Books Read in 2008

1. Over Sea, Under Stone by Susan Cooper
2. The Dark is Rising by Susan Cooper
3. The Proper Care & Feeding of Husbands by Dr. Laura Schlessinger
4. Twilight by Stephenie Meyer
5. New Moon by Stephenie Meyer
6. Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer
7. Lone Survivor by Marcus Luttrell
8. These is my words by Nancy Turner
9. The Friday Night Knitting Club by Kate Jacobs
10. The Persian Pickle Club by Sandra Dallas
11. Passage to Zarahemla by Chris Heimerdinger
12. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
13. Dracula by Bram Stoker
14. The Golden Ring: A Christmas Story by John Snyder

December's Book

The Golden Ring
A Christmas Story
by John Snyder

December 9th
8pm at Trina's

The library has several copies of the book available. Click on the picture or the word library above to go directly to the library's website.

Summary:
A puzzling series of dreams shared by Joseph, a hardworking railroad engineer, and his nine-year-old daughter, Anna, about a golden ring given to her by Joseph for her birthday leads both of them to a remarkable experience that will change their lives, in a Christmas tale, based on a true story, set against the backdrop of the Pennsylvania coal-mining country in 1918.

Review:
"Destined to become a classic...will be read by anyone who wants to get closer to the essence of Christmas." -- Washington Times

November's Book

Dracula
by Bram Stoker

November 11th
8pm at Emily's

As we'll be reading this book between now and Nov. (ie over Halloween) I thought it would be fun to read some classic Horror. The novel itself is ~370 pages. There are about 9 different copies available at the library, all of different editions. Whichever one you choose, just make sure it is unabriged/not-edited. Happy reading, and don't get too scared.

Summary:
The classic tale of the bizarre Carpathian count, who drank human blood to stay alive, and the Englishman who knew his secret.

Review:
Of the many admiring reviews Bram Stoker’s Dracula received when it first appeared in 1897, the most astute praise came from the author's mother, who wrote her son: 'It is splendid. No book since Mrs. Shelley's Frankenstein or indeed any other at all has come near yours in originality, or terror.'

October's Book

The Book Thief
by Markus Zusak

October 14th
8pm at Laurie's

The library has several copies or you can borrow a copy from Laurie or Carrie.

Summary:
Trying to make sense of the horrors of World War II, Death relates the story of Liesel--a young German girl whose book-stealing and story-telling talents help sustain her family and the Jewish man they are hiding, as well as their neighbors.

Review from The Washington Post:
Death, it turns out, is not proud.
The narrator of The Book Thief is many things -- sardonic, wry, darkly humorous, compassionate -- but not especially proud. As author Marcus Zusak channels him, Death -- who doesn't carry a scythe but gets a kick out of the idea -- is as afraid of humans as humans are of him.
Knopf is blitz-marketing this 550-page book set in Nazi Germany as a young-adult novel, though it was published in the author's native Australia for grown-ups. (Zusak, 30, has written several books for kids, including the award-winning I Am the Messenger.) The book's length, subject matter and approach might give early teen readers pause, but those who can get beyond the rather confusing first pages will find an absorbing and searing narrative.
Death meets the book thief, a 9-year-old girl named Liesel Meminger, when he comes to take her little brother, and she becomes an enduring force in his life, despite his efforts to resist her. "I traveled the globe . . . handing souls to the conveyor belt of eternity," Death writes. "I warned myself that I should keep a good distance from the burial of Liesel Meminger's brother. I did not heed my advice." As Death lingers at the burial, he watches the girl, who can't yet read, steal a gravedigger's instruction manual. Thus Liesel is touched first by Death, then by words, as if she knows she'll need their comfort during the hardships ahead.
And there are plenty to come. Liesel's father has already been carted off for being a communist and soon her mother disappears, too, leaving her in the care of foster parents: the accordion-playing, silver-eyed Hans Hubermann and his wife, Rosa, who has a face like "creased-up cardboard." Liesel's new family lives on the unfortunately named Himmel (Heaven) Street, in a small town on the outskirts of Munich populated by vivid characters: from the blond-haired boy who relates to Jesse Owens to the mayor's wife who hides from despair in her library. They are, for the most part, foul-spoken but good-hearted folks, some of whom have the strength to stand up to the Nazis in small but telling ways.
Stolen books form the spine of the story. Though Liesel's foster father realizes the subject matter isn't ideal, he uses "The Grave Digger's Handbook" to teach her to read. "If I die anytime soon, you make sure they bury me right," he tells her, and she solemnly agrees. Reading opens new worlds to her; soon she is looking for other material for distraction. She rescues a book from a pile being burned by the Nazis, then begins stealing more books from the mayor's wife. After a Jewish fist-fighter hides behind a copy of Mein Kampf as he makes his way to the relative safety of the Hubermanns' basement, he then literally whitewashes the pages to create his own book for Liesel, which sustains her through her darkest times. Other books come in handy as diversions during bombing raids or hedges against grief. And it is the book she is writing herself that, ultimately, will save Liesel's life.
Death recounts all this mostly dispassionately -- you can tell he almost hates to be involved. His language is spare but evocative, and he's fond of emphasizing points with bold type and centered pronouncements, just to make sure you get them (how almost endearing that is, that Death feels a need to emphasize anything). "A NICE THOUGHT," Death will suddenly announce, or "A KEY WORD." He's also full of deft descriptions: "Pimples were gathered in peer groups on his face."
Death, like Liesel, has a way with words. And he recognizes them not only for the good they can do, but for the evil as well. What would Hitler have been, after all, without words? As this book reminds us, what would any of us be?
Reviewed by Elizabeth Chang Copyright 2006

September's Book

*Please note the time change.

Passage to Zarahemla

by Chris Heimerdinger

September 9th

8:30pm at Heather's

The book is not available at the library. However, it is available for purchase at Deseret Book and Seagull Book or locally at Latter Day Cottage. If you'd prefer to borrow a copy, contact Heather or Aimeè.

Summary:

In a secret forested hollow of southern Utah, a spine-tingling mystery is about to unfold.
Kerra and Brock McConnell are orphans on the run. To keep from being separated by state authorities, Kerra flees to the only relative she remembers from her childhood -- an LDS aunt and uncle who live near a wondrous place in the woods where parallel realities collide and where an ancient people called Nephites cross paths with the residents of a sleepy Utah town.
Join Chris Heimerdinger, best-selling author of the Tennis Shoes Adventure series, and embark on an adventure of breathtaking suspense and experience a love story that transcends time and space.

August's Book

The Persian Pickle Club

by Sandra Dallas

August 12th

8pm at Janei's

The book was chosen by those who attended July's book club and Janei graciously offered her home. We apologize in advance, if the book's content is offensive in any way.

Summary:

In 1930s Harveyvile, Kansas, Rita Ritter, a recent arrival, is invited to join the Persian Pickle Club, but her interest in journalism brings her dangerously close to a secret the club has sworn to keep.

Review:

http://www.cahners.com/ Hard times in Depression-era Harveyville, Kansas, are softened by the conviviality of a weekly quilting circle called the Persian Pickle Club. Queenie Bean, the "talkingest" member of the group, narrates the novel with snappy style. Over the course of a year, during which the club experiences more sorrow than sewing, Queenie and her pals depend on one another more than ever. When Queenie forms a fast friendship with the newest "Pickle," a flashy, big-city gal named Rita, the equilibrium of the group changes, for Rita is a novice newspaper reporter intent on making a name for herself. The story Rita most wants to crack involves the mysterious death of one of the club ladies' husbands. Will secrets long stitched into the collective fabric of friendship hold? This and other suspenseful questions of small-town life will entertain readers who enjoyed Fannie Flag's Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe (Random, 1987), Olive Ann Burns's Cold Sassy Tree (LJ 10/15/84), or Dallas's first novel, Buster Midnight's Cafe (LJ 4/15/90). Keddy Ann Outlaw, Harris Cty. P.L., Houston Copyright 1995 Cahners Business Information.

July's Book

The Friday Night Knitting Club
by Kate Jacobs

July 8th
8pm at Aimeè's

I know we did a poll to decide whether or not to meet in July. Well, the poll results were inconclusive as 4 voted to meet and 4 voted to skip July. So, it was decided at the June book club that we would go ahead and meet. I have not read the book but it comes recommended from a friend whose opinion I value. The book is available at the library but there are a few holds on it. I'd suggest reserving your copy soon. Aimeè

Summary:
Gathering for their weekly knitting club at a small yarn shop on Manhattan's Upper West Side, a group of friends shares such challenges as raising children, navigating the ups and downs of their careers, and pursuing uncertain relationships.

Book Review:
Georgia Walker's entire life is wrapped up in running her knitting store, Walker and Daughter, and caring for her 12-year-old daughter, Dakota. With the help of Anita, a lively widow in her seventies, Georgia starts the Friday Night Knitting Club, which draws loyal customers and a few oddballs. Darwin Chiu, a feminist grad student, believes knitting is downright old-fashioned, but she's drawn to the club as her young marriage threatens to unravel. Lucie, 42, a television producer, is about to become a mother for the first time--without a man in her life. Brash book editor KC finds her career has stalled unexpectedly, while brilliant Peri works at Walker and Daughter by day and designs handbags at night. Georgia gets her own taste of upheaval when Dakota's father reappears, hoping for a second chance. The yarn picks up steam as it draws to a conclusion, and an unexpected tragedy makes it impossible to put down. Jacobs' winning first novel is bound to have appeal among book clubs. ((Reviewed November 15, 2006)) Copyright 2006 Booklist Reviews.

June's Book

These is my words

By Nancy Turner

June 10th

8pm at Shelly's

Summary:
In a novel based on the author's ancestress, Sarah Prine, a child of the westward expansion, records her dreams, marriage, adventures, joys, and sorrows in her diary.

May's Book

Lone Survivor

by Marcus Luttrell

May 13th

8pm at Kristi's

Summary:
On a clear night in late June 2005, four US Navy SEALs left their base in northern Afghanistan for the mountainous Pakistani border. Their mission was to capture or kill a notorious al Qaeda leader known to be ensconced in a Taliban stronghold surrounded by a small but heavily armed force. Less than twenty-four hours later, only one of those Navy SEALs remained alive.
This is the story of fire teamleader Marcus Luttrell, the sole survivor of Operation Redwing, and the desperate battle in the mountains that led, ultimately to the largest loss of life in the Navy SEAL history. But it is also, more than anything, the story of his teammates, who fought ferociously beside him until he was the last one left-blasted unconscious by a rocket grenade, blown over a cliff, but still armed and still breathing. Over the next four days, badly injured and presumed dead, Lutrell fought off six al Qaeda assassins who were sent to finish him, then crawled for seven miles through the mountains before he was taken in by a Pashtun tribe, who risked everything to protect him from the encircling Taliban killers.

April's Book

New Moon & Eclipse
by Stephenie Meyer

April 8th
8pm at April Dawn's

New Moon Summary:
When the Cullens, including her beloved Edward, leave Forks rather than risk revealing that they are vampires, it is almost too much for eighteen-year-old Bella to bear, but she finds solace in her friend Jacob until he is drawn into a "cult" and changesin terrible ways.When the Cullens, including her beloved Edward, leave Forks rather than risk revealing that they are vampires, it is almost too much for eighteen-year-old Bella to bear, but she finds solace in her friend Jacob until he is drawn into a "cult" and changesin terrible ways.



Eclipse Summary:
Bella must choose between her friendship with Jacob and her relationship with Edward, both vampires, but when Seattle is ravaged by a mysterious string of killings, the three of them need to decide whether their personal lives are more important than thewell-being of an entire city.Bella must choose between her friendship with Jacob and her relationship with Edward, both vampires, but when Seattle is ravaged by a mysterious string of killings, the three of them need to decide whether their personal lives are more important than thewell-being of an entire city.

March's Book

Twilight
by Stephenie Meyer

March 11th
8pm at Judy's

Summary:

When seventeen-year-old Bella leaves Phoenix to live with her father in Forks, Washington, she meets an exquisitely handsome boy at school for whom she feels an overwhelming attraction and who she comes to realize is not wholly human.

February's Book

The Proper Care & Feeding of Husbands

by Dr. Laura Schlessinger

February 12th

8pm at Aimeè's

Summary:

Dr. Laura Schlessinger believes that, contrary to popular belief, it is not just the men who drop the ball after the marriage. The typical complaint is that men stop being romantic after hitting the altar; but the women do, too: Wives also tend to take their men for granted.Dr. Laura has spoken with women who debunk the myth that it's only the men who lose all interest in the relationship after the wedding. There are women who expect their husbands to fulfil all marital and familial obligations even when the wife decides sex is out! Some female callers display a lit of hostility towards domestic issues (like cooking dinner and keeping things cleaned up)–even when they are primarily at–home/part–time. Other female callers expressed disdain for any activities and pleasures their husbands have outside of their own participation and control. And some have serious problems with their husbands' (prior) children and families, expecting him to sacrifice all his familial ties for her. No matter if you're the husband or the wife, you might recognize yourself in one of these categories. In THE PROPER CARE AND FEEDING OF HUSBANDS, Dr. Laura shows you how to sift through these problems and come out with a happier home life, one that will sustain you for years and sustain your children. After all, helping married couples improve their relationships is the single best means of making the world a safer place for children.

January's Book

Over Sea, Under Stone

The Dark is Rising

by Susan Cooper

January 8, 2008

8pm at Emily's

We actually will be reading a whole series for Jan (I know, wishful thinking, but even if you only start the first book, that's fine too). The series is "The Dark is Rising Sequence" by Susan Cooper. The first book is called "Over Sea, Under Stone" the second is called "The Dark is Rising." These books range in length from about 130 pages to about 275 and are really easy reads as they are youth/teen fiction. Well, there's an element of Arthurian fantasy to them too. The second one especially is fun to read around Christmas time.