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8 Colorful, Cozy Libraries *plus* a Book Review

Thursday, September 22, 2016

Happy First Day of Autumn, My Lovelies!  One of my goals for autumn is to work very hard to I can have some free time (maybe one afternoon or morning per week) to enjoy our Library.  I'd like to get cozy and read!  Our library is raspberry, our brightest room in our home.  Below is a slideshow from Houzz, and the libraries are bold blue, red, chartreuse, plum, and teal.  Which one is your favorite?











Recently I read a wonderful book for book club.  But our book club can never seem to get it together and meet.  This is so frustrating to me because I Bust my butt to read a book in time for the meeting, then at the last minute almost everyone has something come up and they can't meet. I'm over it.  I'm going to find a different book club.

I know it isn't Literary Friday, but I want to briefly tell you about our book club selection because I enjoyed it.




From Goodreads:

Six responsible adults. Three cute kids. One small dog. It’s just a normal weekend. What could possibly go wrong?

Sam and Clementine have a wonderful, albeit, busy life: they have two little girls, Sam has just started a new dream job, and Clementine, a cellist, is busy preparing for the audition of a lifetime. If there’s anything they can count on, it’s each other.

Clementine and Erika are each other’s oldest friends. A single look between them can convey an entire conversation. But theirs is a complicated relationship, so when Erika mentions a last minute invitation to a barbecue with her neighbors, Tiffany and Vid, Clementine and Sam don’t hesitate. Having Tiffany and Vid’s larger than life personalities there will be a welcome respite.

Two months later, it won’t stop raining, and Clementine and Sam can’t stop asking themselves the question: What if we hadn’t gone?

In Truly Madly Guilty, Liane Moriarty takes on the foundations of our lives: marriage, sex, parenthood, and friendship. She shows how guilt can expose the fault lines in the most seemingly strong relationships, how what we don’t say can be more powerful than what we do, and how sometimes it is the most innocent of moments that can do the greatest harm.

My Review:

This is the first book I've read written by Liane Moriarty, and I plan to read another one of her books soon.  I love how she writes, and the way she presented the story in this book is brilliant. The reader is aware that something unpleasant happens at the barbeque, but the narrative flips back and forth from the present to the barbeque told in flashback.

What intrigues me the most about this story is the friendship between Clementine and Erika. We get a glimpse of what each thinks about the other through their points of view, so in a way it's a challenge for the reader to discern who's more at fault in their not so healthy friendship.

Once all the pieces fall into place about the barbeque, the reader can look back and understand the characters' attitudes and motivations much more clearly.  Although there is tension within the marriages, I still think that the storyline about friendship is stronger and more compelling.

This book also makes the reader think about neighbors and boundaries.  How involved do we really need to be in our neighbors' lives?  What's healthy, what's humane?  There are so many layers to Truly Madly Guilty.  This was our book club selection last month, and I'm so sad that the meeting was canceled because this book is worth discussing.


Do you have plans to read any wonderful books this season?  I'd love to add to my Goodreads Want to Read list, so please share your book recommendations in the comments section below!


Until next time...

Happy reading!
Ricki Jill


8 comments

  1. I really like the deep ocean blue if I had to choose one at this moment. I love deep color but lately I'm leaning toward lighter colors. When we built this house I chose a dark cranberry for my family room and I was happy with it for years. Just last year I changed the color to a neutral grey. Enjoyed your book review, think I may add it to my ongoing list. Now, I will ready your review again...........Happy day

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  2. I certainly enjoyed this book, although the particular literary device flipping back and forth about what happened at that barbecue almost drove me insane till we actually got to it! When I first discovered this writer two or three of her books ago, I made it my business to find everything she had written and read it. I haven't missed any since. She is a master, I think, of dissecting relationships and telling the story so that you can draw your own conclusions. Actually, I wonder if she has studied psychology in any depth.

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  3. After you read all of her books, look up the Barnes & Noble list of "10 books for fans of Moriarty"!!!! I am wishing for a library...(sigh)

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  4. Oh my, this book sounds good.
    I love the libraries you shared. :-)

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  5. The libraries are beautiful. The book sounds interesting. I am trying to find a good one myself to start.

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  6. I went to the library yesterday for the book sale! Oh how I love the book sales! I haven't read a book by this author in a long time so I'll put it on my list. I'm reading a book I missed in the Inspector Gamache series by Louise Penny. Somehow I skipped one! LOVE them all! Happy weekend!

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  7. I think I'd enjoy the deep green library...Looking forward to reading this, I just love her books, although they are sometimes painful. I've never been in a book club but the friends I have that are in one say that no one ever reads the books, which I would find quite frustrating! Happy reading :)
    Jenna

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I'm Ricki Jill. Welcome! I'm honored that you're reading my blog. I enjoy sharing my creative lifestyle @ The Bookish Dilettante. For more information about my blog, please read the Start Here page. Thank-you for stopping by, and I hope you'll consider following me via email.

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