Beth F
Sandy
bermudaonion (Kathy)
Stephanie
Trisha
Serendipity by Louise Shaffer
That she is the daughter of a Broadway playwrite and the granddaughter of famous Broadway actress is pretty much all Carrie knows about her father and grandmother, both of whom have been out of her life since her father’s death as a young girl. Now that her mother Rose is dead, Carrie begins to wonder about her past. What was it about her father and grandmother that kept her mother from talking about them? When her father left such a large trust, what caused her mother to move them into a tiny apartment and live austerely, giving excess money to charity? With these questions in mind – and with the news that her estranged grandmother Lu may have attended Rose’s funeral – Carrie begins to investigate her past, to find out what events shaped her mother and eventually herself.
I really enjoyed “Serendipity.” Shaffer pulled together four generations of women in a family in a way that seemed completely cohesive. I appreciated that she took us all the way back to Mifalda, Carrie’s great-grandmother. As a recent immigrant whose mother, if alive, was still in Italy and whose mother-in-law was deceased by the beginning of the story, Mifalda was really a fantastic starting place for the forces that shaped these women and their life choices.
I felt that I got to know most of the characters. Carrie and Mifalda were probably the most fully drawn out but I got a pretty good feeling for Lu as well. Rose was much more loosely drawn, but I think that was intentional. All the other characters were either in the story or described by someone close to them; Rose, as it turns out, was rather deliberate about not letting others get close to her after the death of her husband.
Although this deals with some family drama, this is a pretty light (but not super fluffy) book. While it might be difficult to read if one is facing the death of one’s own mother or significant family drama, I think most people would enjoy this book as a lovely, enjoyable read.
Buy this book from:
Powell’s.
A local independent bookstore via Indiebound.
Amazon.
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I’m glad you enjoyed this, I did too! I do agree that it’s not a very serious book, but it was an unexpected, pleasant surprise when I read it and I’m certainly glad I did.
Meghan’s last blog post..Review: Dead Until Dark, Charlaine Harris
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This sounds like a great read, thanks for the review.
Jess’s last blog post..Review — Murder By Family
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I think the book sounds good and I love the cover too!
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I’m with Meghan! I’m glad that you liked this novel, too. It’s still one of my favorites from this year and, given the more difficult and dark subject matter I’ve been reading lately, I wish I could read it again for a nice change of pace. Great review!!!
Literate Housewife’s last blog post..#165 ~ The Blue Notebook
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I agree with Kathy – I love the cover! Interesting review!
rhapsodyinbooks’s last blog post..Review of “Fahrenheit 451” by Ray Bradbury
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Thanks for letting us know that this could be a “lighter” read…I love picking up a book like this after a dense tome.
Michele’s last blog post..Review: Twilight of Avalon
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I’ve had this on my list since I’ve started seeing good reviews. I’m going to have to see if the library has it.
Beth F’s last blog post..Wordless Wednesday (May 20)
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I’m glad you liked this book. I thought Shaffer did a fantastic job weaving in the lives of these four women, and going back to Mifalda’s childhood in Italy really synced it all together.
Nari – The Novel World’s last blog post..Time Windows – Review
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I am so sick of the headless woman covers, but this one is actually kind of a nice cover! I have seen a couple good reviews of this book. I might have to add it to the list!
Kailana’s last blog post..Thirteen Movies I Have Watched Recently… A Thursday Thirteen
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Wonderful review! You just added another book to my TBR.
Teddy’s last blog post..Mailbox Mondays
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I just read this one and really liked it! I’m sad you already read it – I was going to put it on my list of suggested “light” reads for you post-baby being born!
S. Krishna’s last blog post..Book Trading: PaperbackSwap
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devourerofbooks Reply:
May 22nd, 2009 at 11:29 pm
Well, at least you know you’re on the right track with the books you’re thinking, since I really liked this one!
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[...] Jen at Devourer of Books has a review of Serendipity by Louise Shaffer. I love the cover of this [...]