Black and White

by Dani Shapiro

Another thought provoking novel from the author of Slow Motion and Family History. Clara Brodeur's quiet life with her family in Maine is suddenly interrupted by an early morning phone call from NYC. Her sister Robin is calling to tell her that their difficult and overbearing mother is very sick with advanced lung cancer. Clara and Ruth have been estranged for 14 years, when Clara left home at eighteen. Ruth is a photographer who became famous after shooting a very controversial series of nude photos of Clara from age three to fourteen. Clara hates everything about the photos and has never forgiven her mother for caring more about her career than the feelings and needs of her child. Now Clara must decide whether she will make amends with Ruth before she dies. An interesting book about art, families, secrets and forgiveness.

The Lavender Hour

by Anne D. LeClaire

One of the best books I've read in a while, the Lavender Hour is the time of evening when the sun sets and the sky turns shades of violet and rose; the day is dying. "...Most people think black is the color of death but its true color is lavender."
Jessie Long is an artist from Virginia living on Cape Cod after her job teaching art in a high school is downsized. She spends her quiet days walking on the beach and creating jewelry made from human hair, then decides to be a hospice volunteer in her spare time. Jessie, who lost her father to a heart attack at age 14 and recently survived brain cancer herself, was taught to give back to the community and believes that people in the last stages of life have lessons to teach the living. She is assigned to care for Luke Ryder, a 46 year old fisherman suffering from pancreatic cancer, who wants nothing to do with hospice. Jessie is just supposed to give his elderly mother a much needed break a couple of times a week. However, Luke and Jessie develop a special friendship and begin to fall in love, despite his advanced illness and her longtime fear of love. Soon, Jessie is breaking hospice rules, desperately wishing for a miracle and forced to make a heartbreaking decision. This beautifully written book is difficult to put down and you can't help wishing Luke & Jessie could be together somehow. The dark subject matter is not for everyone, but many people who have lost loved ones to long illnesses will find it a riveting and rewarding novel. ****

So Much For My Happy Ending: A Novel

by Kyra Davis

I feel a little bit cheesy for admitting that I liked this book. April Silverperson is a 28 year old department store manager living in San Francisco. She agrees to marry Tad Showers after a whirlwind three month romance, even though the little voice in her head is screaming, "Don't do this!" Life with Tad is dreamy one minute and a complete nightmare the next. He lies to her about their finances, her mother and his past, plus his moods can turn on a dime. Most readers probably aren't too surprised when April's McDreamy turns out to be bipolar, but her struggle with her marriage, her family problems and her career choices make for an interesting story. Davis's writing is a step above most of the chick lit I've picked up lately.***1/2

The Kommandant's Girl

by Pam Jenoff

Its the beginning of WWII in Krakow, Poland. Emma and Jacob are a young Jewish couple, recently married when the Nazis invade. Emma is forced to fend for herself after Jacob disappears underground to help with the Resistance Movement. She lives with her parents in the ghetto until the resistance workers rescue her, give her a new identity as a Catholic girl named Anna and send her to live with Jacob's wealthy aunt outside the city. Things get interesting when Emma nervously accepts a secretarial position working for a high ranking Nazi commander, in the hope that she will be able to find a way to help the resistance. Although she loves her husband deeply, Emma finds herself strangely attracted to the Kommandant and she realizes that both her identity and her marriage vows could be compromised at any moment.
Publishers Weekly gave this novel a starred review and called it "a breathtaking debut." Maybe the fact that I've read so many Holocaust memoirs made me a tougher critic here but I thought it was just okay. The plot is interesting, the characters are courageous but it just isn't very believeable and it doesn't feel bleak enough. A book like this should make you cry or feel something and I didn't. It's an interesting novel if you like historical fiction mixed with chick lit and your expectations aren't too high.