The Motley Reader

No one's ever told Eleanor that life should be better than fine. Meet Eleanor Oliphant: she struggles with appropriate social skills and tends to say exactly what she's thinking. Nothing is missing in her carefully timetabled life of avoiding unnecessary human contact, where weekends are punctuated by frozen pizza, vodka, and phone chats with Mummy.... Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine is written by Gail Honeyman. It made Reese Witherspoon's book club list. Other than that I have never heard of this author before. This book has been out for awhile and I had heard good things. I don't think I would have chosen it on my own. It's not an outstanding book. It doesn't have a lot of action. It's not overly interesting, or have an intriguing story line. It didn't keep me on the edge of my seat waiting for the big reveal. In fact, there is some revealing information but I had already figured it out by the time it came out. However, I am glad I read ...

Where the Crawdads Sing is the first novel written by Delia Owens. This book was a New York Times best seller and made Reese Witherspoon's book club. Here is the description from the book jacket: For years, rumors of the "Marsh Girl" have haunted Barkley Cove, a quiet town on the North Carolina coast. So in late 1969, when handsome Chase Andrews is found dead, the locals immediately suspect Kya Clark, the so-called Marsh Girl. But Kya is not what they say. Sensitive and intelligent, she has survived for years alone in the marsh that she calls home, finding friends in the gulls and lessons in the sand. Then the time comes when she yearns to be touched and loved. When two young men from town become intrigued by her wild beauty, Kya opens herself to a new life-until the unthinkable happens. It is described as "painfully beautiful... At once a murder mystery, a coming of age narrative, and a celebration of nature." And while I agree with that statement comple...