Sunday, July 19, 2009

The Beach Street Knitting Society and Yarn Club


The Beach Street Knitting Society and Yarn Club

Gil McNeil

4 out of 5



First of all the title of the book really bothered me. Too much of a take off of the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. But I read the book anyway. And with the British humor that runs though this book, I am glad I did.

Jo Mackenzie gave up a very promising career in television broadcasting to raise her two boys while her husband dashes around the world to cover international stories. On his last visit home he informs Jo that he would like a divorce, but the wanker gets himself killed in an automobile accident and Jo is left with two young rambunctious children and not sure how or if she should actually mourn his loss.

When she find that they are in severe debt and a second mortgage had been taken out on their home without her knowledge; what is she to do but pull up stakes, buy her grandmothers knitting shop and start over again.
With the help of her best friend and the advice of her grandmother and new friends, Jo sets out to make a new life for herself, her incorrigible boys, the neighborhood dog and a glamourous movie star that had befriended her.

Not your typical “Oh, poor me” type of book, Jo is a refreshing character that has learned to make the best of what she has and not to dwell too much on the past. It would be nice if her boys could have a father, but together they are a family and that is good enough.

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