Brittney's Review: Everything I Never Told You

Author: Celeste Ng
Series: None
Publication Date: May 31, 2015
Publisher: Penguin Books
Pages: 320
Obtained: Purchased
Genre: Literature
Rating: 5/5
Bottom Line: Emotional & tender – a glimpse into a family coping with grief
Grab, Just get it at the library, or Remove from your TBR list? Grab!

Summary:

“Lydia is dead. But they don't know this yet.” So begins this exquisite novel about a Chinese American family living in 1970s small-town Ohio. Lydia is the favorite child of Marilyn and James Lee, and her parents are determined that she will fulfill the dreams they were unable to pursue. But when Lydia's body is found in the local lake, the delicate balancing act that has been keeping the Lee family together is destroyed, tumbling them into chaos. A profoundly moving story of family, secrets, and longing, Everything I Never Told You is both a gripping page-turner and a sensitive family portrait, uncovering the ways in which mothers and daughters, fathers and sons, and husbands and wives struggle, all their lives, to understand one another. – powells.com

Review:

There is a reason this title was selected as a New York Times Notable Book of 2014.

After the death of their daughter, the Lee family goes through absolute hell in dealing with their loss. And as both police and family try to piece together details of Lydia's passing, the reader is left with many questions: How did she die? Who was at fault? Did Lydia want to die, and had she given up?

Celeste Ng weaves a story complete with flashbacks of James & Marilyn's first meeting, their marriage, their successes and failures. And over time, pieces of the puzzle slowly take shape. At first glance, you might think that Marilyn is living her life through her daughter, and pushing her too hard to fulfill her own dreams. By the end of the novel, the picture is clear: you'll never expect the ending.

A tale of heartache, overcoming grief, and how to move on, this book gets one of my few 5/5 scores. Don't skip Everything I Never Told You. Grab a copy and a comfortable chair and clear out your afternoon. You won't be able to stop after the page one.

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Alice's Review: Bread and Butter

Author: Michelle Wildgen
Series: No
Publication Date: February 11, 2014
Publisher: Doubleday
Pages: 336
Obtained: Publisher via Netgalley
Genre: Literature - Family Life
Rating: 4/5
Bottom Line: For foodies who like a little heart in their novels.
Grab, Just get it at the library, or Remove from your TBR list? Just get it at the library

Summary: Britt and Leo have spent ten years running Winesap, the best restaurant in their small Pennsylvania town. They cater to their loyal customers; they don't sleep with the staff; and business is good, even if their temperamental pastry chef is bored with making the same chocolate cake night after night. But when their younger brother, Harry, opens his own restaurant — a hip little joint serving an aggressive lamb neck dish — Britt and Leo find their own restaurant thrown off-kilter. Britt becomes fascinated by a customer who arrives night after night, each time with a different dinner companion. Their pastry chef, Hector, quits, only to reappear at Harry's restaurant. And Leo finds himself falling for his executive chef — tempted to break the cardinal rule of restaurant ownership. Filled with hilarious insider detail — the one-upmanship of staff meals before the shift begins, the rivalry between bartender and hostess, the seedy bar where waitstaff and chefs go to drink off their workday — Bread and Butter is both an incisive novel of family and a gleeful romp through the inner workings of restaurant kitchens. ~powells.com

Review:  Bread and Butter centers on three brother, each in the restaurant business.  Britt and Leo are owners of the established Winesap while youngest brother and prodigal son Harry returns to throw his hat in the business as well.  What ensues is drama that rivals any Chick Lit novel.  Actually, this novel reads a lot like Chick Lit even though the three main characters are men.

Each brother has likeable characteristics and each carries a very different story line.  Of the three, I like Leo the best.  He’s the stable brother, the one the others turn to for comfort and acceptance.  Britt is the charming one.  And Harry is the fun brother.  I enjoyed getting to know each of them.  I also enjoyed the restaurant setting.  Having worked in the business, I feel that Ms. Wildgen shows an accurate portrayal of what goes on behind the swinging doors.   She placed these characters in realistic situations.

What I found most interesting is that in writing the review, I had to adjust my rating.  The more I thought about it, the more I realized there were many hidden gems that I didn’t pick up while I was reading Bread and Butter.  I didn’t expect for it to be the kind of novel that I wanted to discuss and I sure do.  I want to know what others thought of the trials the three brothers faced.  Mostly I want to talk about the surprising romance that carried me through the novel.  I would love to discuss how we never know what demons others are facing, even when those others are our own flesh and blood.  I think Bread and Butter would make a perfect book club book.   

I do have one complaint.  I am of the school that believes why use a $10 word when a nickel word works just fine.    Bread and Butter is a $10 word novel.  At times, it comes across as pretentious and impersonal.  However, when she sets down her dictionary and gets out of her own way, Ms. Wildgen writes so beautifully that she makes lamb neck bones sound delicious and something I would love to try.

I recommend this novel but it’s definitely a borrow book. While not as hilarious as promised in the description, this is a great read if you are a foodie and love family drama as it has the perfect mixture of both.

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