Ahh...the final Blossom Street Novel. At least that I know of!! This one was just published this year so I don't know if she is working on another one or not, but it has been a nice ride in Seattle.
This has been not my favorite book in the series, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. It was interesting because the male main character was a doctor who spent too much time at the hospital in an effort to "run away" from his problems at home, just like the one in the last book I read. I have enjoyed this series and reading Debbie's works. It makes me want to move on to other books she has written, but then all those other books sitting on my nightstand would *never* get read!!!
Truthfully I need to take a reading break to work on other projects, but I may wait until I at least hit 50 books. Hhm....
Debbie Macomber returns to Seattle’s beloved Blossom Street in this
heartfelt tale of friendship, renewal, and discovering what’s truly
important in life.
For years Libby Morgan dreamed only of making
partner in her competitive, high-pressure law firm. She sacrificed
everything for her career—her friends, her marriage, her chance at
creating a family. When her boss calls Libby into his office, she
assumes it will finally be good news, but nothing can prepare her for
the shocking reality: She’s been let go and must rebuild her entire life
. . . starting now.
With no job prospects in sight, Libby
reaches out to old friends and spends her afternoons at A Good Yarn, the
local knitting store. There she forms a close bond with Lydia, the
sweet-natured shop owner; Lydia’s spirited teenage daughter, Casey; and
Casey’s best friend, Ava, a shy yet troubled girl who will shape Libby’s
future in surprising and profound ways.
As A Good Yarn becomes a
second home—and the women a new kind of family—Libby relishes the
different person she’s become. She even finds time for romance with a
charming and handsome doctor who seems to be her perfect match. But just
as everything is coming together, Libby must make a choice that could
forever change the life she holds so dear.
Warmly told and richly textured, Starting Now is filled with the promise of new beginnings and the unending delights of companionship and love. (picture and description from amazon.com)
O:)
Melissa
When I start a book I always want to finish it. No matter how bad it is, because I always want to hold out hope that it will get better. And I have read some books I really wasn't sure it was going to happen. But, in all my years of reading, there was only one book I read, where I hated it and I actually threw it away because I was so mad I had wasted my time. (For the record, it was a used book I bought at a library sale so I didn't feel too bad about throwing it away!)
This book almost became one like that. The first several chapters (maybe even up to 10!) were so incredibly depressing I thought I would die! It is a church library book and I actually was going to return it last week. But on a whim I found a friend who had read it and I asked her if it was worth it, if it was going to make me happy, if they were going to live happily ever after. She assured me it would, but I wasn't sure.
On a side note, it was a sweet conversation we had that veered off to teenagers and raising kids and it was just the shot in the arm I needed about being a good mama. I'm adding this sweet lady to my list of mentor moms!!!
So, I did indeed finish it. In fact I consumed it. Once it got past the yucky part and glimmers of hope started showing up I was hooked! In fact, I was coming up on the amazing end last night where all the pieces were about to come together and I was so tired I kept falling asleep. I was so mad, but during the night I got up to take care of some business (ahem!) and grabbed it and finished it in the bathroom. The end was so wonderfully sweet and tender, but the epilogue just left me in happy tears!!!! So my recommendation is persevere through the first part and you will be rewarded in the end!!!
Life is rewarding for Samuel Truelove. He's a gifted heart surgeon, he's
married to the love of his life, and he has a beautiful daughter. But
when he misdiagnoses his daughter's illness and is suddenly called away
to perform emergency surgery, a deadly cascade of events is set in
motion. After multiple tragedies, Sam withdraws into himself, takes a
leave of absence, and joins a small town clinic. His search for
redemption and healing will test the idea that God has the power--and
the will--to repair what seems irreparably broken.
(picture and description from amazon.com)
O:)
Melissa
Ok, most everyone who knows me knows I am NOT a fan of Boosterthon. Or any fundraising in general, but life is what it is. But Katie brought this book home as a "free" resource for the kids and it was sitting around so I decided to pick it up and read it over lunch yesterday.
Yes it was heavy on cheesy, but a great story with awesome pictures. Their theme this year was Bullying so this book tied right into it.
Book Summary: Agent Camden is devastated. Instead of
spending the summer reuniting with his best friend Maria at the world’s
coolest spy camp, Agent Camden is being dumped at a regular summer camp.
And after a bully at school made fun of his spy gadgets, Camden goes to
camp “undercover as a normal kid,” vowing to never reveal his true spy
identity to anyone but a real friend.
Readers will rappel down ropes alongside Agent Camden as he learns
the meaning of friendship and musters the courage to show an unlikely
bunch of campers across the lake how to be a friend through a strange
camp activity called a Cabin Caper. (picture and description from boosterthon.com)
O:)
Melissa
So the other day I took the girls to the public library to replenish their stock since there was "nothing to read" at our house. While waiting for them to choose some (my stock hardly needs replenishing!) I saw this little gem in the children's section out on top. Our local library has a pretty amazing kids section and looking at all the new books they have in Easy and Juvenile Fiction takes me back to my grad school days and elementary library days. I couldn't resist opening this one and taking a peek. Luckily it was a fairly quick read, but how amazing was it!! What I love about it is not only the amazing text and pictures, but that it was really a biography in disguise!! I love it when Easy books and poetry books sneak in Non Fiction when kids don't even realize it, like sneaking veggies into foods kids like!! What was also fun was how when the author used a word the kids might not (or might!) know, he added a definition to it, just like the ones Noah wrote!! (see colored phrase below)
Webster’s American Dictionary is the second most popular book
ever printed in English. But who was that Webster? Noah Webster
(1758–1843) was a bookish Connecticut farm boy who became obsessed with
uniting America through language. He spent twenty years writing two
thousand pages to accomplish that, and the first 100 percent American
dictionary was published in 1828 when he was seventy years old. This
clever, hilariously illustrated account shines a light on early American
history and the life of a man who could not rest until he’d achieved
his dream. An illustrated chronology of Webster’s life makes this a
picture perfect bi-og-ra-phy [noun: a written history of a person's
life]. (picture and description from amazon. com)
O:)
Melissa
Ahhh... another trip to Blossom Street. Except, this was actually a road trip from Seattle to Florida, with a grandma/ex-mother in law headed for her 50th high school reunion and an old lover, a mom/ex-daughter in law trying to think through some hard decisions about her ex-husband, and a daughter/granddaughter whose boyfriend just dumped her instead of proposing to her like she thought he was!!! Needless to say, they all had a lot to work through. The trip took them via Las Vegas, Branson, New Orleans where adventure was around every "turn", including finding old friends, a motorcycle gang who ended up rescuing them, love in an unexpected place, and a 1960s prom remade in the matter of one day!!! I have liked all these Blossom Street books, but this one rates right under Hannah's List for me!!!
Sometimes, where you think you're going isn't where you end up…
In
the middle of the year, in the middle of her life, Bethanne Hamlin
takes a road trip with her daughter, Annie, and her former
mother-in-law, Ruth.
They're driving to Florida for Ruth's 50th
high school reunion. A longtime widow, Ruth would like to reconnect with
Royce, the love of her teenage life. She's heard he's alone, too.…
Bethanne
needs time to reflect on a decision she has to make—whether or not to
reconcile with her ex-husband, Grant, her children's father.
Meanwhile, Annie's out to prove to her onetime boyfriend that she can live a brilliant life without him!
So
there they are, three women driving across America. They have their
maps and their directions—but even the best-planned journey can take you
to a turn in the road. Or lead to an unexpected encounter—like the day
Bethanne meets a man named Max.… (picture and description from amazon.com)
Only one more book left in the Blossom Street series, then I will have to let them go. I am loving Debbie Macomber's style and I'd love to read more of her stuff, but if I add it to my list of books to read before I die ... well, I'm already afraid I'm going to die before I finish the list I have already!!
O:)
Melissa
And yet another supremely well written book by our favorite author, Robert Whitlow. Super amazing book I can't wait to discuss with my Book Club Buddies next week. The one thing that stuck with me about this book is how the main character totally flopped, and then later redeemed herself. But I did not see the flop coming!! I was shocked and surprised that she could go so wrong, but in the end it still ended up good. (or "well", my kids are always correcting me on that and now I have a low sense of confidence in the use of that word!) The description below sums it up great...
Amy Clarke’s dreams are coming true—and that’s the problem.
Legal
secretary by day, romance novelist by night, Amy Clarke lives with a
precious secret. For years, she has traveled to a holy place in her
dreams—a sublime place she calls the Living Room. When she awakes, her
faith and energy are supernaturally restored. And when she dreams, she
receives vibrant inspiration for her novels.
As she begins to
write her third book, the nature of her dreams shifts. Gone are the
literary signposts. Instead, her dreams are studded with scenes that
foreshadow real life. Before long, the scenes begin to spill over into
her waking hours too.
As Amy becomes entangled in a high stakes
case at work, her visions take on a dark hue—implicating someone dear to
her, causing her to question everything. And convincing her to trust
someone with his own shadowy secrets.
Things are not always what
they seem. But as fiction, dreams, and real life begin to overlap, Amy
must stop dreaming and act to prevent tragedy. (picture and description at amazon.com)
O:)
Melissa
