Twelve of 2012 - A Year of Book Club Reads

Flit With Lit Book Club's 2012 Reads:

• Gone Girl
• The Flight of Gemma Hardy
• Mama Does Time
• The Shoemaker's Wife
• The Language of Flowers
• The Bird Sisters
• Bond Girl
• Peach Keeper
• Loving Frank
• Sister
• The Hunger Games
• Irresistible Henry House

Reviewing my virtual book club reads from 2012 led to this post in which I wanted to get a snapshot of past book club hits and misses.

My biggest 2012 book disappointment was The Peach Keeper. I typically love Sarah Addison Allen as an author who focuses on magical realism. I adored our book club years ago when we read her The Sugar Queen—a mysterious and intriguing story. Sadly, The Peach Keeper fell flat, it was almost like an outline of a good story that was not developed, not fleshed out enough—I wanted more depth and I was not alone in that desire. What authors need to realize, is that some members of book club only read 11 books a year—those chosen by the book club—and while I recognize that is a small focus area, that is the sweet spot.

Another book disappointment was Mama Does Time, which is a cozy mystery that was auto recommended to me by Goodreads. I am always thrilled to find a new great author, but the Mama mystery was not fast enough, and  it was too formulaic--I wont be continuing the series. Cozy mysteries are a good choice after a long or serious book. Some of my favorite cozy mystery writers include Cleo Coyle, M.C. Beaton, and Sarah Graves.

The unanimous favorite of Best Book Club Book for 2012 was The Language of Flowers, a rare and beautiful book. This book features a young girl aging out of the foster care system, her only skill knowing the meaning behind flowers. Learning the meaning behind flowers was fascinating, you may never look at Peonies the same way again. I highly recommend that you select this book for your next book club! See my review at http://awifeofbookclubblog.blogspot.com/2012/09/original-beauty-in-language-of-flowers.html

Other books that will lead to great discussions include:

The Flight of Gemma Hardy

http://awifeofbookclubblog.blogspot.com/2012/07/review-flight-of-gemma-hardy.html 

The Bird Sisters 

http://awifeofbookclubblog.blogspot.com/2012/08/the-bird-sisters-luminous-debut.html

Here’s to finding some great reads in 2013, what is your book club reading?