Thursday, October 3, 2013

Book Review-Weird Sisters





This summer it seemed like everyone I ran into who reads books was suggesting that I read The Weird Sisters by Eleanor Brown, so I put my name on the waiting list.  It was worth the wait!
The story is about 3 sisters, Rosalind, Bianca, and Cordelia (all named after women from Shakespeare) who grew up in a small Ohio college town where their father teaches, you guessed it, Shakespeare.  Cordy and Bean felt restricted by the small town, so moved out as soon as they could, Cordy before graduating from college.  Rose stayed behind and became a Math professor.  When their mother falls ill with cancer, Rose moves back in with her parents.  She is justifiably surprised to come home one day to find that Bean has moved back home from New York City.  They are both surprised when Cordy shows up.
The sisters aren't sure about each other and have secrets that they are unwilling to share, but in caring for their mother and in being in close proximity again, they learn about themselves and each other.
I enjoyed the book quite a bit.  The characters were interesting and well fleshed out.  They had a story to tell and some growing to do.
Two quotes from the book:
"There are times in our lives when we have to realize our past is precisely what it is, and we cannot change it. But we can change the story we tell ourselves about it, and by doing that, we can change the future."
"There is no problem that a library card can't solve."

The Weird Sisters
The Weird Sisters
By Brown, Eleanor
2011-01 - Amy Einhorn Books
9780399157226 Check Our Catalog


A major new talent tackles the complicated terrain of sisters, the power of books, and the places we decide to call home.
"There is no problem that a library card can't solve. "
The Andreas family is one of readers. Their father, a renowned Shakespeare professor who speaks almost entirely in verse, has named his three daughters after famous Shakespearean women. When the sisters return to their childhood home, ostensibly to care for their ailing mother, but really to lick their wounds and bury their secrets, they are horrified to find the others there. "See, we love each other. We just don't happen to like each other very much." But the sisters soon discover that everything they've been running from-one another, their small hometown, and themselves-might offer more than they ever expected.

HPL patron: 3 sisters raised in a small town with a father who is an expert on Shakespeare.  One stays in town and 2 move away only to come home to find themselves.
…More

Complimentary Reads
The Three Weissmanns of Westport
The Three Weissmanns of Westport
By Schine, Cathleen
2011-02 - Picador USA
9780312680527 Check Our Catalog


A" New York Times Book Review "Editors’ Choice
Betty Weissmann has just been dumped by her husband of forty-eight years. Exiled from her elegant New York apartment by her husband’s mistress, she and her two middle-aged daughters, Miranda and Annie, regroup in a run-down Westport, Connecticut, beach cottage. In Schine’s playful and devoted homage to Jane Austen’s "Sense and Sensibility," the impulsive sister is Miranda, a literary agent entangled in a series of scandals, and the more pragmatic sister is Annie, a library director, who feels compelled to move in and watch over her capricious mother and sister. Schine’s witty, wonderful novel" “"is simply full of "pleasure": the pleasure of reading, the pleasure of Austen, and the pleasure that the characters so rightly and humorously pursue….An absolute triumph” ("Cleveland Plain Dealer"). …More


Beautiful Day
Beautiful Day
By Hilderbrand, Elin
2013-06 - Reagan Arthur Books
9780316099783 Check Our Catalog

The Carmichaels and the Grahams have gathered on Nantucket for a wedding. Plans are being made according to the bride's late mother, who left behind specific instructions for every detail. Everything should be falling into place for the beautiful event--but in reality, loved ones find their own lives crumbling amid scandal and broken hearts. …More


Joy for Beginners
Joy for Beginners
By Bauermeister, Erica
2012-06 - Berkley Publishing Group
9780425247426 Check Our Catalog

Six women gather to celebrate their friend Kate's recovery from cancer. To celebrate her new lease on life, Kate will do the one thing that's always terrified her. But if she does, each of them will also do the one thing they always swore they'd never do. …More


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