Where I share my love of books with reviews, features, giveaways and memes. Family and needlepoint are thrown in from time to time.

Saturday, March 27, 2010

In My Mailbox/Mailbox Monday (3-28 and 3-29)

Mailbox Monday is hosted at The Printed Page . Please visit Kristi and Marcia  and take a look at what packages everybody else got this week!



Wherever Nina Lies
by Lynn Weingarten

Nina was beautiful, artistic, wild. . . and adored by her younger sister, Ellie.  But one day, without any warning, Nina disappeared.

Two years later, Ellie can't stop thinking about her sister. Although everyone else has given uphope that Nina will return, Ellie just knows her sister is out there, somewhere. When Ellie finds a clue in the form of a mysterious drawing, she sets off on a road trip with her crush, determined to find her sister.

Along the way, Ellie finds a few things she wasn't planning on. Like love. Mysteries. Lies. And something far more shocking. . . the truth.

The Map of True Places
by Brunonia Barry

Zee Finch has come a long way from a motherless childhood spent stealing boats -- a talent that earned her the nickname Trouble.  She's now a respected psychotherapist working with world-famous Dr. Liz Mattei.  She's also about to marry one of Boston's most eligible bachelors. But the suicide of Zee's patient Lilly Braedon throws Zee into emotional chaos and takes her back to places she thought she'd left behind.

What starts as a brief visit home to Salem after Lilly's funeral becomes the beginning of a larger journey for Zee. Her father, Finch, long ago diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, has been hiding how sick he really is. His longtime companion, Melville, has moved out, and it now falls to Zee to help her father through this difficult time. Their relationship, marked by half-truths and the untimely death of her mother, is strained and awkward.

Overwhelmed by her new role, and uncertain about her future, Zee destroys the existing map of her life and begins a new journey, one that will take her not only into her future but into her past as well. Like the sailors of old Salem who navigated by looking at the starts, Zee has to learn to find her way through uncharted waters to the place she will ultimately call home.

Claude & Camille
A Novel of Monet
by Stephanie Cowell

Painter Claude Monet's life changes forever when he meets the beautiful and mysterious Camille Doncieux. Through years of struggle, misunderstanding, and love, they carve out a life together, but can Camille ever escape her past -- and can Claude ever forget it?

In his early twenties, Claude Monet arrives in Paris determined to make his fortune as an artist. Instead, he finds poverty and obscurity but also camaraderie in a group of similarly unknown painters -- Renoir, Pissarro, Degas, Bazille, Manet, and Cezanne -- who share his vision and passion.  But the single-most influential person in his life is a charming and vivacious upper-class girl named Camille Doncieux, who rejects a life of privilege to be with him. He falls madly in love with Camille, and his first great success is a portrait of her in an exquisite green opera dress. The two manage to stay together through years of bitter opposition from their families, Claude's artistic failures, and wretched poverty, but adversity eventually takes its toll. Even as Monet begins to sell his work, his marriage to Camille descends into tragedy -- and Monet realizes that he has never completely known his true love and greatest muse.

A fascinating portrait of an artistic genius, Claude & Camille will appeal to readers of Susan Vreeland and Tracy Chevalier, to art aficionados, and to the legions of Monet's own fans.

The Third Rail
by Michael Harvey

A woman is shot as she waits for her train to work. An hour later, a second woman is gunned down as she rides an elevated train through the Loop. Two hours after that, a church becomes the target of a chemical weapons attack. The city of Chicago is under siege, and Michael Kelly, cynical cop turned private investigator, just happens to be on the scene when all hell breaks loose.

Kelly is initially drawn into the case by the killers themselves, then tasked by Chicago's mayor and the FBI to hunt down the bad guys and, all things being equal, put a bullet in them.  Kelly, of course, has other ideas. As he gets closer to the truth, his instincts lead him to a retired cop, a shady train company, and an unnerving link to his own past.  Meanwhile, Kelly's girlfriend, Rachel Swenson, becomes a pawn in a much larger game, while a weapon that could kill millions ticks away quietly in the very belly of the city.

The Third Rail is stylish, sophisticated, edge-of-your-seat suspense from a new modern master.


She's So Dead To Us
by Kieran Scott

Home is where the hate is.

Ally Ryan would rather be in Maryland. She would rather be anywhere, in fact, than Orchard Hill, site of her downfall. Well, not hers exactly, but when your father's hedge fund goes south and all your friends lose their trust funds, things don't look so sunny for you. So her mother moved them away to flee the shame. But now they're moving back. Back to the country club, new car every year, family came over on the Mayflower lifestyle that Ally has outgrown. But there are bright sides. Like gorgeous Jake Graydon. Ally and Jake instantly like each other, but it won't be easy for them to be together -- not if his friends (her former friends) have anything to say about it. Is Ally ready to get thrown back into the drama of the life she left behind?

How Do You Tuck in a Superhero?
And Other Delightful Mysteries of Raising Boys
by Rachel Balducci

When Rachel Balducci looks for material for her writing, she doesn't have to look far. Her subject matter can be found climbing through the window, hanging on to the edge of the roof, and rummaging through the refrigerator. Here she chronicles the exuberant, awesome life of boys through bizarre conversations overheard, unbelievable rules she's been forced to make, and the many episodes of boy behavior that continue to mystify mothers worldwide. From the care and feeding of her team, to travels out in public, to their wide-eyed adoration of Chuck Norris, this laugh-out-loud celebration joyfully explores the sweetly wild side of boyhood.

Guest House: A Novel
By Barbara K. Richardson

Driving home from work on a summer afternoon, Melba Burns witnesses a nightmare collision. She abandons her car, quits her job, and stops driving. The wreck ends Melba's desire for success at any cost; she retreats into her beloved old farmhouse yearning for a simpler peace. But peace has never met Melba's stunning new roommate JoLee Garry, a magnet for messes and trouble.  JoLee brings a series of unexpected guests who transform Melba's solo life into something different, darker, and richer.

Deliver Us From Evil
by Robin Caroll

Brannon Callahan, a search-and-rescue helicopter pilot working for the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, is as beautiful and tough as the terrain surrounding her. When a blizzard crashes the small helicopter carrying U.S. Marshal Roark Holland, she must save him and the donor heart he is transporting to a comatose government witness whose mind holds a crucial piece of information. Without it, the largest child trafficking ring in history -- closer than Brannon or Roark can imagine -- will slip further into darkness somewhere along the Appalachian Trail.

Mother-Daughter Duet
Getting to the Relationship You Want with Your Adult Daughter
by Cheri Fuller and Ali Plum

When your daughter was born, you had a thousand hopes and dreams for her. . .including that one day you'd be best friends.

But as life unfolds, even the best intentions go awry. There are so many challenges on the journey to adult friendship that the reality is fraught with friction and frustration. Thankfully, a harmonious relationship with your daughter is possible.

Written by a mother and daughter who have successfully navigated the minefield from distance and tension to acceptance and friendship, Mother-Daughter Duet helps moms open wide the door of communication so that daughters want to walk through it.  Filled with personal anecdotes and based on proven principles, each chapter offers timeless wisdom as well as a daughter's perspective. Often these principles apply to daughters-in-law as well.

The relationship between mothers and daughters is intense, personal, complex, and unique. But you can have the loving, authentic bond you always dreamed of -- when you learn the mother-daughter duet.



Glaen
by Fred Lybrand

Annie is a college grad-student who is stumped about love. Her mom and dad are in the throes of a divorce, her teenage sister is obsessed with how her boyfriend makes her look, and her closest friend Jennah is on a continual ride of running off every guy she dates.

Friendships, dating, romance, and marriage -- it's all confusing to Annie until the day a white-haired stranger appears in her life. Glaen is an unusual professor with an unusual name. Her with-haired unconventional mentor guides Annie on a path of discovery that unlocks the secrets of real relationships in a world gone phony. By abandoning herself to learn, Annie discovers the mystifying affect of how learning to tell the truth changes everything in friendship, family, and love.

The solutions Dr. Lybrand offers in this book will astound and free you to quit doing the very things that take away your ability to find the love and friendship you want. More importantly, you'll discover a fresh path to the possibility of greater connections with those you care most about.  You'll want everyone you know to read this book. . .twice!

Share From the Heart
by Marilyn E. Randall

Learning to share and be understanding and compassionate is a valuable tool for getting on well in today's society. So many times children grow up with a "what's good for me" attitude and as they get older this can cause great difficulties for their future relationships.  It is my hope that this little story helps someone to understand the value of friendship and accepting differences and helps them to be compassionate and caring for others.  I dedicate this book to children everywhere who struggle with overcoming selfishness and self centeredness and strive to be loving and caring when they come in contact with difference.  May you always see differences as something to be cherished and explored, not rejected and feared.

Bailey's Day
by Robert Haggarty

How much fun can a dog have when its owner goes to work?

Meet Bailey. After her mailman owner sets off for work, Bailey's not about to stay at home. So, after a quick nap, this feisty pointer dog gets ready to hit the streets. First order of business? Meeiting up with her wiener dog friend, Frankie.  Together, they go on some exciting adventures -- whether it's at the swimming pool, at the park, or eating tacos with Pete the taco truck man.  But watch out! Is that Bailey's owner coming by in his mail truck? Better hide!

Packed with adorable photographs of the real-life Bailey, Bailey's Day spurs children's imaginations with the possiblities of just what really goes on in a dog's life when they're not looking.  And its vocabulary-building text makes it a must-have for parents and teachers. But Bailey's Day is also sure to be a hit with anyone who's ever loved a dog.

WHAT BOOKS CAME HOME TO YOU THIS WEEK?


6 comments:

Emma Michaels said...

congrats on the amazing loot!!!!

Missy B. said...

Great mailbox! I am going to check out Michael Harvey....

bermudaonion said...

Wow, what a week you had! I've heard good things about Claude and Camille. I bet How do You Tuck in a Superhero is a lot of fun! Enjoy!

Vanessa said...

Great haul this week! Enjoy!

Ashley said...

I'm so interested in Wherever Nina Lies. Enjoy!

Anna said...

Claude and Camille sounds really good. I'm jealous! ;)

--Anna
Diary of an Eccentric

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