BEST ON THE SHELF: Great Reads for Your Book Club

My Mom has asked me to help her Book Club find some great reads, so Mom this is for you!

#1 The Hundred- Foot Journey

Satisfying and Delightful

The Hundred – Foot Journey is my top pick for Book Clubs, this is one of the best books I have read this year.

Hassan grew up in his Grandfather’s restaurant in Mumbai and from a young age had a way with ingredients in the kitchen. Hassan was lucky as his family’s restaurant was a great success and that his Grandfather valued land more than money. When tragedy strikes, Hassan and his family leave Bombay and wander aimlessly until they land in France with plans to open an Indian restaurant.

Madame Mallory is a Michelin Star Chef who is most displeased when the boisterous Indian family moves in across from her establishment. Mallory is horrified and then angry when she learns the family plans on opening an Indian restaurant, a mere one hundred feet from hers. And yet when the Indian Restaurant opens, Mallory is compelled to try it, hoping to hate it with all her might. Instead she discovers that the teenage Hassan has talent in the kitchen--to her disbelief and horror! That moment changes two lives –giving one purpose and one opportunity…

And, if that is not enough, the movie The Hundred-Foot Journey (starring Helen Mirren) comes out August 8th! Read the book and then see the movie!

#2 The Storied Life of AJ Fikry

Complicated title, fantastic book

Book lovers will enjoy this quaint little story about a small-town bookstore and the people whose lives are impacted by the books they read. AJ Fikry is the central character, a cynical bookstore owner and widower, living a lonely life above his shop. AJ has strong book opinions, is a bit of a literary snob (be still my beating heart).  Late one winter night AJ finds an abandoned baby in his store and soon he finds that his life’s purpose is renewed.

Amelia works for a publisher, her job to sell books to such stores as the small-town Island Books. Over time and through many book discussions, she breaks through AJ’s shell and develops a friendship. Detective Lambaise is the wise and dependable character, a lonely man who befriends AJ and the baby, although he is “not much of a reader.” Eventually AJ influences the Detective and he starts reading books beyond those by James Patterson. Perhaps the story is less about AJ, and more about a little bookstore and the townspeople of Alice Island.

One of my favorite quotes from the book, “You know everything you need to know about a person from the answer to the question ‘What is your favorite book?’”

Do share, what is your favorite book?

2014 BEACH BAG

My Beach Book Picks

The Mistress

I like to start a Vacation Book pile with a Patterson, James Patterson. I prefer the independent books (not the series). Patterson truly writes action packed page- turners building the excitement with one page chapters. This summer I chose The Mistress, I hope it is chock full of action adventure, perhaps to be read in one beach session?

Silence for the Dead

I've been waiting for this book to come out in paperback, and I’m thrilled that it did so before summer vacation. St. James tends to set strong female characters in mysterious and often ghostly World War 1 settings. I anticipate part romance, part mystery and a bit of suspense – sounds perfect!

How the Light Gets In

How the Light Gets In was nominated for the Edgar Awards this year, these are my favorite book awards (mystery) and I love that Louise Penny is getting recognition.  Louise Penny is a fantastic mystery author and I am a great fan of her lovely flawed wonderful characters. If you have not read Louise Penny, start with the first in the series – Still Life.

Divergent

Yes, I am behind the times! I finally got Divergent in paperback and have been saving it to read at the beach.  My husband has already read this book and recommended it to me. I hear this is a fast read, and I love that it is the first in a series.

Lovers at the Chameleon Club*

*Book Club

I’m not a big fan of Historical Fiction; however this premise seems unique and fascinating. And,  this book  just got critical acclaim on Book Page (one of my favorite book websites).The subject is the Paris nightclub scene Post World War 1, with cross-dressing Lesbian Lou Villers as the lead character...

Sweet Expectations

This is my guilty pleasure, a Chick Lit book about a bakery, sounds like the perfect beach indulgence to me! 

Other books tossed in my beach bag: All the Summer Girls, Whiskey Beach, As The Pig Turns, Winter Lodge   Hmm…seems Chick Lit heavy, there is a strong chance I will buy a Mystery paperback at the beach!

Tell me, what books are going into your beach bag this year?

The Ghost Bride, a Fresh Spring Read

Unique, Fresh, Captivating

A young girl is asked to be the bride for a wealthy family – the catch is that she will also be a widow as her intended groom died several months ago.

In the late 1800's in Malacca, a Chinese influenced culture, the young Li Lan has learned that the wealthy Lim family has asked her father if she will be a Ghost Bride. The young son and heir to the Lim fortune has died and in old tradition the Lim family wants someone to marry their son as a way to placate his spirit. Li Lan knows that she does not want to be a Ghost Bride and yet she also realizes that the marriage would elevate her family status and fortune.

The Ghost Bride is a novel about tradition, family and ghosts. Li lan has to figure out what she wants for her future and if she can live with the choices that she makes.

Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley

 Rebecca Read-A-Likes

Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier is a beloved classic Gothic novel, so imagine my delight when I discovered Alena, a new book release with similar premise. In my mind, I always see the Hitchcock movie Rebecca, an old black and white film starring Joan Fontaine and Lawrence Olivier--ah a classic! After reading several pages of Alena via a Kindle sample, I quickly recommended Alena for my Book Club.

Sadly, Alena was a disappointment for me. While comparisons may be made between Alena and Rebecca, Rebecca remains far superior. The Preface of Alena is lovely and eloquent but the middle and end became dull and plain. It seemed almost as if a different author wrote the introduction. Alena, the novel’s namesake is the mysteriously absent curator of an art museum, the circumstances behind her disappearance are unknown. The main protagonist is an un-named naïve young lady who befriends a rich old man and soon finds herself appointed the new curator. It will be hard for the new curator as Alena’s presence is everywhere and constant comparisons and insecurities abound…

My recommendation is to bypass Alena and instead read these two contemporary novels:

The Vanishing by Wendy Webb

Eccentric, Mysterious, Fantastic

The Vanishing is a modern gothic novel that has more of that Rebecca-type story, including the haunting and the creepy mansion. Julia is a modern-day widow, her husband recently committed suicide after a Bernie Madeoff scheme - leaving her broke and isolated. When a wealthy family gives Julia an offer to be a live-in companion at their remote mansion, she really has nothing to lose. As soon as Julia arrives at Havenwood she starts hearing voices and starts believing that perhaps the mansion and its residents are haunted. The Vanishing sets the right tone, built the mystery and was immensely readable.

The Art Forger by B.A. Shapiro

Ambitious, Noteworthy, Unique

Claire is a struggling artist, barely able to afford living in her one room studio when she is presented a tremendous if perhaps illegal opportunity. If she paints a replica Degas, a famous gallery owner (Markel) will give her a one woman show. She does not know what plans Markel has with her replica or the original painting, but she knows that she has willingly made a deal with the devil. As her relationship with the handsome gallery owner evolves into romance, she fears what will happen to them if they get caught. And yet, her ambition and desire get the best of her, how much will she compromise to ensure that her work gets noticed?

Review: The Golem and the Jinni

The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



Intellectual, Creative, Complex

Finally finally finished! The beginning of this novel is fascinating and wondrous. I loved the idea of the story, one written about a Golem (clay creature) and a Jinni (Arabic Supernatural Spirit) who meet by chance in New York (such a new and interesting premise). The Golem’s Master has died unexpectedly and she must figure out how to live as a human when she needs no food or sleep and has superhuman strength. The Jinni was trapped in a container for a thousand years, he is glad to be out in the world again although this world is one he does not recognize. Because he is drawn to fire, he is a natural metalsmith. Both creatures are restless, frustrated and struggling to pose as humans in a complex world. The Golem and Jinni recognize the non-human in each other and forge an unlikely friendship. Alas, the constraints of the human world may be more than either can survive.

I had thought of choosing this book for Book Club as I read the first few compelling pages in the bookstore, but wow, this is a hard book to finish. A fellow Book club member read this book too and said she was glad that I had not chosen it; it was too lengthy and too intellectual for the book group. Notably, I stopped reading (e-reader) at 50% and set this book aside for months as the middle of the book just could not keep my attention.

Well written, but oh so long!






View all my reviews

To Read – Add These to Your List!

 A Few Books I Enjoyed in 2013...

The year of 2013 was somewhat disappointing to me as a reader. I did not love or even like many of the books that I read - despite Kindle Samples and Goodreads Recommendations, I found very few books that I would rate as above average. The few I enjoyed are listed in brief below:

How to Be An American Housewife

My favorite book club pick of 2013 was How to Be An American Housewife by Margaret Dilloway. The story seems almost as if it is an authentic memoir as it recaps the life of a young Japanese woman in WWII who chose to marry an American GI in order to give herself a better life. Shoko has her secrets as she leaves her family and home to move to America with her new husband. Her one insight into the ways of American Culture are attained only in a little book called How to Be An American Housewife. The story is told through both mother (past and present) and also through her estranged Japanese American daughter.

Other books outside of book club that I enjoyed include:

Code Name Verity

This is also a WWII book which follows the lives of two young British female spies in Germany – this would be a great read for book club. Don’t let the YA genre mislead you, this is a captivating book.

From the Kitchen of Half Truth

I wish I had chosen this book for my book club pick; I enjoyed this special and quirky novel. Meg is OCD, the complete opposite of her eccentric mother who loves cooking and fairy tales. Meg loved her childhood until she realized that all of her mother’s stories were make-believe.

The Gravity of Birds

Another book I wish I had discovered prior to book club. Famous ArtistThomas Bayber suddenly reveals in old age that he has a few other paintings, paintings which may be priceless if they exist. Long ago Bayber summered in a cottage near the Kessler family. Bayber painted the young Kessler girls and dramatically impacted their young lives and the past and present drama unfolds from there.

Oh Really wish I had chosen this for book club…

Laura Lamont’s Life in Pictures

Who isn’t fascinated by Old Hollywood Glamour? At a young age, Laura Lamont leaves the Midwest for a hopeful movie career in Hollywood. Of course it doesn’t all go as planned and yet her California life is interesting as she works in the Hollywood Golden Age.  I didn’t choose this book initially because reviewers were disappointed that this wasn’t a memoir. It does read as one, and in my imagination it could be any great Dame from the black and white AMC Golden Age, alas it is fiction.

  

 READ READ READ and Enjoy!

E-Reader Free Sample Addiction

This year I had trouble choosing a book for my book club and I turned to my Kindle to download some free book samples to help me make my choice. I found several book snippets that sounded as though they had promise only to let me down once I started reading. I went through countless samples, reading chapter after chapter in search of that next great book club find… to no avail. And after each sample disappointment, I would go back to the kindle store in search of another free sample. I soon realized that I am a Try-A-Sample Addict! Oh the savvy book marketers – they make sure those first chapters are engaging with spark but they haven’t followed through to ensure the fire continues through the middle to the conclusion.

Books that I explored for my book club included Earls at The Supremes All You can Eat (perhaps I love the authors story better than the book). I really wanted to like this Southern novel but the sample did not speak to me. I also sampled The Pilgrimage of Harold Frye which was a little serious for my taste. And so I continued to download MORE samples…

“Try a Sample” tried for my Book Club:

• A Hundred Summers,
• Whistling Past the Graveyard,
• The Scent of Rain and Lightning,
• Tell the Wolves I’m Home,
• The Drowning House,
• Fin & Lady,
• Beautiful Day,
• From the Kitchen of Half Truth,
• The Golem and the Jinni,
• The Engagements,
• The Witch of Little Italy

Yep, confirmed, a Try-A-Sample Addict! I did actually purchase and read a few of the books that I tried. Although, sadly, I believe that all this try before you buy took my book club choosing mojo away. Which leaves me wondering, are the Try a Samples a hindrance or a value add to the book reading experience? What are your thoughts?

A Book Club Romance - The Apple Orchard

refreshing, easy, sweet

I love hosting book club, but this year choosing a book was a real struggle. I knew we had a pretty serious July book in The Light Between Oceans. How do you find a book that is on the lighter side, but still has enough meat to stay interesting and lead to a good discussion? Wow, so hard. I ended up selecting a Romance, The Apple Orchard by Susan Wiggs.

Tess is a modern Indiana Jones, dedicating her life to researching, finding, and returning stolen war treasures. Unfortunately, Tess is lonely, she doesn’t have a family; her life is her work. That is until the sexy Dominic walks into her office and turns her world upside down by telling her that she has family – a sister and a grandfather, both are living in Sonoma.

The story of Tess’s grandfather is by far the greatest story. As a teen in World War II, the Nazis took Magnus’s family away, he never saw them again. Soon he becomes a resistance fighter, saving many children from the death camps. Eventually he and his new bride settle in California, starting an Apple Orchard and thus the saga begins…

There are stories past and present and plenty of recipes - The Apple Orchard is a delightful choice for book club when you need something from the lighter side.

The Apple Orchard Book Club

What to Serve:

Any recipes from the book (Danish Apple Pie) &

Sonoma wine, a cheese platter, fruit (apples and grapes), bread, chocolates, apple dessert

Book club idea:

Trivia with an Apple Prize. Or: I found book conversation starters (for book clubs) online. Questions such as “If you could be any character in a book who would you be?” I printed out the book-related questions and then had each person select a question from a jar at the beginning of the night. I tagged one question and that person won the “prize”. The prize can be a bottle of Sonoma wine, or a fun Apple scented candle.

Enjoy the caramel apple topping,

- Sara

Pack Your Bags with Summer Beach Reads

Sunscreen swimsuit and beach reads--all a girl needs for summer

Mystery

The Gods of Gotham by Lyndsay Faye

I do love a good mystery, and a recent Edgar Award winner might satisfy that craving… perhaps. I have a seen this novel everywhere, and it has good reviews, my hopes are high.

Thriller/Suspense Category

Now You See Her by James Patterson

I always like to bring a Patterson to the beach. Patterson is the go to author for short snappy thrilling chapters and quick reads. He writes easily and the pace is fast, often chapter endings are cliffhangers so the reader has to push through for more, to get more detail, more information. When he’s good, he’s very very good and when his characters are bad, he’s better. While I enjoy the Alex Cross series, I find that I truly like the stand alone novels that Patterson writes, these are the must read beach thrillers

Fiction 

Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter

This is one of those much written about books, one which I hope does not disappoint. For me, the good news is that this book recently became available in paperback (still a favorite). This was an NPR favorite, an Audible and NYT Book favorite for 2012.

Chick Lit

Nowhere But Home by Liza Palmer

Everyone needs a light and funny beach chick lit; I am hoping this is the one. Anyone who knows me knows that I have a weakness for Southern Contemporary fiction. Completely irrelevant, but my husband would love this, the author was Emmy nominated for her writing on VH1s Pop Up video.

Wildcards—books that I am bringing along and may read on vacation…

Other books that I am bringing along include The Orchardist and an Inquiry into Love and Death and Daddy’s Gone A Hunting.

What will be going into your beach bag this summer?

An Unfinished Book

an assortment of books set aside mid-read

I have a few stacks of to read books beside my bed – I do love my books. The good news is there are many books to read, the bad news is that many have been set aside mid-read.

 

My set aside /unfinished mid-read list is chock full of well intentions and intellectual or classic books like

The Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, Anna Karenina, The Imperfectionists, Girl in Hyacinth Blue, Brave New World

And books that I’d read or heard about that couldn’t keep my interest

The Magicians, Black Water Rising, The Girl Below

And series or authors whom I have read previously but that I just cannot get into again

Like Clobbered by Camembert (I enjoyed the first book in this series), The Diva Digs the Dirt, The House at Riverton

What do you do with a book that just doesn’t hold your attention? Do you keep reading and hope that it gets better? Or do you put it aside, to maybe finish later? I used to feel that I had to finish each and every book—even the rotten ones. But now, I don’t want to waste the time.

 Meanwhile the set aside pile is growing….

 

Chiaroscuro Reading

books that fall into the light and dark spectrums

Thus far this year, I have been vacillating between dark and light themed books, a chiaroscuro of book reading. Between the dark and light, I have found a few that I can recommend…

On the light side

Julie and Romeo by Jeanne Ray

Inspired by Romeo and Juliet, this is a complex love story wherein the main characters could be the Grandparents of the original characters. This is a modern take with a new twist. The Cacciamani and Roseman families have always hated each other, for as long as they have lived and yet no one remembers why or how the infighting started. In their sixties, Romeo and Julie meet up and discover that they want to pursue a relationship—in spite of their children’s intense displeasure.

A Walk in the Park by Jill Mansell

In true British chic lit style, the older more mature Laura moves back to her hometown, eighteen years after she’s left. Laura has ensured that her old high school flame, Flynn will be out of town so she has nothing to worry about, there will be no chance run ins. Of course, plans change and their surprise meeting rekindles something…

Village Books by Craig McLay

 was surprised at how much I enjoyed this book. Written from the perspective of a young male bookstore worker this was a light fun surprise, very reminiscent of Nick Hornby.  The young man writes his co-workers and accounts of their issues so well, truly a satire of life told from a young man’s perspective.

On the dark side

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein

This is categorized in Young Adult, but I can highly recommend this book for any adult book club. The story follows two young English girls working for the British government in World War II, one of whom has been captured by the enemy.

The Fate of Mercy Alban by Wendy Webb

I really enjoyed this Gothic tale—it is a bit Rebecca and a bit murder mystery. Returning back to the family mansion after her Mother’s death, Grace realizes that there is someone or something in her mother’s house and whatever it is, it is deadly. Grace not only has to worry about her life, she must also worry over her daughter and the mansion staff. Soon she will learn the Pandora’s box of secrets which her mother took to the grave with her. The story is well written and smartly paced, as a mystery fan, I quite liked it.

Shiver by Maggie Stievater

This is also a Young Adult book, one that I have seen featured prominently in many bookstores. The story follows Grace as a somewhat neglected teenager. She gets herself to school and   pretty much runs her own life while her obtuse and uninvolved parents ignore her. Grace is particularly fascinated by the wolves in the woods behind her house, especially the one with the yellow eyes.

Do you have a preference or will you also fall into chiaroscuro?

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? 

Book Gifting for a Happy Holiday

My Book Club has this wonderful December tradition—meeting at a restaurant to exchange books (Secret Santa style) instead of having our regular book club. Unfortunately, many people have problems choosing a book for someone else…I am here to help with that dilemma!

Book Clubs and Friends:

My first resource is almost always BookPage.com. Right now they have a fantastic Holiday Catalog for book gifting. Some suggestions from BookPage include:

Fiction: The Art Forger, The Elephant Keepers’ Children, and Miss Dreamsville and the Collier Women’s Society.

Other books that are BookPage reviewed which look interesting…The Stockholm Octavio, Magnificence, and The End of Your Life Book Club

My book club filled out a Secret Santa questionnaire, in which book clubbers were encouraged to write their favorite book and their favorite book genre, this will help guide you to your book pick. And, yes, there is a website that can assist you. Try Bookbrowse.com, the ReadAlikes section (which is where you input a book or author and books that are similar are returned)—how fantastic is that (link below)?

http://www.bookbrowse.com/read-alikes/

Kids and Adopt Families:

Here, I confess that I have a few children’s favorites: I love The Penderwicks (great gift for little girls), and anything by Roald Dahl—Matilda for girls, The BFG or The Witches for boys. Also, Barnes and Nobles has I Can Read series, and there are some great choices from Pinkalicious to Biscuit (great prices-typically around $4).

Also still big for kids is the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series! And, another favorite of mine—Rick Riordan and his Heroes of Olympus series.

May your Book Gifting be a success this season, Happy Holidays!

Other resources you might like include:

Barnes and Noble.com Holiday Gift Guide

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/u/holiday-gifts-christmas-recommendations/379003806

Amazon.com Holiday Gift

http://www.amazon.com/Gift-Ideas-Holidays-Seasonal-Books/b/ref=books_billboard2_gifts_adult?ie=UTF8&node=509156&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=merchandised-search-2&pf_rd_r=E18BAB0F6C8B424AB31E&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=1421574282&pf_rd_i=283155

Fireside Reads to Keep you Warm this Season

Recently my favorite social media site, Goodreads.com, started their annual “GoodReads Choice Awards 2012." The Goodreads Awards were the catalyst for me starting this post, as they are inspired by reader's choices. I recommend the following books from the GoodReads 2012 list, have you read them? You may want to add them to your to-read list…

Humor - Where’d You Go Bernadette? This is almost a satire on PTA Parenting and odd families. And, if that sounds appealing, give The Family Fang a try.

Fiction – A Grown Up Kind of Pretty (this would be good for a book club and for any Southern Fiction lover). Lately I have enjoyed Southern fiction writers, perhaps because I have lived in the South?

Historical Fiction - The Flight of Gemma Hardy (a modern retelling of Jane Eyre), The Shoemaker’s Wife (an early 1900s American immigrant story).

Fun-n-lite: Whistlin’ Dixie in a Nor’easter (Southern Princess moves up North with her husband), Off The Menu (A Chef story with recipes)

Books that I haven’t yet read (but that I see often on the book sites that I follow):

The Casual Vacancy, The Secret Keeper, The Snow Child, The Orchardist, The Sisters

Books with Movie Tie-Ins: Life of Pi, Cloud Atlas, Anna Karenina

New Releases:  I will try to wait for paperback or perhaps buy on my e-reader…

The End of your life Book club, Mr. Penumbra’s 24 hour bookstore, Some Kind of Fairy Tale

 Enjoy your fireside reads with a nice glass of wine or hot chocolate.

Original Beauty in The Language of Flowers

Interesting, heartfelt, original

A rare and beautiful book, The Language of Flowers is a perfect choice for book club.

Victoria is a product of the foster care system, an indignant young woman with no ambition or drive or even likability. She has never been adopted into a family, and will age out at age eighteen. This novel really made me think about what happens to all of the children who age out of the foster care system.

Placed at The Gathering House, the indignant Victoria is expected to get a job; she has 6 weeks to do so. To my chagrin, the obtuse Victoria doesn’t even try to find work which means that she must leave the gathering house. It is difficult to see someone who refuses to help or fight for herself, Victoria is her own worst enemy.

Hidden deep inside her brain, Victoria’s redeeming quality is a flower dictionary, her very own language of flowers. Victoria admits that she is a “thistle-peony-basil kind of girl” which translates into misanthropy, anger and hate; well the girl doth know herself. Eventually her talent with flowers is recognized and she is hired part time at a florist. Soon townspeople are asking for Victoria at the flower shop as she truly has a way with flowers. For the old man who wants his granddaughter to stop sulking Victoria creates a lily of the valley bouquet (return to happiness). The obstinate Victoria does not let things happen easily for herself but her life is a journey, and we all hope for a Victoria to have a Celandine, Cosmos, and Laurel life.

I don’t want to give too much away, you should read The Language of Flowers or pick this for your book club. And it really is quite fun to flip through the flower dictionary at the back of the book.

Book Club Ideas:

·         Quiches, Boursin Cheese and crackers, salad, cupcakes
·         Wine
·         Flowers—lots of flowers! (Trader Joes is a great resource)
·         Flower Trivia* (create it using the flower dictionary in the back of the book)
          *Have a bouquet prize!
·         Research your area Gathering Houses (they do exist), right before my book club the one in our local area opened, I had the article at the meeting.

The Bird Sisters, a Luminous Debut

Heartbreaking, endearing, delicate

The Bird Sisters used to have many visitors from near and far, those who had found injured birds and wanted the sisters to fix the broken wings. Milly and Twiss are spinsters, old ladies living in their childhood Wisconsin house, biding their time and anxiously awaiting visitors.  Lately, though, there haven’t been many visitors , which leads the isolated sisters to reminisce about their past.

Flitting back to 1947, Milly and Twiss are young teens living with their parents. Their lives are relatively normal   until their philandering father crashes his car and somehow loses his golfing skills—a family crisis as he was a Golf Pro. As their parents drift apart, their father starts living in the barn while their mother stays in her bedroom—everything is in a downward spiral. Financially the family is hurting, but their proud  mother refuses to accept the family’s new societal status, refusing assistance from the Sewing Society ladies.

Milly is the eldest, the level headed and sturdy sister who loves to bake. Townspeople scrape together flour and sugar just to ensure that her baking skills continue to develop. Twiss is the young wild child, the tomboy, the free spirit. With their absentee father (he stays in the barn all day) and their depressed mother, the sisters have to rely heavily on each other. Despite the house dysfunction, their cousin Bett, older at eighteen, soon arrives to spend the summer with them. Twiss doesn’t understand Bett, who is plain,  sickly,  and rather unlikeable, but their mother appreciates Bett’s household assistance. In true coming of Age style, by the end of the summer Milly Twiss and Bett will have had to grow up, their future fates decided.

The Bird Sisters is everything a novel should be, and beyond everything a debut novel should be. If only more writers wrote stories as intricate and luminous as this, The Bird Sisters is a Must-read. Reach for this Coming of Age novel for your summer read or as a pick for your next book club. 

Review: The Flight of Gemma Hardy

The Flight of Gemma Hardy by Margot Livesey

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



We are so lucky in this world; every month new classic novels are being created by brilliant minds. Margot Livesey is a new classics author, her novel The Flight of Gemma Hardy is impeccable and beautiful, a tale that should be savored. “Wow, Margot Livesey can write” was my thought as I finished the novel. As a non-author, those thoughts do not accurately convey my enthusiasm at the beauty, simplicity and skill with which Livesey imagined this novel gem.

The novel and the story will seem familiar to the reader, and the author admits it is based on the tale of Jane Eyre; there are many similarities. When her loving uncle dies, a young girl’s life is thrown into chaos. First Gemma is moved from her room to the attic, losing her place in the family, soon she is seen as a maid that the family deigns themselves to cloth and feed. A private school is where she is sent when her Aunt no longer wants her at all; Gemma is now an unwanted charity case. Gemma survives all that the oppressive world throws at her, despite being a penniless child in dark and unforgiving times.

I struggled with the timeline as this novel is set in 1960 Scotland, a setting that was hard to imagine as I envisioned an Oliver Twist/Jane Eyre era. Gemma is set adrift in a lonely world, where schoolgirls bully each other, where the evil headmaster reigns and friends are not an option. Cleaning and cooking and memories soon fill Gemma’s days, as do desires to go to school and eventually make a living on her own. Eventually the penniless Gemma will get a job as an au pair in the remote Orkney Islands, having to take the only job offered to her.

This is truly a novel that you will want to share with friends, family and your book club.





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Box Office FRESH: Let’s Get these Books to the Big Screen!

An Opinion: Movie-makers are not keeping up with reader/moviegoer desires

 Egad! Ugh! Really? They are making another Superman movie, and I am so not stoked about it, how many men have played superman at this point? And didn’t Toby McGuire just step out of his Spidey costume like last year and here we have a "new" Spiderman movie? Really? And I still remember The Great Gatsby with Robert Redford, now I hear that soon it will star Dicaprio-umm ok. Why are we constantly remaking the old—I want to see  a new voice at the theater.  I vote for freshness in a movie experience and here are some of my top book picks—listen up screenwriters and movie moguls! What do movie goers want? (HINT no more tired comic book heroes please)…

Action Adventure

Hawke by Ted Bell, stolen directly from my husband’s nightstand, would translate into a great action adventure movie. There is so much story and action in this book, plus a great new character of Hawke, an interesting jack of all trades spy guy! A perfect action hero with a new story!

Beach Road by James Patterson-- I chose this Patterson novel because it is a one off, it is not an Alex Cross novel. Beach Road is a combo of action, legal thriller, and drama with a twist. It could really be something at the box office if they cast the right male lead.

Sci Fi

The Night Circus  is so visually vivid and creative-- I want to see this luminous and magical book come to life. Much CGI and a great costume artist will be needed.

Drama

The Guernsey Literary And Potato Peel Society, I loved the book, this is a must! I have written about this book before, and have told the reader to get over the title and read it. Set in WWII, the story follows Julia a budding journalist and her letters to the small island of Guernsey. And, I just Googled it, it will be a movie in 2013! Right now Kate Winslet is slated to star (love her!) YEAH! Thanks for listening Hollywood!

Arcadia Falls, I chose this because fairy tale movies are so hot right now, and this has a great back story. Arcadia Falls is a wonderfully woven fairy tale which combines a modern tale and a past mystery with an intertwining changeling story. I’d love to see the cinematography as it flits between the past and present as they start to interlace…this could be eerie and magical!

What books would you like to see on the big screen? Some other books that would translate well to the big screen include:  Physick Book of Deliverance Dane, Sister, The Seville Communion (I hold out hope that Brad Pitt will take the lead role as a priest).

Review: Faith Bass Darling's Last Garage Sale

Faith Bass Darling's Last Garage Sale by Lynda Rutledge

My rating: 4 of 5 stars




As far as the townspeople are concerned, Faith Bass Darling has always had a perfect life. She lives in the largest mansion in town and comes from money, her hair always perfect, her outfits coordinated. However Faith knows that perfection on the outside might mean turmoil on the inside, her life has not been a fairy tale.

Faith Bass Darling, former Southern Belle, has lost her mind. She has determined that God has spoken to her and she must sell all of her family heirlooms in a garage sale today. Gawking locals are buying up her precious Tiffany lamps, for whatever they can afford to pay, often $20 a lamp.
Bobbie knows that Faith must be stopped before she can give all of her belongings away. Bobbie became an antiques dealer in the small town because as a child she dreamed of the Darling Mansion and longed for the precious contents therein. When she sees the antiques strewn across the lawn, her heart lurches and she knows that she must call Faith’s long lost daughter.

The long lost Claudia arrives home, having been gone for twenty years, to find that her mother has aged and that her inheritance is being given away in a yard sale. Claudia really only wants one item, an heirloom ring, she hopes that her mother hasn’t sold it yet. How can she close down this sale and who will assist her against her determined and still formidable mother?

The story follows Faith and the townspeople throughout the day of the garage sale, becoming more about the townspeople than Faith alone. I adored this sweet little novel, and loved Faith as a character. The novel states the question we as readers must ask ourselves, “do our possessions possess us?”

Faith Bass Darling’s Last Garage Sale will make a great light pick for your next book club.




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Review: Maine

Maine by J. Courtney Sullivan

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



Modern, Vivid, Generational Drama

Maine is a modern story that follows a Grandmother, a daughter, a daughter-in-law and a Granddaughter. An incredibly well-written women’s saga with rich and vivid text, Maine would be a good pick for your next book club.

Grandmother Alice was once beautiful and had the world at her doorstep. Alice feels responsible for her sister’s death which occurred over sixty years ago. Alice was always the beautiful one; the only reason she married her husband was because she felt guilty about her sister’s death. Alice felt that she needed to live her sister’s life—to marry and to have children, despite the fact that she didn’t want either. Alice wanted to be an artist. Now in her eighties, still beautiful and defiant, the grumpy Alice decides to leave the family’s multi-million dollar beach house to the local church.

For me Mary Anne is the character one most has empathy with as she is a loving and kind woman, a good mother who has married into the family. Mary Anne feels that Alice is like a mother, and treats her as such, she feels that she treats Alice better than Alice’s own children do. Mary Anne cannot believe how Alice’s own children ignore her and spend no time with her. Having helped Alice improve the beach house and after paying for years of upkeep, Mary Anne fully expects that her family will inherit the beach house.

Kathleen hates her sister in law Mary Anne and since her father’s death has not returned home or spoken to her mother. Kathleen adored her father, who doted on her-- once he was gone, there was no reason for her to go home again. Stubborn Kathleen has dealt with alcoholism and divorce, she also married a man that she didn’t love. She loves her crazy life now, living with her boyfriend, owning a worm farm…an unconventional life far away from her crazy mother.

Maggie is a modern working woman who desperately wants her boyfriend to commit already. And, lucky her, he is going to kick his loser roommate out and let her move in. Maggie and Gabe laugh, they fight, they have fun, they fight. As charming as boyfriend is, how will he react when he learns of her unplanned pregnancy?

Have you read The Three Weismann’s of Westport? Maine very much reminded me of that story only with less empathetic characters. I’ll ask you to read both and decide which book you preferred.




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