The Summer Kitchen

by Karen Weinreb

Book Overview

After her husband is arrested for a white-collar crime, Nora Banks's privileged life is upended in an instant. Nora has to reach into reserves she didn't know she had to support her family and change her way of thinking about life, family, money, and romance.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0312379250
• ISBN13: 9780312379254
• Release Date: July 2009
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press
• Length: 328 Pages
• Weight: 0.95 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 5.6" x 8.3"

Customer Reviews

A Cautionary Tale

Karen Weinreb is a great story teller and THE SUMMER KITCHEN is a real page-turner; I had a hard time putting it down. But more importantly, it serves as a cautionary tale in today's money-driven consumer society. The thought we are left with at the end of the book is this karmic truth: what goes around comes around. And that is something we all need to ponder. One never gets something for nothing. Effort is needed. Nora and Evan make this clear.

mouth watering treat

I just finished reading The Summer Kitchen. My mouth is still watering from the luscious food descriptions. The way Karen Weinreb writes about food is just lyrical. I know that the story was based on the author's own experiences. I am hoping that she found the peace and contentment that Nora did.

Fantastic Read

I found The Summer Kitchen to be a captivating & thought-provoking family drama. The main character Nora Banks is rich and vibrant. It was a great journey to follow Nora as she rebuilds, reinvents and rediscovers what's truly important in life. I look forward to Karen's next book. What a great new talent !

Losing everything and finding her true self

The Summer Kitchen Weinreb proves herself a keen observer of people and the world in this riches to rags story of a wealthy young mother of three, Nora Banks, whose husband's illegal Wall Street dealings destroyed her life and her family. In losing everything--even the memory stick with her children's pictures was confiscated by the feds--Nora rediscovered her true self and an identity apart from insincere artificiality of her super wealthy neighbors. Nora's individuality and spirited style had always drawn the mildly condescending attention and whispers around the town of Bedford, but that did not stop anyone from attending her lavish parties so long as she had money. When the money and husband were gone, she was shunned. The inner strength and focus that caused her to be labeled an "eccentric" in Bedford emerged to help her save herself and her family. In the end, she transformed herself from a person who was merely tolerated to a person who was valued and admired. Weinreb's descriptions of the subtle competition among the rich and their not-so-subtle judgmental attitudes will have you cheering as Nora struggles to overcome impossible odds after being stripped of all the trappings of that elevated life style. You will find yourself rereading passages just to enjoy Weinreb's unique perceptions and lovely imagery. Weinreb even manages to insert some delightful language from her own Australian background in the form of Philip, the owner of a local bakery. OK, I admit I liked it. A lot. I was a little hesitant to read it because I thought it would be more of a "chic" book, but I got caught up in the story and quickly found myself rooting for Nora to kick some rich bootie. She does, but in a much more interesting way than I expected which is also what made this book an excellent read and one that I will be recommending to friends. Without a doubt, I will be looking forward her next book.