APRIL 2023

 Hello All,

Bookshare met at the home of Liz Orton in April and shared some wonderful books. Here is the list:

JoAnn Abegglen

1. Going Zero by Anthony McCarte

2. Under the Cover of Mercy by Rebecca Connolly

 

Karla Cox

The Book of Longings by Sue Monk Kidd

A story of a feminist, highly educated woman of Galilee named Anna - who married Jesus. It’s a fascinating exploration of what if…

 

In the Garden of Beasts by Erik Larson

The story of US Ambassador to Germany during the late depression & early days of WWII, William E. Dodd. The story is as much about his family as his own experiences in a darkening Germany. 

His books are among my favorites; though his writing style is direct and unstyled, his intensive research and delivery offer exceptional reading.

 

The Midnight Library by Matt Haig

Another What if styled story. I seem to enjoy literature & movies that are evidence of people trying out alternative options to the truth that we have. I think they’re searching, and I love that. 

 

Where the Light Gets In by Kimberly Williams Paisley 

Brad Paisley’s wife and the star of Father of the Bride tells the story of her vibrant, loving mother’s slide into Dementia. Tender, genuine, heartbreaking, informative. 

 

 

Maryann Stevens

Demon Copperfield by Barbara Kingsolver 4️ not 5 because constant f-bombs & FOUL language  Depressing. Told in the first person voice of 10year old orphan as he ages in & out of the ‘system’. Kingsolver’s Social commentary: teen moms, drugs & alcohol, foster care, orphans. 

Low wages of foster care workers, school teachers. Family dynamics of addiction. Step-dad issues. OxyContin racket, drug reps, meth labs. Coal miners & mine owners. 

WOW hard to read so sad, but this is the current situation of the world. 

 

The Choice by Dr Edith Eva Eger 5️ autobiographical narrative of holocaust survivor. After release from Auschwitz/Birkenau, she & her sisters endure difficult years in post war Hungary as Nazi thugs are replaced by Communist thugs. Difficult first 8-10 years as a poor, non-English speaking, discriminated against immigrant family to America. Finally gets schooling. Becomes Psychologist & therapist. Helps many to forgive. Amazing story but her insights into humanity are so profound the story is really only background to her philosophy and wisdom. 

 

By Her Own Design by Piper Huguley 4️ true story of Anna Lowe, granddaughter of a slave & the third generation of poor black seamstresses. Defies all the discrimination in her path & becomes a fashion designer for the famous, including Jacqueline Kennedy. Good read. 

 

Rosemary by Kate Clifford Larsen 3.5️ A story of THE Kennedy family’s response to Rosemary Kennedy’s deficiencies, perceived & real. She reached the pinnacle of her social & intellectual years of tragedy while her father is Ambassador to England in the years leading up to WWII. My feeling is if she could have stayed in the care of those loving & supporting nuns her life would have been very different. Her powerful & selfish father ruined her life. 

 

Beth Hedengren

An Unimportant Woman by Sonia Purnell

Virginia is high spirited, smart, and determined to do something important. Even after losing her leg in a shooting accident, she is undeterred. After working in various low level diplomatic jobs, World War II offers the opportunity for heroism for which she was made. She serves as a spy in France, training resistance fighters, gathering information, masterminding escapes from Nazi prisons. Her courage and resourcefulness never fails. And she is real. 

 

Being Mortal by Atul Gawande

Sobering book on old age and dying. We are all heading there. Makes me wonder: What will I do with my life before I can’t do it anymore? 

Gawande uses compelling real-life stories to explore the problems of aging and possible ways to improve quality of life not just prolong life. He examines various models for nursing homes and assisted living centers. He lauds the effectiveness of Advanced Health Care Directives and Hospice Care. Very good to read and think about, though difficult to face. 

 

Thrones, Dominations: A Lord Peter Wimsey/Harriet Vane Mystery by Jill Paton Walsh

The first Wimsey book by Walsh. Takes place just after Busman’s Holiday with references to that mystery. Harriet and Peter get settled into married life in their London home, while solving the mystery of who killed the wife of an acquaintance. Good times with old friends.

 

The Madness of Crowds by Louise Penny

A mystery set in Quebec, at Christmas. Lots of sledding, hockey, and drinking of hot chocolate in a quaint little village outside Montreal. Chief Inspector Armand Gamache is protecting a controversial statistician with a post-pandemic plan for saving health care funds by killing the elderly and disabled. He disagrees with her (of course!) but must protect her, nonetheless. Much discussion of ethics amid the investigation of murder in the charming world of Gamache’s home village. It was a good read, though a little slow. Lots of literary references and wise thoughts.

 

The Winter of the Witch by Katherine Arden

Third and final book in the series set in a magical medieval Russia, including the Bear and the Nightingale and The Girl in the Tower. Vasilisa develops her magical powers as she tries to protect Moscow from destruction by Tatars as well as supernatural evil. Her brother is a priest, following the new Christian God. Vasya knows and cares for the old pagan gods of hearth and forest. Can both faiths co-exist? Also, this series has fascinating detail about life in medieval Russia. Even the wealthy were always cold and often hungry in winter. The big ceramic stove was the center of the home; children, the elderly, and sick would sleep on top of it. 

 

Marlene Mattheson

The Matriarch and the Making of an American Dynasty by Susan Page - (Barbara Bush said in her journal, "Amazing Life! Lucky, lucky me!")

Dolly Parton: Songteller by Dolly Parton

My Life in France by Julia Child 

First: Sandra Day O-Connor by Evan Thomas

In Their Own Words by Mary Jane Woodger (short stories of 16 prophets and Church leaders)

 

Liz Orton

The Fearless Mind by Craig Manning.

Geri Christensen

Local Woman Missing by Mary Kubica

A Truth To Lie For by Anne Perry

The Cat Who Tailed A Thief AND The Cat Who Smelled A Rat   by Lillian Jacksoan Braun

When The Lights Go Out by Mary Kubica

Spiders Web  by Agatha Christie