Dear Great Book Guru, I was at a wonderful Birthday/Anniversary party this past Presidential weekend at the Metropolitan Bistro – the food was delicious and the hosts and guests fascinating. There was talk about a new book that touched on the pandemic but was more about the hero’s quest to know herself.  Sound familiar?  Presidential Partygoer

Dear Presidential Partygoer,The book is JOAN IS OKAY by Weike Wang.  Joan is, at thirty-six years of age, a very skilled physician at a prestigious New York City hospital.  Her parents had moved from China so her brother Fang and she could attend schools in America. When both children finished their educations in elite universities, the parents returned to China to live out their lives in the comfort and security of their native land.  When the father dies, the mother returns to America for a visit but is soon caught up in the politics and restrictions of the pandemic as flights are cancelled and lives placed on hold.  Joan is comfortable in her circumscribed life at the hospital where she excels and finds her brother’s lavish lifestyle off-putting and her mother’s demands irritating. When a new neighbor attempts to draw her into his social orb, she recoils. Everyone around her seems to see her shortcomings while Joan herself sees herself as “okay.”   When the pandemic calls her back to work after a forced bereavement leave, she realizes that she is indeed more than okay - she’s just about perfect!  A short novel and highly recommended….