Landline

First of all, how could you not love a book by an author named

Rainbow? Or a story where the main character in Landline is Georgie McCool? Georgie is a thirty something comedy writer in LA. Her husband Neal stays at home with their two young girls while she and her longtime writing partner Seth strive to create the next big hit on t.v. A few days before Christmas the comedy duo have an opportunity they cannot pass up and since Hollywood waits for no one, Georgie tells Neal she cannot go to Omaha for their annual trip to visit his family for the holidays. And Neal goes with the kids, without her. From the moment Neal leaves town nothing is right and as Georgie reflects on their marriage and their life together she becomes terrified that she has made too many mistakes and it has all finally caught up on her. The problem is she wholeheartedly loves Neal and as she reaches back to her past self for an answer to the future it becomes crystal clear that she cannot live without him. Laughing out loud at how real and unreal this is at the same time, I could not put Landline down. If only we could talk to our younger selves, reevaluate our dreams and take back some of the hope that was so abundant in those years. If you enjoyed the satire in Where'd You Go Bernadette (by Maria Semple) or reflective humor of What Alice Forgot (by Liane Moriarty), Rainbow Rowell writes with a consistently smooth, humorous flow that grabs the reader and won't let go. Looking forward to reading her other novels, I do not know how I missed them!