“Hunger Makes Me A Modern Girl” Carrie Brownstein

Jeff and I are always working on a TV show together. By working, I mean we pick a television show with many seasons and we watch it on Monday and Tuesday nights which historically are nights that we did not have custody of our four daughters. Our first show was “Shameless” and from there we moved on to “Homeland,” “Breaking Bad” and more recently “Billions” and “Outlander.” Our current show is “Portlandia.” I know many people have probably seen this show but I had not seen a single episode until this winter, and now I am obsessed. I love Fred Armisen, but I’m over-the-moon about the female lead, Carrie Brownstein. She is this perfect blend of Carol Burnett and Kurt Cobain. On “Portlandia,” she doesn’t just wear wigs and make-up to create different characters, she also adopts different voices and well-developed postures to go with these personalities. I think she is a comic genius, and I wanted to know her backstory. So this autobiography was a wonderful trip into Carrie’s childhood and early career as a member of a punk-indi trio named Sleater-Kinney. We see her parents divorce when she was 14, and her mother struggle with anorexia. We see her get outed as bi-sexual to her family in Spin magazine at 21 years old. We see her suffer panic attacks and get severe hives, and later shingles. We meet her sincerely close but complicated friendships with Corin Tucker and the Miranda July. For those looking to read a book about the inside scoop on “Portandia” or her relationship with Fred, this is not your book. There is literally only one sentence about the television series, which leads me to hope that Brownstein is planning a second memoir about that show after it is finished. This book is a rock musician’s memoir in the best sense of the phrase. It is about touring with her band in the Pacific Northwest, trying to find out who she is and where she wants to go with her life. In “Hunger Makes Me a Modern Girl,” Brownstein comes off smart, vulnerable, brave and quirky, and destined for fame. She is not only someone you would want to idolize but also someone you think you could be friends with at the same time. To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

Colors of Loss and Healing: An Adult Coloring Book for Getting Through Tough times by Deborah S. Derman, Phd with Lisa Powell Braun (illustrator)

Many people have asked me about how my mom is doing since my dad died in July. I think for a woman who suddenly lost her husband of 52 years, she is doing incredibly well. But then again, she has always been a pull-yourself-up-by-your bootstraps kind of woman. After my dad died, she said her first trip to Gelson’s Supermarket was hard. She found herself crying in the banana aisle. The reason for her  tears: she never ever liked bananas but habitually put them in her shopping cart for five decades because my dad loved them. As strong as my mom is, I find myself looking for ways to support and help her. At Christmas time I found myself surfing Amazon and looking for an appropriate Christmas gift for a new widow. I found this book: “Colors of Loss and Healing” by Deborah S. Derman and Lisa Powell Braun. Unfortunately I ordered this book late at night, after wine, without my reading glasses on. This combination can lead to disastrous results like the time I accidentally ordered more high intensity sports bras than a girl could use in a decade. But luckily I only ordered two copies of this book instead of one. So I took it as a sign that I should keep one for myself and learn to color again. So I did. This is a beautiful book written by a woman who is no stranger to loss. Derman lost her parents in a small plane crash, her husband young to a sudden heart attack and then was hit with her own mortality when she was diagnosed with breast cancer. She is a testament to the fact that you can be hit with a truckload of pain and still survive. I started coloring this book last week and it felt hard. The next day felt a little less hard. And a week later, I started to see the benefits of coloring a simple piece of paper. I hope it will get easier over time for me, like the mourning process itself. My mom has not started to color her book yet, but I hope in time she will and be able to find the joy, too. To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

The Princess Diarist by Carrie Fisher

When I heard that Carrie Fisher had suffered a heart attack, I was in the middle of listening to “The Princess Diarist,” her latest memoir on audiobook. The experience of learning about Fisher’s eventual death while listening to her read her memoir out loud was a little odd. Periodically in the dialogue she even mentions her own death. Add to that, the connection that my family owns the beach house where Carrie and her brother, Todd, grew up as children. The day Carrie died my brother, Scott, reminded me that near the door to this attic in our beach house there is a note scrawled on the wall that reads: “Carrie’s hide out. Keep out. No adults allowed.” I could just imagine Carrie writing that with a Sharpee as a little girl. Many people will remember her as Princess Leia in “Star Wars,” but I will remember her most for her wit and her writing. This book will not disappoint those fans of her most popular earlier books, “Postcards from the Edge” and “Wishful Drinking.” Her final memoir is based on the diaries she kept while filming the original “Star Wars” film in London. Her daughter, Billie Lourd, reads sections of these diaries out loud on the audio version. The big popular reveal of this book is that she had an affair with Harrison Ford during the shooting of “Star Wars.” He was married and she was young. Their affair was short. While the details of their relationship are fascinating, there is so much more to this book, as there was to Fisher the person. When I finished “Princess Diarist,” I didn’t’ want it to end. So I immediately watched the HBO special “Bright Lights,” about Carrie’s relationship with her mom, Debbie, who sadly died but hours after her daughter. Debbie and Carrie were not only Hollywood Royalty, but hardworking, tough talking women, too. I loved that about both of them. To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

The Nine of Us by Jean Kennedy Smith

I don’t want to think about the inauguration today. I did not vote for the Orange One and I worry about what the future will bring. So today, I would rather flash back to a happier episode in the late 1980s. My sister and I were attending an opening night party at a bar on the upper west side of New York City where my dad had just opened an off Broadway play. Kathleen and I felt quite swell. We were wearing very spiffy new suits from Ann Taylor with oversized blazers containing shoulder pads that were quite fashionable back then. At the event, we were talking to a friend of my dad’s named Jack Winter. He was stunned at how grown up my sister and I looked, and how mature my brother, Scott appeared, too.  (Jack knew a lot of famous people and politicians. And so we hung on his every word when he spoke of public figures.) “You two remind me of Ross Perot’s daughters. “Very steady.“ “Why thank you,” I said, impressed. Jack continued, “But Scott reminds me of one of the Kennedys.” What? Come again?! I was outraged that I was classified as a ‘Perot Girl’ while my brother was allowed entry to Camelot. How was this possible? Why couldn’t I remind him of a Kennedy, too?! I have never forgotten that story or how much I wanted Jack to find me worthy of a Kennedy comparison. Since then, the Kennedy women and men have always fascinated me. I just saw the movie “Jackie,” which was slow but fascinating, the same week I was reading  “The Nine of Us” by Jean Kennedy Smith.  It is a small book that describes what it was like to be a young child growing up as a Kennedy. She is the last surviving child of Rose and Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. This book contains some of the most charming pictures that I have ever seen of the Kennedy family when they were young. You can see skinny John F. Kennedy, who was often sick and spent time reading in bed. You can see Bobby Kennedy, an avid stamp collector. And then there was the handsome older brother, Joe, along with the cherubic baby, Teddy. Joe and Rose raised their nine children to read and understand world events. Rose often clipped newspaper articles and safety-pinned them to her bathrobe to read them to the children later. And, the family posed quizzes to each other during dinner that often included questions such as, “What would you do if you were president of the United States?” Most of the tragedy that would befall the family years later is not discussed in this book. “The Nine of Us” is a charming look back on the early days of being a Kennedy when everyone had to learn how to be a sailor while the future was only filled with hope. I would buy this book for the pictures alone, but the text is also wonderful. Even if Jean’s memories are through rose-colored glasses, they are memories to be appreciated and treasured, too, especially today when the future of our country is so unpredictable. To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

“Day Hikes on Oahu” by Robert Stone

When we were little our dad told us that we each needed to have a sport. I picked tennis. Kathleen chose swimming. And Scott played Little League baseball. We had to not only play our sports throughout the school year, but also attend summer camps in each discipline and read books by famous athletes who excelled at them. There was only one problem: I soon found out that tennis was not a good fit for me, but it was too late to go back. I loved hitting the ball and even running hard and sweating a lot on the court. I especially loved attending tennis camp in Ojai, California, each summer because the counselors and campers were so nice. But I hated the competition of tennis. I never wanted to win a tennis match that I played, not even once. My favorite part of every tennis game was when I got to go to the net and shake the hand of my opponent. I basked in the fact that the match had been completed. It was years later that I discovered what I really liked to do for exercise is hike.  I like a sport that requires no competition at all. (And yes I also have done yoga for more than 20 years.) This book, “Day Hikes on Oahu,” by Robert Stone is the best $1.99 I have ever spent. It is a book about hiking the trails surrounding Honolulu, where my family has gone to spend Christmas for many years. I bought this used book in 2012 and have brought it back every year since. Every December I try to complete at least two hikes and then I write the year by the number of the hike down on the map in the book. I always take pictures on the hikes, which can be challenging because it often rains. Some of the hikes are quite difficult, and some are so muddy that by the end of the hike I am covered in earth and water up to my ankles. But every single adventure reminds me that hiking is the perfect exercise for me because everyone sweats and no one wins or loses.  “Day Hikes On Oahu” has brought me a lot of joy, and buying a hiking guide to your favorite destination might do the same for you. To purchase this book n Amazon click here.

“Unforgettable: A Son, A Mother, and the Lessons of a Lifetime” by Scott Simon

I have been thinking about my mom a lot. She has been a widow now for five months. Her new status is not getting any easier for her but I do think it is getting more familiar. Although her three children are all in their late 40s or early 50s, she is now a single mom and that feels different for all of us. In the past, whenever I was happy, sad, mad, thrilled or confused about something I could call on either of my parents for advice and support, But now my mom has to take all of my calls and text messages. I’m sure some times she seems fine with this and other times dealing with three adult children (especially us) can feel overwhelming. “Unforgettable: A Son, A Mother, and the Lessons of a Lifetime” by Scott Simon is the inspiring story of a woman who pretty much raised her son on her own. Although she was married several times, for most of his life, Scott Simon had only his mom, Patricia Lyons Simon Newman, to depend on. Scott is a journalist and host of the Weekend Edition Saturday on National Public Radio. Many reviewers called his book “big hearted” and that is a perfect phrase for it. In July 2013, as his mother was dying at the age of 84 from a lung infection, Simon took to Twitter from her hospital room. His numerous tweets were soon followed by 1.2 million people, and later sparked the idea for a bigger story. Within the pages of this book, Simon recalled how his mother taught him to be honest, kind, polite, dignified and entertaining. His mother was not only a mom but also a supremely glamorous woman who dated mobsters, and for a brief time, worked as a hand model: Her thumb appeared in an advertisement for Diet Rite Cola. “Unforgettable” is a book that will resonate with any adult who has had to say goodbye to a parent, especially a terrific parent like Scott Simon’s mom. To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

“The Elements of Style” By William Strunk Jr. and E.B. Whit

Recently I started a new position at Hospice by the Bay. As a formality, human resources asked me to submit a resume just so they would have it on file. I sent it in a few weeks ago and only this week did I realized that there is a spelling error on my resume. In my attempt to use the word “discreet,” I spelled it incorrectly by using “discrete.” These words are homophones, which sound alike but mean something different. One means to show “reserve” and the other means something “distinct or separate.” This is obviously not the biggest sin ever committed on the planet but with my literary conscience I wanted to die. I wanted to go into the office in the middle of the night, sneak into human resources and replace the bad resume with one that uses the correct word. I was embarrassed because my resume describes my experience as a writer and editor. If it talked about my experience as a belly dancer maybe people would forgive me. (Yes I have taken belly dancing and I’m good - not great - at it). But I hold bachelor of science and master of science degrees from Northwestern’s Medill School of Journalism. So a mistake like this rattles me to the core. But luckily, people write whole books about spelling and grammar, and today’s book is one of my favorites. I used to think that “The Elements of Style” by William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White was just for writers, but really it should be obligatory reading for everybody. (And, yes, E.B. wrote “Charlotte’s Web” and “Stuart Little” too.)  “The Elements of Style” is short, witty and teaches you writing and grammar rules without being preachy. I have never been a very good copy editor, especially of my own writing. My husband, Jeff, reads my library party every Thursday nights and usually offers several corrections. So I’m lucky to have him (not just because he knows the difference between there and their). I’m also lucky to have this book. One of the best things about “The Elements of Style” is the size. It is small enough to make an excellent stocking stuffer. So consider giving the gift of grammar this holiday season and make the world a safer place for words. To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

“Today Will Be Different” by Maria Semple

I am an organized person and I have always operated under the belief that life should be organized in order to achieve happiness. However, life is really truly so messy most of the time I can hardly believe it. Crazy things happen all the time and I find myself wondering, “Is it just me? Or is hell breaking loose all the time?” Case in point: I once witnessed my sister blow her nose into the hem of her dress because she was about to attend a big event and had no Kleenex. My brother and I once had to quickly chase the runaway tire on my daughter’s wheelchair when it was making a bee-line toward Baltimore’s icy harbor. And my leg once fell asleep during sorority rush at Northwestern, so I had to drag my leg like a piece of heavy driftwood across the room as I then left the house with 35 pretty blonde girls staring after me. Life is most of the time chaotic. The authors who I love to read most, celebrate the mess that life brings to all of us, and make us feel like we are not alone. “Today Will Be Different” by Maria Semple is a book that chronicles a day in the life of a Seattle mom named Eleanor Flood. The narrator is a former television writer, married to a famous hand surgeon and mother of a little boy named Timby who attends the Galer Street School. Semple also is the author of the “Where’d You Go Bernadette,” a 2012 book about a wife, architect and private school mom who disappears. Both books take place in Seattle, and offer a glimpse into that microcosm. If you have not read  “Where’d You Go Bernadette,” you should read it first before “Today Will Be Different.” Although they are not a series, there are similarities between the two books that are tangible and amusing. Semple, a former television comedy writer (“Mad About You” and “Arrested Development.”) and daughter of a screenwriter, has an over all-hand-down funny perspective on the universe. Who else could write a book about a woman who hires a private poetry teacher, and then later sees him working his second job at Costco pushing samples of snacks. Semple’s writing is so fresh and spot-on. She refers to “People Magazine” as “People I don’t know.” The idea that a person – any person -- can juggle a relationship, a full or part time job, motherhood, friendships and just getting out of bed in the morning without going a bit crazy, is impressive. The fact that Semple writes about being a person in the modern world who keeps her shit together, who stays in the game and makes it all work -- makes her a writer that I want to read any day of the week. To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

“About Alice” by Calvin Trillin

Earlier this month I joined a grief group at my church. I have been going to Calvary Presbyterian Church on the corner of Fillmore and Jackson Streets since 1989, when I first moved to San Francisco. I love my church. I will not show up to church for one reason or another for more than a year, and then I can walk through those big doors on Fillmore and someone will casually say to me, “What a nice scarf!” or, “Great rain boots, Lori.” There is no preachy judgment, nor religious criticism about not attending, just many warm comfortable smiles from people who genuinely are happy to see me. So the timing of this grief group after my dad’s death this summer seems perfect. The commitment was two Sundays in November and two in December. The fact that the minister Victor Floyd, who married Jeff and I in August, organized this grief group was a clear sign I should show up. I’m so glad I did. Grief is strange and fussy, but I find it comforting to be in a room of people who understand what loss feels like and are willing to talk about it. “Ask Alice” by Calvin Trillin has offered me similar comfort. I read this book years ago after it was published in 2006, but when I recently saw it again at the library it jumped out at me as if saying, “Read me again!” Calvin survived his wife Alice’s death from lung cancer and heart problems, and I can survive my dad’s death, too. Trillin writes just beautifully about Alice, the mother of two daughters who thought that if you didn’t go to “every performance of your child’s school play the county would come and take the child.” Calvin has written several books about his late wife and to re-read them while grieving is to connect with his heartbreaking loss. He once wrote in the dedication of a book, “I wrote this for Alice. Actually, I wrote everything for Alice.”  As I read this book again I was touched by the fact that even though I knew Alice died in the end, I still wanted to read it because of her grace while dying. Trillin wrote, “For Alice, of course, the measure of how you held up in the face of a life-threatening illness was not how much you changed but how much you stayed the same, in control of your own identity.” This is just a lovely read from beginning to end. P.S. Jeff wants me to review happier books and I’m working on it. To purchase this book click here.

“One Dough Fifty Cookies: Baking Favorite and Festive Cookies in A Snap” by Leslie Glover Pendleton

I have now been a parent for 21 years. This baffles me some times because the first 11 years felt like a “slow, reluctant march into enemy territory,” as Henry James once said. Days were long, nights were tough and I felt every minute that I would make a big, awful mistake. The second decade of raising my twin daughters, by comparison, has felt much calmer and brighter, and really quite delightful. I am so thankful for Lily and Charlotte. What made the difference? Asking for help. If there is one thing I have learned about parenting multiples, or children with a disability, or really any child at all, is that you must learn to ask for help. There is no glory in going it alone and the benefit about asking for help is that you learn something new. Since 1995, I have worked with at least 20 different classroom aides, tutors, bath helpers, support teachers and general jacks-of-all trade babysitters. And I have to say except for one loose cannon named Lola, each one of them has made me a better parent, certainly much better than I could have been on my own. So to all of those wonderful women, I thank you! (I’m not being sexist but there were no men.) One of those lovely women told me about today’s book: “One Dough Fifty Cookies: Baking Favorite and Festive Cookies in a Snap” by Leslie Glover Pendleton. The concept of this book is brilliant but simple - you make one master dough, and then that dough serves as the launching board to make a variety of different cookies that are completely different. You can even freeze the dough and use it another time. I have a particular passion for jelly filled thumb print cookie, but no matter your passion, there is a cookie recipe in here to please you. I’m don’t typically have the patience for baking, but this book made even my cookies look impressive. Also, it is a small book so might make a nifty stocking stuffer. To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

“The Woman in Cabin 10” by Ruth Ware

I landed my first paying full-time job as a journalist in 1989 for “TravelAge West,” in the magazine’s San Francisco office. It was a travel trade magazine and the reason I got the job was because another Northwestern alumni, named Sandra, saw my resume, and pulled it from the middle of a stack of submissions. I will always be grateful to Sandra because the job was amazing. One of my first and favorite assignments was to fly to Nagasaki, Japan, and visit a cruise ship that was being built in the town’s harbor. A year later, I sailed on the maiden voyage of that cruise ship, The Crystal Harmony, as it left from Puerto Rico, navigated the Panama Canal and visited several Caribbean islands. There was so much caviar and champagne on the ship that I never wanted to leave. So flash forward to this new book “The Woman in Cabin 10,” by Ruth Ware. This is a thriller about a British travel writer named Laura “Lo” Blacklock, who goes on an assignment for a week on a luxury cruise ship. Unfortunately, Lo’s assignment did not turn out as well as mine. One cannot help but compare this book to “The Girl on the Train” by Paula Hawkins, which I review earlier this year. Both books start out with a drunken female narrator. It is not the most dependable narrator to have, but provides you with a sense of uncertainty, which is always good for a thriller. I enjoyed this book because it paired the glamour of cruising with Lo’s own anxiety and insecurities about her life. The plot is so well crafter, that I really wasn’t sure where it was going until the very last page.  Bon Voyage! To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

“The Catcher in the Rye” J.D. Salinger

This Sunday, November 13th, would have been my dad’s 82nd birthday. You would know this as, “On November 13, Felix Unger’s was asked to remove himself from his place of residence; that request came from his wife.” My dad wrote that date into the opening credits of “The Odd Couple” so we would never forget his birthday. He loved his birthday. Two years ago, he had a big party to celebrate his 80th birthday in the parking lot of The Falcon Theatre. He played drums as caterers served guests mini grilled cheese, tomato soup and purple cupcakes, all his favorite micro-foods. I remember feeling strange because I had to wait in a long line to take a picture with my dad. When I was little I used to wish that my dad was a tax attorney or a dentist who only saw clients during the work-week. But he had different ideas, of becoming a movie director, which brought even more people into his life (and our lives) than television did. When he told me to read this book I was in junior high school and didn’t talk to him very much because I was a typical, fussy 7th grader. He made me play tennis all the time while I jokingly used to call him “The Great Santini.” But I did read “The Catcher in the Rye” after he recommended it, and I loved it. It felt like a special book that my dad and I could share and relate to because we knew what it felt like to feel different, and to be an outsider observing the world. Subsequently, I have moved many times in my life and always carried with me three copies of “The Catcher in the Rye,” as if two copies was too risky and four seemed over the top. Three copies of this little red paperback book always seemed just right. The story of Holden Caulfield’s three days in December of 1949 might seem like a simple book in the year 2016, but I still think it is special and it will always remind me of my dad, and how it remained one of his favorite books. To recommend “The Catcher in the Rye” to someone is to say, “I understand you. I see you. You are special, too.” To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

“Special Delivery” How We Are Raising America’s Only Sextuplets . . . and Loving It” by Becki and Keith Dilley

In 1995, this book and a limited Vicodin prescription saved my life. About 14 days before I started this book I went into labor on an airplane coming back from a book tour in Chicago. I went to the hospital and was placed on bed rest with medication to stop my contractions. But on the early morning of June 13, my water broke and there was no going back. The doctors took my babies out by c-section, sent them sailing into the newborn intensive care unit, and three days later sent me home alone. It was a strange time. My doctor gave me a bottle of Vicodin, to help ease the pain of my c-section scar, which was so raw it looked like a shark had taken a bit out of my belly. So there I was, the mother of twins with nothing to do. I sat on the denim couch in my living room, popped a Vicodin and started this book. I had been buying books on multiples to do research for my new job as a mother of twins. I had never known anyone who had twins and it scared me. The moment I opened this book I felt comforted. “Special Delivery” described in detail the daily tasks that the Dilleys performed each day trying the best they could to take care of their six children. It didn’t hurt that Becki was a nurse and that they had a whole community of people behind them in Indianapolis bringing them food, diapers and much love and support. Like me, Becki used fertility drugs to get pregnant. Two of her babies were been born at almost the exact weight of my babies – 2 pounds 13 ounces and 2 pounds 11 ounces. After her difficult pregnancy, Becki and her husband did an amazing job at staying organized and on top of their every-mounting to-do list. This book is funny, practical, well-written and just incredibly charming. Each morning, during that June of 1995, I followed the same routine: Vicodin, denim couch and “Special Delivery.” After I finished the book, I tried to renew the prescription for the third time, but my doctor said no, “too addicting,” and made me switch to an anti-inflammatory. Puh-leeze. It was not the same. I cut the Vicodin tablets in half to make them last longer. So eight weeks later, I went to the hospital and was finally able to bring my own babies home. However, I had with me a new confidence from reading this book. If the Dilleys could raise six children, I certainly could muster the courage to raise twins. Like my own husband at the time, Kevin excelled at parenthood and even stayed home with the sextuplets when Becki went back to work as a nurse. Recently I looked up the Dilleys: Becki and Kevin are still married 30 years later, the children are grown and out of college, and there are even two grandchildren now.  I will never forget this book and how it made the parenting of multiples look easy, and gave me the strength to get off my couch, toss the empty Vicodin bottle, and become a mother of beautiful twins. To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

“The Nutshell” by Ian McEwan

Every time my mom gets on an airplane she has with her two or three books. These are not electronic books on her ipad, laptop or kindle. These are heavy, hardback books that she carries in her Pierre Deux tote bag. She always has the book she is currently reading, and one or two spares in case she finishes the current selection. She has been an avid reader every since elementary school when she had scarlet fever and the school made her burn all of her books. Her attachment to hardback books goes deep. So, last week when we got on our plane to Chicago, she handed me one of her spare books: “Nutshell” by Ian McEwan. She said, “Here, read this.” I already had my own books, but I put it aside at the chance to read one of my mom’s. I started “Nutshell” on the tarmac at LAX and finished it when we touched down at O’Hare. I did look up once or twice for the snack cart, or to tackle the stewardess for another thimble-size glass of Chadonnay, but pretty much for the entire plane flight this book kept my attention, and that is impressive. This is the 17th novel from McEwan, a British novelist and screenwriter. He writes big books (think “Atonement”) and novellas (think “Chesil Beach.” Nutshell is one of his little books, but its plot packs a big punch when it tackles the story of Hamlet, told from an unborn fetus. Now let’s stop right here: I do not read books that are silly, zany or in the vein of fantasy or science fiction. I like real stories told by real people about real, concrete things. Give me a story set in an apartment in Brooklyn about a boy over a story set behind a fairy door about a woodland nymph, and I will take the Brooklyn boy every time. But “Nutshell” is not a fantasy or science fiction story. It is not zany. It is the real story about an unborn son who overhears his mother and her lover (his uncle) plotting to kill his father. McEwan said in an interview that the idea for this unusual narrator came to him when he was talking with his pregnant daughter-in-law. Then he immediately heard the first line of the book: “So here I am, upside down in a woman.” Plenty of authors have attempted to use the structure of Hamlet to frame their own stories. But I think “Nutshell” is one of the most creative books, unique and well-written books I have read in a long time. I gave my mom back “Nutshell,” and off she went with her Pierre Deux bag full of hardback books. To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

“Crazy Salad” by Nora Ephron

I am attending my 30th college reunion this weekend at Northwestern. I had not planned to attend this year, but knew my father was planning on going to his 60th reunion that same weekend. So after my dad passed away in July, my mother and I decided that we would all attend my 30th, my dad’s 60th and bring my brother along to celebrate his 25th reunion, all marked in 2016. It is very efficient when all of your family members attend the same school because you can save on airfare. And, in fact, my daughter Charlotte is a junior at NU right now. So when thinking about the LLP this week, I wanted to recommend a book that meant something to me in college. I immediately thought about how reading Nora Ephron’s “Crazy Salad” changed my thinking about personal essay writing. In particular her essay called “A Few Words About Breasts” appeared in the 1975 “Crazy Salad” collection and is one of the best pieces of writing I know. When I first read this essay in college it broke my world apart in the best possible way. It made me realized that you could write confessional essays that were also intelligent, funny, whimsical, painful and smart. When I sat down to write this review I sent a text to my daughter and wrote, “Is Nora Ephron at the top of your list of the best writers ever?” Charlotte texted back, “Sort of… Kind of… No, wait, not at all.” This made me come unglued. What?! How is this possible? Just because Ephron died in 2012, way too soon, why are millennials not devoted to her books? So to solve this problem, I am bringing a copy of “Crazy Salad” to Northwestern this weekend and giving it to my daughter. Hopefully she will read it or at the very least use it as a drink coaster or doorstop. But the point is that I want my daughter, who writes beautifully, to be inspired by the work of a woman who gave me the confidence to try to write personal stories all my own. To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

“The Hopefuls” A novel by Jennifer Close

Jeff has a girlfriend and her name is Rachel Maddow. I’m not insane with jealousy yet because she only lives inside the television but still she is in our living room all the time. A devotion to watching political commentary is one thing that my first and second husbands share. Bill was obsessed with politics when we were first married and watched the Chicago City Council on television late until the night. Jeff stares as Rachel Maddow like she is a goddess giving the hands-down best sermon that was ever delivered. He smiles like a Cheshire cat when he is listening to her. I could be doing a poll dance and he would not notice. I have always felt like a fan on the outskirts of politics. I have always voted and hold strong opinions on the important issues, but I have never wanted to be a political insider or live in Washington D.C. “The Hopefuls” by Jennifer Close is a novel about just that: The people who run for public office and rule Washington D.C. This novel is smart, funny, insightful and real. It is the story of a young wife named Beth who follows her politically ambitious husband, Matt, to live in the capitol. While her intention is to sit on the sidelines as an observer, she gets drawn into the sexy political vortex when her husband befriends a rising star named Jimmy and his wife Ashleigh. When Matt decides to run Jimmy’s campaign, the four become inseparable, and even move in together. I have read far too many novels about Hollywood and New York, so a glimpse inside Washington D.C. felt refreshing. “The Hopefuls” offers a look inside another town with bells and whistles all its own. I found this book especially gratifying to read during an election year when the shenanigans of politics are ruling the airways.  To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

“Where The Light Gets In” by Kimberly Williams-Paisley

 We flew to Connecticut last week to celebrate the life of Sue Mackay Morris, Jeff’s mother, who died two weeks ago after a 13-year battle with Alzheimer’s. She was a devoted mother, an avid golfer and the author of a chocolate chip cookie recipe that is revered in her family. I was lucky enough to meet his mom several times, but unfortunately not before she had the disease. When I first met Jeff six years ago he told me his mom had Alzheimer’s, and later wrote his mom a letter saying that “My new girlfriend Lori hikes a lot and eats a lot of vegetables,” which was odd but quite accurate. He told me his mom had Alzheimer’s the first day we met in Mill Valley, and immediately I felt connected to him because my grandmother had had the disease as well. It is a cruel condition for any family to face because your loved one is right there in front of you, even free for you to hug, but their mind is a wooly mess of confusion and frustration. Throughout Sue’s disease, Jeff and his siblings supported, protected and loved their mother at an exemplary level, graciously managed by Jeff’s sister, Jen. “Where The Light Gets in,” by Kimberly Williams-Paisley, is book written by the film and television actress about her mother’s own struggle with a rare form of dementia called, Primary Progressive Aphasia (PPA). Diagnosed at the ago of 61, her mother, at first, hid the disease from everyone but her husband and three children. But gradually, as the family learned more about the disease and its downward spiral, they shared the diagnosis with others in order to gain strength and support. Much like Alzheimer’s, PPA slowly and steadily robs the patient of words, skills and memories. The tension levels can run high inside both the patient and the family caring for their beloved. Such routine tasks such as driving a car, dressing one’s self and eating a simple meal can become a nightmare for the patient and their family.  This book, however, demonstrates that even in the face of a devastating disease, a family can bond together to face and share the inevitable conclusion. The outcome cannot be reversed but the commitment to each member of the family can be strengthened. My dad had this book sitting on his desk when he died two months ago. I borrowed it to read on the plane to Jeff’s mother’s funeral, and I’m glad I did. It reminded me how terrible things can happen to any family, and how important it is to rely on each other to help you heal and get through to the other side. To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

“Year of Yes: How to Dance It Out, Stand in the Sun and Be Your Own Person” by Shonda Rhimes

When I was growing up, we had a television on the kitchen table where we ate all of our meals. The TV was not to the side of the table, and it was not attached to the wall above the table. It was right smack dab on top of the kitchen table and it was turned on for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and we loved it.  It was the early 1970s and some educators were starting to tout the evils of television for children, but not us. We celebrated television every day because our dad was a television producer and paid all of the bills that way. So you see when I was growing up television producers, show runners, network executives were rock stars in my eyes and they still are. “The Year of Yes” by Shonda Rhimes is a memoir written by one of the most successful television producers and writers of this decade or any decade. I remember how hard my dad worked when he had three of the top shows on television, and Shonda has that claim to fame as well. Her top-rated and well-respected shows like “Grey’s Anatomy, “ “Scandal,” “How To Get Away With Murder,” and “Private Practice,” catapulted her to the kind of success everyone in Hollywood craves. However, despite her accomplishments, she was plagued by panic attacks, anxiety and a struggle to lose weight. In 2013, her sister presented her with an interesting insight when she said, “You never say yes to anything.” Sondra took this as a personal challenge and for one year she tried to open herself up to life and say yes so everything that scared her. The benefits of her experiment were more plentiful that she ever could have imagined. She spent more time with her three children. She was able to walk away from toxic relationships and people who fatigued her. She lost more than 100 pounds, and was able to keep it off. Part memoir, part self help book, “The Year of Yes” is an inspiring book about how to change your life for the better and make every single day count. Learning how to become a gladiator is not easy, but well worth the trip. To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

“Sweetbitter” by Stephanie Danler

My husband, Jeff, worked as a dishwasher, prep chef, line cook and sous chef before moving to California more than 20 years ago to become a software marketing executive. I often make him tell me stories about his career as a chef. This fascinates me because I am a big foodie. I love restaurants, reviews, menus, recipies and cookbooks of any kind. I keep lists on electronic stickie notes on my laptop that read “Places for Lori and Jeff to eat in Marin,” “Places for Lori and Jeff to eat in San Francisco,” and places for “Lori and Jeff to eat in Oakland.” It doesn’t matter that we never go to dinner in Oakland, what matters is that I have collected the hottest restaurants in each of these cities on my list, because I am a foodie. “Sweetbitter,” the debut novel by Stephanie Danler, is the perfect book for a restaurant-loving reader, or anyone who enjoys reading well-written, coming-of-age stories. Danler once worked at New York City’s Union Square Café, so her novel is based loosely on first-hand, behind the scenes restaurant experience. Her main character Tess is hired to be a “backwaiter” and her role is a metaphor for anyone who has ever felt like the new kid on the block in a neighborhood of bossy veterans. If, while reading this book, you wonder if Danler’s portrayal of restaurant life is realistic, wonder no further. Chef Gabrielle Hamilton (who wrote the fabulous “Prune,” and “Blood, Bones and Butter”) recently reviewed “Sweetbitter” for “The New York Times” and said the author did an “outstanding job” and called the book “brilliantly written.“ This book is just a sexy, smart and satisfying read from beginning to end. I look forward to seeing what Danler comes up with next. When I finished the book I was left with just one question: Who will play Tess in the film version? The author just signed a six-figure movie deal.  To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

“The Arm: Inside the Billion-Dollar Mystery of the Most Valuable Commodity in Sports” by Jeff Passan

When I was still in elementary school, my dad told me to learn about baseball because it would help me with dating. I thought that was a pretty strange thing to stay to a fourth grader, but it turns out dad was right. Knowing about baseball, understanding the game, who plays it and who is best at it, has been extremely helpful in dating and in life in general. I started as a Los Angeles Dodger fan, and later my allegiance morphed to the Cincinnati Reds bonding together with my Ohio relatives. I then dabbled a little with the Milwaukee Brewers and Chicago Cubs, and finally settled into my now 27-year-devotion to the San Francisco Giants (which has been inherited by both Charlotte and Lily, who are perhaps the greatest Giants fans ever.) Part of being a baseball fan, is understanding the problems in the sport. Pitchers are baseball’s rock stars, making millions of dollars, and sometimes they get hurt. “The Arm” by Jeff Passan is an investigative piece into the fragile nature of every pitcher’s arm. There’s a tiny ligament in the arm that is prone to injury and when this happens pitchers, from little league to the major leagues, rush to the only possible solution: Tommy John surgery.  It can take nearly a year to recover and rehab from the operation and has been performed on some of my favorite players, such as closers Rod Beck, Robb Nen and Brian Wilson. Passan, the leading baseball columnist for Yahoo Sports, examines the epidemic surrounding the surgery, why it is happening and where it is headed. If you are not a baseball fan already, this book will appear too technical. But if you are a fan of the sport, this book will offer you a fascinating perspective into America’s favorite pastime. To purchase this book on Amazon click here.