Just Another Sunday

by Elizabeth Good

Just Another Sunday Is Anything but Ordinary

Set against the backdrop of the turbulent late 1960s and early 1970s, Just Another Sunday is inspired by actual events and follows Lia Benedict, a teenager growing up in the suburbs of New Jersey.

In the spring of 1968, Lia is 15 years old when her Italian-American family decides to leave Brooklyn for their dream home in the suburbs. But Lia is reluctant to pull up roots and go anywhere, especially to some godforsaken Jersey town. "I would rather thrive in the grime of New York than be plucked from my roots and transplanted in Nowheresland, just to wither away and die. I swear this is the kiss of death."

Her father, Frank Benedict, has worked hard to afford his own home for his wife, Marie, and five children after years of renting in Brooklyn. With the recent marriage of their eldest daughter, and visions of grandchildren in their future, new life in suburbia couldn't be more promising. But their dream home quickly becomes a living nightmare, and the family's move will prove to be the last they will ever make as an intact family of seven.

Just Another Sunday is a compelling five-year snapshot of one woman's life, taking us through teenage angst and rites of passage, new love and broken hearts, friendships and betrayal, triumph and tragedy, and one family's struggle to cope with the inconceivable.

You will search your soul and ponder Life's most provocative questions as you experience the unforgettable conclusion to Just Another Sunday.

391 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 29, 2012

About the author

Elizabeth Good is a retired dental office manager who had worked for for a prominent Monmouth County, New Jersey dentist. She hails from Brooklyn, New York, and currently resides in Toms River, New Jersey, with her husband. She has one son, three stepchildren, and three grandsons. Just Another Sunday is Elizabeth’s first novel.

Her second book, Trampled Underfoot: The Dirt on Vic and Lia, is the follow-up to Just Another Sunday but is a stand-alone story and may be fully enjoyed as is.

Elizabeth's favorite activities include spending time with her grandsons, walking outdoors or on the treadmill, swimming, reading, baking, seeing Broadway plays, and traveling as much as possible, especially to the Aruba Timeshare she shares with her husband of 32 years.

Reviews

[Edl · Rating 5 out of 5]

In Just Another Sunday, Elizabeth Good has a story to tell and she does so movingly and unflinchingly in this deceptively simple coming of age novel. The seemingly vapid teenage dialog belies the book’s deeper themes of loss, the crutches we seek and the interplay between fate and the choices we make.

Set in 1960s New Jersey, Lia Benedict is uprooted from New York City when her parents buy their dream home in a New Jersey suburb. Instead of being on the gifted track with a promising future, Lia’s options are narrowed to hanging out at the Sweet Shop with friends and mooning over boys.

The dream house, built on a high water table, turns into the family’s nightmare, ultimately leading to Lia’s father’s death on just another Sunday. The second half of the book chronicles the fragmentation of the family as each member struggles to cope with Frank Benedict’s death. After being overwhelmed by depression, Lia’s mother turns first to valium and then to the Jehovah’s Witnesses, preaching to anyone who will listen. Lia flailing through her own pain makes a series of questionable choices.

Music is integral to Lia’s view of life, and the book satisfies those 1960’s nostalgia cravings with plenty of references to the music that shaped the baby boomer set such as Led Zeppelin, the Beatles and Martha and the Vandellas.

This book may not be for everyone. If you aren’t interested in the emotional interior of a teenager grappling with the death of her father, this may not be your read. But those who are will be amply rewarded, and any book club will have plenty to talk about.

[Elizabeth Good · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just Another Sunday is a based-on-true-life, coming-of-age story about family, love, loss and Fate.

This novel is easy to read and is a fast-reading book. The communication within my pages is a subtle one. I do not write with "in your face" repetitive lines to bang the story's message into your head. I trust you will find it, and then reflect on your own life's journey thus far.

Every move we've ever made, every situation we find ourselves in, every decision we make, big or small, good or bad, impacts our lives in some way, shape or form, and alters the paths we take in life, while taking into consideration our inherent personality traits/tendencies, place in time and circumstance.

And ultimately, we face the never-ending questions of whether our destiny in Life is decided by our own free will choices - or by the guiding hand of God Almighty - or ​is it simply predetermined by Fate.
This story continues in the exciting final installment entitled, Trampled Underfoot: The Dirt on Vic and Lia

[Lori · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is 1968 and Lia Benedict is number 2 of 5 siblings and has spent most of her childhood in Brooklyn but her family has moved her to New Jersey. This is the 4th time they have moved and Lia already hates it and misses her New York lifestyle. She is 15 and really tired of changing schools and starting all over again. On her first day of school it's raining like crazy and she manages to get soaked just getting to the bus. That is where she meets Darla. Darla is also 15 and they are both in the 10th grade.


Darla and Lia make fast friends and on their way home from school Lia meets Jesse Carlisle. Jesse doesn’t go to school with Lia because he dropped out to go to trade school. He becomes smitten with Lia right from the start and vows that he will marry her someday. Jesse and Lia date pretty seriously but that all falls apart when Jesse got in trouble with his friends and is sent to join the Army. Lia pines for Jesse for some time but with some help from Darla she begins to date again.



Over the next few years Lia and Jesse grow apart even though Jesse still loves Lia deeply. He sends letters but she rarely replies. Lia dates a little and spends time with friend but not Darla anymore. Darla starts to do drugs and her drinking gets out of control and that just isn't Lia's idea of a good time. She drinks a little but manages to keep it under control. All is well with Lia as she finished school and becomes a medical assistant in a doctor’s office. But her world is flipped completely upside down when her father dies unexpectedly. Her mother falls to pieces and looks for comfort in a different religion other than their devout Catholic ways. Lia wants to drown her pain and bad boy Vic Sommers is just the way to do that.



Review:


This is meant to be a young adult novel but I think it would be a hard sell to a younger crowd. The book is a little slow so I think it would be better suited for adults. I'm also kind of unsure if this fiction or non-fiction. The author notes in her acknowledgements about how she used her own life to write the chapters, leaving me very confused about the content. I was also disappointed with the way the book ended, it just adbruptively ends with no real definitive idea of what actually happens. After all the details of Lia's life the ending seemed rushed. All in all I give this book 3 out of 5 stars.

[L.F. Falconer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just Another Sunday covers Lia Benedict's all too short and rocky journey from a hopeful, starry-eyed teenager to a disillusioned young adult within a barrage of family strife, lost friendships, and grim involvement with the "bad boys." For me, this book started out really slow and didn't begin to pick up the pace until Part II, yet in the final quarter, I couldn't put it down, needing to know how everything was going to end up. The conclusion took me by surprise.

This is a good story that could've been a great one with some closer attention to overall editing and mechanics. There was a preponderance of needless conversation which, if tightened up, could have made the story flow more swiftly. I also found it highly disconcerting to constantly jump from the mind of one character to another, then to another, and back and forth again.

The author has done a notable job keeping the reader well-grounded within a distinct era, and convincingly conveys the growing pains and angst universal to most teens. The characters are realistic and the setting is so well detailed that near the end of the book I could nearly navigate my way to the Sweet Shoppe as if it were in my own hometown.

This is a book that will draw you in and keep you there. Well done, Ms. Good.

[Joann · Rating 3 out of 5]

Such nostalgia! This brings back my recollections of when my Italian parents moved us from Washington, D.C. to much hated suburbia. Thankfully, the move brought more good for me than for poor Lia. This is another book where miscommunication played a major part in the outcome of people's lives. I enjoyed the trip back memory lane complete with song lyrics and news clips.

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

starts out as intriguing and makes you want to know more. then you get to the end. and you want to throw your kindle at the wall.

amended 5-25-13
I think I was in shock when I reviewed this and should've waited. I really enjoyed the book and would recommend it.

[Stefanie · Rating 1 out of 5]

So pitifully written. I'm surprised it's not YA with the way it started, but I'm really struggling to get through this cliche piece of writing.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good, light read!

[Mary Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ending rushed and left wanting

[Barbara Ellis · Rating 1 out of 5]

A mindless book. I just wanted it to end. AWFUL

[Kathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thin plot. But I'm a child of the 60s and grew up in Jersey, where the story takes place. I was familiar with many of the places mentioned. Brought back memories. For that alone, I gave 3 stars.

[Cindy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I hope this was written for young adults and I just didn't notice.