Month: August 2026

The Shippers

Posted on by Wendy Kennar

In a way, reading a Katherine Center novel is a lot like drinking an iced blended mocha from The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf. 

Let me explain:

I know exactly what I’m getting with each of them. (A romantic comedy featuring characters who get knocked down, get back up, and also fall in love. A tasty, cold, chocolatey beverage.)

I know there’s a recipe that will be followed. (I don’t have to worry about the ending. I can read 300 pages and know the main characters will wind up together. I can order my blended and know that it will always taste the same, regardless of who makes my drink.)

I know I’ll feel “better” at the end. (And in this case, better could be satisfied, fuller, happier, more joyful. And that’s for both the novel and the beverage.)

I just finished reading Ms. Center’s recently published novel, The Shippers. Definitely an enjoyable read, and maybe it’s just me, but this colorful cover made me think of orange creamsicles. 

First, let me just highlight the wonderful dedication at the front of the book:

“This book is for anyone who could really use a hug right now.” 

The book began with an Author’s Note — Ms. Center’s thoughts on love stories, why we need them, and why they’re good for us. She wrote:

“So for me, as a reader, getting the ‘spoiler’ that the main characters in a love story will end up together just makes me want to read the story more.
“Maybe it’s the opposite of a spoiler.
“What would that even be called?
“An enhancer, maybe?”

Here are some of the passages that stood out to me:

“I mostly became an art teacher because I felt like the world vastly underappreciated the awe-inspiring beauty of mathematics. And I wanted to get that fixed. One middle schooler at a time.”

I had a hard time deciding on my favorite lines from the scene where Cooper gives JoJo a hickey, so here’s just one bit that stood out to me:
“The first thing I realized was that Cooper hadn’t had time to shave this morning — as we scrambled out, late, to breakfast. The minute he made contact, I felt his stubble scratching and prickling my skin like the most erotic sandpaper in the world.
“Instant, full-immersion chills — just rolling up and down that whole side of my body.”

Other passages that stood out to me include the following:

“But as Finn’s face came at me like a fish-eye lens, his lips already puckered in a way that seemed premature, I realized something: I didn’t really want that kiss.
“I was curious about it. I still thought it might turn out to be the closure I needed to fix my whole life. I was still determined to do it…
“But those were all head decisions.
“My heart? Wasn’t interested.
“I didn’t stop him. I watched his face come in for a landing, and then I felt those puckered lips collide with mine. And then I stood very still and endured it. 
“I can’t say he was a bad kisser. I was the bad kisser.
“But as he mopped my face with his mouth, slurping me like I was a plate of spaghetti, all I could do was wait for it to be over.” 

“‘I’ve built my whole life around her. She’s the reason I do everything. She’s the reason I get up in the morning. She’s the reason I go to work. I don’t know who I am without your mom — or why I am. But there’s no way to explain that to her. There aren’t words in the world that can capture it.’” 

“‘Odysseus’s whole purpose in life is to get home to Penelope,’ my dad said. ‘That’s your mom for me.’
“Okay, that was actually unbelievably sweet. 
“Was I going to have to rethink all my theories about my dad? Or worse — go read Homer?”

“’That whole three-minute segment of my life is indelibly tattooed on my brain. I remember the exact weight of his hands on my shoulders. The precise rhythm of his breathing. The scent of his grape-flavored bubble gum. Not to mention the tragic spasms of joy that my heart lapsed into as soon as he got close. I could pick that kiss out of a lineup. I’d know that kiss anywhere.’”

“My dad sighed. ‘I don’t know. When your mom first fell for me, I was younger and better looking. Not sure why she’d want to hang on to this craggy old face now.’
“‘You don’t have to make her fall in love with you,’ I said. ‘You just have to remind her that she already did.’
“My dad considered that.
“‘Once you love somebody,’ I said, ‘once you’ve decided to let yourself love somebody … it’s hard to turn that off.’”

“Words are more powerful than they seem. Right?
“They don’t have any weight or mass or heft. They’re just sounds in the air.
“And yet.
“The sound of those words stopped me short.”

“Cooper squared his shoulders and went on. ‘I’m telling you you’re my favorite person on this overcrowded earth. I’m telling you that I’ve loved you my whole life long.’” 

“And so he took the seaglass ring he’d once given me off my hand. And then we put new rings on each other. And then we got engaged — and started dating.” 

Friends, any other Katherine Center fans out there? Did you read The Shippers? What did you think of it?



Please note: I am including a link to buy the book that I’m highlighting this week. If you use my link, I do make a small commission on your purchase at no additional cost to you. I am working with Bookshop.org which also sends a portion of the profit to support local, independent bookstores.

The Big Reveal

Posted on by Wendy Kennar
Screenshot - Image courtesy of COPE Magazine

“The appointment was set for early morning so I could make it to my fourth grade classroom before the school bell. I took this as a good sign. No doctor would deliver heartbreaking news and then expect me to go teach a roomful of nine and ten-year olds. Whatever Dr. W had to tell me couldn’t be that bad.  
“That’s what I kept telling myself, because that’s what I needed to believe.”

The words above are taken from my personal essay, “The Big Reveal,” which I’m pleased to share has been published in COPE Magazine, Issue 4. The theme for Issue 4 is Diagnosis. 

In its current form, “The Big Reveal” is the first essay in my memoir — I can’t believe I get to write this, but here it goes — which will be published in Spring 2028!!

The morning I received my diagnosis is one of those days that got filed into my memory, and not until many years later, was I more fully able to process what it meant then, and what it means now, to be diagnosed with an incurable chronic condition. 

Screenshot - Image courtesy of COPE Magazine

I hope you’ll read my essay, and also take time to read the other published pieces and marvel at the artwork that together make up COPE Magazine, Issue 4. (You can access the issue online and/or order print copies.)

Los Angeles with Kids – 2nd Edition

Posted on by Wendy Kennar

When our now-college-age son was growing up, we took full advantage of living in Los Angeles. Weekends and school vacations gave us the perfect opportunity to explore our city. 

A good friend of mine called these family outings “field trips.” I took that as a compliment. I’m proud that our son had the chance to walk aboard Air Force One (at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum) and get an up-close look at Space Shuttle Endeavour (at the California Science Center). Our son has observed timeless works of art by Diego Rivera (at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art), Vincent van Gogh (at the Getty Center), and Pablo Picasso (at the Norton Simon Museum). He has viewed the evolving look and size of GRAMMY awards at the GRAMMY Museum, touched certain shark and ray species at the Aquarium of the Pacific, and laughed at fossilized dinosaur poop — it’s called “Coprolite” — at the Natural History Museum. 

This exposure was important to me. I wanted to give our son the opportunity to learn and discover in a variety of different fields because you never know what will capture a child’s interest. You never know how a certain interaction or hands-on activity will spark something for a child. 

However, I also understand that sometimes Los Angeles may seem too big. Opportunities for experiences can seem overwhelming, as if there are too many choices. 

That’s where Los Angeles with Kids: 250+ ideas for ways to have fun, explore SoCal, and never have a boring weekend again comes into play. 

The book is the newly-updated 2nd edition to MomsLA.com‘s first published book, which I wrote about back in August of 2022. (Click here to be taken to that post.)

The book includes seasonal activities and annual events, a list of activity ideas for toddlers and a list for teenagers, a list of museums, and a collection of “things to do” each based on neighborhood. (Because Los Angeles families know that living in Pasadena, for example, and deciding to visit the Heal the Bay Aquarium in Santa Monica, is not always the easiest commute.)

I’m proud to write for MomsLA.com (since 2013!), and I’m proud that some of that writing has found its way into this incredible resource and guidebook. 

Friends, I hope you’ll check it out. And, even if you don’t live in Southern California, the holiday season will soon be upon us, and Los Angeles with Kids makes a thoughtful gift. 

Please note: I am including a link to buy the book that I’m highlighting this week. If you use my link, I do make a small commission on your purchase at no additional cost to you. I am working with Bookshop.org which also sends a portion of the profit to support local, independent bookstores.

The Exit Strategy

Posted on by Wendy Kennar

Here’s a short description of Lainey Cameron’s debut novel, The Exit Strategy, taken from the author’s website:

“A wife. A mistress. The friendship that saves them both.
Fierce. Fun. Feminist.” 

After reading The Exit Strategy, I can say those words accurately describe this story of female friendship. In fact the only “negative” thing I can say about Ms. Cameron’s novel is that it made me lose sleep. Meaning, there were several nights I had planned to read for just a few minutes, or just a few pages, and instead, I stayed awake and kept reading. I couldn’t help but become invested in Ryn’s and Carly’s story, their friendship, and the world of Silicon Valley (which I knew very little about).

Here are just some of the passages that stood out to me:

From the book’s dedication page: “To my mum Irene — Thanks for teaching me that  women don’t need to fear their strength or minimize their voice, and can be badass resilient, smart, caring, and open-hearted — everything I needed to know in life.”

Loved this line: “The man spun out lies like a spider on speed.”

I liked Ryn’s fondness for Nutella: “After being shown to her adobe casita, she rummaged in her bag for the Nutella and settled with the jar and a spoon on her patio…”
“She closed her eyes and sank into the smooth swirl. The velvety taste always took her back to sitting on the hay bales in the loft above the barn with Mom, savoring their latest contraband.”

“… wondering whether she’d ever deserve the true warmth of love. Not the fictitious kind filled with Todd’s false promises, or her parents’ type of love with the impossible expectation that she turn back time, but acceptance of a person as they are, complete with their history and flaws. Like the type of honest warmth she felt developing with Ryn over the last weeks.” 

“Last night, Carly wished she could offer more than hugs when Ryn shared she felt as if she were stuck in quicksand and slowly sinking, just waiting for the final moment of suffocation to arrive.”

“Ryn pulled out a tiny wooden plaque with flowers painted on either end. In the middle a quote was printed across the wood in cursive. She ran her finger along it. It is better to have loved and lost than live with the psycho for the rest of your life.”

“I know it seems hopeless lately, and I’m sure seeing Todd didn’t help, but don’t lose faith. My Uncle Remy used to say two things: It’s never too late to become the person you want to see in the mirror, and you’re already as strong as you’ll need to be. I know it feels hard right now, but when it comes to strength, you have more than any other woman I know.”

“Her whole career she’d ensured every investment had an exit strategy: If a company didn’t go public as planned, then it could be acquired or merged, or its assets sold. But she didn’t have a backup plan for her own life.” 

The Exit Strategy has won fifteen book awards and has been positively reviewed by hundreds of readers. 

By the way – My copy of The Exit Strategy features the novel’s original cover. The cover has since been changed, but the story remains the same. 

Please note: I am including a link to buy the book that I’m highlighting this week. If you use my link, I do make a small commission on your purchase at no additional cost to you. I am working with Bookshop.org which also sends a portion of the profit to support local, independent bookstores.