The best books are ones that leave you thinking. This is the case with Anna Quindlen's memoir. She reflects on the important events of her life and the times in which she lived. I got me thinking about what important events that were responsible for shaping my life and the decisions that I have made along the way.

A great novel about two families, the Lake family and the Moses family, who are related by marriage. They come up against evil in the form of Ras Ballenger. Ras hurts the two families deeply but he does not kill their beliefs in miracles. The book renewed my belief that the good in humanity can overcome evil.

I do not consider myself a "Foodie", one who is consumed with thoughts of food, so at first I was not enjoying the book. But the more I read the more I enjoyed it. The main character, Ginny, is a Foodie, It is a manifestation of her Asperger's Syndrome. The book is full of recipes and cooking. Has I got further into the book the storyline became more about family friendships, and the notion about what is normal. So by the time the book was finished I wished that it was longer.

The author fleshes out the missing parts of Alice Liddell's life, the person that was the inspiration for Lewis Carrol's "Alice in Wonderland". The result is a very good read.
While reading the book one wonders what the real relationship was between Alice and Charles Dodgson (aka Lewis Carrol). Was he simply an artist who became to attached to his subjects or was he a pedophile. There were a few scenes in the book that suggest the latter.

Kamila Shamsie did a good job in tying together three tragic events in world history in the latter part of the 20th Century. These events were tied together by their impact on three generations of two multi-ethnic families. I enjoyed the book for the most part but got a little bogged down with the jumping around from different time periods and places and also by the different ethic groups in India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan.

I read for two reasons. One for entertainment, to escape reality and be transported to a different time and place. I also enjoy reading books that provoke thought. "While My Sister Sleeps" was such a book. My first thought I had while reading was I that I need to tell my family what to do in case I can not speak for myself. My second thought was how would I react if I had a family member in Robin's situation.

The novel was a short and light read. I would recommend it to readers who like cats and food but I would not recommend it to serious mystery lovers. There was little character development of the people in the novel. However, the cats in the novel were developed much more. The author spends more time on the workings of the bakery (Earthly Delights) and the chocolate shop (Heavenly Pleasures) then she did on building suspense in the solving of the mysteries, of which there were two. The mystery that involved the title of the book was really the lesser of the two.

Being a fan of historical fiction, I enjoyed Pat Barker's novel, Life Class. She is skillfull in settiing the scenes of London, the English countryside and of war. The reader is able to experience the sights, sounds and even the smells that surround her characters. A good read and I would recommend it.