by Donna Cain
Happy to report that I loved all of my book reads this month! All were tender, well written, good reads that I kept thinking about afterwards…..all good things after you read a good book!
In thinking which was my favorite I have to say I loved them all equally for different reasons.
The Italian Wife by Kate Furnivall This is a captivating love story that takes place in the beginning of World War II, set in Mussolini Fascist Italy, including his aggressive black shirts. Isabella is a talented architect and is recovering after a shooting killed her husband and left her crippled. After a mysterious woman asked Isabella to watch her daughter, the woman throws herself off a tower. The political mystery unravels as Isabella feels responsible for the young girl, Rosa. The characters are well developed and the story line filled with human emotion and suspense. I always love a good historical mystery when the ending is far from expected. A great read that I highly recommend.
The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein- a good friend gave me this book to read while on vacation. It’s a very easy short read that will speak to all animal lovers. When I read that the author described his book as “Jonathan Livingston Seagull’ for dogs”, I knew I would love this book as I treasured Jonathan Livingston Seagull as a young girl! The story is written through the eyes of a dog and his human is into car racing…..sounds kinda corny but this book is not only funny, heart warming, sad and charming, all in a quirky kinda way.
Barefoot by Elin Hilderbrand- Everyones comes to the beach to relax and rejuvenate. There is something magical about reading a book, playing in the sand and listening to the waves. This author uses the back drop of Nantucket for three woman and two young children to heal the difficult happenings in their life. The two sisters and a friend make their way to a tiny cottage that the sisters inherited from their aunt. Melanie has had many failed in-vitro attempts and just learned that now her husband is having an affair and she is pregnant, Brenda is a teacher that had a passionate affair with her student and is being sued by the college, her sister Vicki has been diagnosed with lung cancer and is being treated with chemo therapy at the Nantucket Hospital. Josh is a local college student who applies for a summer babysitting job to take care of Vicki’s two younger kids and becomes confident to the three woman along with a love affair…..Yikes…..what a tale! A perfect vacation read, RIGHT? This book came with me to Mexico and it reminded me of getting addicted to soap operas. The story line was a little depressing but the characters were well developed with a good Hollywood ending.
The Hillbilly Elegy by J.D. Vance- Byron had originally ordered this book, and he wanted me to read it as it reminded him of many similar feelings he had growing up in the mountains of Wyoming. I read several reviews on Amazon that spoke of all the political references in this book. They may be there but what I took away from this book is a whole lot of empathy and respect for individuals that persevere and break out of a poverty cycle. For me this book spoke of the blessing for all that recognize “the American Dream” is possible and that the Armed Forces can serve as a stepping stone to grow up many of our young kids that are struggling in life. I found the book to be well written and heartwarming, acknowledging all the hardships his family had to suffer. What I loved most about the book was his own accountability and responsibility where it belonged – with each individual and not with external forces. He is proof that obstacles can be overcome!
