We travel to Phoenix, Arizona at least three times a year to see kids & grandkids. You would think spending at least three hours on an airplane would be conducive to reading, but sleep is often the priority with early morning flights (looking at you 4am wake up alarm). So only one book this month, but it was a really good one.
One Italian Summer by Rebecca Serle is a love letter from a grieving daughter to her mother set in Positano, Italy. The audio version is read by Lauren Graham (aka Lorelai Gilmore) which I loved. She definitely embodies One’s Katy Silver, but it is so much fun to hear her recite a love of coffee and a few other quintessential Gilmore Girl references. I felt transported to Positano and surrounding areas (e.g., Capri) … the salty air, blue water, steep hills, fragrance of lemon, taste of fresh watermelon all enriched the story and made me want to add this region to the Italy trip I am planning for 2023 or 2024. Katy Silver finds herself alone, leaving her husband behind, in Positano taking the trip she had planned with her mother and best friend, Carol, who has just died. She is immediately befriended by the family running the Hotel Poseidon and another guest. Soon after she meets another American “runaway” and finds they have a great deal in common. The present and past collide and a startling discovery forces Katy to reckon with how present she has truly been (or not) in her life up to this point. As well as what matters most. Serle’s storytelling is playful and heartwarming - I will definitely be looking at her other titles. Solid A.
TBR List
- We Were the Lucky Ones by Georgia Hunter
- Vacationland by Meg Mitchell Moore
- A Woman of No Importance by Sonia Purnell
- Wish You Were Here by Jodi Picoult
- The Magnolia Palace by Fiona Davis
- The Idea of You by Robinne Lee
- The Good Widow by Liz Fenton, Lisa Steinke
- The Joy of X by Steven Strogatz
