SAHM I Am, by Meredith Efken

First of all, I love the title. In case you missed the references, “SAHM” is the acronym for Stay At Home Mother, which I used to be, and “Sam I Am” is a character in one of the Dr. Seuss books that most SAHMs have read out loud a thousand times so [...]

Digging to America, by Anne Tyler

Anne Tyler is one of my favourite novelists. She writes about her characters, their usually very ordinary lives, and their often extraordinary thoughts, feelings and motivations, so deftly that she puts most other writers to shame. She can capture in a sentence what many writers can’t in a chapter of exposition. [...]

First Among Sequels, by Jasper Fforde

I love Jasper Fforde.  I’ve loved him since the first time I picked up the first Thursday Next book, The Eyre Affair.  His wordplay, his bizarre parallel world, his (and his characters’) obsession with the hidden lives of literary characters … honestly, what’s not to like?
At the end of the fourth Thursday Next book, Something [...]

Blessings, by Anna Quindlen

Anna Quindlen’s Blessings was just what I was looking for in a book to read on the plane on my way home from Seattle. It’s a light and easy read, nothing too brain-challenging, but it’s also heartwarming without being sentimental. Quindlen has created interesting characters and raised questions that made me stop and [...]