Summer at the Little Beach Street Bakery

Summer at the Little Beach Street Bakery by Jenny Colgan         Audio Book: 11 hours     Hardback Book:  416 pages                    

I do love Jenny Colgan’s writing.    She is in the same category as Sophie Kinsella to me, great writer, excellent characters, fun stories.    Man!  She made me so mad at main character, Polly Waterford in this one.   I was furious with her.    Don’t want to give too much of the story away, but, lots of laugh out loud dialogue happens all the way up to when someone very close to Tarney moves in to town.    I can’t tell you who cause it will blow some of the story, but, the story has a huge turn regarding Neil because of Polly’s not asking permission to allow him to enter a location where Polly has just had a conversation about a potential danger at this location (that would not be good for Neil).   Polly lets Neil in to the location without letting the person who lives there know and she has just had a conversation about the circumstances that could be dangerous and without so much as a care for the person at the location Polly lets Neil in KNOWING FULL WELL the scoop there – action occurs in the blink of an eye which this DITZ and I am controlling my language here which makes me sad because I really liked Polly and still do but I am so seeing red furious at her for this intentional act on her part that puts Neil in peril and it is POLLY’s FAULT and she blames the other person for it and never accepts the responsibility of her own actions in bringing about what transpires.   NEVER does she accept it is her fault.   NEVER does she admit to anyone what she did to cause the reaction.    AND SHE TELLS EVERYONE in town that it was the other two’s fault when it was CLEARLY HER OWN ACT that caused the problem.   I take issue with someone not owning their own mistakes.    Accepting that one’s self is to blame for something is not easy.    It is not what anyone wants to do but it is the RIGHT thing to do to own up to our own flaws and not only is Polly not woman enough to accept what she has done HERSELF she turns everyone against an innocent person and her companion who are innocent and only reacting normally – Polly never does admit she is the wrong person in the mix which makes me dislike her so much for that.   And I really am angry for what she did.    But then for her to blame someone else who had no idea what was going on because Polly’s sadity self took it upon herself to just do a thing in someone else’s home without even giving them the courtesy of asking if it was o.k. with them to do this thing that causes a chaotic reaction from another unknowing source who also lived in the home – for her to do that and then to go further and blame those who live there for what happens and then for Polly to go around disparaging them with libelous comments all over town and turn others all against this person who did nothing to warrant such behavior -  that part of the story just turned me totally off of Polly for most of the rest of the book.   I only felt a little sorry for her when she reaped some bad juju in the what goes around comes around fashion.   I did feel sorry for her because down deep I do so like Polly but I was just outdone for her to do this despicable thing then poison an innocent person’s reputation.   GRRRRRRR!   It was wrong and it was unfair and I hate that kind of behavior even in fictional characters.    Polly you were WRONG and need to own up to it and square things on those other folks behalf with the town.     And then after what Polly has done by proxy to Neil she heartlessly kicks him to the curb.    ARRRRRRRGGGGGGGHHHHHHHH!     So much happens in this story.     I will try to stifle my urge to choke a fictional character and as in the story of “Annie”  trust that the sun will come out tomorrow.    It does folks.     GOOD STORY as always Jenny Colgan.     Polly, I will have to wait and see with you, sister.   I’m still not over what you did.    Way to grab those emotions, Jenny Colgan.    Wooo!   Your writing is so real.