Sleeping Arrangements

I've been reading sleeping arrangements by Madeline Wickham. This book was recommended to my by Julie. I know that she also wrote on her blog about the novel. (let's hope my analysis can equal to hers...)

The book starts introducing different stories. Almost like the Lord of the Rings connects different tales. However, the subject matter couldn't be MORE different than the Lord of the Rings! There are two families: The Strattons and The Murrays. Both families share a friend by the name of Gerard. This Gerard is a wine taster and owns a villa in Spain.

Also, both families share the desperate need for a vacation. Chloe (the partner of Phillip Murray) is a dress designer who works under the stress of demanding brides and their mothers. Phillip Murray works in a bank and is in the sticky situation of possibly loosing his job. The Murray boys, Sam and Nat are excited to take a break and enjoy a swimming pool and games. Hugh Stratton works non-stop and barely knows his own two little girls (Beatrice and Octavia). Whereas his wife, Amanda is a busy stay at home mom who is desperate to perfect her already glowing tan.

However....Gerard books them both at his villa for the same week!!!!!!! The vacation doesn't start out too smoothly for the families. Both are very mad about the mistake. And....Hugh and Chloe are forced to look back 16 years at the time that they were dating. This booking mistake was quite coincidental! (or was it?)

I'll have to read more to discover the mystery, or lack of behind Gerard's "whoopsies"

THE END!

I just finished Three Days, and it was a good book. However, I don't think I would recommend it to anyone. It was relatively slow moving and just a very silly idea. (Being captured by a sweet family?)

At the end of the story, questions raised throughout the book were answered (fancy that!) The reason Claudia (the woman that Jackie took walks on the beach with) was being kept by the family was because there was a girl around Jackie's age that had died. The girl's name was Antonia and was very close to Claudia (her mother). The family replaced Antonia with Jackie.

In the last couple of scenes, Jackie is taken to Antonia's grave, and this is where Jackie understands the reason she was treated so well and kept at the home. She sees through the family's tears that this girl was very important to them.

Jackie also is taken to the train station by Claudia. In other words, she is released to go back home. Jackie takes out a picture of her mom and tells the photograph not to worry, and that she'll be home soon. Then, she sits back and waits for the train to make it to the airport.

This is the most unrealistic story EVER!

Jackie is now fully moved into the house of the Italian family. The two men (who she has discovered are the sons of the woman at the house) are rarely home. However, the mother stays at the house full time and takes care of Jackie like Jackie was her daughter. Believe it or not, Jackie isn't as scared as she was at the beginning of this strange experience. The mother draws Jackie's bath and the two go on walks along the shore near their home. Jackie is very aware of the fact that the family has a story, or something to tell her, but she just can't seem to grasp what it is that they want!

Honestly, this is a very very slow moving book and it contains a lot of day to day details. Like the fact that the lasagna smelled delicious mixed with the basil growing in the clay pots outside. And that the sun warmed her fingers while she watched the woman in the kitchen. (the woman being mother). Then, the book goes into detail on how the mother carefully puts layers of pasta, cheese, and white sauce with fresh herbs in order, and then repeats the process multiple times. It can get VERY slow and quite boring, but somehow the story keeps you hooked. You just HAVE to know what will happen in this BEYOND strange story!!!

A Situation I Would Not Do Well In!

I’m now reading Three Days by Donna Jo Napoli. It’s about a girl whose father gets killed by a heart attack during their father/daughter vacation in Italy. Jackie (the daughter) doesn’t have a cell phone and doesn’t know what to do. She is left stranded on the Italian highway with a dead father and rental car.
Unfortunately, two men in a truck pick her up. She is VERY scared (and who wouldn’t be??) She has no choice but to go with them. They take her to their home and give her very nice things. They give her a beautiful room that is made just for a girl her age. Also, at the home is an older woman.
Since Jackie speaks little to no English, she has to piece together the family’s life. During all of this, all she can think about is how badly she wants to go home. The family’s marinara smells delicious, but it’s not the same as her mother’s. She can only imagine what is going on in the world. The home she is at is in a very secluded area and all of the neighbors speak…you guessed it, ITALIAN!
I’m only into the very beginning of the book, so I don’t know too much about the plot, but I have been getting to know Jackie. She seems to be a very considerate and brilliant young girl. It is obvious that she will find a way to get herself out of the situation no matter what. Surprisingly, she doesn’t seem too phased by the whole “being helpless” thing. Of course, this strange, yet very kind family does help with that little fact…