Monday, July 16, 2018

Monday Mini-Reviews: Vacation Reading

Our family vacation usually mean large amounts of time in the car. This year there was a lot of car time - over 45 hours in all - which means a ton of reading time for me.  I help drive a few hours here and there, but mostly my husband drives, leaving me free to plow through a lot of books.  

Four of the titles I read while we are gone are featured today, while the rest will make an appearance some other time on my blog.





The Gunners by Rebecca Kauffman -  I keep hearing that this book is basically The Big Chill. But since I've never seen The Big Chill, the Gunners was new to me.  Childhood friends reunite after one of their group has committed suicide.  While this story mostly centers around Mikey, we get to hear all of the friends' stories and how they drifted apart.

The Lost Family by Jenna Blum - Peter Rashkin opens a restaurant in New York as a sort of tribute to his wife, Masha, and twin daughters he lost in WWII.  When he meets a young and single model, June, at his restaurant, he tries to rebuild his life with this woman, yet he can never quite let go of his first wife and daughters. Blum does a fantastic job exploring how tragedy affects people, a setting that you will feel transported to, and real, flawed characters.

Summer Wives by Beatriz Williams - I loved this novel which is Williams' at her best.  Moving back and forth in time, we see Miranda Schuyler arrive on Winthrop Island as her mother is set to remarry.  We also witness her return to the island years later, as a boy she once knew has escaped from prison.  These stories are intertwined and we see secrets exposed and lives changed.  I love the island setting, the upper class, moneyed set, the 1950s and 1960s time period, the suspense and secrets.

Expecting Adam by Martha Beck- this book has sat on my shelf for years now and I've picked it up a handful of times, meaning to read it.  I enjoyed it a great deal, and appreciated Beck's honesty of how she coped with the news that her son would be born with Down's syndrome.  While Beck goes a little too far (for my taste) into the way things in this universe align, this book can be appreciated without necessarily agreeing with her take on things.  


These were all good reads, a great way to spend my time as the miles sped by.  However, I am so glad to be home and out of the car.  Happy Reading!

3 comments:

Kay said...

All of these sound good and from what I can remember of The Big Chill, that book definitely has the same vibe. Reading in the car - must be nice. Well, I listen to audiobooks, which is nice for sure. I get so carsick if I read. Can't even look at my phone for very long. Ha! Glad you guys had a nice vacation.

(Diane) Bibliophile By the Sea said...

The Gunners is on my TBR list, glad u enjoyed there. I do like mini reviews. enjoy the rest of your summer.

Ti said...

Oh, I love The Big Chill. I must read this book.