I recently listened to The Story of Forgetting by Stefan Block—a complex, descriptive story about early onset Alzheimers, read I Loved, I Lost, I Made Spaghetti by Giulia Melucci—A New Yorker’s love life mixed in with recipes, and read Promise, Texas by Debbie Macomber—a sweet,gentle tale of community and romance.

The Story of Forgetting by Stefan Merrill Block

This powerfully descriptive book is not one the reader is likely to forget, as it vividly humanizes the lives of two families affected by early onset Alzheimers among other things. The book follows the stories of Seth, a 15 year old boy struggling to deal wth the illness of his mother, normal teenage problems like puberty, and the withdrawl of his Dad.  It also tells the story of Abel Haggard, an elderly hunchback living in a decript farm with only his memories and the hope that his long lost daughter will find him again. The characters are quirky and some of their adventures are quite strange and even disturbing as the author does not shy away from what some might consider vulgar or taboo. There are many fascinating parts to this book—the information shared about early onset Alzheimers and where it came from, the fictional tales of Isadora that are spread among one family with the disease, and the power of love and determination to overcome overwhelming odds. If you respond like I did you may not like every part of this book, and it may take a while for it to grow on you, but once you get into it you will be mesmorized by it. I would definitely recommend it, and I think it would make an excellent choice for a book discussion group.
P.S. I listened to this on audio and I don’t know that that is the best medium for this book. The narrator did a good job, but the transitions between Seth’s story and Abel’s were not always easy for me to pick up on and I would sometimes get confused.

I Loved, I Lost,  I Made Spaghetti by Giulia Melucci

A candid look at the author’s love life and her passion for cooking make this book an amusing read. Giulia Melucci lives in New York and in the pages of this book shares what it is like to be single, meet interesting men, form relationships with them, and cook for them. She also shares her recipes with us—which sound divine, if some of the ingredients might be hard to come by for those of us in out here in the sticks.
I enjoyed this well enough and as a single woman could identify with some of the author’s anguishes and romantic compulsions. The food sounded really good too. It doesn’t stand out as the greatest read ever, but it is a nice diversion if you want to read about someone’s love life and peruse—maybe even try—some interestng recipes.

Promise, Texas by Debbie Macomber

Annie is ready for change in her life, and so at the urging of her best friend Jane she moves to Promise, Texas. What she finds there is a wonderfully supportive community of folks who are willing to support and love her. This includes a local widower who might turn out to be more than just a friend. Meanwhile we also learn about the sheriff’s quest to win over a local schoolteacher, a host of other family and relationship problems, and a mystery involving the nearby ghost town of Bitter End.
This is an enjoyable read for those that like to escape to a place filled with cozy and sweet people—and also lots of budding romances. I enjoyed it for that—and this is part of a series so if it turns out to be your cup of tea there are plenty more just like it to read.