Kim Ruscitti

If you’re a channel-surfer who gets excited when there are Friends reruns on TBS (or if you’ve re-watched the series on Netflix as soon as it was added), then Kelsey Miller’s recent release, I’ll Be There For You: The One About Friends (Hanover Square Press) is for you. Miller provides readers with an inside look at how six virtually unknown actors catapulted to stardom and became not just co-stars, but family (yes, they were really friends!) on a television show that changed the face of comedy in the 1990s and early 2000s. The show was created based on “that time in our lives when your friends are your family,” and not only struck a chord, but affected American culture in a number of ways. Miller explores the behind-the-scenes elements of the show, like how the cast handled their newfound celebrity, managed multiple contract negotiations as a united front, continued the show after the devastating tragedy of Sept. 11, 2001, and recognized when it was time to say goodbye after 10 seasons. This book is a fun trip down memory lane apart from the sections that get political (highlighting the show’s missteps when it came to social issues and trying to relate it to the #metoo movement). Despite the fact that it has been 20 years since the first episode aired, Friends remains a timeless fan favorite. Now excuse me while I go chill with my Friends.

Another book that addresses the culture of its time is Temptation Rag (Belle Epoque Publishing), which takes place during the turn-of-the-century ragtime era in New York City. Mae Convery, an upper-class teenager coming of age, dreams of being a poet and marrying her muse, her piano instructor Mike Bernard. However, when Mae’s father discovers their love affair, it is quickly put to an end. Mae returns to her unhappy upper-crust lifestyle, while Mike sets out to make a name for himself in the music industry, leaving all thoughts of Mae behind. The story follows the two throughout the years, as Mae enters a loveless marriage, becomes a mother and eventually a successful poet (inspired by the great Paul Laurence Dunbar), while Mike becomes the “Ragtime King of the World.” Though their paths cross a few times, Mae and Mike both struggle with forgiveness and acceptance, adding an emotional layer to an already full novel. Temptation Rag is a piece of historical fiction; the author, Elizabeth Hutchinson Bernard, wrote it about the real-life Mike Bernard, who was her husband’s grandfather and a prominent part of the ragtime era. While telling the story of her grandfather-in-law, Bernard is able to weave in real historical and cultural issues, including injustices suffered by African-American musicians – who were said to have been the originators of ragtime music – and gender inequalities (Mae becomes a supporter of the women’s suffrage movement later in life). If you aren’t familiar with the ragtime era, Temptation Rag will serve as a quick primer on the social, economic and cultural issues of early 20th-century America.