How to have a perfect Philly day, according to author Diane McKinney Whetstone

For the most part, award-winning author Diane McKinney Whetstone’s characters live their complicated lives in between El stops in early to mid-20th-century West Philly.

In her new book Family Spirit, released by Amistad earlier this fall, her protagonist Ayana works at a fictional West Philly coffee shop in 2019.

And Ayana is clairvoyant.

Whetstone packs a lot of Philadelphia in this 229-page book. Ayana weaves in and out of downtown office buildings. Her aunt Lil flashes back to 1970s Philly when she was shopping at Wanamakers and up for a gig on The Mike Douglas Show, when the variety show was filmed in Old City.

But the majority of the story takes place in Southwest Philly at the Mace family house, where women on Ayana’s paternal side have gathered for 100 years to take part in rituals that reveal the future.

We talked to Whetstone, a lifelong Philadelphian, about her perfect Philly day.

I get up early and make really strong coffee. Every day I spend a couple of hours writing. I have to, that’s my best time of the day. Sometimes I will write for three hours. Other times, I write until noon. Sometimes, I write the whole day if the spirit hits me.

If it’s not a writing day, and I’m done for the day, my husband and I will go out for breakfast. Sometimes we will go to Sabrina’s Cafe in Wynnewood.

But lately, I’ve really liked going to Boutique River Falls off Kelly Drive, near Midvale. They have the best pancakes and fried fish. If my grandkids are with me, we will go to the Frankie [The Franklin Institute] and go through “Body Odyssey,” especially the “Giant Heart.” They love it.

If we have a lot of time, we take a nice long walk on Kelly Drive. I’m a big walker.

Both my husband and I are from Philadelphia and we like to drive around our old neighborhoods. On some days we will head down Lancaster Avenue where it intersects with Haverford and reminisce about the days it was a central shopping district like Center City.

Sometimes we will drive down to 52nd Street. When I’m over there, the sounds of the El train, the way the houses are situated on the street, it takes me immediately back to my childhood.

If it’s a nice day in the summer, we may go to the Nile Swim Club in Yeadon. My sister has a membership there. On any given day there are families there relaxing, sharing stories. It’s a really nice place to relax.

Again, if my grandkids are in town, we may go to a matinee at the Academy of Music in Philadelphia. We saw The Wiz. It was so good. Then we went around the corner to Samurai Japanese Restaurant. I’m not a real big fan of raw fish, but the teriyaki there is just so good.

I cook a lot at home and especially a lot of fish. I eat salmon three times a week and I love it fresh. I really enjoy going down to Fairmount to pick up my order from Small World Seafood. I love that I get to cook restaurant-quality food.

I would end my day at a concert at the Highmark Mann Center for the Performing Arts. I saw Cynthia Erivo there in June and it was incredible. She sang Roberta Flack’s “The First Time Ever I saw Your Face” and I nearly cried. The view of Philadelphia’s skyline is amazing. It’s just a wonderful way to end a day.