Mennonite in a Little Black Dress

Mennonite in a Little Black Dress by Rhoda Janzen



My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is an incredible book -- one of those rare finds for me that is a memoir, but much more. Janzen shares her childhood memories of growing up in the Mennonite culture, with all of the wonderfully funny and strange tales of Sunday school, family trips, school lunches, and coping with parents who took thriftiness to the extreme. She also takes a very painful and honest look at her own journey in life--marrying a man struggling with depression and diagnosed as being bipolar. He was not only not Mennonite, he was not religious in any way and ultimately left her for a man he met online named Bob.

In a very wierd way, I could really relate with her life, having grown up in a fundamentalist home with a long list of "Thou shalt nots." I married a minister and had two children; I also became a licensed minister, and then my life fell apart. While my ex-husband did not leave me for a man named Bob, I was just as shattered as Rhoda sounds in this book. Like her, I was blessed with friends and family who helped me heal, and helped me raise my two beautiful children.

Janzen writes about teaching and writing, food and sex, grief and longing, childhood passions and terrors, truth and God and doubt and redemption. I may not make any of the recipes included at the end of the book, but I felt satisfied all the same.

You can find Mennonite in a Little Black Dress on the New Fiction shelf.

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c Waterloo Public Library 2010

Extracurricular Activities by Maggie Barbieri

I discovered Extracurricular Activities before reading the first book in the Alison Bergeron mystery series; however, you can certainly enjoy this book without reading the other one first (Murder 101). In the first book, we met Alison, an English professor at a private Catholic college in New York. She has divorced her perpetually unfaithful husband, Ray, and is moving on with her life. Her two best friends are Kevin, a priest at the college, and Max, her former college room mate.

When one of her students was found dead in Alison's stolen car, Alison and Max met two NY detectives, Bobby Crawford and Fred Wyatt, who were investigating the case. Fortunately, Alison was able to clear her name and she and Bobby became better acquainted. So did Max and Fred--as the second book opens, they are planning their wedding. In contrast, Alison is trying to figure out what to do about Bobby: while he is separated, he is still married and she tells him that she cannnot be in a relationship with him.

However, she comes home one day to find her ex-husband waiting for her in her kitchen. When she discovers that he's dead, she calls the police--and later, Bobby. It becomes clear that someone wanted to make her look guilty. As Alison and Bobby try to reach a compromise someone takes a shot at her outside a restaurant. Although her wound is not serious, it requires stitches and care; Bobby stays with her and helps to take care of her.

In the aftermath of his death, Alison finds out about yet more of Ray's affairs--including one with the next door neighbor and one with with his students named Julie. Suddenly there seems to be a whole list of suspects. When Peter Miceli, local mob boss, confronts her with yet another ugly story, it is almost more than she can bear--he is the father of Kathy, the girl found dead in Alison's car. Now Peter tells Alison that his daughter was also pregnant and he suspects that Ray was the father. Alison knows that this cannot be true: she had discovered that Ray had secretly gotten a vasectomy, knowing that she wanted children. But she cannot seem to convince Peter.

Max and Fred get married, with Alison and Bobby as witnesses. Bobby's wife tells him that she will give him a divorce--that it is time for them to each move on.

There are more twists and turns before the last page: I will let you enjoy them for yourself. This is a book that is at points funny, suspenseful, touching, and thoroughly enjoyable. However, the newly single Alison gains a roommate in this story: the next door neighbors leave town suddenly and leave behind their dog, Trixie.


c Waterloo Public Library 2010

The Guernsey Literary & Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer

My Hawkeye Book Club recently read the book The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, written by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows. For clarification, Mary Ann wrote the book; when she became ill, Annie, her niece, did the rewrites at the very end. This book has a clever title but it is also wonderful writing: it consists of a series of letters written by a group of residents on Guernsey Island to a writer named Juliet. It takes place during the aftermath of World War II.

Juliet has written a book and started to do the book tour for it; she is already trying to come up with her next project when she gets the first letter from Guernsey. A man named Dawsey found a book by Charles Lamb that she had once owned; he wants her to know how much he enjoyed it, and could she help him find more by Mr. Lamb? When she supplies him with more books, their friendship is established. Soon, more residents are writing Juliet and telling her their stories of survival during the long period of occupation by the German soldiers. As each new writer tells his or her story, the reader is drawn further into the present day experience.

We also learn more about Juliet; she is an orphan and her two dearest friends are Sophie and Sidney (who are brother and sister). She met them as a young girl when she was sent off to a boarding school. Now, Sidney is her editor and Sophie has married and had a child.

Juliet becomes so intrigued that she soon plans a trip to the island; she wants to meet these wonderful people. She feels that she has already gotten to know them (and so has the reader). When she arrives, she stays in a little cottage owned by the absent Elizabeth--who was taken prisoner by the Nazis and sent off to a prison camp. Her friends --and young daughter, Kit--are waiting for her return. Juliet discovers that Kit's father was a German officer, a doctor, and that he, too, was sent off to a prison camp. Unfortunately, his ship sank and he drowned. Elizabeth's friends care for young Kit in her absence: they take turns taking her to one of their homes. However, Kit warms up to Juliet and they bond.

I did not expect to enjoy this book; however, I found it tremendously compelling. My husband and I were on a vacation, and I read chunks of it out loud to him while we were driving up to South Dakota. Not to sound trite, but I found myself laughing, crying, and re-reading a number of the letters. Not only was this an amazing read, it also made me realize how little I knew about the Nazi occupation of the islands so close to France and England. I want to read more and learn more about this almost forgotten aspect of the war.

Not only do I recommend the book, I urge you to read it. You can find it in the Adult Fiction, Large Type and CD Book collections.


c Waterloo Public Library 2010

Murder 101 by Maggie Barbieri (2006)

This spring I discovered yet another mystery series featuring an English teacher at a small college: Maggie Barbieri focuses on Alison Bergeron, who teaches at the same small Catholic college she once attended. I read her books out of order: Murder 101 is the first one. Alison has two best friends: Kevin is a priest and works at her college; Max is a very glamorous, worldly woman and her old college roommate.

She has recently gone through a divorce; her husband Ray teaches at the same college, and while he seems to be a handsome, friendly man he has a problem with monogamy. He has never been faithful and Alison can no longer tolerate it.

As the story begins, Alison's car gets stolen--which seems frustrating enough. Then, one of her Shakespeare class students is found dead in the trunk. She gets interrogated by a pair of police detectives and when one of them shows her the pictures of the dead girl, she throws up on his shoes. Detective Bobby Crawford is a smart man and decides she is probably innocent; however, his partner, Fred Wyatt, seems to be a little tougher. Alison soon decides that she has to find out who did this to clear herself, and her friend Max offers to help.

I liked the little details about the college, some of the description about Alison's relationships with her colleagues as well as the details about her classes. Of course, the developing friendship/romance with the very hunky Detective Crawford also adds to the storyline--as does her boss, Sister Mary, and Gianna, Alison's former classmate whose father is in the mob. If you like mysteries with an academic twist and great characters, and have a slightly twisted sense of humor, you will like this series. Alison is no Wonder Woman; she is flawed, stubborn, and really needs to eat more fruits and vegetables, and buy comfortable shoes. However, she cares about her college, her students, and her friends and as a character she grows on you!

You can find Murder 101 in the Mystery area of the Waterloo Public Library.

c Waterloo Public Library 2010

Murder Between the Covers by Elaine Viets

Imagine my delight when I discovered yet another book by Elaine Viets in the Dead End Job series. Murder Between the Covers picks up from where Shop Till You Drop leaves off; after leaving the job at the elite dress shop, Helen found a job as a clerk at a popular local bookstore, Page Turners. She makes friends with a few of her coworkers but cannot stand her boss, who drinks heavily, is a womanizer, and treats his employees poorly.

While the store where she works seems to be making lots of sales, several long time employees are upset by rumors that other stores are closing. It doesn't make a lot of sense to anyone. Then, the boss is found dead--and in Helen's friend Peggy's bed.
Soon, Peggy is in jail and Helen is determined to clear her friend's name.

I loved this book: the interactions with her coworkers is much more enjoyable in this book than the previous one. Helen has also gained more confidence in her abilities to take care of herself and help her friend. Having spent a lot of time in bookstores, I've seen a few people who look like the regulars described in the book, so that added to my enjoyment. Helen's friendships with Margery, Peggy, and Sarah also contribute to the book.

You can find Murder Between the Covers in the Mystery section of the Waterloo Public Library.

c Waterloo Public Library 2009

Shop Til You Drop by Elaine Viets

One of my favorite new series is the Dead End job series by Elaine Viets; she does a great job of describing the types of low paying jobs that so many people have done. Shop till you Drop (2003)is one of the earlier books in the series; Helen has only lived in Florida for a few weeks, and has not forged the close friendship with her landlord, Margery, as well as other tenants, but it begins to happen in this book.

Helen left behind her high paying job, nice house, expensive car and clothes--and cheating exhusband--when a judge ordered her to pay half her earnings to Rob at their divorce hearing. She fled St. Louis and ended up in Florida with a suitcase of cash, a few clothes, and settled into a quiet life of working minimum wage jobs. She found a modest furnished apartment at the Coronado, an old apartment building owned by Margery, a tough old woman with a keen eye, lots of brightly colored clothes, and a very big white cadillac.

Helen found a job as a sales clerk in a very exclusive shop: it is so elite that the door is locked to keep out the tourists and riff raff. Only the worthy--the thin and fashionable and wealthy--are admitted through that door by the thin and snobbish manager, Christina, who treats some of the customers as if they were her best girlfriends. She starts to notice some strange things at the shop, and isn't sure what is going on--she overhears some conversations suggesting that Christina is giving customers tips about plastic surgeons, illegal alien maids, and hit men for ex-boyfriends. Then Christina goes on a trip, leaving Helen in charge, and things get really strange....

Helen's budding friendships with her landlord Margery, one of her neighbors, Peggy, and Sarah--a former tenant, seem to be in sharp contrast with the relationships in her former life in St. Louis. She seems to have been a high achieving, hard working woman whose busy life left her little time for friendships, and kept her from seeing her husband's infidelity.

You'll like the series, and you will enjoy this book. You can find Shop Til You Drop in the Large Print area.

c Waterloo Public Library 2009

Crawlspace by Sarah Graves

(A Home Repair is Homicide Mystery).

Sarah Graves has created a very compelling set of characters in her series about Jake Tiptree, once a financial expert in New York, who then moved to Eastport, Maine to rebuild her life, along with her young son Sam. Jake occupies herself fixing up her old 1800s era house and has settled into the community, making friends and remarrying. Her best friend Ellie lives next door with her husband and daughter. Jake has married a wonderful man who works as a harbor pilot. Jake's father reappeared in her life several years ago and has recently married her housekeeper, Bella, who is a tough woman with a tender heart.

The most recent book, Crawlspace, focuses on Sam--who is now a young man. Jake is working on more home repair projects and begins to get strange threatening phone calls. In the meantime, a pair of visitors arrive in town: true crime writers who want to interview people about the recent murder of a wealthy woman. Carolyn is a beautiful, narcisstic young woman who has taken all of the credit for the hard work done by both herself and her assistant, Chip. They enjoy a meal at a restaurant and then have a drink at a bar. However, something goes wrong, and as they leave the bar, Chip goes ahead to get the car--and someone grabs Carolyn.

When she doesn't return to the hotel, Chip reports her missing to the police. Soon it becomes clear that Sam has also gone missing--he worked on the docks that night but never made it home. Chip sees Jake and the reader then learns of a connection in their past: Chip was sort of a big brother to Sam when they all lived in New York. Now Chip and Jake come to the same conclusion--Sam saw something down on the docks, and whoever kidnapped Carolyn probably also kidnapped Sam. It turns out that the writers had visited the bar owned by a man whose wife had just been murdered--the subject of their next book. Two local men (brothers) had married two wealthy sisters: now, both women were dead, and one of the brothers had mysteriously disappeared overboard on his lobster boat and was presumed dead. But was he dead?

Crawlspace, as many of her previous books, is tremendously difficult to put down; I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. You can find it on the New fiction shelf; I read the Large print version.



c Waterloo Public Library 2009

Cream Puff Murder by Joanne Fluke

Joanne Fluke's series, A Hannah Swensen Mystery with Recipes, is one of those enjoyable treats that I don't let myself sample too often. The series focuses on Hannah Swensen, a young woman who lives in Lake Eden, a small town in Minnesota, where she runs a bakery famous for its sweet treats, especially cookies. She has a hardworking helper in Lisa, a younger Sister Andrea who is a real estate powerhouse and supermom; Hannah also has a well meaning but rather overpowering mother, Delores. Hannah has two special men in her life: Norman is a typical midwestern nice guy who is a dentist, while Mike is a police officer. Most recently, I enjoyed reading Cream Puff Murder (2009).

Each one of the books in the series features a special treat: in this one, Hannah gets a recipe for cream puffs that her mother wants her to bake for an important party coming up. Delores has written a romance novel and is celebrating its publication with a big party. Unfortunately, Hannah's mother also expects her two daughters to wear special dresses that night and she has already ordered Hannah's dress in a size too small.

Hannah's sister Andrea has the solution to her problem and drags her to the local health club, where they work out faithfully. Hannah resists all treats, eats lots of salads and chicken, and tries to think positively--while her aching muscles remind her that they aren't used to exercise. As they continue going to work out, there is one negative aspect--a rude woman named Ronni who is described as a man-eating bombshell. She fills in for one of the instructors and spends the first few minutes insulting the various people in the class. Hannah finds out later that Ronni is flirting with most of the police officers, including Mike.

When Hannah bakes her first batch of cream puffs to test the recipe, Mike stops by and samples them; he likes them so much that he begs her to give him some to take to share with others, so she wraps them up. However, when Hannah and her sister go back to the health club, and Hannah goes to use the hot tub, she has an unpleasant surprise--first she sees her plate of cream puffs tipped over and ruined, and then she sees the body of someone in the hot tub. When she realizes that it is Ronni, she is no longer tempted by either cream puffs or the idea of soaking in the hot tub.

Since several of the officers were involved in some way with Ronni, they are off the case and cannot investigate. They all assume that Hannah will investigate and they send others with messages of how to best proceed to solve the case. Suddenly, the whole town is crowding into the Cookie Jar for treats and "the scoop" on what it was like to find Ronni's body.

This was another good read: Joanne Fluke is a good writer and blends midwestern humor, description of life in a small town in Minnesota, wonderful plots and dialogue into a satisfying treat.

While I got hungry for cream puffs while reading the book, I tried to ignore the recipes--you may well want to check them out for yourself. You can find this book several places in the Waterloo library: the large type books, the Playaway books, and in the mystery area.

c Waterloo Public Library 2009

The Mapping of Love and Death by Jacqueline Winspear

Maisie Dobbs is one of the freshest female characters I've discovered in the last decade, and ironically, her adventures are set in post World War I in England. Jacqueline Winspear has done painstaking research and created a rich, believeable world full of wonderful characters--with a few not so wonderful thrown in for good measure.

The latest story in the series, The Mapping of Love and Death (2010) is another outstanding read. I've remarked before on the substance behind each Maisie Dobbs tale: while they are set in a very different time span, there are remarkable parallels to our world today.

Maisie's world is coping with the aftermath of war, and the ravages of war in the lives of the soldiers who returned, the families of those who lost loved ones, and the overall sense of trying to return to normal while grieving. It is also a world filled with economic hard times, uncertainty, recession, and poverty.

As the story opens, it is 1932 and Maisie has now established herself as a private investigator--and more. She brings a deeply psychological approach to her work, and assisted by Billy, a WWI veteran who works with her, has had many successes. A wealthy American couple contact Maisie with a puzzle; the body of their son has just been uncovered in France, where he served with his Unit of mapmakers. Among his personal possessions were some love letters and documents; they want to find the person who wrote those letters. And so, the hunt begins.

This is another engrossing story, with several plot lines. Many of the characters introduced in earlier books are back: Maisie's dear friend Priscilla, her father, her mentor Maurice, and Lord and Lady Compton, once her employers and later her benefactors.

You can find The Mapping of Love and Death on the New Fiction bookshelf at the Waterloo Public Library.

You may also want to look at the author's website, which is fascinating and has more information about the series, the background/historical aspects, and the characters.

http://www.jacquelinewinspear.com/mapping-love-death.php






c Waterloo Public Library 2009

Can't Never Tell by Cathy Pickens

Cathy Picken's fans can cheer up -- just in time for summer, I found a new book in the Southern Fried mystery series, featuring small town lawyer Avery Andrews. Avery has gone home after experiencing a few set backs in her big city job; however, she seems to keep busy between cases and dealing with her family.

Can't Never Tell is the fourth book in the series, set in a small town in South Carolina. In this story, Avery attends a picnic with her sister's family; they are meeting a group of friends, mostly college teachers, at a local park by a waterfall. When one of the people at the picnic goes missing, and under mysterious circumstances, Avery finds herself enmeshed in the case. During the same week, she takes her seven year old niece to a carnival show that includes a haunted house--unfortunately, one of the exhibits turns out to be a very real dead man, and it is Avery and Emma, her niece, who make the discovery.

Soon Avery is hitting up her old high school friend for information; Rudy serves on the local police force and doesn't mind some companionship for lunch at the local diner.

The writing is funny, entertaining, and not too predictable. It was a good read for this teacher, weary from the end of the year grading and eager for some adventure.

You can find Can't Never Tell in the New Fiction bookshelf; I promise to return it shortly.

You may also want to check out the author's website, at http://www.cathypickens.com

c Waterloo Public Library 2009