October 2011

A Stolen Life
She goes into great detail about the first weeks and months after her June 1991 kidnapping. Her kidnapper and his wife, Nancy, keep her chained up naked in a backyard shed. Phillip repeatedly rapes her, often for days on end when he is high on meth. She is completely alone, and he makes her dependent on him for everything. Even though she hates him, she also wants his approval. Dugard is effective at conveying the psychological manipulation that made her a mental as well as a physical captive.
The chapters alternate between a first-person present-tense account of her captivity and "reflections" sections where Dugard offers commentary. These parts are particularly moving because they give a sense of how difficult it was for Dugard to relive the story. For example, a reflection on the pain of losing a kitten, her one companion in her early captivity, opens up to a larger discussion of the book project: "It hurts to write about this part. This has turned out to be a very hard book to write. Part of me does not want to continue. To re-enter the state of mind I was that age is difficult and twists my insides. The more I write, the harder it becomes. On the one hand, I want to go on. I feel if I don't then I continue to protect my kidnapper and rapist and I don't have the need to do that any longer. ... To get inside my head and relive all this stuff that happened back then is terribly hard for me."

November 2011

Escape to Zion
Maria stumbles across the rain-soaked forest floor, injured and breathless but determined to flee the baying hounds behind her. Reaching the riverbank, she plunges into the frigid water with only a fallen log for support. She can’t swim, but she has no choice—not with Lafayette Breaux on her tail. As the fastest of the hounds spots Maria, Breaux’s furious voice rises above their deafening din: “Find her! FIND HER!”
Sold as an indentured servant after her parents perished en route from Germany to America, Maria dutifully completes her ten years of service. But instead of granting her freedom at age eighteen, her master, Breaux, insists she is a metif (white) slave. Then he forces his will upon her, hoping to bind Maria to him for good. Now Maria is running for her life, hoping to cut all ties to her wicked overseer. Rescued from drowning by Hank Shroeder, she makes a new start in Mississippi as a freed woman and joins the Latter-day Saints—where she and Hank grow closer as they begin to lean on each other for support. But the malicious Breaux will stop at nothing to reclaim her as his own, and relentlessly tracks Maria—even as she treks West with her fellow Saints. Will she be able to escape her tormentor and find peace when she reaches her promised land?

December 2011

The Shepherd's Song
Joshua ben Levi, a young Judean shepherd, is in search of a miracle. His wife, Miriam, is expecting their first baby, but complications threaten to take the lives of both mother and child. In desperate need of God s help, Joshua journeys to the temple in Jerusalem to make an offering and to pray. What follows is a compassionate, emotional story about God s love as Joshua becomes one of the shepherds chosen to greet the Christ child on the night of his birth. Torn between concern for his wife and a desire to follow the angel s directive-- to go and find the babe lying in a manger-- Joshua makes a startling discovery that will change his life forever.
What sets this Christmas story apart from many others is that although it is written as fiction, the descriptions of time, place, and circumstances are based on fact. This is a story that will penetrate your heart and remind you why the shepherds rejoiced on that wondrous night in Bethlehem.

January 2012

Divine Signatures
Elder Gerald N. Lund’s new book, Divine Signatures: The Confirming Hand of God, is a book of inspiration, reflection and realization for one’s own life. Divine Signatures is like a guide book to realize how the Lord’s hand is in our lives through countless examples and instructions from prophets. The majority of the book is stories and examples of how the Lord had His hand in people’s lives. Some of the stories are personal experiences from Elder Lund’s life, others are firsthand accounts from people he’s met, and some are stories from the past. The rest of the book gives instruction on how the reader can strengthen their faith and deepen their testimony; preparing them to withstand trials that may come their way. Each story brings a spirit and awareness for the reader.
For my own life, this book helped me realize how the Lord has shown His hand in my own life. I became more aware of His hand and help deepen my gratitude for my Savior and the love given for me.…

February 2012

Saving CeeCee Honeycutt
Twelve-year-old CeeCee is in trouble. For years she’s been the caretaker of her psychotic mother, Camille— the crown-wearing, lipstick-smeared laughingstock of an entire town. Though it’s 1967 and they live in Ohio, Camille believes it’s 1951 and she’s just been crowned the Vidalia Onion Queen of Georgia.

The day CeeCee discovers Camille in the front yard wearing a tattered prom dress and tiara as she blows kisses to passing motorists, she knows her mother has completely flipped. When tragedy strikes, Tootie Caldwell, a previously unknown great-aunt comes to CeeCee’s rescue and whisks her away to Savannah. Within hours of her arrival, CeeCee is catapulted into a perfumed world of prosperity and Southern eccentricities—a world that appears to be run entirely by women.

While Tootie is busy saving Savannah’s endangered historic homes from the wrecking ball, CeeCee encounters a cast of unforgettable, eccentric characters. From the mysterious Thelma Rae Goodpepper, who bathes in an outdoor tub under the watchful eyes of a voyeuristic peacock, to Oletta Jones, the all-knowing household cook, to Violene Hobbs, the loud-mouthed widow who entertains a local police officer in her yellow see-through peignoir, the women of Gaston Street keep CeeCee entertained and enthralled for an entire summer.

But CeeCee’s view of the world is challenged in ways she could have never imagined: there are secrets to keep, injustices to face, and loyalties to uphold. Just as she begins to find her ballast and experiences a sense of belonging, her newfound joy collides with the long-held fear that her mother’s legacy has left her destined for destruction.

Laugh-out-loud funny, at times heartbreaking, and written in a pitch-perfect voice, Saving CeeCee Honeycutt is a spirited Southern tale that explores the intricate frailties and strengths of female relationships while illuminating the journey of a young girl who loses her mother but finds many others.

March 2012

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
The background of the story seems simple enough. Betty Smith drew from her own experiences in growing up in Brooklyn to create the character of a tenacious little girl, Francie Nolan. Because Smith wrote about some of the more unsavory aspects of human existence, some critics found the book unacceptable. One Boston woman even wrote a letter to Smith saying that the author of such a book should live in a stable.

For her part, Smith said that she didn't write about the Nolans for any socially significant reason, but because they were "the kind of people I know and the kind of people I like." She wrote about a young girl coming to grips with some of the horrific realities of her life in Brooklyn: death, hunger, pure human hatred, and meanness

April 2012

Sarah's Key
Paris, July 1942: Sarah, a ten year-old girl, is brutally arrested with her family by the French police in the Vel' d'Hiv' roundup, but not before she locks her younger brother in a cupboard in the family's apartment, thinking that she will be back within a few hours.
Paris, May 2002: On Vel' d'Hiv's 60th anniversary, journalist Julia Jarmond is asked to write an article about this black day in France's past. Through her contemporary investigation, she stumbles onto a trail of long-hidden family secrets that connect her to Sarah. Julia finds herself compelled to retrace the girl's ordeal, from that terrible term in the Vel d'Hiv', to the camps, and beyond. As she probes into Sarah's past, she begins to question her own place in France, and to reevaluate her marriage and her life.
Tatiana de Rosnay offers us a brilliantly subtle, compelling portrait of France under occupation and reveals the taboos and silence that surround this painful episode.

May 2012 Book

Chasing Lilacs
In Chasing Lilacs, Carla Stewart′s first book, she tackles weighty topics, including puberty, mental illness, shock treatments and suicide. The story centers on Samantha "Sammie" Tucker, a 12-year-old in the small Texas community of Graham Camp. With her mother deep in depression, Sammie is mostly raising herself. Her best friend, Tuwana, has an opinion on everything and is quite vocal, regardless of whose feeling she hurts. Cly, a mysterious visitor from California, seems to switch between juvenile delinquent and friend.
At a time when her life should be carefree, Sammie is worried about everything—and then things go from bad to much worse. Her mother is found dead, by her own hand. Aunt Vadine, the estranged sister of Sammie's mother, comes to help, complicating matters further. The frightened, sad girl begins to worry that she may be mentally disturbed as well, but soon finds her hope comes from God, who can restore her to a good life.
Chasing Lilacs is a page-turner, keeping readers hooked with realistic characters, descriptive scenery and fast-paced action. It's a great read, especially for those who remember the simple, small-town life of the 1950s.

July 2012 Book

Then Count of Monte Cristo
Dashing young Edmond Dantès has everything. He is engaged to a beautiful woman, is about to become the captain of a ship, and is well liked by almost everyone. But his perfect life is shattered when he is framed by a jealous rival and thrown into a dark prison cell for 14 years.

The greatest tale of betrayal, adventure, and revenge ever written, The Count of Monte Cristo continues to dazzle readers with its thrilling and memorable scenes, including Dantès’s miraculous escape from prison, his amazing discovery of a vast hidden treasure, and his transformation into the mysterious and wealthy Count of Monte Cristo—a man whose astonishing thirst for vengeance is as cruel as it is just.

September 2012 Book

Unbroken
On a May afternoon in 1943, an Army Air Forces bomber crashed into the Pacific Ocean and disappeared, leaving only a spray of debris and a slick of oil, gasoline, and blood. Then, on the ocean surface, a face appeared. It was that of a young lieutenant, the plane’s bombardier, who was struggling to a life raft and pulling himself aboard. So began one of the most extraordinary odysseys of the Second World War.
The lieutenant’s name was Louis Zamperini. In boyhood, he’d been a cunning and incorrigible delinquent, breaking into houses, brawling, and fleeing his home to ride the rails. As a teenager, he had channeled his defiance into running, discovering a prodigious talent that had carried him to the Berlin Olympics and within sight of the four-minute mile. But when war had come, the athlete had become an airman, embarking on a journey that led to his doomed flight, a tiny raft, and a drift into the unknown.
Ahead of Zamperini lay thousands of miles of open ocean, leaping sharks, a foundering raft, thirst and starvation, enemy aircraft, and, beyond, a trial even greater. Driven to the limits of endurance, Zamperini would answer desperation with ingenuity; suffering with hope, resolve, and humor; brutality with rebellion. His fate, whether triumph or tragedy, would be suspended on the fraying wire of his will.
In her long-awaited new book, Laura Hillenbrand writes with the same rich and vivid narrative voice she displayed in Seabiscuit. Telling an unforgettable story of a man’s journey into extremity, Unbroken is a testament to the resilience of the human mind, body, and spirit.