Memoir Monday...

To Shake the Sleeping Self by Jedidiah Jenkins... On the eve of turning thirty, terrified of being funneled into a life he didn’t choose, Jedidiah Jenkins quit his dream job and spent sixteen months cycling from Oregon to Patagonia. He chronicled the trip on Instagram, where his photos and reflections drew hundreds of thousands of followers, all gathered around the question: What makes a life worth living? 

In this unflinchingly honest memoir, Jed narrates his adventure—the people and places he encountered on his way to the bottom of the world—as well as the internal journey that started it all. As he traverses cities, mountains, and inner boundaries, Jenkins grapples with the question of what it means to be an adult, his struggle to reconcile his sexual identity with his conservative Christian upbringing, and his belief in travel as a way to wake us up to life back home.



This has gotten great reviews and in particular a nice blurb by Cheryl Strayed, who wrote another book binge worthy book, Wild. Need a little adventure in your life? Want to delve into the adventure without leaving home? I picked up this book after reading some of the first chapter and was immediately taken by Jedidiah's writing. Published by Penguin RandomHouse in December. Read an Excerpt. On my nightstand...

The Sunday Salon and Books on my Nightstand...

Welcome to The Sunday Salon! It's been a cold and rainy week in South Carolina. Perfect weather to curl up with a good book... and other inside pursuits. I guess I have to accept that it is winter in the South. Besides running around with my normal chores, I spent some time reading, finding interesting books and sewing, some of which I would consider book related. 

My book related sewing was with this fun Valentine's Day fabric with hunky readers. I started making these infinity scarves with hidden pockets and was looking for some fun fabric. I immediately thought of my readers friends and reading group ladies when I spotted this fabric. The scarf is perfect when you're going somewhere and don't want to carry your pocketbook. The pocket is big enough for a small wallet, credit cards, money, passport, etc. What do you think?

I didn't spend all my time sewing though... I did some reading and had some interesting book finds. Here's what's on my nightstand right now...

When We Were Viking by Andrew David MacDonald... 
from PublishersWeekly.com: MacDonald’s offbeat debut introduces 21-year-old Zelda, a Viking-obsessed young woman with a fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, who lives with her gruff, tattooed older brother and guardian, Gert. While he attends college on a hardship scholarship, Zelda enjoys spending time with Gert’s feisty ex-girlfriend AK47 and at the community center with her friends. She’s also determined to have sex with her boyfriend, Marxy, if only his overprotective mother would get out of the way. Money is tight, and when Zelda discovers that Gert has resorted to some possibly illegal money-making methods, she decides to help, because helping the tribe is what a Viking warrior does. What follows is by turns funny and tragic as Zelda navigates a new job at the library, explores intimacy with Marxy, and puts herself firmly in the crosshairs of some decidedly unsavory people.

I had seen this book everywhere and the publisher's blurb just left me scratching my head. It really didn't sound like anything that I'd like to read. And I wasn't really understanding the premise of the book either. And yet it was the Indie Next choice for February, LibraryReads book pick, and one of Book Riots best winter releases. So I looked for an actual review and not just a blurb and when I found Publishers Weekly's review it clicked. The main character made sense to me at that point and I decided to read it... and so, it is now on my nightstand. Along with...

Auntie Poldi and the Sicilain Lions by Mario Giordano... On her sixtieth birthday, Auntie Poldi retires to Sicily, intending to while away the rest of her days with good wine, a view of the sea, and few visitors. But Sicily isn’t quite the tranquil island she thought it would be. When her handsome young handyman goes missing—and is discovered murdered—she can’t help but ask questions. Soon there’s an investigation, a smoldering police inspector, a romantic entanglement, one false lead after another, a rooftop showdown, and finally, of course, Poldi herself, slightly tousled but still perfectly poised. This “masterly treat” (Times Literary Supplement) will transport you to the rocky shores of Torre Archirafi, to a Sicily full of quirky characters, scorching days, and velvety nights, alongside a protagonist who’s as fiery as the Sicilian sun. 

This is the first book in the Auntie Poldi detective series, which from my investigation seems to be 3 books so far. The series reminds me of cozy mysteries and has gotten great reviews. We all need a little mystery in our loves, right? It also will fulfill my Book Bingo square of "1st in a series"... Also on my nightstand...

The Secrets We Kept by Lara Prescott... A thrilling tale of secretaries turned spies, of love and duty, and of sacrifice--inspired by the true story of the CIA plot to infiltrate the hearts and minds of Soviet Russia, not with propaganda, but with the greatest love story of the twentieth century: Doctor Zhivago.

At the height of the Cold War, two secretaries are pulled out of the typing pool at the CIA and given the assignment of a lifetime. Their mission: to smuggle Doctor Zhivago out of the USSR, where no one dare publish it, and help Pasternak's magnum opus make its way into print around the world. Glamorous and sophisticated Sally Forrester is a seasoned spy who has honed her gift for deceit all over the world--using her magnetism and charm to pry secrets out of powerful men. Irina is a complete novice, and under Sally's tutelage quickly learns how to blend in, make drops, and invisibly ferry classified documents.

I do love historical fiction and this story just sounds so interesting! Spies, love, sacrifice, how can you go wrong. It's also a Reese Book Club pick, and I'm not thrilled that I have that icon as part of my book jacket cover, but when I opened the book to read a bit, I really enjoyed the way Lara Prescott wrote, so now it is on my nightstand...

Also on my nightstand, is Woof Woof Story by the author Inumajin. It's a fun humorous Manga of a man reincarnated as a legenday Wolf King...

Woof Woof Story by Inumajin... After being worked quite literally to death, corporate slave Routa Okami's dying wish is to be reborn as the well-loved pet of a rich family. When a compassionate goddess actually grants his wish, Routa commits himself to the lazy, carefree, all-you-can-nap lifestyle of a pampered pup-complete with a beautiful owner and all the delicious food he can eat! But as Routa grows...and grows...and grows...he realizes something is terribly wrong. With his enormous body, razor-sharp teeth, and fierce visage, it's painfully obvious that he was reincarnated not as a dog but as a giant wolf. And not just any wolf-the legendary wolf king Fenrir!

In Japan, Adults read these Manga as well as teenagers. This is the first in a series and I haven't decided if I'm going to continue reading the series. I'm enjoying it though and probably will. What's nice for American readers is that this Manga is a novel and reads like a normal book. No trying to figure out front to back and up and down.

Do You Like Bookish Gifts for Yourself or to Give Your Reading Friends?

Week in Review...
Monday was Memoir Monday and I highlighted a memoir by Anne Morrow Lindbergh, called Gift From the Sea.

First Lines Friday was about When We Were Vikings by Andrew David MacDonald

How was your week?! Any good books?! I'd love to hear about them! You can share them in the comments! As for me, it is still cold and rainy here today, so I will be curling up with a good book and waiting for Spring!

Happy Reading ... Suzanne

First Lines Friday...

The Viking my brother got me for my birthday was tall and had muscles. Even if you were nt an expert on Vikings and had not read Kepple's Guide to the Vikings, you would say, that is a Viking. He lookee like he could defeat hordes of villains and commit acts of bravery, like Beowulf, the most famous Viking, who defeated Grendel, who was not only a regular villain but also a monster.
                                          ... When We Were Vikings by Andrew David MacDonald



Lots of great buzz about this book. It has been compared to The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time this time, with a 21 year old heroine who has fetal alcohol syndrome and navigates her world thru her unique perspective. Published by Scout Press and available now.

Memoir Monday

Gift from the Sea by Anne Morrow Lindbergh...

In this inimitable, beloved classic—graceful, lucid and lyrical—Anne Morrow Lindbergh shares her meditations on youth and age; love and marriage; peace, solitude and contentment as she set them down during a brief vacation by the sea. Drawing inspiration from the shells on the shore, Lindbergh’s musings on the shape of a woman’s life bring new understanding to both men and women at any stage of life. A mother of five, an acclaimed writer and a pioneering aviator, Lindbergh casts an unsentimental eye on the trappings of modernity that threaten to overwhelm us: the time-saving gadgets that complicate rather than simplify, the multiple commitments that take us from our families. And by recording her thoughts during a brief escape from everyday demands, she helps readers find a space for contemplation and creativity within their own lives.

With great wisdom and insight Lindbergh describes the shifting shapes of relationships and marriage, presenting a vision of life as it is lived in an enduring and evolving partnership. A groundbreaking, best-selling work when it was originally published in 1955, Gift from the Sea continues to be discovered by new generations of readers.

When I hear the name Lindbergh, I immediately think of the kidnapping and tragic death of Charles and Anne Morrow Lindbergh's baby, Charles Jr. in 1932. I think of Charles Lindbergh's solo flight across the Atlantic. But my thoughts don't travel to Anne Morrow Lindbergh, who I have since learned was an amazing woman in her own right. From her 2001 obituary in The New York Times, Eric Pace writes:

Anne Morrow Lindbergh scored an immense literary success in midlife with her 1955 book ''Gift From the Sea'' ( Pantheon), which was a philosophical meditation on women's lives in this century. It was on the nonfiction best-seller list of The New York Times for 80 weeks and was No. 1 for 47 of those weeks. In the book's first 20 years in print, more than five million copies were sold in hard-cover and paperback editions. Mrs. Lindbergh was the author of more than two dozen books of prose and poetry, including five volumes of diaries; her work was often acclaimed by critics and popular with readers.

Though I wonder if the writing in Gift from the Sea is dated, I still would love to read it! On my wishlist.

The Sunday Salon and Snowbound with the Oscars

If the weather wasn't already crazy the past few weeks,  I would have said it was after a 70 degree day, a day of torrential rain that caused massive flooding, and then two days later a real winter snowfall in which I wish I had my Connecticut snow shovel!

It's been a great week to enjoy a good book. First on the front porch in the beautiful warm weather, and then the last half of the week inside and housebound. This is my second winter in South Carolina and I've had some great snow days! And today I've discovered a coveted Southern food called Snow cream! Have you ever heard of it or had it?? Here is the recipe...

8 cups snow, 1 cup milk, 1/3 cup sugar and teaspoon vanilla. Mix well and enjoy!!

Some of my snowbound reading has been Oscar related. I started reading I Heard You Paint Housed by Charles Brandt, which my husband already had on his Kindle. The Irishman is based on this book. I'm always interested in the books that movies are based on if there is one. I like to read the book first if at all possible. First, to read the story as the author has written it, and secondly because I like to imagine my own characters in my head and not necessarily the actors that play the parts. 

Here are a few of the Oscar 2020 contenders that started as books...

The movie is The Irishman, The book is: I Heard You Paint Houses by Charles Brandt...  "I heard you paint houses" are the first words Jimmy Hoffa ever spoke to Frank "the Irishman" Sheeran. To paint a house is to kill a man. The paint is the blood that splatters on the walls and floors. In the course of nearly five years of recorded interviews, Frank Sheeran confessed to Charles Brandt that he handled more than twenty-five hits for the mob, and for his friend Hoffa. Sheeran learned to kill in the U.S. Army, where he saw an astonishing 411 days of active combat duty in Italy during World War II. After returning home he became a hustler and hit man, working for legendary crime boss Russell Bufalino. Eventually Sheeran would rise to a position of such prominence that in a RICO suit the US government would name him as one of only two non-Italians in conspiracy with the Commission of La Cosa Nostra, alongside the likes of Anthony "Tony Pro" Provenzano and Anthony "Fat Tony" Salerno. When Bufalino ordered Sheeran to kill Hoffa, the Irishman did the deed, knowing that if he had refused he would have been killed himself. Charles Brandt's page-turner has become a true crime classic.

I thought the movie was really good, although a bit long. It is a Martin Scorsese movie, which automatically means LONG, but I wasn't falling asleep because of it either. Although I think 1917 will win the Oscar for the best film this year, I really think that the Irishman (and Parasite, which I absolutely loved and thought was the best film) didn't get much Oscar love for best film. I'm enjoying the book. It's well written. I would recommend it for people who enjoy true crime novels. Originally published by Steerforth in 2004.

The movie is JoJo Rabbit, the book is: Caging Skies by Chistine Leumens... An extraordinary, strikingly original novel that reveals a world of truth and lies both personal and political, Caging Skies is told through the eyes of Johannes Betzler, avid member of the Hitler Youth during World War II. Filled with admiration for the Führer and Nazi ideals, he is shocked to discover his parents are hiding a Jewish girl named Elsa behind a false wall in their home in Vienna. After he’s disfigured in a raid, Johannes focuses more and more on his connection with the girl behind the wall. His initial horror and revulsion turn to interest—and then obsession. After his parents disappear, Johannes is the only one aware of Elsa’s existence in the house, and he alone is responsible for her fate. Drawing strength from his daydreams about Hitler, Johannes plans for the end of the war and what it might mean for him and Elsa.

I had absolutely no interest in seeing the movie Jojo Rabbit until I read about the book it was based on. From the trailers of the movie, it looked like a farse on Hitler and the Hitler youth, which I really don't think is a very funny subject. BUT, when I read about the book and how it was about a couple hiding a Jewish girl, while living under the pretense of being "loyal" citizens, it brought a whole new perspective to the movie for me. This book is on my wish list. Published by Overlook Press, an imprint of Abrams in 2019.

The movie is Ford V. Ferrari, the book is: Go Like Hell by A.J. Baime... The epic story also told in the film FORD V. FERRARI: By the early 1960s, the Ford Motor Company, built to bring automobile transportation to the masses, was falling behind. Young Henry Ford II, who had taken the reins of his grandfather’s company with little business experience to speak of, knew he had to do something to shake things up. Baby boomers were taking to the road in droves, looking for speed not safety, style not comfort. Meanwhile, Enzo Ferrari, whose cars epitomized style, lorded it over the European racing scene. He crafted beautiful sports cars, "science fiction on wheels," but was also called "the Assassin" because so many drivers perished while racing them.

Go Like Hell tells the remarkable story of how Henry Ford II, with the help of a young visionary named Lee Iacocca and a former racing champion turned engineer, Carroll Shelby, concocted a scheme to reinvent the Ford company. They would enter the high-stakes world of European car racing, where an adventurous few threw safety and sanity to the wind. They would design, build, and race a car that could beat Ferrari at his own game at the most prestigious and brutal race in the world, something no American car had ever done.

When I was very young, my parents took me to see Le Mans in the movies. Actually they didn't take me to see it as much as taking me along so they could see it, since they didn't believe in leaving me with a baby sitter. I vaguely rememeber the excitement of the cars racing around the streets. But that excitement and this book is what the movie Ford v Ferrari is based on and sounds so interesting. On my wishlist. Published by Mariner in 2010.

No Oscar knods for this movie, but the movie is The Good Liar and the book is: The Good Liar by Nicholas Searle... When Roy meets a wealthy widow online, he can hardly believe his luck. Just like Patricia Highsmith’s Tom Ripley, Roy is a man who lives to deceive—and everything about Betty suggests she’s an easy mark. He’s confident that his scheme to swindle her will be a success. After all, he’s done this before. Sure enough, Betty soon lets Roy move into her beautiful home, seemingly blind to the web of lies he’s woven around her. But who is Roy, really? Spanning almost a century, this stunning and suspenseful feat of storytelling interweaves the present with the past. As the clock turns back and the years fall away, long-hidden secrets are forced into the light. Some things can never be forgotten. Or forgiven.

One of the movies I recently got to see was The Good Liar starring Helen Mirren and Ian McKellen. The trailer just piqued my interest and I had to see it. I can't believe it did not get one Oscar nomination! It was a really good movie! The cat and mouse game between Helen Mirren and Ian McKellen was just so well done, and both actors did a great job. And even though I was guessing through out the movie what the catch was, because there just had to be a little something else besides Ian McKellen fleecing Helen Mirren out of all her money, I could never have guessed the twist at the end. I definitely want to read the book, even though I think I would have enjoyed reading the twist ending more if I hadn't seen the movie. The Good Liar is on my wish list. Published by Harper originally in 2016.

Do You Like to Read the Book Before You See the Movie?

Also... 

The movie, It's a beautiful Day in the Neighborhood starring Tom Hanks is based on an Esquire Article... https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/tv/a27134/can-you-say-hero-esq1198/.

The Joker was based on the graphic novel, Batman: The Killing Joke written by Alan Moore and illustrated by Brian Bolland. I read this and really enjoyed it. The movie changed a few key things, but I still think the movie worked really well to show the human side of The Joker. Here is the link to my review of Batman: The Killing Joke.

Watching the Oscars tonight? I'm not really a TV kind of girl, but I do love movies and since I've seen quite a few of these Oscar nominees, I'm going to watch to see who wins and root my favorites on! 

Week in Review...

Memoir Monday highlighted a memoir written by our new United Stated poet Laureate, Joy Harjo called Crazy Brave. Written back in 2012, she shares her beginnings and how she blossomed into a poet. 

First Lines Friday highlighted a bit of time traveling fiction called Oona Out of Order by Margarita Montimore

Well that about does it for this week. The snow is melting now, but it's still good reading in front of the fire weather. That's what I'll be doing today. What are your plans? What good books are you reading now?! Share them right here so we can all read them!

Happy reading... Suzanne

First Lines Friday

Oona stopped trusting the mirror years ago. After all, it told only a sliver of the story.

This isn’t me. I am not this woman.

The mirror exposed time’s passage, yes, but eclipsed her heart’s true mileage. The lined face, the extra pounds, the hair chemically treated to hide its gray. Each year the body was hers, but her mind was out of sync with her reflection. Always playing catch-up, trying to rearrange the scrambled pieces of her life.

                                          ...Oona Out of Order by Margarita Montimore

I love time travel stories. When I spotted this soon to be published book, I read things like light, fun, quirky when talking about it. I'm curious about it and have put it on my wishlist. Though I know it will be nothing like The Time Travelers Wife, one of my all time favorite books, I think quirky may work. Coming February 20th from Flatiron Books.

Memoir Monday

Crazy Brave by Joy Harjo... A “raw and honest” (Los Angeles Review of Books) memoir from the first Native American Poet Laureate of the United States.

In this transcendent memoir, grounded in tribal myth and ancestry, music and poetry, Joy Harjo details her journey to becoming a poet. Born in Oklahoma, the end place of the Trail of Tears, Harjo grew up learning to dodge an abusive stepfather by finding shelter in her imagination, a deep spiritual life, and connection with the natural world. Narrating the complexities of betrayal and love, Crazy Brave is a haunting, visionary memoir about family and the breaking apart necessary in finding a voice.

After Joy Harjo became the American Poet Laureate of the United States in 2019, I wanted to learn a little more about her. I bought one of her books of poetry, An American Sunrise, and am slowly making my way thru it, enjoying it thoroughly. And then Crazy Brave pops up, a memoir Joy Harjo wrote way back in 2012. Did I even notice it when it was first published? Would there be a reason for me to notice it? It is a slim book, but from the reviews I have read (stirring, moving, exquisite, gritty, mystical) I am more than curious about Joy Harjo's life as well as how she can put all that in 176 pages. If only we didn't have to leave the trail in 2012 and follow her journey all the way to her being named Poet Laureate. And I hesitate to say the first Native American Poet Laureate only because I feel her merit for the honor should be based on her writing and not on her heritage. Published by W.W. Norton & Company. On my wishlist!

The Sunday Salon and the Winner is... Oscars in the World of Reading...

This week I rented Parasite by Bong Joon Hon. It's up for the Best Picture Oscar and Best International Feature Film. It is a Korean movie with English Subtitles. I enjoy movies, I'm not obsessed, but I do think it's fun to see if any of the movies I've seen win any of the Oscars. I do love foreign films though! And Parasite really intrigued me. The trailers for it just didn't help me understand what the movie was about, but it had won a few Golden Globes, so I wanted to see it. I have to say, I was blown away by it. It was not what I was expecting and the ending was so twisted. The story subtley paints and builds up a picture of the division of the wealthy to the poor, and it does it in an amazing way. I can't see it winning the Best Picture, just because I think 1917 will be doing that and I'm not sure a English Subtitled movie would actually win the "Big One", but I can see it definitely winning Best International Feature Film. I haven't seen the other Best International Feature Films though, and I can't compare it, but I do think it really deserves recognition. Not all the nominated movies are out on Dvd, so I'll be waiting on some of them, but all this Award talk and emails about books winning awards this week got me thinking about what books have gotten awards for 2020...

So, for todays Sunday Salon let's talk about a few "Oscar" winning books... (oh, and BTW, I think I would love to read the book that the movie Parasite was based on, but there is no book. BUT in June sometime, there is suppose to be a graphic novel published using the storyboards that Bong Joon Hon used to make the movie! I think that might be an interesting read.)

One of the divisions of the American Library Association is RUSA. The RUSA, The Reference and User Services Association (RUSA), a division of the American Library Association serves all types of libraries in reference, user services, adult readers advisory and collection development as well as resource sharing, genealogy and archives, business reference and reference technology." The RUSA also creates an annual best-of list comprised of eight different fiction genres for adult readers, and called The Reading List. Those 8 genres are Adrenaline, Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Horror, Mystery, Relationship, Romance, and Science Fiction. Here are a few of the winners. You can find the list of all winners and runners up at  2020 RUSA Book and Media Awards.

Adrenaline Winner... The Passengers by John Marrs, published by Berkley and imprint of You’re riding in your self-driving car when suddenly the doors lock, the route changes and you have lost all control. Then, a mysterious voice tells you, “You are going to die.” Just as self-driving cars become the trusted, safer norm, eight people find themselves in this terrifying situation, including a faded TV star, a pregnant young woman, an abused wife fleeing her husband, an illegal immigrant, a husband and wife, and a suicidal man. From cameras hidden in their cars, their panic is broadcast to millions of people around the world. But the public will show their true colors when they are asked, "Which of these people should we save?...And who should we kill first? Published by Berkley and imprint of Penguin Random House LLC.

Historical Fiction Winner... The Secrets We Kept by Lara Prescott, a Borzoi Book published by A thrilling tale of secretaries turned spies, of love and duty, and of sacrifice--inspired by the true story of the CIA plot to infiltrate the hearts and minds of Soviet Russia, not with propaganda, but with the greatest love story of the twentieth century: Doctor Zhivago. At the height of the Cold War, two secretaries are pulled out of the typing pool at the CIA and given the assignment of a lifetime. Their mission: to smuggle Doctor Zhivago out of the USSR, where no one dare publish it, and help Pasternak's magnum opus make its way into print around the world. Glamorous and sophisticated Sally Forrester is a seasoned spy who has honed her gift for deceit all over the world--using her magnetism and charm to pry secrets out of powerful men. Irina is a complete novice, and under Sally's tutelage quickly learns how to blend in, make drops, and invisibly ferry classified documents. The Secrets We Kept combines a legendary literary love story--the decades-long affair between Pasternak and his mistress and muse, Olga Ivinskaya, who was sent to the Gulag and inspired Zhivago's heroine, Lara--with a narrative about two women empowered to lead lives of extraordinary intrigue and risk. Published by 
Alfred A. Knopf.

Science Fiction Winner... Gods of Jade and Shadow by Silvia Moreno-Garcia : In Jazz Age Mexico Cassiopeia’s dull life takes an adventurous and life-changing turn when she must help a Mayan death god vanquish his brother and regain his throne in the underworld.  Published by Del Rey an imprint of Random House, a division of Penguin Random House LLC.

Horror Winner... “The Twisted Ones” by T. Kingfisher: Brimming with spookiness, paranoia, and a single-minded bloodhound, this devilishly wicked tale of folkloric horror set in the woods of North Carolina is inspired by Arthur Machen’s “The White People.” Published by Saga Press an imprint of Simon & Schuster, Inc.

Mystery Winner... The Right Sort of Man by Allison Montclair: In post-World War II London, Iris Sparks (perhaps a wartime spy) and Gwendolyn Bainbridge (a society widow) have teamed up to matchmake singles with The Right Sort Marriage Bureau. When one client is accused of murdering another, Iris and Gwendolyn decide the police have the wrong man and start investigating. Published by Minotaur Books.

Another Book Award by RUSA is The Sophie Brody Medal is given to encourage, recognize and commend outstanding achievement in Jewish literature. Works for adults published in the United States in the preceding year are eligible for the award. Another award I had never heard of, but the winner and an Honorable Mention book both sound like interesting reads...

Winner of The Sophie Brody Medal... The Nightingale’s Sonata: The Musical Odyssey of Lea Luboshutz by Thomas Wolf, published by Pegasus Books:
This meticulously researched and highly readable biography/family memoir spans continents and generations in telling the story of a once-celebrated violinist whose life was a microcosm for the experiences of many Jewish immigrants from the Pale of Settlement to America. Written by the subject’s grandson, it illuminates the life of a remarkable Jewish woman while weaving together such disparate elements as the Russian Revolution, fear of pogroms, immigrant life, and twentieth-century women’s issues, with lovely music as the backdrop.


Honorable mention goes to The World That We Knew by Alice Hoffman, published by Simon & Schuster:
In Berlin, at the time when the world changed, Hanni Kohn knows she must send her twelve-year-old daughter away to save her from the Nazi regime. She finds her way to a renowned rabbi, but it’s his daughter, Ettie, who offers hope of salvation when she creates a mystical Jewish creature, a rare and unusual golem, who is sworn to protect Lea. Once Ava is brought to life, she and Lea and Ettie become eternally entwined, their paths fated to cross, their fortunes linked. Lea and Ava travel from Paris, where Lea meets her soulmate, to a convent in western France known for its silver roses; from a school in a mountaintop village where three thousand Jews were saved. Meanwhile, Ettie is in hiding, waiting to become the fighter she’s destined to be.

Let's not Leave Out the Kids...

2020 Newbery Medal Winner is awarded to the book with the most outstanding contribution to children's literature. This years winner is New Kid written by Jerry Craft, and Hey, it's a graphic novel! The book is illustrated by the author. New Kid is a timely, honest graphic novel about starting over at a new school where diversity is low and the struggle to fit in is real, from award-winning author-illustrator Jerry Craft. Seventh grader Jordan Banks loves nothing more than drawing cartoons about his life. But instead of sending him to the art school of his dreams, his parents enroll him in a prestigious private school known for its academics, where Jordan is one of the few kids of color in his entire grade. As he makes the daily trip from his Washington Heights apartment to the upscale Riverdale Academy Day School, Jordan soon finds himself torn between two worlds―and not really fitting into either one. Can Jordan learn to navigate his new school culture while keeping his neighborhood friends and staying true to himself. Published by HarperCollins Children’s Books, a division of HarperCollins Publishers. 

Other Awards announced by the ALA, American Library Association... 

Caldecott Medal for the most distinguished American picture book for children: The Undefeated written by Kwame Alexander and illustrated by Kadir Nelson. Published by Versify, an imprint of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

Michael L. Printz Award for excellence in literature written for young adults... Dig written by A.S. King. The book is published by Dutton Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Penguin Young Readers, a division of Penguin Random House.

Will You Read a Book Because it Won an Award?

Last week's Sunday Salon was about reading American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins, a book about a Mexican family fleeing Mexico and heading for the border. So much controversy over it because Jeanine is not a Mexican writing this story, which also drove the conversation of inequality of money paid to minority writers after the money Jeanine received for American Dirt was revealed. The controversy still continues and has escalated to threats of violence towards Myriam Gurba and the person who originally wrote a scathing review of the book. All of Jeanine's book tours dates have been canceled and town halls are planned now to fascilitate an open discussion about the book. 

As a result of all this controversy, there have been countless alternative recommendations that are suppose to be more "authentic". One of those books recommended was Children of the Land by Marcelo Hernandez Castillo. It is a true story based on the authors life. I started reading it this week and am finding it a well written book that pulls you in from the beginning. I highlighted the book this past week in Memoir Monday. Follow the link for Memoir Monday to read more about that book.

That's about it from cold but sunny South Carolina! What interesting books have you found this week? Share them here because I just love to hear about great books! And in meantime, have a great week!

Happy Reading... Suzanne