Elizabeth Berg, one of my favorite authors, released her new book, Home Safe, in late April. It hasn't cracked the top 10 on the New York Times bestseller list, but give it time. She always makes the list ... with good reason.
She tells great stories about strong people who face challenges and who might not completely triumph over their troubles, but who always, always make for interesting reading.
I found Berg in 1994 when Talk Before Sleep was published. Before she became a writer, Berg was a nurse. This story deals with two friends - one who is dying and the nurse who cares for her. It's one of my all-time favorite books.
Open House (2000) deals with the aftermath of a divorce and how a woman puts the pieces of her life together.
Home Safe hit my desk this morning.
From Random House, "In this new novel, beloved bestselling author Elizabeth Berg weaves a beautifully written and richly resonant story of a mother and daughter in emotional transit. Helen Ames–recently widowed, coping with loss and grief, unable to do the work that has always sustained her–is beginning to depend far too much on her twenty-seven-year-old daughter, Tessa, and is meddling in her life, offering unsolicited and unwelcome advice. Helen’s problems are compounded by her shocking discovery that her mild-mannered and loyal husband was apparently leading a double life. The Ameses had painstakingly saved for a happy retirement, but that money disappeared in several large withdrawals made by Helen’s husband before he died. In order to support herself and garner a measure of much needed independence, Helen takes an unusual job that ends up offering far more than she had anticipated. And then a phone call from a stranger sets Helen on a surprising path of discovery that causes both mother and daughter to reassess what they thought they knew about each other, themselves, and what really makes a home and a family.
What Helen’s husband did with all their money turns out to be provocative, revelatory—and leads Helen and her daughter to embark on new adventures, and change."
Watch for a review and an interview with Berg in an upcoming News-Telegram.
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Update: Tuesday, May 26
I just hung up from a 20-minute conversation with the author. Sometimes, when I speak to writers, musicians or artists, they just mark time. I'm one journalist in a line of many and they have very little "spark" left. Not so with Berg. Her voice was full of light and joy and I enjoyed every minute of our talk. She is every bit as delightful as her writing. I hope she never retires.
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