The Magdalen by Marita Conlon-McKenna

I'm not sure if it's the Catholic girl in me or just the book, but I thought this one was really special. A #1 bestseller in Ireland, The Magdalen is the story of a group of unwed mothers sent to live in a convent with the nuns. Magdalen, of course, after the Bible's most famous fallen woman Mary Magdalen.

We meet Esther Doyle, a teenager whose first taste of love ends up in trouble. Arranged by her mother and the local priest, Esther goes to live in the Holy Saints Convent in Dublin where she lives like a slave and works in the laundry. With little to eat, no privacy, and a grueling work schedule, Esther is still thankful for being taken in while pregnant.

Through the stories of other "Maggies" we see just how limited life was for girls in the Ireland of the 1950's. I was shocked at how the girls were treated by a church who valued life above all. An eye opening read that will make you happy to live in the 21st century.

Return to Sullivan's Island

I don't think I can take another summer book disappointment. Dorothea Benton Frank is one of my very favorite authors. In fact, our trip to Charleston, Isle of Palms, Mount Pleasant and Shem Creek two years ago helped us to find our beach house. Her writing is usually infused with all the images that make the South so memorable.

I read the original Sullivan's Island several years ago...you'd think I would be learning my lesson that sequels usually don't measure up to the original. In Return to Sullivan's Island, Frank continues the story of the next generation of the Hamilton's and Hayes'. Beth Hayes is newly graduated from Boston College and is nominated by her family to house sit for a year in Sullivan's Island. Good premise, right?

First of all, Beth puts her plans for graduate school on hold to stay South Carolina. What?? A family friend was already paying the bills and watering the plants. Oh, wait. Someone has to babysit the ghosts.....that's right, ghosts.

From there it only got worse. Two predictable love relationships later, I was struggling to finish the book and wanting it to be over. Of course, all is well that ends well.

This is an expensive hardback. If you want to read it anyway, may I suggest the library?

Amazon Kindle

For Christmas, my Mother in Law generously gifted me a new Amazon Kindle electronic reading device. I wanted one with all my heart! After six months of reading, here are my thoughts on the Kindle.

The negatives: I still love books. I love the feel of them in my hand. I love the process of turning the page. I love to look at the author's photo and imagine her writing the book. I miss hearing that first crack as the spine opens. I even love the smell of a new book! The Kindle is not a great option for the beach. Even though I have a cover, I'm worried about getting sand and water into the electronics. So, I still tuck a paperback into my bag.

Now for the positives - and the Kindle has many! It will download a book in under 10 seconds and can hold over 100 books at a time. The archive feature keeps them on the Amazon website and I can shuffle them back and forth to the device. I'm no longer carrying a tote bag full of books when I travel. The Kindle is slim enough to fit in my purse. With it's mega-capacity, it's like taking your entire library with you. Font sizes can be changed and the voice option will allow the Kindle to read to you while you drive.

The Kindle has been hailed as the end of the publishing industry as we know it...but I'm not so sure. I believe that both electronic and paper books have their place. Until they can design the Kindle to smell good...

No Time to Wave Goodbye

My Twitter addiction provided me with the opportunity to obtain an advance reading copy of No Time to Wave Goodbye by Jaquelyn Mitchard. I've been waiting years for this book, which is the sequel to Mitchard's bestseller The Deep End of the Ocean. Unfortunately, I was disappointed.

In Deep End, we meet the Cappadora family whose 3 year old son Ben was kidnapped from a hotel lobby. The sequel picks up 22 years later. Ben is now married and a new father. His brother Vincent makes documentary films and is the family slacker and parents Beth and Pat still own an Italian restaurant.

I couldn't wait to settle on the couch and see how this family had survived since I last visited with them. But as the plot unfolded, I was dumbfounded. Vincent has made a documentary about Ben's kidnapping. After it wins an Academy Award, Ben's daughter is kidnapped. Sound familiar? So did the rest of the book.

I finished No Time to Wave Goodbye because I agreed to when I accepted the advance reader copy. But if it was my purchase, I would have passed.

The Crowning Glory of Calla Lily Ponder

I'm in love with a book. An honest to goodness, stay up all night, read in the car love affair! The Crowning Glory of Calla Lily Ponder by Rebecca Wells is even more fun to read than her Ya-Ya books.

Calla Lily is the name of our narrator whom we meet in 1961 in La Luna, Louisiana. The story of Calla's childhood and young adult years is magical - under the light of the La Luna moon, her mother, M'Dear, dances, sings and heals women through her hairstyling salon "The Crowning Glory Beauty Porch".

After several heartbreaks, Calla moves to New Orleans to attend L'Academie de Beauty de Crescent. Here, she finds love, more heartbreak and her true calling.

The Crowning Glory of Calla Lily Ponder is a story of friendship, love, trust, loss and coming
of age in the 70's. It's an easy read - a great beach book! I can't recommend it highly enough!

My First Post

Wow! Can't believe I finally started to blog. Guess it was the natural progression from Facebook to Twitter to here. I'm a Mom of two kids who stays up all night reading. I've been recommending books for family and friends for years and thought I would branch out. Let me know how you like my blog and thanks for reading!