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Book Review: The Lemonade Year
Looking for a change of pace from my recent reads, the gift of book mail in the form of The Lemonade Year by Amy Willoughby-Burle filled the bill nicely. This book was emotional, complex, and beautifully written. Check it out: The Lemonade Year by Amy Willoughby-Burle is a wonderfully written story about family and forgiveness. It is not, at times, a happy story. This is not a light read – Nina’s family puts the “d” in “dysfunctional”, and the characters are all, in their own way, a bit broken. It is this brokenness, however, that fascinated me, as well as the secret the family kept (which you will likely…
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Book Review: Christmas on the Coast
You’re probably thinking: “Hey, it’s January and Christmas is over. So what’s up with Christmas on the Coast?” Admittedly, I received this book when I was looking for Christmas stories to review and it slipped through the cracks. But honestly? I’m glad it did, because this book isn’t as much a Christmas story – it’s part of the setting, sure – as much as it is a wonderful work of historical fiction. This is a book to be read any time of year. Curious? Read on! Confession time: with the chaos of Christmas, I got behind on some of my reading and this book sadly was put by…
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Blog Tour & Review: Mustaches for Maddie
Review of Mustaches for Maddie When a copy of the middle-grade book Mustaches for Maddie arrived in my mailbox, I had to wrestle it from my own sixth grader (also named Maddie) who was intrigued first by the title and then by the cover description. Inspired by their daughter’s own story (more on this below), authors Morris and Brown have crafted the inspirational, delightful (and sometimes heart-wrenching) story of a wonderfully quirky sixth grader who faces a pretty monumental health situation with bravery and an amazing attitude. They captured the voice of the middle schooler beautifully, the story itself reads more like fiction and less like the biography I was anticipating…
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Review: Alice Hoffmann’s The Rules Of Magic
I fear this may be a review that should have involved a thesaurus, so I will apologize in advance for the repetitive use of the word “magic” — but that is what this book is. It is MAGICAL. Seems to be a bit redundant, given the title, but I can honestly say this may be my favorite Alice Hoffman book to date. The Rules of Magic is the prequel to her 1995 novel Practical Magic. You definitely do not have to have read it to enjoy this book (but knowing that it was the prequel, I confess I did get my hands on a copy of Practical Magic to re-read…
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Middle School Book Picks from my Middle Schooler
Two weeks before school let out, my 11-year-old suffered a concussion which left her unable to do much of anything – like watching TV, running outside, or the worst possible punishment when you could inflict upon her – reading. This proves especially painful (pun intended) when your order of Scholastic books arrives the day after you bonk your head. Thankfully, the concussion cleared up in time for vacation and Maddie spent nearly the entire 3200 mile drive reading. As such, SHE has a pile of middle school books she would love to recommend. They run the gamut from fantasy to supernatural fiction (dealing with grief) to historical fiction, and she was…
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Book Review – The Simplicity of Cider (& Giveaway)
I’ve been nose deep in a book for weeks now – as my dusty tables and dog hair-littered floors can attest. Today I’m featuring wonderful book from Amy Reichert titled The Simplicity of Cider. If you have not read this yet (she’s wonderful), there’s a giveaway further down so you have the chance to win your own copy! Review It almost feels like the wrong season for this book to be released as apple season is still a few months away – and this story will leave you with a longing for apple cider donuts or one of Sanna’s crisp ciders. Despite the pastry cravings, I’m glad I didn’t have to wait for Amy Reichert’s return…
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Book Blog Tour: The Grave Tender
This week I’m once again joining up with #LoneStarLit for a book blog tour for The Grave Tender. We’ve got an amazing giveaway, so be sure to enter for a chance to win the book and more!!! THE GRAVE TENDER by By Eliza Maxwell Genre: Women’s Fiction / Psychological Suspense Publisher: Lake Union Publishing Date of Publication: April 11, 2017 Number of Pages: 248 Scroll down for Giveaway! A chilling psychological suspense novel, The Grave Tender explores the dark boundaries people cross to save loved ones, and the limits of family bonds tested by the deepest of betrayals. Endless questions from a shadow-filled East Texas childhood haunt Hadley…
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Reviewing Foy: On the Road to Lost
FOY:ON THE ROAD TO LOST by GORDON ATKINSON Genre: Literary Fiction Publisher: Material Media LLC Facebook I Twitter Date of Publication: March 1, 2017 Number of Pages: 194 Scroll down for Giveaway! Gordon Atkinson, of the popular blog RealLivePreacher, brings us Foy, a recently- divorced, recently-resigned pastor in the midst of redefining personal meaning. As Foy travels to New Orleans, hoping to find a new identity separate from the church, he keenly observes the everyday, rendering ordinary moments unexpectedly significant. Atkinson’s own background as a preacher and blogger inspires Foy’s confessional voice, the voice which characterizes this story about how our own experiences impact the universal search for…
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Book Review: The Bear and the Nightingale
This book…oh, this book. Magical, rich, and lyrical, this book was just gorgeous. Who says fairy tales are for kids? I didn’t want this one to end. The Bear and the Nightingale is one of those finds that make me appreciate the diverse array of books and authors that NetGalley introduces to me, because this is a gem. Curious? Read on… Genre: Literary Fiction Publisher: Del Rey Books Release Date: January 10, 2017 Pages: 336 Synopsis At the edge of the Russian wilderness, winter lasts most of the year and the snowdrifts grow taller than houses. But Vasilisa doesn’t mind—she spends the winter nights huddled around the embers of a fire with her beloved siblings,…
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Small Great Things – A Must Read Novel
I have a lot of advanced review copies of books on my Kindle, and because of this, it’s not difficult to lose track of the themes of the books as I queue them up to read. It was a wildly unfortunate coincidence that the day I opened Jodi Picoult’s newest novel Small Great Things was the same day that five Dallas police officers were killed in a sniper attack during a protest rally. My heart was in pain for the lives lost, and I prayed that no bystanders were injured in the process. I was angry and saddened about the inequity and racism that still exists. So when I opened the book to discover that part of…
