Book 20: The Elite by Kiera Cass
This is book two of the Selection series, which is a young adult series seeming to combine the ideas of the Bachelor and The Hunger Games. I have really enjoyed reading this series, and cannot wait until the third and final book, The One, comes out in May.
Amazon.com Product Description:
Kiera Cass’s The Elite is a must-read for fans of dystopian fiction, fairy tales, and reality TV. This sequel to The Selection will enchant teens who love Divergent and The Bachelor.
In America Singer’s world, a bride is chosen for the prince through an elaborate televised competition. In the second book of the Selection series, America is one of only six girls left in the running. But is it Prince Maxon—and life as the queen—she wants? Or is it Aspen, her first love?
The Elite delivers the adventure, glamour, political intrigue, and romance readers of The Selectionexpect, and continues the love triangle that captivated them.
In America Singer’s world, a bride is chosen for the prince through an elaborate televised competition. In the second book of the Selection series, America is one of only six girls left in the running. But is it Prince Maxon—and life as the queen—she wants? Or is it Aspen, her first love?
The Elite delivers the adventure, glamour, political intrigue, and romance readers of The Selectionexpect, and continues the love triangle that captivated them.
Book 21: Austenland by Shannon Hale
This book was a recommendation by a friend who had read the book and seen the movie and thought that I would enjoy both. It is an easy and quick read, and the romantic in me couldn't wait to see what would happen to the heroine in the end. I look forward to seeing the movie...I'm sure it will be a cute chick flick!
Amazon.com Product Description:
Jane is a young New York woman who can never seem to find the right man—perhaps because of her secret obsession with Mr. Darcy, as played by Colin Firth in the BBC adaptation of Pride and Prejudice. When a wealthy relative bequeaths her a trip to an English resort catering to Austen-obsessed women, however, Jane’s fantasies of meeting the perfect Regency-era gentleman suddenly become more real than she ever could have imagined. Is this total immersion in a fake Austenland enough to make Jane kick the Austen obsession for good, or could all her dreams actually culminate in a Mr. Darcy of her own?
Book 22: A Redbird Christmas by Fannie Flagg
At this point, I realized I had not brought enough books to my parents' house, so I decided to raid my mom's book collection. I saw this one, and had to grab it, because a. it was Christmas, and b. I LOVE Fannie Flagg (she's the one who wrote Fried Green Tomatoes). I am SO glad I did! It is such a sweet story about a man who leaves Chicago due to medical issues and winds up in a small town in Alabama. I easily fell in love with all of the characters and became genuinely concerned with the events of their lives. My only disappointment is that it ended...I wasn't ready to let go of life in Lost River.
Amazon.com Product Description:
With the same incomparable style and warm, inviting voice that have made her beloved by millions of readers far and wide, New York Times bestselling author Fannie Flagg has written an enchanting Christmas story of faith and hope for all ages that is sure to become a classic.
Deep in the southernmost part of Alabama, along the banks of a lazy winding river, lies the sleepy little community known as Lost River, a place that time itself seems to have forgotten. After a startling diagnosis from his doctor, Oswald T. Campbell leaves behind the cold and damp of the oncoming Chicago winter to spend what he believes will be his last Christmas in the warm and welcoming town of Lost River. There he meets the postman who delivers mail by boat, the store owner who nurses a broken heart, the ladies of the Mystic Order of the Royal Polka Dots Secret Society, who do clandestine good works. And he meets a little redbird named Jack, who is at the center of this tale of a magical Christmas when something so amazing happened that those who witnessed it have never forgotten it. Once you experience the wonder, you too will never forget A Redbird Christmas.
Deep in the southernmost part of Alabama, along the banks of a lazy winding river, lies the sleepy little community known as Lost River, a place that time itself seems to have forgotten. After a startling diagnosis from his doctor, Oswald T. Campbell leaves behind the cold and damp of the oncoming Chicago winter to spend what he believes will be his last Christmas in the warm and welcoming town of Lost River. There he meets the postman who delivers mail by boat, the store owner who nurses a broken heart, the ladies of the Mystic Order of the Royal Polka Dots Secret Society, who do clandestine good works. And he meets a little redbird named Jack, who is at the center of this tale of a magical Christmas when something so amazing happened that those who witnessed it have never forgotten it. Once you experience the wonder, you too will never forget A Redbird Christmas.
Book 23: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
I recently purchased The Witch of Portobello and took By the River Piedra I Sat Down and Wept off my mom's bookshelf, both by Paulo Coelho, but decided that before I read them, I needed to go back and re-read The Alchemist to remember why this author intrigued me in the first place. This is a novel in which you can surface read and enjoy the tale of a young man's journey, or you can read between the lines for the deeper meaning of his quest. I loved it just as much as I did the first time I read it, although I think I got a lot more out of it this time around...
Amazon.com Product Description:
"My heart is afraid that it will have to suffer," the boy told the alchemist one night as they looked up at the moonless sky." Tell your heart that the fear of suffering is worse than the suffering itself. And that no heart has ever suffered when it goes in search of its dreams."
The Alchemist is the magical story of Santiago, an Andalusian shepherd boy who yearns to travel in search of a worldly treasure as extravagant as any ever found. From his home in Spain he journeys to the markets of Tangiers and across the Egyptian desert to a fateful encounter with the alchemist.
The story of the treasures Santiago finds along the way teaches us, as only a few stories have done, about the essential wisdom of listening to our hearts, learning to read the omens strewn along life's path, and, above all, following our dreams.
Every few decades a book is published that changes the lives of its readers forever. The Alchemist is such a book. With over a million and a half copies sold around the world, The Alchemist has already established itself as a modern classic, universally admired. Paulo Coelho's charming fable, now available in English for the first time, will enchant and inspire an even wider audience of readers for generations to come.
Book 24: The Ocean At The End of The Lane by Neil Gaiman
I'm participating in a book club at school, which tends to pull me out of my literary comfort zone every once in awhile. The two options for the month of January, both definitely did, because I'm not usually the type to self-select fantasy. I attempted The Golem and The Jinni by Helene Wecker, but just could not get into it...and it's LONG...so I decided to not invest that much of my time to a novel I just wasn't feeling. The Ocean At The End Of The Lane wasn't particularly one of my favorites, but I enjoyed the story and am glad that I read it. It was just...well, strange...
Amazon.com Product Description:
A brilliantly imaginative and poignant fairy tale from the modern master of wonder and terror, The Ocean at the End of the Lane is Neil Gaiman’s first new novel for adults since his #1 New York Timesbestseller Anansi Boys.
This bewitching and harrowing tale of mystery and survival, and memory and magic, makes the impossible all too real...
Book 25: Calico Joe by John Grisham
I had never really given Grisham much of a chance, because I didn't think I would be interested in stories about lawyers... But then, one of my best friends introduced me to Bleachers... A great novelist writing about sports? I was in love! Calico Joe is no exception. Ok, ok, so maybe it's the Cubs fan in me that got so excited about the book at first...but it is a great story. Highly recommended for anyone who loves baseball, has a father, has a son, or just enjoys a good read.
Amazon.com Product Description:
A surprising and moving novel of fathers and sons, forgiveness and redemption, set in the world of Major League Baseball…
Whatever happened to Calico Joe?
It began quietly enough with a pulled hamstring. The first baseman for the Cubs AAA affiliate in Wichita went down as he rounded third and headed for home. The next day, Jim Hickman, the first baseman for the Cubs, injured his back. The team suddenly needed someone to play first, so they reached down to their AA club in Midland, Texas, and called up a twenty-one-year-old named Joe Castle. He was the hottest player in AA and creating a buzz.
In the summer of 1973 Joe Castle was the boy wonder of baseball, the greatest rookie anyone had ever seen. The kid from Calico Rock, Arkansas dazzled Cub fans as he hit home run after home run, politely tipping his hat to the crowd as he shattered all rookie records.
Calico Joe quickly became the idol of every baseball fan in America, including Paul Tracey, the young son of a hard-partying and hard-throwing Mets pitcher. On the day that Warren Tracey finally faced Calico Joe, Paul was in the stands, rooting for his idol but also for his Dad. Then Warren threw a fastball that would change their lives forever…
In John Grisham’s new novel the baseball is thrilling, but it’s what happens off the field that makes CALICO JOE a classic.
Whatever happened to Calico Joe?
It began quietly enough with a pulled hamstring. The first baseman for the Cubs AAA affiliate in Wichita went down as he rounded third and headed for home. The next day, Jim Hickman, the first baseman for the Cubs, injured his back. The team suddenly needed someone to play first, so they reached down to their AA club in Midland, Texas, and called up a twenty-one-year-old named Joe Castle. He was the hottest player in AA and creating a buzz.
In the summer of 1973 Joe Castle was the boy wonder of baseball, the greatest rookie anyone had ever seen. The kid from Calico Rock, Arkansas dazzled Cub fans as he hit home run after home run, politely tipping his hat to the crowd as he shattered all rookie records.
Calico Joe quickly became the idol of every baseball fan in America, including Paul Tracey, the young son of a hard-partying and hard-throwing Mets pitcher. On the day that Warren Tracey finally faced Calico Joe, Paul was in the stands, rooting for his idol but also for his Dad. Then Warren threw a fastball that would change their lives forever…
In John Grisham’s new novel the baseball is thrilling, but it’s what happens off the field that makes CALICO JOE a classic.
