Page 65 - Sonoma County Gazette - May 2019

Two Strong Women
pejorative but when the hero spreads honey on the heroine’s chest so he can lick it off and the sky bleeds pink and blue, one becomes quite aware of the genre. Scottish author, Jenny Colgan is known for writing romantic comedy fiction and, ironically, she also pens for the Sci-Fi series Dr. Who! Where the Crawdads Sing is number one on the New York Times best-seller list. Author, Delia Owens, already a respected contributor to naturalist non-fiction has a doctorate from U. C. Davis. Her story is far more layered and nuanced her prose is elevated and at times even lyrical. However, both ladies give us a protagonist of mettle reminiscent of those steel magnolias.
By Diane McCurdy
The Little Beach Street Bakery is chick lit and that is not necessarily a
Pity poor Polly’s plight in the “Bakery” book. The business she was involved in fell victim to the recession and her boyfriend ran home to his mother. Polly is left homeless, jobless, and almost penniless. She bunks for a while with her flamboyant friend, Kerensa, and then rents a dilapidated cabin located on a very, small coastal island that is unreachable at high tide. She eventually uses her skills
Where the Crawdads Sing is a coming of age story, a love story, a courtroom drama and a murder mystery. Kya , the lead character is a semi-feral , wild child in the marshes of North Carolina when we first meet her. She has been abandoned by her mother and her older siblings and her alcoholic father is mostly absent. The locals further isolate her treating her as something weird and sub-human. Befriended by Tate, a young man who teaches her to read, she is forsaken once again when he leaves for college. Then she is romanced by the town Lothario who tries to rape her. Later his body is found. Did Kya kill him? Tate does return and Kya because a self-taught, published naturalist. A selection of the Reese Witherspoon Book Club which encourages female writers, the story will also be filmed by Reese’s production company.
Kya and Polly are both resourceful and determined young ladies. Both are resilient and acutely attuned to the natural world, Polly with her bees and birds and Kya with the denizens of the marsh. Life gave them both lemons and they made lemonade.
at baking not only to support herself but to integrate herself into the town’s community which includes
a odd cast of characters the most interesting of which is a bird, a Puffin called Neil. Looming in the background is a hunky American bee keeper. The whole plot culminates
at Kerensa’s outrageous Star Wars themed wedding. The first part, when Polly is striving and surviving is best. The last part descends too far
HIGHLIGHTS at our Libraries - sonomalibrary.org
ABCmouse is an interactive learning resource for children ages 2-8. Practice literacy skills, explore math concepts. Families can use ABCmouse from home on nearly any device or computer. Once an account is checked out to a family they can track progress, check it out again if needed and also download additional ABCmouse apps that can be used offline.
Sonoma County Library is looking to hire a teen between the ages of 16-19 who reflects the diversity of our community for an exciting paid internship! This summer, our III intern will work with mentor staff in the Sonoma County History & Genealogy Library, a community resource that manages local history and genealogy collections located behind the Central Library in downtown Santa Rosa. Applications due by May 7, 2019
PAID TEEN INTERNSHIP opportunity at the Library
The intern will be paid $15/hour APPLY @ sonomalibrary.org/iii
into soap opera with dialog that is way too cute. But as a redemptive bonus, there is an addenda of several pages of recipes.
SEARCH Diane McCurdy on our website for DVD/Film and BOOK Reviews: www.SonomaCountyGazette.com
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