You know those books that have such great characters that they crawl into your heart and settle there? The Exiles by Christina Baker Kline is one of them. Spanning years and distance and set against the backdrop of British colonization, it tells the stories of three women on the receiving end of that brutality.Evangeline, Hazel, and Mathinna are memorable for their stories, but they tug on your heartstrings even more so because they are based on real people. There’s Evangeline, a governess sentenced to prison after her pregnancy is discovered; Hazel, a young midwife also sentenced for a minor infraction; and Mathinna, an orphan ripped from her home as an experiment in “taming the natives” by the wife of the new … Keep Reading
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‘Midnight Library’ and the Power of Regrets
Do you ever think about where you’d be if you did that ONE thing differently? If you, say, changed your major to match your passions, rather than your expectations? Or if you’d taken that leap of faith and moved to that far off city where you knew no one? The possibilities for how your life could have unfolded are endless, and it's hard not to think about them, sometimes. That's the premise of The Midnight Library by Matt Haig and it's a good … Keep Reading
‘The First Day of Spring’ is a Powerful Debut Novel
When Chrissie was 8, she killed a little boy. Twenty years later, she’s a mom trying to do what’s best for her daughter. But how do you forgive yourself for something so awful? Or are some acts so terrible that there’s no coming back? Do the standards for redemption change if you killed someone as a child, rather than adult?Equal parts disturbing and heartbreaking, The First Day of Spring by Nancy Tucker is told through alternating points … Keep Reading
‘The Last Thing He Told Me’ Infuses Freshness Into the Familiar
Let me start off by saying I really enjoyed The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave. My last few books have been duds so I was nervous about continuing my “losing streak”, but this one hit the spot. On its face, the story is tried-and-true: girl meets boy, boy has secrets, girl seeks truth and surprises abound; but Dave infuses freshness into it by going in an unexpected direction. Her approach strikes a balance between the familiar and the … Keep Reading
From the Archives
Could You Be Happier? Maybe You Need a Happiness Project
If you were to ask me if I was happy when I first started reading The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin, I would have said yes. I have a great husband, great friends, a job that I like, and a comfortable life. Still, there are days when I curse the day ahead simply because the sun had to rise and I have to get up and face the it. This is usually when the guilt kicks in because really, I don't have much to complain about. In the grand … Keep Reading
The Shore by Sara Taylor (Book Review)
Sara Taylor's debut novel, The Shore, has been getting some rave reviews and I was thrilled to snag a copy of it. Set in a remote set of islands off the coast of Virginia, it offers up a series of short stories that overlap to create a wonderful novel about the importance of home, the conflicting desire to run away and stay where you are, and the joys and sorrows that come with living in a small town where everyone knows everything … Keep Reading
Public Shamings and the Loss of Identity
What do the stocks, public whippings, and the gossip's bridle have in common? They were all instruments used to punish wrongdoers. The alleged crimes were varied, from violent crimes to gossiping too much, but the goal of the punishment was the same: to punish citizens and turn them into social pariahs via public shamings. This sentiment is still alive and well today, from the nonstop coverage of trainwrecked celebrities to … Keep Reading