My Mother's House was one of the best books I've ever read. It was sensational. Ruby Franke was the social influencer, who created a million plus subscriber YouTube page, called Eight Passengers, which detailed the life of her six children and she and her husband. She was known as a very strict and punitive mother. It all turned bad when she met a closet lesbian, who seduced her into an affair and then compelled her to move in with her. From there, it went from bad to worse, when Jodi Hildebrand and Ruby began abusing her two youngest children by starving them. This book is an important book, which details the oldest child, Shari's struggle to protect her five younger siblings from the dysfunction and abuse of their deranged mother, who, along with Jodi is serving hard time in prison for child abuse. It is a riveting account and a fabulous book that details the dangers of social media.
“Heart-wrenchingly personal...dizzying.” —Rolling Stone
From eldest daughter Shari Franke, the shocking true story behind the viral 8 Passengers family vlog—now the subject of a new Hulu docuseries—and the hidden abuse she suffered at the hands of her mother, and how, in the face of unimaginable pain, she found freedom and healing.
Shari Franke's childhood was a constant battle for survival. Her mother, Ruby Franke, enforced a severe moral code while maintaining a façade of a picture-perfect family for their wildly popular YouTube channel 8 Passengers, which documented the day-to-day life of raising six children…
This book was one that I had gotten several years ago, but because it is long, over 400 pages, I never put in the dedication to read it. I read a couple chapters but didn't follow through. Well, a few weeks ago, I picked it up again, and started from the beginning and started reading it. I got progressively more involved in the great writing and basically, the mystery of the story, and could not put it down. It is FABULOUS. Such a fun, fast paced and interesting book. I love the fact that Anna Fox is a drunk. She's ill and on various meds. She's a total unreliable character and kind of a basket case. That was the one part I didn't expect. That I would grow to care about such a nut case. The author is a man and that's the other interesting thing. His pen name is A.J. Finn, but his real name is Daniel Mallory, which I think is actually a better name. Anyhow, he worked as an editor for years before finally publishing this book, which turned out to be a HUGE bestseller and then later a film, starring Amy Adams. There is something kind of comforting about reading about people who are marginalized, and Anna Fox is one of those characters. She's a nut and you keep reading, as I did, because you just want to find out if she turns out okay. And did the husband really kill his wife? It is a great book!
Soon to be a major motion picture produced by 20th Century Fox, starring Amy Adams, Gary Oldman and Julianne Moore
'Astounding. Thrilling. Amazing' Gillian Flynn
'One of those rare books that really is unputdownable' Stephen King
'Twisted to the power of max' Val McDermid
'A dark, twisty confection' Ruth Ware
What did she see?
It's been ten long months since Anna Fox last left her home. Ten months during which she has haunted the rooms of her old New York house like a ghost, lost in her memories, too…
This extremely lovely, and poetic novel was written by Season Butler, who is a young black woman. She's American but lives in Berlin, when she is not in the states. A Cygnet is a baby swan, for anyone who wants to know. This novel details the life of a young woman, a teenager, who lives with her mother on a remote island, meant only for retired people. She is abandoned by both her parents, who swear they will come back for her, but don't. Her parents are kind of an oddball pair, hippies of a sort, who raise her to be her own thinking person. When they leave, she stays on in the home of her grandmother, even after her grandmother dies. She earns money, by helping another old lady to digitize her photo and document collection. On this island, there is erosion, the sand dunes are falling into the ocean and with them some of the homes. The idea of erosion is emblematic for other issues in the book, regarding trust, commitment and loyalty. It is such an unusual book and I love that the main protagonist is a young black girl, forced to survive in this strange land of old people. It is simply a lovely book, and I cannot recommend it enough. Of all the books I've read this year, Cygnet is my favorite. There are tones of a young Toni Morrison in Season Butler's writing. It is an exceptional book and should be made into a film.
Winner of the Writers’ Guild Award for Best First Novel
An utterly original coming-of-age tale, marked by wrenching humor and staggering charisma, about a young woman resisting the savagery of adulthood in a community of the elderly rejecting the promise of youth.
“Season Butler has written an imaginative, atmospheric and original novel that lingers in the memory long after reading. She is a bright new voice in literature.” —Bernardine Evaristo, Booker Prize-winning author of Girl, Woman, Other
“It’s too hot for most of the clothes I packed to come here, when I thought this would only be for a week…
"Delve into the Rose City's colorful and sometimes tumultuous past through the memories, meals and recipes that put these bygone restaurants on the map. From The Quality Pie, a favorite of Portlanders from all walks of life, to the River Queen, which enjoyed a long and storied life as a working vessel before becoming a stationary restaurant on the Willamette River, visitors and locals alike have enjoyed a unique variety of eateries. Celebrities once enjoyed steak dinners in the Barbary Coast's Roaring 20's Room while Café Lena offered simpler fare to poets and dreamers in search of a relaxed atmosphere."
For behind the scenes stories, some funny and even crass, this book provides a lot of humor and candor regarding Portland's sometimes problematic restaurant scene.
