September 2020

I heard about MONOGAMY by Sue Miller at a few publisher previews --- and shared it with our readers at a “Bookaccino Live” event. I loved it, and in fact I stayed up until 3am one night to finish it. It’s the story of a marriage, of vows and promises broken. Annie is married to Graham, but when he passes away, she learns a cruel secret about him, one that will have her questioning so much of her life. The character of Annie unpeels a lot of layers in her life --- who she was with the men in her life and who she is now. And, along the way, she tries to unearth who Graham was.

As the book opens, we get to know Graham, a gregarious bookseller who can charm an audience, cheer on an author and put the right book into a reader’s hands. We all would love a bookseller and a bookshop like this near our homes. He and Annie have been married for 30 years. She has basked in living in his shadow, throwing brilliant parties and dinners. Her photography career has taken a back seat to his world. Just as she is embarking on a solo show that will put her back into the world of photography, Graham dies suddenly. And with his death comes so much baggage. We are in Annie’s head as she surfs the pain of grief and tries to see her way through the fog.

I confess to not having read Sue before, but this book has me looking for what to read by her next. Book clubs, note that there is a lot to discuss here.