By Marjorie Preston
Welcome Home, Stranger
By Kate Christensen
2023, Harper
A toxic parent dies, and reluctant family members come together for the funeral, the will, and all the emotional reckoning they’ve put off for years. So begins “Welcome Home, Stranger,” a clear-eyed but compassionate view of people in conflict.
As the story opens, weary D.C. journalist Rachel Calloway is heading to Maine to bury her estranged mom, the “cruel, drunk, wayward, beautiful” Lucie. Back in Portland, she confronts the people and past she tried to leave behind: her angry sister Celeste, who married into money and grimly endures a life of suburban privilege; Celeste’s weak husband, Neil, an alcoholic millionaire who pretends to be a playwright; and David, the object of Rachel’s teenage desire, now married to Celeste’s best friend.
Long-simmering resentments rise to the surface, but just when you think you know what’s coming next, the plot twists. Kind of like life. This is a gripping, satisfying and ultimately cathartic novel.
Being Henry: The Fonz…and Beyond
By Henry Winkler
2023, Celadon Books
In the 1970s and ’80s, he was TV’s cockiest character: Arthur Fonzarelli, or the Fonz, of the ABC sitcom “Happy Days.”
The leather-clad greaser, originally written as a minor character, soon surpassed wholesome Richie Cunningham as a fan favorite, and Henry Winkler shot to superstardom. But the actor and his swaggering alter ego are hardly one and the same. In fact, as Winkler shares in this memoir, the real Henry grew up a chronically insecure son of Holocaust survivors, with a learning disability that went undiagnosed until adulthood. As a student, he struggled so much with learning that his parents called him “dummer Hund”—or dumb dog. At school, thankfully, he found a lifeline: a drama teacher named Mr. Rock who said, “If you ever get out of here, you’re going to be great.” Those words were prophetic.
And though Winkler struggled to stay relevant after a decade as Fonzie, he built a solid second career as a director, character actor, voice actor and author of the “Hank Zipzer” series of children’s books (about a kid with dyslexia, just like him).
In this genial, confessional memoir, Winkler shares the story of his troubled childhood, his accidental fame, and his ultimate contentment as an artist and family man.
I Am Bunny
By Alexis Devine
2023, William Morrow
A few years back, speech pathologist Christina Hunger wrote the bestselling “How Stella Learned to Talk,” about a pup that learned to communicate by pressing a series of paw-sized, pre-recorded speech buttons.
In “I Am Bunny,” Seattle artist Alexis Devine picks up where Hunger left off: she uses the same kind of learning devices with her dog, Bunny, and achieves the same kind of amusing results. The fluffy sheepdog-poodle mix first learns single words like “come,” “play” and “outside.” Then she starts putting them together: “Love you mom,” “Dad went poop,” and even “Stranger all done” (Bunny’s way of expressing impatience with online meetings).
In the process, Devine becomes convinced that animals are capable of a vast range of complex emotions that deserve respect and kindness. And as she helps Bunny process her puppy fears, Devine heals her own past traumas. As she writes, she is “sweetly tricked into doing what’s best for myself by doing what’s best for someone else.”
The Friendship Club
By Robyn Carr
2024, Mira
Fans of the chick-lit genre will instantly bond with this quartet of women, drawn from two generations, who find solace and a safe place in their friendship.
There’s Marni, the 50ish host of a cable cooking show, traumatized by two disastrous marriages, who longs to love again. There’s her lawyer daughter Bella, who’s determined to find her mom a new man, even as she copes with pregnancy and her own fraying marriage.
Then there’s Marni’s producer Ellen, who spent years caring for a dying husband, and is resolute about remaining single—until sparks fly with a longtime neighbor. Finally, there’s Sophia, the TV show’s young intern, who bounds with naïve joy into a new romance, only to discover that the rose is filled with thorns.
Amid all these trials, the women support and rely on each other. It’s another winner from Robyn Carr, and perfect for the beach. But bring snacks—all the talk about cooking and food will make you ravenous.
A Tangled Web
By Leslie Rule
2020, Kensington
The Netflix series “Lover, Stalker, Killer” led me to this book, the true story of a bright computer programmer who seemingly walked away from her orderly life in in 2012, and abdicated her roles as devoted single mom and dedicated professional.
Even after the vanishing act, Cari Farver made her presence known—writing thousands of vicious texts to former lover Dave and his other girlfriend, Liz; scrawling profanities on the wall of Liz’s garage; hurling a brick through Dave’s window; even burning Liz’s home to the ground, killing her children’s pets. For years, it seemed, Cari continued her reign of terror—or did she?
Leslie Rule, daughter of true-crime queen Ann Rule, has a tendency to overexplain (does anyone really need a tutorial on how Facebook works?) That aside, this is a must for true-crime fans: a page-turning account of a demented love triangle.
