My third reading of this exceptional play. With a revival opening on Broadway this season, it was the perfect time to re-read this brilliant piece. SO many layers to peel back on the circumstances, on the characters and on the Proof (and it's myriad meanings). A fantastic play, and a great read!
Tuesday, March 31, 2026
Monday, March 30, 2026
Something to Look Forward To By: Fannie Flagg
God, I love Fannie Flagg! This series of stories shows humanity at its best and worts. Told with wonder, care and humanely, Flagg shows us the human condition. Her trademark, wit and warmth shine through in these stories. My favorites involved Velma-such a wonderful person. And the "characters" that populate Flagg's books are fully realized people, not characters or caricatures. I just feel better after reading a Fannie Flagg novel.
Saturday, March 28, 2026
Sounds Like a Plan By: Pamela Samuels Young & Dwayne Alexander Smith
Two of my favorite authors teamed up to write a "He Said/She Said" action mystery and it did not disappoint. Jackson and Mackenzie (Mac) are dynamic characters who become entangled in several twisted plots. With plenty of action, wit, and snippy quips this is a dynamic duo with whom you'll be glad to spend your time!
Friday, March 27, 2026
Sidney Chambers and the Dangers of Temptation By: James Runcie
I don't know why, but I find the Grantchester series very soothing to read. There is just something calming about Sidney, and I adore his wife. Hildegard is a terrific foil for Sidney and her insights as to what's happening in each story are brilliant! As you can guess from the book's title, each of the stories in this installment deal with temptation, good and bad. Runcie does a great job of moving the characters along with the times without abrupt changes to the characters. Everything is very natural.
Tuesday, March 24, 2026
Soon to be published Crime Short By: A Friend
This soon to be published short crime story is set in 1968 and has some wonderfully developed characters. Short stories are a specific art form, and this one manages give an education, develop distinct characters and present a well plotted crime and solution. Can't wait to see this published in an anthology!
Every Day A Little Death: Crime fiction inspired by the songs of Stephen Sondheim Edited By: Josh Pachter
What a creative concept for this anthology!!! The layout of the book gives the reader a history lesson in Stephen Sondheim and shows the progression of his career. Each of the short crime stories in this anthology are brilliantly creative, well plotted and for Sondheim freaks the amount of "easter eggs" included in the stories are great fun! I just LOVED this anthology!!
Friday, March 20, 2026
Murder on the Down Low By: Pamela Samuels Young
A fascinating premise, a multi-plot mystery, with numerous characters, and Samuels Young never misses a beat and the reader is pulled along on this taut wild ride until the last nail biting moment. This series is spectacular and if you haven't read it yet, I highly recommend that you start!
Tuesday, March 17, 2026
The Dining Room By: A. R. Gurney, Jr.
A fascinating piece! A series of vignettes highlight the subject of this play, which is in fact a dining room. It's all dining rooms and it's fascinating how the playwright centers a series of mini-plays (each vignette us a very short play-trust me it works) around a dining room and the reader is enchanted with the dining room, what it represents, how it's used, ignored, cherished, and revered. Quite a stunning piece of theatre.
Kill Your Darlings By: Peter Swanson
A love story-albeit a truly twisted one! I can't really discuss it without revealing major plot points. Suffice it to say the last 2 pages will have your jaw on the floor!
Saturday, March 14, 2026
Atmosphere By: Taylor Jenkins Reid
I learned more about astronauts on the first page of this book than I'd learned in the last 55 years of my life...and that's not even what the book is about! Atmosphere is a beautiful love story, told against the back drop of NASA and the space program. Full of interesting characters and several min-plot lines, it really boils down the fact that love can take you to the stars and back again! Superlative read!
Wednesday, March 11, 2026
DA By: Hugh Leonard
A fascinating play. Poignantly examines a man's relationship to his father, but with some dark humor. Charlie returns to his father's home for his funeral and spends most of the lay chatting with the version of his DA that's in his head, with flashback scenes. Cleverly structured, it subtly examines guilt, our lack of seeing our parents as real people and relationships in general. Quite interesting.
Tuesday, March 10, 2026
The Night Shift By: Alex Finlay
I do love a good thriller...and this is a great thriller! Told from several points of view, this twisty and twisted thriller is faced faced, well plotted and has some fantastic characters! A really great read!
Saturday, March 7, 2026
Vanna Speaks By: Vanna White & Patricia Romanowski
This book was given to me as a bit of a joke-based on the Golden Girls episode where the book is mentioned. It turns out, as Dorothy says "it's a hell of a book". Told simply, with Southern spun wisdom and charm, it is a great little biography. It only covers the first 30 years of Vanna's life and career, but both are quite packed! I think what makes Vanna so interesting to people is that what you see is what you get. She seems unflappable and takes whatever comes her way (good or bad) and processes it and moves on-this comes from her upbringing. The book is quite a sweet look at a sweet woman with "good old fashioned" values-quite refreshing really even if the book is 39 years old!
Friday, March 6, 2026
Death of a Salesman By: Arthur Miller
Re-read this one because it's being revived on Broadway this season and a colleague and I were discussing it. Still don't care for it. Not my favorite Miller play, by a long shot. I know I'm in the minority on this, but I don't care for any of the people in the play. No mater how many times I've read this, no matter what age I am or how much life I've experienced, I just can't find an "in" to this piece.
Thursday, March 5, 2026
All This Could Be Yours By: Hank Phillippi Ryan
I've read Hank's 15 previous books, and they are fantastic! This, her 16th, is PHENOMENAL! A love letter to stories, books, booksellers and librarians wrapped in a VERY tense mystery/thriller. Deeply, creepy, Tessa's Book Tour is a tense week that the reader can't look away from. I can't stress enough how brilliant this book is!!
Sunday, March 1, 2026
A Perilous Undertaking By: Deanna Raybourn
It is always an absolute jot to spend time with Veronica Speedwell and Stoker and the ever interesting cast of supporting characters in this series. The historical settings, the clever plots and the brilliant sniping between Veronica and Stoker make these mysteries fascinating and fun. A Perilous Undertaking flourishes with the addition of Lady Wellie and some frank discussions of orgies and sexual peccadilloes!














