What do You think about The Way Life Should Be (2007)?
I enjoyed this book. Angela Russo is a thirty-three year old Jersey girl living in Manhattan working as an event planner for a small museum. She is bored and her love life is pitiful. She has a somewhat troubled family life, a wonderful Italian immigrant grandmother, a loving but weak father and a step-mother who is a bit of nightmare. Her best friend just met a guy she is crazy about on an on-line dating site.Ill prepared, Angela launches herself into an on-line relationship with a sailing instructor from the Bar Harbor area. They spend a magical overnight together in Boston. Angela loses her job (quite funny) and decides to move to Maine on a whim.Things get complicated fast but Angela persists in her Maine adventure and finds a supportive group of friends who help her to realize her true calling. Complex enough to keep my interest but the decision to move to Maine was a bit far-fetched for me...most girls living in Manhattan would never make this move! They all seem convinced the Manhattan is the center of universe. Maybe that is why I found Angela likeable!
—Denise
This women's fiction held my attention all the way through.Angela, the heroine, is thirty-three and single but looking for a love she can settle down with.She wanted to study the culinary arts because she developed a love for cooking from her Italian grandmother, but her parents talked her out of it. Now she's an event-planner for a NY museum, a job she's so good at, she can do it with her eyes closed.When her best friend finds a significant other online, Angela is timid about giving it a try but eventually finds a man's profile that calls to her. He responds, even writes haiku just for her. When they do connect, she's sure he's the perfect man for her.Only he's in Maine.Thinking about him and worrying whether she should take a chance and give up her life for him, makes her sloppy at work. She forgets to sign up for fire insurance when the event she plans hires a fire eater for the circus theme. It wouldn't matter except that the fire eater gets into a fight with the juggler and before anyone can react, the place is on fire.So she loses her job and reason for staying in NY.In Maine, she doesn't find what she expects, but she does find what she needs.The story is satisfying and entertaining. And, for anyone who cooks (I don't), there are marvelous sounding recipes. I think anyone who likes women's fiction, especially WF with mouthwatering recipes, will enjoy this book.
—Cheryl
I was given a copy to review via Goodreads First Reads.I wasn't sure about this book when I first started reading, but I totally fell in love. I guess I can relate- a thirty-something who feels like they still haven't found their place in life. This is a book about discovery and finding yourself. I do love that the characters in this book are in their thirties. I've read books where a 22 year old character feels 'lost' in life. No one knows anything at 22! Anyway, the characters are all relatable and real. I'm just about ready to move to Maine and become part of their makeshift family!
—Jayna
