Another Lovely Literary Luncheon

Hello, dear friends.  I hope that you are having a good weekend.  The Mister and I spent it shopping and getting ready for my book club.  Today, we are off to New Hampshire to visit with the Mister's family.

The Friday before Memorial Day I headed along with my friends, Anne, Annie, and Kathy to the first literary luncheon of the season at the picturesque Wequassett Resort and Golf Club.  

The Mother/Daughter team that sponsor this fabulous gathering are Joanne and Caitlin, owners of Where The Sidewalk Ends bookstore in lovely Chatham. 

If you are ever lucky enough to visit my favorite town on the Cape, stop in and breathe in the charm of this darling store.

We lucked out with our waterside table.  From left to right: Anne, Kathy, Ellen, Hillary, and Annie.

Another small world story for you.  Sista and I met Ellen and Hillary three years ago in Nantucket at the weekend hosted by Ellen Hildebrand.   It was great to catch up with them.  Ellen is a voracious reader, and she gave us a slew of recommendations for future reads.  

The guest of honor, J. Courtney Sullivan could not have been sweeter.  She was also a real trooper - she was 8 months pregnant.

Saints For All Occasions is Courtney's third book.  She also wrote Maine and Commencement.  I read and enjoyed all three of them.

Courtney's speech was very entertaining.  She began by telling us that Saints For All Occasions is about a dysfunctional Irish Catholic family.  Every member of the audience sat up in their seats.  I guess we could all identify in one sense or another.
The book centers around two sisters - one who gets married, has a family and lives in Hull.  The other sister becomes a cloistered nun.   Courtney spoke of her research for the book and interviewing cloistered nuns in Connecticut.  She was impressed with how accomplished the nuns were before joining the convent.   They included a stockbroker, a CPA and an actress who once shared the screen with Elvis.

Courtney spoke of being the oldest by several years of her cousins.  This enabled her to be included in adult conversations between the siblings.
  
The title of the book is derived from a box of holy cards which was passed down in her family.  This reminded me so much of my Mother because no matter what challenge in life you were facing, my Mother could pinpoint the perfect saint who would listen and answer your prayers.

I enjoyed this book tremendously.  The characters were colorful as well as likable, and the captivating story was threaded with sibling tensions, courage, strength, heartbreak and love.

The perfect combination for a delicious beach read.

Courtney graciously autographed books and chatted it up with the ladies.

It was a gray, rainy day but the resort still held its beauty.

And speaking of beauty... my model, Annie was a good sport about going out in the sprinkles and posing for me.

Can you tell that she is sick of me taking pictures of her?

More fabulous authors are scheduled for the rest of the Summer.

Despite the rain, sunny smiles from Kathy and Annie.

Miss Daisy had such a good time, she wondered when we could come back.

I told her not soon enough.

I've got a busy week ahead.  

I'll check in for The Friday Files.  

In the meantime, have a wonderful week.

Until next time...

thespruce.com