23. The Year the Lights Came On by Terry Kay

This is my second book by Terry Kay and I love the way he writes.  You are present as he tells about a rural Georgia town in 1947 and the life of the young boys living there.  There is a definite division between the people on each side of Highway 17; and it creates great tension at the school between Colin's group, Our Side, and the Highway 17 gang led by Dupree Hixon.  Eleven-year-old Colin has a great bunch of friends including his older brother, Wesley, who is a natural leader, and Freeman Boyd, a wild child who knows the swamp better than any one else around.  Wesley figures out the main difference between the two groups is that they have electricity.  The knowledge that soon the Rural Electrification Administration would be running lines to the rest of the county leaves Our Side feeling a bit smug about their secret.  Kay creates a great story about an era when things were simpler but harder, more innocent and also about how progress in the shape of electricity changed the culture and lives of the people involved.  I find that I really enjoy coming-of-age stories of young teenage boys set in bygone times.  I can't remember reading similar stories involving girls.  Why is that?  If you want to read a well-written book with a great story, pick this one or even another Kay book, The Valley of Lights (not a series).  Rating:  4.75

22. April Fool Dead by Carolyn Hart

I love the "Death on Demand Mystery" series.  Annie Darling owns her own mystery bookstore called Death on Demand located on a South Carolina small island.  It's amazing how many murders there are on this island and Annie gets involved in each one.  The mysteries themselves are pretty fluffy.  The fun is in the characters, especially with Annie and her gorgeous husband, Max.  That relationship is sheer enjoyment.  I also enjoy the contests that Annie hosts at her bookstore.  Each month she commissions a set of five pictures that depict different mysteries.  Annie is also always discussing different books that make the reader want to go out and read them.  If you love mysteries, these books will give you lots of ideas of ones to check out.  In this  particular mystery,  Annie creates a contest advertising an upcoming book signing and puts flyers around the island.  Someone creates similar flyers, only they are targeting actual residents of the island.  Soon a school teacher is shot in her home and a student is pushed off a pier and drowns.  Through it all is Laurel, Max' ethereal mother, who drifts in and out and helps the police end a drug-running operation.  There is too much going on and the mystery wraps up too neatly.  Even so, I enjoyed the book as much as the rest of the series.  Annie and Max are just a great couple to read about.  Rating:  4

21. Summer of Light by W Dale Cramer

Mick Brannigan is happy with his life as a construction worker, husband and father of three.  It's true that his youngest, four-year-old Dylan, is suffering from a condition making it difficult for him to process his sensory perceptions causing behaviorial problems.  Fate seems to take a hand in Mick's life when he loses his job and becomes the primary caretaker for Dylan and the other two children.  He takes on odd jobs around the neighborhood, cutting down a tree which falls into a house, destroying it and the chainsaw borrowed from another neighbor.  He has a freak accident and drives his car into a pond.  One things leads to another; but through it all he helps Dylan learn to deal with his condition, finds another vocation and develops faith in a God who does know what is happening in our lives.  The religious message is not heavy handed at all.  I truly enjoyed the humor in this story and how Mick deals with his frustrations and the growth in his life.  Rating:  5

20. The Stargazey by Martha Grimes

I have always enjoyed Martha Grimes's Richard Jury series.  Richard is a New Scotland Yard superintendent who surrounds himself with a fascinating set of friends.  My favorite is Melrose Plant, an many-titled peer of the realm who has renounced his titles unless it is useful while helping Jury solve his cases.  The book has just the right blend of mystery, suspense and humor.  I'm not going to go into the plot itself.  I just recommend any Richard Jury book.  Rating:  4.25

19. Cheerful Money by Tad Friend

Tad Friend comes from a long line of Wasps  and this book explains what that means as he tells his life story.  The reader gets to know his illustrious ancestors and how Wasps dominated American life for many centuries. 

From back cover:
"As a young man, Tad noticed that his family tree, for all its glories, was full of alcoholics, depressives, and reckless eccentrics.  Yet his identity had already been shaped by the family's age-old traditions and expectations.  Part memoir, part family history, and part cultural study of the long swoon of the  American Wasp, Cheerful Money is captivating examination of a cultural crack-up and a man trying to escape its wreckage."

I found this book very interesting and educational.  It was fun to read about America's oldest families and the changes they have gone through in the last fifty years.  Rating:  3.75

18. Sweet Love by Sarah Strohmeyer

I liked this romance novel because it involves a forty-something woman, Julie, who is a mother and a journalist who is attractive but still forty-somethng.   She hates to cook because that is something her mother pushed her to do all her life.  Now she wins a ticket for a dessert class and finds herself in a class with the man she has had a crush on most of her life until they had a serious parting of the ways six years before.  And you can probably figure out the rest of the story line from here on.  Even though it is totally predictable, there are some fun characters in the book including Julie's mom and her daughter that keep the book interesting and humorous.  Rating:  3.5

17. Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm by Kate Douglas Wiggin

Can you believe I never read this book when I was a young girl?  I found it on my mom's bookshelves and finally got around to it.  It struck me as a weaker version of Anne of Green Gables, which is one of my all-time favorite books.  Rebecca is remarkably like Anne in her ability to bring cheer to those around her.  She gets into all kinds of scrapes that mortify and anger one of the old maiden aunts whom she has been sent to live with.  The other aunt, Jane, is an old softie who is always trying to make things better between Rebecca and Aunt Miranda.  There is a alluded future romance that you never get a chance to find out more about; but, all in all, it's a very cute book and fun to read.  Rating:  3.75

16. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

This is the second book that Cassie gave me for Christmas.  It is such an elegant book that I had it sitting on the end table for weeks.  The inside is just as pretty with the black and white striped end papers and the black sky with white stars page at the beginning of each chapter. 

"The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night.


But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway—a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them, this is a game in which only one can be left standing, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battle of imagination and will. Despite themselves, however, Celia and Marco tumble headfirst into love—a deep, magical love that makes the lights flicker and the room grow warm whenever they so much as brush hands.

True love or not, the game must play out, and the fates of everyone involved, from the cast of extraordinary circus per­formers to the patrons, hang in the balance, suspended as precariously as the daring acrobats overhead."  From Amazon

I found the prose in the book to be just as elegant as its appearance.  The descriptions of the circus were so captivating that you are drawn into the magic of this elusive circus.  However, I didn't feel that I really got to know the characters.  Besides Celia and Marcus, there are other members of the circus, the true fans who follow it whenever they can determine where it will next appear, and finally Bailey, a young boy who is completely enchanted with the circus.  While I read the book, I felt a vague sense of menace which never truly materialized, so it felt slightly incomplete for me.  Rating:  4

15. Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine

I orginally bought this book to read for the Twisted Fairy Tales challenge.  I don't even know if this challenge is still being held; but it's way past time for me to read it.  I think I put it off because the back cover describes Ella as having the unusaul gift of being obedient so she can never say no to any order given to her.  For some reason, that made me uncomfortable; and it certainly causes a lot of grief for Ella.  However, she is aspirited young woman who finds ways to rebel even though she has to follow the orders.  I have not yet seen the movie based on this book starring Anne Hathaway and wonder if anyone recommends it.  I like the actress and think she would make a great Ella.  Over all, I found this book to be a fun and light read.  Rating:  4

14. The Dragonfly Pool by Eva Ibbotson

From back cover:

"At first, Tally doesn't want to go to the boarding school called Delderton.  But soon she discovers that it's a wonderful place, where freedom and self-expression are valued.  Enamoured of Bergania, a serene and peaceful European country led by a noble king who refuses to bend to the Nazis, Tally organizes a ragtag school dance troupe to attend the international folkdancing festival of 1939 held in Begania.  There she meets Karil, the crown prince, who wants nothing more than ordinary friends.  But when Karil's' father is assassinated, it's up to Tally and her friends to help Karil escape the Nazis and the bleak future he's inherited."

This is a wonderful book for older children.  The illustrations are beautiful and the story is enchanting.  I found each of the characters to be interesting and unique.  Rating:  4.5

13. So Well Remembered by James Hilton

I absolutely loved Hilton's Random Harvest so I was excited when I found this book on my mom's shelves.  It's an old book, published in 1945; and in excellent condition.  However, the story is not nearly as wonderful as Harvest.  The story is about George Boswell, an amiable man who has a dream for his small manufacturing town and proceeds to chamr those around him into following his dreams.  He begins as the lowly son of a factory worker who educates himself and begins to serve on the town council.  He also meets Livia Channing, whose father was an owner of the largest factory in town and who put hundreds out of work  through embezzlement or mismanagement.  (Never really sure what he did)  George marries Livia and the marriage ends badly a few years later.  Then it's WWII and George meets a young man who is a patient in a local hospital after a horrible war injury.  He turns out to be Livia's son and George becomes involved with his life and trying to make things right for him as well.  It's just a slow tale of a good man who does his best for those around him.  Rating:  3.75

12. Maggie --Her Marriage by Taylor Caldwell

When I was young, I read all of Taylor Caldwell's book and loved them.  Somehow I missed this one which is okay because I didn't love it.  There is not really a sympathetic character in the book with the possible exception of Maggie's husband, John.  He is the most powerful man in the county but falls in love with Maggie, the daughter of the blacksmith.  She is in love with her cousin who is a dreamer and weak.  After sending him away to find his fortune as a poet, she marries John and proceeds to alienate everyone around her with her airs and demands.  She eventually figures things out in the end, but by then I didn't care.  Rating:  2.5

11. The Cellist of Sarajevo by Steven Galloway

This is the sad tale of the seige of Sarajevo which took place in the years 1992 through 1995.  As the inhabitants of the city are bombarded continuously from the surrounding hills, they learn to run across intersections and to hide in the shadows of crumbling buildings.  After a bomb hits a street where people are lined up for food, killing 21; a cellist carries his cello to the square and plays a beautiful piece of music for an hour at the same time for 21 days.  The author follows the lives of three strangers--a bakery worker, a young father, and a female sniper who is charged with protecting the cellist from the army on the hills.   The book follows each as they strive to carry on their lives in the most daunting of circumstances and how the music comes to affect them and other survivors in the ravaged city.  I found the story to be gripping and very well-written, but bleak, even though the cellist is a inspiring focal point.  Rating:  4

10. The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley

"It was as black in the closet as old blood.  They had shoved me in and locked the door.  I breathed heavily through my nose, fighting desperately to remain calm.  I tried counting to ten on every intake of breath, and to eight and I released each one slowly into the darkness.  Luckily for me, they had pulled the gag so tightly into my open mouth that my nostrils were left unobstructed, and I was able to draw in one slow lungful aftg another of the stale, musty air."

So begins my first venture into the Flavia de Luce mystery series.  I pictured a tall, blond twenty-something woman who was in deep peril because of her nosing into some dark secret.  I was so wrong.  Flavia is ten or eleven and a budding chemist with a passion for poisons.  She's hilarious in her oddities.  She is thrilled when a dead body turns up in the garden of her family's dilapidated mansion and annoys the police with her observations and sleuthing.  Naturally, she is right more than not.  A wonderful mystery with Flavia as a truly delightful character.  Rating:  4.75

9. Into the Green by Charles de Lint

I have enjoyed the de Lint books I've read in his Nowford series and always look forward to reading his stories.  His books deal with fairies and magical creatures but are not all sweetness and light.  There is a darkness and menace tha make the books more interesting.  Into the Green is not a Newford story and takes places in a fictional set of islands where houseyfolk dwell uneasily with witches.  Angharad is the heroine of the book.  She is a witch, a tinker, and a harpist which makes her a triple threat against an evil lurking in the land that threatens the life of all witches and magical people.  She has to outwit witch hunters and an assassin who is using her to attain his goals.  Rating:  4.25

8. No Longer Strangers by Rachel Ann Nunes

Zoologist Mitch Huntington is shocked to learn that his closest friends have died in a boating accident leaving him the guardian of their daughter, Emily Jane.  It's kind of cute reading about how the young bachelor learns to care for the young toddler and leanrs to love her.  Of course, there is a twist when the deceased wife's estranged sister shows up from a photography gig in the Amazon and wants to take custody of her niece.  There are all kinds of difficulties as the two spar over the baby and Mitch's religion, LDS, which he shared with Emily Jane's parents and vows to raise her in.  It's a very predictable Mormon romance and I found it just okay.  Rating:  3

7. What Remains by Carole Radziwill

Carole Radziwill is a woman who grew up in a small town north of New York City who grew up and married a prince.  The prince is Anthony Radziwill, first cousin and best friend to John F Kennedy, Jr.   This memoir tells about Carole's younger years, how she met and fell in love with Anthony and became close friend to Carolyn Bessett, the woman who captured John's heart.  Right from the beginning, you know that Anothy dies of cancer three weeks after the plane crash that took the lives of John, Carolyn and Carolyn's sister.  What I really liked about this book is that is not overly sentimental and doesn't focus on the star power of the Kennedys.  She is matter-of-fact in covering the tragic time in her live and tells some great stories of her years as a journalist before she met Anthony.  I found the book to be interesting, informative and a good read.  Rating:  4

6. Fairest by Gail Carson Levine

Levine takes the traditional fairy tale about Snow White and gives it a serious twist.  It is almost unrecognizable as the original, but very entertaining and inaginative.  Aza is a homely girl, but one of the best singers in a country filled with singers.  She has an unusual talent of throwing her voice.  The king's new young wife learns of this talent and forces Aza to throw her voice to the queen to cover her feeble vocal abilities.  The king's nephew befriends Aza even though she is not a beauty and he learns to love her until the throwing voice deception is discovered.  The character that most closely resembles the original fairy tale is the mirror whihc houses an evil spirit trying to escape his prison.  All in all, it is a fun story with a happy ending.  Rating:  4

3, 4, & 5. Indigo's Star, Permanent Rose and Caddy Ever After by Hilary McKay

I read the first book in this teen series, Saffy's Angel, a couple of years ago and finally got around to the remaining three.  Indigo is fourteen and the only boy in his unconventional family.  He goes to school and gets beat up almost every day.  Then an under-sized American boy joins the school and stands up to the bullies along with older sisgter Saffy.  The bullies turn their attention to Tom but he never loses his spirit.  Rose is the youngest sister in the family and she becomes entranced by Tom.  The boys become close friends and find a way to triumph over the bullies.  In the next book, Tom has returned to America; and Rose is devastated.  She begins to shop lift because of the thrill but doesn't consider it stealing as she doesn't keep the items.  Mostly Rose's book follows her determination to find Tom.  The final book is about Caddy who has become engaged to a man that no one else cares for.  He is too normal.  As in all the books, the reader is kept up-to-date on all the members of the family, but Rose is truly the main character in the final three books.  I really enjoyed reading them and recommend them for young teens.  Rating:  4.5

2. The Body in the Gallery by Katherine Hall Page

Another in the Faith Fairchild mystery series, we find Faith involved in another murder when a young woman is found as part of an art exhibit that Fath catered.  This story also follows the mishaps of Faith's son, Ben, as he becomes an unruly teenager.  This problems with Ben lead to problems with husband, Tom, as he desires a more traditional wife.  I enjoyed the mystery as always with page's books, especially some of the small New Englad town's more eccentric characters.  Faith's family struggles were a bit distracting and I would have liked the book better without them.  Rating:  3.5