Category: Uncategorized

The Dearly Beloved is the first novel by Cara Wall; I am pretty certain that it will not be her last. The Dearly Beloved is the story of Charles, Lily, James and Nan. Each is an adult with a unique upbringing. Charles has faced many parental expectations; Lily has suffered much loss; James had a hardscrabble background, while life seemed sweet for Nan. While in college, Charles and Lily meet as do James and Nan.

Both Charles and James are “called” to the church; they have different approaches to God and activism, as demonstrated over the course of the book. Charles and James are appointed as co-ministers of a New York City church on lower Fifth Avenue. Their strengths and weaknesses come to light and are not the same. The reader watches as the two families’ lives unravel and knit over a period of many years.

This book includes discussion about what faith (or lack of it) means to each protagonist. I found these sections enhanced the novel for me.

This is not perhaps a perfect book, just as James, Charles, Nan and Lily are not prefect but it IS might good.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this e galley in exchange for my honest review.

#Thedearlybeloved #NetGalley

A Kid’s Guide to Civics

by Syl Sobel J.D.

We are living in an unprecedented time. It feels so important that kids should know how the government is supposed to work so that, when their time comes to vote and more, they can make good choices.

This relatively short book packs in a lot of information. Kids (and maybe adults too) can learn a good deal in these pages. There are sections on congress, the executive branch, the president’s jobs, the courts, and more, including a resource guide.

This illustrated title is written in a clear and easy to understand style. I like that the author also engages kids with questions about which to think.

I highly recommend this book for both school and home libraries.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Kids for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 03 June 2025

Children’s Nonfiction

48 pages

by Sally Page

#TheSecretsofFlowers #NetGalley

The Page clan has two excellent authors in it. I first got to know them by reading Libby Page’s books. Her first, Mornings with Rosemary or The Lido (depending on where a person lives) became a real favorite. It was after Libby was a published author that her mother Sally began her career as a novelist.

Sally Page’s two earlier novels, The Keeper of Stories, and The Book of Beginnings, were warm hearted and good reads. Now, she offers us The Secret of Flowers.

Fun fact: this author has a lot of experience with floristry so what better than a new novel with lots about flowers.

The story’s protagonist is Emma. She has been widowed and has turned in on herself. She decides to go to a lecture about the Titanic with a friend. This sparks her curiosity about the flowers on the ship and the story takes off from there.

Anyone who enjoys women’s fiction will, I think, want to take a look at this one and the other novels by the author.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 25 February 2024

Note: As I write this post on 19 March 2025, this title is under $3.00 on Amazon if a reader needs more incentive.

From the Publisher

Others by the Pages:

A Lido worth celebrating. An e book bargain under the alternate title Mornings with Rosemary

What is it like to be: The Keeper of Stories (by Sally Page)-an e book bargain

Can a person go back? The Island Home by Libby Page

The Vintage Shop by Libby Page

www.nytimes.com/interactive/2025/05/19/books/review/england-novels-quiz.html

#TheImpawsiblyGoodBookofCatJokes #NetGalley

Feline lovers, mark your cat-landers for this book’s release date. The jokes are quite cute and I smiled frequently while turning the pages.

Absolutely purrfect for the intended pawdience. (See what happens when reading this!)

Many thanks to NetGalley and Chronicle Books for this title. All o-paw-nions are my own.

Pub date: August 26, 2025

by Kristy Woodson Harvey

Not long ago, I read and reviewed Under the Southern Sky. I very much enjoyed that book and am glad to say that I think that Beach House Rules will also be a delight to the author’s audience.

When reading novels, I always look to meet people with whom I want to spend time. The parents and children who live at the mommune fit the bill.

To back up, Charlotte’s husband is in jail as the story begins. He is a high flyer whom Charlotte loves and who provided for his wife and daughter very well. Is he guilty of the financial crimes of which he is accused? While this waits to be resolved, Charlotte and teen daughter, Iris, are cast adrift. Alice sees Charlotte in a moment of supreme meltdown at the bank and offers that they could stay at the mommune.

There live a group of mothers and children who need a bit of help. Alice, who has her own backstory, offers this. In addition to Charlotte and Iris, there are several other families there and readers get to know all of them. What will be revealed about them both as individuals and in any connections that they may share?

I liked the way that the narrative was structured. Each chapter is told from a character’s point of view. Interspersed are postings from a gossip site. What trouble will this unleash?

This is a very readable book that I very much enjoyed. It seems like a perfect summer read.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Gallery Books for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 27 May 2025

Women’s fiction

368 pages

From the Publisher

What makes for: A Happier Life (Kristy Woodson Harvey)

www.nytimes.com/2025/05/22/books/review/new-fiction-books-summer-2025.html

www.nytimes.com/interactive/2025/books/romance-books.html

www.nytimes.com/2025/05/22/books/review/best-crime-books-2025-so-far.html

A Novel of Nancy Mitford and the Pursuit of Happiness

by Eliza Knight

The Mitford family seem to be enjoying a renaissance on TV and in books. There was a recent miniseries with Lily James and, not long ago, I read both The Bookseller’s Secret and the latest entry in Jessica Fellows’ historical mystery series that features Nancy and her siblings.

For anyone who may not know, the Mitford daughters were fascinating and so different from each other. Diana left her husband, a Guinness heir, to be with the Fascist, Oswald Moseley. Unity was enamored of Hitler. Nancy was an author and there were also, Jessica and Deborah.

Happily I did not suffer from Mitford fatigue and I thoroughly enjoyed Eliza Knight’s novel. As is popular now, there are two timelines. In the present, Lucy is a book curator from Washington DC who is spending time in England. She is fascinated with the Heywood Hill bookshop where Nancy Mitford once worked. Lucy also has a connection to someone Nancy almost married.

Lucy is a huge Mitford fan. She possesses some Mitford letters and her mother, who is no longer alive, had a valuable edition of one of Nancy’s novels.

While in England, Lucy visits the Mitford home. This is beautifully described and made me long to see the real location. Lucy’s quest is to discern who the Iris in a dedication in one of Nancy’s novels is.

In the historical timeline, Hitler is on the horizon. As noted above, some of the sisters are not pro democracy. Nancy does attend a rally at Diana’s urging although she is clearly not a “Black Shirt.”

Readers get to know Nancy well. They vicariously see her pre-marriage lifestyle in the smart set. Readers watch Nancy in love with the ensuing disappointment, marriage and compromise. They also witness Nancy writing her novels, working at the bookstore and trying to support herself (husband Peter does not do well in the work world).

I very much enjoyed my time at The Mayfair Bookshop. I recommend this novel to those who enjoy historical novels and/or women’s fiction.

Many thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow/Custom House for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 12 April 2022