The Book of Lost Names
by: Kristen Harmel
(Genre: Historical Fiction, WWII) 

Summary: 
Eva Traube, a French-born Jew with Polish parents, doesn't believe the rumors that Germans are gathering up the Jewish people. But one night when she is babysitting her neighbor's kids, the Gestapo come & take her father away; Eva & her mother begin devising a plan to get her father back....but it's not so easy, especially after they transport him to Auschwitz.  Eva finds a way to begin forging papers & identities for herself & Mamusia; & when her talents are discovered, she begins working with the Resistance under Pere Clement's (a Catholic priest's) direction. She also falls in love with Remy, who is a forger who then goes on to escort children safely across the border to Switzerland. 


Discussion Questions: 
*Do you think Eva is betraying her religion by working with the resistance in a Catholic church?  
*Who is more favorable for winning Eva's love-- Joseph or Remy?  
*Did Eva give up looking for her father? Why? 


Favorite Quotes: 
​"That's what books were for, after all. They were passageways to other worlds, other realities, other lives one could imagine living. But in times like these, was it dangerous to dream unrealistic dreams?"

"There was something to be said for finding people to trust in the dark." 

"And you can always come to God, too. The path of life is darkest when we choose to walk it alone."  

"Pain loses its power when we share it." 

Title: Hold On, But Don't Hold Still       (Genre: Self-help/Parenting) 
Author: Kristina Kuzmii

Summary: 
After her divorce, Kristina felt like she was literally drowning....she didn't know what to do with herself, let alone how to take care of her 2 young children. Her inspiring story, written in journal-form at some points, reveals the tips that helped her get through the toughest times; I think my favorite was when she started the tradition of Wednesday night dinners ....even when she was very poor.  And while this is primarily a self-help book, I felt like it was a relatable parenting book as well. 

Book Quotes:  
"What we're told as children follows us into adulthood. And so I grew up & became an adult who was too much. Being told you're too much can often leave you feeling like you're not enough. Weird how that works, right?"

"We are not meant to go through this life alone. Name any situation you want to improve....you'll get there faster & more effectively if you reach out to others. We want to be our best. But the truth is, our best is beyond us." 

"When you're feeling helpless or hopeless, stop thinking about how helpless & hopeless you feel & just do something. Do something positive...something that matters. Do something without focusing on the list of things that could get in your way. Do note let the few things that are completely out of your control, control you completely." 

"Happily ever after is only as happy as the amount of real work we're willing to put into it, even when we don't feel like it." 

"There isn't one correct way to parent, so if someone's way of parenting is different from yours, they aren't doing it wrong...& neither are you. Different doesn't equal wrong. You don't have to agree with other people's choices. The only time we should spend any energy focusing on how someone else is choosing to parent is when we want to learn something from them. Otherwise, mind your own motherhood." 

"Happiness lacks depth without some discomfort to throw it into sharper relief, & if I don't allow my children to struggle, I won't give them the chance to feel the deep satisfaction of hard-won success." 

My Rating: 5 stars! (So relatable & real...while offering practical advice.)

 
Title: Little Women
by: Louisa May Alcott
(This is my annual reread & most favorite novel since I was an 8-year-old in 2nd grade. That was when I first received a copy of this blessed book & have faithfully reread it each year for over 22 years now!)
Comment below & tell me if you've ever read this classic or if you intend to; what do you like best about this book?

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Do you love a timeless classic? I sure do! This charming story follows the life of the March family, & in particular, the 4 daughters of Marmee (what the girls lovingly call their mother) & Mr. March; Meg, Jo, Beth & Amy. It's such an incredible story, because it's very relatable. I grew up with 3 younger sisters (so plus me, we made Little Women) & then there's Teddy/Laurie, the next-door neighbor who lives with his rich, lonely grandpa, & Teddy becomes family to the girls, (& he reminds me a LOT of my brothers.)  The varying personalities of the girls as they grow up & try to learn from Marmee & their Pilgrim's Progress. I love the fact that the eldest sisters each take responsibility for a younger sister (Jo & Amy often butt heads, so Meg cares for Amy, & Jo watches out for Beth.) Then there’s the fear of their father away & fighting in the Civil War & then growing very ill, Jo & Laurie (the endearing next-door neighbor) fighting against all normalizing societal expectations for themselves, especially Jo being a headstrong tomboy & vital force of the family. In time, all of the little women grow up & are married, except sweet little Beth (who passes away.) I always get wrapped up in the playful, romantic Laurie, who first pursues Jo & after getting rejected, realizes over time that it is Amy who he truly loves. And in time, Jo comes to admit she loves her Professor (Fritz Bhaer who she met at Mrs. Kirke's boarding school in New York the summer she went away to be a governess.)
I have always marveled at how this book celebrates the little joys, but also acknowledges the hard challenges that beset all of us in life. There are so many great one-liners, passages, & quotes (see below.) Also, if you wonder who I identify with most (of the sisters) it is a mixture of Meg & Jo; I long to be a great writer, like Jo is, & I also love to take care of family as Jo does. But I'm also like Meg, since I am also the oldest child in my family, & I have a bit of the vanities & spending issues Meg encounters later in life. As a teenager, Meg always loved a good party or ball too, & I can totally relate! She is a marvelous older sister, who tends children & sets a fine example for her other sisters when it comes to domestic life, for she is the first to settle down with her John & be a good housewife, sister & mother. 

Some favorite themes from this novel: 
*riches & poverty
*family 
*Christianity & reliance on a Father in Heaven
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Favorite Quotes:
"When you feel discontented, think over your blessings & be grateful."

"I like good strong words, that mean something." -Jo 

(Marmee to Jo) "The more you love & trust Him, the nearer you will feel to Him, & the less you will depend on human power & wisdom. His love & care never tire or change, can never be taken from you, but may become the source of lifelong peace, happiness & strength. Believe this heartily, & go to God with all your little cares, & hopes, & sins, & sorrows, as freely & confidingly as you come to your mother."  

"We can't give up our girls for a dozen fortunes. Rich or poor, we will keep together & be happy in one another." 

"Then they got to talking about books, & to Jo's delight, she found that Laurie loved them as well as she did, & had read even more than herself." 

"Prove that you understand the worth of time by employing it well. Then youth will be delightful, old age will bring few regrets, & life become a beautiful success, in spite of poverty."  

"Each {girl} found something very attractive in the big house on the other side of the hedge. Mrs. March wanted to talk of her father with the old man who had not forgotten him, Meg longed to walk in the conservatory, Beth sighed for the grand piano, & Amy was eager to see the fine pictures & statues." (This was one of the first occasions in which the girls went to visit Mr. Laurence & young Teddy next door; each of their personalities is presented when it expreses what they're interested in.)

"I've been trying to cure it {anger} for 40 years & have only succeeded in controlling it. I am angry nearly every day of my life, Jo, but I have learned not to show it, & I still hope to learn not to feel it." -Marmee

"Women should learn to be agreeable, particularly poor ones; for they have no other way of repaying the kindnesses they receive. If you'd remember that, & practice it, you'd be better liked than I am, because there is more of you."

(Beth) "For love is the only thing that we can carry with us when we go, & it makes the end so easy."

"Wealth is certainly a most desirable thing, but poverty has its sunny side, & one of the sweet uses of adversity is the genuine satisfaction which comes from hearty work of head or hand & to the inspiration of necessity, we owe half the wise, beautiful, & useful blessings of this world." 

My Rating: 6/5!!! 
​
(Sharing one version of Little Women below & some favorite bookmarks; do you like magnetic bookmarks? As long as I keep them in books, I don't lose them! And those floral ones are gorgeous!) 

Title: Cinder 
by: Marissa Meyer

Book Summary: 
If you don't know much about cyborgs or Lunars before reading this book, you're not alone.  But you will fully understand who they are & why their identity is so important in this post WW IV world, set in New Bejiing. Cinder, adapted from the original fairy tale of Cinderella, is a mechanic who is forced to live with her unkind stepmother & two stepsisters.  Her world is crazy, as letumosis (a worldwide illness) threatens to wipe out everyone, including her & her family. It's a pandemic similar to coronavirus, but with more fatalities. 
Cinder is resentful toward her stepmother and planning her escape the night of the prince's coronation ball. But she ends up meeting the prince and even kindling a relationship with him,as he makes efforts to convince her to come to his ball. She is determined not to make an appearance until she learns that there is some vital information Prince Kai needs before making a decision about uniting his kingdom with Queen Levana (who is Lunar.) 
​

Quotes: 
"It was made out to be some sort of honor, giving your life for the good of humanity, but it was really just a reminder that cyborgs were not like everyone else. Many of them had been given a second chance at life by the generous scientists & therefore owed their very existence to those who had created them." 



My Rating: 5! (even though the cyborg & technology bit/SCI-FI genre were weird at points.)

Title: Atomic Habits
Favorite Quotes/Passages: 



My Rating: 5/5! This book was INCREDIBLE & helped me shift my mindset when it comes to setting goals vs. forming habits. 

Title: American Spy,  by: Lauren Wilkinson 

Summary: 
Marie Mitchell is an intelligence officer working for the FBI in 1986, so it's during the Cold War. She wants to be a lot like her older sister, also a fed, who got conscripted into the army at a young age, with dreams of being a spy. Marie has a lot of qualities that land her a job to undermine Thomas Sankara, the revolutionary president of Burkina Faso, who is mostly a Communist. It gets tricky when she actually falls in love with him though, & she will do anything to spare his life. ...but it might be too late.
This book successfully weaves together the themes of racism, family & politics. 

Quotes: 
"It was like he saw a version of you that was superior to the version you saw of yourself. It was very generous. And it was inspiring, that reminder of the better angels of your nature."  

"If they don't want you, don't fight their wars. 
It's that easy, huh?" (Marie to her sister Helen about working in intelligence.) 

"Democracy isn't a thing you conform a society to. We can't just import a system from the West. Real democracy has to develop in response to the needs of that society."  


My Rating: 
4.5/5 out of 5 (it was a pageturner! Fairly clean & not much language.) 

Title: The Passion of Dolssa
by: Julie Berry 

Summary: 
I positively loved Julie Berry's style of writing, especially in Lovely War which I read earlier this year. 
This story takes place in the 13th century & is about a young women named Dolssa who has some uncanny gifts (and seems to have the ability to heal ill persons) but she is accused by the church of being a heretic & claiming she has a relationship with the Savior. Dolssa is rescued by Botille (the village matchmaker) whose other sisters Plazensa & Sazia also take her in & protect her from a determined friar who has burned her mother.  All the men are smitten by Plazensa who is the main ale & food maker and Sazia is the family fortuneteller. 


Quotes: 
"Like rays of glory from heaven, piercing the dusty gloom of the church, making each airborne mote shine like a star." 

"Once, we were joined as two lovers with one heart. If those days are ended, & I never see him again, I still remember them. If I only hear his voice now in the cry of an enfan, I can still come when he calls. If his call cannot reach my ears, I can still follow his feet." 
Rating: 4/5