Book Review: "Moonlight Mile" by Dennis Lehane

Dennis Lehane is easily one of my favorite authors, and his series with PIs Patrick Kenzie and Angela Gennaro is truly superlative. (If you're one of the few who never saw Mystic River, that is Lehane's finest stand-alone novel.) With Moonlight Mile, Lehane brings back Patrick and Angie after a 10-year absence, and their lives have moved on since the conclusion of Prayers for Rain, the last novel he wrote featuring them. They're now married and raising their four-year-old daughter, while Patrick is still scraping by as a private investigator, barely able to make ends meet.

Their most emotionally fractious case was investigating the disappearance of four-year-old Amanda McCready 12 years ago (the core of Gone Baby Gone); the resolution of that case still remains the unspoken issue in their relationship. One day, Patrick is visited by Amanda's aunt, Bea, who tells him that Amanda has once again disappeared. And once again, Patrick and Angie get caught up in the search for Amanda, yet 12 years later, the stakes are higher, the violence and danger has escalated, and the number of people affected has grown exponentially.

Sequels—especially of books you love—always pose a delicate dilemma. Will the author be able to recapture the magic of the last book? Will the characters, action, plot seem fresh and original or just tired retreads? While Moonlight Mile isn't Lehane's finest book and it doesn't quite crackle with the tautness his previous books featuring Patrick and Angie did, it's very good. (While it's helpful to have read Gone Baby Gone, it certainly helps frame things for you.) This book certainly reinforced how much I've missed reading about Patrick and Angie, and how dynamic a partnership they are. And just like Lehane's other books, I read it far, far too fast (in one day thanks to a bout of insomnia), and now lament that it may be a long while before the next one. Sigh.

What I'm Thankful For -- Day 4

Thanksgiving is in 21 days. (Wow.)

On November 1 I started a daily post in which I list one thing (or set of things) I'm thankful for each day. This is actually getting to be fun!


Day 4
Life doesn't always go smoothly and quite often, it doesn't go the way you planned it. (And if that's in general, imagine what my life must be like!) I am thankful for my sense of humor (even if no one else is), because it enables me to not take everything so seriously, and cope a little better when things are tough. If nothing else, it helps me pretend I'm flying high when I'm really not.

And the ability to laugh at myself has helped me out in more embarrassing situations than I'd care to count!

Being able to make other people laugh or feel better is a wonderful thing, too. It's always tremendously gratifying when someone tells you that you made them laugh at a time when they needed it most. So I'm thankful both for the gift of laughter and the gift of a sense of humor.

A Little Musical Interlude...

About 10 years ago, my old colleagues and I put together a list of our favorite songs of all time. It was an interesting challenge when we each revealed our list—there was at least one or two songs of overlap among each of us, and, as you'd imagine, there were lots of head slapping, "I can't believe I forgot that one" moments.

One song that two of my colleagues and I had on our list was Bob Marley's Redemption Song. Honestly, I think it is one of the most poetically beautiful songs I've ever heard, and one of the true "slam dunks" on my list—which at some point I'll have to resurrect. Marley wrote it in 1979, after he was suffering from the cancer that would take his life.

And we're not alone in our worship of the song—Rolling Stone, in 2004, ranked it as #66 of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

Beyond Marley's voice, what I love about this song is the continued relevance of its lyrics.

"Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery; none but ourselves can free our minds"

"How long shall they kill our prophets while we stand aside and look? Some say it's just a part of it; we've got to fulfill the book."

Many celebrities and musicians have covered this song. For me, the most memorable cover of the song was when I heard Toad the Wet Sprocket perform it in concert when I saw them in the mid-90s. Of course, I've never been able to find a copy of that version anywhere. If only mp3 recorders existed then...

Here's one of Marley's performances of the song. Because it's from YouTube, you'll need to endure a montage of video and lyrics, but just let the song mesmerize you.

What I'm Thankful For -- Day 3

Thanksgiving is in 22 days.

On November 1 I started a daily post in which I list one thing (or set of things) I'm thankful for each day.

Day 3
Even though I'm not pleased with the overall outcome, I'm thankful to live in a country where we have the right to choose our own leaders without fear of reprisal or worry that (most of the time) our votes will be counted. While I'm not thrilled that a significant portion of my home state of Virginia is way more socially conservative than I am, again, I have the opportunity to voice my opinions with my vote.

All too often we forget that this is a right that people fought for, a right that not all people—even in this day and age—are lucky enough to have. So even if, like me, you woke up a little disillusioned about this year's election results, feel thankful you had the opportunity to participate.

What I'm Thankful For -- Day 2

Thanksgiving is in 23 days.

On November 1 I started a daily post in which I list one thing (or set of things) I'm thankful for each day. This way, when the craziness of life occasionally gets me down—and I have no doubt it will—these posts will serve as a terrific reminder of all of the things for which I should be grateful.


Day 2
I have a terrific family. Even if we haven't (and don't) see eye-to-eye, I'm thankful to have been able to share the goods and bads of life with them, to have their love and support during difficult times, and know I can turn to them when I need it. I'm thankful for my parents, sister and brothers (I consider my brother-in-law to be one of my brothers) and my grandmother, who turned 88 this year. I'm also thankful for my in-laws, who have welcomed me into their family with open arms and tremendous love and support.

I'm also thankful to have the opportunity to watch my two nephews grow into amazingly funny, loving little boys.

Life is better when it's shared with those you love.

What I'm Thankful For -- Day 1

Thanksgiving is in 24 days, on Thursday, November 25.

Borrowing an idea from a friend on Facebook, I'm going to post each day one thing I'm thankful for. This way, when the craziness of life occasionally gets me down—and I have no doubt it will—these posts will serve as a terrific reminder of all of the things for which I should be grateful.

Here goes!


Day 1
I am thankful to have the love and friendship of the most amazing person in the whole world. Without you, I'd be lost, lonely, sad, silent (well, perhaps not) and directionless.

Thanks for you being you!!

Book Review: "The Widower's Tale" by Julia Glass

Sometimes absence really does make the heart grow fonder. It has been a while since I've read a book by Julia Glass—I loved her first two books, but skipped her third, I See You Everywhere, as it received very tepid reviews from critics. But reading her latest, The Widower's Tale, I again realized what a terrific writer she is and marveled at her ability to make characters seem like people I wish I actually knew.

Seventy-year-old Percy Darling is proud of the fact that he's a bit of a curmudgeon. Although his wife, Poppy, has been dead for many years, and he has a somewhat strained relationship with both of his daughters, he loves his historic suburban house outside of Boston, loves his routine of a morning run and a naked swim in his backyard pond, and enjoys his relationship with his grandson, Robert, a premed student at Harvard. Then he makes the decision to allow the local nursery school, Elves & Fairies, to convert his old barn into the new school facility, which brings myriad surprises into his life. He begins a relationship with local artist Sarah, whose son attends Elves & Fairies, a rapidly growing ecoterrorist group is plaguing many of the "new rich" in Percy's neighborhood, and his relationship with each of his daughters changes in different ways.

Although Percy is the center of this book, portions are also focused on Ira, a teacher at Elves & Fairies; Percy's grandson, Robert; and Celestino, a gardener who comes into contact with Percy and his family. I really enjoyed every character Glass created in this story; even though I could sense the direction of several of the story threads a bit ahead of their unfolding, that didn't affect my enjoyment of the book or the empathy I felt for the characters. If anything, I could have kept reading this. To me, one of the marks of a great book is that you keep wondering what would happen to the characters after the story ended. This is definitely one of those books.