Daisy Miller
Henry James, 1878
80 pp.
September 2009
A novella and possibly the most accessible of James's works, Daisy Miller brought the author instant fame...along with a bit of controversy. There was the charge that his heroine was "an outrage on American girlhood."
Daisy epitomizes the James heroine—a fresh young American woman on European soil who, to her own detriment, defies strict social conventions. She belongs to the class of wealthy Americans who, having lived so long in Europe, are "Europeanized." They no longer hold to democratic ideals, eschewing an open, egalitarian society in favor of a rigidly hierarchical one. Their code insists on knowing one's place and behaving accordingly.
Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet
Jamie Ford
290 pp.
August 2009
Up to the early years of World War II, Seattle, Washington, had two distinct Asian-American communities—Japanese and Chinese. And ne'er the twain shall meet; except in this novel they do.
Henry Lee, when we first meet him in 1986, is a forlorn character—a lonely middle aged Chinese-American recently widowed. When an old hotel unearths a stash of Japanese-American belongings, stowed away since the war, Henry is sure that some part of his past is to be found there.
The Cure for Modern Life
Lisa Tucker, 2008
369 pp.
Book Review by Molly Lunduist
July 2009
What was it Good Housekeeping had to say about this novel? Oh, yes—an "emotionally satisfying page-turner": a nicely cliched phrase which pretty much sums up The Cure. But I like this book—a light, breezy read with some good heft to it (okay, more cliche).
Matthew and Amelia, once lovers, are now rivals. The two battle over corporate ethics—Matthew as a top-level pharmaceutical exec and Amelia as an independent medical ethicist.
Ex Libris: Confessions of a Common Reader
Anne Fadiman, 1998
162 pp.
May 2009
So much good stuff packed into such a small package—a book the size a large index card and a mere half-inch thick.
Anne Fadiman, is a true bibliophile. While most of say we love books, Fadiman really loves them. Perhaps better known for The Spirit Catches You, You Fall Down (1997), Fadiman here takes a lighter approach and, in 18 short essays, talks about how books, their contents and phsycial selves, have shaped her life.
Good Grief
Lolly Winston, 2004
342 pp.
April 2009
Why would I place the story of a young woman struggling to cope with her husband's death under "A Lighter Touch?" Because even while tracing the stages of grief, this book does so with sweetness and humor.
Funny, self-deprecating, and sly, Sophie Stanton makes us laugh as she drags herself out of the depths and begins to rebuild her life. Here she is attending a group counseling session for grieving survivors: