finished reading

While the novel captures significant historical moments, such as the WWII roundups in Paris, its heart belongs to the French Resistance. The main characters carry a legacy as descendants of Robin Hood, a touch that provides the ultimate spark for their rebellion.

The story uses dual timelines, a technique that weaves these characters' lives across generations and kept me completely hooked. Admittedly, I had to suspend my disbelief a bit when it came to an octogenarian Colette effortlessly lifting jewels, but she is so endearing I cheered her on anyway.

Beyond the history, the book shines in its exploration of heavy moral grey areas. Who defines right and wrong? How do you step out from the shadow of a destiny that defines you? Can the stains of a past sin ever be washed away? Harmel doesn't offer easy answers, but watching the characters wrestle with them makes for an incredibly compelling read.

From the publisher:

Two jewel thieves, a priceless bracelet that disappears in 1940s Paris, and a quest for answers in a decades-old murder...

Colette Marceau has been stealing jewels for nearly as long as she can remember, following the centuries-old code of honor instilled in her by her mother, take only from the cruel and unkind, and give to those in need. Never was their family tradition more important than seven decades earlier, during the Second World War, when Annabel and Colette worked side by side in Paris to fund the French Resistance.

But one night in 1942, it all went wrong. Annabel was arrested by the Germans, and Colette’s four-year-old sister, Liliane, disappeared in the chaos of the raid, along with an exquisite diamond bracelet sewn into the hem of her nightgown for safekeeping. Soon after, Annabel was executed, and Liliane’s body was found floating in the Seine—but the bracelet was nowhere to be found.

Seventy years later, Colette—who has “redistributed” $30 million in jewels over the decades to fund many worthy organizations—has done her best to put her tragic past behind her, but her life begins to unravel when the long-missing bracelet suddenly turns up in a museum exhibit in Boston. If Colette can discover where it has been all this time—and who owns it now—she may finally learn the truth about what happened to her sister. But she isn’t the only one for whom the bracelet holds answers, and when someone from her childhood lays claim to the diamonds, she’s forced to confront the ghosts of her past as never before. Against all odds, there may still be a chance to bring a murderer to justice—but first, Colette will have to summon the courage to open her own battered heart.

three on thursday

 

Thing 1:  this has been a good week to reacclimate.  The temperature has not been higher than 80 without humidity, and I've been enjoying the windows open.  Except for the very poor air quality from the Quebec wildfires.

Thing 2:  puttering has kept me busy.

Thing 3:  this year's Big Brother is shaping up to be a good one!  I haven't figured out who I'm rooting for yet, but the game is afoot!

finished reading

This much-buzzed-about book is like a modern-day parable.  Friends of mine who've read it offered mixed reviews.  For me, it was all right.  I liked it well enough.  A gentle book.  And I'm a fan of a found family, so I enjoyed the secondary characters and their quirks.

From the publisher:

One spring morning, a stranger arrives in the small southern city of Golden. No one knows where he has come from…or why…

His name is Theo. And he asks a lot more questions than he answers.

Theo visits the local coffeehouse, where ninety-two pencil portraits hang on the walls, portraits of the people of Golden done by a local artist. He begins purchasing them, one at a time, and putting them back in the hands of their “rightful owners.” With each exchange, a story is told, a friendship born, and a life altered.

A story of giving and receiving, of seeing and being seen, Theo of Golden is a beautifully crafted novel about the power of creative generosity, the importance of wonder to a purposeful life, and the invisible threads of kindness that bind us to one another.

finished reading

Set in the 1950s in the Jim Crow South, this novel follows the coming of age of motherless daughters Vernice (Niecy) and Annie. Although they are raised together, they soon take drastically different paths to adulthood. I found Niecy's journey more relatable; education becomes her path as she navigates a complex social life at Spelman College in Atlanta. In contrast, Annie's obsession with finding her mother felt a bit too intense for me, and her gritty, unpredictable road to Memphis occasionally veered into cliché, like her time at Lulabelle's brothel.

Told in alternating points of view, the narrative threads weave together as the girls discover friendship, family, and love. Even when geographically separated, Niecy and Annie remain fiercely connected and devoted to each other through constant letter writing. Tayari Jones's secondary characters are wonderfully well-developed, and the relationships throughout the book feel entirely authentic.

Ultimately, it is the emotional core of the book that stands out. As a motherless daughter myself, I found that the bottomless longing Jones describes rang entirely true.

From the publisher:

Vernice and Annie, two motherless daughters raised in Honeysuckle, Louisiana, have been best friends and neighbors since earliest childhood, but are fated to live starkly different lives. Raised by a fierce aunt determined to give her a stable home in the wake of her mother’s death, Vernice leaves Atlanta at eighteen for Spelman College, where she joins a sisterhood of powerfully connected Black women and marries into an affluent family. Annie, abandoned by her dissolute mother as a child, and fixated on the idea of finding her and filling the bottomless hole left by her absence, sets off on a journey that will take her into a world of peril and adversity, as well as love and adventure, and culminate in a battle for her life.

A novel about mothers and daughters, about friendship and sisterhood, and the complexities of being a woman in the American South, Kin is an exuberant, emotionally rich, unforgettable work from one of the brightest and most irresistible voices in contemporary fiction.

currently

 I am...

Reading:  Kin by Tayari Jones

Listening to: the fan

Thinking:  my darling niece in Tulsa turns 30 at the end of this month and I'd like to do something special for her.  But what?

Feeling: frustrated--my dental appointment was postponed because the crown isn't ready

Celebrating:  I got home in time for the end of fresh strawberry season!  Shortcake awaits!

Grateful for: before my trip, I tidied up and put fresh sheets on the bed and fresh towels in the bathroom--that was very luxurious to come home to

Enjoying:  being home and returning to a summer vibe routine

Weather:  80° and cloudy

A quote I want to share: 

sunday stealing

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What's My Name?

1. ROCK STAR NAME (current pet and first car)? Example: If you have a dog named Max and your first car was a Chevy Malibu, your rock star name would be Max Malibu. Petless Taurus

2. RACECAR DRIVER NAME (the first names of your grandfathers)? Alfred Paul

3. SOAP OPERA NAME (your middle name, town you were born in)? Faye Aroostook

4. WITNESS PROTECTION PROGRAM NAME (your parents' middle names)? Aurore Daniel

5. ROMANCE AUTHOR NAME (favorite flower, favorite season/holiday)? Peony Autumn

postsecret

 

PostSecret is an ongoing community art project where people mail in their secrets anonymously on one side of a postcard. I like to post one that speaks to me each week.

saturday 9

There'll Be Some Changes

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

1) In this song, Ann-Margret sings that she's going to change her way of living. If you could simply snap your fingers and change something in your life, what would it be? oooh--that's tempting!  I would do a major downsizing of my wardrobe, declutter the kitchen, and have enough money that I won't have to worry about retirement

2) She tells us she's going to change her name. Have you ever changed your name, or asked people to refer to you differently? (Example: "Don't call me Betty anymore. I want to be Elizabeth.") the shift in my name from nickname to full name happened when I entered college--now people who've known me my whole life call me by my nickname but people I've more recently met call me by my full name

3) Ann-Margret was born Ann-Margret Olsson in Sweden and when was 5, her family moved to Winnetka, Illinois. She is fluent in both Swedish and English. When did you last converse in a language other than English? let me think--it was when I was last in Quebec City in 2016

4) Olivia Newton-John was a big Ann-Margret fan. When she was cast in the movie Grease, Olivia asked that her character's name be changed from "Sandy Dumbrowski" to "Sandy Olsson" in tribute. Grease is one of the most profitable movies ever made. Have you seen it more than once? when the movie came out, I was in 8th grade--the perfect age to go apeshit crazy for it--I absolutely LOVED it and have seen it a bazillion times

5) Ann-Margret celebrated her 85th birthday earlier this year. Back in 2024, Ann-Margret told a reporter that she planned to celebrate her 83rd birthday with a spin on her motorcycle, a lavender Harley-Davidson. "I love speed," she explained. Do you always observe the speed limit? Or have you been known to zip along a little faster? in all honesty, I zip along a little faster but never criminally fast

6) This week's song was written in 1921 and over the last 100+ years it's been recorded more than 400 times. Before today, had you heard it? no, I hadn't

7) The lyrics were written by William Weldon Higgins, who was better known as vaudeville comic Billy Higgins. When did you most recently laugh out loud? at lunch today with some girlfriends

8) The music was composed by William Overstreet. In addition to writing music, he was a respected director at Chicago's Grand Theater. When did you last see a live performance (concert, play, etc.)? I think it was when I went to the Fleetwood Mac tribute band last October

9) Random question: Do you have more or less than $20 cash in your wallet right now? yes