After her sly coming-of-age debut, “Prep,” and the snappy rom-com reinvention of “Romantic Comedy,” Curtis Sittenfeld returns with “Show Don’t Tell,” a witty, insightful collection of short stories delving into the terrain of middle age.
Across 12 sharp and engaging tales, Sittenfeld explores themes of marriage, friendship, ambition, and fame. Her characters contemplate life’s pivotal choices — is a reliable bland marriage practical or a quiet trap? Would a different decision at a past fork-in-the-road have led to greater fulfillment? The stories brim with reflections on identity, regret, and how we treat one another.
Sittenfeld deftly weaves in contemporary touchstones: tech fortunes, racism, the pandemic, divorce, and hypermasculinity — with humor and relatability. The final story revisits Lee, the protagonist of “Prep” who attends her 30th boarding school reunion — a classic venue for reflecting on what’s changed and what hasn’t. How has life measured up? “Show Don’t Tell” reaffirms Sittenfeld’s knack for capturing messy truths with lots of wit and charm.
Put “All the Other Mothers Hate Me,” by Sarah Harman, on your radar as an early beach read. This fast-paced, darkly funny thriller marks a highly anticipated debut novel — one already set for an FX streaming adaptation by “The Bear” creator Christopher Storer.
Harman introduces us to a compelling “heroine,” Florence Grimes — a former girl-band pop star scraping by as a single mom. Her career has ended, her choices remain questionable (often fueled by too much drinking), and she’s paying her bills by assembling party balloons for wealthy moms. The one bright spot in her life? Her 10-year-old son, Dylan, whose only friend happens to be the odd older man who lives across the street.
When Dylan’s classmate Alfie, heir to a frozen-food empire, goes missing, suspicion lands on Florence’s son. He was last seen with Alfie on a school trip, and his history of being bullied by the missing boy doesn’t help him. Even Florence is unsure of Dylan’s innocence. With no one to turn to, she needs to enlist other moms to find Alfie and uncover the truth before it’s too late.
Harman, who set out to write a mystery that’s “also a book about failure” and “mother-love that’s not a complete cheesefest,” succeeds in delivering a twist or two in this comedy about a kidnapping that’s primed for a sequel.
Allegra Goodman’s latest novel, “Isola,” was inspired by the extraordinary story of Marguerite de la Rocque de Roberval, a real 16th-century French noblewoman whose life takes a harrowing turn when she is abandoned on a small remote island in the New World.
Marguerite grew up a sheltered aristocrat, raised in a chateau under the care of her devoted nurse, Damienne. Her life is one of pearls, gowns, and servants — until she is 20 years old and, instead of arranging a marriage, her nefarious guardian, Roberval, takes her on his treacherous expedition to colonize New France, now Canada. When Marguerite falls in love with Roberval’s kind and intelligent secretary, the enraged Roberval reacts with cruelty. As punishment, he strands Marguerite, her beloved nurse, and her lover on an uncharted island, leaving them to fend for themselves against starvation, isolation, and the brutal elements.
Historical records of Marguerite’s fate are thin, with somewhat contradictory endings. Goodman’s elaboration on Marguerite’s two-year struggle is a gripping tale of resilience. She learns to hunt seabirds for food, confront the raw brutality of nature, and even kill and skin a polar bear. In this triumphant portrait of self-discovery, the once pampered Marguerite emerges a resourceful survivor with purpose.
Anne Tyler’s books have won a Pulitzer, been finalists for the National Book Award three times, and have been made into movies. At 83, and now living in a retirement community, the author clearly hasn’t retired from writing wonderfully quirky stories — the release of her 25th novel, “Three Days In June,” is proof of that.
During the three eventful days around a family wedding, Gail Baines, a prickly and eccentric assistant school administrator, loses her job after being told she has “no people skills.” Her ex-husband, uninvited and in need of a place to stay, arrives with a rescue shelter cat in tow. Meanwhile, a shocking secret about the groom threatens to wreck the big day, and forces Gail to reckon with a revelation about her own former marriage.
Tyler’s novels often feature socially awkward people in tangled relationships, as well as the ups and downs of families, marriage, and everyday lives that are human and recognizable to us all. “Three Days In June” is no exception — it’s tender, humorous, and full of compassion and hope for characters with muddled lives who forge on with grace.
