Reading Lately

Arlington Park by Rachel Cusk
This is a collection of stories about the wives / moms who live in this suburb of London, but really it could be any suburb in the UK or USA. All the stories take place on one rainy day. The short intro of the wind and rain beating down on the neighborhood reminded me of the first Harry Potter book (think Privet Drive) and the Order of The Phoenix when the storm came in and the dementors came after Harry and Dudley. In the first chapter Juliet and Benedict are dining with a couple who are essentially the Dursleys. Well, the HP similarities end there. Juliet is the first wife we meet who is dissatisfied; she thinks of Benedict as a murderer for killing her dreams. She teaches at a private girls school, but she had potential for greatness! We meet Amanda, who is trying so hard to get in the clique; finally the women come to her house for coffee. Solly is expecting her fourth baby; she decides to rent a spare bedroom to a series of exchange students. How will that play out? Maisie is recently transplanted from London; she seems to be in a daze - until something unexpected springs her to action. Then there is Christine, the queen bee of Arlington Park; the story where she throws together the dinner party made me laugh out loud. The same women reappear in different stories, alternately despising and loving their children and husbands, and finding joy in little things. This book is extremely well written and sharp. I recommend it.

What I Had Before I Had You by Sarah Cornwell
The chapters alternate between Olivia “now” - 35 and newly divorced, moving with her two children Carrie and Daniel, to her hometown at the Jersey shore, and Olivia “then” - 15 and rebellious, living with her crazy mother. In the first chapter of “now”, Daniel, recently diagnosed with bipolar disorder, goes missing. Every “now” chapter is the same, Daniel is still missing and Olivia is frantic. So you can just skip those chapters; I did. In the “then” chapters, her mother keeps the spare bedroom decorated as a shrine to these supposed twin daughters she had before Olivia. The mom is also a psychic, and she disappears for weeks on end, leaving Olivia alone in their rundown house, sometimes with no electricity; always filthy - any housework is up to Olivia to do. James, the mom’s occasional boyfriend stops in, but where is Child Protective Services? This isn’t a hundred years ago! The only plot line that kept me reading (skimming, really) was the twin redhead girls Olivia spots over and over. They look like her mom; could they be her long lost sisters? I will spare you the misery - the girls are her cousins. She follows them to New York City and meets her aunt. She never knew her mom had a sister. Where has this aunt been for the past 15 years? But wait! Uncle Tom comes home from work and Olivia realizes (by his idiosyncrasies) that he is her father and the twins are her sisters. Oh, and the cops find Daniel, who is fine. Skip this book.