookbook from Culture Cheese magazine (woot!).  Just looking at the stack makes me immeasurably happy. xo

Bookstore Self-Control, or Lack Thereof

Sometimes I just can't help myself when I walk into a bookstore. I guess I could have much worse problems than owning too many books. At least I have some great reading material for the start of the summer.

Books from the top down: Jami Attenberg's The Middlesteins; These Girls by Sarah Pekkanen; and The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides.

Gatsby

I feel like the last book-lover in the country to go and see The Great Gatsby but seriously, it was worth the wait.  I loved it, although I must admit that I'm partial to Baz Luhrmann's work since his version of Romeo & Juliet from 1996 is one of my favorite movies ever.  I really think Gatsby is one of the best screen adaptations I've ever seen.

Although I wasn't crazy about Tobey Maguire as Nick Carraway (he reminded me of someone I went to high school with, but I'm not going to hold that against him), the casting of Carey Mulligan as Daisy was perfect. Leonardo DiCaprio was able to express the gamut of Gatsby's emotions right to the end. And even though I knew what was coming, I held my breath during the climax and let myself look deep into Gatsby's eyes as the camera closed in on his face before the shot was heard.

Visually, The Great Gatsby is just beautiful. At times, it seemed like the scenes were happening in slow-motion and fast-motion simultaneously, if that makes any sense.  The vibrant, almost saturated color palate and the contemporary soundtrack fit into the story perfectly. Oh, and the party scenes are amazingly jam-packed with hundreds of extras, all gorgeously dressed, singing, drinking and dancing. Luhrmann skillfully used these things to enhance Fitzgerald's story instead of distract from it.

Have you seen the movie? What did you think? Did you want to wear great headbands like Daisy and drive in fast cars after the credits ran or was I the only one? xo

Better to Give Than Receive

Confession: I don't really like to shop (I know, I can hear all of the gasps from here).  However, I love giving gifts so shopping becomes my main activity during Christmastime. In the past week, I feel like I've been to every store in a fifty mile radius, usually emerging empty-handed. I don't buy things just to buy things, and sometimes, it's just not easy to find that perfect gift.

I have been exercising major self-control when it comes to my purchases lately.  Buying some of my most-coveted items for some of my favorite people has resulted in me wanting to keep everything for myself.  Not very charitable of me, I guess. I can only hope that I have friends who like to share because there is no way I am gifting this awesome cookbook without the hope of borrowing it and making lots of the teeny, tiny food featured inside. xo



Image via FB via weheartit

Libraries, Book Love and Party Dresses

One of the things that bothers me most about living in Connecticut is how isolated I feel from the literary world, even though I'm quite close to New York City.  There are so few local readings and signings, so few writer groups.  It's like there's this huge community so close, but yet so far away, and I'm lucky if I can travel in to attend one event per year.

With that, I guess I don't really need to tell you how thrilled I was to learn that Emma Straub was going to be at the Darien Library.  She's the author of one of my favorite short story collections and just came out with a novel that I cannot wait to read called Laura Lamont's Life in Pictures.  The reading was fabulous (Emma read two passages from her new book), and I loved the question-and-answer session at the end.  The questions were thoughtful and interesting, and honestly, Emma was so sweet and nice that I think she would have answered questions all night if people kept asking (you know you like how I'm saying 'Emma' like we're friends, right? ha!).

So at the end when I lined up with all of the extremely beautiful and well-dressed (lots of leopard print in the crowd) Darien ladies (yes, I was wearing corduroys and using a tote bag as a purse, why do you ask?), my shyness ruled and I became an awkward fangirl.  I think I told Emma how much I loved her short story collection.  I think I told her how much I enjoyed her reading. But I didn't tell her which of her short stories were my favorites (Puttanesca and the Franny stories) and I didn't gush about how exciting I think it is that she worked with Lorrie Moore.  I didn't even ask her if she liked writing short or long fiction better.  Social anxiety is no joke, my dears.

What I can say now though is that I had a great time last night listening to wonderful fiction surrounded by people who love books.  Thanks so much to the Darien Library and to Emma Straub for such a wonderful event.  xo

P.S. Emma was rocking an adorable pink party dress and brought a batch of homemade brownies to the reading. I don't think she could have been sweeter.