What's New - Leigh Feather

Book Reviews — 2025

by Leigh | Oct 8, 2025 | What I'm Reading, What's New | 0 comments

James
by Percival Everett

If you haven’t yet heard of this excellent re-creation of Huck Finn, told from Jim’s perspective, you must read it. It’s so engaging, critical, and chilling. I learned after I finished it that the author’s book Erasure was the basis of the movie American Fiction. Brilliant.

People We Meet On Vacation
by Emily Henry

I enjoyed this even though romance isn’t really my thing because it was so unique. Delightfully quirky. And the steamy parts so very steamy. The Netflix adaptation coming out early next year looks pretty cute.

The Hundred-Foot Journey
by Richard Morais

This thoroughly enjoyable novel transports you to foreign places – India, England, France – and indulges you in the art of both Indian and french food. It’s been made into a movie but I can’t bring myself to watch it and ruin the perfect memory of the characters who are in my head.

The Magic
by Rhonda Byrne

This is not your usual self-help book. I read this follow up to The Secret at a very rough time in my life, and it proved to be a pivot point, and truly saved me. Not only did I read it and follow the instructions faithfully, but my husband did too and our whole perspective on everything changed. It is the secret to being happy and truly magical.

Lifeform
by Jenny Slate

One of two personal essay/memoir books recommended to me by Scott at the Frenchtown Bookshop to assist me on my journey of writing my own. Slate is a well known TV Comedy writer and this book is weird and creative and pretty unhinged and I loved it for all those reasons. The racoon parts alone were worth full retail price.

In The Shelter
by Pádraig Ó Tuama

The second inspo for writing essays, completely different from Lifeform, this book was deep. It is poetically crafted truths about being human, writen by a queer Irish theologian. So full of pain and love and healing and redemption. Stunning.

Remarkably Bright Creatures
by Shelby Van Pelt

I’m beginning to really love the genre of contemporary Pacific Northwest fiction and this one in particular drew me in! It was so intriguing, heartfelt, and funny. You’ll love the Octopus and co-star Marcellus.

Euphoria
by Lily King

This I really loved. It’s based on Anthropologist Margaret Mead’s study of the tribes of New Guinea in the 1930s. It feels a little like Ann Patchett’s State of Wonder, and pays obvious tribute to Heart of Darkness, African Queen, etc. There’s a juicy love triangle that keeps the tension and intrigue. I appreciated the careful balance of past and present perspectives of other cultures, colonialism and modern day, and the awareness of its destructiveness.

The Life Impossible
by Matt Haig

To be honest I wasn’t wowed. I thought I would love it as much as The Midnight Library. Maybe I’m not a fantasy fiction person as much as I thought. It was easy to read and I enjoyed the setting of Ibiza. Light beach read?

Summertime: DC, Boston, and the Beach

by Leigh | Aug 5, 2025 | Travel, What's New | 0 comments

The Boston Public Library is the most beautiful place… and the quietest.

Last month my daughter Nora and I went up to Boston to look at colleges. It was the first of our out-of-town tours and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Being able to enjoy this rite of passage now as a parent felt so good, yet so surreal. I flashed back to when I was the one going up to New England to look at colleges. Rhode Island School of Design in Providence, the Massachusetts College of Art in Boston and one other I can’t remember. It was me, my dad, and my stepmother. And maybe it was that trip where we visited my high school crush Billy’s MIT fraternity house, an old Boston brownstone mansion. Hmm, Billy.

And how great is Boston?! Maybe I’m biased since my dad is from there (well out in the country, west of there) and it feels like home to me. Anyway, we drove north, like five hours, listening to entirely too much Taylor Swift and just talk talk talked.

Our first stop was Boston College. We walked around an empty campus for an unofficial tour and fell in love with it, the grand, colleg-y-ness of it. Nora walked the entire circular path of the garden labyrinth which felt symbolic of choosing a college and one’s future. It was about another 20 minutes to the city of Boston. We checked into our hotel and then went out exploring. Newbury Street had gotten even fancier since the last time I was there. With almost every clothing store you can think of, you could get yourself into a lot of trouble. I could almost feel my husband checking the bank balance as we strolled down the row of brownstones. I went into Buck Mason and Ganni and came out empty-handed. Nora went to Brandy Melville and even though the sales girls there are pure evil, she endured and found some things that gave her joy. We also spent time and money in the Trident Booksellers & Café which I highly recommend! Nora got a cute canvas book tote, how Boston is that? And I picked out a Pink Pony Club keychain for Tim which made me laugh a lot and him not very much. We had dinner at Eatally which my friend Jay had recommended and it was amaze. We ate a delicious Italian dinner, including the best gnocchi of my life, and then wandered around and around the extensive Italian marketplace. Finally, we walked back to our hotel, eating gelato on the way.

In the morning we wandered some more and found the Boston Public Library which was so stunning, then over to the Boston Commons before we headed off to the tour at Boston University. It’s an amazing school but after seeing it in person, Nora realized it was not for her. We headed out of the city right after the BU tour, just as rush hour hit and we were tired and hungry. We found a Shake Shack and it gave us the energy to squeeze in one more school, University of Rhode Island. I guess I’m really bad at Googling directions because we ended up at the Graduate School of Oceanography instead of the main campus. We kept wondering why it was so small and just seemed like a sad outpost, although scenically situated right on the water. The main campus is very nice. It had started to rain and we walked around the empty grounds as the sun set and Nora said if she can love it in the rain, it’s gotta be good.

Our trip to DC to look at colleges was next. There was, to be honest, an overly ambitious plan to drive though all the southern states and tour about 8 schools. Plans changed as I had to take care of some very challenging family responsibilities in DC. But we did have a great tour of Georgetown University. I realized that even though I’d grown up there and been to Georgetown (the neighborhood) I’d never seen the campus of Georgetown (the University). It was ungodly hot that weekend and we walked a lot. Highlights included eating at Rocklands BBQ, Tatte, and Dig Inn. The kids got to go out for ice cream with my aunt and uncle at our favorite Milly’s. There was also a brief drive around American University, so we got our money’s worth. We usually do some shopping in Georgetown, but didn’t this time. I threw in some old photos of the new Blue Dot store which is one of my favorite furniture and decor places. You should go.

After DC, we thought we’d go to see UVA “real quick” which is ridiculous because Charlottesville is over 2 1/2 hours farther south. And did I mention it was hot? We walked around the campus, again, deserted as if humanity had vanished, but it was not uninteresting. Everyone was running out of patience which made it hard to choose a restaurant and figure out directions and all that, but we perservered and found a cuban restaurant called Guajiros and I was proud of us for not going somewhere stupid like Chipotle. And then the cherry on top was finding a Ben & Jerry’s store and getting sundaes which ironically did not have cherries on top but were delicious. The exhaustion, heat, and walking mixed with the surprise, joy, and sugar resulted in happy sobbing. Literally. Win.

Not all of the summer was spent on the road. We had some beautiful days loafing at home. Blueberries on our blueberry bush. We even got to eat a couple before the birds did. The pool. Reading books. Picnics at Grandma’s and Grandpa’s. A Strawberry Moon viewing party with bonfire.

And finally, the beach. Same as always. Sun bathing, wave jumping, Wawa hoagies. Sleeping in, ice cream, mini golf. Sunset bike rides with magic hour photo shoots. Seafood dinners, yoga, Playa Bowls. It’s a formula but it works. I hope you have all been making the most of the season. More to come soon!

Museum Trip: MoMA

by Leigh | May 27, 2025 | Art, What's New | 0 comments

Earlier this month, I spent a RAINY DAY IN NYC with my friends Laura and Lydia. We met at the Museum of Modern Art and spent the day walking through the galleries and talking about all the things we did after college and after that. It was a lot to talk about. And we all had to take turns.

Interspersed, we talked about the main show we viewed, Jack Whitten’s The Messenger. What an amazing body of work! I love large abstract paintings and appreciated how much thought, technique, and meaning when into his work. It was so much to take in. My favorite works were created by dragging a flat wooden rake across enormous canvases, adding multiple layers, resulting in so much texture and color. Abstract, but resembling landscapes, or waterscapes, or whatever your psyche imagines.

The MoMA also has numerous famous works of art, and it was great seeing the Picassos, Van Goghs, Matisses, but I especially enjoyed seeing the many Jacob Laurence paintings they had collected, small but powerful.

After we left the museum, we found a cafe to eat and chat in. Le Pain Quotidien, which I remember being good, but this one was just okay. I guess I have high expectations of restaurants when I’m in the City, because, well, New York City. But it was a good place to sit and talk. I really wanted to learn about Lydia’s life. We all talked about our meandering career paths, about the effect of the pandemic, and about our kids, who are all roughly college-age now.

I took a lot of videos for some reason. I was really enjoying capturing the feel of the day. I love being in New York. Watching people, seeing what they’re wearing, picking out the tourists from the locals. I like orienting myself and figuring our how to get through the streets and avenues. I adore the architecture. And I especially love all the window displays. There’s so much ‘art’ to see outside of the museums. It’s a visual feast. So enjoyable, I almost didn’t mind the rain.

CHECK OUT THE MOMA

Tickets are $30 (unless your friend has a membership, then they’re $5) Membership are $110/year.

Museum Trip: The Brandywine

by Leigh | Apr 23, 2025 | Art, What's New

Last Thursday I spent the day with the Wyeth family.

I have wanted to go to the Brandywine Museum of Art for a long time and last week I took a day off to make the drive down to Chadds Ford, PA. It was a beautiful April afternoon and I found the museum with only a few other people and I was able to stroll the creaky-floored galleries and soak up the artworks as if it were all just for me. Sun streamed in from the large windows that curve along the western wall of the modern addition of the historic barn-like building. Climbing the stairs to each new gallery floor gave a new view of the Brandywine Creek, art in itself, over which the museum perches.

I’m, of course, familiar with the Wyeths, but learned so much I didn’t know in the few hours I spent there. Andrew is perhaps the most famous painter in the family, with his muted colors and unparalled detailed and textural brushwork. His subjects reflect the rural landscapes and family he grew up with. The world he paints feels so familiar and the images really resonate, but it’s because these ordinary subjects are infused with such mood and meaning you become transformed. NC Wyeth, Andrew’s father, is known for his stunning book illustrations, work which defined him and which he later worked hard to transcend. His works are full of power and life and color. He’s a true master. But it’s Jamie Wyeth, son of Andrew, that was my favorite. A contemporary of Warhol, his works reflect the influence of the Pop Art movement in size and power.

I also viewed an amazing photography exhibit of Robert Frank and Todd Webb, documentarians of America that reflect years of travel and truly seeing their subjects.

I took a few photos of some of my favorite works, but just know they do not do any justice to these masterpieces. You have to go in person.

February Catch Up

by Leigh | Mar 13, 2025 | What's New | 0 comments

It seems like an entire lifetime has transpired since I last wrote a weekly update. If we’re talking the life of an adult cicada. Speaking of cicadas, have you watched Slow Horses? I have and I love it.

To catch you up: the Eagles won the Super Bowl. I don’t get crazy over football but I love my home team and it was a great game.

I finally managed to get together for lunch with my new friend Kelly from the Frenchtown Bookshop Writer’s Circle. We went to the Lumberville General Store which was cute as hell. I mean, Bucks County knows how to be historic and quaint and all that. I wasn’t surprised when I drove through a covered bridge on the way. We talked about art and kids and of course, writing. See Kelly’s artwork here.

Valentine’s Day came and went with very little fanfare. I went to a funeral. My friend Meaghan’s mom was given a beautiful send off and I’m glad I could be a part of it.

The big event of the month, and probably the reason I didn’t write and had a hard time focusing on anything else was our son’s “procedure.” Not a “surgery.” My husband and I went down to Children’s Hospital in Philly and spent about seven nail-biting hours waiting while our son had an ablation, or multiple ablations in his heart. It was so stressful, so scary that I felt unable to do anything in that waiting room. I don’t think I was even breathing. And as I thought about all the possible outcomes, all the reasons why it might go well or not, I realized how much I live my life based on superstition. There’s no controlling life. It’s hard and often unfair and it doesn’t discriminate. And sitting with other parents, some with really young children, I became acutely aware that life is happening for other people, all the time. It was profound. And humbling. But I knew we had so many people praying for us and I was grateful. We left Philly as it started to snow and we ended the day driving through a blizzard. Our son started his new job at Panera three days later and baseball season a week after that. So I guess you could say he’s doing well!

If you’re looking for something fun to do in the winter, check out a semi-pro hockey game. Three of my friends and I went to a Lehigh Valley Phantoms game and had a girls night out. I stole my son’s Phantoms jersey and felt really cool wearing it. They have pretty good food there, just don’t get the pretzels, they’re terrible. Jahan Dotson of the Eagles was a special guest that night and that was fun.

I visited the Michener Museum of Art and met with the director of marketing, hoping to do some design work for them, and had an amazing time there. I’m hoping to plan a trip there with friends and clients soon. I am so completely at peace when I’m walking through a museum. Can you imagine working for an art museum, every day? And I went to an art opening for a friend of mine, Glenn Harren. You can see his paintings here. He was showing at the SVA in Frenchtown, which is owned by another friend, John Schmidtberger.

And a lot of other things happened that I don’t have photos of, or can’t share photos of. My daughter and I went prom dress shopping. It was fun but utter madness, at the King of Prussia mall on a Sunday. It was a workout! The kids finally got their photos taken for their driver’s licenses. The DMV. On a Saturday. We have survived a lot. Oh! AND, I drove into NYC for a mini high school reunion. Although I went to school in DC, an inordinate number of alums live in New York. We met at a shabby little bar in NOLITA. I got to see people I hadn’t seen since I graduated. So crazy. And it felt like no time had passed.

Weekend in DC, Severance, and Car Shopping

by Leigh | Feb 7, 2025 | What's New | 0 comments

THERE HAS BEEN a lot going on and now I’m having to try to remember two weeks of my life. I got my new desk chair. The Deacon Swivel Office Chair from West Elm. She’s pretty. I got my hair cut. I’ve decided to stop coloring it. So far it doesn’t look bad. There’s not that much gray. Yet. Liz at Forté Salon is amazing and I always look forward to seeing her. I went to my Writer’s Circle at the Frenchtown Bookshop. I bought two books of personal essays, In the Shelter by Pádraig ÓTuama which I’m well into and it is INCREDIBLE and Life Forms by Jenny Slate. We got a couple mini snow storms and the kids have had late starts and snow days. We took a trip to Children’s Hospital, which is a very impressive place, and even though we’d rather not be planning a cardiac procedure for our son, we do feel like we’re in good hands. At the end of last week, the husband made his signature chocolate chip cookies. I ate so many of them that I had to go on a complete sugar fast. This happens this time of year. I have to recalibrate.

DC VISIT

I was in DC this past weekend to hang out with my dad. I took a few random photos on a walk around Tenleytown, got lunch in Georgetown with my friend Jerry. We got bowls at Dig which was delish. I told him the building used to be a “Little Tavern” because as a native Washingtonian I love to tell people what places used to be, though they didn’t ask. I spent almost a whole day going through old photos and paperwork and even though it was almost all trash, I found a few little treasures like a matchbook with a photo on it of my dad and a Lebanese girlfriend who turned out to be a soviet spy. (I know, this needs to be a whole post of it’s own.)

WHAT AM I WATCHING

I have one week to watch everything on AppleTV before our free trial ends. I am three episodes into Severance season 2, have one more episode available, then I have to wait a week. so I know I’m going to want to sign up for a subscription. Also on Apple is Loot, where I have two more episodes to watch. I have to finish Bad Sisters season 2. I’m only half way through. On Netflix, we just finished watching No Good Deed. It was okay. I’m almost done with the Night Agent which I’ve sort of gotten tired of. I’m loving Queer Eye, as always, but especially now that this season has Jeremiah Brent! On Prime, I’m watching Castle. What do you call it when you don’t hate something but it’s so cheesy so you just watch it to fall asleep? “Sleep-watching”? Occasionally I watch Schitt’s Creek. Am I the last person on the planet to love that show? Last, I’m watching The Fall with Gillian Anderson which is an amazing British crime drama but very dark, because serial killer. My Prime lineup is so sad, so behind the times, but there isn’t much new on there that I like. Besides the fact that they added commercials to most of their content makes me irate. Oh, and there’s Hulu. I know, I know, too many services. It’s crazy. I’m watching The Bear which I didn’t like at first but it just keeps getting better and now I get why everyone was raving about it. It’s one of the best shows on. Also Abbott Elementary. Okay, I have to admit, we also have YouTubeTV which I really only watch for the occasional HGTV home renovation show. If you don’t have it, it’s like having cable. But we will probably turn it off after the Superbowl.

CARS, CARS, CARS

I mentioned we got a car for the kids. A 2016 VW Tiguan. We’re still waiting to find out just how much our insurance will be with two new drivers. Then my husband’s truck got in a accident. Not too bad and no one was hurt, so now it’s plus one car, minus one car. I went to look at a 2008 Acura TL when I was in DC that is priced very affordably. We have to go down and get it, but I think it’s a done deal. So plus one more car. We’ve talked about getting another. And maybe selling the ’66 Mustang we have. Shopping for cars is fun. And endless. When I was in DC, I got to ride in my friend’s Tesla. I didn’t hate it. If money was no object, I might. We’ve talked about a used Porsche 911, or a vintage Camaro. I’ve always wanted a Mini Cooper. Or a Volvo XC70. But really I’m good with what we’ve got. I just want everyone to be safe. And for no more icy roads. This morning it was sunny and above freezing and it felt like Spring was somewhere nearby. My daughter said, “Do you hear that? The birds are singing.”