Well, the summer reading season has officially begun. What better way to kick it off then with a Mary Kay Andrews book! Her latest is The Newcomer. I will skip the preamble about how much I love this author’s writing. What I will share is that I believe this is my favorite of all her books, and that’s saying something.
Synopsis:
After the death of her sister, Tanya, Letty grabs her four-year-old niece and flees New York. In her sister’s already packed “go bag” Letty finds an article about a family-owned motel in Florida. Why does her sister have a “go bag”? Why the article? Letty decides the motel is where she’s going to hide with Maya. Letty arrives in Treasure Island Florida with Maya, few possessions, and one very big secret. Oh – and she needs a job and a place to stay.
Why is Letty hiding? That is just one mystery in this cleverly plotted, fast-paced story.
Upon arriving, Letty quickly scores a room, a job at the motel, and the friendship of its soft-hearted owner, Ava. All of this makes Ava’s son, Joe, very suspicious. Just to keep things interesting, Joe is a police officer. Joe aims to get to the bottom of why Letty is hiding at his mom’s hotel. Of course it does not take long for him to fall for her and complicate matters tremendously. Due to all the drama surrounding Letty, their developing relationship is secondary to why her sister died. There are also questions regarding the complex history between the sisters, and how Tanya is connected to the motel.
Review:
The last few novels that Andrews has treated us to have featured mysteries central to the story. This was good preparation for this book, which is little grittier than her others, and as noted above, light on the romance. Some other traditional elements of the author’s storytelling are also absent: elaborate descriptions of fashion and décor, and not an antique in sight. I also missed her usual references to meals that the characters eat. In the past, her books have often made me very hungry with culinary descriptions as sumptuous as an episode of Ina Garten’s The Barefoot Contessa (MKA wrote a cookbook that I highly recommend, review here).
Andrews consistently creates a perfectly colorful setting. Her description of Treasure Island (where ironically I’m visiting this summer) is pure summer beach town (albeit in this case, winter in FL). I could smell the salt air and feel the sand in my toes. Having spent two decades in south Florida, I delighted in her Floridian references. I have never ever read a book where Immokalee Florida was mentioned – LOL! My Naples peeps will totally understand this.
The author had a knack for comedy. The cast of elderly snowbirds who reside at the motel during the winter months are a hoot. They provide a nice balance to the not-so-funny aspects. I detest scary or gory books and will not read them, so rest assured there’s nothing that crosses the line. Still, the story has an FBI agent, fugitives, kidnapping, guns, murder, and sharks! And guess what? It totally worked! I was engaged from beginning to end and devoured the book in one day. Lucky for me, it was Mother’s Day and I had no responsibilities and was left alone to read.
Five stars!
Thank you to Mary Kay Andrews, Tandem Literary, and St. Martin’s Press for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I’m big Callahan fan and have read every book she has written. Although I read a quite a bit of historical fiction, I must confess that the author’s change of genre made me a bit sad – because I will miss her special brand of southern women’s fiction. Well guess what? This book gave me both!
Synopsis:
When Savannah history professor Everly Winthrop is asked to guest-curate a new museum collection focusing on artifacts recovered from the steamship Pulaski, she’s shocked. The ship sank after a boiler explosion in 1838, and the wreckage was just discovered, 180 years later. Everly can’t resist the opportunity to try to solve some of the mysteries and myths surrounding the devastating night of its sinking. Everly’s research leads her to the astounding history of a family of eleven who boarded the Pulaski together, and the extraordinary stories of two women from this family: a known survivor, Augusta Longstreet, and her niece, Lilly Forsyth, who was never found, along with her child. These aristocratic women were part of Savannah’s society, but when the ship exploded, each was faced with difficult and heartbreaking decisions. This is a moving and powerful exploration of what women will do to endure in the face of tragedy, the role fate plays, and the myriad ways we survive the surviving.
Review:
One of the elements of the book that I loved was the dual timelines that tie the present to the past. This is a device that Beatrix Williams and Sarah Jio also use, which gives us two stories to enjoy. Surviving Savannah is an engrossing novel that provides the reader with a history lesson, a mystery, an analysis of racial issues in the south, an exploration of the difficulties of “surviving the surviving,” and addresses eternal questions about fate and destiny. It is a page turner!
The history of the Pulaski is fascinating and heartbreaking. Make no doubt about it, this book at times it is very hard to read – especially if you are a mother. Yet Callahan has created characters, based on actual passengers, who are so compelling that your heart aches for what those passengers experienced. I had to put the book down a few times and just breath. The descriptions of the aftermath of the explosion (one of the boilers on the ship explodes, which caused the ship to sink) and what the passengers endured is horrific – Sophie’s Choice types of decisions were made. God’s Providence is brought up many times, but still hard to fathom.
Throughout the book, Callahan examines the question that anyone who has experienced – and survived – great tragedy and loss will ultimately ask themselves. How do I survive the surviving? When you lose someone (or multiple someones), how do you go on? Do you live your life with gratitude and renewed purpose? Do you live a better life because of it? Or do you let the loss destroy all that is good and noble in you? Does the anger and bitterness win? Fifty-nine passengers survived the Pulaski. Some completely started over. Some honored the past and the lives lost, while managing to keep on living. Others, despite living and breathing, died on the inside. What determines how you will live?
“The idea that surviving brings everyone to a new and better place is a lie told by people who need the world to make sense.”
Grief leads us to ask why? Why did this happen? Why did I survive? This is where, for some, God’s Providence comes in. Yet, we all know good, young people who die, and you cannot make sense of it. You want a reason, you need one. Unfortunately, often there isn’t one, and that can break your soul.
“There many ways to survive and many ways to survive the surviving. The darkness was there, too. Survival wasn’t just about the happy story of living. Some didn’t survive the living. Some did awful things with the second chance.”
Surviving Savannah is also a story of hope – I promose. The present-day heroine of the book, Everly, experienced her own tragedies. She feels a kinship with Augusta & Lilly (passengers on the ship) that has its own special synchronicity. Through her work curating the Pulaski artifacts, Everly’s able to process her own grief and change her own destiny. Just because you choose to forge ahead with living, doesn’t mean you forget the past, rather, you honor it.
The author thoroughly researched her subject. When I read historical fiction that’s based on a real-life event, I usually end up on Google, to discern for myself what is true and what is poetic license. I also want to find out what happens next. I didn’t have to do this for the history of the Pulaski. Callahan shares some of her extensive research in the Author’s Notes, and brings the story full circle, so we know how everything, and everyone ended up. She also shares the interesting tidbit that the Pulaski was discovered 100 feet under the sea – while she was doing research for this book – a sure sign that she was meant to tell this story. And she did it so well! This is a wonderful book and I urge you to read it! But have the tissue handy!
Well, I’m much timelier with this post than I was with my 2018 favorites (which I posted in August!). I never did get around to writing 2019’s Favorite Books, but I will. Hopefully, this post will motivate me and shake off the writing cobwebs, as well. You know, just in case I get inspired by something…
I did a lot of reading this year and it was wonderful. Unfortunately, none of my reading occurred on a beach, and the high number of books consumed was directly related to how many days I was locked in my house! I know a lot of people were in the same boat. I hope that you found the time to read this year and didn’t only binge on Netflix (like a certain human to whom I’m married). Bookstores are struggling, especially the independents, and they need our help! Please buy books (and not from the Death Star!), so that we will still have brick and mortar bookstores and writers who can make a living doing what they love!
Sorry, off my soap box!
This year I read 104 books. The 50/50 split I have traditionally maintained between fiction and nonfiction the last few years has tipped heavily in favor of nonfiction. Sixty percent of the books I read were nonfiction. My most read genre was memoir (16 books), with miscellaneous nonfiction a close second (13 books). What’s miscellaneous nonfiction you ask? It a nonfiction book that I didn’t know how/where to categorize. For instance, Malcom Gladwell goes here, as do essay compilations, books on organizing, the making of The Brady Bunch, and books about why we can’t sleep (LOL). Rounding out the top three for genres is historical fiction. Sidebar: It’s funny to think that now books set in the 70s and 80s qualify as historical. Ugh!
In terms of rating, I awarded twenty-seven 5-stars (but don’t worry, not ALL made my favorite list), sixty-eight 4-stars, three 3-stars, and two 2-stars. The book I read with the highest Goodreads average rating was The Dynasty by Jeff Benedict, with 4.47. It’s a book about the New England Patriots, and I of course gave it a 5! The book with the lowest GR average rating (3.14) was The Jetsetters by Amanda Eyre Ward, which I gave a 4. The book I rated with the greatest deviations (-1.9) from the GR average was The House of Kennedy by James Patterson.
Seventy-three percent of the books I read were written by women. This year I read the most books (28) written by men since I started keeping track. Elin Hilderbrand was the most read with three books. I read two books each from the following authors: Beatriz Williams, Christina Lauren, David Sedaris, John Grisham, Kelly LeVeque, Malcolm Gladwell, and Nora Ephron. I read 58 authors for the first time, and 20 debut books.
Other random useless stats: I read 26 books that had white as the primary color on the cover, with blue as a close second at 23, which equates to 43% of my books were white or blue (maybe my subconscious was sending me a message: BEACH). I only read one orange book. This observation is due to the rainbow posts I saw last summer from Bookstagrammers.
What else is terms of randomness? Oh, I listened to forty audiobooks (38%) and read 46 hardbacks and 18 paperbacks. Fifty of the books I read were published in 2020. I read 3 Reese Witherspoon books picks, and 5 that were selections of Jenna Bush Hager. The publisher that I read the most was Penguin Random House (no surprise) and the imprint with the most 2020 Allie reads was William Morrow.
Okay, on to the favorites. They are divided between fiction and nonfiction and listed alphabetically.
FICTION:
Beach Read by Emily Henry. January is a romance writer who no longer believes in love and August is a “literary writer” stuck in a rut. The two, who attended the same college and may or may not remember each other, find themselves neighbors in a small beach town. They’re both struggling with their writing and end up challenging each other to write in the other’s genre. And of course it’s funny, competitive, and sparky. Easy for me to like a book about two writers falling in love in a beach town. Still, don’t let the title fool you. Although there’s romance, there’s also great depth to this novel, with each character battling some inner demons. Great dialog in this one – the banter and sparks that reminded me of Dave and Maddie from the show Moonlighting (way dating myself).
Friends & Strangers by J. Courtney Sullivan. A novel about a complicated friendship between two women who are at two very different stages in life. Elizabeth is a journalist struggling with her sophomore book after moving to a college town for her husband’s job. Stuck at home with her infant son, she is missing the city life. She’s also hiding a secret from her husband. Elizabeth grows close to her son’s babysitter, Sam. Sam is a college student about to graduate, and is slightly envious of Elizabeth, who seemingly “has it all.” Sam has some complicated family and romantic dynamics of her own. An exploration of motherhood, power dynamics, and privilege – and how a single year can shape the course of your life.
Jackie and Maria: A Novel of Jackie Kennedy & Maria Callas by Gill Paul. Okay, I think I may have read every damn book written about Ms. Onassis, but I have not read anything about Ms. Callas. In fact, most Jackie books barely mention Maria. This book was fascinating. Although historical fiction, I found few discrepancies with what I “know” to be fact. And the fictionalized stuff…well damn, it was juicy😊! An Ari and Maria baby? I had no idea and did some digging, and there were rumors… Anyway, this book made me want to read some Callas biographies. Shame on me that I have yet to do that.
The Last Book Party by Karen Dukess. Writers, the NYC publishing industry, Cape Cod, 1987. Hello, can you write a more perfect book for me? There is some romance, but really, it’s more about the bad choices we make when we’re young and we think we’re in love. Okay, maybe we are in love, but probably shouldn’t be – LOL. It’s also about books, and the art and passion of writing them. And how your love of words, or a story, or a writer can affect your choices – both for the good and the bad. If you love books, really love books, you will love this one – I promise!
The Last Flight by Julie Clark. Look at me? I actually loved a thriller! What initially got me was the political storyline (one of the heroines is married to a politician who belongs to a Kennedy-like family). Claire is looking to escape, which was reminiscent of the Julia Roberts movie, Sleeping with the Enemy, and hatches the “perfect plan.” After meeting a woman in the airport, who also wants to disappear, they trade plane tickets. Sounds perfect, except one of the planes goes down. Uh-oh. The author shows us the back story of each woman’s life and what led her to the fateful decision.
The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett. This book was/is on all the lists and it felt like a book I had to read. Seriously, I never saw a bad review. It certainly lived up to the hype. Aside from the disturbing and illuminating issues of race and discrimination, it was an amazingly compelling story. I love stories told over decades, and characters who come to life on the page, the ones you miss when the story is over. As a twin mom, I was disturbed that a twin could just walk away (freaked out actually), but I got over that. I bought the author’s other novel, Mothers, because I loved the writing so much.
Writers & Lovers by Lily King. Yet another book about a writer – and it’s set in Boston! The Universe may be telling me something. Oh, and in this one the main character, Casey, is a waitress and has a dead mother. Check, check! The writing is gorgeous, and the author sublimely paints a picture of grief and loneliness that made me ache. Casey’s grief caused me to miss my mother like I hadn’t done in years. Casey is dating two men and it’s really messy and her family issues are even more complicated. Still, she writes every day and believes she’ll sell her book. All of this makes for a spectacular story and I was engrossed and – spoiler alert – I cheered when she got the call!
NONFICTION:
Atomic Habits by James Clear. I had seen this book in many stores over the last few years, and even picked it up a few times, but for some reason didn’t purchase it. Then I read Amy Landino’s book Good Morning Good Life, and she raved about how life-changing the book was for her. Life-changing may be a tad overstated (for me), but I did get some valuable advice and a whole bunch of inspiration. I also started using a habit tracker, which is so simple (why didn’t I think of that?), and yet amazingly effective. I even started using one for my youngest and most forgetful child!
Don’t Overthink It by Anne Bogel. I am a life long over-thinker. I drive myself and everyone I love crazy with this most annoying habit. And yet, there are times when I just go with my gut, make a decision, and rarely change my mind or regret it. How to do more of that? Well, Bogel has some very sound and practical advice on how to. And she points out that the opportunity cost of overthinking is significant. Life is too short to waste time doing it. Time to get over yourself and make the damn decision.
Everything Beautiful in Its Time: Seasons of Love and Loss by Jenna Bush Hager. This is unabashedly a love letter to all her grandparents and her parents. I’m a big fan of Jenna Bush and I love how she wears her heart on her sleeve – even as a member of the NBC Toady Show team. Kudos to NBC for letting her be authentic, which means she often cries on air – happy tears. Well that’s what this book did for me. It filled me with love, and I cried many happy tears. There is nothing political about this memoir, it is about family and the gratitude and love Bush-Hager has for hers. It’s beautiful.
Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb. I did not want to read this book. A memoir about a therapist who needs to see a therapist? As a person who saw a therapist for a couple of years, this was unsettling. The book also shares some of Gottlieb’s therapy sessions with her own patients and I didn’t think I would be interested in that. But good reviews and word of mouth…and I bought it. Thank God I did, because this book is awesome. Gottlieb is an Ivy League graduate who worked on the set of Friends (she was there then Jennifer Anniston auditioned for Rachel) and ER. While on the set of ER, she decided she wanted to be a doctor and went to medical school! Then she started writing and decided to go the therapist route. Gottlieb is a prolific writer of articles that have been featured in numerous national publications, so she can tell a good story. As interesting as her story is, the most fascinating aspects of the book were the stories about her patients (I’m assuming they gave her permission to tell?). This book is so good, and I am struggling to adequately describe it. So, I’m stealing an excerpt for the publisher:
With startling wisdom and humor, Gottlieb invites us into her world as both clinician and patient, examining the truths and fictions we tell ourselves and others as we teeter on the tightrope between love and desire, meaning and mortality, guilt and redemption, terror and courage, hope and change.
So good! And guess what? They’re developing a series based on the book – of course they are!
More Than Love: An Intimate Portrait of My Mother, Natalie Wood by Natasha Gregson Wagner. As a child I spent hours pouring over my mom’s old Life magazines. I developed a slightly weird obsession with old Hollywood and was a Natalie Wood fan way before her untimely death. Her story is so tragic, and I have read half a dozen books about it. I have always believed her death was an accident. This memoir by her daughter, Natasha, reaffirmed that for me. The HBO documentary that she produced when the book was published is excellent as well – and features an emotional interview with Robert Wagner. What I discovered differently from his book over others I read, aside from the personal anecdotes of family life, was the pain and suffering Natalie’s children endured for decades following her death. They had a really tough time. Natasha attributes it to the press coverage and the sensationalized accusations made by their Aunt, Natalie’s sister Lana. It’s important to note that Lana never once reached out to her sister’s children after the accident. Wagner’s portrayal of her parents’ marriage was not sugar-coated. They both drank a lot and were often preoccupied with their careers. But she and her sisters never questioned their love for their children or each other. A compelling read.
Open Book by Jessica Simpson. Ugh, another bandwagon book for me. I have never been a Jessica Simpson fan – AT ALL! But too many people I respect for their taste in books and good writing raved about this one. I listened to it on audio and it was excellent. Simpson is brutally honest and her willingness to be so open and vulnerable, and unabashedly steadfastness in in her faith, well, I’m now a fan. Excellent book.
Save Me the Plums: My Gourmet Memoir by Ruth Reichl. So I have discovered a whole genre that I never knew existed – food writing. I heard about this book on more than one podcast, and I decided to check it out. Written by the former editor of Gourmet magazine, it has all the elements you would expect of food writing – recipes and descriptions that will make your mouth water. What I really enjoyed though, was the peek into the life of an editor for a major national magazine owned by Conde Naste. Reichl was a tad uncomfortable with the glam aspects, but as a reader I thoroughly enjoyed the posh details and the travels to exotic locales. Fun! P.S. – I will desperately miss magazines when they’re gone.
The Dynasty by Jeff Benedict. This is the book I talked ad nauseum about last fall. Seriously, I couldn’t stop talking about the book, unless I saw someone’s eyes glaze over, which unfortunately I did witness more than once. To be fair, you will not like this book unless you are a New England Patriots fan. It is an examination of the history of the franchise and focuses on the last two decades of greatness – and the many scandals that accompanied the glory. Oh, there’s so much juice in this book and it reads like a novel. Benedict has a writing style similar to Mike Lupica. Yet, no doubt about it, he is a sportswriter and presents an in-depth analysis of at least three dozen big games from the Brady error. The book’s prologue is a vivid and graphic description of the Mo Lewis hit that altered the course of Drew Bledsoe’s career. I teared up as I read about Kraft, Belichick, and Brady standing at Bledsoe’s hospital bedside, praying he would live – live! – and all desperately wondering what would happen to their team. Well boys, it turned out okay!
Untamed by Glennon Doyle Melton. I’m a huge Glennon fan and have seen her in person twice. She is so delightful. I loved her first book (but only liked her second). And then nothing… She focused more on her charity work, which is commendable, and also had a lot going on in her personal life. I missed her writing and wondered when we get another book. Four years passed, and finally, we got this glorious book last spring. It was chosen by Reese Witherspoon for her book club the month that all hell broke loose in our country. We were all locked in our houses and it seemed as though everyone I followed on Instagram was reading this book and sharing quotes. I grabbed it from the bottom of my to-read pile and dived in. This memoir is about a woman who finally discovers and embraces her true self. In the process, she’s able to begin a new life and create a beautiful, blended family. It is also a manifesto for middle-aged mommas (probably all women, but I think it really resonated with the middle-aged momma crowd) not to give up on their dreams or themselves just because they’re Mom. This woman is so insightful and somehow manages to produce words that you swear she took from your own head, but she says it so much better. I highlighted the heck out of this book and have flags on my favorite passages. It is a book I will return to time and again and save for my daughter to read in a few years. It is a book that I believe is timeless and will be required reading in more than one college course.
HONORABLE MENTIONS BY GENRE:
Business: Don’t Keep Your Day Job by Cathey Heller
Diet & Exercise:Body Love Every Day by Kelly Leveque
Chicklit:One to Watch by Kate Stayman-London
Historical Fiction:Rodham by Curtis Sittenfeld. This was a love it or hate it read, and I loved it.
Literary Fiction:Separation Anxiety by Laura Zigman
Mystery/Thriller: Camino Island by John Grisham. Couldn’t put it down. Set in an independent bookstore on an island off the coast of Florida? Yes please. Throw in F. Scott Fitzgerald and the black-market world of first editions and I’m in. The sequel, Camino Winds, was published last spring and was very disappointing. It read as if it was written by a different author. I recommend a hard pass.
Romance: The Ex-Debutante by Linda Francis Lee (a reread, for the fourth time, LOL – still love it!)
Women’s Fiction:I Was Told It Would Get Easier by Abbi Waxman
Health:The Badass Life by Christmas Abbott (embarrassed by the title, but genuinely good content about being fit and maintaining it!)
History:The Fall of Richard Nixon: A Reporter Remembers Watergate by Tom Brokaw. Hmmm…wonder why this one interested me?
Memoir:The Best of Me by David Sedaris.
Misc. Nonfiction:Love is all Around Me by Paula Bernstein. An examination of the Mary Tyler MooreShow and how and why it’s still relevant fifty years after the first episode aired.
Self-help:Good Morning, Good Life: 5 Simple Habits to Master your Mornings… by Amy Landino
READING SUPERLATIVES:
Best Female Character: Carlisle Wainwright Cushing from The Ex-Debutante. The name alone! She’s damaged, spunky, brilliant, and fiercely loyal to her crazy Texas family.
Best Male Character: Jack Blair, The Ex-Debutante.
Character I Loathed: Richard in The Recipe for a Perfect Wife by Karma Brown
Best Title: The Honey-Don’t List by Christina Lauren. I love a good pun, and this one works, and the book is appropriately about people who work on a home-improvement show.
Best Cover: Separation Anxiety by Laura Zigman. I don’t know, it just reminded me of someone…
Worst Title:The Bad-Ass Life by Christmas Abbott. I cringe even as I type it. This should perhaps be the title of Kid Rock’s memoir, not a health and fitness tome. Still, it caught my attention in the bookstore, and I bought it – LOL!
Book I Gave the Most as a Gift: Camino Island by John Grishamand The Dynasty by Jeff Benedict
Sauciest Revelation: I don’t know if sauciest is the appropriate term, by Jessica Simpson was pretty open about all things sex in her memoir, Open Book.
Book that Made Me Laugh the Most: Hands down, I Remember Nothing by Norah Ephron. Caveat, I think you need to be of a certain age to fully appreciate all the humor in this memoir.
Book that Made Me Cry the Most: Jenna Bush Hager’s tribute to her parents and grandparents, Everything Beautiful in Its Time, made me cry multiple times. Pure, unconditional love in all its glory.
Biggest Let-down (imo):Camino Winds by John Grisham – see earlier comment. I also was disappointed by Majesty, which is Kathrin McGee’s second book in the American Royals trilogy. I loved the first one, American Royals, but this one fell flat for me.
Most Popular Story Setting: Once again, New York City was the place where most of my books lived, however this year New England tied New York – 9 each!
Most Popular Profession: Proving that all fiction is somewhat autobiographical, 18 books featured a writer as a main character.
Favorite Place I Bought a Book: I did venture to the Northeast in early autumn to see my sister-in-law. I masked-up and visited a dozen bookstores in New England, so this one is tough. I am going to go with Jeff Kinney’s bookstore, An Unlikely Story in Plainville, MA. Charming! I was with Camden and he couldn’t have been more thrilled, which was really fun.
Oldest Book I Read:The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison and Wallflower at the Orgy by Nora Ephron were both published in 1970.
Longest Book I Read:The Dynasty by Jeff Benedict, 592 pages
Shortest Book I Read:I Remember Nothing by Nora Ephron, 137 pages
Month I Read the Most: September, 18 books (fall break mini-road trip to New England)
Month I Read the Least: November, 2 books. We had a major family crisis, it was dreadful!
Booked I Threw in Anger: Dudes, I was pretty chill this year. The news pissed me off, so I shut off the TV and read, and never threw up book. Not once!
Most Shocking Surprise: I don’t read many mysteries or thrillers, so I’m probably more gullible than most. I didn’t see the end coming in The Last Flight by Julie Clark. I really had hope, all the way to the end.
Book I Didn’t Think I Like, but I Did: Mayflower by Nathaniel Philbrick. I kind of had to read this to help Hunter out on a big project (I know). It was anticipated to be a chore, but to my delight, I really enjoyed it. As a native New Englander, I was surprised by what I didn’t know.
Book That Made Me Feel Like the Odd Girl Out:The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison. The writing is exquisite – no argument here! But this was a really tough read for me. I was relieved when it was over, and just so sad. Am I glad I finally read it? Absolutely. But I’d be hard pressed to urge others to read it, and that makes me feel bad – and most definitely like the odd girl out.
Book That Made Me Blush:Rodham by Curtis Sittenfeld. Bill, Hillary, and a whole lot of sex that left little to the imagination. Squirm is probably the more appropriate term.
Book That Gave Me an Anxiety Attack: Sh*tShow! by Charlie LeDuff. LeDuff wrote a book about Detroit a few years ago that I liked (and was one of my 2013 Favorites). He’s a really good writer with some very strong opinions. LeDuff was one of the early pundits (he was a local correspondent for Fox affiliates) who predicted that Trump would win the Presidency. He based his conclusion on his experiences reporting from the frontlines of various American tragedies: Flint, Fuerguson, and the Mexican border crossing, to name a few. He crassly paints a very unflattering picture of American politics and culture, which did make my heart beat faster while I was reading. Seriously, I had to take breaks while listening to this one. Still, he’s not wrong – it’s a Sh*tshow out there. And yes, he does revisit his beloved Detroit and it ain’t pretty.
Weirdest Book I Read:Nothing to See Here by Kevin Wilson. I can’t even begin to explain the story – or why I really liked it. Beats me!
Number of books read that were written by authors with a podcast: 12!
Books I’m Excited About for 2021:Dusk, Night, Dawn by Anne Lamott, People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry, MalibuRising by Taylor Jenkins Reid, a Mike Nichols biography and memoirs by Sharon Stone and Julianna Margulies.
FAVORITE PASSAGES:
My most flagged book this year was Untamed, but I’ve picked just one from that book, which was extremely difficult. But in the following passage Doyle made me laugh out loud, nod my head in agreement with her extreme worries, and she gave me hope that we can change and do and be what we want.
When one lives in a state of compete vigilance, if anything actually goes wrong: Forget about it. Full panic. Fifteen to a hundred in two seconds flat.
Kids two minutes late?
Everyone is dead.
Sister doesn’ttext me back within thirty seconds?
Definitely dead.
Dog coughs?
Almost dead.
Abby’s plane delayed?
Yep, all this is too good to be true, life will never let me be happy, all death.
The good news is I’ve figured out many ways to outsmart the body snatchers. Proof of my expertise in these matters? I am a clinically depressed inspirational speaker. I am a diagnosed anxious person whose main job is to convince people that everything’s okay. Please note that if I can be these things, anyone can be anything.
Don’t fear big. Fear mediocrity. Fear waste. Fear the lack of living life to your fullest. When we fear big, we either consciously or subconsciously work against it. We either run toward lesser outcomes and opportunities or we simply run away from the big ones. If courage isn’t the absence of fear, but moving past it, then thinking big isn’t the absence of doubts, but moving past them. Only living big will let you experience your true life and work potential.
Relationships in life don’t really end, even if you never see the person again. Every person you’ve been close to lives on somewhere inside you. Your past lovers, your parents, your friends, people both alive and dead (symbolically or literally)—all of them evoke memories, conscious or not. Often they inform how you relate to yourself and others. Sometimes you have conversations with them in your head; sometimes they speak to you in your sleep.
-from Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb
Here it is! I am so excited to share the cover for Surviving Savannah by New York Times bestselling author Patti Callahan, on sale March 9, 2021. It’s inspired by the true and forgotten story of the sinking of the “Titanic of the South” #survivingsavannah #patticallahan Pre-order it here and visit Patti online at her website. Also, once upon a time Patti participated in one of my “Books of My Life” interviews, which you can read here.
About the book
New York Times bestselling author Patti Callahan delivers a breathtaking novel based on true events. It was called “The Titanic of the South”—the luxury steamship that sank in 1838 with Savannah’s elite on board. Through time, their fates were forgotten—until the wreck was found.
Now their story is finally being told.
When Savannah history professor Everly Winthrop is asked to guest-curate a new museum collection focusing on artifacts recovered from the steamship Pulaski, she’s shocked. The ship sank after a boiler explosion in 1838, and the wreckage was just discovered, 180 years later. Everly can’t resist the opportunity to try to solve some of the mysteries and myths surrounding the devastating night of its sinking.
Everly’s research leads her to the astounding history of a family of eleven who boarded the Pulaski together, and the extraordinary stories of two women from this family: a known survivor, Augusta Longstreet, and her niece, Lilly Forsyth, who, along with her child, was never found. The women were part of Savannah society, but when the ship exploded, each was faced with difficult and heartbreaking decisions. This is a moving and powerful exploration of what women will do to endure in the face of tragedy, the role fate plays, and the myriad ways we survive the surviving.
Perfect for fans of Before We Were Yours, Sold on a Monday, and Orphan Train, Callahan’s highly anticipated novel tells the story of a little known chapter of history that has long deserved a spotlight. This transformative tale told from alternating past and present perspectives will sweep readers away and move them to their core.
Q&A with Patti Callahan
What inspired you to write Surviving Savannah?
Originally I was inspired by the Pulaski tales of survival, how the city of Savannah was part of this story, and how the Lowcountry was affected by this tragedy. I was also inspired and curious about the transformation of each passenger and the ways that each survivor not only lived through the explosion, but also how they chose to live their lives after the sinking.
How, I wondered, do some come to live better lives and others turn toward bitterness and cruelty? Who do we become after such great loss?
AND then!, everything shifted because after a hundred and eighty years, along came a shipwreck hunting crew who found the remains of the Pulaski a hundred feet beneath the waves, thirty miles off the coast of Wilmington, North Carolina. While the team went deep to bring up the artifacts and treasure of this beautiful ship, I dug deep to bring up the stories.
My exhilarating hunt for the forgotten story began.
What kind of research was required to write the novel? Did anything surprise you?
The research was as fascinating as it was extensive – from the archives at the Georgia Historical Center in Savannah and the Ships of the Sea Maritime Museum to books, newspaper archives, personal accounts and letters, I read everything that I could get my hands on. I devoured books on steamships and Savannah in the 1800’s. I read about the rich history of the colonization of Savannah with General Oglethorpe. I walked the streets of Savannah and visited museums and artifact collections. I interviewed shipwreck experts and became enchanted with the world of wreck salvaging and treasure hunting.
During this journey, I was surprised over and over, but one surprise that opens the novel is the true narrative about a fifteen-year-old passenger named Charles who survived the sinking to become a slave trader with a horrific reputation. As he grew into a man, he earned the nickname “the Red Devil”. How had this young boy survived to become so cruel? I wanted to know.
Finally, after years of research, I put together a complete story of that calamitous night, and one family in particular.
Your story follows three women – Lily and Augusta on the ship in 1838, and Everly in present day. Which of the three women did you relate to the most and why?
While I was writing each section I always felt the most connected to the woman I was writing about at the moment. I don’t think I felt more for one woman than another but of course our modern-day character, Everly felt more relatable only because I know today’s Savannah and I know today’s southern norms and ideas. The historical narratives were almost two hundred years old, and yet I still felt as close to Lilly and Augusta because their plight and their desires and their inner lives feel familiar. As far as women have come in their roles in society, there is still the struggle for independence and agency. There remains the need to burst through familial and collective norms to build a life of one’s own.
All three women had their own tragedies, hardships and losses to navigate. All three needed to discover how they would make meaning and purpose out of their situation. All three found out what they were truly made of and if they wanted to merely survive or if they wanted to thrive and build new lives.
