Saturday, July 27, 2013

With or Without You

By Domenica Ruta  This insightful, semi chilling memoir stars
Nikki, as she is called by most, a young girl growing up in Danvers, Massachusetts during the 1980's. She lives in a ramshackle home that is falling apart and filled with trash, with her drug induced single mom who loves her deeply. But love is a tricky word to describe Kathi Ruta who appears uneducated, yet is wicked smart and quite savvy. Kathi seems most untrustworthy, yet consistently figures out, connives, steals and lies her way to solving most problems successfully. She verbally abuses Nikki and simultaneously loves her immensely. Nikki is raised in a world of drug deals, an extended complicated family in a town where most people do not aspire to ever leave. Nikki finds herself living in a world of books and excels at academics at every level. Her mother secures her a coveted scholarship to private school and even through her drug haze pushes Nikki to always reach for more. After a life filled with such contradiction, it is sadly no surprise that Nikki finds herself as an addicted adult on a confusing road to nowhere. Reminiscent of The Glass Castle, this memoir stole my heart. This authors honest deep story of her life is witty and brilliantly written. The reader wants to cheer, pray and save this smart hungry little girl. There is no doubt this author was born to write and share her words. I recommend this excellent, somewhat difficult read.  BUY TODAY!
With or Without You: A Memoir

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

If I Stay

By Gayle Forman      Mia is a cellist, a prodigy growing up in
Oregon with open minded hippie parents and an adorable little brother. Juilliard bound and finishing highschool Mia has fallen madly in love with Adam, a talented local punker in a rock band. Suddenly - unexpectedly - tragically - a terrible accident occurs leaving Mia struggling for her life. She quietly reflects on her family, friends and passions to find a deeper truer meaning in her fight to hang on. This layered, simplistic story is sickeningly beautiful, the friendships so true. Focusing on the sacrifices we all make for our children and loved ones on a daily basis. What is life, before and after all the beauty. How people celebrate life every single day, never knowing what the next one will bring. Measuring success and constantly comparing to others when it could all be taken away in a single moment. This is a teary but enjoyable story that forces you to face the truth, or at least one of them.  Highly recommend this novel. It is a YA novel that actually has a sequel I cannot wait to get my hands on.  BUY TODAY!!
If I Stay

Monday, July 22, 2013

The Husband's Secret

By Liane Moriarty  Amazing Australian author Liane Moriarty
(What Alice Forgot & The Hypnotist's Love Story!) once again mesmerizes her readers with a tangled web of love, family and friendship. Tess, Rachel and Cecelia find themselves connected in extraordinary circumstances that they could have never dreamed of in a million years. Tess, a young mother and wife is terrified of losing all she worked for in a mystifying love triangle; Cecelia the perfect mom, housewife and tupperware extraordinaire is shocked to find a letter revealing a past she knew nothing about and her husband's most terrifying secret and Rachel is raging and mourning over the loss of her daughter Janie who was murdered 28 years prior. As the reader delves into each of the women's stories, the connections become astonishingly clear. Who would you choose when it is all at risk? How far would you go to keep a secret? Could not put down this page turner, a definite must read for summer! Enjoy!! BUY TODAY!!!
The Husband's Secret

Wednesday, July 17, 2013

Where'd You Go Bernadette

By Maria Semple    Bernadette Fox, certified award winning genius
architect/mom/wife/recluse is living in Seattle with her husband, Elgie, a top top top at Microsoft and her brilliant, sassy 15 yr old daughter named Bee. They live in a ramshackle home that used to be a reformatory for pregnant girls and while Bee attends a local out-of-the-box school, Bernadette hides in her backyard Airstream and sits on her computer all day complaining about Seattle, everyone in Seattle and everyone near Seattle while having a virtual assistant in India complete all her daily tasks. This hysterical, completely UNIQUE, funny book will certainly take you away! The adventures and misadventures of this family and town is almost a spoof and yet could actually be true at the same time. The reader will find themselves in the minds of a topsy turvy world where everyone is on the edge of - is it genius - or crazy???? After many recommendations I am so glad I finally read this book. Sometimes you just can't take yourself so seriously! A GREAT SUMMER READ! People at the beach will keep wondering why you are smiling. BUY OR DOWNLOAD TODAY!
Where'd You Go, Bernadette: A Novel

Sunday, July 14, 2013

Is This Tomorrow

By Caroline Leavitt   Ava Lark lives with her 12 yr old son Lewis in Waltham, MA.
The year is 1956 and it is not easy for a divorced, Jewish, working, single mother who just happens to be beautiful - to live in this small town in this small time. It is a period in America where divorce is unacceptable, as are tight jeans and being even a little "pink" (communist or showing signs against the coming war in any way). Lewis has only two friends in the whole wide world and they happen to also be fatherless (theirs died from a heart attack). Jimmy and Rose are siblings that live across the street and the three mouseketeers are inseparable. Ava works, Ava dates, everything Ava does is frowned upon by the neighbors and deep inside shames her son, as he yearns to be more like everyone else. One day a horrible tragedy occurs that changes each of their lives forever. This novel is about family and friendship. It is about love and acceptance. It is hard enough for adults to maneuver through this sometimes crazy world, remember how it felt to be twelve. Ms. Leavitt is an extraordinary writer. She brings the reader into the mind and hearts of these tremendous characters. It is amazing how things on the surface are so very different today yet people have hardly changed at all. Highly recommend this fantastic summer read!!
A MUST READ!!! BUY OR DOWNLOAD TODAY!!
Is This Tomorrow: A Novel

Friday, July 12, 2013

The Silver Star

By Jeanette Walls    Nothing is better than a hammock, a great book, a hot summer day and reading it
in its entirety in 6 hours! :-) Liz and Bean, two sisters that take care of each other through the trials and tribulations of a complicated lifestyle. Charlotte, their mother, a singer and songwriter basically wandering the country with her two beloved daughters leaves them alone to find herself during a "bad spell." When authorities become suspicious that the girls on on their own, Liz, 15 and Bean 12 decide to find their Uncle Tinsley and travel across the country by bus, from California to Virginia and the small hometown of their mother. The girls are smart and savvy and their love is never ending, doing whatever it takes to survive in a world that is not always true or honest. This novel is about family, love, civil rights, and your place in society. It is the early 1970's and while world is trying to fight its way to fairness, so too are Liz and Bean. With the beautiful writing of Ms. Walls, the reader manages to once again love the wacky mother who doesn't always follow the rules but loves her girls nonetheless. If you loved The Glass Castle, DO NOT MISS THIS AMAZING READ!!!
BUY OR DOWNLOAD!! The Silver Star: A Novel

Thursday, July 11, 2013

Goodbye for Now

By Laurie Frankel    Sam is a software engineer living in Seattle,
working for a romance matching web site. He is so good at his job that he gets fired. But not before matching himself with a coworker named Meredith and unexpectedly falling head over heels in love. Meredith becomes overwhelmed by the passing of her beloved grandmother and Sam gives her the gift of a lifetime. And so starts the most unique storyline I have ever read. One that is hard to accept but amazing to imagine. In this new high tech world we live in, it is not too far to stretch the imagination and realize that our every click will follow us long after we are gone. Amazing writing, page turner, wonderful funny loving characters. This novel is a great summer read, highly recommend. Enjoy!!
BUY IT NOW!!! Goodbye for Now