Well, I'm reporting about a book I did not finish. I used to finish every. single. book. I ever read, but about 10 years ago I gave up on that. If the book doesn't speak to me after about 50 pages, I'm out. I gave this book 64 pages. And then I gave up. The... Continue Reading →
I love reading Dorothy Whipple novels, and I wrote my Master's thesis on her book The Priory (1939), but for some reason, I didn't remember They Were Sisters (1945) even though I read it a few years ago. Rereading it was a pleasure, and it reminded me why I enjoy forgotten mid-century women's fiction. Luckily... Continue Reading →
I've failed this month. I've probably failed at more important things than reading the Literary Wives book pick, Anita Shreve's The Stars Are Fire (2017), but I always feel particularly melancholy when I don't hit my reading goals. My reading for the past two months has been dominated by academic journal articles and books about... Continue Reading →
About ten years ago, I was invited to an awkward dinner at my mother’s house to meet the children of her new husband, number three. They had met and married in a matter of weeks, and I felt the dinner was a farce. My husband, young daughter, and I attended reluctantly. Conversation felt stilted, and... Continue Reading →
Can marriage survive cultural expectations? That is the central question of Stay with Me (2017) by Ayobami Adebayo, the June 2018 read for the Literary Wives Series, hosted by these bloggers. Check out their posts on this book. Naomi of Consumed by Ink Kay of What Me Read Lynn of Smoke & Mirrors We attempt to understand and explore... Continue Reading →
I’ve always thought that Zelda Fitzgerald, wife of American author F. Scott Fitzgerald, was crazy. In a bad way. I dismissed her and often thought negatively of her. This point of view is usually reinforced by what I’ve read about her, mostly fictional appearances, like in The Paris Wife by Paula McLain. But thanks to... Continue Reading →
I began this novel with a sigh. After reading the first few pages, I thought, “Not another novel written from a female perspective that is all about how important her husband is.” I wanted to read something about an actual wife, not a wife just telling us about her husband. Well, it turned out that... Continue Reading →
American Housewife (2016), a collection of short stories by Helen Ellis, is the Literary Wives bloggers' pick for this month. It is witty, poignant, hilarious, dark, timely, and accessible. Please see more of the Literary Wives discussion at the following blogs. Naomi of Consumed by Ink Kay of What Me Read Lynn of Smoke & Mirrors Ariel of One... Continue Reading →
Is a good wife somebody who is exact in self-sacrificing and serving her family? Is a bad wife one who is crazy, perhaps while pursuing autonomy? These are the choices presented in the character of Marta Bjornstad in Emma Chapman’s How to Be a Good Wife (2013). We review this novel as part of the... Continue Reading →
A disobedient wife, in the context of contemporary Tajikistan, is a wife who wants autonomy and acts on it. The Disobedient Wife (2015), beautifully written if somewhat disjointed in the transitions through time, is a strong statement of what women need and want in order to exercise their agency. We see this theme through the... Continue Reading →
The Bookshelf of Emily J. 