When I was in fifth grade, two wonderful “book” things happened for me.  First, my grandmother and grandfather sent me my first Laura Ingalls Wilder “Little House” book for Christmas.  That tradition followed me all the way through grade school and high school and through the whole series, one or two books a year.  What joy!  The second wonderful book thing was that my parents agreed to enroll me as a member of a children’s book club.  Every month I received two classics – Tom Sawyer, Water Babies, The Five Little Peppers, Treasure Island… Talk about treasure!   

In that fine tradition of classic children’s books, our September Free Books are THE CURSE OF TREASURE ISLAND by Francis Bryan and THE SECRET GARDEN by Frances Hodgson Burnett.

 Wait a minute Sue, you might say.  Wasn’t TREASURE ISLAND written by Robert Louis Stevenson?  Yes, you’re right.  Our “Treasure” book is a sequel written in 2001.  Don’t worry.  If you haven’t read TREASURE ISLAND, you can go ahead and read this book anyway.  It’s a great stand-alone sequel, written in nearly the same “voice” as the original and in the point-of-view of Jim Hawkins, the cabin boy narrator of the first book.  

From the cover: When Jim Hawkins “returned [from sea] to live in the English countryside . . . he swore that ‘oxen and wain-ropes would not bring me back again to that accursed island.’  But one day ten years after his return, a beautiful stranger and her young son come looking for Jim Hawkins, and he is led back to the South Seas, to even greater danger than before, to violence and a mystery…” 

THE CURSE OF TREASURE ISLAND is a new hardcover edition. 

THE SECRET GARDEN is a children’s classic written in 1911.  From the cover: “When Mary Lennox is orphaned, she’s sent to live with her reclusive uncle at his once-beautiful estate.   Mary is a sad little girl until she discovers the Secret Garden and her whole life changes for the better.  For the first time ever she finds out what it’s like to feel joy and to care about other people.” 

THE SECRET GARDEN is a new Children’s Book-of-the-Month Club edition (Large Print). 

To be included in this month’s drawing, let us know something you loved – or hated – about school!  We will draw the winning names on Thursday, September 30.

Blessings and Happy September!

Sue Harrison

Thank you to all who posted on August Free Books!.  I hope everyone will post again in September for a chance to win a book.  I’ll let you know the names of the books on Wednesday, September 1. 

Blessings,

Sue

As for this month’s give-away books, two great ones:

(Yes, you guessed it.)  HAVE A LITTLE FAITH, A True Story,  by Mitch Albom

and

CHILD 44 by Tom Rob Smith.

Cover info:

In HAVE A LITTLE FAITH, Mitch Albom (TUESDAYS WITH MORRIE) offers a beautifully written story of a remarkable eight-year journey between two worlds – two men, two faiths, two communities – that will inspire readers everywhere.  [The book] begins with an unusual request: an eighty-two-year-old rabbi from Albom’s old hometown asks him to deliver his eulogy.  Feeling unworthy, Albom insists on understanding the man better, which throws him back into a world of faith he’d left years ago.  Meanwhile, closer to his current home, Albom becomes involved with a Detroit pastor – a reformed drug dealer and convict – who preaches to the poor and homeless in a decaying church with a hole in its roof.  HAVE A LITTLE FAITH is a book about a life’s purpose; about the divine spark inside us all.  It is one man’s journey, but it is everyone’s story.

(Sue’s take: the words, the story, the inner light will delight.)

The August give-away copy is a new jacketed hardcover edition.

CHILD 44 by Tom Rob Smith is a relentless page-turner.  A terrifying look at a paranoid world where no one can be trusted.  Set in Stalin’s Soviet Union where death is a whisper away, this novel is also a surprising, unexpected story of love and family, of hope and resilience, a thriller unlike any you have ever read. 

(Sue’s take: and you’ll love the ending!)

The August give-away copy is a new jacketed hardcover edition.

Okay!  Let’s hear about those beach reads!

Blessings!

Sue

I’ll be posting about our August Free Books on August 3.  We have a couple of great books lined up to give away.  Be sure to post so your name is in the drawing at the end of the month! 

Blessings!  Sue

WALKING ON BROKEN GLASS by Christa Allan

                                          and

THE GUERNSEY LITERARY AND POTATO PEEL PIE SOCIETY by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows. 

Cover blurbs:

WALKING ON BROKEN GLASS:  Leah Thornton’s life, like her Southern Living home, has great curb appeal.  But a paralyzing encounter with a can of frozen apple juice in the supermarket shatters the facade, forcing her to admit that all is not as it appears.  When her best friend gets in Leah’s face about her refusal to deal with her life, Lean is forced to make a decision.  Can this brand-conscious socialite walk away from the country club into 28 days of rehab?  Can she leave what she has now to gain back what she needs?

Sue’s Take:  This beautifully lyrical book exudes a rare combination of humor, angst, and tough love.  The true-to-life characters will totally steal your heart.  (New, trade paperback format)

THE GUERNSEY LITERARY AND POTATO PEEL PIE SOCIETY:  January 1946: London is emerging from the shadow of the Second World War, and writer Juliet Ashton is looking for her next book subject.  Who could image that she would find it in a letter from a man she’d never met, a native of Guernsey, a British island once occupied by the Nazis.

Sue’s Take:  You will fall in love with Juliet and with the very special people of Guernsey who survived great loss during the Nazi occupation.  Written as a series of letters, this novel is also highly lyrical.  (New, hardcover bookclub edition) 

To qualify for the July 28th drawing please tell us your favorite summer veggie or fruit.  For me, it’s raspberries just picked and still warm from the sun!

When you post, your name will be entered in our drawing.  If your name is drawn first, you will have your choice of the books.  The second name drawn will receive the other book.  So tell us, what’s your favorite summer fruit or vegetable?

Blessings!  Sue

Okay, free books!  This month I thought it might be appropriate to tie our drawing into vacation dreams.  Please note, these are ONLY dreams.  I’m NOT giving away a free vacation.  (I wish I could!)

If you had the choice among these three vacations (All expenses paid), which would you choose?

1) A 7-day cruise to Alaska: glaciers, whale watching, spa package, stops to shop at wonderful little seaside villages with stores full of Native crafts -  AND a large veranda suite.

2) A week in the Big Apple: a deluxe hotel suite, three Broadway musicals, a carriage ride around Central Park, shopping, museums, sightseeing tours, lunch at Bubba Gumps on Broadway…

3) Six nights, seven days in England: a 5-star Hotel Suite in London, sightseeing, shopping, changing of the guard, quaint little pubs, bookstores, antique stores (sigh!).   

Our pretend vacations include all meals, First Class Air and $1000 spending money.  (We’re dreaming, right?  Dream big!)

Now, in the spirit of Emily Dickinson’s famous quote, “There is no frigate like a book,”  here’s a little bit about the journeys you MAY make – all expenses paid – via the words of two great books. 

CRUEL AS THE GRAVE is a Sharon Kay Penman mystery set in 12th-century London.  Solve a murder with Sharon’s super-sleuth Justin de Quincy.  NEW YORK is a novel by Edward Rutherfurd.  You will visit the changing vistas of New York City as Rutherfurd skillfully guides your journey from 1664 through 2009.  Both books are brand new.  NEW YORK is a hardcover book club edition.  CRUEL AS THE GRAVE is a hardcover publisher’s edition.

Post your choice of vacation and maybe you’ll win a journey via the magic of words to New York or London!  The drawing will be held on Monday, June 28.  I will notify the winners with a Post on this Blog and also by email.  I will send the books to the winners via USPS Book Rate.

Blessings! Sue

This month’s books include LINE OF DUTY by Terri Blackstock.  LINE OF DUTY is an inspirational thriller.  Here’s a quote from the back cover:

“Attorney Jill Nichols was on the top floor, taking a deposition from CEO Donald Merritt for a case of corporate stock fraud.  Directly below them on the twenty-ninth floor, Merritt’s assistant was about to discover the explosive device in time to alert the building – but not to empty it.”

I think you’ll enjoy this rollercoaster ride of a novel from author Terri Blackstock.  Blackstock was chosen the number one bestselling Christian suspense author in 2002.  This book is from my library, is a gently used trade paperback and in like-new condition.

May’s other book is DEWEY by Vicki Myron with Bret Witter.  This is a memoir of “the small-town library cat who touched the world.”  From the jacket flap: “How much of an impact can an animal have?  How many lives can one cat touch?  How is it possible for an abandoned kitten to transform a small library, save a classic American town, and eventually become famous around the world?  You can’t even begin to answer those questions until you hear the charming story of Dewey Readmore Books, the beloved library cat of Spencer, Iowa.

This book is also from my library, is a gently used hardcover edition in like-new condition

Both books are great reads!  Good luck! 

Blessings!  Sue

Post by telling me your favorite kind of flower or flowering shrub/tree! Mine is the lilac.

Blessings! Sue

Thank you!
Sue