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:

The Stars Shine Down by Sidney Sheldon

Published as: The Stars Shine Down in October 1992

Publisher: William Morrow

Birth Name: Sidney Schechtel

Born: 11 February 1917 in Chicago, Illinois
Died: 30 January 2007 in Rancho Mirage, California

Canonical Name: Sidney Sheldon

Pseudonyms: Mark Rowane, Allan Devon and Christopher Golato

The Stars Shine Down by Sidney Sheldon was the second book that I read in 2010. I have had this book on my TBR shelf since November 20, 2009 although I didn't actually read it until January of 2010. This book took me one day to read and is currently on several swapping sites looking for another good home.

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Anna Quindlen - Blessings

7. Blessings by Anna Quindlen (2002)
Length: 240 pages
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Started: 23 January 2010
Finished: 29 January 2010
Where did it come from? From a Library Book Sale
How long has it been on my TBR pile? Since 20 November 2009
Why do I have it? I like Anna Quindlen as an author and have several other books by this author on my TBR pile.

When a young couple sneak onto an estate, they leave an abandoned baby in a cardboard box. It then falls to a recently released prisoner, the caretaker of the estate, to take care of the baby. What follows is a story about the owner of the estate, Lydia Blessing, and what happens when the caretaker tries to hide the baby from Lydia.

I really enjoyed this book. It was a very sweet and I give it an A+! I would definitely recommend this book to people who like books about family.

A+! - (96-100%)


Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Debbie Macomber - The Shop on Blossom Street

6. The Shop on Blossom Street by Debbie Macomber (2003)
The Blossom Street Series Book 1
Length: 352 pages
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Started: 15 January 2010
Finished: 22 January 2010
Where did it come from? From Paperback Swap
How long has it been on my TBR pile? Since 14 December 2009
Why do I have it? I like contemporary fiction and Debbie Macomber is a new author for me, although my sister Margaret in Australia actually recommended this book to me.

Lydia Hoffman decided to start a knitting shop on Blossom Street. She called it A Good Yarn and it represented her new life free from cancer. The shop offers knitting classes and the first one is "How to Knit a Baby Blanket".

Three people join the class: Jacqueline Donovan is estranged from her husband, doesn't like the woman married to her only son, but is determined to at least pretend she likes her pregnant daughter-in-law by knitting the baby blanket.

For Carol Girard, the baby blanket represents a message of hope as she and her husband make a final attempt at in vitro fertilization. And tough-looking Alix Townsend is knitting the blanket as part of a court-ordered community service project.

These four woman will learn about friendship, make unexpected discoveries - about themselves and each other - and experience love through the age-old craft of knitting. My sister in Australia recommended this book to me and I give it an A+!

A+! - (96-100%)

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Debbie Macomber - The Shop on Blossom Street

6. The Shop on Blossom Street by Debbie Macomber (2003)
The Blossom Street Series Book 1
Length: 352 pages
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Started: 15 January 2010
Finished: 22 January 2010
Where did it come from? From Paperback Swap
How long has it been on my TBR pile? Since 14 December 2009
Why do I have it? My sister Margaret in Australia recommended this book to me

Lydia Hoffman decided to start a knitting shop on Blossom Street. She called it A Good Yarn and it represented her new life free from cancer. The shop offers knitting classes and the first one is "How to Knit a Baby Blanket".

Three people join the class: Jacqueline Donovan is estranged from her husband, doesn't like the woman married to her only son, but is determined to at least pretend she likes her pregnant daughter-in-law by knitting the baby blanket.

For Carol Girard, the baby blanket represents a message of hope as she and her husband make a final attempt at in vitro fertilization. And tough-looking Alix Townsend is knitting the blanket as part of court-ordered community service project.

These four woman will learn about friendship, make unexpected discoveries - about themselves and each other - and experience love through the age-old craft of knitting. My sister in Australia recommended this book to me and I give it an A+!

A+! - (96-100%)

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Lisa Scottoline - Moment of Truth

5. Moment of Truth by Lisa Scottoline (2000)
The Rosato and Associates Series Book 7
Length: 306 pages
Genre: Contemporary Mystery
Started: 10 January 2010
Finished: 15 January 2010
Where did it come from? From a Library Book Sale
How long has it been on my TBR pile? Since 20 November 2009
Why do I have it? I like contemporary mysteries and Lisa Scottoline is a new author for me.

When Jack Newlin comes home to find his wife dead on their elegant dining room floor, he's convinced he knows who has killed her. He sets out to stage the murder so that he appears to be guilty. To hammer the final nail in his coffin, he hires the most inexperienced lawyer he can find: Mary DiNunzio of Rosato and Associates.

Unfortunately for Jack, hiring Mary might be his biggest mistake. Inexperienced she might be, but Mary soon discovers that instead of defending a guilty client claiming to be innocent, she defending an innocent client claiming to be guilty. I give this story a B+!

B+! - (89-94%)

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Paul Andreota - The Sweet Taste of Burning: A Novel of the Occult

4. The Sweet Taste of Burning: A Novel of the Occult by Paul Andreota (1973)
Length: 161 pages
Genre: Horror
Started: 7 January 2010
Finished: 9 January 2010
Where did it come from? From a Library Book Sale
How long has it been on my TBR pile? Since 20 November 2009
Why do I have it? I like horror and Paul Andreota is a new author for me.

When an investigative journalist goes to the French countryside to cover a story about a faith healing gone wrong, he doesn't know that sooner than he thinks he will be drawn into a horror deeper and more complex than he could have believed. I give this story an A!

A! - (90-95%)


Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Caroline Crane - Woman Vanishes

3. Woman Vanishes by Caroline Crane (1984)
Length: 210 pages
Genre: Contemporary Mystery
Started: 4 January 2010
Finished: 6 January 2010
Where did it come from? From a Library Book Sale
How long has it been on my TBR pile? Since 20 November 2009
Why do I have it? I like contemporary mysteries and Caroline Crane is a new author for me.

To save her life and the life of her daughter, Pauline has to disappear. Her husband Jarvis has left her a note claiming that he owes some people money and begs her not to look for him, a claim backed up by a late night visit from two loan sharks. Jarvis owes them $40,000 dollars to save his failing business. The loan sharks claim that if Pauline doesn't pay up, her daughter Kirby might become the victim of an "accident".


The police can't protect her without solid evidence. Her friends in the affluent suburb don't want to get involved. She must take Kirby and go into hiding - lose herself in New York City. But she has no money and few connections there. How will she survive? I really liked this book but the ending was a little confusing. I give it a B+!


B+! - (89-94%)

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight