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with lady di christian dior destiny by marie france pochna in 1947 when christian dior s model spun her wasp waisted skirt and tipped a hat over one eye the iconic designer became an instant celebrity his groundbreaking new look was quintessentially parisian the perfect combi nation of fanciful and elegant that glorified the female form and seduced his international clientele yet it was by mere chance that dior hapless in the face of personal and professional tragedy met a friendly priest who helped him to rebuild his faith and to find the strength to chart his glorious destiny he went on to upend the downtrodden postwar era with his joie de vivre and his pursuit of a single goal to make women not only more beautiful but happier through the proportions of his marvelous designs and a color palette that reflected the parisian sky today the legacy of this witty yet staunchly private man shines on as his intuitive creativity continues to inspire the house of dior s designers to reinvent the woman of tomorrow in the name of gucci a memoir by patricia gucci patricia gucci was born a secret the lovechild whose birth could have spelled ruination for her father aldo gucci it was the early 1960s the halcyon days for gucci the must have brand of hollywood and royalty but also a time when having a child out of wedlock was illegal in italy aldo couldn t afford a public scandal nor could he resist his feelings for patricia s mother bruna the paramour he met when she worked in the first gucci store in rome to avoid controversy he sent bruna to london after she became pregnant and then discretely whisked her back to rome with her newborn hidden from the italian authorities the media and the gucci family in the name of gucci charts the untold love story of patricia s parents relying on the author s own memories a collection of love letters and interviews with her mother as well as an archive of previously unseen photos she interweaves her parents tempestuous narrative with that of her own relationship with her father from an isolated little girl who lived in the shadows for the best part of a decade through her rise as gucci s spokesperson and aldo s youngest protégé to the moment when aldo s three sons were shunned after betraying him in a notorious coup and patricia once considered a guilty secret was made his sole universal heir it is an epic tale of love and loss treason and loyalty sweeping across italy england and america during the most tumultuous period of gucci s sixty years as a family business thanks for visiting come back soon it s nice to share share on x opens in new window x share on x opens in new window x share on facebook opens in new window facebook share on linkedin opens in new window linkedin share on reddit opens in new window reddit share on pinterest opens in new window pinterest share on tumblr opens in new window tumblr share on threads opens in new window threads share on bluesky opens in new window bluesky print opens in new window print email a link to a friend opens in new window email like loading in case you missed them 6 months of book reviews july 12 2026 book club mom 29 comments it s hard to believe we are half way through 2026 and i ve read some great books so far in case you missed them here are my book reviews for the first half of the year close to death by anthony horowitz 4 5 stars i really enjoyed this clever murder mystery set in riverview close a small and exclusive locked gate neighborhood outside london it s full of interesting characters and plenty of red herrings to keep you guessing my brilliant friend by elena ferrante 4 5 stars great for readers who like sagas about families and friendship originally published in 2011 the book is the first of ferrante s four neapolitan novels spanning sixty years we begin at the end by chris whitaker 4 5 stars a terrific story set in the coastal town of cape haven california full of complex characters who must navigate the challenges of love family grief trauma and moral decisions the witch elm by tana french 3 5 stars standalone psychological crime novel set in dublin in this story the effects of post traumatic stress disorder influence the main character s ability to remember key events relating to a murder heartwood by amity gaige 4 stars suspenseful read about the search and rescue efforts of a missing hiker on the appalachian trail in maine the author combines the genres of a police investigation with an in depth look at marriage and family relationships and the story features several female characters who must face unresolved problems with their own mothers a very typical family by sierra godfrey 3 5 stars a quick and light read about estranged siblings who must come together to save their family home the author shows how even the most complicated relationship problems can be resolved the correspondent by virginia evans 3 stars epistolary novel about a bristly elderly woman who wants to be connected to others but can only do so through letter writing not my favorite but definitely readable and good for a book club behind closed doors by b a paris 3 5 stars domestic thriller about a woman who seems to have the perfect marriage but the truth of their relationship is locked inside their beautiful home a solid story that keeps moving a book you can read on a plane or the beach and not have to concentrate too much the rebel romanov julie of saxe coburg the empress russia never had by helen rappaport 4 stars narrative nonfiction about julie of saxe coburg how she fit into the romanov dynasty and what happened to her great for readers who like european history and royal intrigue marjorie morningstar by herman wouk 4 stars classic coming of age story about a young jewish woman who wants to be a broadway actress this was a re read from many years ago and i enjoyed it just as much the irish goodbye by heather aimee o neill 3 stars referring to the act of leaving without saying goodbye a story about confronting a family tragedy from years earlier an engaging plot and a good book for travel the woman in suite 11 by ruth ware 3 5 stars ware s follow up to the woman in cabin 10 set ten years later travel writer lo blacklock finds herself in a dangerous situation when she attends a grand opening of an exclusive luxury hotel in switzerland a page turner with plenty of bad decisions and red herrings wrapped up in conflicting loyalties and interesting moral questions isaac s storm by erik larson 5 stars terrific nonfiction narrative about devastating hurricane isaac in 1900 that demolished the fast developing city of galveston texas great for readers who enjoy learning about history and the people dealing with catastrophe among friends by hal ebbott 3 stars debut novel following the long friendships of two couples now in their fifties and their two teenage daughters everything changes when something really bad happens and the two couples must confront the multitude of negative thoughts they have been cultivating particularly when true personalities and selfishness come to light a marriage at sea a true story of love obsession and shipwreck by sophie elmhirst 4 stars excellent nonfiction account of a young adventurous couple whose boat sinks in 1972 they endure nearly four months in two rubber rafts while fighting starvation dehydration dangerous waters and intense feelings of depression and hopelessness a is for alibi by sue grafton 3 5 stars the first in sue grafton s alphabet series of detective novels featuring private investigator kinsey millhone in the fictional city of santa teresa california a fast and entertaining read saoirse by charleen hurtubise 3 5 stars story about a young artist sarah who escapes an abusive home in michigan and moves to ireland under an assumed name what will happen when sarah s past catches up to her london falling by patrick radden keefe 4 5 stars excellent nonfiction account of a teenage boy from london who died under strange circumstances in a fall off a luxury apartment balcony zac brettler s family learned that prior to his death in 2019 their nineteen year old son had been posing as the son of a russian oligarch and was navigating a dangerous underworld i hope you re having a nice weekend and have the chance to read something good thanks for visiting come back soon it s nice to share share on x opens in new window x share on x opens in new window x share on facebook opens in new window facebook share on linkedin opens in new window linkedin share on reddit opens in new window reddit share on pinterest opens in new window pinterest share on tumblr opens in new window tumblr share on threads opens in new window threads share on bluesky opens in new window bluesky print opens in new window print email a link to a friend opens in new window email like loading book review fox by joyce carol oates july 6 2026 book club mom 29 comments fox by joyce carol oates rating 3 out of 5 does anyone remember the book we were the mulvaneys i read it a long time ago when it was first published in 1996 and it was my first experience reading a book by joyce carol oates a highly regarded and award winning author she taught at princeton university from 1978 to 2014 and now teaches at rutgers university i don t remember a lot about we were the mulvaneys except that it was dark and depressing but good since then i ve read two other books by the author plus a short story and i would say that they have all been dark and deal with violence abuse and painful family issues oates is an excellent writer and that s what made me return to read her latest book fox published in 2025 fox is not a happy story and i had a hard time reading it because the author dives deep into sexual abuse and the mind of francis fox an eighth grade english teacher and a serial pedophile at a remote private boarding school in new jersey he s a charmer everyone loves him the headmistress is smitten even though he s a hard grader he engages and encourages all his students in class all the while he s identifying his female prey and grooming them during private sessions in his basement office when a local resident discovers fox s car and body amid a gruesome scene at a nearby nature preserve everyone thinks it must have been an accident but as details emerge police investigators wonder if it was murder the story reads like a slow burning mystery casting doubt on several characters in addition oates gets into fox s mind as well as several other characters that figure predominantly in the plot including the girls he d been abusing the author also jumps back to fox s previous teaching jobs which ended abruptly how was he never caught oates also fills in the relationships details and whereabouts of many characters during the weeks leading up to fox s death leading very slowly to the conclusion in addition to sexual abuse another theme gentrification pitting the locals against the wealthy who have taken over much of the land i was exhausted after i read this 672 page book and uncomfortable with both the subject and how the abuse was explained in great detail perhaps that s the only way to truly understand what fox was all about i thought it was excessive the only thing that mattered was that he was evil i m giving it three stars because joyce continues to be an excellent writer but i don t think i will read another of her books they re just not for me on to the next book have you read fox or any other books by joyce carol oates leave a comment and tell me what you thought i read we were the mulvaneys long before i started my blog but here are my reviews of the other books and story i read little bird of heaven a widow s story where are you going where have you been thanks for visiting come back soon it s nice to share share on x opens in new window x share on x opens in new window x share on facebook opens in new window facebook share on linkedin opens in new window linkedin share on reddit opens in new window reddit share on pinterest opens in new window pinterest share on tumblr opens in new window tumblr share on threads opens in new window threads share on bluesky opens in new window bluesky print opens in new window print email a link to a friend opens in new window email like loading five books about life in early america july 4 2026 july 4 2026 book club mom 33 comments happy july 4 th in celebration of america 250 here are five books about life in early america the frozen river by ariel lawhon historical fiction that begins with the discovery of a body frozen into maine s kennebec river and is based on the thirty year long journal of midwife martha ballard a real person the hour of the witch by chris bohjalian excellent historical suspense set in 1662 boston about twenty four year old mary deerfield who is desperate to get away from a violent marriage fearing for her life she petitions for divorce and later plots an escape while mounting evidence of witchcraft threatens to send her to her death the last pilgrim by noelle granger a rich historical fiction about mary allerton cushman the last surviving passenger of the mayflower fever 1793 by laura halse anderson young adult historical fiction about mattie cook a fourteen year old girl living in philadelphia during the yellow fever plague of 1793 mayflower by nathaniel philbrick comprehensive and scholarly nonfiction that begins with mayflower s voyagein 1620 and ends with the conclusion of king philip s war in 1676 thanks for visiting come back soon it s nice to share share on x opens in new window x share on x opens in new window x share on facebook opens in new window facebook share on linkedin opens in new window linkedin share on reddit opens in new window reddit share on pinterest opens in new window pinterest share on tumblr opens in new window tumblr share on threads opens in new window threads share on bluesky opens in new window bluesky print opens in new window print email a link to a friend opens in new window email like loading book review the autobiography of benjamin franklin july 3 2026 july 4 2026 book club mom 31 comments the autobiography of benjamin franklin rating 5 out of 5 being mostly a fiction reader i wasn t sure i would enjoy reading the autobiography of benjamin franklin but i was happily surprised to find franklin s memoir a remarkable and amusing record of time in america during the mid to late 1700s i also enjoyed refreshing my memory about the colonies before the american revolution and the steps that led to independence but one of the most important things i learned was that franklin was simply exploding with ideas to make life better in america both industrious and frugal he knew how to succeed in many enterprises including owning a printing shop a newspaper being a postmaster and establishing a library a university a hospital and a fire company in addition he had an excellent instinct for human behavior and was able to reconcile many tense discussions among both his fellow men and important...