Broken Country by Clare Leslie Hall

 

This book has gotten LOTS of buzz.  Good job by the marketing team.

I kinda felt like this started as a short story and got stretched into a book.  There is a love triangle, a farm, a motherless boy and a childless mom, and old flame, and a mysterious death.  There are secrets and sacrifice, etc.  But honestly, nothing really new happens here.  I felt like maybe I had read this before, or that is a conglomeration of plots from other novels.  The writing itself is really good though - soft and flowing and sympathetic, especially to our main character.  But she does something pretty horrible without much backlash and that made me lose my liking of her.  In the end I think everyone is happy but it just seemed unreal to me.  Better if she had woken up in the last chapter and it was all a dream and now she is grateful for what she has.  Meh.

Born Lucky by Leland Vittert

 

This year my husband and I started watching NewsNation, mainly for Chris Cuomo's show.  Right after Cuomo there is a show called On Balance with Leland Vittert.  So of course we started watching that too.

I was not familiar with Vittert or his journalistic career.  But I remember thinking, ok, this guy is a bit different. He talks a LOT and oh I hate it when journalists interrupt!  And he has some great experience on the ground during wartime, as evidenced by his advertised newsletter, War Notes.  Ok, this guy must be pretty on it.

Then I learned he had written a book, and honestly, I thought, " Oh here we go again in Bill O'Reilly style, hawking his book as the best ever written".  But, when I heard the book was not about opinion, and about experience - LIFE experience - and that his experience included autism - well, that changed the narrative.

My husband gave me this book for Christmas (major points!!).  I of course received several other books for the holidays, but THIS is the book I fell into first.  It has been touted as a beacon of hope to parents with special children more than a Woe Is Me tale, and I definitely agree.  Most of what Leland writes is presented pretty factually, and he is not in the business of naming names except for those who helped him, not those who bullied him.  His parents gave him lots of tough love, keeping him in school throughout the bullying and never asking for accommodations for him nor giving him a label.  But they, and especially his Dad, also NEVER gave up on Leland, and NEVER showed any disappointment in him, only support.  Lots of support and time and listening, to prepare him for the real world.  If only all kids had that level of support!

His story is an important one.  Some people diss it because his dad was rich and had contacts that helped Leland.  But, this is what happened.  It is what it is, and Leland's singular focus to succeed is amazing.  This is Leland's story, and the star is the support he got from his dad.  A great read with anecdotes from his time in Libya, his rise in journalism, how he even got to journalism, his struggle to make friends, and even how he met his wife (they got married this summer!).  Highly recommend!

How to Read a Book by Monica Wood

 

Yes, I was drawn in by the cover.

Yes, the fact that Reading a Book was part of the title made this an easy choice.

And, yes, I am very glad I picked this one up even though the title really didn't have anything to do with the story. This was just as much a story about found family than anything.  A bookstore is central to bringing all the characters together - the lonely retired widower; the book club leader; the ex-con; and of course the eclectic staff.  These people are all at sort of a new stage in life, and each are having a hard time adjusting to the new norms for varying reasons.  A few books are mentioned, but it is enough that we get insight into each character's "story," most of which are unexpected.  I will definitely put this on my book club's list for next year,  A story about second chances, acceptance, reading discussions and recommendations (poetry!!) and redemption.  Oh, and parrots.

The Hallmarked Man by Robert Galbraith

 

Just a quick note on this one - this is the 8th in the Cormoran Strike series and I loved every second of it.  The detectives are working on several cases at once (wish I had taken notes to keep all the names straight, actually!), but focused on identifying a mutilated body found in the vault of a silver shop specializing in Masonic silver pieces. And trying NOT to focus on their feelings for each other, as they have been doing through most of this series, so nothing new there.  Well, except for the ending!!  If you thought #7 was a cliff hanger, just you wait!!

I really enjoy this series.  The writing is sharp and witty, the cases always go in several circles that wind up in places you never see coming, and the characters are well fleshed out, different, and have their own side plots.  I have not yet watched the TV show, called Strike, but might trick my husband into watching it now that White Collar is off Netflix.  Ugh.

And, yes, I know who the author really is and I think she is an amazing story teller.  The end.

The Velveteen Daughter by Laurel Davis Huber

 

What a FIND of a story!!!  My book club was lucky enough to have Ms. Huber come to our meeting to discuss her book, and she was just as fascinating as the book she published through She Writes Press eight years ago.  This is important because she decided not to go with a big name publishing house, but picked one that gave her more autonomy, and more money for the work she put into this book!  Bravo!

So, historical fiction?  Fictionalized History?  Fictional Biography?  Yes, that was what the author called it.  This is the story of Pamela Bianco.  Ever heard of her?  None of us had and what a travesty that was.  Now we know.  Not only was Pamela a brilliant artist, child prodigy and a mother herself, but her own mother was Margery Williams Bianco.  An author of children's books.  Most famously, as you have probably already gathered from the title, she wrote The Velveteen Rabbit.

And the way Huber weaves the themes from TVR into Pamela's life is amazing.  The chapters are short (on purpose), they also weave in and out of timelines (so pay attention!), and they alternate between Pamela and Margery.  We learn about the dynamic between Pamela and her father, between the two women, and how Pamela obsessed over her childhood love.  Pamela's bouts with depression and her time at Four Winds for treatment of same are also a part of her life.  The famous people they associated with and were related to add glamor to the story, set in 1920's and beyond NYC.  And we learn about her art, her paintings and drawings and pressings.  We learn about the books SHE published and illustrated.  And we learn about a mother's love, a father's pride, an artist's mind, and life in the early 20th century.  An amazing amount of research went into this novel.  Huber said it took her 10 years to finish it and there were several iterations!  Be sure to read the author's notes at the end.  Good thing for us is, she is working on another story.  We offered to be her focus group readers!!

Highly recommend ordering this through your local bookstore, or mine (Park Road Books and Troubadour Booksellers).  

The Book of Thorns by Hester Fox

 

Look at that luscious cover!  Look, it is historical fiction set in France during the battle of Waterloo!  This is going to be fascinating!

However, this was a miss for me.  I am so sad.

The back of the book promises the struggle toward reunion of two sisters who have lost each other and barely remember the other exists.   I thought I'd be reading of two parallel lives and the somewhat witchy magic they each have with flowers.  I looked forward to how and when they would find each other, especially in those times - how strong must their bond be!

But.  This ended up being a secondary plot to our main character Cornelia's life and loves.  She does escape her disinterested Uncle who only wants to marry her off, only to be thrown into a war camp for her ability with local herbs for healing.  She falls in love twice, at the same time, and they all love each other.  (I was not prepared for that!)  She gets into serious trouble when her "affinity" for flowers is seen in a spectacular way.  There was a lot of back and forthing between the sisters' current lives, but it was not enough for me.  

So this brings up lots of questions about the back of the book that I plan to discuss in a separate blogpost.  It is not often I find a book that tricks me with its hook.  But it does happen.  Has it happened to you?  And is there anything we can do about it without all kinds of spoilers?  Stay tuned.  I might just be stirring the pot about reading and how we choose what we read....

Lula Dean's Little Library of Banned Books by Kirsten Miller

 

Hilarious.  Homey.  Honest.  I loved every second of this book about books, and about a small Southern town where everyone knows everyone's business, politics, loves and especially hates!

Lula Dean is that busybody who thinks she is always right, and when she decides to focus on the books in the library that are "not proper" for kids to read, she stirs the town pot.  She puts her own Wholesome little free library in her front yard, and doesn't notice when a young activist switches out the books wrapped in her dust jackets with all those very same banned books.  When neighbors begin taking and reading these books, hilarity ensues.  Written reminiscent of Jan Karon's Mitford series in style, each chapter moves to a different resident to show us how they are affected by the goings on of their neighbors.  Bringing up ancestors who owned slaves, a young boy who thinks his mama is dying (she's not), the town "it" girl who stayed to raise a family and makes a stand, the local boy turned movie star who comes home to confront his redneck brother, the local respected businessman who the postman knows is a collector of specific historical items, and more, Miller hits us where our hearts and beliefs are with this commentary on censorship, burying our past vs celebrating our progress, and how reading can change everything.

I also listened to Miller's book The Change and found it thought provoking as well - a story of the powers, physical and mystical, of women who are comfortable in their own skin.  That was a far fetched murder mystery - I liked the tone and the characters of Lula Dean better!