One Sunday Morning: A Novel [Paperback] Review

If Edith Wharton were alive and writing now, who would she be? Dominick Dunne is the first novelist who comes to mind, especially his first few novels. But Dunne's books are, more often than not, jump-started by a crime; for Wharton, a social gaffe was sufficient to fuel a plot. And Wharton's books were rich in subplots and subtext.

You could, I think, make the case that Amy Ephron is our Wharton. This seems, on the surface, improbable. Ephron lives in Los Angeles, where roots do not run deep and Society goes back only a handful of generations. She has worked --- gasp --- in the movie business, where people with a provenance rarely venture. And she writes novels that are painfully short: ONE SUNDAY MORNING runs to 214 pages only because the book is small and the margins are vast.

What Ephron shares with Wharton: Her books are not so much written as carved. Every word counts. And, like Wharton, every word is about the story --- there are no digressions, no riding of an authorial hobbyhorse. And, like Wharton, Ephron is concerned how a small event can be inflated into a large one.

In ONE SUNDAY MORNING, the event is a view from the window of a Gramercy Park townhouse: young Lizzie Carswell leaving a hotel in broad daylight with Billy Holmes, a man engaged to one of her friends. Lizzie's mother had to go abroad because of a scandal; have mom's degenerate genes been passed on? And what will Clara Hart, Billy's intended, do when she hears the news (as she most assuredly will)?

Wharton material, to be sure. But there's a tension here you wouldn't find in a Wharton novel --- the story is set in 1927, and so, very much bubbling under the Society plot, is the reckless mood of that era. Alcohol. Drugs. Homosexuality. These add a Fitzgeraldian spice to the strict moral tale that is Ephron's legacy from Wharton. And, just in case you're nostalgic for Somerset Maugham, there's a man just back from very interesting travels in Asia. Maybe he's a lost soul. Maybe he's a potential suitor.

This isn't to say that Amy Ephron has cherrypicked her influences (though if she did, she couldn't have done better). You read this book for itself, and for the precise portraits she draws. Sample: "Clara was nursing a gin and tonic. She had a Piaget watch on her right wrist that Billy had picked up for her at an antique store. It had a simple black band and a plain gold rim around its face so the numbers themselves were the set-piece, distinctly Piaget. Billy's linen suit was appropriately wrinkled. It occurred to Mary that they fit into Paris in a way that she never would."

Mary will, of course, get a big surprise. So will the other characters. It turns out that quite a lot can happen in 214 pages --- that is, when the writer is a master storyteller like Amy Ephron.

--- Reviewed by Jesse Kornbluth

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On Wings of the Morning [Paperback] Review

What a wonderful way to tell a story!We're given two main characters to follow through the years of 1933 to 1975.Each narrates his/her own story, switching back and forth from chapter to chapter.Morgan and Georgia emerged from completely different backgrounds, yet shared a single passion.The passion of flight, so exquisitely expressed by Marie, that the reader is transported to the sky.At once a heartfelt and visual experience, it is impossible to not become fully invested in the lives of these two individuals as they fledge toward a relationship.
Although the book takes place during World War II and carries with it much historical content, it is so much more than just historical fiction.Marie has developed a variety of secondary characters, with colorful personalities.In doing so, she has livened up the mix, and given us the opportunity to feel a multitude of emotions toward everyone in the story.There are those that are sadly comical, the ones you love to hate, and those that have struggled through hardship and can only be an inspiration.This book had me both crying and laughing outright.
Wings of the Morning can be read simply, as an easy-flowing love story, or as an example of patriotism and the recognition of the women of the WASPs, or if you are so inclined, delve deeply, and delight in the spiritual side of the story, consider such intriguing topics as Nature vs Nurture.But most of all, enjoy what Marie so capably brings to the mind's eye.


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Product Description:
Marie Bostwick delivers a captivating novel of soul mates discovering each other as the country faces its greatest challenge...
Morgan Glennon's destiny points straight up into Oklahoma's clear, blue sky. It's been that way since he was four years old, imagining the famous flier father he's never met. Morgan leaves college to enlist as a Navy pilot, and his whole world suddenly changes when America goes to war. Watching his friends fall in battle, robs Morgan of the joy he always felt in the air. It will take one very unusual woman to help him get it back...
Georgia Jean Carter learned early never to rely on a man for anything but trouble. Airplanes are different: they take a girl places most boyfriends can't. Remarkably, the war makes it possible for Georgia to do her part as a pilot. Flying with the WASPs brings a special sense of belonging--yet there's something missing that Georgia doesn't recognize until a brief encounter sets her dreaming about a young flyboy she barely knows...

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The Sunday Morning Wife (Peace In The Storm Publishing Presents) (Paperback) Review

This book is a must read for anyone who has ever suffered abuse, but it is not a book that is limited by that description, for it is much much more.Thank you, Pam for sharing much more than just the story of one woman, lost in domestic violence. Thank you for reminding us of the faithfulness of Our Lord Jesus Christ and for reminding us to daily draw our strength through Him, in all circumstances! Your book is an awesome read. It is not only a great read for those who have been physically, emotionally, & spiritually wounded (especially by those who profess to be Christians), but it is also a book for anyone who has ever lost faith, felt unworthy, or who has lost the strength to lift up their hands in prayer and praise to the Lord. This book reminds us that God is a God of forgiveness and of wholeness. We are taught by the story that we must not allow other's to control our lives and that we must never stop calling upon the name of Jesus, even when we may feel that He does not hear our prayers or when we may fee that we are unworthy. It teaches us to "Wait upon the Lord," for He is ever present and will always answer in His time. It also teaches us to look in the mirror and refect upon who we are as Christians.Are we someone who lifts up our brother & sister, or do we work to tear them down?This story reminds us that as Christians we are to "lift up" those around us with the Love of God that has been placed upon our hearts, ever loving and ever forgiving, never casting stones or spreading hurtful words.Awesome book filled with many, many life lessons!

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The old saying is true. You never know what's going on in someone else's home.From the outside looking in, Yolanda Clarke appears to have it all. She's a beautiful woman, and her husband, Timothy, is the pastor of BrightStar Tabernacle. They seem to have the perfect life. But, looks are certainly deceiving. Yolanda has become a puppet on a string, totally controlled by Timothy. While everyone at church thinks he walks on water, Yolanda knows the person behind the mask. His constant verbal tirades, physical and emotional abuse has become unbearable. In walks Andre Hunter. He's the type of man that can make any woman forget all her troubles. His chocolate skin, pearly whites, and beautiful smile enthrall Yolanda. She has never entertained the idea of infidelity, but the abuse and lack of intimacy at home makes her adulterous affair justifiable in her mind. Andre gives Yolanda everything she's missing at home- respect, conversation, and passion behind closed doors. But, Andre is hiding secrets of his own.Will Yolanda finally climb from the abyss of despair she's lived in with Timothy and move to a brighter tomorrow with Andre? Or will she forever remain "The Sunday Morning Wife?"

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