Reported by Garry
We had some amazingly timely books brought to the table this week. Several of our books reviewed were written more than a decade ago, but seem almost presciently relevant in today’s world. We also had the usual engaging assortment of historical and modern fiction, non-fiction, short-stories and more. Come join us Tuesdays at 11:00 am!
Our reader found The Girls Who Went Away: The Hidden History of Women Who Surrendered Children for Adoption in the Decades Before Roe v. Wade by Ann Fessler absolutely heartbreaking. Following the stories of over 100 women, but representing millions, this book describes in compassionate yet brutal detail situations where women were faced with one of the most difficult decisions in their lives. Many did not have a choice in giving up their children, forced by family and social situations to surrender their newborns to an uncertain future and never to see them again. This book covers the decades from the 1940s through the 1960s, and our reader is very glad that she read it.
Set in 1922 Ireland, Shannon by Frank Delaney tells the story of Robert Shannon, a shell-shocked American chaplain returning from the Great War. Shannon longs to find his Irish roots in the area of the Shannon River. He hopes that in doing so he will find himself and a level of personal peace lost during the war. Our reader found this book to be delightful; she listened to the audiobook as read by the author, and commented that various Irish accents are used throughout the book. Our reader thoroughly enjoyed this gentle book, and recommends it to anyone who needs a bit of a getaway from the current world.
A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini is a novel set in recent modern day Afghanistan, published in 2008. Although from different generations and life situations, Mariam and Laila are two women whose lives become intertwined by war. Each has a different approach to life, faith, love, and family, and are moved to incredible acts of self-sacrifice in order to protect their own lives and those of their families. Our reader said that by reading this book she gained a much better understanding of the Afghan people and the ongoing strife in their country. Difficult to read due to graphic (but not gratuitous) depictions of violence, our reader says that this book is a stunning work of literature and very highly recommends it.
Set in eighteenth century Venice, The Orphan’s Song by Lauren Kate is a story of love and survival. Violetta and Mino are orphans trying to thrive in a world stacked against them. Violetta is a talented singer forbidden from singing outside the church where she has grown up. Mino, abandoned at the orphanage at age five, still desperately longs to find his family. Trapped in the Hospital of the Incurables, the two come together to support and love one another through hope and tragedy alike. Our reader found this book to be fascinating, and commented on the abundance of well-researched historical facts sprinkled throughout this debut novel by a bestselling author.
Also mentioned:
The Great Seattle Earthquake by Thomas P. Hopp
The Tao of Travel: Enlightenments from Lives on the Road by Paul Theroux
The Five People You Meet In Heaven by Mitch Albom
What Unites Us: Reflections on Patriotism by Dan Rather
The Exiles by Christina Baker Kline
The Oxford Book of American Short Stories edited by Joyce Carol Oates
Night Fall by Nelson DeMille
The Reiki Healing Handbook: Transmit Healing Energy Through Your Hands to Achieve Deep Relaxation, Inner Peace and Total Well Being by Janet Green
You Never Forget Your First: A Biography of George Washington by Alexis Coe
And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini
Falling by T.J. Newman
In the Mountains of America by Meredith Sue Willis
The Last Story of Mina Lee by Nancy Jooyoun Kim
Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister by Gregory Maguire
Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro
Hold Me Down by Clea Simon
Penny by Karl Stevens
Horatio’s Drive: America’s First Road Trip by Dayton Duncan and Ken Burns
