I haven’t had a five-star book in a long time! Finally, I read a book that I deemed worthy and I hope you think so too. There are four great new books this month to choose from. With the holidays right around the corner, you might want to start thinking about what books would make the perfect gifts for your friends and family.

   

This post contains affiliate links. Please see affiliate disclaimer here.

   

That’s What Frenemies Are For

That’s What Frenemies Are For is about a middle-aged woman who decides to make a young spin instructor her new pet project (to also benefit herself). But things backfire. On top of that, her husband is having problems at work. Close friends are exhibiting mean girl behavior. What seems to be a terrible year might lead to a change of heart about what is truly important in life.

At times I wanted to strangle the main character and her desperate need to be on top of the social ladder among the upper east side private school moms. Other times I really sympathized with her and the situations she finds herself in.

   

The Flight Portfolio

This story is loosely based on true historical events. Varian Fry heads up the Emergency Rescue Committee in Marseille during WWII. The goal is to get Europe’s most important artists, philosophers, etc safely to the United States.

Daily tasks involve deciding which refugees get to make the list and how to obtain travel visas (legally or illegally). When a blast from his past throws Varian into a tailspin he might bend some rules to make an exception for his long-lost friend.

The Flight Portfolio was a little slow for me but I did get invested in some of the characters.  Obviously, I thought the history was interesting and enjoyed reading about true events but the love story seemed a little “high school” to me. 

Make sure to read the author’s note to find out about what happened to Varian Fry and The Flight Portfolio. The real committee ended up helping rescue thousands of Jews and anti-Nazi refugees fleeing France.

   

In Pieces

I could not put Sally Field’s memoir down.  I loved it. In Pieces focuses on Sally Field’s childhood and how she got into show business plus the early years in her career. Relationships with her mother, brother, dad, step-dad, and half-sister are deeply entwined throughout the book. What you shouldn’t expect are any details from her Steel Magnolias through Forest Gump years. Honestly, it didn’t bother me at all that those years were glossed over.

I didn’t know much about her personal life until I read this book. Sally Field always seemed like such a confident actress to me but that is far from the case despite how incredibly talented she is.    Unlike so many “Hollywood” memoirs I’ve read, Sally Field’s doesn’t name drop for the sake of name dropping.  The memoir doesn’t include information that shouldn’t be there.  I was never bored.

   

Pachinko

Pachinko follows the story of one family through multiple generations. A family of Koreans moves to Japan and faces discrimination and poverty. Each member has dreams and learns to survive despite heartache after heartache.

You know I like historical fiction but I was a little bored with this story.   I didn’t get attached to any character or even the family as a whole. Learning about the discord between Koreans and Japanese and the historical impact was interesting. But I was half-way through the book and thought it could be done.

   

Want more reading options? Take a look at my October Book Recommendations!