Romance | Book Chatter

Tom Lake
By Ann Patchett
Published by Harper,9780063327528, August 2023, 320pp

The Short of It:

Tom Lake will capture your heart.

The Rest of It:

In the spring of 2020, Lara’s three daughters return to the family’s orchard in Northern Michigan. While picking cherries, they beg their mother to tell them the story of Peter Duke, a famous actor with whom she shared both a stage and a romance years before at a theater company called Tom Lake. As Lara recalls the past, her daughters examine their own lives and relationship with their mother, and are forced to reconsider the world and everything they thought they knew. ~ Indiebound

Oh, how I loved this one. It starts off a little slow but once you get into it, it’s very hard to put down. The family dynamic has a very strong pull. These sisters, sharing their stories, their hopes and dreams while working in the orchard will absolutely capture your heart. And their mother, Lara and how she chooses to share snippets of her wildly exciting times as an actress will satisfy any theater kid at heart.

I won’t lie though. It’s not all fun and games. As glamorous as being a lead in a show is, in this case a summer production of Our Town, it has its drawbacks as well. For one, Lara’s infatuation with Peter Duke has her throwing all caution to the wind. A young girl, so in love, is bound to find heartache. No?

As Lara shares bits of that summer with her girls, they begin to put things together and although they thought they knew their mother quite well, they realize that she is her own person and perhaps not everything is to be shared.

I was a theater kid in high school and of course, both my kids went down that same path so it was no surprise how much I enjoyed Tom Lake. You don’t have to be a die hard theater kid to love this story though. It’s about love, the importance of family, the friends we cherished as young adults, and how a life comes to be. Sometimes not exactly as we imagined it but sweet, nonetheless.

Do yourself a favor and find a copy of this book.

Source: Purchased
Disclosure: This post contains Indiebound affiliate links.

Lessons in Chemistry
By Bonnie Garmus
Doubleday, 9780385547345, April 5, 2022, 400pp.

The Short of It:

Pure fun with a little bit of science and feminism.

The Rest of It:

Elizabeth Zott is a chemist. In the 60s. She is brilliant, but pegged as “difficult”. Her discoveries are impressive but not to her peers. Her male peers consider her to be more of a lab tech than a ground-breaking scientist. When she uncovers something big, her male boss takes credit for it. None of this is new to Zott. It began in school and unfortunately affected the job offers she received. This is how she ends up at Hastings, a research institute run by a total tool.

It is at Hastings that she meets Calvin. Calvin, is a well-known scientist and a hot commodity for Hastings. He could have worked anywhere but chose Hastings for its mild climate. You see, he is also a rower so good weather year-round was a plus even though he could have gone anywhere.

Lessons in Chemistry surprised me. From the cover, I had ZERO interest in reading it. It looked like one of those fluffy romance reads. But then I read an article that praised it on many levels. And then my book club selected it for this month’s pick. So, not only did I find a copy, I BOUGHT a copy. Something I rarely do. It surprised me in many ways:

It’s full of science but masked as cooking tips
Zott is difficult, but in a very likable way
There is an adorable dog
Yes, there is romance but not fluffy, silly stuff
There are highs and lows. Not all happy stuff
It does illustrate the difficulties that women faced in that decade

This is one of those feel-good reads. It will be on my fave list at the end of the year because it includes love, loss, overwhelming challenges, and in my opinion, some really great characters. However, with all that good, it was predictable, which is why this is a four star read for me. It’s predictability did not affect my enjoyment while reading it though. I eagerly looked forward to it every time I picked it up.

If you passed this one over due it its cover alone, give it a go.

Source: Purchased
Disclosure: This post contains Indiebound affiliate links.

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