Inland Empire Foodies

One of America's brilliant writers, Barbara Kingsolver is well-known for many titles including The Poisonwood Bible, Demon Copperhead and La Lacuna. Prodigal Summer is drawn on her background in biological science and is a bit sexy while illustrative of diversity of life in southern Appalachia.

Goodreads 4.0
"This novel, which jumps back and forth through the lives and stories of a few strong characters, really gets to the core of what life is about and how people tend to deal with it. The characters are very real and very honest, they have faults but they confront them. This book is full of passion, romance, strong friendships, deceit, hard choices and many other disturbing and encompassing aspects of human nature. It is amazingly easy to get attached to the characters in this novel and I wouldn’t be surprised if, while reading this, you, like me, were unable to put it down for hours at a time and dreaded being torn away from it and back to reality. This is a book I’d recommend reading over a break or during the summer when you have a lot of time to just stretch out on a couch and read it to your heart’s content."

The best version is the book (not the TV series). Author Taylor Jenkins Reid uses an interview format, and we will be discussing her style of writing - this will be completely lost if you watch only the series on TV. Also, there are quite a few character adaptations in the TV series, so the depth and nuance of the original story of The Six has been completely gutted. You have been warned, LOL.

Maybe you missed those explorative years in your own life, but I lived through it - my apartment above the Strip, not far from Chateau Marmont (it is in the book!).

Daisy Jones and The Six, by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Goodreads, 4.2
"Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid is a captivating and emotional story that explores the rise and fall of a fictional 1970s rock band named The Six, as told through the eyes of their lead singer, Daisy Jones.

The novel is written in an unconventional format, presented as a transcript of interviews with the band members, their friends, and family, as well as other individuals who were involved in the band's journey. This format is not only unique but also adds a sense of realism to the story, making the reader feel as though they are reading a true account of a band's rise to fame.

The characters in Daisy and the Six are incredibly well-developed, with each member of the band having their own distinct personality and backstory. Daisy, in particular, is a compelling character, with her raw talent and rebellious spirit causing both admiration and friction among her bandmates.

The novel's portrayal of the music industry in the 1970s is also fascinating, with the reader getting a glimpse into the excess and indulgence that came with fame during that era. The book's exploration of the band's creative process is also intriguing, as it delves into the complexities of writing and performing music."

Amy Tan has authored many books; the most well-known might be The Joy Luck Club. We will read one of her other publications: The Hundred Secret Senses.

Some info from Goodreads:
"The Hundred Secret Senses is now one of my favorite Amy Tan novels, rivaled only by The Bonesetter's Daughter. Yes, I love The Joy Luck Club, The Kitchen God's Wife and Saving Fish From Drowning - I love any Tan story I come across - but The Hundred Secret Senses (along with TBD) really stand out.

Olivia, the narrator, is the American-born daughter of a Chinese man and an American woman. When her father is on his deathbed, he reveals to his wife that he left behind a daughter in China, and asks her to retrieve the daughter. Enter Kwan, Olivia's older half-sister who believes that she has "yin eyes" and can see and speak to ghosts.

Olivia struggles her whole life to ignore and dismiss Kwan's superstitions until her marriage is crumbling and she, her estranged husband and her sister find themselves on a trip to China together. The ending is extremely poignant without being cheesy or unrealistic. Tan plumbs the depths of issues like life and death, reincarnation, history, soul ties, relationships and culture in this story, and I ate it up."