Staff Choices
The author, Sue Monk Kidd, adds fictional dimensions to the history of the Grimkes. Through these fictional accounts, we learn a lot about actual history. We become acquainted with the relationships between children slaves & plantation owners’ children, religious dynamics of the era, family relationships, the lives of slaves and the abolitionist movement as the story progresses. The plot, while slow to start, really picks up momentum about halfway through.
If you liked The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd, The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom or Mrs. Lincoln’s Dressmaker by Jennifer Chiaverini, you might want to give this read a try…
It is 1995. Cheryl Strayed is 26 years old, suffering from a deep grief for her mother’s death, dealing with poor life decisions, experiencing a growing disconnection from her family and is newly divorced. These events bring her to such a low point in her life that she begins this trek to walk 1,100 miles that will take her three months to complete. The trail is rugged, remote and unforgiving. She does not see another person for her first eight days on the trail. She has never been so alone. Dealing with nature’s elements and carrying the weight of everything she needs on her back take a physical and emotional toll. And yet she presses on through extreme weather conditions, blisters, detours, inexperience, self-doubt, exhaustion and fear. It’s as if she needed to purge everything from her past and punish herself while doing it so she could move ahead with her life.
This memoir is beautifully written with honesty, sadness and a little bit of humor. By the end I felt that I travelled the journey alongside the author. Despite the harsh conditions, she also experiences nature’s beauty on the trail, friendships with other hikers, and an inner strength. These qualities kept me reading and I wanted her to succeed. In the end, I think she found what she was looking for.
We learn that Elspeth has a daughter & through her daughter’s letters, we learn more about Elspeth’s life. We find out that there is one lost letter that remains to help Margaret, Elspeth’s daughter, find out the truth about what happened to her family & her mother.
David goes off to France to drive ambulances during the war, to avoid the career his father demands. David’s storyline in France helps give a good framework for the letters & also helps us see what an impact war had on every day individuals like this. By telling the story through letters, you feel like you’re peeking into real peoples’ lives. The audio book version is delightful. It gives you a real feel for the characters. The author, Jessica Brockmole, describes historical aspects in delicious detail, helping transport the reader to that time.
If you liked The Guernsey Literary & Potato Peel Society, you might want to give this read a try.
April signals the start not only of MLB, but also the start of the Cubs/White Sox rivalry. No matter which team you favor, we've got plenty of material to keep you occupied between games. Play Ball!
The audio is read by Samantha Bond, perhaps better known as Rosamund Painswick of Downton Abbey. As I listened, I could picture Bridget obsessively checking for new “twitterati” and the complete chaos of her home. She has much needed support from her friends, Tom, Jude, Talitha, and Daniel Cleaver. Bond does wonderful voices of all the characters, especially 6-year-old Mabel (lisp included) and 30-year-old boy toy, Roxster. Bond's ability to capture Bridget’s hurt and loneliness at losing her husband made me tear up, but in true Bridget style I was laughing again by the next diary entry. As a Bridget Jones fan I really enjoyed this book and revisiting her life 20 years later. It was comforting to see Bridget is the same neurotic, obsessive, lovable woman we met so long ago. The audio was so much fun to listen to and I enjoyed every bit of it.
