Welcome Home Specialist Ryder!!!

Yesterday was an important day for my best friend - her husband who has been serving in the military in Iraq has come home!! They've only been married a short time and he's been gone for alot of that time. We prayed every day that he would make it home safe and he did! P - We're all so proud of you and happy you made it home safely! Since you've been gone, there's been a part of your wife missing and now that you're home, she is whole again. I just wanted to say 'WELCOME HOME' and Thank You for serving our country!! I love you both!

Book Review: The Secret Life of Bees

This is the story of 14 yr old Lily Owens, living in South Carolina in 1964. A time of race riots and the signing of the Civil Rights Act, which plays a significant role in what happens. Lily tells the story of her quest to find answers about her mother since she died when Lily was 4 years old. Why did she disappear for three months? How did she die? Was I responsible? And the biggest question of all - Did she love me? Her story takes us from the peach farm in Sylvan, where she lives with her racist, angry father who she calls T.Ray, to a pink house in Tiburon, a couple hundred miles away, where three colored sisters who are named after calendar months live. She doesn't know why, but she believes this is the place that holds the key to her mothers' mysterious, short life.

I don't want to give anything away for those who haven't read the book, but i will say that the relationships Lily forms with these people change her life. August Boatwright, the beekeeper, quickly becomes someone Lily trusts and you can feel the yearning she has for August to love her. She is desperate for a mothers love. The main thing Lily is searching for is some sort of a sign from her own mother that she was loved and that she didn't leave her, despite what her father tells her. His bitterness and anger pushes Lily further and further away until one day, thru a sequence of events, she makes the decision to run away and try to find answers, at the same time protecting a friend who is in trouble.

Through Lily, Sue Monk Kidd tells the story with an innocence that warms your heart. But even with the innocence, its plain to see that Lily is a smart girl who thinks quick on her feet and is loyal to people she cares about. I admire the way Ms. Kidd writes - her phrases are beautifully written. She puts things in a way that you never thought of. Its simple, but lovely. This book tells a wonderful story and I enjoyed every single page. This is one of my all time favorites. I recommend THE SECRET LIFE OF BEES to any mother, daughter, sister or friend and I know they won't be disappointed.

The Sunday Salon: My First Post

This is my first post for The Sunday Salon and I've really been looking forward to it. I'm kind of new to the whole book blogging thing. Lisa, over at Books On The Brain was one of the first fellow-bloggers I 'met' online. She is quite an inspiration. I really enjoy her blog posts and you can always count on a good recommendation from her. Since I was a little girl, I've always loved to read, but I re-discovered my love of books with a new intensity a few years ago. There just isn't enough time to read all the wonderful books out there!

This morning I got up early, partly because I like it (dawn in my favorite time of day) and partly because my new kitten doesn't know the difference between getting up for work during the week and being able to sleep in on the weekends! Anyway . . . The book I'm reading now is THE SECRET LIFE OF BEES by Sue Monk Kidd. I know I'm probably one of the few people left in the world who hasn't already read it. I'm about two-thirds of the way into it. I put a big dent in it this morning, reading 80 pages so far today. I don't want to say too much about it now because I'll be posting my full review after I finish, but I will say this: I LOVE THIS BOOK!! What a wonderful storyteller she is! You know how when you're reading a book with a title that you just don't get? (Like THE KITE RUNNER, I never knew what a kite runner was!) Then you get to the chapter that makes it all click and it makes sense then? That's my favorite part of reading. When it all comes together. Well, that happened this morning while reading chapter 8. The whole secret life of the bees was explained and Lily and me got it at the same time. It is an important moment and just another reason this is a wonderfully written book. I can't wait to get back to it and finish.

Next week I'll be reading a brand new book by Garth Stein called THE ART OF RACING IN THE RAIN. I've heard so much about this book and I'm really excited about reading it. Its getting rave reviews. But more on that next week. I hope you all have a wonderful Sunday! Happy Reading!

Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award Winner

I heard about a new psychological thriller that will be coming out in August that I wanted to mention. I'm really looking forward to reading it when it comes out. Its called FRESH KILLS by Bill Loehfelm, a former educator from New Orleans. I believe this is his first novel. In 2003 he wrote OSAMA BIN LADEN, a book to help educate younger readers on the early life of the terrorist and the beginnings of al Qaeda. Last month FRESH KILLS won the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award and here is what they are saying:

"Fresh Kills quickly expands past itself, blows away its limiting genre boundaries, and becomes a story of real psychological complexity and emotional realism." --Elizabeth Gilbert, bestselling author of Eat, Pray, Love

From Amazon -
In Fresh Kills, the murder of John Sanders, Sr. on a New York street corner reunites his estranged and abused children, John, Jr. and Julia. While Julia struggles to keep things together on the home front, Junior, unhinged by his father's death, searches for the killer across the bleak, haunted landscape of his Staten Island hometown. Complicating Junior's pursuit are two police detectives: one, a former childhood friend; the other, a veteran cop who might have his own reasons to wish John, Sr. dead. Junior's emotional state crumbles under the pressure coming at him from every side. Bedding his high school sweetheart doesn't exactly simplify the situation. When the opportunity for revenge presents itself, Junior must decide whether he will continue the chain of violence that has nearly destroyed his life, or give in to the possibility of a new beginning. With emotional intensity, crackling dialogue and a heartfelt sense of place and character, Fresh Kills delivers unexpected and profound insights that speak to the soul of its struggling hero, and heralds a breakthrough voice in fiction.

Worlds Healthiest Foods

I found this great website during my online travels that I want to share.. It’s called “The Worlds Healthiest Foods” located at http://www.whf.org/. Actually it is a not-for-profit organization called The George Mateljan Foundation.

The website is packed with all kinds of nutritional information and offers healthful recipes and tips too. I found it educational and interesting. For anyone who is trying to eat better and learn how to prepare foods in a healthier way, this website would be invaluable. There are over 100 recipes that you can search either by ingredient or nutritional element. For example, I have extreme hypertension, so I searched for foods with Omega 3 fatty acid benefits to help lower my blood pressure and to help promote red blood cell function, which will also help with my retinal disease. The recipes are not complicated nor do they use gourmet ingredients, so you don’t have to worry about the cost or finding specialty items.

Eating healthy doesn’t have to be a burden. You can use your imagination and come up with your own recipes using foods you like.

Book Review: "The Ex-Debutante" by Linda Francis Lee

At first glance, this isn't a book that I would make a beeline for - I'm not into alot of girly-girly things like balls and designer labels, but this book is about so much more than debutantes and their clothes. I am so glad to have read it! There are so many facets to the story and Linda Francis Lee reveals them beautifully.

Carlisle Wainwright Cushing is the protagonist of the story. She is an accomplished attorney who is confident and seemingly happy with her choices. She has made a very nice life for herself in Boston, even though her roots are in Texas along with her dysfunctional family. Although her life would appear to be going the way its supposed to - she has a great job, a wonderful fiance' - even Carlisle is surprised that maybe she still has alot to learn about herself. She gets pulled back to Texas when her mother asks for her help with her latest divorce. Then she gets guilted into organizing the annual debutante ball that has been hosted by her family for a century. During the course of defending a mother she feels she never really knew and overseeing 8 teenage girls that don't even know the meaning of being a lady, let alone a debutante, she faces her past and is forced to re-think her future. This is a heartwarming story of not only Carlisle, but all the Wainwright women and even the girls who are debuting.

Linda Francis Lee writes the story with a clever, witty stroke of the pen (or keyboard). Her characters are so easy to imagine. As I read the book, I could see it as a movie playing in my head. It has comedy, drama and longing. It's a delightful read that never gets bogged down or boring. She has you rooting for even the slightest of characters. This book is for any woman who has ever felt out of touch or misunderstood and confirms that even when you think you know all there is to know about your family, they still may surprise you.

Also reviewed at:

Booking Mama

And at Beastmomma

Weekend Review: Grillin' & Chillin'

Since my sweet boyfriend has arranged to have someone finish up the yard work that I started (and can't seem to find the strength or the time to finish), I could spend this weekend doing other things. Mainly, putting a dent in THE EX-DEBUTANTE. I started the book last week, but didn't get too far. Finally yesterday, I stopped playing with Jax, got the laundry going and dove right into my book, which by the way I do like.

I haven't been doing much cooking lately, so I wanted to prepare something new for dinner. In the past, I've been intimidated by seafood, but I'm trying to get over that. I went to the market and got some nice salmon steaks. I've only ever had Salmon patties, and honestly, could take 'em or leave 'em. But for these, I rubbed olive oil on each side then seasoned with garlic salt and pepper. Nothing fancy. But I didn't want to drown out the flavor of the salmon. I grilled the fish for 4-5 minutes on each side and it was perfectly cooked, including the beautiful grill marks. The fish flaked apart nicely and was moist and very tasty. I served it with steamed veggies and a baked potato with butter (I know B-A-D) and fresh parsley. It went very well with the Black Swan (Australian) Chardonnay I already had on hand. It was a light meal that was ready in less than 15 minutes. I was really happy with the outcome. I think I'm tackling this fear of seafood. Who knew it was so easy!?