Vagabond by Tim Curry

Wadsworth in Clue, the voice of Nigel Thornberry, a Hotel Manager in Home Alone 2, the original Pennywise in IT, a pirate with the Muppets, Dr. Frank N. Furter...

These are the wide range of roles of the beloved Tim Curry. 

Framed by these roles, Curry takes us on a strange journey. From military brat, to UK theater, to film, to TV, to Broadway, and to the wheelchair he now uses after a stroke. From his father's early passing and not seeing eye to eye with his mother, through drug use and recovery, and to fame and fortune. 

I first saw The Rocky Horror Picture Show with my Dad in the late 90s, and I've been an Unconventional Conventionist since (I actually have that shirt on today for Halloween week). And I can recite every line from Clue (flames, flames on the side of my face). This was a "do not disturb me; I'm reading" book. I finished it in a day.

Were there some parts I found eh? Yes. There are some references to places, especially in the UK, I've never heard of, and some people I do not know because I'm too young to remember them.  But then there was new info about Patricia Quinn (Magenta) and Meat Loaf (Eddie) I didn't know despite performing in RHPS myself!

If you love any of Curry's works, this is a must read. 

All opinions expressed on this blog are solely those of Mrs. W. and do not reflect those of WHPS or WHHS.

The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst

Last summer reading review!

This was recommended by Amazon, and I loved it so much I put it up for the Teachers and Friends Book Club for October consideration. 

Kiela is a librarian (BONUS!) in a Greek mythology type land of Alyssium. She and her (talking, walking, intelligent) plant Caz know war is coming. Rebels are looking to overthrow the royalty. They have been secretly hiding important documents, manuscripts, maps, and books in crates. They have a boat at the dock ready to take them and the books to safety. Unfortunately, this comes to be, and they must flee. They head for Kiela's childhood island home.

They open a jam shop that eventually becomes a secret spellshop. Using the magical books she has hidden in her parents'old bedroom, she is able to help the desolate townspeople and barely surviving ecosystem to regrow and thrive. There are all sorts of humans and critters in this mythical place, including some very obstinate merhorses (I'm guessing the author was a My Little Pony fan in the 80s, iykyk).

Elements of witchcraft and magic, definitely my cup of tea (read the last 6 posts if you don't get me), and the happy/cute/romancey parts will make the rest of the members satisfied too.

All opinions expressed on this blog are solely those of Mrs. W. and do not reflect those of WHHS or WHPS. 

Murder by Cheesecake by Rachel Ekstrom Courage

6 of 7.

This was the Teachers and Friends Book Club selection for July, chosen by Mr. Adams. We met at the Cheesecake Factory of course! 

This is a Golden Girls story.  It is set in-universe to the show, and it reads like a script for a double episode.  I was reading the dialogue in the voices of Rose, Sophia, Blanche, and Dorothy.

Rose's niece from Saint Olaf is coming to Miami for a wedding. As you can imagine, there are a lot of Saint Olaf words and traditions that have to go into this wedding, mixing with those of hyper-trendy Miami. As the wedding approaches, Dorothy's very bad blind date ends up dead in the reception's fridge, face down in a cheesecake, and she is the prime suspect. 

This is a mystery of course, so I don't want to spoil too much. 

If you are a fan of the show, you'll probably enjoy this!

All opinions expressed on this blog are solely those of Mrs. W. and do not reflect those of WHHS or WHPS. 

Little Beach Street Bakery by Jenny Colgan

5 of 7

This is the Teachers and Friends Book Club selection for August, and we will be discussing it next week.  As you likely know by now, we try to match our book to a restaurant or event. In this case, we had the event first. We are going to make sourdough with Our Daily Bakes! So, we needed a book about baking. Mrs. Tirollo chose this one. It is the first in a series.

It's cute and happy. Not my...wait, I just wrote that a couple reviews ago today. Not something I'd read typically. 

Polly had a rough break-up and decides she needs English country air. She rents a very run down apartment and bakes to clear her mind. Soon the townsfolk, including local fishermen, are buying her loaves, angering the little old lady who owns the real bakery in town.

A LOT happens to this gal, including an affair with a married fisherman, a fling with a beekeeper who is actually an entrepreneur from Georgia USA, several arguments with said little old lady, battling rich people who want to change things, and adopting an injured puffin. 

It's a beach read for sure...

All opinions expressed on this blog are solely those of Mrs. W. and do not reflect those of WHHS or WHPS. 

The Housemaid by Frieda McFadden

4 of 7

This was recommended to me by a student, which are the recommendations I take most seriously. It is the first in a series, and a film adaption is in production.

It was...ok? I don't see myself picking up the next book or the third, nor going to see the movie. 

Millie is a former felon, and her criminal record precludes her from most employment. She is hired by a scatterbrained socialite and her "very important" husband to be a live-in maid, doing cleaning, cooking, and some childcare for the couple's brat daughter. Unfortunately, this family has some really dark secrets. 

This is a mystery/thriller, so I don't want to spoil too much. But, I saw the twist coming a mile away. I also had trouble not wanting to smack every one of the female characters senseless. 

All opinions expressed on this blog are solely those of Mrs. W. and do not reflect those of WHHS or WHPS. 

Funny Story by Emily Henry

3 of 7

This is the Teachers and Friends Book Club selection for September, chosen by Mrs. Sousa. 

It's cute. Happy. Not my cup of tea usually, but that's the whole point of a book club, right? Read things you normally don't pick up. 

Librarian (bonus the main character is a children's librarian) Daphne gets dumped right before her wedding. Her fiance Peter leaves her for his best friend Petra (the name thing did annoy me). Daphne is now homeless in a new city, but Petra's former fiance Miles offers to take her in while she gets things worked out.

Daphne is calm and orderly, Miles is loud and chaotic. After a series of comedic/romantic mishaps, they end up happily ever after.

Like I said, cute and happy. Beach read for sure.

All opinions expressed on this blog are solely those of Mrs. W. and do not reflect those of WHHS or WHPS.  

The Midnight Feast by Lucy Foley

2 of 7

I loved The Guest List. So I was excited to read another Lucy Foley book. 

Don't bother.  This is way too much like 9 Perfect Strangers and The Weekend Retreat. 

In fact, I was so irritated feeling like I'd already read this, I stopped reading about a third of the way in. 

The worst was the alternating viewpoints and alternating timelines. 

Rich chick opens "woodland retreat" on her grandfather's land. Charges ridiculous prices. Fences out the locals. Bribes City Council to change walking paths. Serves everything with CBD in it. There's a murder, and everyone is a suspect.

Sorry, hard no as well.

All opinions expressed on this blog are solely those of Mrs. W. and do not reflect those of WHHS or WHPS.  

Let Him In by William Friend

Helllllooooo!

Been a minute. Today I am posting all of my summer reading reviews! This is 1 of 7. 

This was recommended to me by Amazon. And goodness it was...AWFUL.

Premise: Mom of twins dies after getting stung by a bee. Newly single Dad of twin girls is struggling to keep things together, and enlists his wife's sister (also twins) to help (she happens to be a psychiatrist--while her deceased sister was an artist). Wife and sister's mother is a religious wacko. The twin daughters have created an imaginary friend as a seemingly innocent coping mechanism to their mother's sudden death. Except the friend is snake? Or maybe a bird? Maybe a demon? Maybe their grandfather's spirit, as he also died in the house? And the total ick that Dad and the sister end up in bed, conceiving the boy he always wanted. 

Yeah, this was an acid trip. The grandmother is sneaking into the house and lighting scented candles, doing seances in the attic? The dead mother's paintings are in the basement along with a rattle the grandfather used to shake at the wall? The girls are doing normal twin sibling stuff like hitting each other, but using the imaginary friend to blame? Dad is really an abusive alcoholic? But maybe it's all a dream?

I really have no idea what was going on, who was really doing what, or if anyone actually survived? 

Hard no. 

All opinions expressed on this blog are solely those of Mrs. W. and do not reflect those of WHHS or WHPS. 

Beg, Borrow, or Steal by Sarah Adams

This is the second book for this evening's Teachers and Friends Book Club meeting. If you didn't read my last review, we decided because Chicago, New York, and Rome (albeit Kentucky) feature, pizza was a good choice. So we are meeting at Lorenzo's. Of course when we planned this I didn't know my son would be receiving awards at the same place Monday and Wednesday. It's ok, their food is good.

Anyway. This is a romantic comedy, and apparently is part of a series. I had no issue understanding the plot having not read anything else from it. It was cheesy, silly, overly bubbly, and had plot holes bigger than the divot in the middle of Stevens Avenue. 

A small town Kentucky elementary school teacher leaves his job mid-year to get married and move to the big city. Few months later he decides BIG CITY LIFE is just not for him and he moves back. Instantly rehired to the dismay of his former grade partner who can't stand him. She's an aspiring smut author and it turns out Mr. Nice Guy Next Door is a famous mystery writer. In a series of unbelievable mockeries of rural country life, she accidentally sends her soft-core porn novel to their school principal, and he volunteers to steal said principal's laptop to erase the download. 

Now, I did chose "liked it" in the online poll we do. Because it's still better than some of the stuff we've read. But am I going out to buy the series? No. Nor would I recommend this except to the biggest fans of easy read beach rom coms. It was good enough to finish however. 

All opinions expressed on this blog are solely those of Mrs. W. and do not reflect those of WHHS or WHPS. 

Clara and Mr. Tiffany by Susan Vreeland

This is the Teachers and Friends Book Club selection for May. Due to ALL THE THINGS happening in May, we decided to instead meet in early June.  This story has a few bits in Chicago, but is mostly set in New York City, Queens specifically. Our second book for the June meeting will be set in Rome.  And by Rome I mean Kentucky. But, my brain heard Chicago, NYC, and Rome? Of course we need pizza! Oops. That meeting will be at our good friends' Lorenzo's. 

I was a little intimidated by the size of this novel.  It's big and thick.  But I do like historical fiction and/or narrative non-fiction.  If you've followed this blog for any length of time, you likely know my obsession with NYC in the late Gilded Age through the Progressive Era.  And of course with Coney Island.

I found many similarities in the historical aspects and themes in Clara and Mr. Tiffany that span literature set in this time period. Workers' Rights, especially those of women and immigrants, were headline dominating.  The poor but working class had enough of the opulence of their employers, and wanted fair compensation and safety protocols.  I was strongly reminded of Hoffman's The Museum of Extraordinary Things, which takes place around the time of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire in 1911.  Although set a bit earlier, Clara includes a host of strong female and immigrant characters, all with their own stories to tell, and they deserve we read them and know their names.  My favorite being boarding house mistress Merry. I will shillelagh you into next week! 

I do think one needs to have some background knowledge of the time period to fully understand this.  And probably have some idea what Tiffany lamps and windows looked like (not the modern version, the originals). Thankfully we love in a glorious time with The Google.  There are also several interviews with the author available in print and audio that help explain her trajectory in writing this. 

I'll be adding this to our collection, and it will be part of the first display come next school year.

All opinions expressed on this blog are solely those of Mrs. W. and do not reflect those of WHPS or WHHS. 

 

Retreat by Krysten Ritter

This was the Teachers and Friends Book Club selection for April, chosen by Our Daily Bakes owner Roberta.

There was not a lot of meat and potatoes to this book.  In fact, the first 2/3 or so were totally unnecessary. The last part could have been a short story and been just as effective.  That last part is what we debated, and debated hard, about!

Liz is a professional con artist.  She infiltrates high society events and befriends the wealthy then steals their jewelry, credit cards, fine clothing, etc. After an art gallery event, she is hired by a wealthy wife named Isabelle to oversee the final decorating of a villa in Mexico.  Isabelle and her husband Oliver are on a retreat the far east. 

Liz resembles Isabelle so much, the hoity-toity residents mistake her for her employer, and she decides to run with the con (this was a lot of fluff that wasn't needed). But she learns Oliver and Isabelle's marriage is on the rocks, and when Oliver's estranged brother shows up looking for him, things go awry very quickly. 

As this is a murder mystery, I don't want to spoil too much. If you can get through all the added details in the beginning, the end is worth reading. 

All opinions expressed on this blog are solely those of Mrs. W. and do not reflect those of WHPS or WHHS.     

What in the World by Leanne Morgan

You've likely seen clips of comedian Leanne Morgan on social media.  The now 70s aged grandmother from Tennessee does stand up about motherhood, womanhood, aging, etc. Most of the clips I find, er, now found hilarious.  I wanted to see her live when her tour came to CT, but the dates didn't work out.  So naturally I pre-ordered her memoir.

I wish I hadn't.

I HATED this book.  And now I wouldn't spend a dime to see her live. 

I figured we'd get some insight into her life before comedy as a mom to 3, learn about her family, etc.  Which we do, and it's rather bleak.  In addition, what she makes as jokes on the stage (fighting over the thermostat, having another baby, moving for a spouse's job...) show her husband to be a jerk.  What I thought was exaggerated for the stage is actually under-portrayed.  He's a controlling and manipulative loser.  Once I had the money she does now, he'd be out on his behind.  He certainly wouldn't be driving a new truck, and he'd have zero say in how I spent my new found wealth.  Truth be told, I'd've ditched when I was poor.  Not worth it at all.  

All opinions expressed on this blog are solely those of Mrs. W. and do not reflect those of WHPS or WHHS. 

By Any Other Name by Jodi Picoult

ABSOLUTELY LOVED!

This is the Teachers and Friends' Book Club choice for March, chosen by retired English teacher Anne Pacelli.  I am so glad we read and discussed this book!

I do not believe the actor/director known as William Shakespeare wrote the works attributed to him.  I have longed believed the Oxfordian Theory, that Earl of Oxford Edward DeVere was the author, or at the very least, the lead author of a collective.  These works, at the time they were written, would have been treasonous, heretic, and downright dangerous to perform.

Picoult explores the possibility a woman was the author.  I had not heard Emilia Bassano as a candidate before, although some have suggested Mary Sidney Herbert or even the Queen herself.  After reading this, and the extensive author research notes, I believe Bassano has risen to a top prospective author. 

This is told in alternating viewpoints from Emilia and her descendant Melina Greene.  Greene is an aspiring playwright who fictitiously accuses a professor of an inappropriate relationship in a play, destroying her degree candidacy.  Later, she writes By Any Other Name, portraying her ancestor as one of the authors behind the Shakespearean works.  When Jasper Tolle, a newspaper critic who was present for her last embarrassment, is revealed to be behind the call for plays, Melina has her male (gay, black) roommate pretend to be "Mel" Greene.  It works, until Melina reveals the truth to Jasper, who in turn reveals this to his editor and again destroys Melina's career when it seems she, a suburban raised/straight/white woman, takes the credit away from Andre.

Emilia's life was not easy.  Sold by her musician family as a mistress to the wealthy Lord Chamberlain at just 13, she was free to read and write as she liked.  But a fling with the Earl of Southampton results in pregnancy, and she is sent back to family to be sold again to a violent abuser.  As an aside, there are theories the Earl of Southampton was either the illegitimate child of the Earl of Oxford or Queen Elizabeth or even their child together.  If you want to explore that side of the Oxfordian Theory, watch Anonymous. 

This is now my favorite Picoult book, and it is definitely going on my all-time favorites list overall.  I'll be adding this to our collection shortly!

All opinions expressed on this blog are solely those of Mrs. W. and do not reflect those of WHHS or WHPS.  

The Soulmate Equation by Christina Lauren

This is the Teachers and Friends Book Club selection for February, chosen by former secretary Mary Lou.  It is most definitely not my cup of tea, but that's part of being in a book club!  This is most definitely happy ending romance.  Now, that being said, I actually found myself enjoying it!  It was a very easy read, finished in one day on our first snow day.  Nothing earth-shattering, nothing that required any semblance of brain power, a beach read in winter.

Jessica is a single Mom to seven year old Juno.  She's a freelance finance statistician, living in an apartment owned by her grandparents who live across the courtyard.  She's getting by, barely, but enough that she can buy coffee in an expensive shop every day with her best friend Felicity, a freelance romance writer.  There's a hot guy who comes in every morning at 8:30 who turns out to be a world renowned geneticist starting a matchmaking program using DNA. Jess and Fizzy give samples, and Jess matches almost perfectly with the tall, dark, and handsome doctor.

Again, beach read.  Some eye roll worthy "are we sure about this" scenes, some even bigger eye roll worthy romance scenes, and some really touching scenes between Dr. Pena and Jess's daughter and grandparents.  

I could not do this review without mentioning the cat. If you know Ms. Marcella at Carrigan, you've heard of JerkCat.  The cat in this book is JerkCat.  

All opinions expressed on this blog are solely those of Mrs. W. and do not represent those of WHHS or WHPS.

Maid of Honor by C. Jagodzinski

This is the Teachers and Friends Book Club selection for January.  It was chosen by Board of Education member Ms. Libero, who is friends with the author, who is originally from Milford.  

Now this is NOT my cup of tea.  But that's the point of a book club, isn't it?  To read things one would not normally pick up, try something new, and discuss the merits of the literature.  

This is historical romance, set in Scotland in the late 1100s (if you couldn't guess, we're meeting at Duffy's later this month).  Lady Joan is set to marry Lord Robert Cunningham, when she runs away on the morning of the wedding to marry a pauper.  Her sister Elayne, who wanted to be a nun, must stand in per protocol.  Robert and Elayne eventually fall in love when Joan returns.  

Yes, definitely not something you'd read my review of here, but that does not mean I didn't like it.  It held my interest, and despite my annoyance at some of them, the characters were very well written.  I look forward to the author joining our meeting to talk about her process.

All opinions expressed on this blog are solely those of Mrs. W. and do not represent those of WHHS or WHPS.

Meet Me in the Kitchen by Matt Price

I absolutely love Mr. Make It Happen's food videos.  So when he announced he was publishing a book, and the first 100 orders would get a signed copy, I jumped on it.  Never intending to be a chef, Price still considers cooking a hobby.  His successful Youtube channel, book deals, spice and knife lines, national tour, etc. were never the goal, which I guess is what makes him so...normal.  

Anyway, this is several of his videos in print form.  Which is what disappointed me a bit.  I was hoping to read lots of new recipes or perhaps like Snoop's and Molly's books a memoir in disguise.  

Now I am also super hopeful WHHS will run our once famous culinary course again next year.  With a new teacher, a new cohort of students, and some new equipment, I'd love to see the teacher lunch delivery back.  So, as with my other cookbooks, this one will be donated.

After all, "we're here for a good time, not a long time."

Opinions expressed on this blog are solely those of Mrs. W. and do not represent those of WHHS or WHPS.