Books!

My friend, Ann, asked me to report on recent books that I have read.  I was honored!

The Christmas Singing and The Sound of Sleigh Bells by Woodsmall were both good, quick, holiday reads.  Read the sound of Sleigh Bells first because you meet some of the same characters in the second book and you need to know their story.  I plan to look for more by this author.

The Sisters by Jensen.  I read this book in one evening.  My first thoughts were not positive but after I thought about it more the more I can recommend this book.  It is a hard read and I like happy.  It is a story about what bitterness can do.  I struggle with bitterness and I think this book hit too close to home and I was convicted.  I don't share the same story but the same stubbornness to hold onto my bitterness.

The Little Princesses by Crawford.  This book was delightful on many levels.  First- it belonged to my mother.  She has been dead for 15 years and it did my heart good to read a book of hers that she loved.  Second- what a fun read.  It is written by the governess of Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret before King George abdicated and continues til Elizabeth gets married.  I learned so much history and spent many hours on google looking up the houses they lived in and where they traveled.  If you need a fun read, I highly recommend.

The Island by Hilderbrand.  I enjoy her books.  They are cotton candy beach reads.  Sometimes one needs some cotton candy.

I'll be back with more soon, I've got more football to watch!

Books Books Books

The Monuments Men by Robert Edsel - I am not finished with this book yet but I am learning so much. The book is about the men and women that helped find all the art that Hitler acquired before and during WWII and how they returned it. I read some and then I am on the computer googling the art that they are discussing. I have learned so much! At the beginning of the book you meet The Monuments Men with a little bio of them all and at the end of the book you find out what happened to them all. I was reading the bios of the men and low and behold, one man, Robert Posey was from the state of Alabama and you guessed it, graduated from AUBURN!

Emily and Einstein by Linda Francis Lee- I have written about this book before and it is good enough to mention again. A man is about to divorce his wife but she doesn't know it and he dies. She learns lots about him as she goes through things after he dies and she learns a lot about herself too. Very clever

1000 gifts by Ann Voskamp- very interesting read about viewing what God gives us.

A Being So Gentle by Patricia Brady- This author wrote a wonderful book on Martha Washington that KimT and I read years ago. This book is equally as good. This one is about Rachel Jackson, the wife of Andrew Jackson. This is a quick read. I want to read all the books this author has written.

Left Neglected by Lisa Genova- another book I am mentioning again. An encouraging book about a woman who has a massive brain injury. The author has really done her research, I learned lots.

Her Daughter's Dream by Francine Rivers- this book was long. It was a good sequel to Her Mother's Hope.

Summer House by Nancy Thayer- a beach book about a family that deals with the loss of the mother, grown children and an interesting stranger. I enjoyed it.

As Husbands Go by Susan Isaacs- Her husband dies or was he murdered and she finds out just how. It was an interesting book. I would read another by this author

The Illumination by Kevin Brockmeier- I saw this in a publication about local authors. The first chapter was really fascinating but then it went down hill for me. KimT or someone read this book and let's discuss it!

The Wednesday Letters by Jason Wright- a couple dies and their grown children find letters that their father wrote their mother, once a week for their whole married life. Very clever way to move the story along. Great story about forgiveness.

The Brides House by Sandra Dallas- her books are always good.

The Butterfly's Daughter by Mary Alice Monroe- First I must say that my mama loved Monarch Butterflies so anything dealing with that has a soft spot for me. This book was great. A young women makes a trip physically and emotionally to find her family and who she is. You can't go wrong with this author.

Vittoria Cottage by D E Stevenson- beautiful story as usual. HeatherT recommended this one to me. Sweet story!

The Proper Care and Maintenance of Friendship by Lisa Verge Higgins- Four very different women are friends. Upon the death of one, the other three get letters from her that change their lives. Interesting. I'd like to read more by this author.

Folly Beach by Dorothea Benton Frank- I believe this is her best book to date. Very clever devise she uses to tell this story. A widow finds love, family, and a new career.

Happy Reading!!!!

Do you love the state of Alabama?

I love being from the state of Alabama. I follow the al.com on Twitter and came across this article. I added several of these books to my TBR list. 10 Favorite Novels by Alabama authors

Books Books Books

I just realized that I haven't written any book reviews for 2011 yet! So here we go...

Fly Away Home by Jennifer Wiener

The story of what happens to the family of a senator when he has an affair. It has some of the funniest lines to help cope with the heavy topic. I plan to find more by this author. I enjoyed this book.

The Young Clementina by D E Stevenson

Could be my new favorite D E Stevenson book. Such wonderful descriptions and a great story.

Things We Once Held Dear by Ann Tatlock

A widower goes to his childhood home after his wife's death and finds healing. Great story.

Hurricanes in Paradise by Denise Hildreth

I like and have enjoyed all of this author's books and this was no exception. This is about four women whose lives become intertwined and how they help each other. Really good.

I'll Watch the Moon by Ann Tatlock

This book has one of the best stories about forgiveness and what keeping that in front of you does for your outlook on life. Really good.

The Sunday Wife by Cassandra King

The story of a pastor's wife. This book made me ever so thankful for a husband that hears and listens to me. Good book- made me ponder.

The Musgraves by D E Stevenson

Very good.

Rosabelle Shaw by D E Stevenson

Very good.

The Peach Keeper by Sarah Addison Allen

I have enjoyed all the books by this author, I was not disappointed with this one!

The Two Mrs Abbots by D E Stevenson

I met up with some characters from an earlier book and was pleased to catch up on their lives! Very good.

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley

A mystery which normally I don't enjoy but this was an exception. I have the second one on my stack of TBRs

The Kitchen Boy by Robert Alexander

I LOVED this book. I learned so much. Did you know that Tsarina Alexandra of Russia was Queen Victoria's granddaughter? I did not. I started this book and then got online to bone up on my European history. This author did his homework. Lots of twists and turns and a good ending!

off to take a nap after Royal Wedding watching....

Books Books Books

The Tower, The Zoo and the Tortoise by Julia Stuart. I read a review of this book. It said that this book was just like The Guernsey Literary Potato Peel Pie Society. I loved that book and so I checked this book out of the library with high expectations. I was disappointed. It was slow and I finally just flipped ahead so I can see what happened in the story. Can't recommend this one

Katherine Wentworth by D E Stevenson. Ahhhh. I loved this book. It was so wonderful, very British, just wonderful. It is about a widow and her children and their life. I could read this again. Highly recommend.

The Swiss Courier by Tricia Goyer and Mike Yorkey. Tricia was recommended to me as an author by MichelleH from church. She knows her! I got it from the library and they have lots by her. This book was set during WWII and it was about the underground. It was great and suspenseful. I got about four chapters in and I knew who the bad guy was but the main character didn't. I couldn't stand it any more. I had to start reading from the back to the front. I was so nervous. It was a great book. I plan to get more of hers. Plan to read it in one sitting.

I'm So Proud of You by Tim Madigan. Andrew suggested this book to me. This book is about a reporter who meets Mr Rogers. It was a very fun and sweet read. I recommend this one.

Sarah Morris Remembers by D E Stevenson. HeatherT recommended this one to me. It was just as wonderful as all the Stevensons, no, maybe even more so! I loved this book. It is set before and during WWII. Request this book from your library now!

Firefly Lane by Kristen Hannah. HeatherT also recommended this one. Heather- keep the suggestions headed my way! I read this book while my friend, Gladys, was in the hospital. I could pick it up and put it down as needed and still know the story. It is a story of friendship. I recommend it.

Gerald and Elizabeth by D E Stevenson. Wonderful as usual. A great story about a brother and sister. Really good.

The Book of Peach by Penelope J. Stokes. A great story about a mother and a daughter. I plan to read more by this author. Really good.

Sarah's Cottage by D E Stevenson. This so far is my all time favorite Stevenson book. It is the sequel to Sarah Morris Remembers. I feel like now calling the den, the drawing room and having tea every day. I would love to buy this book so I could read it again and again. Request this one at the same time as the one above, both will be quick reads that you will be sad when you are finished because you have made such new and precious friends.

The Zookeeper's Wife by Diane Ackerman. This was recommended on a book blog. This is a non-fiction book about the Jews in Poland before, during and after WWII. It was factual but not depressing. The author had Polish grandparents and enjoyed hearing their stories about WWII and did some investigating and the book is the result. I highly recommend this one.

The First Heroes- the story of the Doolittle Raid by Craig Nelson. Andrew recommended this author to me. Andrew read the author's book about the Apollo program, that book is on my TBR list. When we were homeschooling, we watched several war movies. One of our favorites was Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo. It is about an air raid by the Americans the April after Pearl Harbor was bombed. It was very dangerous and pushed the limits of what the aircraft of that day could do. I have seen the movie at least 100 times. This book was a wonderful addition to the knowledge I gained from the movie. I have even more admiration for those men and what they did. If you don't like history, this is a painless way to gain some knowledge. If you do enjoy it, you will love this book.

Happy Reading!

Books Books Books

So I had some over due books. It really bothered me. I do most of my librarying (is that even a word) on the computer so I don't really even talk to the librarians. I took a few books with me on our vacation and their due date was while we were gone so I just got up the day they were due and renewed them so I could finish them at my leisure.

THEY COULDN'T BE RENEWED.

I was stunned, I was now an outlaw. Did 'they' know I had the books on vacation? What if they suspended my checking out privileges? I finished the books on vacation and went to the library as soon as we got home.

I tried to act nonchalant as I went up to the circulation to confess my felony and 'they' just took my books and told me my fine.

$1.20.

Whew, I made it and I still get to check out books.

The books I took on vacation were

The Postmistress by Sarah Blake and Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson. I enjoyed both of them.

The Postmistress is set in the US and London just before US involvement in WWII. I was immediately hooked and couldn't put it down.

Major Pettigrew's Last Stand is set in an English Village. It is about Major Pettigrew and his family and their life.

I have realized that I like book reviews that don't reveal lots about the books so that is what I do.

Here's the rest of my list:

The Passion of Mary-Margaret by Lisa Sampson. I plan to reread this one.

The Lost Summer of Louisa May Alcott by McNees. I debated whether to list books that I didn't like, I decided that I would. I couldn't get over Louisa May's father.

Until We Reach Home by Lynn Austin. Subject matter I couldn't get over. Didn't like the book.

Whiter than Snow by Sandra Dallas. I loved this book. It was wonderful. Very clever devise she used to tell her story.

The Girl Who Chased the Moon by Sarah Addison Allen. I really have enjoyed all this author's books and this was no exception. Wonderful book.

How to be a Baby ...by Me, the Big Sister by Sally Lloyd Jones. Marisa read this while she was babysitting for Bates and Jane. She came home and said that we have to buy this book. It is fabulous and you need to read it and give it as a gift at your next baby shower.

Every Last One by Anna Quindlen. I read this book in one day and then reread it again the next. It was a fabulous read-gripping, haunting, couldn't put it down. I cried. Anna Quindlen has experienced life and can get it down on paper.

A Thread of Sky by Deanna Fei. Great story, a bit more, shall we say, coarse language and life style, than I am used to but I enjoyed it. I do appreciate my family dynamics more after reading this.

Enjoy.

What are you reading ?

A book plus...

If you need to give a gift and want it to be a book and something else here is a very clever list for you to use.

You are going to be jealous

Here is a picture of Hannah the Amazing! She has organized my scrapbooking and is now working on our books! Here she is getting ready to tackle a few more hours and a few more shelves.
Here she is in the wreck room with her computer. She started with the children's section. She is not only organizing but writing down every book we have! I can't wait!
Today we made a few stacks in the Living Room for her. My categories now are Fiction, Poetry, Biblical, Usborne, History, Homeschool and Children's books.
Here are a few of Hannah's stacks.
Here are some of the bookcases she has ahead of her...




I'll keep you posted on the progress. I am so excited!

Anne has created a monster!

My friend, Anne, that goes to church with me, was the one who told me about requesting books online from the library. Now I can't control myself. Here are my latest ones. How am I to read all these by May 10th? I'll figure out some way- I am thinking that there won't be too much picking up or cooking for awhile around here.I'll write a book report soon on some I've already read if I have time with all my new reading :)

All new books or do you reread old ones

Some thoughts from John Piper and how he decides what to read. Very interesting.

You need to meet Juliet, Sidney, Dawsey etc

I just finished The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows.  It was outstanding.  The setting is post WWII in London and the island of Guernsey.  It is written as a series of letters.  It took me a few letters to figure out who was who and then I couldn't put it down.  

I plan to read more about Guernsey and the WWII.

Enjoy!

Who were you watching?

I am sure most of you spent your Saturday afternoon like I did- watching the NFL draft. In years past I have watched to see where former AUBURN players have gone but this year I was watching an Ole Miss player. Michael Oher- pronounced oar. Andrew had me read The Blind Side by Michael Lewis. It tells the story of Michael Oher and the evolution of the left tackle in football. Micheal Oher was a homeless child that by God's grace was brought into a wonderful family by amazing means. The left tackle is the player the protects the quarterbacks 'blind side' if you have a right handed quarterback.

Michael Oher went to the Baltimore Ravens as the 23rd pick.

For those of you who think sports is not a wonderful teaching tool...why is the Baltimore team called the Ravens? Edgar Allen Poe died in Baltimore so to honor him and his poem The Raven the football team was named the Ravens. Cool huh?

If you have a sports fan and you need to be able to talk more to them I highly recommend The Blind Side.

Books, Books , Books

One of the many things I lost when my mama died was a wonderful source of new books to read. I like that http://www.amazon.com/ will refer books to me from what I have ordered but sometimes they miss the mark. One new source that I have found is Laura. Her blog is on my blogroll and it is Lines in Pleasant Places. She is a reader and an AUBURN fan. What a fabulous combination.

She recommend Hannah Coutler by Wendell Berry. I read it a few weeks ago when I was sick. As bad as I felt, I had to keep reading. I wanted to find out what happened in the story plus Wendell Berry's verbiage took me to a wonderful place. His words are put together in such a way that I liked to roll them over in my mind like one would do a cherry lifesaver on your tongue so you could savor every taste.

One of the themes in this book is 'The Membership' It is the spirit of community that is present in the town, Port William, that Hannah and her family lived. It made me ponder the member ships that I have in my family, in my church and in my circle of friends. My friend, LindaS, read the book and she was surprised how a man could write so well from the viewpoint of a woman. She also said that she came across an article in Christianity Today that called Wendell Berry a present day prophet. I have not read that article yet.

I have A Place on Earth by Wendell Barry in my que of books to read.

Another book I read while I was sick was The Solitary Envoy by T. Davis Bunn and Isabella Bunn. I enjoyed this book and I plan to read more in this series. It was a quick read and somewhat predictable. I enjoyed the history that I learned and it made me read more about that time. This was somewhat of a cotton candy read but we all need these every now and again.

The book that I put down so I could blog is Eulalis by Brian Jacques. I love these books. There are about 18 of these books. All stand alone but the more you read the more you come across folks that you know or have met before. I say folks but all the characters are animals. The herbivores are good for the most part and the carnivores are bad for the most part. The writing is fun to read- I love it when I read things like "they are tip-pawed across the floor so as not to wake the babes". These books also show Romans 8:29-29 to me. They show me in a story how all things work together. 'If the Tapestry had not been stolen, they never would have seen the writing behind it, which led to a wonderful discovery...'

If you plan to read these start with Redwall. It sets the backdrop for all the others. Andrew's favorite is Pearls of Lutra. It is my second favorite.

I need to get back to my book, the golden fox has just captured the hedgehog and the haremaiden and the squirrel. The Redwall Abbey is in trouble and I must find out what happens.

Do you have a book you would recommend ?

A very good read.

The book we read this month for book club was The Whistling Season by Ivan Doig.

All those who attended just loved the book.

His phrases are amazing...The Rembrandt Light of Memory, Finicky and Magical and faithful at the same time, as the cheaper tint of nostalgia never is. Much of the work of my life has been to sort instruction from illusion, and, in the endless picture gallery behind the eye, I have learned to rely on a certain radiance of the detail to bring back the exactitude of the moment.

Rubbing his check as if consulting the wrinkles, Father weighed that argument.

Functional clutter is perhaps the best description of how father managed in the kitchen.

And in my case, Morris Morgan dipped me into Latin like a wick into ready candle wax.

His vocabulary is wonderful, be prepared to need your dictionary on almost every page. I learned: pluviometer, propitiously, proclivity, dray, rusk, autodidacts to name a few. Sandy and Deonna said that they were thrilled to read a book that really challenged them and made them look up words they didnt know.

There are several themes in the books. Two we talked about most are secrets and education.

Evelyn said that her father grew up in the time that this book is set in, so reading it was like hearing her father share stories from his childhood.

There are twists and turns and even as I read it a second time and I knew what was going to happen I was thrilled to see the clues that I missed the first time.

Enjoy!

Book Club

Last evening we met at Susanne's house for our first book club of the new reading year. Our book for September was At Home In Mitford by Jan Karon. What a delightful book was the belief held by most of those that attended. One of our ladies couldn't finish it and couldn't wait to give it away. Another said that she didn't like it that his prayers were always answered with a 'yes', Dooley came home and so did Barnabas. But when I talked with her further and I said " life is hard, and I need to go to a place like Mitford to get a glimmer of heaven", she agreed.

Susanne made Esther Cunningham's Orange Marmalade cake. It was really good. It was like a pound cake with yummy filing and frosting. Susanne read to us that when Jan wrote these books she made up the cake. It was pure fiction but as she wrote more and got out in the public more the question she got more than any other was What is the recipe for the Orange Marmalade Cake??!! So the folks at Victoria magazine got a chef and came up with the recipe for the books. I never knew. Susanne also had Little Debbie cakes for those who didn't want Orange Marmalade, because Father Tim loved his Little Debbie cakes.

Sandy shared with us about the gospel side of the church at Mitford. The gospel is the right side because of the readings done during the services in the Episcopal Church and which side they are done from in the front of the church.

Evelyn liked that Miss Sadie was not bitter with all that had happened to her.Evelyn also loved Uncle Billy's jokes. In fact, she was ready to move to Mitford. KimT liked the variety of the characters.

KimT has a sister who loves these books, no LOVES these books and knew she did when she asked for prayer for Father Tim in her prayer book because he had become so real to her

We had about 25 in attendance and only about half had read this before.

Corrie shared that the only grandmother that she knew, who is now dead, loved these books and Corrie enjoyed reading what she knew her grandmother loved.

If you weren't there, you were missed. Next book is The Whistling Season by Ivan Doig. Happy Reading.

A Fun Give Away

click here to find out about it

Here is a peek...

Here is the list of books for the Bookmarkers for September-July.

The official announcment will be made in September at the Ladies Meeting. So you are in the know early!

September 29th At Home in Mitford by Karon
October 27th The Whistling Season by Doig
November 17th Some Buried Ceasar by Stout
January 26 th Miracle at Phildelphia by Bowen
February 23th The Finer Points of Sausage Dogs by McCall Smith and
How to be a Perfect Person in Just 3 Days by Manes
March 30th The Thread That Runs So True by Stuart
April 27th Some Wildflower of my Heart by Turner
May 25th Kite Runner by Hosseini
June 22nd Anne of Green Gables by Montgomery
July27th A Wrinkle in Time by L'Engle

I am excited.

Do you 'thin slice'?

Last night our book club met. We discussed the book, Blink by Malcolm Gladwell. The sub-title is the Power of Thinking Without Thinking. I read the book about a year ago upon Andrew's suggestion. I told KimT about it and she read it. We discussed it on a treadmill at the Athletic Club. When we put it on the book club list, we wondered what folks would think. Well...

First a definition- 'Thin Slicing' refers to the ability of our unconscious to find patterns in situations and behavior based on very narrow slices of experience.

The discussion was wonderful.

Evelyn didn't care for it at all.

JanP said that when we read books like this we need to remember that God is Truth so that Truth is Truth. She enjoyed it and read it to one of her sons when he had eye surgery.

Cathy said that if so many of our decisions are made without us even knowing how we are making them, we need to be steeped in The Word of God. Wow! She enjoyed it so much that she is now reading his book The Tipping Point.

I think Kaitlin 'thin slices' and that is why she is a good photographer.

Teresa said that this book made her think of another book and then found Gladwell quoting the book she was thinking of-The Gift of Fear by deBecker

I found the book fascinating. It really caused me to pondered and stop and think about and then question some of my actions.

I believe I 'thin slice'. I think this can be used to help and to hurt others. I need to be aware of this and only use it for the good.

I 'd love for you to read it and let me know what you think!

The Winner Is.....

Here is my friend, Brianna, with her new Andrew Peterson book. Happy Reading!

We have a winner!

Here are all your names

Here is John drawing out a name

And the winner is Brianna!