Grace & Henry's Holiday Movie Marathon by Matthew Norman

Rating: 5 of 5 stars 

Pages: 08:44:00
Published: October 2025

I found Matthew Norman's holiday audiobook, Grace & Henry's Holiday Movie Marathon, by way of one of my Fable bookclubs. There was supposed to be an ongoing read-along discussion throughout December, but the club fell flat. Thankfully, the book did not. 

The book centers around Grace and Henry, both recently widowed, who are fixed up via a "chance" encounter orchestrated by their respective mothers. What unfolds is a tender story about them both navigating profound loss while rediscovering connection in the most unexpected way: their shared loved of holiday movies. Their movie marathon tradition starts out as two grieving people helping each other out, but turns into a thoughtful ritual that helps them both process their grief. 

Even though the book centers around devastating loss, it never feels heavy. The author does an exceptional job at balancing sorrow with humor. Grace's quick wit, Henry's awkwardness, and the list of nostalgic Christmas movies are the perfect combination for a warm and comforting novel, just right for December reading. 

I listened to this book. The pace was good the narration was done very well. Listening is not always my preference because my mind often wanders. However, this book really engaged me and kept my attention throughout. 

Recommendation: If you're looking for a good holiday read that acknowledges the hard parts of life while delivering warmth and hope, this one is a great choice. It reminded me that even in trying season, connection can bring us back to ourselves. 

Until next time ... Read on!

Regardless of whether I purchase a book, borrow a book, or receive a book in exchange for review, my ultimate goal is to be honest, fair, and constructive. I hope you've found this review helpful.

Read More

The Correspondent by Virginia Evans

Rating: 3 of 5 stars 

Pages: 304 pages
Published: April 2025

I picked up an electronic copy of The Correspondent by Virginia Evans to read on my Kindle app as it was the monthly selection for the Modern Mrs. Darcy Book Club this October. The novel, a debut for Evans, is a slow burn that is told through the letters of the primary character, a 70-something retired lawyer named Sybil Van Antwerp. As she writes to family, friends, and authors, Evans creates a portrait of a woman reckoning with aging, regret, and grief. 

The entire novel, written in epistolary format and structured entirely through letters and emails, is both a strength and limitation. I typically enjoy this format because it provides the reader introspection you might not get in dialogue. However, Sybil writes to a lot of people, and the sprawling cast of characters that include neighbors, former colleagues, family, and friends add a level of logistical complexity for the reader. This made discernment of character importance a challenge. I really struggled during the first part of the book, so much so I had to make a list of characters with short descriptions to keep track. 

Having said that, the story is a beautiful ache. The heart of Sybil’s conflict surrounds the death of her son. Throughout the story, we learn more about her grief and how it has affected her relationships. Parallel to that story, the reader learns that Sybil is losing her sight slowly and how that is affecting her. As the character develops and gains insight into her flaws and shortcomings, conversely we, as the reader, watch her lose her physical sight. I found this plot device to be very clever in helping create a pace in the plot. 

Evans’ writing is elegant and profound. She captures the reality of aging with grace, learning at any age, and extending and receiving forgiveness very well. Her creation of Sybil speaks to the humanity in us all (none of us are getting out of here alive!), and the letters she crafts through this character and her relationships are a testament to the enduring power of the written word, which I very much appreciated. 

Recommendation: I enjoyed the premise and what the author was trying to do with the process of grief. After completing the novel, I read several recommendations that the book is more easily understood in audio format as each character is voiced by a different actor. I think I would have enjoyed this book more by listening. It is currently offered on Spotify with a premium membership, and perhaps I will go back and reread the novel by listening. 

Until next time ... Read on!

Regardless of whether I purchase a book, borrow a book, or receive a book in exchange for review, my ultimate goal is to be honest, fair, and constructive. I hope you've found this review helpful.

Read More

Coming Home by Brittney Griner with Michelle Burford

Rating: 5 of 5 stars 

Duration: 10:36:00
Published: May 2024

I used my last Audible credit on my birthday, before I canceled my membership, to purchase Brittney Griner's Coming Home where she recounts the horrifying 10 months she was wrongfully detained in Russia for mistakenly bringing 0.7 grams of medically-prescribed hash oil on a flight from her home in Phoenix. She was returning to Russia to finish out the season playing for the Russia women's basketball team after recuperating from a COVID-19 diagnosis. 

This story is so maddening I don't know that I could have made it through the book if I didn't know the ending. The non-fictional story is presented in an engaging way and provides insight and details to Griner's horrifying ordeal that we, as a nation, did not hear about on the news. Griner narrates the prologue and epilogue, and Andia Winslow does a beautiful job narrating the story in between. I was also really was inspired by how much effort her wife, Cherelle, invested in keeping the campaign for her return alive in the midst of dealing with her own trauma and carrying out her daily responsibilities including passing the bar exam. 

From a personal level, what's even more infuriating than what happened to Griner is the lack of empathy from her fellow U.S. citizens, including some I know personally, who had such vitriol to share about her. It is disappointing that people can be so black and white and not give grace or space for others. I try not to dwell on the negativity but rather the community that came together and embodied the #WeAreBG movement. Whether you agree with the politics of her detainment and ultimate release is of little-to-no consequence. She is back on U.S. soil, thank God, and you will never be able to make me believe in the same situation, you wouldn't take whatever opportunity presented to you to get back home to your loved ones. My only hope is that one day the majority of people in the U.S. will have the same amount of compassion and energy for people who look like Griner as they do for people like Amber Guyger and Michael P. Fay.

For Griner to come out on the other side of this as a person who is not only healing from her trauma but also exhibiting a very positive mindset is commendable. What she is doing to help bring light to other wrongfully detained U.S. citizens across the globe is inspiring. I admire her courage and her strength to carry on, including her plans to represent the U.S. in the upcoming 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, France. 

Recommendation: I enjoyed getting to know more about Griner, her family, and how she is moving forward. I have nothing to send her but positive and healing energy for the future. 

Until next time ... Read on!

Regardless of whether I purchase a book, borrow a book, or receive a book in exchange for review, my ultimate goal is to be honest, fair, and constructive. I hope you've found this review helpful.

Read More

Anxious People by Fredrik Backman

Rating: 5+ of 5 stars
Pages: 352 pages
Published: September 2020

I love, love Fredrik Backman. I've read all of his novels (just search his name on this blog), and I think he is one of the most gifted writers in modern literature. He is able to compose sentences in a way that evoke a myriad of emotions. So, it was no surprise that as I read, I found myself pondering then laughing and then tearing up throughout Anxious People. So, what is this book about? If you read it (and please do read it), you will see that even the narrator even has a hard time pinpointing the exact subject matter. But I think overall it's about life and how we deal with it. It's written in a unique way, and in my opinion, it almost reads like a stage play. The best part of the book are the little nuggets of truth Backman hides within this dramedy. Here are some of my favorites - 

Our hearts are bars of soap that we keep losing hold of; the moment we relax, they drift off and fall in love and get broken, all in the wink of an eye. 

Because that was a parent's job: to provide shoulders. Shoulders for your children to sit on when they're little so they can see the world, then to stand on when they get older so they can reach the clouds, and sometimes lean against whenever they stumble and feel unsure. 

She told herself that was why you should always be nice to other people, even idiots, because you never know how heavy their burden is. 

I think you can understand someone without necessarily agreeing with them. 

Have you ever held a three-year-old by the hand on the way home from preschool? You're never more important than you are then. 

Because the people we argue with hardest of all are not the ones who are completely different from us, but the ones who are almost no different at all. 

He was my echo. Everything I do is quieter now. 

If you can do something for someone in such a way that they think they managed it all on their own, then you've done a good job. 

Loneliness is like starvation, you don't realize how hungry you are until you begin to eat. 

That's the power of literature, you know, it can act lie little love letters between people who can only explain their feelings by pointing at other people's. 

It's such an odd thing, the way you can know someone so perfectly through what they read. 

You can't carry the guilt and the shame and the unbearable silence on your own, and you shouldn't have to.

You see what I mean? He just finds the most beautiful ways to say the most basic things. So, back to the book. It's a story about a person at a desperate point in their life who does something they normally wouldn't and the resulting events affect a group of people who happen to be viewing an apartment for sale. Backman provides a bit of back story to each character while taking us through one day they all shared together. It sounds complicated, but the result of this novel is an uplifting work of art. Just go snag a copy! 

Recommendation: This book was definitely written for my generation, but I really think anyone can appreciate the beauty in it. If you have ever considered suicide suffer from anxiety or depression, please consider this book carefully. But note that it contains much hope! And in times like these, we could all use a little of that. 

Until next time ... Read on!

Regardless of whether I purchase a book, borrow a book, or receive a book in exchange for review, my ultimate goal is to be honest, fair, and constructive. I hope you've found this review helpful.

Read More