Category Archives: Adult

The Summing Up, by William Somerset Maugham

Posted on August 13, 2010 by Thistle

The Summing Up is a combination memoir and writer’s manual, similar to On Writing by Stephen King. Maugham wrote it in his mid-60s, fearing that he might be close to death and thus that he should complete this before he … Continue reading →

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A Farewell to Arms, by Ernest Hemingway

Posted on August 10, 2010 by Thistle

Lieutenant Henry is an American. He’s in the Italian army. The time period is World War I. Henry drives ambulances. He drinks a lot. He eats a lot. He falls in love with a nurse named Catherine Barker. Or at … Continue reading →

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The Lies We Told, by Diane Chamberlain

Posted on August 6, 2010 by Thistle

I’m honestly not sure how to summarize this book. The back of the book description gives away nearly everything from beginning to end, all but one secret, but I can’t think of any way to describe this other than by … Continue reading →

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Thérèse Raquin, by Émile Zola

Posted on August 3, 2010 by Thistle

Thérèse lives a miserable life in a small shop in Paris. She lives with her aunt and cousin Camille. Camille is a man with poor health and a fantastic amount of pride, and Thérèse is forced to succumb both to … Continue reading →

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Interpreter of Maladies, by Jhumpa Lahiri

Posted on July 28, 2010 by Thistle

I had been told that Lahiri was a master of the short story, but I’d never read any of her work. When I picked up Interpreter after that long string of failed collections, I expected nothing more than to flip … Continue reading →

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Dewey, by Vicki Myron

Posted on July 27, 2010 by Thistle

Many people have heard of Dewey the library cat. If you haven’t, the story goes as follows: on a cold night in a small town in Iowa, someone pushed an 8-week old kitten into the drop box at the library. … Continue reading →

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Sonnets from the Portuguese, by Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Posted on July 19, 2010 by Thistle

Hurrah! I have found poetry that spoke to me, poetry that I understood, poetry that I enjoyed! Loved, in fact. Elizabeth Barrett Browning, you wonderful poet! You have proved that my search for poetry that I can connect with was … Continue reading →

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Up from the Blue, by Susan Henderson

Posted on July 18, 2010 by Thistle

Tillie’s life was ripped apart when she was eight years old. Her mother, suffering from a depression her family doesn’t understand, suddenly disappears when the family moves across the country. Tillie tries to investigate, suspecting her father of a crime, … Continue reading →

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The Wisdom of Eve, by Mary Orr

Posted on July 12, 2010 by Thistle

Margo Crane is a big star on Broadway, and she never expects that the quiet, mousy girl named Eve who worms her way into Margo’s confidence is actually an aspiring actress prepared to run over anyone who stands in her … Continue reading →

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Theatre, by William Somerset Maugham

Posted on July 11, 2010 by Thistle

Theatre is a spin on the old classic tale of the kept woman. Instead of a rich married man keeping a young mistress who wheedles him for favors, gifts, and money while pretending to take them only reluctantly, it’s a … Continue reading →

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