Indie Thursday- Browseabout Books

Today is #IndieThursday, where we talk about the great indie bookstores we love. A few weeks ago, my husband's entire family went to Rehoboth Beach in Delaware, where one of my favorite indie bookstores is- Browseabout Books.

Not only did I get to visit Browseabout, but they had two terrific signings- Dorothea Benton Frank and Hoda Kotb. Dottie gave a wonderful talk and Browseabout had wine, cheese and fruit for the happy participants. She was gracious and asked us all where we were from, and talked about how she got started in her writing, her process and the true story  she heard that she couldn't wait to put in a book. (It's in her new novel The Last Original Wife and it's a doozy. My review of the book is here.)

Dottie has very loyal fans, and many of the women there had read most of Dottie's books and talked about their favorites. Some of the women had driven more than a few hours to get there; now that is dedication.

Dottie Frank and me

A few days later, Hoda Kotb, who co-hosts the 4th hour of the Today Show with Kathie Lee Gifford, had a signing. There was a long line for one of their favorite part-time residents that started two hours before signing time. People had signs, boas and it was a party attitude. I met a lovely woman, a preschool teacher named Amy, who was so friendly and full of great tips for a vacationer like me.

My sisters-in-law came along and were pretty excited to meet Koda. She has such a bubbly personality and a great smile. She is really quite lovely, both inside and out.

Such a cute sign in front of the store for Hoda

The sisters and Hoda

I bought these signed books from Browseabout

If you ever get to Rehoboth, you must stop into Browseabout Books. Everyone is so friendly and it is such a lovely place to shop. It is the perfect beach town bookshop.

Browseabout Books' website is here.
You can find them on Facebook here.

LaRue: Visit another time with historical fiction : Columnists

This month's Citizen Book report column is full of historical fiction choices from Cindy Thomson, Chris Bohjalian, Kate Kerrigan, Therese Ann Fowler and Colum McCann.

LaRue: Visit another time with historical fiction : Columnists

Weekend Cooking- My Food Week in Delaware- Part II

This post is part of Beth Fish Reads' Weekend Cooking.  If you have anything related to food, cookbook reviews, novel or non-fiction book reviews, recipes, movie reviews, etc., head over to Beth Fish Reads and add your post. Or, if you want to read food related posts, head over to read what some interesting people have to say about food.

In last week's Weekend Cooking post, I wrote about some of the great food and restaurants from our family vacation in Dewey Beach, Delaware. One of the most fun foodie things we do is having each family take one night and being responsible for dinner.

It all starts early on, where emails go back and forth, deciding who is bringing what supplies (coffee, condiments, paper products). Then we segue into what each family is cooking for dinner. We don't want duplicates, so everyone responds with their menu. (And one person, who shall remain nameless, critiques everyone's menu ideas.)

This year we added appetizers and adult drinks. We had some real winners, including Brigette's 7-Layer Greek Dip along with a Raspberry Peach Prosecco Punch on our first night. They were both so good they made return appearance later in the week.


Another terrific appetizer was Sausage, Bean and Spinach Dip that everyone devoured. I made two dips- Pepperoni Pizza Dip (an old stand-by) and So-Cal Steak Fajita Dip ( a new one). Twenty-nine people had no problems eating them all up. I did two beverages- Raspberry Mango Sangria that was a big hit, and Root Beer Shots, that was not so much a fan favorite. I tweaked the second batch to change the ratio of root beer to vanilla vodka from 1:1 to 2:1 and it was a little better.

Root Beer Shots-needed work

Mom made a Drunken Watermelon that was refreshing and even did a non-alcoholic version for the kids. Dad made his world famous milkshakes, using his new milkshake machine he got for Father's Day. He had a longer line than Cafe Papillon's crepe line.

Dad working the milkshake machine

Sister-in-law Sue did a Mexican night and made a new recipe- Black Bean Enchilada Casserole from America's test Kitchen that may have been everyone's number one dish. It was so tasty! She also made a Taco Bar, Mexican Bean Salad and for dessert, her family made "Fried" Ice Cream Balls that were totally amazing and easy to do.

Brigette made a new recipe for her main entree- Sicilian Meatloaf. I am not a meatloaf fan, but this was so tasty with a delicious sauce on top. The best part was that she made enough for sandwiches the next day, which was even better than day one, if that is possible. She did two yummy desserts- Brownie Trifle and a Lemon Berry Cake. It was hard to choose which to have, so most of us had both.

Lemon Berry Cake

Sister-in-law Kay made a wonderful homemade salsa to accompany her bbq chicken dinner that was fantastic. We all love her Grilled Vegetables, and were very happy to see them on the menu. Even people who don't like vegetables gobble these up.

The Young Chefs

The grandkids got in on the action too. The older ones took a night and treated us to JD & Ryan's Famous Grilled Steaks, along with Crack Potatoes made by Sarah and Adam. Mackenzie whipped up his Grilled Asparagus with Parmesan Cheese and Homemade Ice Cream Sandwiches made the perfect ending. It was great to see the tradition passed down.

Homemade Ice Cream Sandwiches

I made a Pinterest board with some of these recipes and if you want to see them click here.

What Species of Reader Are You?

Oh dear, I'm a hoarder....

Please include attribution to Laura E. Kelly with this graphic. (Click to view at original large size.)

Visit Laura-e-Kelly.com for more about books, reading, and authors.

Big Girl Panties by Stephanie Evanovich

Big Girl Panties by Stephanie Evanovich
Published by William Morrow, ISBN 978-0-06-225369-9
Hardcover, $26.99, 336 pages

Logan Montgomery is a hot-shot personal trainer to many popular athletes, including his best friend and major league baseball star Chase Walker. When overweight Holly Brennan sits next to him on a flight back home, he is annoyed.

Holly is thirty-two year old widow who, after nursing her husband through a painful, deadly illness, turned to food for comfort. She and Logan begin a conversation, and after he learns of her history, he offers to help Holly get back into shape.

Logan loves nothing more than shaping the human body, helping people become a better physical specimens, and he feels that Holly could be a good project for him. Holly has had enough of sitting around and is ready to get on with her life- and besides, Logan is very easy on the eyes.

Chase's wife Amanda feels that Holly could be the woman who could capture Logan's heart and begins to include Holly in their little group. Logan is a playa with women, but he enjoys spending time with Holly and they have an easygoing rapport with each other.

This is a romantic comedy, so of course the question is will Logan and Holly become a couple? (If Amanda has anything to say about it, the answer is a resounding yes!) They have many obstacles to overcome, and watching them maneuver the course is a great deal of fun.

Big Girl Panties is a sexy, steamy, sassy debut novel from Stephanie Evanovich. I'm a big baseball fan, so I loved that Chase is an MLB player and I adored his relationship with his spunky wife Amanda. They have a little sexy secret that becomes public knowledge when a videotape of them is leaked to the press (think a little 50 Shades of Grey), but their marriage is rock solid.

Chase and Amanda were my favorite characters, and I had the opportunity to speak with the author (who is so delightful and friendly) and she told me that we would be seeing more of Chase and Amanda in the future. That made my day!

This novel is one that should be read near a pool or a shower, so you can jump on in and cool off after the hot sex scenes, but it also has a lot of heart. In a touching scene, Logan helps Holly clean out her husband's stuff. That brought tears to my eyes.

Holly and Logan are terrific characters, and I liked that they both have some flaws. What starts out to be Holly's journey ends up being a journey for Logan too. The life he thinks is so good is really missing something essential.

I read this in two sittings, and it's a fantastic and funny beach read. It will bring a smile to your face and make your heart race a little faster. And it make bring some business to personal trainers.

rating 4 of 5

Follow Stephanie Evanovich on Facebook here

The Light in the Ruins by Chris Bohjalian

The Light in the Ruins by Chris Bohjalian
Published by Doubleday ISBN 978-0-385-53481-9
Hardcover, $25.95, 320 pages

I've read some WWII books set in Germany (City of Women, The Life of Objects), France (Suite Francaise)  and England (The Guernsey Potato Peel & Literary Society and Phillip Rock's Abingdon Pryory trilogy), but I hadn't read many set in Italy.

Chris Bohjalian returns to historical fiction again after his last novel, The Sandcastle Girls, was set after WWI in Armenia during the genocide there. This time in The Light in the Ruins, we meet the Rosatis, Italian descendants of nobilty. They have a lovely large mansion near Florence and life is good until Italy decides to throw its fortunes in with Hitler's Germany.

What I find interesting about many of these books is the theme of what happens to people who want nothing to do with war, who do not support their government. They cannot openly defy their government, and they can hide from the war for only so long before it comes to their doorstep.

The story takes place both during WWII and ten years later when someone begins to murder the surviving members of the Rosati family. Daughter-in-law Francesca, who lost her husband and children to the war, is brutally butchered. It is thought that she picked up a strange man who killed her, until another Rosati is murdered.

We meet a female Italian homicide detective, Serafina Bettini, which is a unique job for a woman in Italy in the 1950s. Serafina has a fascinating past, and as the story unfolds, we discover her connection to the Rosatis. I loved this character and would enjoy seeing Serafina in another book (hint hint Mr. Bohjalian). Bohjalian has a knack for writing interesting, complicated female characters (Midwives, The Double Bind,  The Sandcastle Girls).

The book moves back and forth in time, and we see how the Rosatis are drawn further into the war. One son, Francesca's husband, is an engineer who ends up on the front lines. Another son is an art historian, and his job is protecting art from falling into the hands of the Nazis. This part of the story intrigued me, and I learned much about a topic I had not known about before.

The youngest Rosati, Cristina, falls in love with a young German soldier, and this complicates matters. Her family is upset, and the townspeople, some of whom are resistance fighters, distrust the Rosatis. They feel that the Rosatis have thrown their lot in with the Nazis and deserve whatever misfortune comes their way.

War is hell, and their is plenty of horrific atrocities that take place in the book. Even though as a reader you brace yourself for it, the things that happen are shocking and brutal. The Rosatis have to deal with the Germans, and then the Russians as they come through looking for the Germans. The horrors of war come right into their home and the result is devastating.

There is so much in this book to recommend. The history, the characters, the setting (it has increased my desire to visit Italy), the mysteries (who is killing the Rosatis and why, and what happened to Serafina during the war), they all come together in the skilled hands of Chris Bohjalian.

I lost myself in The Light in the Ruins and isn't that really why we read books? This is one of the best books I have read this year.

rating 5 of 5

Chris Bohjalian's website is here.
Read an excerpt here.

Weekend Cooking- My Food Week in Dewey Beach

This post is part of Beth Fish Reads' Weekend Cooking.  If you have anything related to food, cookbook reviews, novel or non-fiction book reviews, recipes, movie reviews, etc., head over to Beth Fish Reads and add your post. Or, if you want to read food related posts, head over to read what some interesting people have to say about food!

We spent the last week vacationing with my husband's family- all 29 of us- in one house in Dewey Beach, Delaware. We have our must-have places to eat, and I will highlight a few of them in this post.

On day one as the caravan of cars arrive at different times, it was my family's turn to cook dinner for the group. My husband wisely decided to have it catered, and we chose Bethany Blues. They brought pulled pork with two different sauces (smokey bbq and spicy bbq), spinach salad, baked beans, cole slaw and macaroni and cheese. The big winners though were the appetizers- crab dip and skewered shrimp. The crab dip had Chesapeake crabs, artichoke, spinach and parmesan cheese served with baguettes. Even people who were 'meh' about seafood loved it. I did make dessert, and the Reese's Brownie Cookie Stacks I found on Pinterest were a huge hit. (It's cookie dough topped with a mini Reese's peanut butter cup topped with brownie mix and baked.)

Reese's Brownie Cookie Stack

Another must-have is a trip to The Fractured Prune for donuts. Niece Lauren turned us all onto this tasty treat, and every trip my sister-in-law Kay (Lauren's mom), Lauren and I trek over to get five dozen   donuts. And they are all gone in a few days.

I love the purple boxes

The menu

They start with plain donuts, and they dip them in different toppings, so each one is hot and fresh. My personal favorite is Orange Creamsicle, but Reese Cup is the fan favorite.

Every morning, the ladies head out to walk to get crepes and croissants at Cafe Papillon on Penny Lane in Reboboth Beach near the boardwalk. I had my fitbit this year, so we determined that it was a 3.6 mile round-trip. We didn't feel so guilty about eating a croissant after we walked there and back. The walk is so pretty and we enjoyed our treats on a bench overlooking the ocean. It was a fabulous way to start the day!

Cafe Papillon

Mom and Dad treated us all to a barbeque and bonfire on the beach one night. You can hire a company to set up a hugh grill, beach chairs and a bonfire. My husband misses having a grill, so he enthusiastically handled hamburg and hotdog duties. Nephew Chandler plugged in his IPhone and his playlist with Mumford and Sons, the Lumineers, and The Rolling Stones, The Doors, The Clash for the boomers was the hit of the night. Every song had us singing along.

Sitting around the bonfire

Next week I will share some of the wonderful homemade dinners. Each family takes a night to cook, and this year the older grandkids shared their culinary skills with us. We loved it!

Life After Life by Jill McCorkle

Life After Life by Jill McCorkle
Published by Algonquin  ISBN 978-1565122550
Hardcover, $24.95, 352 pages

Life After Life appealed to me because of its setting- an assisted living center and nursing home in North Carolina. The premise centers on Joanna, who has moved back home after an estrangement from her parents. She volunteers at the home, writing down the memories of those who are close to death.

Through this conceit, we meet many characters, and learn much about their lives. Rachel moved there from Boston after her husband died to be closer to the man she had a love affair with years ago. He died too, but this makes her feel closer to him and the happiest time of her life.

Toby was a teacher, forced to retire after a student made a complaint about her. She is a very athletic, gregarious woman, looking to make friends. Sadie was also a teacher, beloved by her students and a loving wife to Horace who died when he just in his 40s. Sadie is the wise soul, and she had become attached to a young neighborhood girl whose parents have a troubled marriage.

Stanley lost his wife and he was afraid that his son would give up his own life to care for him. So he pretends to have dementia and has to move into the home, hoping this will give his son the opportunity to move on with his life. He believes his boorish behavior hides the truth of his situation.

CJ is Joanna's friend, a young woman who has a difficult past- her mother committed suicide and she has a baby with a married man. CJ works at the nursing home in the beauty shop. She is trying to get her life together, with Joanna's help.

This novel is all about the characters; we get to know them know their stories and their secrets. We see how they relate to each, the connections they make. There are many sad tales here, and reading this makes you realize that every person you meet has his or her own life story, like the ones that Joanna writes down.

The story itself is less strong. There are many characters in this novel, and the focus is somewhat dispersed. I do think it would make a wonderful movie though. I found the ending a bit jarring and abrupt.

I liked the characters in this story, but the abrupt ending hurt the overall concept for me.

rating 3.5 of 5

You can read an excerpt of the book on Jill McCorkle's website here.

The Wonder Bread Summer by Jessica Anya Blau

The Wonder Bread Summer by Jessica Anya Blau
Published by Harper Perennial ISBN 978-0-06-219955-3
Trade paperback, $14.99,  260 pages

If Carl Hiaasen lived in California instead of Florida, he may have written a book like Jessica Anya Blau's The Wonder Bread Summer.

Set in 1983, when I was a few years older than the protagonist Allie Dodgson, the story takes place in Berkeley and Los Angeles. The story opens a bang, with 20 year-old Allie trapped in the back room of the clothing store she works in by the owner Jonas, who is trying to get Allie to snort some coke and take her clothes off. Yeah, it's that kind of book.

Jonas has not paid Allie the wages she is owed, and Allie needs the money or she will be thrown out of college, so Allie takes the Wonder Bread bag filled with coke and runs away. Maybe the coke she snorted altered her judgement, but she does not turn back. Her plan is to borrow her friend Beth's car, and sell enough coke to make the money Jonas owes her. Then she will return the rest of the coke to Jonas and all will be cool.

Well, that was the plan. She finds a surfer who wants to buy some of the coke, but she has no idea how much to sell it for. She goes home to her father's restaurant in LA, only to find it closed. Her mother is a groupie for a has-been rock band, and wants to share the coke with the band.

Allie goes on a double date with Beth and ends up almost overdosing her date- Roger, a paraplegic porn producer. Jonas has dispatched someone to kill Allie and get his coke back, but thank goodness Roger and his kindly minions are there to help her.

Oh yeah, and Allie meets 80s rocker Billy Idol and has a romantic sexual experience with him. (Blau's characterization of Idol is charming. He should sent her a nice gift basket as a thank you.)

There is a wacky premise, a chase across California, guns, drugs, sex, surfer dudes who want the coke, dysfunctional parenting, Allie's Chinese grandmother's wise sayings sprinkled in, and a very nice Hispanic family whom Allie contemplates moving in with permanently. If any of this sounds like something you find funny, then you will enjoy The Wonder Bread Summer.  It did remind me of Carl Hiaasen, with its cast of comic characters, some involved in criminal matters.

I laughed my way through this novel, and it's a great, quick beach read. I finished it in two days poolside. It's not a book for everyone, but if you are not easily offended, you'll laugh too. When you finish it, you'll want to listen to Billy Idol while craving some of Consuela's yummy pan de yema and hot chocolate.

rating 4 of 5

Jessica Anya Blau's website is here.

Weekend Cooking- The Last Original Wife

This post is part of Beth Fish Reads' Weekend Cooking.  If you have anything related to food, cookbook reviews, novel or non-fiction book reviews, recipes, movie reviews, etc., head over to Beth Fish Reads and add your post. Or, if you want to read food related posts, head over to read what some interesting people have to say about food!

I called Dorothea Benton Frank's The Last Original Wife the beach read for boomers in my recent review. I loved so much about it- the characters, the humor, the sibling relationship between Les and her brother Harlan, being introduced to author Josephine Pinckney, and the setting of Charleston.

My husband and I visited Charleston two years ago and we fell in love with the city. We ate in some amazing restaurants (my husband said he had the best meal ever at Hall's Chophouse), toured the city, wandered around and just relaxed.

Frank gave some great restaurant recommendations in her novel, and I immediately pinned them to my Charleston Pinterest board, which you can see here. I can't wait to go back to Charleston and try these new places.

There was also a paragraph in the novel that had me salivating. Les has just arrived at her friend Danette's new home. Danette's husband had left her for a younger woman, leaving Les as "the last original wife" in her social circle. Les brought over some snacks to share.

"I've got enough food for an army." I began unpacking. Imitating the voice of Rachael Ray, I said, "We've got pimiento cheese with pickled jalapenos to be served with crostini and EVOO, butterbean hummus presented with pita chips and EVOO, a baby spinach salad with sliced turkey and tahini green goddess on the side for you and muffaletta for me with balsamic and EVOO. Oh! And a brownie to share. Without EVOO. Ha-ha-ha."

This is the kind of friend we all want, and the next time I'm having a friend over, I am so stealing this menu.

Frank is signing books at Browseabout Books in Rehoboth, DE on July 2nd, and I will be there on vacation. I can't wait to see her again and tell her face-to-face how much I loved her book.

Grace's Pictures by Cindy Thomson

Grace's Pictures by Cindy Thomson
Published by Tyndale House Publishers ISBN 978-1-4143-6843-6
Trade paperback, $12.99, 385 pages

This must be the month for Irish immigrant stories. First we had the second in a trilogy, Kate Kerrigan's City of Hope (my review here). Now we have Cindy Thomson's Grace's Pictures, a story about a young Irish girl who comes to America in 1900, hoping to earn enough money to bring her mother over.

Grace was sent to live in a workhouse in Ireland after her mother was thrown out of their home. With no money, her mother was able to get Grace the opportunity to go to New York, where a church organization would help Grace find a job.

It always amazes me how these young people left their homes and families, got on a ship, and traveled across the sea, never truly knowing what would be awaiting them on the other side. What bravery that took!

Grace is taken to Reverend Clarke, a man of God who helps immigrants find work and form a community. My favorite line in the book is from Reverend Clarke, who said to Grace, "And I ask myself, is there more love in the world because of what I'm doing? If not, I need to change that." Imagine if everyone in the world followed that idea, what a lovely place this would be.

Grace finds work as a nanny to a family of five young children. Their mother appears indifferent and their father is a busy businessman, who wants to control everything and everyone. Grace has a hard time at first dealing with them all, but she grows to love the children.

Thomson has a way with a phrase, like this one: "Owen's mother and her friend jabbered so much a candle didn't have a chance of staying lit in the room." She drops us right into the setting, teaching us the slang of the day, such as "peeler" for police officer.

Her visual imagery is strong as well, describing a group of newsboys sleeping in a doorway as "huddled together like puppies." I immediately had that picture in my mind. Grace takes her young charges to Battery Park, and Thomson's description of that scene brought the place to life, as they dodged pretzel vendors and young boys" hawking trinkets".

The theme of immigrants and how they are perceived by the society is a timely topic, as Congress is now debating how best to deal with the immigration issue in our country. We can see in this novel that, although set over 100 year ago, the treatment of immigrants is a topic our country has grappled with for a long time.

A unique aspect of this story is Grace's infatuation with the newfangled Brownie camera. Grace meets a photographer and is entranced with his work. She saves her money, buys herself a simple camera, and teaches herself to takes photos. At times, this gets her into trouble as she accidentally takes photos of a mobster who doesn't want to be photographed. This storyline adds an interesting piece to the novel.

There is a love story, and some action as Grace's camera gets her into trouble. I liked that Grace found people who helped and encouraged her, rather than took advantage of her as we often see in stories like this. We also see New York at the turn of the century, along with the internal politics of the police department. Thomson clearly did a great deal of research for this novel.

If you like immigrant stories, Grace's Pictures is one you should not miss. I'm hoping that we meet Grace and her friends again in the future as she surely has more of her story to tell.

rating 4 of 5

Cindy Thomson's website is here (and you can read Chapter 1 of Grace's Pictures).

The Winner of Our Love Could Light The World

 by Anne Leigh Parrish is JoAnn! Congratulations JoAnn, I hope you enjoy the book.
Thanks for reading bookchickdi.

City of Hope by Kate Kerrigan

City of Hope by Kate Kerrigan
Published by William Morrow ISBN 978-0-06-223729-3
Trade paperback, $14.99, 400 pages

A few years ago I had the pleasure of meeting Kate Kerrigan, the charming Irish author of Ellis Island, a novel about a young Irish woman who came to America to earn money to pay for an operation her husband back in Ireland desperately needed after an injury.

Set in the 1920s, Ellie comes to New York to work first as a maid, and then learns how to be a secretary. She falls in love with a wealthy businessman and when it comes time to go home to Ireland, she is torn.

City of Hope opens in the 1930s back in Ireland, on the farm where Ellie lives with her husband John. John loves his life as a farmer, but Ellie wants more. She opened a shop near the farm to sell grocery items and products grown on the farm. She started a secretarial school and a beauty salon. Ellie was quite the businesswoman and always looking for ways to expand, much to John's consternation.

When John dies unexpectedly, Ellie is devastated. She runs away, back to New York, to try and pick up the pieces of her life. A chance meeting with a mother and her children, homeless and living in Central Park, convinced her to try and do something to help them.

She buys a home that has been foreclosed on and moves this family in, along with Bridie, an older woman who worked with her as a maid many years ago. They work to rebuild the house, and find that there are many men with construction skills looking for work in the Great Depression.

Ellie finds a new mission for her life- refurbishing homes and giving people a chance to rebuild their lives. She hopes that all of this will keep her from missing John. She meets many new people, and puts her talents to good use. She starts a cooperative, where the women open a cafe and store, selling their prepared food to the wealthy women in the neighborhood.

Then people comes back into her life unexpectedly: her old friend Sheila and a man from her past. Ellie must face up to her past and decide what path she is going to take.

I have to admit that at times I did not understand Ellie's actions. She seems to run away from her problems rather than face them. After John's death, she runs to New York and hides out, leaving John's mother all alone. At the end of the novel she makes a decision that I find baffling. Although I would make different decisions, Kerrigan skillfully creates such an intriguing character that I found myself rooting for her even as I found her maddening.

I love books that take me into a completely new world, and City of Hope does just that. I did not realize that there were Hooverville tent cities in Central Park during the Depression. Kerrigan clearly did a great deal of research to bring this interesting period of time in New York City to such vivid life.

The characters are so well drawn, and I found that if I closed my eyes, I could picture the street in Upper Manhattan where Ellie created new lives for so many people. The problems that Ellie's friends faced during the Great Depression resonated with the problems that face many people today- the loss of jobs and their homes, forcing their families out into the streets. I liked the parallel there.

My favorite line in the book is one from Ellie during John's funeral.

"I shut down. I did not have the room to absorb all their grief, when I could not accommodate my own."

That just hit such a visceral note for me.

If you have read Ellis Island, City of Hope is a must read. Even if you haven't read Ellis Island, City of Hope stands on its own, a novel about grief and new beginnings, and a wonderful piece of historical fiction set during the Great Depression in New York City. (And if you are a fan of Downton Abbey, Bridie reminds me so much of Mrs. Patmore!)

rating 5 of 5

Kate Kerrigan's website is here.
My review of Ellis Island is here.

Other stops on Kate Kerrigan's TLC Tour are:

Tuesday, June 25th: bookchickdi

Wednesday, June 26th: Books in the City

Wednesday, June 26th: Peeking Between the Pages

Thursday, June 27th: Tina’s Book Reviews

Friday, June 28th: Diary of an Eccentric

Monday, July 1st: A Book Geek

Wednesday, July 3rd: No More Grumpy Bookseller

Thursday, July 4th: 2 Kids and Tired Book Reviews

Monday, July 8th: Dwell in Possibility

Tuesday, July 16th: Peppermint PhD

Monday, July 22nd: Becca’s Byline

Tuesday, July 23rd: The House of the Seven Tails

Thursday, July 25th: The Maiden’s Court

Thanks to TLC Book Tours for including me and William Morrow for providing a copy of the book.

The Last Original Wife by Dorothea Benton Frank

The Last Original Wife by Dorothea Benton Frank
Published by William Morrow ISBN 978-0-06-213246-8
Hardcover, $26.99, 352 pages

One look at the cover of Dorothea Benton Frank's The Last Original Wife, with a woman lounging on the sand near the ocean, wearing a stylish red sun hat, and you know right away this is a book that will be accompanying you to the beach.

Les is the title character, a middle-aged wife and mother of two adult children, doting grandmother to sweet little Holly. Married to Wes, a driven businessman, they dine at the exclusive country club each Saturday with their group of friends.

But that group is changing. Les' best friend died tragically, and the widower (too) quickly remarried a young, sexy woman who is not popular with the children. When Les' other best friend gives her husband an ultimatum- stop texting his hot young personal trainer at the dinner table or she is leaving, it leaves Les as The Last Original Wife.

Forced to spend time with her husband's friends and their new vapid, young wives, Les starts to wonder if this is what she has to look forward to in the coming years. After a trip to Scotland with her husband and his friend and new wife, Les falls into an open manhole and her husband gets all the way back to the hotel (a 40 minute walk) before he realizes that Les is no longer there.

Call that the straw that broke the camel's back. Les decides she is not happy with her life. Her daughter uses her as a babysitter whenever she feels like it, her son lives overseas and only calls for money, and her husband refuses to allow Les' gay brother Harlan to come visit so Les hasn't seen her him in forever.

She goes to Charleston to stay with her brother. There she runs into an old high school boyfriend and begins to see that she can have a different life, one where she can be in charge of her own happiness.

I loved everything about this novel- characters, the story- and the setting made me want to book my airline ticket for Charleston right now. Frank takes us to this beautiful city, and she gave me some fabulous suggestions for restaurants, for which I promptly made a Pinterest board.

Harlan is a fantastic character, with an even better dog, the supremely spoiled Miss Jo, who has a closet full of beautiful clothes. I really enjoyed his and Les' sibling relationship. Harlan lives in a historical home, once owned by Josephine Pinckney, a prominent feminist and author. I loved the historical homes in Charleston, and you can bet I'm looking for Pinckney's books now.

The novel is told from alternating view points- Les' and Wes'- so we know what each of them is thinking. Wes is completely blindsided and extremely myopic when it comes to his wife, but give him credit for trying to understand. He even agrees to therapy to save his marriage.

The Last Original Wife is the beach read for boomers this summer. I think most women who read it will be able to identify with some part of Les's story, and cheer her on as she makes the decisions that will lead to her living a happy life. I like that it is not just a light read with a lot of humor (Les' one-liners crack me up); it has a lot of depth to it and it is surprisingly moving for a summer book.  I'm buying extra copies to bring to my sisters-in-law for our beach vacation next week.

rating 5 of 5

Thanks to TLC Book Tours for including me on this tour. You can read reviews of this and other Dorothea Benton Frank novels here.

Dorothea Benton Frank's website is here.
My review of Return to Sullivan's Island is here.

Weekend Cooking- A Family Vacation

This post is part of Beth Fish Reads' Weekend Cooking.  If you have anything related to food, cookbook reviews, novel or non-fiction book reviews, recipes, movie reviews, etc., head over to Beth Fish Reads and add your post. Or, if you want to read food related posts, head over to read what some interesting people have to say about food!

Every few years, my husband family of 28 (!) tries to get together for a weeklong vacation. We are heading back to a beautiful house in Dewey Beach, Delaware where we enjoy sun, sand, the ocean, great meals and each other's company. This year, we are leaving next Saturday, enjoying the 4th of July together.

With that many people, we try to be as organized as possible. We divide up kitchen supplies- paper products, condiments, cleaning supplies- and everybody signs up to bring what they have stocked in their homes (and can fit in their car).

There are six families, so we each take one night to cook dinner for all. It has worked out wonderfully in the past, with each family making their specialty. With Pinterest, we can share the recipes we are making and ask for input from the rest of the crew.

I made a board called Food For A Party, and I put recipes in there that I can make for just this occasion. My sister-in-law (the foodie) even created a board with restaurants she wants to try there; I love that idea!

This year we are bringing the first night's meal, which I will make this week and freeze. When we get to Dewey Beach, I'll put it on the stove and reheat. I'm making Pulled Pork Sandwiches from a recipe by Robert Irvine from the Food Network. I made this for New Year's Day a few years ago and it was a big hit.


We'll pair this with a pasta salad and a fruit salad, and for dessert, I found this super simple Reese's  Cookie Brownie Stack. I made trial run this week and they were gone in a very short time. It's got all of the sinfully good things we love- cookie dough, Reese's Peanut Butter Cup and brownie mix.


We're doing Happy Hour too, and for that I'm making this new recipe I found for So Cal Fajita Dip. It's perfect to make using leftover steak and roasted peppers from the night we have roasted vegetables. I made this last week and the guys gobbled it down.


With this, we're making Raspberry Mango Sangria that we tried a few months back from Martha Stewart. It is a refreshing summer drink we first made a few weeks ago.


It's going to be a busy week leading up to vacation and I've got to make a Costco run to prepare. If you have any favorite recipes to feed a crowd, share them in comments.

The Remarkable Ronald Reagan- Cowboy and Commander in Chief by Susan Allen

The Remarkable Ronald Reagan: Cowboy and Commander in Chief by Susan Allen
Published by Regnery Publishing ISBN 978-1-62157-038-7
Children's Book, $16.95

A few years ago my husband, two adult sons and I made a trip to Los Angeles, and one of the highlights was visiting the Reagan Presidential Library in the beautiful Simi Valley setting. Surrounded by stunning mountain vistas, it is the perfect place to host the library of the man who loved and is so associated with the California ranching landscape.

Susan Allen, wife of former Virginia governor George Allen, has written a children's book about our celebrated 40th president, The Remarkable Ronald Reagan- Cowboy and Commander in Chief.

Reagan was a man who personified much of what America is about. He came from a family of limited means to whom hard work and religious faith were important. Reagan, called "Dutch" by family and friends, was athletic, playing football and running track in high school.

Allen covers all of the touchstones of Reagan's life in chronological order- lifeguard, radio sports announcer, Hollywood actor, his two marriages and four children, becoming governor of California.  She writes of his political beliefs in a manner than children can understand.

The memorable moments of Reagan's eight year presidency each get a page, with the quotes that are associated with them prominently mentioned. His first inauguration ("Those who say we are in a time when there are no heroes just don't know where to look"), the assassination attempt ("Honey, I forgot to duck"), his Berlin visit ("Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!")- they are all here.

The lush, lively artwork by Leslie Harrington perfectly captures the spirit of Ronald Reagan, and I particularly liked her renditions of his beloved Rancho del Cielo. She also reinforces the special relationship between Ronald and Nancy Reagan with her work.

At the end of the book, Allen lists "Highlights from a Life Well-Lived", with important dates at a glance. A terrific page titled "Ronald Reagan: Pen Pals" has reproductions of a few letters Reagan wrote to his seven-year-old pen pal, (a relationship that continued for five years) and would make for another great children's book if it hasn't already been done.

The last section is "Important Things Ronald Reagan Said", with funny, wise, and profound sayings from a man known as the Great Communicator. My one criticism of the book concerns this section. In the "Sometimes Funny" section, Allen includes a quote from Reagan's California years- "A hippie is someone who looks like Tarzan, walks like Jane and smells like Cheetah." This quote is not appropriate for a children's book, and the author (and editor) should not have included it here.

The Remarkable Ronald Reagan- Cowboy and Commander in Chief is a wonderful introduction to children who are interested in American presidents.

rating 4 of 5

Thanks to TLC Tours for including me on this book tour. The rest of Susan Allen TLC Tour dates are here:
Tuesday, June 18th: My ordinary, every day, happily ever after 
Tuesday, June 18th: Babblin Brooke
Tuesday, June 18th: Maureen’s Musings
Tuesday, June 18th: And Here We Go
Tuesday, June 18th: 5 Minutes for Mom
Wednesday, June 19th: Geo Librarian
Wednesday, June 19th: Delightful Education
Wednesday, June 19th: No Doubt Learning
Wednesday, June 19th: Kid Lit About Politics
Wednesday, June 19th: Pragmatic Mom
Wednesday, June 19th: Grandma’s Briefs
Wednesday, June 19th: Simple Things
Wednesday, June 19th: Starts at Eight
Thursday, June 20th: Teaching Stars
Thursday, June 20th: Homeschool Circus
Thursday, June 20th: A Stable Beginning
Thursday, June 20th: Everyday Snapshots
Thursday, June 20th: Walking in Faith
Thursday, June 20th: Hope is the Word
Thursday, June 20th: Margo Dill’s Read These Books and Use Them
Friday, June 21st: Melissa Northway
Friday, June 21st: bookchickdi
Friday, June 21st: Kid Lit Reviews
Friday, June 21st: Storytime Books
Friday, June 21st: Tina Says…
Friday, June 21st: West Metro Mommy
Saturday, June 22nd: Teresa’s Reading Corner