Mangoes and Quince

I was wandering through the bookstore one afternoon and just picked this up randomly. I can honestly say this is my favourite "pick up" so far, and I pick up many different books. Carol Field is very passionate in her detail, and the characters' stories are ones that you feel personally despite the (at times) exotic locale.I felt an indifference towards Miranda at first, but I did admire her tenacity. Of the 3 generations of women in that house, I felt the most compassion for the eldest and the youngest, but I guess I understood most where Miranda was coming from......This is a wonderful book, a captivating read, and a perfect rainy afternoon escape. It won't take you long to finish it!!

This book reads so well!! It's a page turner as well as being finely written. Fascinating characters and story.

This extraordinary first novel carries the reader into fascinating, mysterious worlds: the Dutch East Indies, the exotic lives of a charismatic cult leader and his followers, and the adventures of a magical monkey named Majine. But the heart of the story is the poignant, moving coming of age of the book's main character. The reader is instantly seduced by the rich images and vivid depictions of both Amsterdam and the East Indies. But Field's descriptions of the sumptuous dishes created by Miranda in her new restaurant are so delicious that the reader is compelled to read more, and then to read again this remarkable novel.

Just after World War II, Anton brought his Australian "child"-bride Miranda home to Amsterdam, but his mother Ria rejects Miranda. Over the next few years, Anton went on many sea voyages, eventually leaving Miranda and their daughter Diana behind with his mother. When Diana is still a preadolescent, Anton fails to return from his latest sea voyage. With the bills piling up and no income coming in, Miranda decides to take in borders. Soon her cooking skills become famous and many of the housewives start ordering her dishes. Over the next few years as Diana becomes a teen she misses her father. When Rotterdam anthropologist Max Madoqua learns about all the exotic items in Miranda's home that Anton brought home over the years, he makes an attempt to see them using Diana's father fixation as his avenue to the collection. With Max's prompting, Diana sneaks into her father's two special locked rooms to begin a quest to find out what happened to him. MANGOES AND QUINCE is a period piece that centers on the deep characters, especially Miranda, Diana, and to a lesser degree Ria and indirectly Anton. The story line travels at a leisurely pace so that the reader can savor the feelings of the principal players. Not for action lovers, Carole Field has written an interesting family drama that will please those historical cozy fans. This is one of those rare books that belong on the keeper shelfHarriet Klausner