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I took advantage of a Book Outlet sale a little while ago and am finally getting around to sharing! Here’s what I got:
THESE IS MY WORDS: THE DIARY OF SARAH AGNES PRINE, 1881-1901
Amazon | Book Outlet (looks to be sold out!)
This book has been on my Goodreads TBR since 2010 and I have no idea where I heard about it. Many of my friends have read it and given it four or five stars, so I’m anxious to dive in.
The description: A moving, exciting, and heartfelt American saga inspired by the author’s own family memoirs, these words belong to Sarah Prine, a woman of spirit and fire who forges a full and remarkable existence in a harsh, unfamiliar frontier. Scrupulously recording her steps down the path Providence has set her upon – from child to determined young adult to loving mother – she shares the turbulent events, both joyous and tragic, that molded her, and recalls the enduring love with cavalry officer Captain Jack Elliot that gave her strength and purpose.
MY ITALIAN BULLDOZER
Amazon | Book Outlet
Alexander McCall Smith writes the No.1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series and I wanted to check out his other work.
This one comes recommended!
The description: Paul Stuart, a renowned food writer, finds himself at loose ends after his longtime girlfriend leaves him for her personal trainer. To cheer him up, Paul’s editor, Gloria, encourages him to finish his latest cookbook on-site in Tuscany, hoping that a change of scenery (plus the occasional truffled pasta and glass of red wine) will offer a cure for both heartache and writer’s block. But upon Paul’s arrival, things don’t quite go as planned. A mishap with his rental-car reservation leaves him stranded, until a newfound friend leads him to an intriguing alternative: a bulldozer.
With little choice in the matter, Paul accepts the offer, and as he journeys (well, slowly trundles) into the idyllic hillside town of Montalcino, he discovers that the bulldozer may be the least of the surprises that await him. What follows is a delightful romp through the lush sights and flavors of the Tuscan countryside, as Paul encounters a rich cast of characters, including a young American woman who awakens in him something unexpected.
A feast for the senses and a poignant meditation on the complexity of human relationships, My Italian Bulldozer is a charming and intensely satisfying love story for anyone who has ever dreamed of a fresh start.
THE MITFORD MURDERS
Amazon | Book Outlet
I first saw this mystery (based on true events) at the library. At less than $6 for a hardcover, I couldn’t pass it up!
The description: It’s 1920, and Louisa Cannon dreams of escaping her life of poverty in London.
Louisa’s salvation is a position within the Mitford household at Asthall Manor, in the Oxfordshire countryside. There she will become nursemaid, chaperone and confidante to the Mitford sisters, especially sixteen-year-old Nancy, an acerbic, bright young woman in love with stories.
But then a nurse―Florence Nightingale Shore, goddaughter of her famous namesake―is killed on a train in broad daylight, and Louisa and Nancy find themselves entangled in the crimes of a murderer who will do anything to hide their secret…
READING WITH PATRICK: A TEACHER, A STUDENT, AND A LIFE-CHANGING FRIENDSHIP
Amazon | Book Outlet
Teachers have always been heroes to me. They are the ones doing hard, underappreciated work and I’m so inspired by them. This memoir sounds so good.
The description: Recently graduated from Harvard University, Michelle Kuo arrived in the rural town of Helena, Arkansas, as a Teach for America volunteer, bursting with optimism and drive. But she soon encountered the jarring realities of life in one of the poorest counties in America, still disabled by the legacy of slavery and Jim Crow. In this stirring memoir, Kuo, the child of Taiwanese immigrants, shares the story of her complicated but rewarding mentorship of one student, Patrick Browning, and his remarkable literary and personal awakening.
Convinced she can make a difference in the lives of her teenaged students, Michelle Kuo puts her heart into her work, using quiet reading time and guided writing to foster a sense of self in students left behind by a broken school system. Though Michelle loses some students to truancy and even gun violence, she is inspired by some such as Patrick. Fifteen and in the eighth grade, Patrick begins to thrive under Michelle’s exacting attention. However, after two years of teaching, Michelle feels pressure from her parents and the draw of opportunities outside the Delta and leaves Arkansas to attend law school.
Then, on the eve of her law-school graduation, Michelle learns that Patrick has been jailed for murder. Feeling that she left the Delta prematurely and determined to fix her mistake, Michelle returns to Helena and resumes Patrick’s education—even as he sits in a jail cell awaiting trial. Every day for the next seven months they pore over classic novels, poems, and works of history. Little by little, Patrick grows into a confident, expressive writer and a dedicated reader galvanized by the works of Frederick Douglass, James Baldwin, Walt Whitman, W. S. Merwin, and others. In her time reading with Patrick, Michelle is herself transformed, contending with the legacy of racism and the questions of what constitutes a “good” life and what the privileged owe to those with bleaker prospects.
CHASING THE NORTH STAR
Amazon | Book Outlet
Your turn! What’s on your nightstand right now?
Bel Canto by Ann Patchett
The Favorite Daughter by Patti Callahan Henry
The Prayer Box by Lisa Wingate
Before Green Gables by Budge Wilson
How To Not Die Alone by Richard Roper
Ooh, I've had Before Green Gables on my Goodreads TBR for years. Anxious to hear your thoughts. And ahh, thanks for the reminder about Bel Canto…I need to pick that up from the library soon!