All the Bright Places by Jennifer Nevin

July 7, 2015December 24, 2015Leave a comment

If you liked A Fault in their Stars, this is your next book

Violet and Theodore meet in the bell tower of their high school, but begin to actually know each other when they are paired on a school project about the history of Indiana. Violet is popular, Theodore is on the outskirts of every crowd, but they meet in the middle of their own pain, join hands, and step back off the ledge. All the Bright Places is a coming of age, teen angst, wrestling with emotional junk book, done well. I loved The Fault in our Stars because the characters were endearing, the dialogue was sharp and rich with quick banter. This book has the same elements, with characters a reader can care about, relate to, and root for. Indiana’s suburbs and small towns are the backdrop to Violet and Theodore’s friendship, which adds a small town rural feel to the novel. It makes you want to make a mix tape and drive with someone you love. I need to warn you this is a sad book, I was not prepared for the ending, I am glad I had the journey, but I was hoping for a happy ending. Life does not always grant us the happy ending, and this book does not either, but it is a notable young adult read. If you liked A Fault in their Stars or have not read it because of all the hype, this is the Indy version.

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All the Bright Places

The Invention of Wings by Sue Monk Kidd

June 30, 2015December 24, 2015Leave a comment

I had been struggling to post this recommendation, I couldn’t figure out why, so I thought about this book for a few weeks. Then the shooting in Charleston took place. Then I really thought about this story. I finally realized my struggle was shallow, I felt like I should be writing about light hearted beach reads. Beach reads are the cool kids right now. I have not been cool a day in my life, so why start now? In the heat of summer, my reccomendation is a high quality book about slavery and two little known abolistionists. The Invention of Wings is heavy, yet it is an important book, and relevant to the history of Charleston. I will get to my beach reads later.

Sarah turns 11 and is given a girl named ‘Handful’. ‘Handful’ is hers to own, given like a piece of furniture or doll. Sarah attempts to set her free, but an 11 year old cannot change laws with a handwritten piece of paper. Handful is her slave, and the daughter of the best seamstress in Charleston. Handful and her mother are owned by the Grimke’s and keep the family plantation working and profitable.

The story flips back and forth from Handful to Sarah, telling the stories of Handful’s each girls life from childhood to adult. The injustice and cruelty is hard to stomach, but the story is so rich with character development, historically accurate events, and impeccable story-telling.

Sarah Grimke and her sister, Angelina, grew up to be abolitionists. Sarah and her sister fought for the rights of slaves and the rights of women in a time when white men truly ruled the world with a tightly closed fist. The Grimke sisters were mocked and called spinsters. They are lesser known heroes in the fight against slavery.

Be sure to read the afterward, the Grimke Sisters were fascinating, and Sue Monk Kidd shares her research and methods of writing the story. A good read.

To Order on Amazon, click here: The Invention of Wings

Off the Beaten Path: 3 Unusual Book Club Picks

June 2, 2015December 24, 2015Leave a comment

Everyone is reading Girl on a Train, and well, everyone should. It is exceptional. It is also excpetional to read some random little gems that most have never hearf of, but are though-provoking, odd, and beautiful all at the same time. Here are three unconventional choices.

My Wish List by Gregoire Delacourt

What if life was finally good, the hard waves had crashed, you got back up, and the calm waters followed? What if the arrival of such peace was so unexpected, so needed, and so relieving, protecting the peace meant keeping out the good? Our heroine lives in a small French town, her sewing shop is doing unexpectedly well thanks to the popularity of her blog. Extreme sadness has come and gone, but life is good. She is happy with her shop, and sharing the magic of arranging fabric, buttons, and ribbons into a new creation. She is happy until her dear friends convince her to purchase a lottery ticket for the mega jack-pot. When the winner is announced and does not come forward, she knows her life will never be the same.This book is exquisitely written, magical in its telling, yet devastating. What would you do if you finally had all that money cannot buy and all the money in the world was poised to take it right back? I thought about this book, the setting, the quirky charm, and the question of true love and true happiness it raises long after it was over. A good pick if you are looking for something not everyone is reading.

To Purchase on Amazon, click here: My Wish List: A Novel

The Library of Unrequited Love by Sophie Divry

A broody, disgruntled librarian finds a man who has been sleeping in her assigned section overnight. She unloads her every thought, desire, and opinion upon him before the library can open and he can escape to freedom. This book is a long rambling rant from a woman you wished you never started a conversation with. However, I found it whimsical and wonderful. I loved all 93 pages and literally read it in an hour. From this lonely librarian we learn the history of the Dewey Decimal system, her opinion on Napoleon, library politics, her love lost, and her unrequited library love, Martin. Martin reads in her section each day, and our lovable, yet neurotic protagonist has fallen in love with the back of his neck, and pines after this silent reader daily. If you are looking for something completely unusual, quietly comical, with doses of sweet but sad, this is your book. If your book club is over and done reading the beach reads and best sellers, pick up this inventive little gem. If you don’t like it, you only gave less than a day to reading it. However, my bet is you will like it.

To Purchase on Amazon, click here: The Library of Unrequited Love

We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves by Karen Fowler

The opening of this book gives away nearly nothing. We know the main character is Rosemary, her sister Fern is long gone, and her brother Lowell has left without a good-bye. Rosemary is struggling through college, a fact unsuccessfully hidden from her academic parents. Everyone is a bit off and doing a complicated dance of denial around something unspeakable. I was told to give this book a chance to about page 80. I will give you the same advice, and I am sorry, I will not give anything away. There is an unexpected twist in the middle. The book is not about a simple family drama as it seems at the beginning. It is an odd story, yet it is well written. Read it with a Book Group, as it conjures up interesting topics of conversation. It will leave you to ponder on the blend of ethics and science, animal rights and human responsibility, and the definition of family.

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By Karen Joy Fowler We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves (Pen/Faulkner Award – Fiction) (F First Edition)

If You Liked ‘The Help’, Here is Your Next Read

May 25, 2015December 24, 20153 Comments

Calling Me Home by Julie Kibler

Dory has washed and set Ms. Isabelle’s hair every week for years. They know each other as most people know their regular stylist, sharing just the surface bits and pieces of their lives. This distance is eradicated, and their cordial friendship is taken to a new level when Isabelle asks Dory to drive her to a funeral across the country. Dory accepts with a bit of hesitation, and so begins a journey of friendship which travels across lines of race, generation, and social standing. The miles and hours pass by, as Isabelle tells Dory of her first love. Dory’s present struggles and Isabelle’s past agony unfold as they drive and share their stories. Isabelle dredges up the past, bit by bit, and Dory compassionately wades through the memories with her. Dory is fighting battles of her own, with teenage children and new relationships. Isabelle pushes Dory to live a courageous life in the present, as she reconciles her past. The story is touching, well told, and a good read. If you like strong women’s fiction, you will enjoy this book.

To Order this Book on Amazon, click here:

Calling Me Home: A Novel

A Girl From Yamhill by Beverly Cleary

May 6, 2015December 24, 2015Leave a comment

Reading both of Beverly Cleary’s biographies made me long to time travel back to the 30’s and 40’s. Although these were very hard times, as Ms. Cleary wrote about, they are fascinating times in history. I was nostalgic for some aspects of life we will never know, like riding on street cars, going to dances in ankle socks, and being picked up for a date in a Model T. Ms. Cleary’s life is fascinating; she came of age in a time where very few opportunities existed for young people. However, her dream of becoming a librarian became a reality, with an interesting journey along the way. A Girl from Yamhill tells her story of childhood from a farm to graduating high school in Portland. My Own Two Feet continues her story into adulthood, through college during the great depression, becoming a librarian, and even running an army library on a military base. She finally got the courage to write her first book, and the rest is her better known history. Writing award winning books and becoming one of the most beloved authors for children. I don’t read many autobiographies, but these were superb.