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© Copyright 2008 Christina Baker Kline. All Rights Reserved.
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The Way Life Should Be
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Angela Russo finds herself in Maine thanks to sailing
instructor, an impulse, and an idea that in Maine,
people live "the way life should be." But reality on
Mount Desert Island is not what she expected. Far
from everything familiar, Angela begins to rebuild her
life from the ground up. Relying on the flair for Italian
cooking she inherited from her grandmother, she
begins to discover the pleasures and secrets of her
new small community -- and to connect her heritage to
a future she is only beginning to envision.
Praise for Christina Baker Kline and
The Way Life Should Be
instructor, an impulse, and an idea that in Maine,
people live "the way life should be." But reality on
Mount Desert Island is not what she expected. Far
from everything familiar, Angela begins to rebuild her
life from the ground up. Relying on the flair for Italian
cooking she inherited from her grandmother, she
begins to discover the pleasures and secrets of her
new small community -- and to connect her heritage to
a future she is only beginning to envision.
Praise for Christina Baker Kline and
The Way Life Should Be
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“An unassumingly beautiful story of human relationships
and self-discovery … with a tremendous payoff.”
-- People
"Kline has a perfect sense of character and timing, and
her vivid digressions on food add sugar and spice."
-- Publishers Weekly
“The Way Life Should Be is the way a great read should
be – incredibly moving, beautifully written, and with
characters so alive you want them to come and visit.
Kline’s lucid take on finding out who we really are, and
what we really need in our lives, is nothing short of
brilliant.”
-- Caroline Leavitt, author of Girls in Trouble and
Coming Back to Me
“Warm, witty, and wise. Christina Baker Kline has
written a book about love and disappointment and risk
and risotto, utterly appealing on every level.”
-- Lauren Fox, author of Still Life with Husband
“Sardonic and self-deprecating humor … Seen through
Angela’s eyes, what could have been stock characters
on the road to self-discovery … turn out to be real
people with pasts of their own. Recommended.”
-- Library Journal
and self-discovery … with a tremendous payoff.”
-- People
"Kline has a perfect sense of character and timing, and
her vivid digressions on food add sugar and spice."
-- Publishers Weekly
“The Way Life Should Be is the way a great read should
be – incredibly moving, beautifully written, and with
characters so alive you want them to come and visit.
Kline’s lucid take on finding out who we really are, and
what we really need in our lives, is nothing short of
brilliant.”
-- Caroline Leavitt, author of Girls in Trouble and
Coming Back to Me
“Warm, witty, and wise. Christina Baker Kline has
written a book about love and disappointment and risk
and risotto, utterly appealing on every level.”
-- Lauren Fox, author of Still Life with Husband
“Sardonic and self-deprecating humor … Seen through
Angela’s eyes, what could have been stock characters
on the road to self-discovery … turn out to be real
people with pasts of their own. Recommended.”
-- Library Journal
“What makes The Way Life Should Be worth reading is the food. Descriptive passages of Angela’s grandmother
teaching her the basics of cooking Italian food: prepared with love, from scratch, they make you long for a stove and a
sturdy pot. There are paragraphs reminiscent of the best cookbooks or a food writer’s memoir. Angela’s realizations
about herself don’t come easy. Painful recognition of mistakes made multiple times over keep the novel on real
emotional terrain, and the ending feels hopeful, not treacly … Elevated by a good writer, this stylized form of fiction can
be every bit as revelatory as a high literary novel.”
-– Powells.com (Review-a-Day)
“The key to this fine character study is the Italian cooking …. Fans will root for Angela as she learns that what she
thought is the way life should be is not; the way life should be is what you bring to the table for others to partake.”
-– BookCrossing.com
"The Way Life Should Be is a beautiful story. Angela is a warm, vibrant character who faces some heartbreak,
happiness, and a chance for that sought-after 'happily ever after,' but not necessarily in the manner she has
calculated. The Way Life Should Be is definitely a story for the 'keeper' shelf."
-- RoundtableReviews.com
"Angela Russo is the classic New York refugee: a perpetual "single girl" whose job in life has hit the dead end without a
cul-de-sac. Fleeing to Maine on the strength of an ideal, Angela realizes that changing her surroundings has brought
her face-to-face with her own worst enemy: herself. In The Way Life Should Be, Christina Baker Kline proves to us once
again that she is not only a deft and snappy writer, but a true cartographer of the human heart."
-– Jacquelyn Mitchard, author of The Deep End of the Ocean and Still Summer
“First and most important of all, it’s a fun read – and probably should be required for all thirty-plus women out there
who are beginning to feel they have a better chance of getting run down by a caravan of camels than of finding a
meaningful relationship or fulfilling occupation … The only major complaint I have about Ms. Kline’s book is that there isn’
t enough of it.”
-- Bar Harbor Times (Maine)
"Christina Baker Kline has written a charming novel full of great tips about cooking, loving, and taking risks in the world.
The Way Life Should Be is a story about the way life really can be, with a little bit of luck and just the right
seasoning."
-- Dani Shapiro, author of Black and White and Family History
"Christina Baker Kline can sum up a setting, a person, a room with a few, often funny, well-chosen details in a way that
make this book sing."
-- Martha Tod Dudman, author of Augusta, Gone
"Christina Baker Kline writes as if she’s sitting next to you telling you about the adventures of her friends. Empathy,
sympathy, romance and humor, mixed with Italian recipes, makes for a fast, fun read with something left over for later.
A torta al Limone sounds like the perfect recipe for dessert. The only thing that would have made this book any better
would have been to have the tart to eat while reading it. Now, that is The Way Life Should Be. Armchair Interviews
says: Like the title, this is the way storytelling 'should be.'"
-- ArmchairInterviews.com
“She nails it. From the Impressionist view of land and sea from atop Cadillac Mountain on a foggy day, to the librarian
who takes such an interest in one’s reading habits that it borders on invasion of privacy, Christina Baker Kline’s third
novel, The Way Life Should Be, paints Mount Desert Island with such accurate detail that some of us might wonder if
we sat for the portrait.... This novel, replete with witty repartee, is about family, about food, about sense of place.
Ultimately, it’s an examination of what it takes to make a life. At one point, Angela, the protagonist of the story, muses
on Maine’s state slogan – “The Way Life Should Be.” She turns it upside down, reading it as an existential question:
what is the way life should be? The answer, of course, is one that each of us must puzzle out for ourselves. But in the
telling of her tale of one woman’s wrestling with this central concern, Christina Baker Kline provides a roadmap for us
all.”
-- Mount Desert Islander (Maine)
“Christina Baker Kline has woven a charming, heart-warming story about life’s lessons, which we learn as we take risks
or take that leap of faith. The main character, Angela, is a delight. Yes, she makes mistakes -- sometimes big mistakes,
but her courage and determination will keep you turning the pages. The secondary characters have just enough spice
to grab your attention. (Have you ever wondered why so many interesting people end up in small towns?) Angela’s
cooking will make your mouth water, and thank heavens the last chapter is dedicated to those tantalizing recipes. I
highly recommend you find a cozy chair, turn the light on, and enjoy THE WAY LIFE SHOULD BE.”
-- RomRevToday.com
teaching her the basics of cooking Italian food: prepared with love, from scratch, they make you long for a stove and a
sturdy pot. There are paragraphs reminiscent of the best cookbooks or a food writer’s memoir. Angela’s realizations
about herself don’t come easy. Painful recognition of mistakes made multiple times over keep the novel on real
emotional terrain, and the ending feels hopeful, not treacly … Elevated by a good writer, this stylized form of fiction can
be every bit as revelatory as a high literary novel.”
-– Powells.com (Review-a-Day)
“The key to this fine character study is the Italian cooking …. Fans will root for Angela as she learns that what she
thought is the way life should be is not; the way life should be is what you bring to the table for others to partake.”
-– BookCrossing.com
"The Way Life Should Be is a beautiful story. Angela is a warm, vibrant character who faces some heartbreak,
happiness, and a chance for that sought-after 'happily ever after,' but not necessarily in the manner she has
calculated. The Way Life Should Be is definitely a story for the 'keeper' shelf."
-- RoundtableReviews.com
"Angela Russo is the classic New York refugee: a perpetual "single girl" whose job in life has hit the dead end without a
cul-de-sac. Fleeing to Maine on the strength of an ideal, Angela realizes that changing her surroundings has brought
her face-to-face with her own worst enemy: herself. In The Way Life Should Be, Christina Baker Kline proves to us once
again that she is not only a deft and snappy writer, but a true cartographer of the human heart."
-– Jacquelyn Mitchard, author of The Deep End of the Ocean and Still Summer
“First and most important of all, it’s a fun read – and probably should be required for all thirty-plus women out there
who are beginning to feel they have a better chance of getting run down by a caravan of camels than of finding a
meaningful relationship or fulfilling occupation … The only major complaint I have about Ms. Kline’s book is that there isn’
t enough of it.”
-- Bar Harbor Times (Maine)
"Christina Baker Kline has written a charming novel full of great tips about cooking, loving, and taking risks in the world.
The Way Life Should Be is a story about the way life really can be, with a little bit of luck and just the right
seasoning."
-- Dani Shapiro, author of Black and White and Family History
"Christina Baker Kline can sum up a setting, a person, a room with a few, often funny, well-chosen details in a way that
make this book sing."
-- Martha Tod Dudman, author of Augusta, Gone
"Christina Baker Kline writes as if she’s sitting next to you telling you about the adventures of her friends. Empathy,
sympathy, romance and humor, mixed with Italian recipes, makes for a fast, fun read with something left over for later.
A torta al Limone sounds like the perfect recipe for dessert. The only thing that would have made this book any better
would have been to have the tart to eat while reading it. Now, that is The Way Life Should Be. Armchair Interviews
says: Like the title, this is the way storytelling 'should be.'"
-- ArmchairInterviews.com
“She nails it. From the Impressionist view of land and sea from atop Cadillac Mountain on a foggy day, to the librarian
who takes such an interest in one’s reading habits that it borders on invasion of privacy, Christina Baker Kline’s third
novel, The Way Life Should Be, paints Mount Desert Island with such accurate detail that some of us might wonder if
we sat for the portrait.... This novel, replete with witty repartee, is about family, about food, about sense of place.
Ultimately, it’s an examination of what it takes to make a life. At one point, Angela, the protagonist of the story, muses
on Maine’s state slogan – “The Way Life Should Be.” She turns it upside down, reading it as an existential question:
what is the way life should be? The answer, of course, is one that each of us must puzzle out for ourselves. But in the
telling of her tale of one woman’s wrestling with this central concern, Christina Baker Kline provides a roadmap for us
all.”
-- Mount Desert Islander (Maine)
“Christina Baker Kline has woven a charming, heart-warming story about life’s lessons, which we learn as we take risks
or take that leap of faith. The main character, Angela, is a delight. Yes, she makes mistakes -- sometimes big mistakes,
but her courage and determination will keep you turning the pages. The secondary characters have just enough spice
to grab your attention. (Have you ever wondered why so many interesting people end up in small towns?) Angela’s
cooking will make your mouth water, and thank heavens the last chapter is dedicated to those tantalizing recipes. I
highly recommend you find a cozy chair, turn the light on, and enjoy THE WAY LIFE SHOULD BE.”
-- RomRevToday.com
Christina Baker Kline
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Blog
Press for The Way Life Should Be:
Q&A for The Way Life Should Be
Click here for a Q&A with the author.
Reading Group Guide for The Way Life Should Be
Click here for a reading group guide.
Podcasts and Streaming Interviews
The Maine Humanities Council has made available a podcast of Christina's discussion on The Way Life Should Be from the
Portland Public Library's "Brown Bag Lecture" series (to listen or to download, click here). Listen to Christina's August
18, 2008 radio interview from Providence, RI, "Reading with Robin" (www.readingwithrobin.com) or via www.920whjj.
com.
- Click here for 'Summer is no down time for Bass Harbor author,' from Mount Desert Islander, August 22, 2008
- Click here for a link to People magazine's featured review of The Way Life Should Be.
- Click here for a link to the full review of The Way Life Life Should Be from Powells.com and its 'Review-A-Day'
feature. - Click here for an August 20th video clip of Christina promoting the book on '207', a news and entertainment show
on NBC's WCSH in Portland, Maine. - Click here for a link to a Q&A with Christina about how the idea for the novel came about, from the Portland Press
Herald / Maine Sunday Telegram. - Click here for a link to a feature about Christina from the Bangor Daily News.
- Click here to read a review from the Mount Desert Islander, published on the island where much of The Way Life
Should Be takes place, to see whether Christina's portrayal of the island resonates with those who live on the
island year-round. - Click here to read an article on the book and the recipes from The Montclair Times.
- Click here to read an article about the Italian recipes in the book.
Q&A for The Way Life Should Be
Click here for a Q&A with the author.
Reading Group Guide for The Way Life Should Be
Click here for a reading group guide.
Podcasts and Streaming Interviews
The Maine Humanities Council has made available a podcast of Christina's discussion on The Way Life Should Be from the
Portland Public Library's "Brown Bag Lecture" series (to listen or to download, click here). Listen to Christina's August
18, 2008 radio interview from Providence, RI, "Reading with Robin" (www.readingwithrobin.com) or via www.920whjj.
com.