Orphan Train

I recently just finished reading 'Orphan Train' by Christina Baker Kline. This is the story of a young Irish immigrant who loses her family in a fire in NYC. After a brief stay at an orphanage she is put on the orphan train- a system set up to place orphans in mid-american farming communities. The first children that are adopted are babies, then the older boys because they can work hard on the farms. If the children do not find families to take them in, they are sent back to the orphanage. Most of the orphans are abused and mistreated in their new homes, and only rarely do they actually find loving families.

This novel jumps between the early 1900's and modern day, connecting two orphans in a beautiful way. More than once, I found myself crying over this book. If a book can bring me to tears- actual big fat messy tears, then it must be a pretty good read. I was way too emotionally involved with these characters haha. I really enjoyed this novel. If you need a good cry, a lesson on gratitude, or just a reminder to hold your loved ones close, then I highly recommend this book!

*Disclaimer* :There is some language- but not enough that I found it bothersome. I just trained my eyes to skip over the words that I didn't want in my head.

The Glass Castle

'The Glass Castle' is a memoir by Jeannette Walls. She colorfully describes her childhood with her alcoholic father and her eccentric artist mother, two sisters, and one brother. The Walls family is often moving from place to place, and is often homeless, sleeping in the dessert. The parents label their trials as "adventures" and the children must play the game of acting as if they are having a grand time and on a wild adventure, instead of what they really are: cold, dirty, and hungry. Often times it is the children taking care of the parents, each other, and themselves. There are moments of happiness and childlike wonder of course, but for the most part, they have to grow up rather quickly. This story is heart-breakingly beautiful. Walls is a true storyteller and takes you on quite the narrative. I had a hard time putting this one down and found myself reading late into the night, just praying for a happy ending. 

“One time I saw a tiny Joshua tree sapling growing not too far from the old tree. I wanted to dig it up and replant it near our house. I told Mom that I would protect it from the wind and water it every day so that it could grow nice and tall and straight. Mom frowned at me. "You'd be destroying what makes it special," she said. "It's the Joshua tree's struggle that gives it its beauty.” 

A Heart Revealed

'A Heart Revealed" By Josi S. Kilpack was another book chosen by my book club. This is the story of Amber Marie Sterlington, who is  snooty, uppity, and vain. She is the rage of the season in London and can have any man she chooses, and of course she is going to marry for money, love has nothing to do with it in this game. But when her social standing is threatened, her life is drastically changed, forcing her to reevaluate what she really wants out of life, and a partner.

I personally loved this book. It reminded me of Pride and Prejudice. I was pleasantly surprised with how drawn into the story I became, and there is one particular scene towards the end of the book, that I had to reread because the cheesy romantic in me was melting ooey-gooey goodness (I may have even sighed out loud). This is a wonderful book for people who love the Regency era, a good clean romance, and a good life lesson thrown into the mix.

It did leave me with a few unanswered questions however (not vital to the story but I am just curious about) and if I ever do have the chance to meet Kilpack in real life I am definitely asking her haha.

The Ascendance Trilogy

I LOVED the Ascendance Trilogy by Jennifer A. Nielson! The series takes place in a kingdom called Carthya. The king and queen have two sons, but one of them is killed by pirates. When rumors start going around the kingdom that the royal family has been murdered, a regent from the kingdom collects four boys from different orphanages who resemble the younger prince in hopes to pass him off as the royal and have him crowned king. The regent, Connor, is convinced that by so doing this, it will prevent war throughout the kingdom in order to obtain the throne. Sage is one of the boys collected from Connor, but he has no interest in learning table manners, how to waltz, and the history of Carthya. However, running away may be even more dangerous than lying to get the crown.

This series is full of mystery and intrigue. It is adventurous, as well as a coming of age novel. I could not put the book down, it had me nervous with anticipation until the very end. I would HIGHLY recommend this series!

Heaven Help Us

This month's book for book club was 'Heaven Help Us' by Kari J. Rich. This is a collection of memoirs written by a woman who lives in Cache Valley and writes for the Herald Journal (our local newspaper). While some of her stories had me laughing out loud, others made me kind of cringe. While I thoroughly enjoyed her tales of Thanksgiving woes, trying to get to church on time, and stories of how Girls Camp really is, there were also some things that were either TMI or just kind of boring. For instance, an entire chapter does not need to be dedicated to you detailing your workouts at the gym... snooze fest. Also, lusting after the 16 year old grocery boy..... ewwwww. And while I am a sarcastic person myself, sometimes her writing was a little too sarcastic and came off as just plain mean. For example: when she is berating the poor nurses at the hospital and answering them in snarky rude ways. We understand that you are worried about your sick kid and are frustrated, but those poor nurses have long shifts and have to deal with unpleasant people all day long. Maybe I have worked too many retail jobs, but on this one, I thought she could cut them some slack, they really are just doing the best they can. I guess this book was okay. There are some funny moments in it, but I probably wouldn't read it again. I guess you will just have to check it out and decide for yourself.

Strands of Bronze and Gold

'Strands of Bronze and Gold' by Jane Nickerson is about young, orphaned Sophia, who leaves her home and siblings in Boston to live with her extremely wealthy godfather in Mississippi. At first Sophia is beyond thrilled to live with her godfather in his mansion, accept his lavish gifts, and bask in his wealth. She came from a family of poverty, and her vanity is more than willing to accept this new and exciting lifestyle. Some things seem amiss to Sophia, but she doesn't let herself look too closely into her godfather's past that includes four wives, three of whom are dead. She is uncomfortable with the slaves that work on the plantation, and wishes there was something she could do for them, but keeping her godfather happy and his temper under control is vital for Sophia to get the money from him that her siblings so desperately need. She is walking a tight-wire and is hesitant to ask him too many questions or push him too far. She thinks she is good at handling her godfather and his unusual moods, but when she starts discovering some secrets of the house, she has to choose between playing her godfather's games to help her siblings, or living a happy full life.

This page turning mystery novel was good and I enjoyed it very much. It definitely kept me up late at night and I just had to find out what happened next. I would recommend it if you like mystery and historical fiction.

Sheep's Clothing

I always say that I am not the biggest fan of Mormon fiction that is not historical fiction. However,  I have recently decided that I need to stop giving this genre such a bad rep simply because of the two authors who for some mystifying reason are the "Mormon fiction poster children"(Stansfield and Weyland) ugh. Anyway, for our book club this month we were asked to read something written by Josi Kilpack. When I first received this assignment I inwardly cringed a little, but my misgivings about this author, who I definitely thought was going to be another Stansfield in the making, were completely off base. I decided to read one of her stand alone books so that I wouldn't be stuck with an entire series to read. I scrolled through some of her books, she has a lot!, and decided to read 'Sheep's Clothing'.

'Sheep's Clothing' is about an online predator trying to find the perfect teenage girl to seduce. He poses as a teenager and slowly and patiently earns his victims trust by subtly manipulating them. The very first chapter of the book begins with him dumping the body of his last victim, so the fact that you already know what is going to happen to the next girl is terrifying and completely enthralling. I spent WAY too many late nights reading this book. It was such a page turner! The story is told from different points of view too so it kept it interesting. You see the predator, the victim, the victim's mother, and the murdered girl's families point of view.

I was completely caught up in this book because ohhhhh my freaking heck this kind of thing happens EVERY SINGLE DAY! This book scared the crap out of me. Not because it was intense or scary, but because it was REAL. And being a mother made it a little TOO REAL. As I closed the book I fretted over the conversations I would need to have with my children in the future--- I do not look forward to that day. This book helped me get a little more internet smart for my future children. If you are a parent- or will be- or know teenagers-  or ARE a teenager, then read this book!

Heaven is Here

'Heaven is Here' by Stephanie Nielson was another great read from my book club. This book was both heartbreaking and uplifting at the same time, and I don't even know how that is possible. I enjoyed reading Stephanie's thoughts so much, she had me completely captivated by her story and I spent too many nights reading her words late into the night. 

Stephanie Nielson is the creator of the Nie Nie Diaries blog, She is a Mormon girl from Provo, Utah whose greatest aspiration is to be the best wife and mother she can be. When her husband gets a job in New Jersey a family member of her introduces her to blogging as a way to keep her family updated on what is going on in their lives. Stephanie absolutely falls in love with blogging and pretty soon she has many, many followers. 

Stephanie and her family find themselves moving to Arizona where her husband decides to take flying lessons. When her and her husband are in a terrible plane crash it is a miracle that she survives at all. 80% of her body was severely burned and this is the story of her recovery from that accident. As a wife and mother myself, her struggles to do and relearn every day tasks were heart wrenching. But Stephanie is a survivor in every sense of the word.

'Heaven is Here' taught me many valuable life lessons. Don't take what you have and what you can do for granted. Stop making excuses for yourself. Trust in the Lord and everything will work out. Never give up. Do the best you can, and then forgive yourself for your shortcomings. Needing and asking for help is okay. Be grateful for the tender mercies. Treasure your loved ones, for life is short, and you never know what might happen. There are so many more!

This is filled with so much goodness. After I read it I wanted nothing more than to meet Stephanie in real life and thank her for this book. She only lives two hours south of me, maybe I will meet her someday, who knows? I sure hope so. I just want to give her a hug! 

Mary, Martha, and Me

This month I joined a book club and this is the first book that we read. 'Mary, Martha, and Me' by Camille Fronk Olsen is the story of the sisters Mary and Martha in the bible and the relationship they had with Christ. Camille Olsen delves deeper into the story of when Martha rebukes Mary to Christ for not helping her do the work that needs to be done. Mary chooses instead to feast upon the words of Christ. Christ responds to Martha by telling her that Mary has chosen the one needful thing.

This book definitely has some good insights to this story. For the most part I did enjoy reading this, but I was glad that it was a shorter novel because parts of it seemed kind of dry to me. I am one of those people that have a hard time reading "church talk" type books - but if that is your kind of thing than I would think you would really like this book. She had some good points and made me think about the two women and their differing personalities more than I have ever done before. I sometimes had a hard time with this story thinking that Chirst was being harsh to Martha. If she didn't do the work than everyone would be hungry right? This book helped me understand the scenario much better and is very thought provoking.

I Opened a Book