Slammerkin by Emma Donoghue (334 pages). A slammerkin is an old word, used to define a loose gown or a loose woman. I was eager to learn which one the author was referencing, as it seems like the protagonist, a prostitute, also was a bit of a clothes horse. It's the late 1700's in London. Mary Saunders is 14 when she falls in love. With a red ribbon. The peddler takes advantage of Mary's innocence and she soon finds herself pregnant. When her mother kicks her out, she befriends Doll, a local prostitute, and quickly learns to make her way in Doll's world. She becomes infatuated with the colorful clothes and immune to the touch of a man. But after a few months in the Magdalen, a reformation home from prostitutes, she returns to a world she doesn't want anymore. So she escapes to her mother's hometown of Monmouth, where she goes to work for the Jones, her mother's childhood best friend. She becomes a respectable maid/apprentice seamstress. She becomes engaged. But you can't teach an old dog new tricks. Mary's true, darker nature comes out when she realizes how badly she wants to return to London, but as a wealthy lady this time. So she goes back to her old "job." And here's where fiction becomes fact- Mary murders Mrs. Jones. And is hanged for her crime. I liked this book more than I thought I would, but less than I wanted to. I'm not even sure that makes sense. It took me 7 days to read (only five days of actual reading time)
Beach Music by Pat Conroy (628 pages). I've yet to read a Conroy that I didn't enjoy. Which always makes me scared to read another one. Even my favorite authors have made (at least to me) an occasional misstep. And I'm always worried that the next Conroy I pick up is going to be the bad one. Fortunately, this one wasn't the bad one! Jack McCall left Charleston in his rear view when his wife committed suicide by jumping off a bridge. He took their daughter and fled to Rome. For five years, he had almost no contact with the South. Then, his old life tracked him down. In the form of his sister in law, his best friends, and his family. Suddenly, he must return home to South Carolina and face years of secrets that have long been buried. Betrayals, deaths, the Vietnam War, love and loss all come crashing back as four former best friends try to come to terms with the paths their lives have gone down. I laughed, I cried. Darn you, Pat Conroy. Darn you and your literary acumen. I decided that I needed to stick to my (jokingly made) New Years resolution of reading at least 50 pages a day. So it took me 12 days to read this one.
Palisades Park by Alan Brennert (416 pages). Each and every time I picked up this book to begin my daily reading, I found myself singing. If you don't know the 1962 song of the same title, do yourself a favor and give it a listen. "You'll never know how great a kiss can feel when you stop at the top of a Ferris wheel, when I fell in love, down at Palisades Park." Anyway, back to the book. It was actually a lot more historical fiction than I realized it would be (which never bothers this reader in the slightest!). It opens in 1922 in New Jersey. Eleven year old Eddie Stopka and his family go to Palisades Park, for the first and only time in his young life. And, as expected, he has the best time he's ever had- a saltwater wave pool, rides, food, everything a young boy would love! Fast forward eight years. Eddie has returned to New Jersey, after several years on the carnival circuit. He finds a new life working at the Park- a new job, a new home, even a wife. He and Adele work concessions and have two children, Antoinette and Jack. The family experiences so much- WWII, new owners of the Park, a fire that wipes out the Park, segregation at the saltwater pool, the Korean War, love, loss, you name it. While spending time in the family's French fry stand, Toni watches the acts that come through the Park and has dreams of becoming a high diver. Each family member has their own dreams- Eddie wants to open a tiki bar in New Jersey (so the locals can get a taste of Hawaii), Adele wants to be on the stage, and Jack wants to be a comic book illustrator. But can ever member of the family happily live their dream without sacrificing something? I really enjoyed the story- mixing fictional characters (the Stopkas) in with real ones (most of the others) and real places is always a great read to me! It took me 5 days to read (for those math geniuses, yes, I averaged more than 50 pages a day on this one)
The Swan House by Elizabeth Musser (442 pages). A few years ago, I took a girls' trip to Atlanta. And we paid a visit to the Swan House (or President Snow's House, for fans of the Hunger Games movies). It's such a beautiful home! So I decided to give the book a read. The back of the book gave no indication that the story was taking place in 1962. Mary Swan Middleton has just finished her sophomore year in high school. Everything in her life seems to be perfect- she lives in Buckhead with her loving parents and little brother, she has been chosen for a prestigious honor at her prep school- to be the Raven and solve a dare handed down by the senior girls. Then, the Orly Crash of Air France Flight 007 occurs (look it up, it's real. And heartbreaking). While both of the Middletons were booked on the flight, JJ decided he should take a later flight. But nonetheless, Swannee's life turns upside down over night. She also comes face to face, literally, with the racial divide in the city she loves. A racial divide of which she had been completely unaware. She also works on solving the Raven Dare, which happens to be a mystery involving a painting of her mother's that had disappeared a year before the crash. Turns out the story is also a Christian lit book. Which aren't always my favorites. This one was much better than most. The story was poignant- love, death, tears, awareness, grief, faith. I found myself in tears at multiple times, both tears of overwhelming sadness and of great joy. Sadly, this book also made me keenly aware of how our education system has changed (and failed). Swannee and her friends can quote poems that they actually LEARNED in school. And they know about art work and history. I'm going to guess most of today's rising juniors barely know what poetry is. It took me 6 days to finish the book (yes, again, more than 50 pages a day).
My Antonia by Willa Cather (244 pages). I am slightly embarrassed that, as an English major, I had never read this book. It's the story of a young Bohemian girl named Antonia who finds herself and her family in Nebraska in the (presumably) 1800's. She quickly befriends her nearest neighbor, Jim. Antonia's family lives through some tough times. Eventually Antonia moves into town and finds new friends. But Jim is always dear to her. And Jim remains in love with Antonia throughout the years. He goes away to college and eventually becomes a lawyer in New York. But Antonia is always in the back of his mind. When he finally goes through Nebraska and stops to see Antonia, he finds her happy, with a large family, and still the same girl he's always loved. It was a beautiful book. I'm so glad I read it, even if it should've been read long ago! I'm not really sure what I expected this book to be. But I really liked it. The characters were colorful and full. It took me 4 days to finish. And I finished it on the last day of the month!
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