Sandwich by Catherine Newman is a novel of family, hope, grief, and forgiveness. The novel is broken down into days that the family spends in a beach cottage for a week in the cape town of Sandwich. The family includes Rocky (main character), her husband, their 2 children and a girlfriend. Later in the week Rocky’s parents join them for two days.
The novel includes lots of sand, salty water, seafood as well as remembrances and revelations. It is the slow escape of revelations and the honesty of Rocky as her choices from the past bleed out that makes this book so powerful. Rocky’s absolute love of her family while they are grown and moving on in their life makes the reader understand her deep conviction. Sandwiched by both her children and her parents Rocky shows the complexity of many families with the change of older ages and growth of young adults happening simultaneously. There is no strong plot line except for secrets slowly being released as the waves continually pound the beach. I found the descriptions of Rocky’s struggles with menopause so accurately described while being heartwrenching.The family’s vacation allows them to “just be” with each other. Sandwich by Catherine Newman is a good read.
