We had a blast last night sharing book ideas for our group for the next year! Here are the books that are in the running. An email as been sent to you containing a link where you can go to cast your vote. If you want to vote and did not receive an email with the link to the ballot, please contact me.
Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson
Recommended by Barb
You are about to travel
to Edgecombe St. Mary, a small village in the English countryside
filled with rolling hills, thatched cottages, and a cast of characters
both hilariously original and as familiar as the members of your own
family. Among them is Major Ernest Pettigrew (retired), the unlikely
hero of Helen Simonson's wondrous debut. Wry, courtly, opinionated, and
completely endearing, Major Pettigrew is one of the most indelible
characters in contemporary fiction, and from the very first page of this
remarkable novel he will steal your heart.
The Major leads a
quiet life valuing the proper things that Englishmen have lived by for
generations: honor, duty, decorum, and a properly brewed cup of tea. But
then his brother's death sparks an unexpected friendship with Mrs.
Jasmina Ali, the Pakistani shopkeeper from the village. Drawn together
by their shared love of literature and the loss of their respective
spouses, the Major and Mrs. Ali soon find their friendship blossoming
into something more. But village society insists on embracing him as the
quintessential local and her as the permanent foreigner. Can their
relationship survive the risks one takes when pursuing happiness in the
face of culture and tradition? (358 pages)
The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley
Recommended by Barb
Flavia de Luce 11 is an
aspiring chemist with a passion for poison. In the summer of 1950,
inexplicable events strike Buckshaw, her decaying mansion home. A dead
bird is on the doorstep, a postage stamp on its beak. Hours later,
Flavia finds a man dying in the cucumber patch. His last words must save
her father imprisoned for his murder. (374 pages)
Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein
Recommended by Heather
I have two weeks. You’ll shoot me at the end no matter what I do. That’s
what you do to enemy agents. It’s what we do to enemy agents. But I
look at all the dark and twisted roads ahead and cooperation is the easy
way out. Possibly the only way out for a girl caught red-handed doing
dirty work like mine — and I will do anything, anything, to avoid
SS-Hauptsturmführer von Linden interrogating me again.
He has
said that I can have as much paper as I need. All I have to do is cough
up everything I can remember about the British War Effort. And I’m going
to. But the story of how I came to be here starts with my friend
Maddie. She is the pilot who flew me into France — an Allied Invasion of
Two. We are a sensational team. (447 pages)
The Curtain by Patrick Ord
Recommended by Heather
THE CURTAIN explores
the effect that increasingly sophisticated marketing techniques have on
communities, families, and individuals. In an age of digital
distractions, who remembers the transcendent morality that has allowed
past civilizations to prosper? When corporations have the influence and
motive to define people by what they consume, are we as individuals
losing the substance of who we really are?
THE CURTAIN is
entertaining, fun, thought provoking, educational, and frightening.
Ord’s storytelling is brilliant and his research extraordinary. THE
CURTAIN is a must read for anyone that watches television or movies,
listens to the radio, accesses the internet, logs into social media, has
a smart phone, participates in loyalty card programs, or uses GPS
technology. In short, THE CURTAIN is for everyone. (314 pages)
Being George Washington by Glenn Beck
Recommended by Kathleen
This is the amazing
true story of a real-life superhero who wore no cape and possessed no
special powers—yet changed the world forever. It’s a story about a man
whose life reads as if it were torn from the pages of an action novel:
Bullet holes through his clothing. Horses shot out from under him.
Unimaginable hardship. Disease. Heroism. Spies and double-agents. And,
of course, the unmistakable hand of Divine Providence that guided it
all.
Being George Washington is a whole new way to look at
history. You won’t simply read about the awful winter spent at Valley
Forge—you’ll live it right alongside Washington. You’ll be on the boat
with him crossing the Delaware, in the trenches with him at Yorktown,
and standing next to him at the Constitutional Convention as a new
republic is finally born. (287 pages)
Persuasion by Jane Austen
Recommended by Lauren
Twenty-seven-year old
Anne Elliot is Austen's most adult heroine. Eight years before the
story proper begins, she is happily betrothed to a naval officer,
Frederick Wentworth, but she precipitously breaks off the engagement
when persuaded by her friend Lady Russell that such a match is unworthy.
The breakup produces in Anne a deep and long-lasting regret. When
later Wentworth returns from sea a rich and successful captain, he finds
Anne's family on the brink of financial ruin and his own sister a
tenant in Kellynch Hall, the Elliot estate. All the tension of the
novel revolves around one question: Will Anne and Wentworth be reunited
in their love? (249 pages)
The Hiding Place by Corrie ten Boom
Recommended by Lauren
At one time Corrie ten
Boom would have laughed at the Idea that there would ever be a story to
tell. For the first fifty years of her life nothing at all out of the
ordinary had ever happened to her. She was an old-maid watchmaker
living contentedly with her spinster sister and their elderly father in
the tiny Dutch house over their shop. Their uneventful days, as
regulated as their own watches, revolved around their abiding love for
one another. However, with the Nazi invasion and occupation of Holland,
a story did ensue.
Corrie ten Boom and her family became
leaders in the Dutch Underground, hiding Jewish people in their home in a
specially built room and aiding their escape from the Nazis. For their
help, all but Corrie found death in a concentration camp. The Hiding
Place is their story. (241 pages)
Goodbye, Mr. Chips by James Hilton
Recommended by Lauren
Hilton's inspiring
short novel about a beloved teacher's remarkable role in his students'
lives, through decades of triumph and tragedy in Britain For three
generations, through war and peace, prosperity and misfortune, Arthur
Chipping's students at the Brookfield School have called him Mr. Chips.
Beginning in his unpolished first years as a new teacher, through the
end of the nineteenth century and well into radical changes of the
twentieth, Mr. Chips has shaped the lives of the young men in his class.
And when Britain is threatened by the outbreak of the First World War,
it is Mr. Chips who must lead the school that has already counted on him
for so much. Made into two remarkable films and other retellings on
stage and television, "Goodbye, Mr. Chips" has endured as a revelation
of the difference one good teacher can make in countless lives. (74 pages)
Wonder by R.J. Palacio
Recommended by Jodi
August (Auggie) Pullman
was born with a facial deformity that prevented him from going to a
mainstream school—until now. He's about to start 5th grade at Beecher
Prep, and if you've ever been the new kid then you know how hard that
can be. The thing is Auggie's just an ordinary kid, with an
extraordinary face. But can he convince his new classmates that he's
just like them, despite appearances?
R. J. Palacio has written a
spare, warm, uplifting story that will have readers laughing one minute
and wiping away tears the next. With wonderfully realistic family
interactions (flawed, but loving), lively school scenes, and short
chapters, Wonder is accessible to readers of all levels. (315 pages)
The Future of Us by Jay Asher
Recommended by Jodi
It's 1996, and Josh and
Emma have been neighbors their whole lives. They've been best friends
almost as long - at least, up until last November, when Josh did
something that changed everything. Things have been weird between them
ever since, but when Josh's family gets a free AOL CD in the mail,his
mom makes him bring it over so that Emma can install it on her new
computer. When they sign on, they're automatically logged onto their
Facebook pages. But Facebook hasn't been invented yet. And they're
looking at themselves fifteen years in the future.
By refreshing
their pages, they learn that making different decisions now will affect
the outcome of their lives later. And as they grapple with the ups and
downs of what their futures hold, they're forced to confront what
they're doing right - and wrong - in the present. (356 pages)
Secret Daughter by Shilpi Somaya Gowda
Recommended by Nancy
On the eve of the
monsoons, in a remote Indian village, Kavita gives birth to a baby girl.
But in a culture that favors sons, the only way for Kavita to save her
newborn daughter's life is to give her away. It is a decision that will
haunt her and her husband for the rest of their lives, even after the
arrival of their cherished son.
Halfway around the globe, Somer,
an American doctor, decides to adopt a child after making the wrenching
discovery that she will never have one of her own. When she and her
husband, Krishnan, see a photo of the baby with the gold-flecked eyes
from a Mumbai orphanage, they are overwhelmed with emotion. Somer knows
life will change with the adoption but is convinced that the love they
already feel will overcome all obstacles.
Interweaving the stories of Kavita, Somer, and the child that binds both of their destinies, Secret Daughter
poignantly explores the emotional terrain of motherhood, loss,
identity, and love, as witnessed through the lives of two families—one
Indian, one American—and the child that indelibly connects them. (339 pages)
Push Not the River by James Conroyd Martin
Recommended by Erica
A panoramic and epic
novel in the grand romantic style, PUSH NOT THE RIVER is the rich story
of Poland in the late 1700s--a time of heartache and turmoil as the
country's once peaceful people are being torn apart by neighboring
countries and divided loyalties. It is then, at the young and vulnerable
age of seventeen, when Lady Anna Maria Berezowska loses both of her
parents and must leave the only home she has ever known. With Empress
Catherine's Russian armies streaming in to take their spoils, Anna is
quickly thrust into a world of love and hate, loyalty and deceit,
patriotism and treason, life and death. Even kind Aunt Stella, Anna's
new guardian who soon comes to personify Poland's courage and spirit,
can't protect Anna from the uncertain future of the country. Anna, a
child no longer, turns to love and comfort in the form of Jan, a brave
patriot and architect of democracy, unaware that her beautiful and
enigmatic cousin Zofia has already set her sights on the handsome young
fighter. Thus Anna walks unwittingly into Zofia's jealous wrath and
darkly sinister intentions. Forced to survive several tragic events,
many of them orchestrated by the crafty Zofia, a strengthened Anna
begins to learn to place herself in the way of destiny--for love and for
country. Heeding the proud spirit of her late father, Anna becomes a
major player in the fight against the countries who come to partition
her beloved Poland. PUSH NOT THE RIVER is based on the true eighteenth
century diary of Anna Maria Berezowska, a Polish countess who lived
through the rise and fall of the historic Third of May Constitution.
Vivid, romantic, and thrillingly paced, it paints the emotional and
unforgettable story of the metamorphosis of a nation--and of a proud and
resilient young woman. (556 pages)
The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson
Recommended by Erica
This intriguing combination of fantasy thriller and moral allegory
depicts the gripping struggle of two opposing personalities — one
essentially good, the other evil — for the soul of one man. Its tingling
suspense and intelligent and sensitive portrayal of man's dual nature
reveal Stevenson as a novelist of great skill and originality, whose
power to terrify and move us remains, over a century later,
undiminished. (144 pages)
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
Recommended by Joy
It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will become busier still. Liesel
Meminger is a foster girl living outside of Munich, who scratches out a
meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something
she can’t resist–books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster
father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her
neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in
her basement. In superbly crafted writing that burns with intensity, award-winning author Markus Zusak, author of I Am the Messenger, has given us one of the most enduring stories of our time. (552 pages)
The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien
Recommended by Joy
Written for J.R.R. Tolkien’s own children, The Hobbit
met with instant critical acclaim when it was first published in 1937.
Now recognized as a timeless classic, this introduction to the hobbit
Bilbo Baggins, the wizard Gandalf, Gollum, and the spectacular world of
Middle-earth recounts of the adventures of a reluctant hero, a powerful
and dangerous ring, and the cruel dragon Smaug the Magnificent. (365 pages)
The Giver by Lois Lowry
Recommended by Joy and Melissa
Jonas' world is perfect.
Everything is under control. There is no war or fear or pain. There are
no choices. Every person is assigned a role in the Community. When Jonas
turns twelve, he is singled out to receive special training from The
Giver. The Giver alone holds the memories of the true pain and pleasure
of life. Now, it is time for Jonas to receive the truth. There is no
turning back. (179 pages)
As I Have Loved You by Kitty de Ruyter-Bons
Recommended by Rosanne
Like Anne Frank,
Corrie ten Boom, and Viktor Frankl, Kitty de Ruyter- Bons endured the
terror of man's inhumanity to man during World War II. In this inspiring
and powerful true story, Kitty testifies of the triumph of the human
spirit. As both of Kitty's parents were devout Christians, her
day started with a hymn and a scripture from the Bible. Kitty was only
eight years old when her island paradise of Java, Indonesia, was invaded
by Japanese soldiers during WWII.
Members of Kitty's family were
taken to different prison camps. Kitty describes how her mother acted
with courage in the face of hardship-even torture. Forbidden to pray at
the camp, she nevertheless prayed and taught her children all she
remembered of the scriptures. She courageously defied the Japanese
officials and bravely took upon herself the consequences. These
and countless other incidents, beautifully portrayed, prove that the
grace of Christ gives one power in the presence of hatred, evil, pain,
and suffering. (192 pages)
Neighbor Rosicky by Willa Cather
Recommended by Rosanne
"Neighbour Rosicky" is a character study of Anton Rosicky, a man who,
facing the approach of death, reflects on the meaning and value of his
life. In tracing Rosicky's journey from Bohemia to Nebraska, Cather
explores the intimate relationship between people and the places they
inhabit. Though the story considers the pain of separations, "Neighbour
Rosicky" also celebrates the small triumphs of life. Written not long
after the death of her father, the story reflects a new maturity in
Cather's treatment of loss. Critics often remark on the story's graceful
acceptance of death's inevitability. Like many of the novels and
stories that Cather wrote in the decades after World War I, "Neighbour
Rosicky" also criticizes the unthinking materialism that marked the
1920s. Though some early critics found her approach sentimental, critics
in later decades tended to applaud Cather's portrait of an immigrant
farmer whose honesty, integrity, and emotional depth help him achieve a
meaningful and happy life for himself and for his family. (88 pages)
Other Suggested Books:
The Proper Care and Feeding of Husbands by Laura C. Schlessinger
Recommended by Melissa
In her most provocative
book yet, Dr. Laura urgently reminds women that to take proper care of
their husbands is to ensure themselves the happiness and satisfaction
they yearn for in marriage. Women want to be in love, get
married, and live happily ever after. Yet disrespect for men and
disregard for the value, feelings, and needs of husbands has fast become
the standard for male-female relations in America. Those two attitudes
clash in unfortunate ways to create struggle and strife in what could be
a beautiful relationship.
Countless women call Dr. Laura,
unhappy in their marriages and seemingly at a loss to understand the
incredible power they have over their men to create the kind of home
life they yearn for. Now, in The Proper Care and Feeding of Husbands, Dr. Laura shows you—with real-life examples and real-life solutions—how
to wield that power to attain all the sexual pleasure, intimacy, love,
joy, and peace you want in your life. Dr. Laura's simple principles have changed the lives of millions. Now they can change yours. (208 pages)
The Great Gathering by Chad Daybell
Recommended by Sara
In the near future,
Tad and Emma North and their children live in a United States that is
growing increasingly wicked. The Norths and their extended family notice
that many Latter-day Saints are being deceived by alluring temptations,
and they wonder how much longer the Lord will allow American society to
continue its downward spiral.
Then comes an invitation from
Church leaders for the Saints to gather together. This invitation isn’t
well-accepted—and even openly mocked—but those faithful Church members
who trust in the Lord soon find themselves accomplishing monumental
tasks. Join these humble yet heroic Saints as they embark on an
unprecedented journey to build New Jerusalem.
The Great Gathering, the first novel in the Standing in Holy Places
series, paints a vivid picture of exciting prophesied events that still
must occur before the Second Coming. If you have an interest in what
awaits the members of the LDS Church, this series should definitely be
on your reading list! (200 pages)
(Book images and summaries from GoodReads.com)
Our next book is The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards. We'll meet at Jodi's house on Tuesday, June 3rd at 7:30pm to discuss it. We will also have the results from out book voting to share that night.
