Literary Brooding

Show Don't Tell Curtis Sittenfeld Paperback, First published 25 February 2025 Sittenfeld's Show Dont Tell, takes an ordinary life and makes it extraordinary. You know these people, you have neighbours like them and you don't think that their lives are complicated but Sittenfeld makes you realise the depth and complexity of their lives. Each of the twelve stories, reveals a cross road of sorts for the characters, where they are ruminating about their next move or a previous decision and it's outcome. I did think about going through each of the stories and providing a mini review. Then I thought, nah, because what I enjoyed was the transition from one story to the next. The not knowing where you were going next was part of the journey. Having said that, there were a couple of stand outs for me. The Hug – a couple having a discussion about whether she should hug an ex-partner or not. Where the conversation takes them is just marvelous. The Patron Saints of Middle Age – how...

Witchcraft for Wayward Girls Grady Hendrix 482 pages, Paperback. First published January 14, 2025 It is the early 1970s and being a pregnant teenager is akin to being a blight on a society. The only way to hide the disgrace is to send them to a home, where they are reminded of their sins until the problem can be adopted away. This is the situation fifteen-year-old Fern finds herself in. Having fallen pregnant, she is shipped off and abandoned at the Wellwood House by her parents. At the home, Fern meets other young women like herself, all scared and unsure of their future. They are all told giving their child up for adoption is the only viable option and that they will be able to go back to their normal life. The control exerted over their lives is stifling. Everything that eat, drink, when they shower, what they read, where they can go is controlled. They are powerless. It is not until Fern borrows a book from a librarian about the occult does she realise she may not be powerless afte...

The Women Kristin Hannah 472 pages, Kindle Edition. First published February 6, 2024 Frances (Frankie) decides to follow her brother to Vietnam and enlists as a nurse. We follow Frankie’s journey as she experiences the lows and highs of war, the personal struggles, finding friendship, love and betrayal. I have not read any of Hannah’s work before but was aware of the hype around her body of work. I was intrigued to read about a group of women who have to navigate the trauma of war and its aftermath. For me the title is a tad misleading for the book centres on Frankie, it is her journey, and all other characters are either supporters or detractors. Frankie when we meet her is naïve and lives a sheltered privileged life in California, where country clubs and high teas are the norm. Frankie is seeking purpose and when her brother enlists, a pathway opens where she sees an opportunity to contribute. Frankie soon comes face to face on a regular basis with sexual discrimination. It is in Vie...