Nancy likes...

Submitted by ranger1 on Mon, 07/11/2011 - 6:07pm

I only post books I've really enjoyed.  I plow through many titles, so you don't have to!NJC

The Snow Child (Hardcover)

By Eowyn Ivey
$24.99
ISBN-13: 9780316175678
Availability: Special Order - Subject to Availability
Published: Reagan Arthur Books, 2/2012
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A PERFECT MID-WINTER READ. The Snow Child blends north country myth and magical realism with the story of a middle-aged homesteading couple trying to mend their marriage. Amid the harshly exquisite Alaskan wilderness they discover a surrogate that helps them recover their love and heal the wounds that drove them from home and family. Read it for the beautiful rendering of landscapes, both emotional and tangible, in another time and place. A lovely first novel by an Alaskan bookseller!

Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal? (Hardcover)

By Jeanette Winterson
$25.00
ISBN-13: 9780802120106
Availability: Coming Soon - Available for Pre-Order Now
Published: Grove Press, 3/2012
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A matter of fact memoir whose tone belies the harmful effects of the author’s upbringing by adoptive parents:  an ineffective, milquetoast father, and a Bible-quoting mother who loved the Lord, but neither herself nor her daughter.  If you are one who believes that artists derive their creativity from tortured childhoods, then Jeanette Winterson, author of Sexing the Cherry, had childhood enough for genius stature.  This non-linear, somewhat dispassionate chronicle offers insights to ponder, often delivered as insouciant bons mots that cut to the heart of the facts at hand.  It’s a fascinating glimpse into the formative years of a very talented writer.

Running the Rift (Hardcover)

By Naomi Benaron
$24.95
ISBN-13: 9781616200428
Availability: Usually Ships in 1-5 days
Published: Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill, 1/2012
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Author Benaron does an amazing job humanizing the tragedy of the Rwandan genocide. Her tale calls to mind cooking lobsters: though the world of her characters is incrementally falling apart, they don't quite believe it. Is it denial, or the inability to  accept the capacity for cruelty within mankind? This perfectly-titled novel will cause you to ponder your answers to the questions we asked of The Greatest Generation: did you know this was happening, and why couldn't you stop it?

Cooking with Grease: Stirring the Pots in America (Paperback)

By Donna Brazile
$15.00
ISBN-13: 9780743253994
Availability: Usually Ships in 1-5 days
Published: Simon & Schuster, 5/2005
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What a ride! Donna Brazile takes us through every election she's fought for. Campaign manager for Gore-Leiberman in 2000, she revisits the results through a personal and strategic prism and makes one wonder what exactly Democrats and liberals have learned from the experience. This is a great read, particularly as we are just beginning to embark on the next round of presidential election madness.

The White Woman on the Green Bicycle (Paperback)

By Monique Roffey
$16.00
ISBN-13: 9780143119517
Availability: Usually Ships in 1-5 days
Published: Penguin (Non-Classics), 4/2011
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Part history lesson, part treatise on marriage, this will immerse you in a place and time as different from where you are now as black is from white.  It's a fascinating read that gets under your skin and leaves you bereft when it's all over.  A perfect read for bookclubs.

The Weekend (Paperback)

By Bernhard Schlink
$15.00
ISBN-13: 9780307456311
Availability: Usually Ships in 1-5 days
Published: Vintage, 10/2011
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Bernhard Schlink, author of The Reader, is a well-translated writer of sparse, plainspoken prose.  In addition, he seems to be atoning for all of Germany's past sins (wars and internal terrorism) all by himself! This time out the story concerns a newly-released former terrorist who, after 20 years in prison, is reunited with former friends, lovers, and co-conspirators for a weekend of recrimination and reconciliation.  There's plenty of philosophy here, political and otherwise, to make for great conversation and personal ruminations.

Been Here a Thousand Years (Paperback)

By Mariolina Venezia, Marina Harss
$15.00
ISBN-13: 9780312429782
Availability: Usually Ships in 1-5 days
Published: Picador, 8/2010
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Everyone with an Italian ancestor should read this! A combo of magical realism and Italian history lesson, this is the story of a family you won't soon forget; in fact, you'll recognize in theirs the essence of your own. I have a list of paisans I'm going to recommend it to, including my own sibs.

The Dressmaker of Khair Khana: Five Sisters, One Remarkable Family, and the Woman Who Risked Everything to Keep Them Safe (Hardcover)

By Gayle Tzemach Lemmon
$24.99
ISBN-13: 9780061732379
Availability: Usually Ships in 1-5 days
Published: Harper, 3/2011
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An important story of women in war not often reported by our media. There are no victims here, just sisters plowing forward as they try to keep their family alive during the first wave of Taliban rule in Afghanistan. It's an inspiring read and I would share it with the young women in your family.

A Dog's Purpose (Paperback)

By W. Bruce Cameron, W. Bruce Cameron
$12.99
ISBN-13: 9780765330345
Availability: Usually Ships in 1-5 days
Published: Forge, 5/2011
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Call me sentimental, but I challenge any dog owner (past or current) not to be touched by this lovely story of one dog's life.  You'll see traces of every dog you've ever owned as you see life from this dog's perspective.  Yes, it's told from the dog's point of view...get over it.  I read it not long after having acquired our newest pooch from the shelter and it struck many chords.  If you love dogs, you'll love it!

The Summer of the Bear (Hardcover)

By Bella Pollen
$24.00
ISBN-13: 9780802119742
Availability: Usually Ships in 1-5 days
Published: Atlantic Monthly Press, 6/2011
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Brings to mind the adage that all families are dysfunctional in their own way...this time it's the children and the catalyst is their father's sudden and somewhat suspicious death. Set against a bleak Scottish isles landscape, this hybrid thriller/family drama is a satisfying page-turner.

Wrecker (Hardcover)

By Summer Wood
$20.00
ISBN-13: 9781608192809
Availability: Usually Ships in 1-5 days
Published: Bloomsbury USA, 2/2011
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In lesser hands this story may have been all Pollyana and hackneyed.  But Taos author Summer Wood does a wonderful job evoking the dilemmas facing foster families while asking very real questions about what exactly constitutes a family.  Her characters are real and rife with human foibles, and her evocation of the beauty of the Pacific northwest is stunning.  I loved it!

Some Things That Stay (Paperback)

By Sarah Willis
$15.00
ISBN-13: 9780425179604
Availability: Usually Ships in 1-5 days
Published: Berkley Trade, 5/2001
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Steamy summer days spent in the middle of nowhere amid family drama and disintegration is no picnic, especially for a bright 15 year old girl who seems to be doing most of the caretaking for and of her idiosyncratic parents. She yearns for a permanent home and normalcy for herself and her sibs. For this reader, revisiting early adolescence through the writing of Sarah Willis was melancholy time travel at its best.

The Cold Dish (Paperback)

By Craig Johnson
$14.00
ISBN-13: 9780143036425
Availability: Usually Ships in 1-5 days
Published: Penguin (Non-Classics), 4/2006
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Great characters, great story...so glad I found this series!

The Lonely Polygamist (Paperback)

By Brady Udall
$15.95
ISBN-13: 9780393339710
Availability: Usually Ships in 1-5 days
Published: W. W. Norton & Company, 4/2011
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This a near-perfect novel! Beautifully written with unforgettable characters. If you're missing Big Love or are hooked on Sister Wives, you'll love this. But most of all this novel is for those who enjoy an epic story full of humanity and heart.

The Memory Palace (Hardcover)

By Mira Bartok
$25.00
ISBN-13: 9781439183311
Availability: Usually Ships in 1-5 days
Published: Free Press, 1/2011
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This is a heart-stomping, provocative memoir about a daughter's 17-year estrangement from her schizophrenic mother and their rapprochement following the mother's diagnosis of terminal cancer. Just as the daughter tries to recreate her own life after a traumatic brain injury, she is faced with revisiting her broken childhood via a cache of physical mementos saved by her mother. This memoir provokes so many questions, not just about mothers and daughters, but also about genius and sanity, abuse and resiliency, and what family members owe each other.

Baking Cakes in Kigali (Paperback)

By Gaile Parkin
$15.00
ISBN-13: 9780385343442
Availability: Usually Ships in 1-5 days
Published: Bantam, 8/2010
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Lately I've been fascinated by contemporary African novels.  This one speaks to resiliency and humanity in the aftermath of the Rwandan tragedy.  It reminds us that people are the same the world over and that life's quotidian wants and worries differ little among us. 

Gertrude Bell: Queen of the Desert, Shaper of Nations (Paperback)

By Georgina Howell
$16.00
ISBN-13: 9780374531355
Availability: Usually Ships in 1-5 days
Published: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 4/2008
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If you're a collector of lives you need to read this. A fascinating recounting of a fascinating woman who despite all the restrictions of Victorian England traveled the Middle East as explorer, geographer, and advisor to kings. Also a great insight into the traits & foibles which enabled the Brits to rule the world.
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