by Slavomir Rawicz, 1956 (ghostwritten by Ronald Downingin) Dad’s book. Slavomir was a young man in Polish Army taken prisoner in 1939 by the Russians. They were convinced he was a spy. They tortured him for months, then took him – actually he had to walk with 4000 other prisoners – after a freezing cold […]
Author: bookhound
The Pickwick Papers
by Charles Dickens, 1837 Finished on the way up to Adam and Danette’s wedding. Fell in love with Charles Dickens again! Wow! Fell in love with Mr. Pickwick – a fine old Gentleman, and Sam, his servant, who says ‘W’ as ‘V’ and ‘V’ as ‘W.” “Wictim, Wery, Vay, Vith, Vot, Vos.” Sam’s Dad, Mr. […]
New Mercies
by Sandra Dallas, 2006 (Author of The Persian Pickle Club) Pretty good book. Nora Bondurant of Denver gets called to Natchez, Mississippi, because her Aunt Amalia was murdered and she is the sole heir. Turns out the Aunt was really her grandma and she was murdered by Bayard Lott, a white man who loved her […]
Kristin Lavransdatter: II, The Mistress of Husaby
by Sigrid Undset, 1925 Not as good as first book – very difficult to understand – almost all of it – entangled politics, difficult to pronounce/remember characters. But – still really good! Norway 1300’s. Kristin & Erlend are married. He takes her to his manor – Husaby. She starts to make things better there. Has […]
Quiet Strength
by Tony Dungy, 2007 Insider’s look at the NFL and Coach Tony Dungy, a very Christian man. He put God first and his faith never waivered, despite getting fired by the Bucs in 2002 after he turned the team around over years starting in 1996. And his oldest son’s suicide on Dec. 22, 2005. He […]
The Yearling
by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, Pulitzer Prize Winner, 1939 BEAUTIFUL BOOK!! The Baxter’s, Penny (Dad), Ma, Jody-son, live in a clearing on high ground in Florida. They farm and raise or hunt all their food. Tote water from the sink hole. Nearest neighbors are the Forrester’s, typical moonshiners. They are bothered by a bear – Ol’ […]
Perelandra
by C.S. Lewis, 1943 (2nd in the Space Trilogy) Ransom is taken to Perelandra (Venus). It is a land of floating islands, friendly beasts, bubble trees, and yellow gourds delicious beyond belief. The Bubble trees refresh you better than a cool shower on a hot day. The Yellow gourds, which grow on trees, taste so […]
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows, 2008 Recommended by Christie Leighton, finished 7-10-10 camping up at Chambers Lake, gorging myself on Gorp, pringles, cheese and crackers and wine! By Mary Ann Shaffer and her niece, Annie Barrows. Annie finished the book when Mary Ann’s health prohibited her from doing so, August 2008. What a […]
The Double Comfort Safari Club
by Alexander McCall Smith, 11th #1 Ladies Detective Series, 2010 Phuti Radiphuti has his leg crushed by one of his delivery men who backed his truck into him. He has to have the lower part amputated. His Aunty won’t let Mma Makutsi visit in the hospital but Mma Ramotswe gets that changed and he heals […]
Out of the Silent Planet
by C.S. Lewis, 1938 Marvelous Book! Fantastic Story! Ransom is kidnapped by Weston and Devine – taken in their spaceship to Malacandra where they were going to turn him over to the Sorns for a human sacrifice, they thought. Ransom escapes and meets up with the Hross – a friendly, large, fur-covered people. He lives […]
Tea Time for the Traditionally Built
by Alexander McCall Smith, 2009 Great book! LOVED this one!! Mma Ramotswe solves the mystery of why the soccer team, the Kalahari Swoopers, are losing all of their games. Actually, her foster son, Puso, figured it out – it was that the owner, Mr. Molofololo, kept changing things and their shoes were uncomfortable so they […]
Tinkers
by Paul Harding, 2009 Finished as fast as I could – like abstract art – all over the place, written like his notes of nature while on acid. It did have a main story in between the “trips.” A man is dying of cancer – laying in his living room – memories of his father, […]
The Miracle at Speedy Motors
by Alexander McCall Smith, 2008 Not the best Ladies Detective book. Mma Makutsi & Phuti Radiphuti buy a bed – velvet heart headboard. It doesn’t fit into Mma Makutsi’s house when they delivered it the next day, so she has them leave it outside. The rainy season starts and ruins it. She buys a cheap […]
Lorna Doone
by R.D. Blackmore, 1869 LOVED THIS BOOK! Wonderful hero of heroes, John Ridd, falls in love with Lorna Doone, even though her people killed his father. He rescues her from the wicked Doone’s and she is restored as Lady Lorna Dugal, because the Doone’s had kidnapped her and killed her parents and brother. John loves […]
Arrowsmith
by Sinclair Lewis, Pulitzer Prize winner, 1925 Martin Arrowsmith comes from Elk Mills in the state of Winnemac. Goes to medical school in early 1900’s. Falls in love with research with Dr. Gottlieb. Marries Leora, a wonderful girl who adores him. They move to her hometown, Wheatsylvania (North Dakota) but can’t get on with the […]
The Man from Beijing
by Henning Mankell, 2010 Rich, powerful Chinese man (Ya Ru) takes revenge on 19 Swedish people living in a remote village in Sweden. Their ancestor was cruel and brutal to his Chinese ancestor, San, on the railroad, and then again back in China at a Christian mission. Story of revenge taken way too far. Birgitta […]
Death in Kenya
by M.M. Kaye, 1958 Great mystery set in Kenya right after the Mau Mau revolt. Flamingo, the estate owned by Aunt Em, in Kenya. Her niece, Victoria, comes to live there. First, Alice is murdered, the wife of Em’s grandson, Eden. Then, Kamau disappears, then Gilly Markham is murdered. Then an attempt on Victoria. It […]
One of Ours
by Willa Cather, Pulitzer Prize 1923 Claude Wheeler – “Now he dismissed all Christian Theology as something too full of evasions and sophistries to be reasoned about.” Sophistry – A subtle, tricky, superficially plausible, but generally fallacious method of reasoning. Fallacious – deceptive, misleading, containing a fallacy, logically unsound What a beautiful book! What a […]
God is Closer Than You Think
by John Ortberg, 2005 Great book. First Pres Lenten Study 2010. Wayne led small group: Dave and Norma Brown, Roger and Elizabeth Heins, Al & Rosemary Habernicht, Jim and Linda Wagner, Patrice Quadrel. Started out with a bad attitude because it’s not “The Hole in Our Gospel,” but ended up liking it very much. Especially […]
Tales of the South Pacific
by James A. Michener, 1946 (won Pullitzer Prize in 1948) Norfolk Island: an island in the South Pacific near Australia and New Zealand. The Norfolk Pines were planted by the Mutiny of the Bounty people who ended up there. They had to cut them all down to make a landing strip during WWII. Bill Harbison-yuck! […]