Love, Passion, Crossed Stars, Controversy, etc.

As I posted on 7/20/10, I liked Emma Donoghue's "The Sealed Letter" very much. I have now read two more of her books: "Touchy Subjects: Stories" (Harcourt, 2006) and "Landing: A Novel" (Harcourt, 2007). "Touchy Subjects" lives up to its title, covering all sorts of sensitive topics in diverting ways. "Landing" tells the story of two women -- one a flight attendant from Ireland and the other a librarian from a small town in Ontario, Canada -- who meet on a plane under unusual circumstances and fall madly in love. They write, call, e-mail, and visit as often as possible, but the big question is how they can continue their romance living so far apart. They are both very happy and very miserable in their long-distance relationship. The ending is somewhat predictable, but satisfying. The plot sounds a bit corny, but the writing is so literate and the characters so winning that I didn't mind. As a bonus, readers learn a lot about the two locales, aided by many (but not TOO many) historical and literary references; there are also several entertaining peripheral characters.