A Delightful July
Looking for a good summer read? While very different, each of these books delighted me during the month of July.
Defining Me by brand new author LM Berthiaume is a great escape into what could have been. A successful businesswoman, adoring mom of two kids, wife of dreamy husband, Isabelle struggles with a tenuous relationship with her mother; healthy tension relating to career, travel and motherhood; and some particularly powerful unfinished heartsplosure from her past. All colliding against the strange backdrop of Covid when time seemed to standstill. Isabelle journeys back to her childhood home to rediscover herself and sort through the scattered chapters of her life to ultimately determine her path forward. It’s equal parts funny, sad, raw, and sexy… everything you want in a page-turning beach read. Congrats Leanne, I can’t wait to see what you write next.
Violeta by prolific writer Isabel Allende is a beautifully told, epic saga spanning a century from 1920 – 2020 in South America. The central character, Violeta, and her family experience turbulent times beginning with the Spanish Flu and including oppressive government regimes, male-dominated societal norms, and an arranged marriage with a perfectly suitable young man. Over time, Violeta forges her own way, bucks the trends, becomes a successful businesswoman, and finds love and heartache… again and again. Hers is an inspiring tale of upheaval, survival, determination, chutzpah, passion and resilience. It’s the story of a life lived authentically and powerfully. Violeta’s wisdom and courage to live life on her own terms was extraordinary and inspiring. She brought this book to life and her character will stay with me for a long time to come.
Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano… all I can say is Hello Beautiful indeed. This book stole my heart and captivated me with its beautifully fractured characters. Bent but not broken, the four Padavano sisters are so artfully constructed that within a few chapters they feel like family to the reader. Reminiscent of Little Women, the sisters are tethered together by a history of closeness, by the ties that bind them so tightly they would never dream of drifting apart. Until something comes along that threatens to tear them apart both all at once and painfully slowly. The author is a master at portraying each character in a way that we totally understand, and empathize with, each of them in a different way. Like the sisters, the reader is both shredded emotionally and then somehow put back together in a subtle and beautiful way that left me missing these women mightily. There are no rose-colored glasses here, but there is a glorious rose garden that is something to behold.
So what do these 3 July delights have in common? All written by women. The central characters are all women. The women are flawed and fierce and powerful and resilient and inspiring and strong and delicate and courageous and vulnerable and, perhaps most of all, memorable.
What are you reading this summer?