LAST SUMMER AT THE GOLDEN HOTEL
This book has secrets juicier than a holiday brisket, and resentments simmering longer than matzah ball soup! In this delightfully entertaining novel, the Goldman and Weingold families, owners of the beloved Golden Hotel, must face the music: their Borscht Belt getaway, the hottest place to vacation in New York’s Catskill mountains for decades, is in a sad decline. The younger, chicer set are seeking goat yoga instead of has-been comedians with tired jokes, and the aging clientele are stealing tennis balls for their walkers. As the families converge on the once-sparkling resort to weigh a tempting offer to sell the Golden, will they say goodbye to 60 years of magic? And will their personal crises find an oasis of healing in the nostalgia of their family’s legacy?
This was such a charming summer read, and a slightly sentimental one for me, having visited the Concord - a Catskills resort similar to the Golden - as a teenager. Since I tend to gravitate toward books about places, people and cultures different from my own, reading a book about a 50-ish Jewish mom in New York like me was ironically out of my comfort zone - and I liked it! The gossipy backstories, IYKYK humor and contemporary references were an extra fun treat. Thank you so much to author @elyssafriedland for the lovely signed copy!
Next week is Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. Fun fact: every September, Jews like to declare, “the high holidays fall SO EARLY this year!” or, “the holidays are SO LATE!” This year, they’re legitimately super early so it’s fun to finally say this with authority. My favorite holiday dish is this yummy noodle kugel with raisins, which makes a fab cameo in this book. It’s usually served at Yom Kippur break fast, where everyone is so famished you could totally mess it up and people still think it’s the most delicious thing on the planet. I paired it with a homemade challah, which I baked myself like Mrs. Lewison in the Golden kitchen. Where’s Phoebe Weingold to snap a pic for her Insta?
