Flavia DeLuce - Female Investigator

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I had a girlfriend who really loved this book series, which is why I picked it up. I like to read young adult fiction--usually they are a quick read, and sometimes better than the adult fiction that's out there.

Flavia is fascinated with chemistry, particularly the chemistry of creating poison. The youngest child in her household, Flavia is often picked on by her older siblings. With no mom, and a dad who is reserved and fascinated with his stamp collection she often retreats to her laboratory.

Flavia finds a dead body in the garden and the police arrest her father! Even though she's only 11, her curiosity and desire to clear her father sets her on a series of adventures.

I liked Flavia right away, but in the first half of the book I thought, well, this is good, but I don't know why Lara is so in love with these books. But. . . then I got hooked, staying up past my bedtime trying to finish it.

I just finished the second book in the series, "The Weed That Strings the Hangman's Bag" (which I will give 5 stars, for some reason just liked that one better) and am eager to begin the 3rd "A Red Herring Without Mustard" which I have on hold at our local library.

This would be a fun read-aloud with your kids or classroom. Visit the Flavia DeLuce website to learn more about this series.

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Talking and Listening to God

66 Love Letters: A Conversation With God That Invites You Into His Story by Larry Crabb
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I really love this book, and began reading it without following the author's intent, which is to read the book in the Bible first. As always, I am too eager to find out if I'm going to like a book or not.

Each chapter in "66 Love Letters" deals with a chapter in the Bible, beginning in Genesis and ending Revelation. The intent is for the reader to read the chapter in the Bible, and then read the corresponding love letter, or conversation with God. As stated previous, I was eager to get into this book, without getting into THE Book. What I have found, as I'm moving along, is that "66 Love Letters" makes me want to get into God's book, so I can have the deeper understanding that the author is going for. Therefore, I am starting over and will begin again, reading my Bible chapter before reading the "Love Letter" chapter.

I will tell you, the conversations in the book are written with such love,and they feel so authentic to me, feelings I myself may have, and responses from God that are so encouraging that I can highly recommend this book to you.


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Fact and Fiction Make an Interesting Read

The Aviator's Wife by Melanie Benjamin
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This novel, which mixes fact and fiction is told through Anne Morrow Lindbergh's eyes. She is depicted in the book as being overshadowed by her husband's personality, which I believe to be true. We don't see much of the Lindbergh who wrote "Gift from the Sea", although she emerges more at the end.

As always, for me, I want to separate the fact from the fiction and the author does us a favor but clarifying some of these points in the afterward.

Anne did have a hard life it seems to me, but still an exciting one. I liked how this book brought out that she was a pilot in her own right, and was her husband's co-pilot in a number of flights. She was the first woman to get her glider pilot's license. So, even though Charles was given the spotlight, she had accomplishments of her own. I always like it when we find out how strong women really are. In fact, if you google her you will see that she received multiple awards for books that recorded her travels with Charles.

I came away feeling like I've often felt after reading one of Anne's books that she had a hard life, but that she persevered. Whether you know a little or a lot about Anne, I think most readers will enjoy this book.

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Making Choices

The Storyteller by Jodi Picoult
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I could not put this book down. I almost always like Picoult's writing because it makes you really think. The Storyteller is no different. In some ways it reminded me of The Book Thief, particularly the last half of the book.

Sage works in a bakery. She likes it that way because she doesn't have to interact with any other people--it's her safe place to hide and work through her grief at losing her mother and living with the scar that's left on her face from the accident they were in. Curiously though, Sage continues to go to a grief group where she contributes little to nothing. However, it is here in the grief group that she befriends a man, Josef Weber.

Josef has a secret that he shares with her and it changes everything in her life, as well as how she views Josef. He was her friend, to be truthful, almost her only friend, but, by sharing his secret it's practically impossible to remain his friend.

We also meet Sage's grandmother who has her own story to tell. She has secrets too, that Sage eventually persuades her to share.

As these stories entertwine, we see both the good and evil in the characters and in each other. Given the circumstances of the characters lives, we would have made choices. Would we have made the right choices? I was reminded, while reading, how choosing not to take a side, or take a stand, but to remain aloof from a situation is also a choice. That's the comfortable choice many of us make in our lives without even thinking about it. I think Picoult is a master at using her stories to make us think about judgements and choices we make in hard situations. I can't wait for my friends to read this--it's pretty hard to review it here and not give away any of the things I want to talk about!


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Another Kindle Freebie: Edith Wharton

Summer by Edith Wharton
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is the first book I've read by Edith Wharton I think (it's possible I read "The Age of Innocence" but I'm not 100% certain).

This book centers around a girl, her name is Charity, who is, in fact a charity case. She was brought "down from the mountain" which, in her town, would be where all the undesireables live. Charity has a complicated relationship with her guardian, Mr. Royall. Although he is the one who brought her down from the mountain, she views him as a hard man who does not care for her. Like many young people, Charity tends to view her situations with extreme emotion - sometimes full of despair, sometimes joy. She thinks she understands situations and makes impulsive decisions which are sometimes based on what she feels is certain knowledge, but in fact is not.

Charity, like many of us in our youth, falls in love. The man she loves is more educated than she is, and she often feels her ignorance in their conversations. But, when you're young and in love you dismiss these thoughts and enjoy each moment. She sortof knows this may not work out, but has hope that it will.

I'm not sure I liked the ending of this book. It ended with a sort of equal feeling of despair and hope. It reminded me a little of Tess of d'urbervilles which I also liked yet didn't like.

Perhaps these stories are a little too real for me. Real life consists of despair, hope, and it doesn't always end the way we want it to. This book certainly displays the characters clearly, and shows both their good and their bad.


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I Never Knew About This "Classic"!

A Girl of the Limberlost by Gene Stratton-Porter
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This quaint, old fashioned book caputured my interest for most of this Saturday morning. The writing style reminded me of Anne of Green Gables, The Two Altheas or How Green Was My Valley. There is something to be said for books like these that capture what are now considered old-fashioned values and contrasting them with the transient enjoyments of society.

Elnora has no father and her mother treats her resentfully due to the circumstances that surround her father's death. Much of the book centers around Elnora's doubt of her mother's love and the tension in their relationship because of this. Her mother seems a hard woman and because of the lack of warmth Elnora finds relief and comfort in nature. Elnora is smart! She collects moths and butterflies and arrowheads which she sells to collectors so that she can pay her way through high school. She dearly loves to learn. Elnora is proud and doesn't like to accept help from her Aunt and Uncle, or really anyone for that matter. She has self-determination and figures out what she needs to do to succeed.

Although Elnora lives a life of hard knocks, she demonstrates the virtues of kindness, love, forgiveness and self-denial. That last virtue is one that we don't seem to value so much in our current culture of instant gratification. Her patience and understanding surrounding the circumstances of her life eventually lead to healing with her mom, and peace for her soul.

There are bits in the book that I love as relating to her relationship to "the Almighty". If you are one that's annoyed by those references this may not be the book for you. I however, enjoy them, if only for the picture it gives us of how people wrote about God in the past.

I would read it again (lucky for me, it's on my kindle so I can do that whenever I please). As an additional bonus, it was free (thanks Amazon).

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Of Pirates and Kings and Adventure!

The Runaway King by Jennifer A. Nielsen
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This review actually covers both The False Prince and The Runaway King, books one and two of The Ascendance Trilogy. I learned about the series from a friend of mine whose middle school son had recently read Book One and declared it good.

If you have children or students who love adventure, pirates, fighting and intrigue, this is a great series to get them started on. I read both books back to back and now I am so frustrated that I have to wait for Book Three. I want to know what happens next! (I am not known for being a very patient person.)

The royal family is dead and there are no survivors. Three orphans are chosen to impersonate the royal prince who was lost at sea, "resurrected" and become the crowned King. Who will it be? Sage? Roden? Tobias? And what of the Princess Amarinda? Is she friend or foe?

Will the newly crowned King be able to rule his kingdom wisely and well? Will the regents who guide him accept his sovereignty, or will they undermine his rule?

You will have to read the books to find out as I don't want to spoil one minute of your reading pleasure.

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