Beneath a Scarlet Sky
Mark Sullivan, 2017
Lake Union (Amazon)
524 pp.
ISBN-13: 9781503943377
Summary
Based on the true story of a forgotten hero, Beneath a Scarlet Sky is the triumphant, epic tale of one young man’s incredible courage and resilience during one of history’s darkest hours.
Pino Lella wants nothing to do with the war or the Nazis. He’s a normal Italian teenager—obsessed with music, food, and girls—but his days of innocence are numbered. When his family home in Milan is destroyed by Allied bombs, Pino joins an underground railroad helping Jews escape over the Alps, and falls for Anna, a beautiful widow six years his senior.
In an attempt to protect him, Pino’s parents force him to enlist as a German soldier—a move they think will keep him out of combat. But after Pino is injured, he is recruited at the tender age of eighteen to become the personal driver for Adolf Hitler’s left hand in Italy, General Hans Leyers, one of the Third Reich’s most mysterious and powerful commanders.
Now, with the opportunity to spy for the Allies inside the German High Command, Pino endures the horrors of the war and the Nazi occupation by fighting in secret, his courage bolstered by his love for Anna and for the life he dreams they will one day share.
Fans of All the Light We Cannot See, The Nightingale, and Unbroken will enjoy this riveting saga of history, suspense, and love. (From the publisher.)
Author Bio
• Birth—June 28, 1958
• Where—Medfield, Massachusetts, USA
• Education—B.A., Hamilton College; M.S., Northwestern University
• Currently—lives in Bozeman, Montana
Mark Sullivan is an American author best known for his mystery and suspense novels, including five co-written with James Patterson.
Sullivan was born and raised in Medford, Massacusetts, a suburb of Boston. According to his website, his favorite job of all time was as a teen selling souvenirs at Fenway Park. He left the baseball park for Hamilton College where he received his B.A., after which he joined the Peach Corp. He spent two years in Africa, living among the Tuareg nomads of the Sahara Desert and teaching English to their children.
On returning to the States, Sullivan earned an M.S. in Journalism at the Medill School at Northwestern University. For the next decade or so, he worked as a financial, political, and investigative journalist. Most of that time was spent at The San Diego Tribune, where he won awards for a series on the children of addicts and another for his inside view of funeral home conglomerates.
But by the age of 30, Sullivan decided he needed to follow his childhood dream — to become a novelist. Writing in his spare time, he published stories in literary journals.
In 1990, he took a big risk — a leave of absence from the newsroom — and headed to Utah and Wyoming where he immersed himself in the culture of extreme skiers. Out of that experience came his first novel, The Fall Line. Published in 1994, his debut garnered a "Notable Book of the Year" listing from the New York Times.
With the publication of The Purification Ceremony in 1996, Sullivan's fiction career took off. The novel received widespread praise and was a finalist for the Edgar Allen Poe Award. Since then, he has written over a dozen novels, including those with Patterson.
An avid skier and athlete, Sullivan lives in Montana with his wife. (Adapted from the author's website.)
Book Reviews
Exciting…taut thriller…. Beneath a Scarlet Sky tells the true story of one young Italian's efforts to thwart the Nazis.
Shelf Awareness
Meticulous research highlights this World War II novel of a youth growing into manhood…a captivating read
RT Book Reviews
Edgar-finalist Sullivan (Triple Cross) lays on history with a trowel in this overstuffed tale of derring-do set in Italy during WWII.… Facing few obstacles he can’t overcome, the heroic Pino easily outfoxes the Nazis.
Publishers Weekly
Discussion Questions
1. Beneath a Scarlet Sky is a work of historical fiction. As you were reading did you feel that the story was authentic? Given that the truth about what actually happened to each character is included at the end, talk about how Mark Sullivan crafted an interesting story while also sticking to the facts.
2. Throughout the book, Sullivan describes horrific scenes filled with human sacrifice, violence, bombings and ruthless executions. How well do you think he captures the fear in the air? Does he strike the right balance between page-turner and paying homage to the brutal truth?
3. At the beginning of Beneath a Scarlet Sky, bombs are dropped on Milan, destroying sections of the city. At this point, Mr. Beltramini’s grocery is saved. In talking to Pino Lella, Beltramini says, “If a bomb’s coming at you, it’s coming at you. You can’t just go around worrying about it. Just go on doing what you love, and go on enjoying your life.” What are your thoughts about his advice? Given what’s going on in the world today, do you live in fear of terrorism or war? How do you balance “enjoying your life” in spite of your fear?
4. If you or members of your book discussion group lived through World War II, here or abroad, how do your recollections match the emotions that you are reading here?
5. Father Re enlists Pino’s help to usher Italian Jews through the mountains to Switzerland and to safety. Catholics and Jews clearly have different belief systems. In today’s world, what do you think it would take for a Christian to help, say, a Muslim in a similar manner in a place of war? Do you think it’s possible for such an underground network to exist today?
6. Mrs. Napolitano is a pregnant Italian Jew who successfully escapes over the mountain pass in the dead of winter, in one of the most dramatic passages om the book. She almost dies along the way. If you were in her shoes, do you think you’d be brave enough to attempt the trek? What does it mean to be brave in the face of death?
7. There is a moment when Colonel Rauff, the head of the Gestapo in Milan, helps Father Re’s boys corral oxen into a pen. He enjoys himself and almost seems…human. What do you think the author intended by choosing to portray such an evil man in this light? Was it effective?
8. Just a few months shy of Pino’s 18th birthday, his father calls him back to Milan and demands that he enlist instead of waiting to be drafted. The catch? Enlisting with the Germans is safer. He is given a choice and chooses to enlist. Knowing you’d have to work for the enemy, what would you have done if you were in Pino’s shoes?
9. Almost by chance, Pino becomes the driver for one of the highest-ranking German officers in Italy. It’s a chance for Pino to become a spy, once again risking his life. If you were Pino, would you take advantage of the opportunity, knowing it could put your family in significant danger?
10. Pino’s best friend from childhood finds out that he’s a Nazi and accuses him of being a traitor. Pino can’t, of course, tell him the truth because it would put the mission in danger. What would it take for you to make a similar sacrifice? Is there a cause for a “greater good” that you’d risk anything for?
11. Anna catches Pino in the act of rifling through the Major General Hans Leyers’ things. When he tells her the truth, she softens and they kiss. What was your initial reaction during that scene? Did you trust Anna? Why or why not? How did your gut feeling change as the novel progressed? Do you think she deserved her fate?
12. After Pino and Major General Leyers are nearly killed by a British fighter plane, Leyers opens up to Pino and shares a bit about his life. Did this scene change the way you thought about him? Are people 100% evil, or is it possible to find humanity or goodness in everyone?
13. Major General Leyers gives Pino advice: “Doing favors…they help wondrously over the course of a lifetime. When you have done men favors, when you look out for others so they can prosper, they owe you. With each favor, you become stronger, more supported. It is a law of nature.” How does this statement inform Leyers’ character? Do you agree with this statement? Is doing and receiving favors about “owing,” or is it about something else?
14. Major General Leyers saves four sick children from Platform 21…and from death. Why do you think he does this? Out of the goodness of his heart, or is it one of his favors?
15. When the Germans surrender, the Italians turn on each other and many butcher each other to death, either for doing nothing or for being friendly with the Germans. Are their actions justified? Or is this violence just as condemnable?
16. Toward the end, Pino is given the chance to execute Major General Leyers. He doesn’t take it. Why do you think that is? What would you have done?
17. The ending is quite a shocker. Did you see it coming? Why or why not?
18. In certain sections, particularly in conversations between characters, Sullivan writes in a modern style. What effect, if any, does this have on the story or your perception of events? Does he capture the mood of the 1940s?
19. Sullivan provides information about what actually happened to the characters in the novel. After completing the book and finding out their destinies, did you feel each character got what they deserved?
20. In the preface, author Mark Sullivan admits to being suicidal the night he came up with the idea for Beneath a Scarlet Sky. Did that information have any impact on how you perceived the book?
(Questions from the author's website.)
Anatomy of a Miracle
Jonathan Miles, 2018
Crown/Archetype
368 pp.
ISBN-13: 9780553447583
Summary
A profound new novel about a paralyzed young man’s unexplainable recovery—a stunning exploration of faith, science, mystery, and the meaning of life
Rendered paraplegic after a traumatic event four years ago, Cameron Harris has been living his new existence alongside his sister, Tanya, in their battered Biloxi, Mississippi neighborhood where only half the houses made it through Katrina.
One stiflingly hot August afternoon, as Cameron sits waiting for Tanya during their daily run to the Biz-E-Bee convenience store, he suddenly and inexplicably rises up and out of his wheelchair.
In the aftermath of this "miracle," Cameron finds himself a celebrity at the center of a contentious debate about what’s taken place.
When scientists, journalists, and a Vatican investigator start digging, Cameron’s deepest secrets—the key to his injury, to his identity, and, in some eyes, to the nature of his recovery—become increasingly endangered.
Was Cameron’s recovery a genuine miracle, or a medical breakthrough? And, finding himself transformed into a symbol, how can he hope to retain his humanity?
Brilliantly written as closely observed journalistic reportage and filtered through a wide lens that encompasses the vibrant characters affected by Cameron’s story, Anatomy of a Miracle will be read, championed, and celebrated as a powerful story of our time, and the work of a true literary master. (From the publisher.)
Author Bio
• Birth—January 28, 1971
• Where—Cleveland, Ohio, USA
• Raised—Phoenix, Arizona
• Education—University of Mississippi
• Currently—lives in rural New Jersey
Jonathan Miles is an American journalist and novelist. His debut novel, Dear American Airlines (2008), was published to wide acclaim. He has since published two more novels, Want Not (2013) and Anatomy of a Miracle (2018).
Early life
Miles was born in Cleveland, Ohio, and later moved with his family to Phoenix, Arizona, where he was raised. At 17 he ran away from home and, after a stint back in Cleveland, headed to Oxford, Mississippi. Eventually he attended the University of Mississippi where he took a writing class with Barry Hannah.
Finding work as a newspaper reporter and aspiring jazz musician, Miles met novelist Larry Brown. The two became friends, and while Miles didn't graduate from "Ole Miss", Brown taught and encouraged Miles to write: "It was an astonishing education. Some people go to the Iowa Writer's Workshop. I had Larry."
Career
While Miles never studied journalism in college, his work soon found publication in a local literary magazine, the Oxford American, and he continued to contribute essays and critique for several years.
A friend suggested Miles apply as a reporter for The Oxford Eagle, and while the pay wasn't good, being forced to churn out daily copy gradually improved his ability to write more dispassionately about complex and emotional subjects. Miles claims he was fired by the paper years later for writing an obituary about a subject who had admitted regularly providing bootlegged liquor to noted Oxford resident William Faulkner and correctly reporting the fact.
Fortunately, Miles's writing caught the eye of Esquire editor Will Blythe, who published an account Miles wrote of an ingenious prison escape he'd investigated while writing for the Oxford paper. Miles had developed a reputation as a keen observer of Mississippi culture, selling essays to Food & Wine, Men's Journal and The New York Times Magazine.
He credits his early literary voice to his time in Oxford, Mississippi, but when Men's Journal offered him an annual contract Miles was already driving a moving van toward New York City in search of such an opportunity. (From Wikipedia. Retrieved 3/7/2018.)
Book Reviews
Miles…[puts] his characters through one absurd situation after another, but he laces his tale with moments of philosophical seriousness…. Well-drawn characters and… witty repartee help give the book’s wild and wacky events a very human frame of reference.
Publishers Weekly
Satire at its best is constructive social criticism, and Miles is perfecting this craft in the 21st century.… With sincerity and wit, Miles pens a strong, sardonic rumination on the religious boundaries of the miraculous. —Joshua Finnell, Colgate Univ., Hamilton, NY
Library Journal
Vibrant, bustling, and humorous.… Cleverly shaped as a journalistic report… Miles' tale offers a nuanced and endlessly entertaining exploration of the age-old debate between faith and reason.
Booklist
(Starred review.)[A] rare and admirable command of structure and style,… his sentences are thick with data, wittily delivered.… An expertly shaped tale about faith in collision with contemporary American culture.
Kirkus Reviews
The impossible happens in… Anatomy of a Miracle. But it's what occurs before the astonishing event and what unspools after that will break open hearts and imaginations.… Miles's powerful prose nudges readers to seek the soft spots between faith and judgment, story and science, and fact and fiction.
CJ Lotz - Garden & Gun
[A] remarkable combination of medical mystery, satire and war story. Like Ben Fountain's Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk, it captures the long-lasting effects of war by focusing on those for whom war is only a tangential thing somewhere far away.
Shelf Awareness
Jonathan Miles’ smart exploration of everything from the excesses of American popular culture to the deepest aspects of religious belief roars to life.… A vivid portrait of our need to believe and its unintended consequences.… [A] thoughtful modern morality play.
BookPage
Discussion Questions
1. Anatomy of a Miracle opens as Tanya wheels her brother, Cameron, to their local convenience store, the Biz-E-Bee. This site is important to much of the novel’s action, being the scene of the seemingly miraculous moment when Cameron, formerly paralyzed from the waist down, steps out of his wheelchair and onto the asphalt of the store’s parking lot. What kind of atmosphere does this scene evoke? How does the routine of Tanya and Cameron’s daily errands speak to the circumstances of their life? Is it indicative of small-town life in the Deep South?
2. Jonathan Miles’s novel is set years after Hurricane Katrina, though Biloxi, Mississippi, is still defined by the storm. Where do you see Katrina’s lasting effects on the town?
3. What were your first impressions of Cameron and Tanya and of their brother/sister relationship? Early on, their home in Biloxi is described as "starkly devoid of family history," swept away with their possessions by the hurricane. Did your opinion of the characters develop as you gained insight to their backstories?
4. What do you make of the internet and social media’s role in the novel? Does it reflect things that you see on Facebook and Twitter?
5. What do you think of Cameron’s doctor, Janice? Is her confidence in science similar or different from the faith that other characters have in religion?
6. In the story, there is controversy about what constitutes a miracle. How would you define a miracle? Can one at once believe in miracles and doubt the existence of God?
7. Cameron struggles with feelings of guilt and unworthiness. Why do you think he feels this way?
8. How did you feel about the way people tried to capitalize on Cameron’s recovery? Think of the Biz-E-Bee’s conversion to a site of public pilgrimage with its own line of spiritual novelties for sale, or the reality television show, Miracle Man. Do you agree or disagree with attempts to make money off of Cameron’s life?
9. How do Cameron and Darmarkus react to postwar life and adapt to their injured bodies? Cameron agonizes over life’s what-ifs while Damarkus settles with what is. Does Damarkus exhibit acceptance for what happened? Does Cameron?
10. How did you react to the revelation about Cameron’s sexuality? Discuss the implications that this had for the public’s perception of Cameron. In light of this, why did many choose to denounce his recovery as a sign of divine intervention?
11. As an adolescent, Cameron recognizes that he is attracted to boys and not girls, but does not identify as "gay" because of the negative perceptions at his school and in popular culture. What do you think this struggle might have been like for him?
12. Tanya believes that a cocktail of antidepressants, sleeping aids, and anti-anxiety medication saved her brother’s life following his return from Afghanistan. How does this compare to the Cameron’s self-medication with alcohol and nonprescription drugs? Why are Tanya and Janice concerned when Cameron stops taking his medication?
13. What do you think of the reported style of the novel? How do you think the blend of fact and fiction reflects current cultural preoccupations with truth?
14. Honeybun chastises Griffin for wanting to represent Cameron’s recovery as a metaphor for self-acceptance. Did you read the "miracle" as a metaphor?
15. The last figure that we witness visiting the Biz-E-Bee tells Quŷnh that he prays for "love and understanding." How do you think this message applies to the story overall?
16. Toward the novel’s end, Janice’s father, Winston Lorimar discusses science and religion with his daughter, arguing that storytelling is a way of understanding the world whether or not you believe in God. Do you agree with him?
17. Having finished reading the novel, do you think it "really matters" whether or not Cameron’s recovery was a miracle?
(Questions issued by the publishers.)
A Friend Is a Gift You Give Yourself
William Boyle, 2019
Pegasus Books
320 pp.
ISBN-13: 9781643130583
Summary
Goodfellas meets Thelma and Louise when an unlikely trio of women in New York find themselves banding together to escape the clutches of violent figures from their pasts.
After Brooklyn mob widow Rena Ruggiero hits her eighty-year-old neighbor Enzio in the head with an ashtray when he makes an unwanted move on her, she embarks on a bizarre adventure.
Taking off in Enzio’s ’62 Impala, she retreats to the Bronx home of her estranged daughter, Adrienne, and her granddaughter, Lucia, only to be turned away by Adrienne at the door.
Their neighbor, Lacey "Wolfie" Wolfstein, a one-time Golden Age porn star and retired Florida Suncoast grifter, takes Rena in and befriends her.
When Lucia discovers that Adrienne is planning to hit the road with her ex-boyfriend Richie, she figures Rena’s her only way out of a life on the run with a mother she can’t stand.
But Richie has massacred a few members of the Brancaccio crime family for a big payday, and he drags even more trouble into the mix in the form of an unhinged enforcer named Crea. The stage is set for an explosion that will propel Rena, Wolfie, and Lucia down a strange path, each woman running from something and unsure what comes next.
A Friend Is a Gift You Give Yourself is a screwball noir about finding friendship and family where you least expect it, in which William Boyle again draws readers into the familiar—and sometimes frightening—world in the shadows at the edges of New York’s neighborhoods. (From the publisher.)
Author Bio
• Birth—1978
• Where—Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA
• Education—B.A., State University of New York–New Paltz; M.F.A., University of Mississippi
• Awards—
• Currently—lives in Oxford, Mississippi
William Boyle is an American novelist and short story writer. Originally from Brooklyn, New York City, he lived with his mother's family, who were from Italy, in the Bensonhurst and Gravesend section of the boro. (Gravesend became the title of his 2014 novel.) Boyle's father, of Scottish descent, was mainly absent during his childhood.
Even as a child, Boyle says he was a disciplined writer, writing for 10-12 hours a day (when he had the time) at the age of 14. Boyle earned his B.A. from the State University of New York at New Paltz and, later, his M.F.A. at the University of Mississippi, where he now teaches as an adjunct. He wrote his first novel, Gravesend, in 2011 for his master's thesis; it was published in 2013. The novel was also released in France, where it was nominated for Grand Prix de Litterature Policiere, and in the UK, where it was shortlisted for the New Blood Dagger Award. The novel was re-released in the U.S.
in 2018.
In 2015, Boyle published a volume of short stories, Death Don’t Have No Mercy. A novel, Tout est Brise (Everything is Broken) was published in France in 2017. Another novel, The Lonely Witness came out in the U.S. in 2018, and A Friend Is a Gift You Give Yourself in 2019.
Boyle lives with his wife in Oxford, Mississippi; they have two children. (Adapted from various online sources. Retrieved 3/5/2019.)
Book Reviews
Comic crime capers are fun. Comic crime capers starring women are even more fun. William Boyle delivers some choice laughs and a terrific trio of felons in A Friend Is a Gift You Give Yourself …on a road trip that's so much fun you don't want it to end.
Marilyn Stasio - New York Times Book Review
[A] funny, gritty, touching narrative about the strength of three New York women caught in a world of abusive men, broken families, and mob violence. Friend is a rarity; a fresh novel about New York's underbelly. Crime fiction usually stays within the confines of the genre, but Boyle breaks away from those restrictions.
NPR
★ [An] addictive hardboiled crime novel…. Boyle skillfully mixes a classic Westlake/Leonard–style caper with the powerful tale of three women facing the ghosts of their pasts.
Publishers Weekly
This all sounds a little bit loopy, along the lines of Carl Hiaasen or Tim Dorsey, and there is indeed a surreal element to this caper. But there is also more than a little Thelma & Louise in Boyle’s terrific tale, which has some of the most stylish noir prose to grace the page in some time.
BookPage
★ The novel incorporates the snappy timing of both those films, and the Elmore Leonard–like cinematic prose begs for a film adaptation. Recommend this triumph of moral ambiguity to fans of black humor, including that of Carl Hiaasen and Dennis Lehane.
Booklist
[A] caper-inspired road story of quirky personalities on the run littered with gruesome deaths…. Deploying an inimitable tone that packs sardonic storytelling atop action and adventure…, Boyle's voice works even when it feels like it shouldn't. It's just the right kind of too much.
Kirkus Reviews
Discussion Questions
We'll add publisher questions if and when they're available; in the meantime, use our LitLovers Book Club Resources. They can help with discussions for any book:
• How to Discuss a Book (helpful discussion tips)
• Generic Discussion Questions—Fiction and Nonfiction
• Read-Think-Talk (a guided reading chart)
(Resources by LitLovers. Please feel free to use them, online and off, with attribution. Thanks.)
One Perfect Lie
Lisa Scottoline, 2017
St. Martin's Press
368 pp.
ISBN-13: 9781250099563
Summary
A handsome stranger moves to the small Pennsylvania town of Central Valley, and his name is Chris Brennan. He’s applying for a job as a teacher and varsity baseball coach at the local high school, and he looks perfect, on paper.
But his name is an alias, his resume is false, and everything about him is a lie. And he has a secret plan — for which he needs a pawn on the baseball team.
Susan Sematov loves her younger son Raz, the quirky and free-spirited pitcher of the team. But Raz’s adored father died only a few months ago, and the family is grief-stricken. Secretly, Raz is looking to fill the Daddy-shaped hole in his heart.
Heather Larkin is a struggling single mother who’s dedicated to her only son Justin, the quiet rookie on the team. But Justin’s shy and reserved nature renders him vulnerable to attention, including that of a new father-figure.
Mindy Kostis is the wife of a busy surgeon and the queen bee of the baseball boosters, where her super-popular son Evan is the star catcher. But she doesn’t realize that Evan’s sense of entitlement is becoming a full-blown case of affluenza, and after he gets his new BMW, it’s impossible to know where he’s going — or whom he’s spending time with.
The lives of these families revolve around the baseball team — and Chris Brennan. What does he really want? How far will he go to get it? Who among them will survive the lethal jeopardy threatening them, from the shadows?
Enthralling and suspenseful, One Perfect Lie is an emotional thriller and a suburban crime story that will keep readers riveted to the shocking end, with killer twists and characters you won’t soon forget. (From the publisher.)
Author Bio
• Birth—July 1, 1955
• Where—Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
• Education—B.A., J.D., University of Pennsylvania
• Awards—Edgar Award
• Currently—lives in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Lisa Scottoline is the New York Times bestselling author and Edgar award-winning author of some two dozen novels and several nonfiction books. She also writes a weekly column with her daughter Francesca Serritella for the Philadelphia Inquirer titled "Chick Wit" which is a witty and fun take on life from a woman's perspective.
These stories, along with many other never-before-published stories, have been collected in four books including their most recent, Have a Nice Guilt Trip, and the earlier, Meet Me at Emotional Baggage Claim, Best Friends, Occasional Enemies, Why My Third Husband Will Be a Dog, which has been optioned for TV, and My Nest Isn't Empty, It Just Has More Closet Space.
Lisa reviews popular fiction and non-fiction, and her reviews have appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post and Philadelphia Inquirer. Lisa has served as President of Mystery Writers of America and has taught a course she developed, "Justice and Fiction" at The University of Pennsylvania Law School, her alma mater.
Lisa is a regular and much sought after speaker at library and corporate events. Lisa has over 30 million copies of her books in print and is published in over 35 countries. She lives in the Philadelphia area with an array of disobedient pets, and she wouldn't have it any other way.
Lisa's books have landed on all the major bestseller lists including the New York Times, USA Today, Wall Street Journal, Publisher's Weekly, Washington Post, and Los Angeles Times, and Look Again was named "One of the Best Novels of the Year" by the Washington Post, and one of the best books in the world as part of World Book Night 2013.
Lisa's novels are known for their emotionality and their warm and down-to-earth characters, which resonate with readers and reviewers long after they have finished the books. When writing about Lisa’s Rosato & Associates series, Janet Maslin of the New York Times applauds Lisa's books as "punchy, wisecracking thrillers" whose "characters are earthy, fun and self-deprecating" and distinguishes her as having "one of the best-branded franchise styles in current crime writing."
Recognition
Lisa's contributions through her writing has been recognized by organizations throughout the country. She is the recipient of the Edgar Award, the Mystery Writer's of America most prestigious honor, the Fun, Fearless, Fiction Award by Cosmopolitan Magazine, and named a PW Innovator by Publisher's Weekly.
Lisa was honored with AudioFile's Earphones Award and named Voice of the Year for her recording of her non-fiction book, Why My Third Husband Will Be a Dog. The follow up collection, My Nest Isn't Empty, It Just Has More Closet Space has garnered both Lisa and her daughter, Francesca, an Earphones Award as well. In addition, she has been honored with a Distinguished Author Award from Scranton University, and a "Paving the Way" award from the University of Pennsylvania, Women in Business.
Personal
Lisa's accomplishments all pale in comparison to what she considers her greatest achievement, raising, as a single mom, her beautiful (a completely unbiased opinion) daughter, an honors graduate of Harvard, author, and columnist, who is currently working on her first novel.
Lisa believes in writing what you know, and she puts so much of herself into her books. What you may or may not learn about Lisa from her books is that...
♦ she is an incredibly generous person
♦ an engaging and entertaining speaker
♦ a die-hard Eagles fan
♦ a good cook.
♦ She loves the color pink, her Ipod has everything from U2 to Sinatra to 50 Cent, she is proud to be an American, and nothing makes her happier than spending time with her daughter.
Dogs
Lisa is also a softie when it comes to her furry family. Nothing can turn Lisa from a professional, career-minded author, to a mushy, sweet-talking, ball-throwing woman like her beloved dogs. Although she has owned and loves various dog breeds, including her amazing goldens, she has gone crazy for her collection of King Charles Spaniels.
Lisa first fell in love with the breed when Francesca added her Blehneim Cavalier, Pip, to the mix. This prompted Lisa to get her own, and she started with the adorable, if not anatomically correct (Lisa wrote a "Chick Wit" column about this), Little Tony, her first male dog. Little Tony is a black and tan Cavalier King Charles Spaniel.
But Lisa couldn't stop at just one and soon added her little Peach, a Blehneim King Charles Cavalier. Lisa is now beyond thrilled to be raising Peach’s puppies, Daniel Boone and Kit Carson, and for daily puppy pictures, be sure to follow Lisa on Facebook or Twitter. Herding together the entire pack is Lisa’s spunky spit-fire of a Corgi named Ruby. The solitude of writing isn't very quiet with her furry family, but she wouldn't have it any other way.
Cats
Not to be outshined by their canine counterparts, Lisa's cats, Vivi and Mimi, are the princesses of the house, and have no problem keeping the rest of the brood in line. Vivi is a grey and white beauty and is more aloof than her cuddly, black and white partner, Mimi.
When Lisa’s friend and neighbor passed, Lisa adopted his beloved cat, Spunky, a content and beautiful ball of fur.
Chickens
Lisa loves the coziness of her farmhouse, and no farm is complete without chickens. Lisa has recently added a chicken coop and has populated it with chicks of different types, and is overjoyed with each and every colorful egg they produce. Watching over Lisa's chicks are her horses, which gladly welcomed the chicks and all the new excitement they bring. (Author bio adapted from the author's website.)
Visit the author's website.
Follow Lisa on Facebook.
Book Reviews
[An] entertaining thriller.… This fast-paced read culminates in a daring chase that would play well on the big screen, and readers may anticipate the outcome of Curt’s budding romance with Heather as eagerly as they do the resolution of the terror plot.
Publishers Weekly
Scottoline slams the plot into reverse at midpoint and accelerates at full speed. Throw in sexting, cheating, drinking, and grieving to draw in the other protagonists, including teachers, three mothers, and their teenage sons.… This stand-alone suspense novel is not to be missed. —Wendy W. Paige, Shelby Cty. P.L., Morristown, IN
Library Journal
Scottoline keeps the pace relentless as she drops a looming threat into the heart of an idyllic suburban community, causing readers to hold their breath in anticipation..… Best-selling Scottoline’s latest promises plot twists that will keep readers flipping pages. — Erin Downey Howerton
Booklist
To say [too much] would undermine several whopping surprises Scottoline has in store, but readers can be assured that…even if they spot every twist coming from a mile away, they're still in for one thrilling ride on the roller coaster.
Kirkus Reviews
Discussion Questions
1. The tagline for One Perfect Lie is “The most perfect lie is the one you tell yourself.” Confession time! What is the biggest lie that you tell yourself? Have you ever been fooled by someone who pretended to be someone they weren’t? Why were you fooled, in retrospect? How did you deal with them?
2. In One Perfect Lie, the setting seems like the ideal suburban town, but things are not as rosy behind the scenes. The same thing happens with social media where everyone’s life seems so perfect. Are you on social media? In what ways is it good, and what ways bad? What do you like and dislike about it? What kind of Facebook poster are you? Only happy things? Never post, just comment on others? Post everything including your meals?
3. The moms in this book are “baseball moms,” meaning their boys (or girls) play baseball, and they support them in their sport. Sports are such a vital part of our culture and children’s childhoods, yet the term “baseball mom or soccer mom” almost has a negative connotation. Why do you think that is so? In what ways are moms vital to the youth sports in America? What do you think of the youth sports culture today and how has it changed since you were young? What is your proudest mom moment, sports related or otherwise?
4. In the book, we see how competition can come between best friends. With sports comes competition, it is inevitable, but it can also cause problems. How do you define healthy competition? When does it become unhealthy? Have you ever lost a friendship over competitiveness? Have you even had a situation with your child where competitiveness became an issue? In what ways have professional sports increased the competitive nature of sports?
5. Evan, one of the teen boys, suffers from “affluenza.” What is your understanding of what that means? Do you think affluenza can serve as an excuse for bad behavior? Do you blame the child, the parent, or both, in cases where teens act out of control? How do parents of financial means balance giving their children a good life with spoiling them beyond repair? In what ways are the teens of today better off than the older generation, and in what ways are they facing worse conditions?
6. Without giving anything away, there is an “ends justifies the means” situation in the book. How do you feel about this philosophy? Have you ever used this as a justification for something you have done in your life? If so, when? Has someone ever used it as an excuse for something they have done to you? How did it make you feel? Did you agree or disagree?
7. There are many different family configurations represented in One Perfect Lie. Which family do you relate to the best? What are the benefits of each situation, and what are the negatives? Have we, as a society, become more accepting of non-traditional families? Do we do enough to support single parents? What can be done to make absentee parents more responsible for their children. Do you think it is better for a child to have their parent in their life even if they are a bad influence, or are they better off never seeing them?
9. Parenting teenagers is not easy, just as being a teenager is not easy. What are the challenges of parenting teens? What are the challenges of being a teen today? In what ways can we as a society try to bridge the gap between parents and teenagers? What kind of teen were you? How did your parents react? What things did you emulate from your parents, and what things did you vow to not duplicate?
10. Sexting, or sending naked or sexual texts, are common place these days among teens. Why do you think that is happening? Who do you think is responsible for the increased sexual activity of our young children? How can we protect our children, while still allowing them some freedom and showing we trust them? Have you experienced any situations where your child made a mistake with something they posted on social media? What was the fall-out, and how did you react? Should we let children make a mistake before we monitor them? Do you monitor your child’s social media? Do they know it?
11. In the book, Jordan’s mom reprimands Raz, with good reason. How would you feel if another parent scolded your child, no matter what the age? Do you believe it takes a village to raise a child? If you observe a child you know doing something wrong, do you say something to the child? To the parent? Have you ever informed a parent of another child’s actions? What was their response? Would you do it again?
(Questions from the author's website.)
Mrs.
Caitlin Macy, 2018
Little, Brown and Co.
352 pp.
ISBN-13: 9780316434157
Summary
In the well-heeled milieu of New York's Upper East Side, coolly elegant Philippa Lye is the woman no one can stop talking about.
Despite a shadowy past, Philippa has somehow married the scion of the last family-held investment bank in the city. And although her wealth and connections put her in the center of this world, she refuses to conform to its gossip-fueled culture.
Then, into her precariously balanced life, come two women: Gwen Hogan, a childhood acquaintance who uncovers an explosive secret about Philippa's single days, and Minnie Curtis, a newcomer whose vast fortune and frank revelations about a penurious upbringing in Spanish Harlem put everyone on alert.
When Gwen's husband, a heavy-drinking, obsessive prosecutor in the US Attorney's Office, stumbles over the connection between Philippa's past and the criminal investigation he is pursuing at all costs, this insulated society is forced to confront the rot at its core and the price it has paid to survive into the new millennium.
Macy has written a modern-day House of Mirth, not for the age of railroads and steel but of hedge funds and overnight fortunes, of scorched-earth successes and abiding moral failures. A brilliant portrait of love, betrayal, fate and chance, MRS. marries razor-sharp social critique and page-turning propulsion into an unforgettable tapestry of the way we live in the 21st Century. (From the publisher.)
Author Bio
Caitlin Macy is the author of The Fundamentals of Play (2000), Spoiled: Stories (2009), and Mrs. (2018). A graduate of Yale, she received her MFA from Columbia. Her work has been published in The New Yorker, The York Times Magazine, Oprah Magazine and Slate, among other publications. he lives in New York City with her husband and two children. (From the publishers.)
Book Reviews
[A] solid read, more entertaining than enlightening. But there is something missing. Gwen’s middle-class background… judgments and perceptions provide an entry point for the reader. But… she is not relatable. Or perhaps it is the… Greek chorus… [whose observations] come so infrequently that they prove superfluous. What Mrs. does best is prove that class is mostly a state of mind, that the power of the rich derives from what we bestow on them, not from some innate birthright.
USA Today
Macy skewers power parents in this entertaining, sharp-eyed portrayal of privilege and it's price
People
Inside a seductive microuniverse, the super competitive lives of three very different women intersect at the exclusive preschool their children attend. When one woman's husband, a U.S. attorney, launches an investigation into the financial dealings of another's, shocking secrets threaten to disrupt their lives in this smart skewering of high society.
Marie Claire
Mrs. could be the next Big Little Lies.
Entertainment Weekly
[T]he gossipy lives of well-off parents in New York.… [A] fresh take on the society novel.… The attention to behavioral detail… is piercing and honest. Ultimately, a thesis emerges about the simplicity and selfishness of human nature.
Publishers Weekly
Macy knows just how to nail the status anxieties of the rich; her people are ultraprivileged but insecure.… Reading this sharply observed novel about New York's wealthier denizens is doubtless more enjoyable than it would be to actually join their crowd.
Kirkus Reviews
Discussion Questions
1. The last line of Kirkus Reviews coverage of Caitlin Macy's Mrs. (see "Book Reviews" above) says, "Reading this sharply observed novel about New York's wealthier denizens is doubtless more enjoyable than it would be to actually join their crowd." What do think? Would you take the chance ... or give them all a wide berth.
2. Talk about the three women characters at the heart of the novel: Philippa, Gwen, and Minnie. Describe their differences from one another in terms of personality, social standing, backgrounds, and interests. Do you identify, or at least sympathize with any one in particular? If so, who and why? Or if none, why so?
3. Why the book's title Mrs—and why, other than Philippa, are the women referred to as "Mrs"?
4. From outside of this exclusive coterie of women, each appears to be seamlessly integrated into the same class. On closer examination, though, all is not right. There seems to be a fair amount of class consciousness. What aggravates the group's cohesiveness? What are the class distinctions within the class?
5. Discuss the three marriages. Do any strain credulity?
6. In the novel, how does class affect parenting?
7. Talk about how the author skewers the wealthy: the way they talk about their vacations, the food they feed (or don't feed) their children, the nannies, the clothes—their overall sense of entitlement.
8. Reviewers have pointed to the array of minor characters who serve as a modern-day Greek Chorus, observing and commenting (through chatter and gossip) on the action and personalities. What do we learn from them?
9. Does the social milieu of St.Timothy moms remind you of … say, high school?
10. Has this novel left you admiring the ultra-wealthy for their hard work, intelligence, and ambition? How about envying them?
(Questions by LitLovers. Please feel free to use them, online and off, with attribution. Thanks.)