January's Book of the Month

Hello Everyone! I chose the picture posted above because it reminds me of reading to my daughter Mareena when she was little. Every afternoon until she was about eight or nine years old, we would take one of her books that she wanted to read or that she was reading and we would curl up together on my big bed. 

We would spend an hour or so reading a chapter of her book, and then take a nap together. Her absolutely favorite author at that time was an English author named Enid Blyton. Ahh, nice memories...

My picks for 'Books of the Month' will be decidedly more adult these days, but they will be from almost any genre. January's Book of the Month is: 

   

Winter Harvest by Norah Lofts

Published as: The Road to Revelation in 1941

Publisher: Davies, London

Birth Name: Norah Robinson

Born: 27 August 1904 in Shipdham, Norfolk, England

Died: 10 September 1983 in Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk, England

Canonical Name: Norah Lofts

Pseudonyms: Juliet Astley and Peter Curtis

Winter Harvest by Norah Lofts was the second book that I read in 2012. I have had this book on my TBR bookshelf since March 14, 2011 although I didn't actually read it until January of 2012. It took me two days to read this book and it is definitely a keeper for me.  

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Maeve Binchy - The Copper Beech

10. The Copper Beech by Maeve Binchy (1992)
Length: 391 pages
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Started: 27 January 2012
Finished: 31 January 2012
Where did it come from? From Bookmooch
How long has it been on my TBR pile? Since 24 January 2012
Why do I have it? I like Maeve Binchy as an author and have read and enjoyed several books by this author in the past.

In the Irish town of Shancarrig, the young people carve their intials - and those of the people that they love - into the trunk of an ancient copper beech tree in front of the schoolhouse. But not even the parish priest, Father Gunn, who knows everything that goes on behind closed doors, or Dr. Jims, the village doctor, who knows all the rest, realizes that not everything in the placid town is as it seems.

Unexpected passions and fear are bringing together so many people; the handsome new priest and Miss Ross, the shy, beautiful school teacher, Leonora, the privileged daughter of one of the town's richest families and Foxy Dunne, whose father did time in jail. There is also Nessa Ryan, whose parents own Ryan's Hotel, and two very different young men. For now the secrets deep in Shancarrig's shadows are being revealed, from innocent vanities and hidden loves, to crimes of the heart and murder.

I really enjoyed this book. I had read it several years ago as well and loved it then as well. I give it an A+!

A+! - (96-100%)

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Belva Plain - Fortune's Hand

9. Fortune's Hand by Belva Plain (1999)
Length: 448 pages
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Started: 24 January 2012
Finished: 26 January 2012
Where did it come from? From Bookmooch
How long has it been on my TBR pile? Since 24 January 2012
Why do I have it? I like Belva Plain as an author and have read and enjoyed several books by this author in the past.


Robb McDaniel led a charmed life; he was an idealistic young teacher engaged to his high school sweetheart. Then a sudden windfall, tragically earned, gave him the chance to go to law school and pursue a brilliant career. But nothing in his life could have prepared Robb for the price of a dream come true.


A job at a prominent law firm, marriage to the boss' daughter, a lovely family, a splendid home. Then came the offers that Robb couldn't refuse. His great success could lead to his greatest shame. I really enjoyed this Belva Plain book and give it an A+!


A+! - (96-100%)


Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Belva Plain - Crossroads

8. Crossroads by Belva Plain (2004)
Length: 352 pages
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Started: 18 January 2012
Finished: 22 January 2012
Where did it come from? From Bookmooch
How long has it been on my TBR pile? Since 17 January 2012
Why do I have it? I like Belva Plain as an author and have read and enjoyed several books by this author in the past.


Cassie Wright never saw it coming. As the owner of the thriving Wright Glassworks, her life was well-planned, orderly and quiet until a tragic accident forces her to become mother to a one year old child who has no one else to care for her. As the years pass, Cassie raises Gwen as her own, and the girl flourished in a world of privilege and opportunity. Enter Jewel Fairbanks; beautiful and conniving, Jewel will touch both Cassie's and Gwen's life in powerful ways. Both Gwen and Jewel will marry - Gwen to honest, hardworking Stan and Jewel to Jeff, a businessman who owns the company where Stan works. 


But when Stan makes a shocking discovery on the job, a growing drama of jealousy, greed and betrayal will entangle both couples, changing all four lives irrevocably in ways they never could have foreseen. While I usually enjoy Belva Plain's books, I found this one to be one of her weakest. I'm still glad that I read it and give this book a B+! 


B+! - (89-94%)


Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Anne Rivers Siddons - Hill Towns

7. Hill Towns by Anne Rivers Siddons (1993)
Length: 432 pages
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Started: 16 January 2012
Finished: 18 January 2012
Where did it come from? From Bookmooch
How long has it been on my TBR pile? Since 11 September 2010
Why do I have it? I like Anne Rivers Siddons as an author and have read and enjoyed several books by this author in the past.


A single traumatic event from her childhood has irrevocably marked Catherine Gaillard's adulthood, striking her with an almost unconquerable fear of leaving her cloistered mountaintop home in Tennessee for thirty years. But now, in an effort to shake her fears and put the incident behind her, Catherine is embarking on a life-changing vacation to Italy with her husband Joe. As they make their way across the beautiful countryside of Tuscany with two other couples, Cat and Joe soon find themselves being pulled in separate directions, and the fabric of their marriage begins to unravel. And a journey that began as a carefree tour crosses unexpected boundaries, carrying them into the heart of their relationship, becoming the ultimate test of their love.


I truly did enjoy this book. It was a little slow to get into at first but I give it an A+!


A+! - (96-100%)


Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Lionel Dahmer - A Father's Story

6. A Father's Story by Lionel Dahmer (1994)
Length: 255 pages
Genre: True Crime
Started: 14 January 2012
Finished: 16 January 2012
Where did it come from? From a Library Book Sale
How long has it been on my TBR pile? Since 1 March 2009
Why do I have it? I like true crime and Lionel Dahmer is a new author for me.


Lionel Dahmer delves into his own life and psyche and tries to explain to the public and himself how his son Jeffrey Dahmer - the notorious serial killer who was caught and imprisoned in 1991 - turned from loving son to gruesome murderer. He psychoanalyzes himself and tries to pinpoint the traits in himself that turned so wrong in his son. This is the second time that I've read this book and I give it an A+! 


A+! - (96-100%)


Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Kate Veitch - Trust

5. Trust by Kate Veitch (2010)
Length: 352 pages
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Started: 13 January 2012
Finished: 14 January 2012
Where did it come from? From Barnes and Noble
How long has it been on my TBR pile? Since 22 December 2011
Why do I have it? Mareena bought this book at a used book store through Barnes and Noble as a Christmas present for me. She knew that I had enjoyed Kate Veitch's first book very much as well.


Susanna Greenfield has put her all into being a good daughter, wife and mother. She has maintained an important career as a college art professor, raised two beautiful headstrong teenagers, had a successful twenty year marriage to her handsome architect husband, Gerry, and was the eternal peace maker between her pretty younger sister, Angie - a born-again Christian and recovering junkie - and their headstrong mother, Jean.


As Susanna struggles to revive her creative career, a devastating accident rips apart the very fabric of her safe and secure world, exposing secrets which threaten to destroy both a marriage and a life. I truly enjoyed this book, the second by Kate Veitch and give it an A+!


A+! - (96-100%)

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight