Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snow_Flower_and_the_Secret_Fan

http://home.comcast.net/~sherbornlibrary/mapsnowflower.htm#Novelist_Reading_Guide_

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lisa_See

http://www.ccds.charlotte.nc.us/History/China/04/hutchins/hutchins.htm

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=8966942

http://www.international.ucla.edu/shenzhen/2002ncta/miles/index.htm

What a lovely book. Yes, it was hard to read, but the language is exquisite.  The characters are so believable.  The story so moving. 

Chinese history at possibly its lowest point told in the most beautiful way.

The Nineteenth Wife by David Ebershoff

Combine lots of historical fact, enough fantasy to sweeten the plot and a modern crime story and you have the ingredients for a page turning book.  The only problem is that the average reader (me) doesn't exactly know where the historical fact and fantasy start and stop.  The process of sorting it out is made more difficult with the never ending switches in time. 

I loved the book, but I would have liked the delineation between fact and fiction to have been a bit more clearly drawn. 

Pillars of the Earth and World Without End by Ken Follett

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Pillars_of_the_Earth
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Without_End

If you have any interest in 12th century Europe or architecture or personal relationships or the Catholic Church, you should seriously consider reading these two massive volumes.  Mr. Follett makes dreary, dusty history come alive through his characters.  Reading two books of this size is quite an undertaking, but if you persevere, you will have a much better understanding of the world as it is today - shaped by yesterday's actions.

Room by Emma Donoghue

Wow!  What a page turner!

A young woman is kidnapped and locked away in a totally secure shed where she gives birth to two children.  After seven years, she is determined to escape.  What if her attempts fail?  How much worse might her conditions become?  What if her attempts succeed?  Is she really ready for the outside world?  You'll never know if you don't read the book!

I have a favorite quote from the book I would like to share:


. . . when I woke up in that shed, I thought nobody'd ever had it as bad as me.  But the thing is, slavery's not a new invention.  And solitary confinement - did you know, in America we've got more than 25,000 prisoners in isolation cells?  Some of them for more than twenty years." . . . "As for kids - there's places where babies lie in orphanages five to a cot with pacifiers taped into their mouths, kids getting raped by Daddy every night, kids in prisons, whatever, making carpets till they go blind -" . . . "Not just children.  People are locked up in all sorts of ways."

Makes you think, huh?

Black Like Me

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Like_Me

I was able to attend a book club discussion of The Help during which the group leader talked about this stirring book which was first published in 1961.  

Black Like Me is the account of a white journalist who dared dye his skin black and travel through the south as a black man.  I had read the book long ago, but thought it deserved a reread and it was worth the effort.

Going through this material not only helps the reader focus on how far we have come with civil rights, but how far we have left to travel.

If you missed reading this during the 1960's, it should certainly go on your "To Read" list.  If you read it back then, put it on your "To ReRead" list.

Science at the Edge Edited by John Brockman

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Brockman_%28literary_agent%29

I don't pretend to comprehend even a small fraction of this material, but occasionally, I like to step out and read something that really stretches my imagination and my view of the world.  Every one of these essays will do that and more.  Besides, I can sometimes impress my husband with one of the gems I gleaned from its pages.  Great for conversation starters in front of the fire on a winter evening. 

The Grapes of Wrath

Sometimes a person needs to reread a classic, remember the plot as the pages are turned, reconnect with the characters, and be grateful all over again for the sweet grapes so readily available in today's world.

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows

 http://www.barnesandnoble.com/u/The-Guernsey-Literary-and-Potato-Peel-Pie-Society-Readers-Guide/379001235/

This was an enjoyable book from start to finish.  It features no impossible-to- fathom endings, no lapses in character, no rewriting of history.  It is the tale of unforgettable characters drawn from divergent aspects of Guernsey Island society.  They have little in common except their love of books and one another.  The book is about hope they give one another and the its power to sustain them through the ravages of war.

I love the way the authors told the story through letters.  It allows so many to have their say without the interference of others.

American Short Story edited by Richard Ford

This is one of those books that has been on my bedside table for a long time.  When no other book in the house looks appealing, I can always find a selection from this collection to while away an hour.  I've read some of them once, some several times, and other are almost memorized.

Some favorites:

"Where Is Here" by Joyce Carol Oates

"Firelight" by Tobias Wolff

"Aurora" by Junot Diaz

When I Was Puerto Rican by Esmeralda Santiago

http://www.readinggroupguides.com/guides_W/when_i_was_puerto_rican1.asp

Although this book was written several years ago, the issues remain the same:  immigration quotas, cultural imperialism, bilingual education, birth control. . . .  If you have not given these issues the thoughtful examination they deserve, this book provides an excellent starting place.

Almost a Woman by Esmeralda Santiago

http://www.randomhouse.com/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9780375705212&view=rg

This book is guaranteed to make you look at the life of the immigrant in a slightly different way.  Written with wisdom and humor, it tells the story of a young woman's search for belonging and identity and the universal quest for independence.

People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks

http://www.geraldinebrooks.com/people.html

What a powerful book!  A rare illuminated Hebrew manuscript is created in Muslim Spain and survives a perilous five-century journey through Venice, Vienna, and Sarajevo.  The book was inspired by the true story of a mysterious codex known as the Sarajevo Haggdah.  It is a journey you will remember for a long while.

Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay

http://www.readinggroupguides.com/guides_s/sarahs_key1.asp

This was one of those book that I wanted to love from the very first page.  I knew how it would end and I willed the author to find a more believable version.  Alas, she could not find a better ending and I could not make the leap of faith required to accept the one she chose.


It was, however, beautifully written and it inspired me to do some research of my own regarding the Holocaust on French soil.  What a heartbreaking story.

Broken for You by Stephanie Kallos

http://www.stephaniekallos.com/books.html

Currently, this book can be found in the card catalog under the following subject headings:
1.  Landlord and tenant - Fiction
2.  Aged women - Fiction
I would like to add:
3.  Mosaics - Fiction
4.  Grieving - Fiction
5.  Holocaust Survivors - Fiction 6.  Geriatric Oncology - Fiction



Seven years in the writing, it was a great read.  No awards, no best-seller stickers, but it touched my heart.  What more can a reader ask?

Undress Me in the Temple of Heaven by Susan Jane Gilman

http://www.readinggroupguides.com/guides_u/undress_me_in_the_temple_of_heaven1.asp

What do you do you graduate from college and realize you don't have a clue about what to do next?
You and a friend take off on an extensive tour of China - just moments after the country opens its doors to tourists.  You get in way over your head and then return home and write a memoir that every international traveler should read.  It will help prepare her for the basic truth:  You're not in Kansas anymore.