The Tall Pine Polka

Nov 28, 2025 4:22 AM

Author:Lorna Landvik

The Tall Pine Polka

Life, they say, is a state of mind. In the small town of Tall Pine, Minnesota, that state of mind is found at the Cup O'Delight cafe. The locals gather here for what they call the Tall Pine Polka, an event in which heavenly coffee, good food, and that feeling of being alive among friends inspires both body and soul to dance.

Escaping to Tall Pine from an abusive husband, Lee answered the 'What am I going to do with my life?' question by opening the cafe. Among the regulars are Miss Penk and Frau Katt, the town's only lesbian couple ('Well, we're za only ones who admit it.'); Pete, proprietor of the Shoe Shack, who spends his nights crafting beautiful shoes to present to Lee, along with his declarations of love; Mary, whose bad poetry can clear the cafe in seconds, and most important of all, Lee's best friend Fenny, a smart and sassy twenty-two-year-old going on eighty.

Then Hollywood 'discovers' Tall Pine. It seems the sleepy town is the perfect location for a romantic comedy. And Fenny, pounced on like a bone in a yard full of hungry dogs is evidently that rarity in Hollywood: a 'natural'. Lee and Fenny are to find their friendship put to the test as events push their hearts in unexplored directions - where endings really can turn into new beginnings...

Reviews

Endearing ... This is a very funny book ... It is to Landvik's credit that comedy and tragedy blend seamlessly ... There is music in this story

—— USA TODAY

Lorna Landvik has created a hilarious cast of characters. Join them at the Cup O'Delight café for a good time

—— Fannie Flagg, author of FRIED GREEN TOMATOES AT THE WHISTLE STOP CAFÉ

Miss Plaidy has skillfully entwined their [Anne Boleyn & Catherine Howard] two stories.

—— Sunday Times

Plaidy excels at blending history with romance and drama

—— New York Times

Full-blooded, dramatic, exciting

—— Observer

This spirited novel is in the best tradition of historical fiction.Action is swift, conversation natural, background authentic...Plaidy paints the truth as she sees it.It is difficult to present the case of his wives and still be fair to Henry; that this is accomplished makes the book a conspicuous success.

—— Birmingham Post

This is at once an exciting and an intelligent novel

—— Truth Magazine

An enthralling story of a grim period of history, told with rare skill

—— Aberdeen Press and Journal

It has already been repeat-snubbed by this year's Man Booker judges. They've made a mistake. A Spot of Bother may be a novel about a humdrum family living in Peterborough, told in the third person this time, in deliberately ordinary language. Yet there is more real linguistic artistry, not to mention human empathy, at work, here than in all those poetic prosemongers, the Ondaatjes and the Banvilles... A Spot of Bother is a novel of minor incidents but it tackles big problems

—— David Sexton , Evening Standard

Like a cross between Margaret Drabble and Francoise Sagan

—— The Times

Joughin has an appealing darkness and urgency, as she potently conveys the pleasures and pains of human interactions

—— The Sunday Times

Adeptly written and enjoyable... Ruth's childhood perspectives are extremely well captured

—— Telegraph

Striking story of Ruth and Gray under the spell of famous poets' lives

—— Good Housekeeping's 8 Great Reads

Reading Joughin's second novel is like immersing yourself in a cool pool at a hazy summer party ...as addictively abrasive as a shot of cold vodka, this wil leave you both refreshed and gasping for stability

—— Time Out

This darkly comic story about unpredictable love is perfect if you're looking for some intelligent chicklit

—— Family Circle

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