Stash

Book Bag Rating: Maybe


This is a story about an uber-suburban housewife who decides to get some pot for a weekend trip with her family. She is on the PTO. She volunteers. She ferries her kids to and from all kinds of activities. She makes healthy meals. She belongs to a farm co-op. She is the picture of super-mom. The ironic part is she buys $500 worth of pot so she can share with a friend who happens to be her attorney's wife. After smoking a joint in a public park she puts the pot in the pouch of the seat behind her and proceeds to go pick up her kids (and a friend's). She wasn't supposed to pick up the kids but when a friend is delayed she goes. On the way she has a significant car accident. The accident is proven not to be her fault but the other driver dies and she has pot in her car and in her system.

The rest of the book is about the chain of events that occur after her subsequent arrest and release.

I liked the first half of the book but then I found the story to go flat in a bunch of ridiculous coincidences. The ending winds things up a little too perfectly.

This should have been a more dirty, gritty story. This seemed to be a sanitized version of what could happen.

The last few pages especially really irked me. Did these people learn anything?

I read this pretty quickly so it did hold my interest but I stopped enjoying it around page 185.

The Leisure Seeker

Book Bag Rating: Not for everyone.

I rushed through this book because I needed to get to the inevitable end (no pun intended). I liked this book and the author's style is engaging and readable. However, this is not a book that will speak to everyone. There are moments that are funny but it is pretty depressing for the most part.

This is the story of one last vacation road trip in Ella and John's faithful Leisure Seeker camper. They will drive from their home in Michigan to Disneyland following Route 66 as much as they can. Ella and John married more than 60 years set off on what will be their last vacation together due to her terminal cancer and his advancing Alzheimer's. Both their doctors and children tell them not to take the trip but Ella knows it is the right thing to do.

So much of their road trip was familiar to me which is just a little bit disconcerting. When Ella and John stop at Stuckey's for a pecan roll I was there with them. As a child Stuckey's was "the" place on the road second only to South of the Border. We all like to think how different our lives are but as the author points out we're all essentially moving in the same direction.

I like the relationship between Ella and John. Despite their diseases things are normal. They bicker, make up, share inside jokes and secrets and just know they are loved by each other.

The ending is perfect for this story. Strangely, I can imagine my last trip being a road trip to Disney World. I wouldn't mind my ending to be like theirs.

Sugar Queen

Book Bag Rating: Read it!

This was the third in a "hat trick" of books. I loved this one too. Sarah Addison Allen now has me as a groupie! This was another sweet love story with a hint of the supernatural sprinkled throughout. The main theme was forgiveness. Could Chloe forgive Jake for cheating? Could Josey forgive herself and her mother for her childhood? Could Margaret forgive herself and find love with Randall? Could Della Lee forgive herself and help someone? Could Adam forgive himself and learn to live again.

The story takes place in a small ski town where Adam has landed after a horrible accident nearly takes his life. He meets Josey who lives in a self imposed prison while trying to make up for her sins as a young girl. Josey meets Della Lee who shows up one day unannounced in her closet. Chloe meets Josey after Della Lee sends Josey for a sandwich in Chloe's shop. Chloe, Josey and Della Lee are bound by more than just problems. The three women will find every thing they are looking for with each other's help.

The other main characters in the book are books themselves. Maybe secretly this is why I loved the story so much. Books have a way of just showing up when Chloe needs them. Try as she might she can't escape the books.

I predicted the ending about halfway through but I still loved every minute of getting to the end.

The Girl Who Chased the Moon

Book Bag Rating: Read it!

I loved this story and the quirky characters in it. If I really think about the premise it's ridiculous but, if I just think about the characters it's a simple love story. Emily is sent to live with her grandfather whom she has never met after her mother's death. When she arrives in the small town of Mullaby, NC she finds out that her mother led a different life in this town and rather than living up to the altruistic mother Emily knew her to be she found out she had to live down the girl who grew up in Mullaby. It is also the story of Julia who grew up in Mullaby and knew Emily's mother. Julia also left town but when her father died she came back to tie up loose ends and she makes it clear she is only there temporarily. Both Emily and Julia are trying to find out where they fit in and where they belong. They are both searching for love and acceptance and despite not wanting to they both find exactly what they need in this small quirky town.

This is a fast easy read. I like the hint of supernatural that the author sprinkles into each of her books. It's there and on it's face crazy, but somehow Ms. Allen is able to weave a believable crazy story.

Garden Spells

Book Bag Rating: Read it!
I downloaded this book on a whim because it was cheap and because it was a B*arnes & N*oble recommended selection. I really didn't expect a whole lot but I was pleasantly delighted with it. It is the story of two sisters who are very different and yet very alike. They are born into a different sort of family where there are no coincidences and there is great power in things that grow in their garden. There is an apple tree whose fruit will show anyone who eats it the most important event in his life. This event may be good or bad. It is almost always better not to know. It is also about love and how you can find it in the most obvious and unexpected places. It is about good versus evil and happily here good wins! It is about reinventing yourself and learning to trust your instincts. I really liked this story. One of the story lines reminded me of Sleeping with the Enemy which I happened to like but that is only one part of the book. It is a short and easy read and perfect for the end of summer as the story takes place over a summer. Again even though I didn't plan it--I swear-- this story takes place in the south. Does anyone else see my wishful thinking?

The Day the Falls Stood Still

Book Bag Rating: Read it!
This is the story of Bess, the daughter of a fallen power company executive set in Niagara Falls on the Canadian side during World War I. It outlines the historical aspects of the struggle between the demand for power, greed and the desire by some to protect the falls. It is a classic forbidden love story. Bess now forced from the cocoon of privilege is forced to deal with her alcoholic father, overburdened mother and seriously depressed sister. She meets Tom a "river man." He is what her mother calls a fishmonger and not worthy of her daughter. Tom is however an honorable man, sensitive and smart. Despite being courted by the wealthy son of friends Bess through tragic circumstances chooses Tom. Two children and a war later life is hard and through it all Bess is strong and forges ahead. Some reviewers were upset at the sad ending for the book, but I didn't see this as a happy ending story. I really can't think of any other way the author could have ended it.

I liked this book and I learned a lot about the falls. It was a quick and easy read and worth the time.

Sullivan's Island

Book bag rating: Quick, easy beach read.

I love the beach! My reading choices this summer just confirm how much I love the beach. Sullivan's Island is another beach story and happily there is a sequel and many more books about the low country. This story follows Susan and her family from dysfunctional childhood wrought with an abusive father, overwhelmed and over-medicated mother, possible murder, racism and of course the loving housekeeper through her adulthood which includes marriage, raising a daughter, infidelity, divorce, dating, acceptance and happiness. The anchor for the story is the Island Gamble, Susan's childhood home on Sullivan's Island. No matter what happens her home and the beach are always there. This is a quick read. It is perfect for summer. I haven't started the sequel yet but I'm looking forward to going back to the beach soon.

Salem Falls

Book Bag Rating: Maybe

I've read several of Jodi Picoult's books and enjoyed each one. Similarly, I enjoyed this one; just not as much. I'm not sure if it's because I've read too many of her books or if this story just wasn't as fresh. I found this book a little slow and largely predictable. Picoult for me has beoome like Danielle Steele. She uses the same formula with different characters.

It is the story of Jack St. Bride, victim of a teenage girl's crush that turned into a conviction for sexual assault. Upon his release from prison he ends up in the sleepy town of Salem Falls where he meets Addie a broken diner owner and falls in love. The couple have been beaten down by life and when Jack is once again accused of rape, Addie must decide whether or not she really knows this man.

You always expect an unexpected ending from Picoult but this book didn't have that "aha" moment at the end. I knew how it was going to end from about the middle of the book. The one little surprise at the end was also not that surprising and I had also guessed that secret.

Overall I did enjoy the book. I kept turning the pages but it's not a favorite thus the maybe rating.

The Help

Book Bag Rating: Read it!

The Help is a story set in 1962 Mississippi where the division among blacks and whites remained pre-civil war like. The story is told from the perspective of Skeeter a 20 something cotton plantation daughter who aspires to be a journalist rather than just a Junior League wife and two maids Minny and Aibileen. Both of these maids have so many layers to their characters. Skeeter and the maids work together to write a book about what it is like to be a maid in Mississippi. Through telling their story the women change. Preconceptions are lost and mutual respect is born.

The relationships are complex. Hearts are broken and secrets are kept and then revealed. I enjoyed the way the story unfolded and I liked the fact that Skeeter remains brave and true to herself. My only criticism is in the ending. While I know historically how things turn out, I really wanted more of an ending for the three women. I wanted to follow them into old lady-hood and find them sipping tea together and talking about old times. I'm a sucker for a happy ending.

Little Bee

Book Bag Rating: Read it.

This is a very readable story about two women who collide in tragedy and how they survive. Survival is at the very base of our humanity and yet some are better at it than others. The two women in this story are brave beyond comprehension.
It is reminiscent of the stories about blood diamonds but this story is about oil and what people will do to get this commodity.

A chance meeting on a beach sets in motion a string of events that cannot be predicted. The story is not pretty and there were several moments where I gasped out loud. Once my son actually asked me what was wrong. There are things in this book that are disgusting and the examples of cruelty are all too vivid. Yet it is inspiring.

I liked Little Bee and I rooted for the two women. I was surprised by the ending. I was sad yet oddly uplifted. I don't know that I would be able to do was Sarah and Little Bee did.

This book is the polar opposite of the last one. This was not light and easy. It was dark and sad yet through the sadness you see a glimmer of hope. This hope is what keeps us getting out of bed each day.

I can't say I enjoyed the story but I did like this book. I was gripped by it and finished it in a day and a half. Which is almost unheard of for me these days. I stayed up way too late and read before work.

If you want to read something a little bit different this is a good choice.

On Folly Beach

Book bag rating: Read it!

I loved this book from start to finish. It is a great beach read that takes place at the beach. The author weaves a story from the past with the present. Usually when a book is written this way, I like one story line and not the other so I find myself speed reading one half and savoring the other. That was not the case with this book I loved both parts. The stories are set on Folly Beach in South Carolina. One story follows the lives of sisters Maggie and Lulu and their cousin Cat during World War II and the other follows Emmy an Afghanistan widow who moves to Folly Beach after buying Folly's Finds a book store once owned by Maggie. Part of the purchase of the bookstore includes allowing cranky old Lulu to sell bottle trees from the store.

While working through her grief, Emmy discovers secrets that have remained hidden since the 1940s. These secrets include Nazi spies, murder, infidelity, forgiveness, love and bravery. Through her discoveries Emmy realizes that she has much in common with the old and cranky Lulu. More importantly she learns how to say her first last goodbye...

The author paints a beautiful picture of Folly Beach and her inhabitants that made me want to visit. I learned things about World War II that I did not know and I learned about bottle trees. I really enjoyed this story and have decided Karen White is one of my favorite authors.

The Heretic's Daughter

Book Bag Rating: Read it!

This is a story about the Salem Witch Trials and is largely based on the author's own family history. It is not uplifting and happy but tells the awful truth about this part of our history. Despite the gloomy nature of the story we do see many human qualities to be admired and many to be abhorred.

It is the story of the Carrier family told by 10 year old Sarah whose Mother, Martha is one of the first to be arrested for being a witch. Martha is a strong-willed, self-assured woman who does not show affection easily. She and her husband Thomas do their best to raise their children under the scrutiny of the puritanical ideals of early New England. The hardships of life at this time included the threat of death by Indian raids or illness. There seemed to be very little joy in the Carrier home and yet we learn there is fierce loyalty and enormous strength.

Prior to reading this book, I had a romanticized view of the witch trials and often thought about visiting Salem around Halloween because let's face it what could be creepier than "real" witches at Halloween. Now I know what these men, women and children endured was cruel and inhumane. Driven by fear and mob mentality many innocent people were put to death and their families tortured into turning on one another. Any illness, bad luck or good luck for that matter could and often would be attributed to witchcraft. If someone had a grudge against you they could avenge it by accusing you of being a witch. Many people were imprisoned in deplorable conditions for unreasonable lengths of time during these trials.

Despite the horror of the story we see redemption in many of the characters. We see incredible strength and abysmal cowardice. There are secrets and promises.

I really liked this book and the story is one that will stay with me. I liked the author's writing style and the historical fiction aspects of the book. It is not a cheery book and not for those who need a happy ending.