July Read: What the Dead Know by Barbara Butcher

 

I've been behind reading non-fiction, and I was glad to grab this title from the library new releases shelf. I can't overstate how much forensics and medical examiner reads completely captivate me. It's been a source of interest to me since my teen years. I could not do the job, but I love to read about it--how they put the puzzle together to bring closure to loved ones and bring victims justice. 

Barbara Butcher lays it all out and her ups and downs are compelling. A recovering alcoholic, she takes a vocational test and has two choices: a poultry veterinarian or a coroner. With a Master's in public health and a deep interest in medicine, she decides to pursue the path of coroner. In a stroke of luck, she walks into a job with the New York City Medical Examiner's Office as a death investigator. She's one of a crew (and the only woman) who is called to a death to take photos, make notes, and examine the body and make a brief statement about the cause of death. 

Barbara's experiences are wide ranging; from horrible suicides and murders to accidents and unattended deaths in locked apartments. She sees all of New York City--usually the worst parts. She learns to keep her composure and use humor to combat the overwhelming job of being surrounded by death every day. Always a recovering alcoholic, she also struggles to stay away from the bottle and find other ways to cope. 

Barbara was on hand for 9/11 and dedicates a few chapters to her experiences working through that devastating tragedy. Years of being exposed to death was no preparation for the sheer overwhelming awfulness of 9/11. And that was really when Barbara's  inability to balance her work with a healthy private life begins to send her into a downward spiral.  

Barbara's tales of investigations and the inner workings of the medical examiner's office are all so very interesting. It takes a strong, compassionate person a lot of inner strength to do this job professionally every day. It inevitably takes a toll, as it did for Barbara. 

If you are a fan of true crime, or, like me, forensics, this is a must read. It's also a study in human behavior and coping mechanisms when faced with the dark side of humanity every day. 

Rating: 5/6 for a very readable and compelling look at a woman's career as a death investigator for New York City. Her ups and downs both professionally and personally shine a light on the hard work public workers do, often without recognition, or the tools to help them cope. 

Available in hardcover, ebook, and audio. 

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July Read: What the Dead Know by Barbara Butcher

Warming Up Julia Child by Helen Lefkowitz Horowitz

 

Julia Child was the first person besides my Mom that I saw cook food. Of course, it was easier to watch my Mom, standing on a chair in our kitchen and being up close (and if I was lucky, getting to lick the beaters).  Julia Child I first saw on PBS, on a Saturday. I didn't know what to think of this woman who gestured a lot, had an interesting voice, and seemed both incredibly gifted and a bit silly all at once. She made food I'd never heard of, and wasn't sure I'd like, either. My palate was definitely 1970's Midwest child. 

It wasn't until I was much older, and my Mom had passed, that I found out she was not a born cook, and didn't really enjoy cooking much. But with eight children, she learned to cook. Julia, however, inspired me to be interested in cooking in a different way--to enjoy the process, to think about the ingredients, and most importantly, to inhale the results. She also taught me it's okay to fail sometimes, and that sometimes the end results don't look so great, but taste wonderful.

I never thought much about how Julia Child became the star that she was until I read Warming Up Julia Child. While it is true many famous people have that star quality, it's usually with the help of others that their potential develops and shines. That was also true for Julia.

This non-fiction book examines the six people who were part of Julia's life at a crucial time: the beginnings of her work on what would become Mastering the Art of French Cooking.  While I knew this cookbook was years in the making, I had no idea just how many years Julia and her friend Simone Beck worked on it. The back and forth of letters, the visits--it's mind boggling to think they persisted in creating this cookbook. Author Helen Lefkowitz Horowitz brings their relationship to life using actual correspondence and diary entries of the two women, along with Julia's husband Paul. Simone and Paul weren't the only players in Julia's life: Avis DeVoto helped get their cookbook into the hands of Judith Jones and William Koshland at Knopf after Houghton Mifflin turned it down. Judith helped shape the final cookbook with Julia, and William's influence at Knopf proved invaluable. Finally, there was Ruth Lockwood at WGBH in Boston, where Julia became famous with her French Chef cooking show (the one I saw as a kid). The relationships between all the players are fascinating and you really get a good sense of all the work involved over the years in developing and maintaining those relationships through thick and thin. 

Though photos, voluminous correspondence, and diary entries we get a peek inside Julia's mind, Paul's frustrations in a job that made him deeply unhappy, and the ups and downs of friendships. The process of creating a cookbook is beyond difficult, and I am amazed and impressed at Julia and Simone's determination to keep moving forward for ten years. Imagine that: working on a cookbook for ten years. And that cookbook has gone on to sell over 1.5 million copies (as of 2019) and is still in print and considered a classic. 

I enjoyed this behind the scenes look at Julia's friendships and business partnerships with the people who helped her become the beloved chef we came to know. It is especially interesting to get a peek into her marriage to Paul, and just how much he supported her throughout their marriage. They truly were a perfect match. 

If you are a fan of Julia Child, this should be on your TBR list. I think in today's world we often see the finished product and fail to think about the work that was required to bring that product to fruition. Julia was brilliant, and lucky to be surrounded by a group of people who believed in her, believed in her cookbook, and worked hard to see it published. 

A big thank you to Pegasus Books for a chance to read and review this book. Publication date is April 5th (just a few days away!) and the book will be available in hardcover and ebook. 

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Warming Up Julia Child by Helen Lefkowitz Horowitz

Christmas at Little Beach Street Bakery by Jenny Colgan

In this, the third and final novel of the Little Beach Street Bakery, Christmas is coming to the village of Mount Polbearne.  Mount Polbearne is an unusual village set on the coast of Cornwall; when the tide comes in, the only road leading to and from the village is covered by the sea, and it becomes a little island.  Windy, cold, and oftentimes isolated, it's a village where generations of fishing families have lived, and tourists visit during the summer.  Polly's bakery is still in full swing, and as popular as ever.  She's living with Huckle, her beekeeping boyfriend in the lighthouse she bought earlier in the year.  They're engaged.  Life is good. 

But we all know that when life seems at its most stable, we're often thrown a curve, and that's just what happens to Polly.  Huckle wants to get married and have kids; Polly's fatherless childhood preys on her mind, and makes her hesitate.  Her best friend Kerensa, married to the mogul Reuben, finds out she's pregnant, but instead of being happy about it, she's terrified it will expose a secret only she and Polly know about.  Forbidden to tell Huckle the secret, the added stress on Polly creates even more tension between Polly and Huckle.  

While Polly's life in Mount Polbearne is the happiest she's ever been, it certainly has a few bumps in the road.  Can she find a way to make everyone happy, and keep herself from going crazy?  Add to that Reuben's request for Polly to cater his whole Christmas celebration (which is multiple parties), when all she wants is to spend Christmas Day lounging around with Huckle and not baking one thing.  But the money Reuben is offering is more than Polly can even comprehend, and would go a long way towards making life easier.  What's a baker to do?

This was a good conclusion to the Little Beach Street Bakery trilogy, although it did seem a bit gloomy at times.  I'll certainly miss the people I've come to know reading these books, and I'll always be hoping Jenny Colgan sends out an unexpected, yet very welcome, update on Polly, Huckle, Kerensa, and Reuben.  Polly's journey to happiness comes to a satisfactory conclusion, and the ending is sweet and perfect.  

If you haven't read the first two books in this trilogy: Little Beach Street Bakery, and Summer at Little Beach Street Bakery,  please do before you read this--you'll understand the dynamics of the characters much better, and  Polly's journey to happiness as the beloved baker of Mount Polbearne is worth the read.  

Rating:  4/6 for a satisfying conclusion to the trilogy.  Polly and Huckle, while happy, still have growing pains (as do all relationships).  I appreciate the author's understanding that happily ever after takes constant work!

Available in paperback and ebook.

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Christmas at Little Beach Street Bakery by Jenny Colgan

The Dollhouse by Fiona Davis

1952 New York City must have been a pretty cool place.  Certainly it was a lure to those who wanted to make it on their own, or make it big.  It was a place for young women to escape their hometowns and experience freedom, within the confines of 1950's ideals, of course.  

The Dollhouse was certainly a refreshing break from my usual historical fiction.  Yes, this is a dual-history novel; it takes place in 1952 and 2016.  I usually don't read much about mid-twentieth century history; it's just not a time that appeals to me.  But I was intrigued by the idea of a women's hotel in 1952, and I'm glad I read this novel. I had no idea where the story would take me, and it definitely surprised me.

Darby McLaughlin is a young woman from Ohio, sent to New York City by her mother to live at the Barbizon Hotel, a place where young women stayed while attending modeling school, secretarial school, or other suitable educational avenues for a young woman in 1952. Of course, it was understood that this was just a way to meet a man and get married.  Darcy, a shy young lady very conscious of her mother's disappointment in her, comes to NYC to attend the Katie Gibbs school for secretaries.  She hopes to return to Ohio after a year of school, find a secretary job, and quietly live her life.  Unfortunately for Darcy, her small room is on the same floor as the modeling school beauties, who make her feel less than welcome.  Esme, a young maid and elevator operator at the Barbizon, befriends Darcy, and this is where Darcy's life changes.

The other part of the story begins in 2016 with Rose Lewin, a woman who lives with her boyfriend in the Barbizon building, which is now expensive apartments.  A few women who lived at the Barbizon in the 1950's continue to live there in small rent-controlled apartments.  The mysterious woman who lives directly underneath Rose's apartment wears hats and veils that shield her face, and doesn't talk to anyone when she takes her dog outside every day.  Rose's life is in flux; her boyfriend decides to return to his wife, and kicks Rose out of his apartment.  Struggling to take care of her ailing father; with no place to live, and a job as a journalist at a questionable online news site, Rose is looking for something that will kick start her career again and give her some choices. 

Enter that mysterious woman.  It's Darcy; she's lived at the Barbizon since 1952, and a mystery surrounds her that Rose wants to solve.  Darcy was involved in the unfortunate death of a maid at the hotel, and Rose wants to write a story about it.  Only problem is that Darcy has left the city, and Rose has to wait her out.  Meanwhile, Rose interviews the other elderly women, and begins to get the real story of the Barbizon Hotel during its heyday.  It was not, as people thought, a place full of genteel, well behaved young women.  People are people, after all, no matter what the time period.  

Rose identifies with Darcy, and becomes entangled in her tale as she waits for Darcy to return to her apartment.  Rose's ethics are questionable; her unhappiness spurs her into doing things that she normally wouldn't do. Rose's ethical choices connect her to Darcy's story; otherwise the novel wouldn't work. As the story flips between 1952 and 2016, we see Darcy and Esme's friendship deepen, Darcy meeting the sweet young cook Sam, and Darcy frequenting the Flatted Fifth, a jazz club with some seedy undertones. The feeling that you're on a journey that isn't going to end well keeps growing. 

The story is compelling, and I couldn't stop reading it.  There are some twists that were unexpected; but I figured out that was because I was also lulled into the assumption that young ladies in the early 1950's were always well-behaved and proper.  My bad!  

Rose was a bit confusing to me.  On one hand, she seemed very mature and put together.  But being dumped by her boyfriend really seemed to reveal a heck of a lot of insecurities and unhappiness that must have been festering for a long time.  There wasn't any sense of female empowerment with her until the very end.  Darcy was definitely a complex character; New York City brought out her real personality, only to see it dampen after the dramatic events of 1952.  She was a mix of wanting to do the right thing and fulfill other people's expectations, and wanting to be herself and doing what made her happy.   

I think this would make a good book club selection.  There is certainly enough to discuss, just in the characters of Rose and Darcy.  The Barbizon is an actual building in NYC, now known at the Barbizon 63.  It's on the National Register of Historical Places and was home to many famous women over the years.  

Rating:  4/6 for an entertaining dual-time period novel about 1950's NYC and the struggle of women to break free of expected societal roles.  The life of Darcy was certainly one that kept me reading late into the night.  A good book group choice--so many things to talk about, and a great historical background as well.  I'll read more from Fiona Davis!

Available in hardcover, paperback, audio, and e-book.

A big thank you to Penguin/Random House for a preview of this novel. 

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The Dollhouse by Fiona Davis