Last Summer at the Golden Hotel by Elyssa Friedland Narrator: Julia Whelan
Published by Penguin Audio on May 18, 2021
Source: Purchased
Genres: Fiction
Length: 9 hrs 26 mins
Pages: 384
Format: Audiobook
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In its heyday, The Golden Hotel was the crown jewel of the hotter-than-hot Catskills vacation scene. For more than sixty years, the Goldman and Weingold families - best friends and business partners - have presided over this glamorous resort which served as a second home for well-heeled guests and celebrities. But the Catskills are not what they used to be - and neither is the relationship between the Goldmans and the Weingolds. As the facilities and management begin to fall apart, a tempting offer to sell forces the two families together again to make a heart-wrenching decision. Can they save their beloved Golden or is it too late?
Long-buried secrets emerge, new dramas and financial scandal erupt, and everyone from the traditional grandparents to the millennial grandchildren wants a say in the hotel's future. Business and pleasure clash in this fast-paced, hilarious, nostalgia-filled story, where the hotel owners rediscover the magic of a bygone era of nonstop fun even as they grapple with what may be their last resort.
Family drama is not usually my cup of tea, but Last Summer at the Golden Hotel was a perfect summer read. In the 1960s, two Jewish families bought a hotel in the Catskills. Back in those early days, the hotel was the place to be seen and the Catskills was the place to vacation. Sixty years later, the hotel is run-down and the clientele is definitely slipping. The two families’ children are grown and have families of their own. They decide to meet at, “The Golden” for one last summer vacation to reminisce and discuss whether it’s time to sell and leave the business.
I loved the mix of tension and love between and within the families. I loved the touch of nostalgia and wish I could visit The Golden in its heyday. We’ve got secrets and scandals, money issues and memories. And honestly I liked all the characters, well except the one who was just clearly a bad guy. And the book was funny, it made me smile and cry and I was really happy with how it ended.
About Elyssa Friedland
Elyssa Friedland is the author of four novels and a forthcoming picture book. She attended Yale University, where she served as managing editor of the Yale Daily News, and is a graduate of Columbia Law School. She worked as an associate at a major firm before turning to writing full-time. Elyssa currently teaches creative writing at Yale. Her work has been published in The Washington Post, McSweeney’s, LitHub, POPSUGAR, RealSimple.com, Bustle, Modern Bride, New York magazine, Columbia Journalism Review, CBS MarketWatch.com, Yale Alumni Magazine and more. Elyssa resides in New York City with her husband and three young children.
I don’t usually read books like this one either, but you make it sound so good! And that whole hotel in the Catskills setting only makes me want to read it more.
I really enjoyed it. And there wasn’t even a dead body in sight. Okay, maybe one, but it was natural causes.