“Nevertheless” by Alec Baldwin

I have not lived in Hollywood for many years, but back in the day I could be quite a name-dropper. Julia Roberts and Richard Gere danced together for the first time at my wedding in 1989. I hung out with Natasha Richardson when we were both pregnant. And I once served Pasta Pomodoro on my fine china to Anne Hathaway at my Sea Cliff house and pretended I had made it myself. I confess this to say that I appreciate people who are name-droppers because, more often than not, they are very good storytellers. Alec Baldwin falls into this category. He is a master of the good story and if you have not listened to his podcast “Here’s The Thing,” stop right now, switch apps and listen to a few episodes. “Nevertheless,” his recently released memoir, is filled with interesting stories about his career – from his early years on the soap opera “The Doctors” to his more recent work on “30 Rock” and, of course, his 17 appearances on “Saturday Night Live.” He talks about actresses he admires such as his co-stars Julie Harris in “Knots Landing” and Mary Louise Parker in “Prelude to A Kiss.” He writes about his bouts with booze and drugs, his father’s death and his mother’s depression. And he even reflects honestly about his tumultuous marriage to Kim Basinger and their custody fight that included the notoriously vicious voice mail message to daughter Ireland. Today, you find Baldwin is beyond content in his new marriage to wife Hilaria and grateful for their three children. You are left with the sense that this is a very smart, articulate, well-connected man who has enjoyed an incredible career well-worth writing about, and name-dropping about. Nobody is perfect, but Baldwin handles his successes and failures deftly. To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

"The Complete Works of Sam Shepard"

My first loves were Bobby Sherman, Richard Gere and Sam Shepard in that order. I was sitting on a mountaintop in Carmel when I learned the news of Shepard’s death last weekend at 73 years old, and I let out a gasp. How could this be? He was not even old. When I read it was from Lou Gehrig’s disease my heart sank even lower. What a terrible way to die at any age. While his death took me by surprise, my devotion to Shepard is no surprise at all. My dad taught me to love men who could not just do one job, but do all the jobs. Shepard was an exemplary hyphenate. He wasn’t just one of America’s finest playwrights, he also was one of our most charming and beloved actors and even a director, too. I used to watch him on the red carpet with his partner of 30 years, Jessica Lange. He would move through the parade of stars and I would think, “He is the one I want to interview.” I just knew that Shepard would be the coolest person in any room. So how can I just recommend one of his plays? Is “Buried Child” better than “True West?” Or is “Fool for Love” better than “A Lie of the Mind?” The truth is that he was a master storyteller and all of his works are important, daring, significant and part of his legacy. So I suggest starting one at a time, and reading them all. R.I.P Sam Shepard. To purchase a book containing the works of Sam Shepard on Amazon click here.

“On Living” by Kerry Egan

Jeff calls this column Lori’s Library Party about books of death and dying. He thinks many of these books are too sad, but these are the books that interest me. I’m over reading about early childhood education and how to raise young children with disabilities. I’m onto books about death and love. Dealing with the dying is also a job for me. At the hospice where I work, patients are cared for at their homes and in facilities by a trans-disciplinary team comprised of a doctor, team leader, nurse, home health aide, social worker, volunteer and, if desired, a spiritual support counselor. This last role fascinates me the most because although each one of them has been trained in a specific religion, they offer their assigned hospice patient secular counseling. Even when facing death, some people don’t want a visit from a spiritual counselor, while others find it essential. “On Living” by Kerry Egan is a book written by a Harvard Divinity School-educated chaplain at a different hospice than my own, but I completely connect with the stories she shares about her experiences with hospice patients. Chaplains traditionally are trained to use their skills to teach and preach, but hospice faith counselors are not really afforded the time to do that. Instead they provide support, kindness, a peaceful presence and active listening. Jeff might think that this book is depressing but I found it the complete opposite. Her patients’ end-of-life stories are fascinating and at times uplifting and positive. More often than not, people who reach the end of their lives are not scared, nor afraid, as you might think, but sometimes even peaceful and triumphant. Through these stories I am sure that Egan finds working for a hospice as rich and rewarding as I do. To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

"Theft by Finding" by David Sedaris

When Jeff and I went to North Carolina on vacation in June, I took with me only one book. This is a first for me, as I typically bring at least two hard cover books on any trip, as well as additional books on my ipad mini, and audio books on my phone. However, on this trip I only took one book, and while risky, I had complete faith in my selection because David Sedaris wrote it. This is his ninth book and it is perhaps the finest one yet. I have, of course, read all of the other ones and can still remember laughing out loud at each one. But reading this book is like spending days on end with David Sedaris in your head. Every sentence, every paragraph sounds like his true and unique voice. The book is a compilation of diary entries from 1977-2002, a time period during which so much happened not only in David’s life, but also in the world. He is an intense observer of things close and far away. When we meet him in 1977, he is traveling and eventually settles in North Carolina. He smokes, drinks, does drugs and is beyond poor. But he finds the humor in nearly every situation, no matter how grim his circumstances. In an entry from 1982 he wrote, “My phone has been disconnected, so I called Southern Bell… The woman at the phone company addressed me as “Mrs. Sedaris” until I couldn’t stand it any more and corrected her. This always happens. They think I’m a woman—a woman named David.” Eventually he moves to Chicago to study art and becomes a teacher, and colors every class, every student and every experience in different shades of laughter. And then, finally, in the last chapters of the book he moves to New York, gets sober, writes an essay about being one of Santa’s elves at Macy’s, sells it to NPR and the rest is history. This book ends in 2002 when he is on a book tour, flying around first class, and eating in restaurants that serve “Baby Pasta Ears Listening to Artichoke” and “Grilled Prawns Frolicking on Polenta.” I can’t think of a better book to take on vacation, or to just read sitting in your kitchen in your pajamas. David Sedaris is just one of the funniest writers of our time, or any time. To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

"Walden, Or Life in the Woods” by Henry David Thoreau

Last Friday night Jeff and I went to see the “Summer of Love” exhibit at the DeYoung Museum. If you live in the Bay Area and have not seen it yet, you should go before it leaves August 20. It is well worth the trip to see art, fashion and rock and roll prints from the legendary summer of 1967. At the beginning of the exhibit there is a small case containing some of the iconic books from that summer. I was so happy to see one of my favorites, “Walden, Or Life in the Woods” by Henry David Thoreau, on display. I first read this book in high school and found it so difficult. I wanted to throw it across the room and never pick it up again because it was nearly impossible for me to understand. My dad would stay up late after work, even though he was tired from producing his televisions shows to help me make sense of it all. It was always one of his favorite books, and he wanted to connect me to it and him. I will never forget the time my dad gave to help me understand Thoreau’s work. This is not a linear story but rather sets forth a manifesto on how to live a different lifestyle than your average one. Beginning in 1845, Thoreau lived for two years on a lake in Concord, Massachusetts. A leading transcendentalist, Thoreau promoted a philosophy of simple living in the wilderness. He built a small cabin for $28, grew and sold his own vegetables and contemplated solitude, away from the modern (mid 19th century) world. Thoreau was a dedicated and highly discipline journal keeper who went to extraordinary lengths to write down his thoughts, observations and dreams. Today the word  “mindfulness” is thrown around as often as “avocado toast.” But in 1854, Thoreau published a book that embraced  true mindfulness and meditation when it was far from in vogue. In 1860, after an excursion to count the rings of tree stumps during a rainstorm, he died from a bout of bronchitis at the age of 44. “Walden” is not the easier book I have ever read, but it is one that has always stayed with me because it was a challenge, in the best possible sense of the word, and a gift of thought from my dad at the same time. To purchase this link on Amazon click here.

“Everyone Brave Is Forgiven” by Chris Cleave

Ten years ago my friend Page moved to London with her husband and three children. I was devastated. I was in the middle of a very complicated divorce, and Page was the most supportive new friend that I had made. I had just started to date again, moved into my first ever single girl apartment and was finally becoming the confident person I thought I was always meant to be. When she left she said we could stay in touch. But how, I wondered, by phone? The last good phone call I had was in 1982 with my high school boyfriend, and honestly he did most of the talking. I’m just not a phone person. Would we write? I am one of the world’s finest snail-mail correspondents (and do have several pen pals) but would Page write back? What about email? At the time she left in 2007 my dial up Internet was so slow that I could drink a full glass of white wine faster than I could connect to AOL. Then, something fabulous happened: The Internet got faster and better. Suddenly Page and I were emailing once a week, then twice a week, and then any old time we wanted. The point of this is to say that Page and I have not only stayed friends for 10 years, but I also am up to date on her job, her daily London walks and her reading. A few weeks ago she told me she was reading a book called “Everyone Brave Is Forgiven” by Chris Cleave. I had to read it, too. The historical fiction book takes place in London during World War II and follows the lives of three people: Mary, Tom and Alistair. Mary and Tom, both teachers, are far from the front line but right on top of it at the same time. While Alastair takes the more traditional road to war, he still is overwhelmed by obstacles. I have read many books about World War II but this one focuses on not only the effects of the war, but also the intimate relationships that were formed during a time surrounded by death, fear, hope and love. Well worth the read. Thank you, Page. To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

“Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka

My ankles look like my dad’s ankles. And I don’t mean just a passing resemblance. My ankles look exactly like my dad’s, and I always knew that when he was gone, looking at my ankles would make me sad. So I have worn a lot of socks and tights all winter and gotten by as best I could. But now it is summer time and I have to wear strappy sandals and face the facts. My dad passed away almost a year ago but there is still a part of him that will always be inside of me. In addition to his ankles, I also love to exercise as much as he did. And I covet any flavor of frozen yogurt, especially coffee, as much as he did. I want everyone to fall in love like he did. And I carry the same thimble full of patience as he did. Our biggest fear was being stuck in an airport without reading material. Garry and I also loved Franz Kafka. Many people didn’t know this about him but he loved not only Kafka, but also Albert Camus and Fyodor Dostoyevsky. Kafka’s novella “Metamorphosis” was one of our favorites. Originally written in 1915 in German, the story of how a traveling salesman woke up one day to find himself transformed into a giant beetle always fascinated my dad.  “I cannot make you understand, I cannot make anyone understand what is happening inside of me. I cannot explain it to myself.” More than 100 years after it was written, the story of Gregor Samsa’s transformation still seems modern. He is faced with juggling not only an angry boss but also his disappointed parents and beloved sister’s reaction. He struggles to maintain a life despite his condition until he can’t take it anymore. “He still saw that outside the window everything was beginning to grow light. Then, without his consent, his head sank down to the floor, and from his nostrils steamed his last weak breath.” This Father’s Day weekend I will be reading some Kafka, celebrating my dad, and appreciating my ankles and how strong they are. To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

“Someday, Someday, Maybe” by Lauren Graham

The summer of 1980, I was 17 years old and worked on the Paramount Studios lot for casting director Bobby Hoffman, one of the nicest men in Hollywood. My dad was making me take this job in Bobby’s office because he wanted me to see what he did for a living, and he thought Bobby could be my guide into his sitcom world. Bobby knew I had no interest in acting, but he generously taught me the ropes. He showed me how to comfort and greet the actors. He demonstrated how I should give them their “sides” or scripts for the scenes they would be auditioning for, and how to staple headshots to their resumes and say, “Mr. Hoffman will see you now.”  The summer turned out to be better than expected, but cemented the fact in my mind that being an actor is the scariest thing one would ever want to be. The fact that so many people aspire to such an overwhelming profession baffles me but Lauren Graham’s story is a testament that some do make it, and they make it big. The star of “Gillmore Girls” and “Parenthood” wrote this fictional story of Fanny Banks, an actress waiting for her big New York break in 1995. Franny describes her quest as  “Peering into the window of a party you have not been invited to.” In the last six months of a three-year-deadline, Franny dreams of having a career like her idols Diane Keaton and Meryl Streep. She waits tables at a comedy club, only gets auditions for dishwashing and peanut butter commercials and falls for a sexy-yet-slippery working actor. Despite the frustrations of feeling invisible, Franny makes herself memorable in a charming and smart way. I can only imagine that when Graham was sitting at her computer writing this book and mining her early acting days for stories, she did it with a big smile on her face. Maintaining your sanity and wit in Hollywood is no easy task but she seems to have done it brilliantly.  (In real life she is dating “Parenthood” co-star Peter Krause, which is just so cool, too.) To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

Siracusa by Delia Ephron

I like to wake up 7 days a week at 6 a.m. and go to bed by 10 p.m. My husband Jeff prefers to wake up as late as possible and stay up well past midnight. So almost every day there is at least an hour or sometimes two each morning when I am up alone writing or reading fascinating articles on my phone. The screen on my phone is so tiny, but sometimes the articles blow me away, as this “New York Times” article did: After 54 Years We Fell In Love. After Five Months I Got Leukemia by Delia Ephron. I read anything Ephron (Nora, Delia, Hallie and Amy), so of course I knew that Delia had lost her sister, Nora, and husband, Jerome within the last few years. However, I did not know that she had found love again. Since Nora died, I have been quietly studying Delia and loved her recent book “Siracusa.” She and her husband used to travel a lot with friends, and this novel is the story of two couples that travel together on a trip to Rome and Siracusa, Sicily. The characters include Michael and his wife Lizzie, and Finn and his wife Taylor and their 10-year-old daughter, Snow. During this trip the relationships between the two couples begin to unravel in a part-thriller and part-soap opera kind of way. The characters take rotating turns narrating each chapter while exploring the themes of marriage, passion, betrayal and aging.  The dynamic of the vacationing couples is forever altered when a new character arrives in Italy. Ephron makes a declaimer at the beginning of the book that this is a work of fiction. But then again, her sister Nora wrote “Heartburn” after her real life husband Carl Berstein had an affair. So there are always many different layers to any Ephron book.  Everything is copy. To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles

In September of 1986, I landed in London, England, to start a job at the publishing house Faber & Faber. I thought I had a room rental arranged, but when I showed up on the doorstep of the flat, the tenant knew nothing about a girl from California coming to live with him. With my plan in ruins, I scrambled to find temporary housing at a hotel, and that is how I landed at the Holiday Inn Knightsbridge. It was in that hotel where I spent the next two near-perfect weeks of my life. I worked in Russell Square in Bloomsbury during the day at Faber, and then at night took a tube and then a bus to my hotel. Once safe in my room, like a grown-up Eloise, I feasted on room service meals, perfectly chilled half carafes of white wine, and glorious hours of BBC programming. “A Gentleman in Moscow” by Amor Towles is the fictional story of Count Alexander Rostov, who was sentenced by a Bolshevik tribunal in 1922 to house arrest in the Metropol, an elegant hotel across from the Kremlin. His offense was writing a poem that the Boshevik’s found subversive. Instead of becoming Rostov’s prison, the Metropol becomes his safe haven and sanctuary. Within the walls of the hotel, Rostov transforms from an aristocrat who has never worked a day in his life into a real person – one with a room in the attic of the building and a job as a waiter in the hotel’s restaurant. His confinement morphs into an awakening for the Count who spends four decades inside this hotel, surrounded by food, wine, literature and stories. While Russian history takes place outside of the hotel, the Count makes the best of his situation, living out his life, making friends and even raising a child. His rituals become his salvation, and his charm infatuates every guest and employee in this wonderful book. To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

“The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl” by Issa Rae

When I was growing up in the San Fernando Valley in the late 1970s we had a television with a 10-inch screen on our dining room table. It was not hidden tastefully inside a pine armoire; it was smack dab in the center of the dining room table. We watched television during all of our meals because that is how our dad paid the bills, by producing shows like “The Odd Couple,” and “Happy Days.” It was not a mystery to us because he would say things like, “I sold a new show called ‘Laverne & Shirley’ today so Penny gets a job, your mother can buy that new roof she has been asking for, and I can buy a new basketball net.” Thirty years after I moved out of my parents’ house I am still celebrating television, and I appreciate when someone gets a hit show because they can then buy a new air conditioner. One talented newcomer to television is Issa Rae and her TV show  “Insecure,” which will enter its second season on HBO later this summer. Born Jo-Issa Rae Diop in 1985 to Senegalese-American parents, she burst on the scene first with her YouTube show “Awkward Black Girl,” which drew 20 million views and more than 260,000 subscribers. This book is about her life growing up in California and Maryland, going to several different private schools, and later to Stanford. She shares funny stories about her siblings, parents and the fact she always feels plus-or-minus 30 pounds. Her tales are quirky, self-effacing, and charming. She makes it cool to feel anxious and at the same time celebrates the insecurities inside all of us. Her memoir about wanting to fit in, but always feeling uncomfortable and different, is a triumph of spirit, color, gender and humor. My dad always said in order to truly become a big success in television; you have to learn all of the jobs and become a writer, producer, director and actor. If that is the case, then Issa Rae is well on her way to a bright future in television and publishing. To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

“A Life in Parts” by Bryan Cranston

When most people see Bryan Cranston’s face they think Walter White from “Breaking Bad” the story of the terminally ill high school chemistry teacher who becomes a crystal meth king pin. I, however, think immediately of handsome Doug Donovan from “Loving,” because during the early 1980s ABC was my soap opera channel. No matter era you are drawn to when you see Cranston’s face, you have to recognize this is one incredibly intense, hard working actor. In “My Life in Parts,” Cranston details the dozens of other jobs he had in his life including paperboy, farmhand, security guard, hotel luggage handler and an ordained minister who married couples on Catalina Island. Raised in Hollywood with his brother and sister, Bryan’s mom was a radio actress and his dad was an actor and boxer who would eventually abandon the family. So Bryan’s drive to work while his dad never lived up to his full potential runs deep. Over the years he had been in dozens of movies and television shows including stand out roles in  “Seinfeld,” “The X Files” and “Malcolm in the Middle” before hitting the top with “Breaking Bad.” When the part was originally pitched to him the producer said his character was going to go from “Mr. Chips to Scarface” which piqued Cranston’s interest immediately. He is one of those actors who approaches each part in such an intense way that you can’t help but admire not only his talent but also his dedication and creativity. And, yes he is happily married too (to wife Robin for 28 years), which always makes the perfect end to any book for me. To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

“Texbook Amy Krouse Rosenthal” by Amy Krause Rosenthal

On March 3, 2017 the New York Times published Amy Krouse Rosenthal’s Modern Love column, “You May Want to Marry My Husband” in which she outlined her husband Jason’s qualifications and her plan to find him a new partner because she was dying. Jeff and I both cried when I read it aloud on a recent road trip. Ten days later, on March 13, Amy died of ovarian cancer at 51. More than 4.5 million people have read that column. If you have not read her Modern Love column, go there because it is heartbreaking but also so bold and brave at the same time that it will make you pause (for a long time) with admiration and awe. (And it turns out that Amy and I both shared the same Bay Area book agent, Amy Rennert, which made me laugh through my tears.) Amy K-R was a prolific author who wrote both children’s books and memoirs, so I am now trying to celebrate her life by reading all of these books. Published in August, 2016, “Texbook Amy Krouse Rosenthal” is a non-linear book that NPR called, “a noisy activity book for adults that is more Mad Libs than a memoir.” But the truth is that now that Amy is gone, this is a memoir in the richest sense of the word. The book is organized into academic chapter heads such as Math, Social Studies and Language Arts. She fills those chapters with whimsical musings on her life and the way words matter, though sometimes are confusing, too. Maria Modugno, editor at Random House said, “Amy ran at life full speed and heart first. Her writing was who she was.” There is a moment in this book when she ponders what her 80-year-old self will be like. It is sad that she will never know, but also hopeful, that she has left behind a legacy of inspiring and creative work. To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

“Hidden Figures” by Margot Lee Shetterly

I am not embarrassed to admit that when I was in high school I used to fall asleep during math. It was always right after lunch, the room was warm, and the minute the teacher started talking my head began bobbing. The only math I ever loved was geometry because I was quite good at making shapes and angles by wrapping colored rubber bands around nails hammered into a square board. But alas, I always knew I was not destined to be a math wizard like the women in “Hidden Figures.” I read the book by Margot Lee Shetterly because my mom told me to, and then I saw the movie. Both are very different but in their own ways each is brilliant. The book places the stories of many women working at NASA into a big historical context, while the movie focuses narrowly on the stories of three women who carpooled together. So while the book reads more like a university textbook, the movie offers an up-close-and-personal slice of what these women’s struggles were all about. I loved both because they compliment each other so well. The story of the African American female mathematicians who helped NASA enter the space race depicts not only the history of racism but also how women persisted through the ranks of a male dominated workforce. You wouldn’t think a story of this magnitude would have taken this long to come to light, but the truth is that before Shetterly’s book historians only thought a few black women were involved. It turns out there were hundreds. I suggest reading the book first and then seeing the movie. This sequence ensures that you will cry throughout the film as I did. The stories of the three women in the movie are groundbreaking and you just can’t help but tingle with goose bumps of pride and joy that they persevered and changed the world with math.  Quoting my favorite line from the movie, “ And yes, they let women do things at NASA and not because we wear skirts, but because we wear glasses!” To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

"Nine Women, One Dress” by Jane L. Rosen

I wore the same white lace Ann Taylor dress to my dad’s funeral that I had worn to my engagement party about one year before. I didn’t realize this until just the other day when I was getting milk from the refrigerator to put in my coffee. On our refrigerator in San Rafael, there is a picture of Jeff and I with my parents at our engagement party in May 2015.  I remember dad told a funny story about being from New York, like he always did. But by July 2016 my dad would be dead just three weeks before my wedding, and I would wear that dress just a week later as he was buried. The whole idea of me wearing a white dress at a funeral to begin with is odd. But I think I wore that white dress because I wanted to be peppy and not too sad, the way my dad would have asked.  I wanted to let him know that by wearing white, I was still going to get married and he would be there in my heart at the ceremony.  I went to an all-girls school that wore uniforms, which I loved, so fashion for me has always been as simple as a white dress, a black dress or maybe something as wild as dark blue.  “Nine Women, One Dress” is the story of a simple, yet classic and magical black dress that weaves together nine unrelated women. The concept is not rocket science, but the narrative is quite compelling and heart warming. The author Jane L. Rosen, who is a contributor to the Huffington Post, is not only a fan of the little black dress but also in love with New York City. This story celebrates the women’s hope and dreams in the book as well as the city itself. One of my favorite characters in the book is Felicia, who has been quietly in love with her boss for 17 years. She has one night to finally try to make her feelings known. I want everyone under the sun to have a partner, so the ladies in “Nine Women, One Dress” are my kind of women and this is definitely my kind of book.  To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

“The Writer’s Desk” by Jill Krementz

The apartment my family was listing on Washington Street sold last week, in lightening fast time thanks to the terrific Ana Dierkhising. The good news is that my mother was able to sell the apartment. The bad news is that after 21 years of writing in this apartment, I was forced to move my office. When my mom first bought the apartment, I wrote at a desk that pulled out from an armoir we ordered from the Horchow catalogue. But the truth is that after just a few years of sitting at a tiny armoir desk, I moved my writing supplies over to the kitchen table – a lovely Guy Chaddock square top. And it was a good thing I moved to a larger space because soon after I was joined at that table by my writing partner, Joe Bwarie. Together we wrote many  fairy tale plays that were later produced at the Falcon Theatre, where Joe is no co-artistic director. “The Writer’s Desk” by Jill Krementz is a photography book that shows famous writers at their desks. First published in 1996, my mom gave me this book as a gift that same year and wrote, “Thank you for writing a short, wonderful speech that made everyone happy, especially me.” The black-and-white book takes the reader on a wonderful journey into the lives of  many iconic writers. You can see Susan Sontag writing at a large dining room table, John Cheever with his smokes in front of a typewriter, Pablo Neruda writing by hand at his stately desk, Toni Morrison writing on her couch, William F. Buckley  Jr., writing in his car, and Catherine Schine writing in her bed. One of my favorite pictures is Tennessee Williams standing above his cluttered desk. He reported to the author that all he needs to write well is not a desk, but wine. In the end, It doesn’t matter where I sit when I write, it just matters that I have the time to write.  This week’s LLP was written in San Rafael on a butcher block island from Ikea. To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

“South and West” by Joan Didion

My dad used to buy me unusual presents. For example – my high school graduation gift was an autographed picture of Joan Didion. I framed the picture and the letter that came with it. She wrote, “Garry, I’m sorry this took so long… Simon and Schuster had just sent a little publicity glossy, and I was trying to find an actual photograph – this one is not very good but it is most definitely not a publicity picture.” It shows Joan, standing in Hawaii on a balcony on a very windy day. The picture and the letter remain among my most treasured things, and Joan is still one of my favorite authors. Her new book, “South and West” is one long essay about a road trip through the South, and another shorter essay about California, both taken from an old notebook of unpublished work. The first essay opens, “The idea was to start in New Orleans and from there we had no plan.” Joan and her late husband, John Gregory Dunne, then drove east through Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. In Clarksdale there was a lunch of, “fried chicken and gravy, white rice, fresh green peas, and a peach pie for dessert. The heat was so intense that the ice was already melted in the Waterford water goblets before we sat down at the table.” Typical Didion: Stunning and simple at the same time. In the second essay she set off to California to write about Patty Heart, but ended up doing other things. “I did walk across the Golden Gate Bridge, wearing my first pair of high-heeled shoes, bronze kid De Liso Debs pumps with three-inch heels.” This is a tiny book, one could read it in one hour. However, like all of Didion’s books, it leaves you with the sense that you love her writing, and would inspire you to read just about anything she wrote, even something as mundane as her supermarket shopping list.  To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

“Tell Me Three Things” by Julia Buxbaum

People who have known me since I was little will tell you three things: I am not a dog person. I am a full 10 minutes early to any meeting or event, no matter what the occasion is. And, I found my high school boyfriend the first day of Kindergarten. We held hands during folk dancing in the fourth grade, played Spin the Bottle in the 6th grade, and dated 7-12th grade until I went to college. I foolishly broke up with him my freshman year so I could date sweaty fraternity boys who threw up beer on my shoes. Today he is still a close family friend and has a delightful wife and family. My point is that I grew up never knowing what it was really like to experience the boy-girl, topsy-turvy drama of dating in high school. So this is one of the reasons I love “Young Adult” fiction, especially books like “Tell Me Three Things,” by Julia Buxbaum. My friend Kelly sent me a list of books you could read in 24 hours and this was on it. “Tell me Three Things” is the story of Jessie, who at the beginning of her junior year moves to Los Angeles from Chicago with her dad after her mother dies. Living in the house of his dad’s new high-powered wife, she leaps right into life at a prestigious L.A. prep school. On the first day she receives an email from an admirer calling himself “Somebody/Nobody,” who wants to help her navigate the tricky waters of this new school. Is he a friend or a foe? Their exchange of emails is smart, funny and fascinating. There are enough twists and turns in this novel to keep any reader entertained. I was just sad when the book ended because tales about high school are stories I just want to revel in over and over. To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

“32 Yokes: From My Mother’s Table To Working The Line” by Eric Ripert and Veronica Chambers

In the winter of 2007, around the time I filed for divorce after 18 years of marriage, something strange happened: I started loving eggs. It was not just a passing phase like, “I’d like two scrabbled eggs,” it was more like filing divorce unleashed an obsession inside of me that screamed, “Give me eggs! I need eggs! Lori needs protein!” And I had never ever been an egg person before. As my divorce began, I dabbled in poached eggs, three-egg omelets, over easy, sunny side up, over hard and even deviled eggs. Subsequently, every year I get my cholesterol checked and it stays the same. My passion for eggs is unparalleled. So you can imagine that when I saw a book called “32 Yokes” at the library, it jumped off the shelf into my arms.  I love a good foodie memoir and this is a great one written by Eric Ripert, whose restaurant Le Bernardin is know as the “Temple of Seafood.” He grew up in the south of France where he learned to cook from his grandmother. His parents divorced when he was 6 years old, and he moved to Paris at 17 to work at Le Tour d’Argent and later Jamin. He served in the French military and then at 24 moved to America. What I love about this book is that he makes a lot of mistakes. He spills things. He drops things. He cooks things badly before learning to cook them perfectly. He once put some ducks in the freezer without separating them and later was stuck with a giant ice block of frozen ducks, impossible to pull apart. Cooking is a metaphor for the struggles of life, and Ripert writes beautifully about both. Bon Appetit. To purchase this book on Amazon click here.

“A Short Life” by Jim Slotnick

When I went away to college I know my mother let out a deep sigh of relief. From birth to 18, I was a full time job for my mom. I had several car accidents with my raspberry 530i BMW. I had many parties on the family tennis court during which beer bottles were broken. And my crowning bad-girl moment occurred in the 8th grade when I phoned her to say I took a Quaalude and chased it down with a few shots of rum. So you can only imagine that when I got my act together and went to Northwestern in the fall of 1982 Barbara Marshall had a ton of time on her hands. So, she went back to work. A long time Registered Nurse, she had taken time off to raise her children (the younger two were much lower maintenance). She got a job at the LA Free Clinic (now called the Saban Community Clinic). At the clinic she met some wonderful people, including a health educator named Laurie. Thirty five years ago, Laurie fell for a UCLA medical student named Jim Slotnick. Shortly after they met, he was diagnosed with a rare brain tumor. Before he died he was able to write this powerful memoir. Recently Laurie and her husband Don, along with Jim’s brother and sister published “A Short Life” and you can buy it on Amazon. All proceeds from the book go to the Saban Community Clinic where there is a fellowship in Jim’s name. Every year Laurie gives the Slotnick fellow a copy of this book so they can get to know Jim. Like Paul Kalanithi’s “When Breath Become Air,” this is the story of a man who is learning about medicine while facing his own death at the same time. There is a rawness and vulnerability to this book that is heartbreaking yet also uplifting at the same time. Laurie recently created a Facebook page as a complement to the book www.facebook.com/AShortLifeJimSlotnick. Laurie said Jim’s philosophy was “love life and take nothing for granted.” A good take away for today and every day.  To purchase this book on Amazon click here.