Unavailing the 2017 Lit-N-Latte Bookclub Reading List

Holy COW!
How can it already be almost the middle of February? 

Before we get to far into the year I wanted to share the book club reading list.
Let me know if you decide to read along. 

Lit-N-Latte Bookclub

2017 Book List

January: My Name is Resolute - Nancy E Turner

February: Hidden Figures - Margot Lee Shetterly

March: Big Little Lies - Liane Moriarty

April: Denial - Deborah Lipstadt

May: Cold Sassy Tree - Olive Ann Burns

June: This Road We Traveled - Jane Kirkpatrick

July: The Source - James Michener

August:

September: A Man Called Ove - Fredrik Backman

October: Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll

November: Eighty Days - Matthew Goodman

December: The Christmas Town - Donna Van Liere

Good Reading?

I sure hope so! 

I thought I would share this year's selection of books for the Girlfriends Lit-n-Latte

book club. 

I'm pretty excited to read some of these selections.  I've heard a lot about The Harbenger,

The Goldfinch... Oh! Who am I kidding? I can't wait to read all of these. 

                                                     2016 Lit-n-Latte Book List

                                            Jan   Mrs. Kennedy and Me   -Clint Hill

                                            Feb  The Princess Bride   -William Goldman

                                            Mar   Miracles from Heaven  -Christy Wilson Beam

                                             Apr    Brooklyn  -Colm Toibin

                                             May  The Whistling Season  -Ivan Doig

                                             Jun    Summer Break

                                             July   The Goldfinch  -Donna Tartt

                                             Aug   The Harbinger  -Jonathan Cahn

                                             Sep   Wuthering Heights   -Emily Bronte

                                             Oct    Sister Eve, Private Eye  -Lynne Hinton

                                             Nov   The Lowland   -Jhumpa Lahiri

                                             Dec   The Hundred Gifts   -Jennifer Scott

Have you read any of them?

What did you think?

I'm currently reading Mrs. Kennedy and Me... Can't put it down! 

LOVE it!

        

The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion

Okay! 

A cautionary note: 

this book is not for kids or for a church book club. 

(sigh and ugh)

Strong language and adult situations.

Putting that aside, I personally thought that this was a very funny, 

quirky story. I can totally see it as a romantic comedy. 

The main character has Aspergers syndrome ... but in true form... he doesn't

recognize his own social awkwardness.  So you can imagine, with a talented

writer, the comic situations that could occur.

From the back of the book: 

The art of love is never a science: Meet Don Tillman, a brilliant yet socially inept professor of genetics, who's decided it's time he found a wife. In the orderly, evidence-based manner with which Don approaches all things, he designs the Wife Project to find his perfect partner: a sxteen-page, scientifically valid survey to filter out the drinkers, the smokers, the late arrivers.

Rosie Jarman possesses all these qualities. Don easily disqualifies her as a candidate for The Wife Project (even if she is “quite intelligent for a barmaid”). But Don is intrigued by Rosie’s own quest to identify her biological father. When an unlikely relationship develops as they collaborate on The Father Project, Don is forced to confront the spontaneous whirlwind that is Rosie―and the realization that, despite your best scientific efforts, you don’t find love, it finds you. 

And finally, I just read that Jennifer Lawrence is set to play Rosie in the 

upcoming movie project.  Should be a hit! 

So let me know if you read it.

I'ld love to know your thoughts!

Love Idol

Time for a book review!

Okay! I really liked this. 

I would fully recommend this read for any young woman searching 

for significance in today's modern age of Likes, Links, Fans and Followers! 

It many ways, it was a good review of what I already know, but need to 

apply ... hourly! 

Also: you should check her website... there are free printables (your welcome)

From the back of the book: 

You are PreApproved!

We all want to be valued, to be respected. TO BE LOVED. Yet this yearning too often turns into an idol of one of God's most precious gifts: love itself. If you, like so many of us, spend your time and energy trying to earn someone's approval--at work, home, and church--all the while fearing that at any moment the facade will drop and everyone will see your hidden mess... then love may have become an idol in your life.

Love Idol will help you dismantle what's separating you from true connection with God and rediscover the astonishing freedom of a life lived in authentic love.

Tattoos on the Heart ....

The Power of Boundless Compassion

By Gregory Boyle

I JUST finished reading this book and I had to share it with you!

I would consider this a must read for anybody. Adult that is.

Caution: This is a compilation of real stories about gang members and their lives.

The language is real and rough. If you are easily offended, this book is not for 

you. But if you interested in hearing how one man is making a big difference

in a real way, this book is for you! 

Father Gregory will make you re-think and re-define your definitions of

 success, failure, forgiveness, compassion, and hope.  He reminds us that

these are all deep wells that God wants us to draw from when we are 

internally (as well as externally) judging the worth of another Soul on this planet. 

Further, Father Doyle reminds us that whether you are a nurse in an ER or a homie from the hood,

 He will use you right where you are and just as you are!

But don't think this is all heavy spiritual reading... It is not.

I laughed as much as I cried. Humor abounds in his skilled story telling. 

The same, but different: I would compare this to Ann Voskamp's 

Best Seller "One Thousand Gifts" , only much grittier. 

From the Back of the book:

“Destined to become a classic of both urban reportage and contemporary spirituality” ( Los Angeles Times )— Tattoos on the Heart is a series of parables about kinship and redemption from pastor, activist, and renowned speaker, Father Gregory Boyle—now in paperback.

For twenty years, Father Gregory Boyle has run Homeboy Industries, a gang-intervention program located in the Boyle Heights neighborhood of Los Angeles—also known as the gang capital of the world. In Tattoos on the Heart, he has distilled his experience working in the ghetto into a breathtaking series of parables inspired by faith.

From giant, tattooed Cesar, shopping at JC Penney fresh out of prison, we learn how to feel worthy of God’s love. From ten-year-old Pipi we learn the importance of being known and acknowledged. From Lulu we understand the kind of patience necessary to rescue someone from the dark—as Father Boyle phrases it, we can only shine a flashlight on a light switch in a darkened room.

This is a motivating look at how to stay faithful in spite of failure, how to meet the world with a loving heart, and how to conquer shame with boundless, restorative love.

Winner of the 2011 PEN Center USA Literary Award for Creative Nonfiction

 This was a GOOD book! 

You should read it!

Book Review - The Fault In Our Stars

January's bookclub selection was:

 The Fault In Our Stars 

                                                             by John Green

Summary from the back of the book:

Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything by terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel's story is about to be completely rewritten. 

Insightful, bold, irreverent, and raw The Fault in Our Stars is award-winning-author John Green's most ambitious and heartbreaking work yet, brilliantly exploring the funny, thrilling, and tragic business of being alive and in love. 

SO! Here is what I thought. 

I thought that it was REALLY beautifully written in terms of picturesque illustration. I mean, I 

really want to go have dinner in Amsterdam now. :) 

(you'll understand if you read the story, and if not, you'll have to read it 

to find out what I mean) 

I thought that it was enlightening to help understand how a very intelligent teen with a long term fatal disease might handle life, family and love. 

BUT that is just about all the good I could find.

There were a lot of medical inconsistencies,  also a lot of things that just didn't make

logical sense in terms of their travel arrangements. 

But the biggest annoyance was the general overall attitude toward people that believe 

in God or an afterlife. There were mocking tones and down right blasphemous illustrations

about "the literal heart of Jesus"  over and over. The only believers in the story

were made out to be out-of-touch, uninformed losers. 

For example, here's a quote from Hazel (main character) after Gus (her true love) tells her that he absolutely believes in an after life. Or,  at least "Something" after life. 

"Really" I asked. I was surprised. I'd always associated belief in heaven with, frankly, a kind 

of intellectual disengagement. But Gus wasn't dumb."

I get it. We, the believing, are old-school and a dying breed... but really?

I don't know. I just couldn't get over it. 

Tell me. Did you LOVE this best selling block buster? 

It left me wanting.

The Grapes Of Wrath, Book Review

This month's book club read was John Steinbeck's  The Grapes of Wrath.

I will be honest with you. I was looking forward to racking up another classic on 

my "I read that" list.  I had read Of Mice and Men years ago and liked it. So I thought

this was an obvious choice. 

I finally finished it this week and it left me scratching my head, wondering who decides

which stories will be "classics" and which stories won't. 

I'm not saying that I didn't appreciate the story and the great descriptive details

that were so helpful in understanding the plight of migrant workers from our 

own mid-west.  As well, the mistakes of Big Government and Big Banking were 

not lost on me either. In some ways it reminded of our most recent housing bubble.

What I found disturbing is the fact that this book is required reading in many 

high schools and in some jr. high schools. It has a lot of adult content and 

adult situations. I would not recommend it for anyone under 30. Why, you might ask.

Most young people in our country today would have no way to relate to this level

of misery, pride, dignity or desperation and hopelessness. I think that it takes some

living and experience to be able to see beyond the pitiful and depressive subject.

I think that this important time in our history is better taught by a good history teacher.

I also HATED how it ended! What happened to young Tom Joad? Did AL and 

Agnes make it on their own? Did the family even survive the first year in California?

Really Mr. Steinbeck? How could you leave your precious reader dangling?

Does anyone else ever ask, 

"Classic? Says, who?"

Anyone can grow into something beautiful....

Do you love that? I do! 

And the best part is that it's true! 

Last month's book club selection was 

The Language of Flowers

by Vanessa Diffenbaugh

Seriously? The cover called me! 

From the back of the book:

The Victorian language of flowers was used to convey romantic expressions: honeysuckle for devotion, asters for patience, and red roses for love. But for Victoria Jones, it's been more useful in communicating mistrust and solitude. After a childhood spent in the foster-care system, she is unable to get close to anybody, and her only connection to the world is through flowers and their meanings. Now eighteen and emancipated from the system with nowhere to go, Victoria realizes she had a gift for helping others through the flowers she chooses for them. But an unexpected encounter with a mysterious stranger has her questioning what's been missing in her life. And when she's forced to confront a painful secret from her past, she must decide whether it's worth risking everything for a second chance at happiness.

Here's my take:

I didn't enjoy the book as much as I had hoped I would. And truthfully, I go back and forth on my final judgment. It was an "okay" book.  I found the story to be sad and 

depressing. There is a hopeful ending but you really have to slog through some story line 

that portrays some very weak characters and really stupid choices. But then, I also realize that these foster kids with separation and abandonment disorders  (not issues! true disorders) enter our society everyday and have to learn to live and be a part of society.  So in that regard I found the book enlightening. 

The ladies in the book club were also half and half. So you may just have to read it and decide for yourself. 

As far as content: 

One f-bomb in the whole book, and the story line is very clean while still being real to the situation.  

bonus alert!

Bonus Alert

Miss Diffenbaugh has provided free E-Cards using the language of flowers. Click here!

I'm jointing Ricki Jill for Literary Friday.

ENJOY!

Lit-n-Latte Complete Book List

 What have you read lately?

This is the complete list of books that we have read since September 2006 in  

The Girlfriend's Lit-n-Latte Bookclub
AKA
The Best Little Book Club Ever

• Little Women - Louisa May Alcott
• G Is for Gumshoe - Sue Grafton
• My Grandmother Asked Me To Tell You She's Sorry - Fredrik Backman
• The Woman In Cabin 10 - Ruth Ware
• All the Light We Can Not See - Anthony Doerr 
• Kabul Beauty School - Deborah Rodriquez 
• Traces of Guilt - Dee Henderson
• Mutant Message Down Under - Marlo Morgan
• Wedding Bees - Sarah-Kate Lynch
• Eighty Days - Matthew Goodman
• The Christmas Town - Donna Van Lier
• Alice In Wonderland - Lewis Carroll
• A Man Called Ove - Fredrik Backman
• The Source - James Michener
• This Road We Traveled - Jane Kirkpatrick
• Cold Sassy Tree - Olive Ann Burns
• Denial - Deborah Lipstadt
• Big Little Lies - Liane Moriarty 
• Hidden Figures - Margot Lee Shetterly
• My Name is Resolute - Nancy E. Turner
• The Hundred Gifts -Jennifer Scott
• The Lowland -Jhumpa Lahiri
• Sister Eve, Private Eye -Lynne Hinton
• Wuthering Heights -Emily Bronte
• The Harbinger -Jonathan Cahn
• The Goldfinch -Donna Tartt
• The Whistling Season -Ivan Doig
• Brooklyn -Colm Toibin
• Miracles from Heaven -Christy Wilson Beam
• The Princess Bride -William Goldman
• Mrs. Kennedy and Me -Clint Hill
• A Simple Christmas Wish
• The Storied Life of A.j. Fikry
• Death Comes to Pemberly
• Bittersweet - Thoughts on Grace, Change and Learning the Hard Way
• Unbroken
• The Vintage Tea Cup Club
• The Rosie Project
• Love Idol
• Tattoos on the Heart
• Voyage of the Heart
• The Fault In Our Stars
• The Christmas Memory
• American Jezebel
• Three
• Anne of Green Gables
• The Grapes of Wrath
• The Great Divorce
• The Language of Flowers
• The 19th Wife
• Dancing on Broken Glass
• Orphan Train
• The Best Christmas Pagent
• 1776
• The Book Thief 
• Pride and Prejudice
• Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet Spy
• The Glass Castle
• The Joy Luck Club
• Death by Darjeeling
• A Voice in the Wind
• Mrs. Mike
• Killing Lincoln
• The Gift of the Magi
• The Dressmaker
• The Devil In The White City
• A Year On Ladybug Farm
• Les Miserables
• Major Pettigrew's Last Stand
• One Thousand Gifts
• The 12th Imam
• Traveling Mercies
• The Great Gatsby
• Sarah's Key
• Snow Angel
• A Thousand Splendid Suns
• The Murder At The Vicarage
• The Help
• A Tale of Two Cities
• Rocket Boys
• The Space Between Us
• Water For Elephants
• Jane Eyre
• These Is My Words
• When Crickets Cry
• Left To Tell
• Murder On The Orient Express
• A Soft Place To Land
• Anna Karenina
• To Kill A Mockingbird
• Look Again
• The Soloist
• The Last Sin Eater
• Persuasion
• Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet
• The Christmas List
• Animal Farm
• The Time Traveler's Wife
• Same Kind Of Different As Me
• Gone With The Wind
• Truck A Love Story
• The Death And Life Of Gabriel Phillips
• The Zookeeper's Wife
• Joshua
• Sense and Sensibility
• Snow Flower and the Secret Fan
• On Strike For Christmas
• Gift From The Sea
• My Sister's Keeper
• Three Cups of Tea
• Marley & Me
• The Shack
• A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
• The Last Jihad
• Susannah's Garden
• Playing For Pizza
• The Lovely Bones
• The Kite Runner
• Night
• The Secret Life of Bees
• Ferenhiet 451
• Redeeming Love
• All the Pretty Horses
• The Memory Keepers Daughter
• The Faith Club
• The No 1 Ladies Detective Agency
• The Christmas Hope
• True Believer
• Over Salad & Hot Bread