Sarah by Orson Scott Card

Sarah by Orson Scott Card is the first in the Women of Genesis trilogy.  It is historical fiction based on Abraham and Sarah's story in the bible.  I loved this book.  When you read it you have to realize this isn't based on a lot of fact, because there isn't a lot in Genesis to go by, but Card does a wonderful job keeping the characters true to their greatness and creating a wonderful history and story.  Sarah is such a wonderful women, such a woman of faith.  You cry for her when she can't bare a child, and cry when she makes the decision to give Hagar to Abram and then you cry for joy when she finally has Isaac.  You watch her build her faith and grow.  I thought it was a very faith promoting book and very uplifting.  I would highly recommend it.  It will make reading Genesis more interesting next time around for me.   I am looking forward to reading the other 2 in the series Rebekah and Rachel and Leah.

Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand

This book was amazing!  It is a nonfiction about a World War II plane crew that crashes, how the survivors make in on a raft for the longest time ever known in the Pacific Ocean and then as POW's in Japan.  This was hard to read at times and turned my stomach as I read about the treatment of the POW's by their captors, but I had such an overwhelming sense of gratitude for what those brave men did and went through for others, myself, my country, and my freedom.  A friend said, "It was an honor to read this book," and I agree.  Anything that makes us understand and better appreciate our history is well worth our time.  WWII has so many stories from the millions that were involved on both sides, and we can learn and grow so much from those, and it is so important that we do.  This is a wonderful example.  Laura Hillenbrand has a wonderful writing style that takes you right there to help you appreciate it even better.  How these men went through all this, came out alive (which is a miracle) and then were able to overcome and move on and even forgive (which is an even bigger miracle) is so uplifting and amazing and a tribute to God and the human spirit.  Please check this one out.  You will not regret it.

The Ranger's Apprentice Series update

So, I am loving John Flanagan's Ranger's Apprentice series.  My whole family is.  My 11 year old girl has finished all 10, my 13 year old girl is on #9.  My 9 year old girl is on #6.  My husband is on #7, and I am currently half-way through #5.  My 6 year old boy hasn't started them yet :) 

Just a word of advice when you read this series.  Read them in this order 1,2,3,4,7,5,6,8,9,10.  #7 needs to be read after #4, and then just go from #7 to #5 and continue on.  Flanagan skipped several years in the stories between #4 and #5, and he realized this and went back and filled in those missing years with #7, so read them in that order.  Such a good series!!!!

The Geography of Bliss by Eric Weiner

Described as a "philosophical self-help humorous travel memoir" this was an interesting read.  It is non-fiction.  It took me a while to get through it, and he was a little more crass than I normally like--normally don't like anything crass or with language.  This had a little of both, so I can't highly recommend it, but it was interesting.  Eric Weiner is a grump, and he was determined to find the world's happiest place.  Each chapter he goes to a different country and tries to figure out why that place is happy or not.  A positive therapy researcher--or a happiness researcher-- has rated the countries in the world from the happiest to the least happy, so Weiner goes to check them out.  Netherlands, Switzerland, Iceland, Thailand, and Bhutan are some of the happiest.  Weiner goes to each of these to see why.  Moldova is one of the least happy, and he also goes there to find out why.  Britain, India, Qatar, and the US are also visited and discussed.  It was interesting to learn about the different places and what really does make people happy.  Hate to over use the word "interesting," but it was that and informative.

The Lemon Tree by Sandy Tolan

I absolutely loved this book!  Non fiction is usually not my favorite genre, but I really loved this.  Being an English major I read a lot, a lot, a lot in college (did I mention I had to read a lot in college??), and looking back I think all of what I read was fiction (I don't think textbooks count at non-fiction literature, they are just textbooks).  I don't think I ever read a really, good non-fiction book for any of my English classes, so I have really not been a big fan of non-fiction, but this changed my mind.  After reading this I can say that well-written non-fiction can rival good fiction any day.  I think one reason I loved this is because it explained so well--in language anyone can understand the conflict in the Middle East.  Why is there always fighting in Israel?  What is going on?  I never really understood it or knew until I read this.  In reading the reviews it said that one high school teacher was having her whole 9th grade class read it.   I agree and applaud that teacher, and I am going to have my 8th grader read it.  It is appropriate and will help them learn and understand so much about the area and conflict.  In a very short, short synopsis the book starts in about 1917 and is about an Arab family that is forced to leave their home by Jews without any compensation into a refugee camp.  The home is given to a Jewish family from Bulgaria who have no knowledge why the previous family left.  The home has a lemon tree in the back yard--thus the title.  Years after the children of both of these families have grown up, the Arab son is finally able to travel back to his boyhood home, and he is met at the door by the Jewish girl that grew up there after he left with her having no knowledge of why or how he left.  This Arab man and Jewish woman develop a friendship from what they have shared--their home and lemon tree-- and try to work out how to make things better.  This helped me to see how complex a situation this is--no one side is all right and the other all wrong.  Many wrongs have been done on both sides and a better way to fix things needs to be found for these people who still suffer.  An excellent read.  I would highly recommend it. 

Coffeehouse Angel by Suzanne Selfors

Coffeehouse Angel by Suzanne Selfors is a teen read.  It was fun.  I would like to visit the town that the story takes place in, but I don't think it exists, but if it did, I would like to go to the coffeehouse and get some hot chocolate.  The main character is a teenage girl Katrina Svensen who lives with her grandma above their coffeehouse.  Their coffeehouse is old school, and they are starting to suffer because next door is the "Starbucks" of the town and they don't know how to compete.  One day Katrina does a good dead for someone she thinks is homeless and sleeping in their alley.  Little does she know she helps an angel (a cute teenage boy angel Malcolm) and that he has to give her her greatest  wish, but the problem is Katrina isn't quite sure what her greatest wish should be, and lots of interesting and amazing and rather disgusting things (can you say worlds' largest rat?) happen as Malcolm the teen angel tries to grant Katrina's wish.  A fun light read.  Shannon Hale recommended it on her site.



Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld

Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld is sort of science fiction novel about WWI.  It tells the story of Prince Aleksander who should have been the heir to the Austro-Hungarian empire and Deryn Sharp, a girl that disguises herself as a boy to get into the British Air Service.  These two from very different backgrounds end up together on the huge British air ship the Leviathan.  The British follow Darwin and make beasts to do things instead of machines.  The Clanker countries make machines to do everything, and the two different ideals do not work well together, but are forced to as Alek and Deryn come to rely on each other and come to terms with their differences.  This was interesting, and it took me a while to get what he was talking about with Darwinists and their "beasties" and the Clankers and their machines.  Thankfully there are illustrations in each chapter so you can see what the machines and animals look like.  I think boys would really like this book, and its sequel which I haven't read yet.  Some fun summer reading.