The Mighty Queens of Freeville

The Mighty Queens of Freeville by Amy Dickinson is a book of memoirs written by the national advice columnist who replaced Ann Landers after her death. The book is a serious of stories about the author following her early married life through the present time where she is a single mother of an eighteen year old daughter. I really enjoyed the stories. Dickinson's writing is very real and makes you feel as if you are a part of the story. She weaves the stories together easily and paints a picture of life in the small town of Freeville, where she grew up and her family lives. Her description of small town life seems very true and honest, especially her depictions of relationships between women, mothers and daughters in her family. Overall, I think it was a good book and I would recommend it to anyone who likes memoirs or reading about women's relationships.

Songs for the Missing

Songs for the Missing by Stewart O'Nan

I really enjoyed this book. It is about a teenage girl, Kim, who goes missing and what happens to her family following her disappearance. Her mother, father, friends and younger sister each have different responses and ways of dealing with losing Kim. I found all of the characters very real and easy to identify with. The story was a bit slow moving but was very well written. I knew from the excerpt on the back of the cover that Kim would most likely not be found, that the book wasn't really about that, but about the other characters' journeys in coming to grips with life without her. But I was a bit disappointed that the ending wasn't tidier. I do understand that that was exactly the point the author was trying to make, that not everything has a satisfying resolution. Overall, I enjoyed the book and would recommend it. 4 stars.