Looking for Me

Looking for Me by Beth Hoffman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Another winner from the author of Saving CeCe Honeycutt with interesting, quirky characters and a strong, female leading character. Teddi Overman has an eye for restoring old furniture and encouraged by her father, but not by her "Debbie Downer" mother, moves from the family farm in Kentucky to bustling Charleston. She also leaves behind her beloved younger brother, Josh, a true nature and animal enthusiast. After several years of building her business in the city, her brother disappears into the forests surrounding the old farm, and blamed by her mother, Teddi's nightmares escalate. When her mother passes away, during what was to be a brief visit to the farm, Teddi is left the choice of keeping the farm or selling it. Along the path of making her final decision, Teddi uncovers the truth about her parent's marriage and makes her final peace with the loss of Josh.

A quote favorited by me and many others: "Some people run toward life, arms flung wide in anticipation. Others crack open the door and take a one-eyed peek to see what's out there. Then there are those who give up on life long before their heart stops beating - all used up, worn out, and caved in, yet they wake each morning and shuffle their tired legs through another day. Maybe they're hoping for a change - a miracle, even - but runaway dreams and lost years hang heavily on their backs. It's the only coat they know how to wear."



Mark this as one to read!

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You Make Me Smile

You Make Me Smile by Layn Marlow
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Layn Marlow writes and illustrates a delightful children's book about a little girl who over the moon happy when she builds a snowman and adds a smile to his face. A simple storyline is paired with somber snowy washes perked up by a happy little girl in a mustard colored coat with red mittens, red hat, and a striped scarf. I can see this book being a winter favorite.

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Orphan Train

Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Christina Baker Kline’s heartbreaking novel Orphan Train parallels the story of two women - Vivian and Molly. Vivian was once a young Irish immigrant who came to America with her family but lost them to an apartment fire. Molly is a teenage Native American lost in the foster care system and on the edge of being booted out. When Molly acts out for the last time, her only chance is to work community service hours cleaning the aging 91 year old, widow Vivian's large attic. As Molly learns more of how Viv was shipped on an orphan train to "better" her life out West, she comes to admire the resiliency and bravery of the older woman and feels as if she's finally found family.

History intertwined with fiction is so appealing to me and in this case it really opened my eyes to the abuse and indenturing of over 100,000 young, helpless orphans. The novel includes a small section covering the history of the orphan trains and some information on why the author chose to write this novel.

See: http://orphantraindepot.org/

http://www.childrensaidsociety.org/ab...



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Patch

Patch by David Slonim
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Patch is a sweet, little story of a doggie who unfortunately shares his life with fleas, likes to chase rabbits, and tries to win the talent contest. His boy loves him never the less and says "We're buddies through thick and thin...no matter what." Cute illustrations follow a simple storyline.

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Maria Had a Little Llama

Maria Had a Little Llama / María Tenía Una Llamita by Angela Dominguez
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A new take on the beloved nursery rhyme "Mary Had a Little Lamb" with adorable, colorful illustrations of Maria and her pet llama will make you want to curl up in your favorite chair and read along - with or without a child in your lap! Each illustration is accompanied by English and Spanish text as the author/illustrator was born in Mexico City and grew up in Texas. A joy to read!

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Trains and Lovers by Alexander McCall Smith
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Working in a library for years I've checked in and out many of Alexander McCall Smith's series, never once reading them myself, although I knew they were beloved by many. So when I came across this little novel on our new shelf the cover and title drew me in along with my love of compartmentalized British trains. I had no idea that AMS could delve inside the human brain and remember all the little chatty details of our life. What a discovery! Trains and Lovers is the story of four ordinary people on a train journey from Edinburgh, Scotland to London, England. All but one have a story to share about love - lost love, first love, love without trust, and parental love. The fourth ponders on his fellow passenger's tales but keeps his own story to himself.

A very enjoyable quick read, gentle and witty, for followers of McCall Smith and people like me who are just discovering him. Favorite quotes: .. the story of four people, all strangers to one another, who met on that train, and of how love touched their lives in very different ways. Love is nothing out of the ordinary, even if we think it is; even if we idealise it, celebrate it in poetry, sentimentalise it in coy valentines. Love happens to just about everyone; it is like measles or the diseases of childhood; it is as predictable as the losing of milk teeth, or the breaking of a boy's voice. It may visit us at any time, in our youth but also when we are much older and believe we are beyond its reach; but we are not. It has been described as a toothache, a madness, a divine intoxication, metaphors that reflect the disturbing effect it has on our lives. It may bring surprise, joy, despair and occasionally perfect happiness. But for each person who is made happy by love, there will be many for whom it turns out to be cause for regret . . . The heart has more than its fair share of ghosts, and these ghosts may be love, in any of its many forms. There are many ways of falling off the high moral ground you’ve carefully built up for yourself. Moral ground is like that – slippery at the edges.

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Trouble in Store

Trouble in Store by Carol Cox
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Melanie Ross is in a predicament. Recently fired from her governess position, she has been left without a home or income. As Melanie packs up her few belongings she fondly remembers an older cousin that lives out in Arizona - when Melanie was young he had treated her as if she was his own child. From old letters Mel finds an address and proceeds to go the long journey West hoping that her beloved cousin will shelter her. To her shock she finds her cousin has passed away and his co-owned business is now being run by a young man, Caleb Nelson, who doesn't believe Melanie's claims and who seems to be bent on scaring her out of town.

Carol Cox combines historical fiction and romance with a twist of mystery in Trouble in Store. Although predictable and little flat, it's a nice little story although I was surprised to see how fast the town's people hysterically became vigilantes.

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