Camino Island by John Grisham

"When I came back from the East last autumn I felt that I wanted the world to be in uniform and at a sort of moral attention forever; I wanted no more riotous excursions with privileged glimpses into the human heart. Only Gatsby, the man who gives his name to this book, was exempt from my reaction - Gatsby, who represented everything for which I have an unaffected scorn."        -Nick Carraway, from The Great Gatsby

First Reading October, 2017

I guess I chose this book for our Page Turners to read in October because I have long been a fan of John Grisham, our group has not read any of his work and Camino Island was on the Best Seller list for quite a while. I am rating it a 3; I liked it but didn't love it. It is not the usual legal thriller that has earned Grisham an elite reputation as a novelist---not a courtroom in the story although there are a few lawyers, rather obscure characters. I have really enjoyed many of those earlier works especially A Time to Kill (his first?) and The Client. Perhaps I just didn't find any really likeable characters and for that matter, no insightful quotes, thus the quote from Gatsby.

To begin this novel 5 thieves plan an elaborate heist of original manuscripts by F. Scott Fitzgerald which are securely stored in the Firestone Library at Princeton University. It was interesting that our book club read The Great Gatsby, one of the stolen works, a few years ago and most of us didn't like it. Rather ironic since in this story the original is greatly valued.

There are stories of the thieves, a book store owner who collects and deals in rare books and a young woman author with severe writer's block interwoven into an interesting plot. Bruce Cable is the owner of Bay Books---New and Rare on Camino Island. Mercer Mann is the author reluctantly recruited to work undercover for the company who has insured the Fitzgerald masterpieces to help recover them.

Camino Island has been a big part of Mercer's past as she spent a great deal of time with her late grandmother, Tessa. They had been lovingly involved with Turtle Watch. The references to sea turtle protection reminded me of another book I read recently, Beach Music by Pat Conroy.

I'm guessing that Camino Island is a fictionalized version of Amelia Island, Florida, since it is described as a small barrier strip just north of Jacksonville. As a Floridian, I enjoyed the references to familiar places. I am not sure how I feel about main character Bruce Cable having attended Auburn University, where I studied for two years and became a fan. I really didn't like Bruce much.

In teaching students to write I often advised them to write about things they know and are passionate about. I believe Grisham should go back to his courtroom drama!
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Page Turners met today and voted an average 3.9 for Camino Island, votes between 5 and 3.  Most agreed the plot made it a page-turner. It was interesting that some liked the characters even though they weren't examples of moral behavior, by any means. I was surprised that one member compared Bruce Cable to Gatsby in Fitzgerald's masterpiece. Even though I had chosen a quote from that classic which refers to Gatsby, I hadn't thought of any similarity to Cable.

Part of our discussion centered around the ending---some were satisfied while others thought it was too hastily "wrapped up." Most members have read other Grisham novels and a few agreed with me that this one was disappointing.

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2nd Reading February, 2026

Since this was a Page Turner selection and since I read it almost 9 years ago, I reread it. I haven't changed my mind. Still a 3 rating.

Two Bodies Are Better Than One by Erica Ruth Neubauer 2

 

"And who'd hired Rupp to investigate Baker? Wass it the person Baker had stolen the money from? It was real easy to believe Rupp had taken on a drug dealer as a client. It seemed like a perfect skeezeball match, actually. But it still left the question on who'd killed Rupp and dumped him on Mrs. Highsmith's lawn. The big boss?"            -Mike, from the novel

I am glad this novel was a free selection because it would have been a waste of my money. It didn't do much for me, in fact I was happy to be done with it.

The murder mystery is told with two points of view: Lorraine Highsmith, an advice columnist with a mysterious past, and Micheala "Mike" Zenoni, the only female detective in her unit, always fighting for the respect she deserves. I found nothing to like about Lorraine right from the beginning, but I was rooting for Mike's success in solving the two murders, referred to in the title. Apparently, this is book one of a Lorraine Highsmith series. I guarantee I will not be looking for #2!

The revelation of the perpetrator was a big surprise but if I were you, I wouldn't bother. I was going to rate this a 3 until the ending where I changed my mind!

A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court by Mark Twain 5

"I want you to get word to the king that I am a magician myself---and the Supreme Grand High-yu-Muck-a muck and head of the tribe, at that; and I want him to be made to understand that I am just quietly arranging a little calamity here that will make the fur fly in these realms if Sir Kay's project is carried out and any harm comes to me."

        -Connecticut Yankee Hank Morgan

I read this novel many years ago, but I remember being rather fascinated by it. It was no less intriguing this time through. Although it took me longer than it should have for an under-300- page book, I am so glad I reread it. Mark Twain was a master writer, in my opinion. His attention to detail and wit make his work enjoyable. The only drawback here was the old English which slowed me down, as well as very long sentences and paragraphs. I rate it a 5 on creativity and entertainment value.

A 19th century Connecticut engineer Hank Morgan experiences a severe blow to the head and is transported back to medieval times, to the realm of King Arthur. He is soon arrested and threatened with execution, but he realizes his strength is in knowing the future and pretends to be a magician and prophet. His first act is "conjuring" a solar eclipse, one that he knows from history is about to occur. The people, including King Arthur, are awed by his "ability." In fact, the King appoints him chief minister.

The "Yankee" is distressed at the total authority of both the monarchy and the Catholic Church and what was essentially a caste system. He sets about trying to make democratic reforms and industrialize the country.

An especially humorous part was when Arthur decides to travel the kingdom incognito with his chief minister. It is almost impossible for the "Yankee" to teach the king to act as a commoner!

The Case of the Green-Eyed Sister by Erle Stanley Gardner 4

 

"Sylvia Atwood sat in the client's chair in Mason's office. Her [green] eyes were fixed steadily on the lawyer now. There were no more flickering glances. She was regarding him as cautiously as a poker player appraises someone who just shoved a stack of blue chips into the pot."          -from the novel

I do like a good murder mystery, and I enjoyed the television series "Perry Mason" years ago, so I thought I'd give this novel a try. I didn't love it at first, but when the trial began, I could hardly put it down.

At start, a woman named Sylvia Atwood came to Perry Mason, attorney-at-law about an attempt to blackmail her father and ruin the family reputation. The perpetrator was J.J. Fritch, a known bank robber. There was a tape recording held by Fritch that would presumably implicate Sylvia's father in an illegal act. A private investigator named Brogan had offered to broker the deal for Ms. Atwood, so she sought legal advice from Mason.

When Fritch was found murdered, the race was on to find the killer, especially urgent when it looked like Sergeant Holcomb (not a nice guy) was suspicious of Mason. Eventually an unlikely suspect was put on trial, and it fell to Mason to defend the accused and reveal the real murderer.

I have rated this one a 4.

Nanaville by Anna Quindlen 4

 "It's a complicated relationship, being a good grandparent, because it hinges on a series of other relationship. It's an odd combination of being very experienced and totally green: I know how to raise a child, but I need to learn how to help my child raise his own. Where I once commanded, now I need to ask permission. Where I once led, I have to learn to follow."        -from the memoir

I enjoyed this book selected for January by our Page Turners committee. It reminded me so much of experiences with my 4 grandchildren. It was profound at times but quite funny in places, as well. My rating is 4.

The book's subtitle is "Adventures in Grandparenting." Here are some of Quindlen's points about that adventure:

A chance to love without "the thorny crown of self-interest."

"Most grandparents are tethered but not tied, connected but not compelled, except by choice."

"We have to be our best selves around our grandchildren."

"Reading connects us [with our grandchildren]. Always and forever."

"There are only two commandments of Nanaville: love the grandchildren and hold your tongue."

"Grandparents usually get the best-case-scenario kid, and even when they don't, their time together has a sell-by date. The parents return. The grandchild leaves."

Grandparents think they are supposed to spoil the grandkids but "parents aren't that wild about grandparents who indulge too much, because it sometimes makes them feel one-upped or disrespected."

All of these points rang true for me. My grandchildren are all grown, ranging in age from 31 to 19 so the book brought back memories.

It was interesting that the author as a grandmother would be called Nana---it is an anagram of her given name. 

When our group met, much of the talk was sharing of our own experiences with our grandparents and/or grandchildren. Most of us liked the book with ratings of mostly 3's and 4's.

I strongly recommend the book to grandmothers!

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows 5

"If nothing else, I hope these characters and their story shed some light on the sufferings and strength of the people of the Channel Islands during the German Occupation. I hope, too, that my book will illuminate my belief that love of art---be it poetry, sculpture, or music---enables people to transcend any barrier man has yet devised."

    -Mary Ann Shaffer, from Acknowledgments
 

The Page Turners Book Club read this book in 2010 and loved it. Fifteen years and over 150 books later, it is still the highest rated book---4.9 out of 5! When I read it then, I liked it enough to want to read it again at some point. I saw the film version recently and enjoyed it so much, I knew it was time to reread the novel!  I still give it a 5.

The novel is epistolary, a story told through letters, telegraphs, or other written communications. The main character is Juliet Ashton, an aspiring writer. She corresponds frequently with her publisher, Sidney Stark and his sister, Sophie, her close friend.

In 1946, just after WWII in London, Juliet receives a letter from Dawsey Adams, a pig farmer on the island of Guernsey. He has found her name in a book of works by Charles Lamb and asks her how he can find more of his writing. She answers his letter and begins a correspondence in which he reveals he is part of a book club, the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, and describes other members of the group. Soon some of the others begin writing to Juliet, as well.

Juliet finds the stories of these letter writers compelling enough that she travels to Guernsey and falls in love with the place and the people, particularly a little orphan girl, Kit.

Through letters, the characters are developed beautifully, and the reader learns much about the horrors of the German occupation. It is easy to develop a fondness for most of the characters and, of course, silently cheer Juliet on in her quest.

I recommend this book highly. Maybe you could tell.

The Widow by John Grisham 5

"The grinding machinery of American justice was often slow to start, but once the disparate elements finally came together at one time and in one place---the courtroom---there was no stopping the train wreck."

      -from the novel
 

I am a fan of John Grisham; I've enjoyed many of his novels so it's not surprising that I found this book a page turner. 

While many of Grisham's legal thrillers involve a lawyer serving a client, this one features a struggling small-town attorney, Simon Latch, who is charged with murder in the death of his client, 85-year-old widow Eleanor Barnett. She had come to him to make a new will and indicated she had millions in stocks and no family unless you could consider two no-good stepsons, and she did not want them to be heirs to the fortune.

With the help of his well-known defense attorney, a former girlfriend who happens to be an FBI agent and a quirky denizen of the dark web, Simon must prove his innocence. This reader had a lot of empathy for Simon. He is not only facing the possibility of a long prison sentence but also a ruined reputation and great emotional damage to his family. The Widow is very suspenseful, and I am rating it a 5.