Brava, Valentine

This is a follow-up to Very Valentine by Adriana Trigiani. I listened to this on CD while sewing like a mad woman. I liked this story as well as the first, especially since it had the ending that was missing (for me, anyway) in the first novel. If you love shoes and fashion, this is a great book for you. I liked it!

Home Safe

This was another freebie from Barnes and Noble. I haven't read anything by this author, but I actually liked this book pretty well. It's about an author that has a bit of writer's block in the aftermath of her husband's death. It made me want to be able to write well. I like creative writing, however I don't seem to have anything to say when I need to. The main character in this book teaches a writhing class. It made me feel so terrible at the stuff! I guess my thought process could improve some!

Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma

If you like the other Mysterious Benedict Society books, you'll like this one as well. It's a fun story that follows the Mysterious Benedict Society on another adventure. They are again in a tangle with Mr. Curtain and have a lot of exciting things that happen. We learn a lot more about some of the characters as well. This is surely a fun one!

Lucia, Lucia

I really liked this book about a young woman in 1950's New York. She has to decide between a career (in fashion) that she loves, and a marriage and a family. It also includes a great Italian family. I thought that it was a sweet story and really liked it. I would recommend it for sure!

The Help

The Help was an excellent book. I had heard so much about it and couldn't wait to read it. I put it on hold at the library and was on the wait list - number 253! I thought it was a lost cause. I was just on the verge of buying it when I got the e-mail that I could pick it up. It was worth it. What a great story. It is about the relationships between white women and their black maids. I was flabbergasted at the attitudes that people could have - and that they could so blatantly demonstrate! The early sixties must have been an interesting time to live. Being from where I'm from and growing up when I have, it's really difficult to believe that this could have been the way things were. This book really opened my eyes to racial discrimination.

One Shot

I just finished this book (also free on my nook.) It was a pretty good book. It had a unique main character - Jack Reacher, former army police officer, come to save the day. There are a number of other books in this series. This story was pretty action-packed and interesting. I would recommend it!

Storm Front

We got a nook not too long ago and I've been a little wary of it so far. Jed just loves it and I still love old school books and such - you know? Well, Barnes and Noble has been offering some free books for the nook each week for the past few weeks. (Of course, it's the first book in different series just to get you hooked and then you'll buy the following books.)

Storm Front was just one of those free books. It actually sounded interesting, so I read it (on the nook - it's a pretty handy little thing!) This was a pretty good book. I thought that it was a really interesting plot. A wizard advertising in the yellow pages in Chicago? Where else would you find a story like that? I would recommend it, but it does have a little language. I just really liked the voice of the main character. It is different from anything else I've read before.

Standing in the Rainbow

I really liked the first Fannie Flagg book that I read (Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe.) So, I decided to read this book by her as well; and I really liked it. I thought that it was really a cute story about Elmwood Springs, a small town in Missouri. It follows the characters from the 1940's until 2000. I just thought that it was a really sweet story. It was a fun read!