top of page
literary inspiration around every corner
AROUND TOWN
page by page


30 Books in 30 Beach Days Day 30: "The Sense of an Ending"
Today, on the last day of August, my "30 books in 30 beach days" series is coming to a close. Never one for subtlety, I'm taking the...


30 Books in 30 Beach Days Day 29: "Neapolitan Novels"
I've saved this, my favorite read of the year, for the penultimate day in this 30 books series. If you are a book-lover, it's assured...


30 Books in 30 Beach Days Day 28: "The Underground Railroad"
Today's selection, Colson Whitehead's The Underground Railroad, will have you speeding along at a breakneck pace to discover the fate of...


30 Books in 30 Beach Days Day 27: Collected Short Stories of Edith Wharton
This weekend, I spent two impossibly beautiful, blue-skied days in the Berkshires. Of course, I made a stop at The Mount, Edith...


30 Books in 30 Beach Days Day 26: "We Were Liars"
A few summers ago, I read with interest about We Were Liars, a much-lauded young adult book set in the most idyllic of places for a New...


30 Books in 30 Beach Days Day 25: "Twenty Poems to Bless Your Marriage and One to Save It"
On this beautiful summer day, you'll forgive me for an incredibly cheesy (but incredibly appropriate!) inclusion in this series. I got...


30 Books in 30 Beach Days Day 24: "Netherland"
Today's review is of Joseph O'Neill's beautiful post-colonial novel, Netherland. Most of the novel is told in an extended flashback,...


30 Books in 30 Beach Days Day 23: "A Midsummer Night's Dream"
If we're going to run the full literary gamut in this 30 books series, we're going to need to include something by Shakespeare. I have a...


30 Books in 30 Beach Days Day 22: "A Gentleman in Moscow"
"Delightful" isn't often a word you'd think of to describe a post-revolutionary Russian novel. But Amor Towles' year-old novel A...


30 Books in 30 Beach Days Day 21: "Home"
With everything going on in the news, today feels like a particularly good day to share a particularly good book from the particularly...


30 Books in 30 Beach Days Day 20: The Marriage Plot
Ah, the good 'ol marriage plot: something every diligent English major knows (and has read) intimately. The traditional marriage plot...


30 Books in 30 Beach Days Day 19: "Wait Til Next Year"
Are you shocked? This is the first time I've ever written a review for a work of non-fiction here. It feels weird. But summer wouldn't...


30 Books in 30 Beach Days Day 18: "Like Water for Chocolate"
Laura Esquivel's Like Water for Chocolate is a beautiful, vivid picture of magical realism, set in Mexico. It is a star-crossed love...


30 Books in 30 Beach Days Day 17: "The Pillars of the Earth" by Ken Follett
I'm torn about today's review of the epic Ken Follett novel The Pillars of the Earth, because I liked the story and appreciated the...


30 Books in 30 Beach Days Day 16: "A Prayer for Owen Meany"
After a few days in New Hampshire, back to our regularly-scheduled programming! Hiking through the White Mountains in New Hampshire this...
bottom of page