I chose this book mainly because I enjoy historical fiction and The Flower Sisters by Michelle Collins Anderson did not disappoint. It is based on the tragic and true event of the Bond Dance Hall fire in West Plains, MO that happened one hot August night in 1928. In this novel Ms. Anderson gives 15-year old Daisy Flowers her "voice" when, as a summer intern for the local paper, she takes on the task of interviewing the survivors (many very reluctantly) of the of fire that occurred 50 years prior in the town (fictionalized here as Possum Flats). In the process secrets come to light, old wounds are reopened and new friendships form. Although the cause of the fire still remains unknown, Ms Anderson's imagination easily pulls you into the story line with characters that are well-drawn with varied personalities and her novel flows easily. I'm looking forward to reading more from this talented author.

What is home? What does it mean to "be home?" It's more than a physical place, as the novel "Once We Were Home" explains very well. Through the children Roger, Ana, Oskar and Renata and spanning the years 1946-1968 we experience "home" through their eyes and experiences and learn that home can also be a deep feeling of belonging somewhere with those you love, even if they are not your biological family. Based on true stories of children stolen and displaced in the wake of WWII this novel is moving and thought provoking. I enjoyed it and recommend it to book clubs and individual readers.

Inspired by true stories, this extraordinary novel draws you in from the very first page. Yona is a young woman who uses her survival skills to help those fleeing from the Nazi invasion of Poland. How she does that and the ensuing results are the focus of the novel. I believe "The Forest of Vanishing Stars" will appeal to history fans, book clubs and anyone who likes suspense. I thoroughly enjoyed it and highly recommend it.

In "The Smallest Lights in the Universe" astrophysicist Sara Seager has written a very illuminating and moving memoir. Beginning with her navigating the early stages of widowhood, she looks both backwards and forwards describing her early life in Canada where she first fell in love with the stars by looking through her backyard telescope, how she met her husband and her painstaking work in the journey to discover an elusive earth-like exoplanet. Strikingly honest and forthright she describes the challenges she faced in her personal life and her research. Well worth reading and suitable for book club discussion, this memoir is packed with not only fascinating information about our universe but with tidbits of wisdom too, such as the quote from her then 6-year old son Alex, "Live your dreams, face your fears, and pay attention to your surroundings." Good advice for all of us.

I've read other books by Ann Hood and liked them, this one...not as much. I'm the sort of person who likes to read to either learn something new or to "escape." This book did neither for me. While I liked and sympathized with the character of Ava, I found her daughter Maggie very depressing and sad. For me, the most interesting parts were the discussions of the other books mentioned, some of which I have read. All in all, I have mixed feelings about this one...it would probably be a good choice for a book club discussion, but it's not one I would read again.

This is my first "Charles Lenox" mystery, but it won't be my last. It was very good. Charles and his brother Edmund are particularly well-developed and I enjoyed their interplay. The two mysteries kept me interested and I enjoyed the different character's gentle humor throughout the book. The author did a very good job of moving things along. A nice read indeed. Looking forward to reading the preceding books as well as those to follow.

This book was not only enjoyable to read, but the recipes shared by the authors are worthy of making...they provide a wide variety and none are too complicated. I loved the way they shared little bits and pieces of their lives with the readers too. I feel it's a very honest book and one you will remember not only for the recipes but for the family stories, long after you've put down your fork.

What if you had the opportunity to go to another world and bring the Good News to a people very different from yourself? What if it entailed leaving your wife/partner in your ministry behind here on earth? Would you go? This is the situation Peter Leigh and his wife Bea face. Peter chooses to go and brings "The Book of Strange New Things" to the inhabitants of this alien world. The trials he faces there and the ones his wife faces here on earth and how these events change each of them is the basis of the story. Being a Christian I appreciated the way Michael Faber incorporated parts of the gospel into this well written and interesting novel, and I especially loved his paraphrasing of the 23rd Psalm. This would be an excellent choice for a book club discussion.

I started out not liking this book, but pushed on because I didn't want to leave it unfinished...I'm glad I did. Henry and Rachel are, like most people, very complex and Laurel Saville explores this in very distinct and unique "voices" in each chapter. This book caused me to take a fresh look at my own self and rethink what I always thought I knew about my various family members. As one of the characters comments, "if we get our own parents so hopelessly wrong, how can we be sure of what we think we know of ourselves?" Each chapter reveals layers of the characters and at the end of the book we come to understand a little more of what makes them tick and why they acted like they did. I'm glad I read it and I ended up caring about Henry and Rachel and their lives.

Having recently begun researching my own family tree I was excited to read this book. I liked it, but not as much as I had hoped. While the author put great detail into the background stories of the girls in the convent, I never felt she fleshed out the main character, Menina very well. I would have liked more of her back story and more about her relationship with Alejandro. For such a long book, the ending felt rushed as if the author was tired of writing and wanted to wrap things up quickly. As I said, I liked it and am glad I read it; however, I'm not sure I would recommend it to my friends.

Reads like fiction only it's not! Part history lesson, part travelog, part adventure story and totally engrossing. Eighty Days is immensely informative and a pleasure to read. While I had heard of Nellie Bly I had never heard of Elisabeth Bisland and I did not know the grand story of their race around the world. Matthew Goodman manages to make this rather lengthy book about them and that race interesting and a great read. I particularly enjoyed learning about the different cultures of the countries they visited. This would make a good choice for a book club discussion.

I thoroughly enjoyed "Lots of Candles, Plenty of Cake" by Anna Quindlen. Once again Ms Quindlen has demonstrated her marvelous talent in giving us a book that is spot on with the experiences and thoughts a lot of us have had but have never quite been able to put into words the way she does. Growing older indeed leads to growing wiser as Ms. Quindlen shows us and her talent for showing us that is hard to match. Mature book clubs would enjoy this and be able to relate.

I've just finished "The Dressmaker" by Kate Alcott and found it to be interesting and well written. Ms Alcott takes a sad incident from the past and places it as the backdrop in her story of Tess Collins, a young woman longing to find her own way in life in an America on the verge of many changes. My mother was only 3 months old when Titanic sank so it was interesting to take a step back and observe a slice of life from 1912. I enjoyed this book immensely and was disappointed to come to the end of it. I admire Tess and would love to see the author do some sort of "generational novel" with her as the central character over the years. Lovers of historical fiction will enjoy this.

"Before Ever After" took me literally by surprise. Samanth Sotto's first novel hooked me from the beginning and slowly reeled me into the story to the point where I had to make myself stop reading in order to get anything else done. Without giving the plot away let me say that the author is a great storyteller and I highly recommend this book that others have described as a romance-mystery-historical adventure. This book is a winner and was tailor-made for book clubs and possibly a movie! My only regret is that Ms. Sotto did not include the recipe for Max's baked eggs! You won't be disappointed reading this.

"Radio Shangri-La" is part travel guide, part historical narrative and part adventure story, and well worth reading. As a journalist, Lisa Napoli was long acquainted with the hustle and bustle of working in the media profession, but nothing had prepared her for life in Bhutan, and in "Radio Shangri-La" she shares her extraordinary experiences with the readers. An unexpected encounter leads to her invitation to visit the tiny Himalayan nation dubbed "the happiest place on earth" and volunteer as a consultant at the start-up radio station Kuzoo FM; a station so young and new that by comparison, the average middle-class teenager in the U.S. had an iPod with a bigger hard drive than the one that engined Kuzoo. Bhutan is a poor nation, but as Ms. Napoli learns, it is overflowing with a sense of community and interconnectedness and it doesn't take her long to fall in love with the country and its people. In the course of her time there she comes to realize that the ingredients for happiness are simple: giving, loving, and contentment with where you are and who you are. I highly recommend you read this book and experience a little bit of Bhutan for yourself.