The Book Review Club (October 2011)

Welcome one and all to the THIRTY-FOURTH meeting of our Book Review Club. (The caps are my shock at such a robust number of meetings!!)

Today you are in for many treats. We have terrific reviews, starting with one by my little sister! There she is, above and to the left, eating Indian candy. Next to her is her daughter/my niece noshing on a samosa (which you can't see, but is there nonetheless). The food goes with the book reviewed.

Do you see the smile on my little sister's face? It's because she's sharing a book she absolutely loves.( And maybe a little bit because of the candy.) Thanks for joining in this month, Sheilagh! You're the best!

SECRET DAUGHTER by Shilpi Somaya Gowda

Secret Daughter, Shilpi Samaya Gowda’s first book, is about motherhood. The story follows two families, one in India and one in America. Americans Somer and Krishan adopt Asha, Kavita’s birth daughter.

Kavita lives in a small village in India, in a culture that favours sons. When she gives birth to her second daughter, there is only one way she can save her from the same fate as her first daughter. Barely a day after giving birth, Kavita walks all day to Mumbai with her sister, carrying her new baby, and leaves her in the orphanage. It is the only time Kavita defies her husband, Jasu. She never forgets this daughter and often imagines reuniting with her.

On the other side of the world, Somer, after several miscarriages, agrees to consider adoption. Her husband, Krishan, who was born in India, encourages her to adopt a child from India, and they end up adopting Kavita’s daughter, Asha.

The story follows the lives of Somer, Krishnan and Asha, who wishes to know more about her birth parents, as well as Kavita, Jasu and their much anticipated, but disappointing, son. Throughout the story, the author shows the relationships between family members and the difficulties they face over time, leading up to Jasu’s moving recognition of Kavita’s bravery.

This story will tug at your heart strings long after you've closed the book.

To read more about Shilpi Somay Gowda and watch an interview with her, please click here.


Below are amazing reviews put together by amazing reviewers. All for you. Please click through.

MIDDLE GRADE/YOUNG ADULT BOOK REVIEWS

Jody Feldman: DOING THE GALAXY GAMES: THE CHALLENGERS by Greg R. Fishbone (Middle Grade)

Staci of Life in the Thumb: THE EMERALD ATLAS by John Stephens (Middle Grade)

Kaye of the Road Goes Ever Ever On: THE GRAVEYARD BOOK by Neil Gaiman (/Middle Grade/Young Adult)

Stacy Nyikos: ACROSS THE UNIVERSE by Beth Revis (Young Adult)

Beth Yarnall: THE GIRL IN THE STEEL CORSET by Kady Cross (Young Adult Steampunk)

Lucy Sartain of Ranting and Raving: THE OPPOSITE OF INVISIBLE by Liz Gallagher (Young Adult)

Sarah Laurence: YOU ARE MY ONLY by Beth Kephart (Young Adult)

Keri Mikulski: LIPSTICK LAWS by Amy Holder and POPULAR by Alissa Grosso (both are Young Adult)


ADULT BOOK REVIEWS

Jenn Jilks of Cottage Country: ROBOPOCALYPSE by Daniel H. Wilson

Patti Abbott: TURN OF MIND by Alice LaPlante

Stacy of The Cat's Meow: THE VIRGIN SUICIDES by Jeffrey Eugenides (literary)

Kathy Holmes: LEARNING TO SWIM by Sara J. Henry (Women's)

Scott Parker: HEAT RISES by Richard Castle (Mystery)

Alyssa Goodnight of the Writers' Road Less Traveled: A HUNDRED THOUSAND DRAGONS by Dolores Gordon-Smith (Mystery)


NONFICTION REVIEWS

Linda McLaughlin: A FIRST-RATE MADNESS: UNCOVERING THE LINKS BETWEEN LEADERSHIP AND MENTAL ILLNESS by Nassir (Adult)

Ellen Booraem of Freelance Ne'er-do-well: PHYSICS OF THE FUTURE by Michio Kaku (Adult)



Note to Reviewers: Any errors (broken link, missed review, etc), just shoot me an email or leave a comment. Thank you so much for your reviews!

The Book Review Club (August 2009)

My little sister's coming to the August meeting of The Book Review Club!

Look at her! She's so into a book that she doesn't even notice she's surrounded by toys and trash in my backyard. (Actually, we set this shot up.)

BUT, she really did enjoy reading this book while down from Canada with her kids for a holiday with us. Even better, she agreed to write a review for the club.

My sister is delightful. You can spend hours with her and still be sad to see her go. I'm happy you'll have the chance to get to know her, albeit only a little bit, through her review.

As I put together this post, I can see my sister's suitcases lined up to load in the van for the airport. Yes, today marks the end of a wonderful and fun ten days. The time went too fast, and I'm not at all ready to say goodbye. It'll probably be another year before we see each other again. And another year before we watch our kids hanging out together again. So, I'm looking forward to reading everyone's reviews. They'll take my mind off my quieter house.

Take it away, sis...




Ten Thousand Lovers by Edeet Ravel is a love story set in Israel during the 1970’s.

Amazon.com writes: Israel, 1970s. Lily, a young emigrant student exploring the wonders and terrors of her new land, finds the man of her dreams -- Ami, a former actor. Handsome, intelligent, and exciting, but like his beautiful, disintegrating country, Ami has a terrible flaw -- he is an army interrogator. As Ami and Lily's unexpected passion grows, so too does the shadow that hangs over them. They must face the unspeakable horrors of Ami's work and their uncertain future.
While set in the '70s, Ten Thousand Lovers is a brilliant and terrifyingly contemporary tale of passion, suffering, and the transcending power of love.

Even if you don’t usually enjoy love stories, you might like this one because the characters, particularly Ami, are so engaging. His observations about life in Israel during this dangerous time are insightful and darkly humorous. For example, when Lily wonders why her well-off friends steal food from the army, Ami says:” People like to pick up souvenirs. Especially from places where they’ve had such a good time.” (Pg. 47)

Lily has trouble trusting him because of his job with the army. However, as events in the story unfold, Lily’s feelings for Ami change.

I greatly enjoyed this story. I liked the characters and the descriptions of Israel at that time, but I especially liked the parts when the author described the origins of various Hebrew and Arab words. (The history of the word assassin was a surprise!)

If you go to the author’s website, you will see that she has many things in common with the Lily. Like Lily, she was born on a Kibbutz and later moved to Canada. Later she returned to Israel to study, also like Lily. Finally, the author has a daughter, too.

However, the best news on Edeet Ravel’s website is that Ten Thousand Lovers is the first book in a trilogy. I am looking forward to reading the others.



Below are links to great book reviews from this month's participants. Please click through. You won't be sorry!

YOUNG ADULT BOOK REVIEWS

Keri Mikulski: FAIRY TALE by Cyn Balog

Thao of serene hours: AFTER by Amy Efaw

Kaye of the Book Review Forum: BLACK CREEK by Leslie Goetsch

Stacy Nyikos: THE UNINVITED by Tim Wynn-Jones


ADULT BOOK REVIEWS

Sarah Laurence: SAG HARBOR by Colson Whitehead (literary fiction)

Patti Abbott: THE DRAMATIST by Ken Bruen

Scott Parker: TRUST ME by Jeff Abbott (thriller)

Alyssa Goodnight: THE FINISHING TOUCHES by Hester Browne (contemporary women's fiction)

Linda McLaughlin: STEALING HEAVEN by Madeline Hunter (medieval romance)

Linda McLaughlin: WARPRIZE by Elizabeth Vaughan (fantasy romance)

Jenn Jilks @ My Refections: FROZEN BENEATH by Brian Horeck (mystery)

Sarahlynn of Yeah, but Houdini didn't have these hips: THE SHACK by William P. Young

Prairie Rose of Prairie Rose's Garden: PLUM SPOOKY by Janet Evanovich (humorous mystery)

Kathy Holmes: RED BLOODED MURDER by Laura Caldwell (mystery series)

Note to reviewers: If I missed linking to you, please leave a comment or email me. I keep pretty good tabs on the blog on review club days. And I do have a niggling feeling that I've forgotten someone this month.