I don’t seem to read many books about “elders” or “seniors”. Is that because there aren’t many? Or am I simply overlooking them? I should go talk to Ronni Bennett about this…
The Girls is a book I picked up at the Friends of the Library sale – I don’t know if it was in the spring or if it was last fall, I just know it’s been on the shelf for quite awhile. It probably would have stayed on the shelf for quite some time if Sassymonkey hadn’t put the “read 5 books you own but have never read” item on her summer reading challenge. That would have been a real disappointment.
I loved the whole Jewish/Miami/South Beach scene. I loved all four sisters. Flora reminds me a little of my grandmother, though even my grandmother wouldn’t have been that umm, interesting. Retirement villages, nursing homes, assisted living, assisted suicide with a little racial prejudice and religious stereotyping tossed in – all tough topics but the book, well, go read it and see what you think.
This is a totally different The Girls than I was thinking it would be. I thought you guys were reading the one about the conjoined twins.
You’ve done much better on your challenge than I have on mine.
There is a great (great) Dutch book about ‘seniors’ by Cees Nooteboom. It has been translated as “All Souls Day”. It’s been a few years since I’ve read it, but I still remember it as one of the highlights in Dutch literature.
Thanks Lies, I’ll see if I can find that.
Sassymonkey, I thought you were doing well – what happened? (You’re still reading more than I am anyway, I’m not getting nearly enough reading done, sigh.)
The NY Times Book Cover Blog was also talking about The Girls today, but it was the one sassy mentioned. Have to look for both of these.
http://nytimesbooks.blogspot.com/2006/08/girls-half-life.html
LOL this is definitely not the co-joined book, though that is on my reserve list. 🙂
Katie – I think you’d really like Lansen’s The Girls. It’s really quite good. And the feet really *do* make sense as the NYT indicates.
Denise – I was ok at the halfway point but I umm..faltered. Since then I think I’ve read 2 SRC books. Work got busy, I stopped sleeping. My concentration is still crap and work is going to get busier.