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The Funeral Ladies of Ellerie County
The Funeral Ladies of Ellerie County
By Claire Swinarski
What an odd title for a novel! But as soon as you start reading, you will realize that it is very appropriate. Some of the main characters in the book are members of the funeral committee at St. Anne’s Catholic Church. When there is a death, they quickly move into action to provide the expected luncheon for attendees at the funeral “knowing they couldn’t fix broken hearts but might as well feed them.” Any food left over is packaged up and sent home with the bereaved so they don’t have to worry about food for the following difficult days.
As you get to know Esther, you will also meet her family and witness their love for each other. Esther is one of the kindest people you will ever meet. She is a widow, and she is frustrated with the process of growing old. Her generosity and empathy for Hazel, a young single pregnant woman she befriends on a Catholic website leads her into financial danger, but Esther’s family and friends gather round to support her. Unfortunately, Esther’s background and community stress the importance of pulling yourself up by your own bootstraps. The situation she is in is shameful to Esther, but it would also be shameful to accept help.
Esther’s granddaughter Iris comes to the rescue in a different way when Annabelle, a childhood resident of Ellerie County, passes away. Her family arrives for the funeral but find their reservations are a problem. Iris has a house almost ready for use as an Airbnb and lets them stay there. The grateful family includes a celebrity chef and his daughter. Cooper, his son from a previous marriage, is part of the dysfunctional family group. Cooper’s own mother is less a mother to him than Annabelle had been. A former EMT, he also suffers from PTSD.
The characters and their situations drive the plot and engage the reader. I felt immersed in the friends and family groups in the small town and could even feel the cold during the winter. The author of The Funeral Ladies of Ellerie County excelled in physical and emotional descriptions. Without a Hallmark kind of ending, she still manages to provide a hopeful conclusion to her story.
I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Rating: 5/5
Category: Fiction, Women’s Fiction, New Adult
Publication: March 12, 2024—Harper Collins
Memorable Lines:
Esther was from an age where loving your neighbor meant loving your actual neighbor, not just adding an emoji to your Twitter name in times of crisis. She helped people just because they were standing in front of her.
…why couldn’t she just lie? It was the Catholic in her. The guilt clung to you like powdered sugar. You’d find the stuff in your hair days later.
They all thought you had to be in love to commit. They didn’t realize it was the other way around: that love came from commitment. Nobody ever tells you when you get married how many days you’ll wake up in the morning and want to strangle the other person. No, to them it was all Pinterest boards and buttercream flowers.
A Light in the Window–Mitford, a good place to live
A Light in the Window
by Jan Karon
Earlier this year the members of my book club decided that for the upcoming months each person would select a book for all of us to read. I couldn’t have been more delighted when A Light in the Window was chosen as one of our reads. It is the second book in Jan Karon’s The Mitford Years series and a reread for me.
I enjoyed so much returning to the little town of Mitford where no one is perfect and everyone has hiccups in their lives. Yet the people there are good. Miss Rose has a screw loose, Edith Mallory gets carried away with romantic intentions on Father Tim, and the town is in danger of losing its café. These are just some of the problems in Mitford, but the focus of the plot is the relationship of Father Tim, the never-married Episcopal priest, and his neighbor Cynthia, an artist and the author of a successful series of children’s books. Father Tim likes Cynthia, but his inexperience makes him a reluctant suitor.
This major plot thread dominates A Light in the Window, but many other threads are woven into the book. It is a relaxing book, full of humor. The unexpected visit of Irish cousin Meg is a source of both humor and concern as are many of the stories in the book. There is character development as the characters mature and work through their problems. Themes include love, forgiveness, and trust. There are many denominations included in the book and there is an emphasis on how Father Tim and other preachers work together for the good of the people of Mitford and to further their exposure to the love of Jesus. Father Tim is an excellent listener and very accepting of others and their differences. At the same time, it is clear that he has standards and the townsfolk know they can count on him from his cooked hams to his pastoral care. There are a lot of characters, but the author makes it easy for the reader to distinguish them by their uniqueness. Father Tim’s dog Barnabas and his foster son Dooley are two of my favorites.
I very much enjoyed my return trip to Mitford and look forward to rereading more of the books in the series.
Rating: 5/5
Category: Fiction, Christian
Notes: There are a lot of characters in this book. Most of them were introduced in the first book. This book could be read as a standalone, but I recommend reading the first book in the series prior to reading this one. Both are relaxing and enjoyable.
Publication: 1995—Penguin
Memorable Lines:
He wanted to get at something more compelling, more life-changing—the process of personal confession, of personal relationship with Christ. He also wanted to point out that being a priest no more assured him of heaven than being a chipmunk would assure him of nuts for winter.
“Do you think God would have me batter through your locked doors?” “I think that you and only you could do it. I read something the other day—‘What is asked of us in our time,’ the writer said, “is that we break open our blocked caves and find each other. Nothing less will heal the anguished spirit, nor release the heart to act in love.’ Locked doors, blocked caves, it’s all the same. It is so hard to…” “To be real.” “Yes. Terribly hard. Frightening. But there’s no other way.”
Stolen time. He took her hand and turned it over to see the small, uplifted palm. He kissed its softness and placed her palm against his cheek. Stolen time. He would willingly be the blackest of thieves.
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