Memorial Days by Geraldine Brooks

We need to update our wills. I need to give G my passwords and he needs to show me where our financial records are kept. 

Memorial Days is a memoir by Geraldine Brooks, a wonderful Pulitzer Prize winning author, as she grieves the sudden death of her husband. Like her, he was an award winning journalist who packed a lot into his 60 years of life. The book shifts between the days immediately following his death and a time three years later when she goes to a remote island in Tanzania to officially mourn his death. It is a beautifully written memoir and a lovely tribute to her husband, Tony Horowitz, and their marriage.

Definitely recommend it.

Only one little tiny thing nags at me.... she wrote extensively about her solitary life on the remote island and how it helped her heal to be alone with her thoughts. However, in looking up information about the two of them online, I saw a documentary of her trip to the island. So technically she was not alone. There was a film crew with her??  I tell myself that maybe they were just there for a few hours to capture some footage before bolting away to leave her in peace. I'll stick with that. - June

God of the Woods by Liz Moore

I loved summer camp. And this book brought back some memories of the good times there. But it's also a mystery novel about a young teenaged girl who is missing one morning from her bunkbed. She just happens to be the daughter of the owner of the camp, and her brother also was missing years earlier. This is a book I couldn't put down because I wanted to figure it all out. Looking back now, there were some flaws but overall, it was a great read.  There are some very interesting characters although it certainly portrays all wealthy people as jerks. But I do recommend it. 

It would be perfect for a long flight - perhaps to Europe this May??? - June 

The Light of Luna Park by Addison Armstrong

What are the odds that I'd pick up a second book with such a similar plot as the one I just read (Black Cake).... adults seeking the truth about the lives of their mothers. Both mothers made unethical/illegal choices that altered their lives, and they kept them secret from their children who discover them only after their deaths.

This novel gets great reviews and the subject matter interested me. In the 20's in New York, a young nurse who is present during the delivery of a premature baby chooses to take the infant (without the parents' permission) to Coney Island where a doctor has set up a clinic with incubators. Crazy as it sounds, the  Coney Island story is true! There's also a separate story that takes place in the 50's where a young woman is searching for information about her mother. 

In the hands of an experienced author, this might have been an excellent book. But it fell short with all of the melodrama and constant repetition. Overall, I would say that the information about the care of newborns is interesting but not enough to recommend this book.

Should I have been tipped off when the cover shows yet another woman walking away? Why so many books with that same look?

And a crazy little aside.... what is with the reference to "toes"? I did a quick search on my Kindle for the number of times the word "toes" appears and it's 23. She refers to "clenching her toes" (not a sexual reaction), pinching her toes, curling her toes... her toes twitch, unclench, and flex. It got to the point that each time I came across another "toe" reference, I laughed out loud - and that was not the author's intent, I'm sure. -June

Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson

This novel started out with such promise and I loved the first half of the book. A woman who was from Jamaica dies and leaves a recording for her son and daughter to hear after her death. The recording tells the story of her life revealing many secrets. And granted, she led a very interesting life. However, somewhere in the middle of the book it just becomes frustrating to read it. I started not caring about the son and daughter at all. And the author continually jumped from one time to a different time almost in every chapter - just randomly. 

So I skimmed the end of the book wishing it had been better. - June