Wednesday, September 26, 2012
Welcome to the 2012-2013 Book Club Year
Hi girls! It is so good to be back at book club. Book club is one of the best things in my life and so are the friendships that we enjoy as book club members. The blog is now updated with this year's books and there is also a list to the right side of the blog that shows the books that were presented, but not chosen. Let's all get reading and make this another great year of reading together!
October Book Discussion
Julianne Donaldson
When Marianne receives a letter from her twin sister, she is languishing from boredom in Bath with her grandmother and spinster aunt. After convincing her grandmother to let her go to her sister's aid, Marianne's idea of a restful country summer helping her sister snag the handsome Lord of Edenbrooke is transformed into a thrilling adventure filled with intrigue, romance, and, yes, even a bit of twirling. With just a touch of Austen-esque charm, Julianne Donaldson creates an endearing Regency romance filled with misunderstandings, perilous rescues, and a love letter that will melt readers' hearts.
November Book Discussion
Daphne du Maurier
From the bestselling author of Rebecca, another classic set in beautiful and mysterious Cornwall.
Philip Ashley's older cousin Ambrose, who raised the orphaned Philip as his own son, has died in Rome. Philip, the heir to Ambrose's beautiful English estate, is crushed that the man he loved died far from home. He is also suspicious. While in Italy, Ambrose fell in love with Rachel, a beautiful English and Italian woman. But the final, brief letters Ambrose wrote hint that his love had turned to paranoia and fear.
Now Rachel has arrived at Philip's newly inherited estate. Could this exquisite woman, who seems to genuinely share Philip's grief at Ambrose's death, really be as cruel as Philip imagined? Or is she the kind, passionate woman with whom Ambrose fell in love? Philip struggles to answer this question, knowing Ambrose's estate, and his own future, will be destroyed if his answer is wrong
December Book Discussion
Eyes Like Mine
Julie Wright
A story of family that transcends time William has been missing for two days. And even though the rest of the wagon company has decided they must continue on to Zion, Constance Brown refuses to go any further until she finds her husband. All she can think about is the last time she saw him — he lovingly touched her face and then sang their baby girl to sleep. Will that memory be all Constance has to hold on to?
In a future time and place, Liz King is a teenager struggling with her identity in the modern world. The embarrassment she feels because of her parents’ divorce and her family’s new-found financial problems turns to bitterness.
Through an inexplicable twist of fate, Constance and Liz are brought face to face. Liz recognizes Constance’s name from her mother’s endless lectures on their family history, and she also recognizes her eyes — they are exactly like her own. Were these distant relatives brought together in order to help each other?
Will Constance be able to return to her own life and find William, and will Liz be able to keep from telling Constance how her story ends? In this irresistible novel filled with gripping adventure and heartfelt emotion, two young women from drastically different times and settings learn that the challenges life holds for them are not so different after all.
January Book Discussion
Stephanie Nielson
Go on an unforgettable journey, with a woman who has unimaginable strength.
Stephanie Nielson began sharing her life in 2005 on nieniedialogues.com, drawing readers in with her warmth and candor. She quickly attracted a loyal following that was captivated by the upbeat mother happily raising her young children, madly in love with her husband, Christian (Mr. Nielson to her readers), and filled with gratitude for her blessed life.
However, everything changed in an instant on a sunny day in August 2008, when Stephanie and Christian were in a horrific plane crash. Christian was burned over 40 percent of his body, and Stephanie was on the brink of death, with burns over 80 percent of her body. She would remain in a coma for four months.
In the aftermath of this harrowing tragedy, Stephanie maintained a stunning sense of humor, optimism, and resilience. She has since shared this strength of spirit with others through her blog, in magazine features, and on The Oprah Winfrey Show. Now, in this moving memoir, Stephanie tells the full, extraordinary story of her unlikely recovery and the incredible love behind it—from a riveting account of the crash to all that followed in its wake. With vivid detail, Stephanie recounts her emotional and physical journey, from her first painful days after awakening from the coma to the first time she saw her face in the mirror, the first kiss she shared with Christian after the accident, and the first time she talked to her children after their long separation. She also reflects back on life before the accident, to her happy childhood as one of nine siblings, her close-knit community and strong Mormon faith, and her fairy-tale love story, all of which became her foundation of strength as she rebuilt her life.
What emerges from the wreckage of a tragic accident is a unique perspective on joy, beauty, and overcoming adversity that is as gripping as it is inspirational. Heaven Is Here is a poignant reminder of how faith and family, love and community can bolster us, sustain us, and quite literally, in some cases, save us.
February Book Discussion
Joel Ben Izzy
This book is an easy read, but you may find yourself wanting to go back and reread it many times. It is cleverly written, with the author's own story interspersed with the wisdom of stories from around the globe. It's the best book I've read this year. My copy was a Christmas gift, but I'll be buying more copies to give away.
March Book Discussion
Before I Say Good-bye
Rachel Ann Nunes
After a twenty-year absence, Rikki Crockett has come home to Utah, to the same house where she grew up. When she left, she was young, hurt, and angry—abandoned by her parents and her best friend. She'd vowed never to return, but when the worst happens, home is the only place she might still find a future for her two children—a rebellious teenage girl and a sweet little boy with a learning disability. To do that, she must turn to her former best friend, Dante Rushton, and hope that he can be her hero one final time. Before I Say Good-Bye is a tender story about choices, about family, and about a woman who makes peace with her past and discovers the last and greatest hope of all.
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