The Secret Papers of Madame Olivetti by Annie Vanderbilt
First line: “He comes to her in the evenings, after work.”
Lily is a middle-aged woman seeking retrospection and a new direction for her life. Two years after her husband’s sudden death, she travels to the south of France to live in a house her family has owned for generations. While there, she recalls memories of her life and loves with the help of her old manual typewriter, the Olivetti. A handsome younger handyman, Yves, can fix more than a leaky roof, and we see from the start that Lily has lived a complicated emotional life and to sort through it will require many, many pages through the Olivetti.
Vanderbilt does a beautiful job of building Lily’s world and seamlessly weaving in the past without jerking us completely out of the story. Her prose is liquid and soothing, and we can plop ourselves down right beside Lily as she taps away at her unusual journey of love.
The story’s pace is even yet always interesting, lifted by the author’s engaging narrative as she transports us across countries and time to learn the difference between love, lust and passion.
For: A cozy read to fill an autumn afternoon, perfectly suited with a nice French wine.- Malena Lott