Sandwich by Catherine Newman

Today is National Book Lovers’ Day and I am going to recommend one of my favorite book of the year so far: SANDWICH by Catherine Newman. The main character is a woman called Rocky who is dealing with life changes – the physical ones associated with menopause and the shifts in her identity as a mother, spouse, and grown child. She says, “Life is a seesaw, and I am standing dead center, still and balanced: living kids on one side, living parents on the other. Nikki here with me at the fulcrum. Don't move a muscle, I think. But I will, of course. You have to.” The story takes place at the home her family rents every year on Cape Cod and over the course of a week Rocky reflects on other years and the activities of her children Willa and Jamie, on the many joys and difficulties that motherhood brings. She faces some sad times, too: “I’ve heard grief described as love with nowhere to go.” But so many of her observations are heartfelt and hilarious (“she is long married to a beautiful man who understands between twenty and sixty-five percent of everything she says”); readers will be laughing out loud at her commentary and the family dynamics. SANDWICH by Catherine Newman was also recommended by Ann Patchett on PBS and is the Top Pick for LibraryReads in June. Plus, it received starred reviews from Booklist, Kirkus, and Library Journal. This is one not to miss: “We keep showing up for each other. Even through the mystery of other people's grief. What else is there?”