This is my monthly roundup of books that were added to my shelves in the last month. I also share an update with you on other things going on in my life.

Family and Life Update

You may have seen that our family took a vacation to Kentucky last month. We had a great time and you can read about all the things we did, HERE.

We celebrated Bennett’s birthday with a lunch date.

We spent a day in Dixon, Illinois with friends touring the boyhood home of Ronald Reagan and enjoying the quaint little town.

Our great-nieces came to stay for four fun-filled, adventure-packed days. We had a blast!

August is almost like a bad word around here because it means summer is winding down and in just 20 days, Reagan will be heading back to school. This month is already full of camps and practices that she will barely be home as it is. Some good things about August include my parents’ upcoming 65th wedding anniversary and my dad’s 89th birthday. Those are some definite milestones to celebrate!

I haven’t read all the books I had planned to this summer so I’m going to try to ramp up my reading this month and get to as many as I can on top of all the new ones that were added to my piles. Be sure to check out all the books below! Let me know which ones you are interested in reading or hearing more about!

Be sure to follow me on Instagram, HERE to see snippets of what I’m reading or what’s going on in my daily life.

If you have missed any of my recent book reviews, you can see all of them by clicking, HERE.  Or you can stay up to date with my monthly Quick Lit Roundup.

If you choose to make a purchase through any of the links I may receive a small commission without you having to pay a cent more for your purchase.

THAT PRINTER OF UDELL’S

By: Harold Bell Wright

Published: 1903

Publisher: A.L. Burt Company

Fiction

Format: Hardcover

After touring the boyhood home of Ronald Reagan, we found out his favorite book was THAT PRINTER OF UDELL’S. We had never heard of this book and set out to find it, finding a copy in good shape on eBay. I have a much older copy than the one pictured above. But, it was reprinted in 2016 in paperback form.

Dick Falkner’s childhood consisted of poverty and abuse from an alcoholic father. Recognizing his life for what it was, he ran away from his home, but he could not run away from all of his problems.

Sixteen years later he found himself hungry of body and empty of spirit in a small Midwestern town. He was determined to make something of himself and to not be controlled by alcohol.

Initially, he finds no help in this so-called Christian town. Eventually, he is taken in by George Udell, a local publisher and a kind-hearted man. George Udell gives the young man a job, and something more important: spiritual support. Through hard work and Christian morals, the man who becomes known as “that printer of Udell’s” rises above his past to a new life with God, inspiring those around him along the way.

THE LAST THING HE TOLD ME

By: Laura Dave

Published: May 4, 2021

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Fiction/Mystery

Format: Hardcover

This one has been getting a lot of buzz. It was chosen as part of Reese’s Book Club and has already had the rights sold for a movie. I was hesitant to jump in as sometimes those buzzy books don’t live up to the hype. But this one did! Wow! We read it for book club and all of us loved it. I read it in two days!

We all have stories we never tell.
Before Owen Michaels disappears, he manages to smuggle a note to his beloved wife of one year: Protect her.

Despite her confusion and fear, Hannah Hall knows exactly to whom the note refers: Owen’s sixteen-year-old daughter, Bailey. Bailey, who lost her mother tragically as a child. Bailey, who wants absolutely nothing to do with her new stepmother.

As Hannah’s increasingly desperate calls to Owen go unanswered; as the FBI arrests Owen’s boss; as a US Marshal and FBI agents arrive at her Sausalito home unannounced, Hannah quickly realizes her husband isn’t who he said he was. And that Bailey just may hold the key to figuring out Owen’s true identity—and why he really disappeared.

Hannah and Bailey set out to discover the truth, together. But as they start putting together the pieces of Owen’s past, they soon realize they are also building a new future. One neither Hannah nor Bailey could have anticipated. 

THE PEOPLE WE KEEP

By: Alison Larkin

Published: August 3, 2021

Publisher: Gallery Books

Fiction

Format: Hardcover

I chose this as my Book of the Month choice for July. I love family drama/find yourself kind of novels.

Little River, New York, 1994: April Sawicki is living in a motorless motorhome that her father won in a poker game. Failing out of school, picking up shifts at Margo’s diner, she’s left fending for herself in a town where she’s never quite felt at home. When she “borrows” her neighbor’s car to perform at an open mic night, she realizes her life could be much bigger than where she came from. After a fight with her dad, April packs her stuff and leaves for good, setting off on a journey to find a life that’s all hers.

As April moves through the world, meeting people who feel like home, she chronicles her life in the songs she writes and discovers that where she came from doesn’t dictate who she has to be.

This lyrical, unflinching tale is for anyone who has ever yearned for the fierce power of found family or to grasp the profound beauty of choosing to belong.

THE LAST SUMMER AT THE GOLDEN HOTEL

By: Elyssa Friedland

Published: May 18, 2021

Publisher: Berkley

Fiction

Format: Hardcover

I previously read and reviewed Friedland’s LOVE AND MISS COMMUNICATION and thought it was a delight. I had no idea she had a new novel out until I saw it on my Book of the Month add-on choices.

A family reunion for the ages when two clans convene for the summer at their beloved getaway in the Catskills–perfect for fans of Dirty Dancing and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel–from the acclaimed author of The Floating Feldmans.

In its heyday, The Golden Hotel was the crown jewel of the hotter-than-hot Catskills vacation scene. For more than sixty years, the Goldman and Weingold families – best friends and business partners – have presided over this glamorous resort which served as a second home for well-heeled guests and celebrities. But the Catskills are not what they used to be – and neither is the relationship between the Goldmans and the Weingolds. As the facilities and management begin to fall apart, a tempting offer to sell forces the two families together again to make a heart-wrenching decision. Can they save their beloved Golden or is it too late?

Long-buried secrets emerge, new dramas and financial scandal erupt, and everyone from the traditional grandparents to the millennial grandchildren wants a say in the hotel’s future. Business and pleasure clash in this fast-paced, hilarious, nostalgia-filled story, where the hotel owners rediscover the magic of a bygone era of nonstop fun even as they grapple with what may be their last resort.

THE ACCIDENTAL SUFFRAGIST

By: Galia Gichon

Published: June 1, 2021

Publisher: Wyatt-MacKenzie Publishing

Historical Fiction

Format: Paperback

I don’t know very much about this time period and I want to know more. It feels like something that should be read and shared right now.

It’s 1912, and protagonist Helen Fox is a factory worker living in New York’s tenements. When tragedy strikes in the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire, Helen is seduced by the Suffragist cause and is soon immersed, working alongside famous activists.

As Helen’s involvement with the cause deepens, she encounters myriad sources of tension that test her perseverance: estrangement from her husband, who is blindsided by his wife’s sudden activism; ostracization by neighbors; unease at working side by side with wealthier suffragettes; and worry about her children as she leaves them to picket the White House in Washington.

The narrative spans World War One and concludes with the triumph of 1919. In a time when the obstacles for women, from any background, were insurmountable, Helen discovers her voice as an independent woman and dreams of equality in a male-dominated society.

THE WILKES INSURRECTION

A Contemporary Thriller

By: Robbie Bach

Published: October 12, 2021

Publisher: Greenleaf Book Group Press

Fiction/Thriller

Format: Paperback

For those who feel like our nation is full of chaos and like to immerse themselves in an edge-of-your-seat novel with all the hallmarks of a great thriller, politics, villains, heroes, and an airplane disaster.

The relative calm at Offutt Air Force Base is shattered when commercial Flight 209 crashes down onto its runway. From the flaming wreckage, Major Tamika Smith must try to rescue survivors and make sense of the tragedy. But this isn’t just an isolated incident. In a time of national unrest and division, a cunning shadowy mastermind is tearing down the United States from the inside out, playing law enforcement like puppets. Soon, thousands are dying and there are precious few leads. Can Tamika and an unlikely collection of committed Americans stop the destruction in time to rescue a nation descending into chaos?

With heart-pounding action, compelling plot twists, and a rich tapestry of characters, The Wilkes Insurrection is a contemporary thriller of anarchic obsession and heroic ambition. Its perfect blend of callous villains, iconic heroes, and political intrigue will keep readers on the edge of their seats.

CHASING FIREFLIES

By: Charles Martin

Published: December 2, 2008

Publisher: Thomas Nelson

Fiction

Format: eBook

This is our book club choice for this month. It’s a free download if you have Amazon Prime.

They have one summer to find what was lost long ago.

“Never settle for less than the truth,” she told him.

But when you don’t even know your real name, the truth gets a little complicated. It can nestle so close to home it’s hard to see. It can even flourish inside a lie. And as Chase Walker discovered, learning the truth about who you are can be as elusive–and as magical–as chasing fireflies on a summer night.

A haunting story about fishing, baseball, home cooking, and other matters of life and death.

CLOUD CUCKOO LAND

By: Anthony Doerr

Published: September 28, 2021

Publisher: Scribner

Fiction:

Format: eBook

I have liked Doerr’s writing and when I saw he had a new one coming out I requested it.

Thirteen-year-old Anna, an orphan, lives inside the formidable walls of Constantinople in a house of women who make their living embroidering the robes of priests. Restless, insatiably curious, Anna learns to read, and in this ancient city, famous for its libraries, she finds a book, the story of Aethon, who longs to be turned into a bird so that he can fly to a utopian paradise in the sky. This she reads to her ailing sister as the walls of the only place she has known are bombarded in the great siege of Constantinople. Outside the walls is Omeir, a village boy, miles from home, conscripted with his beloved oxen into the invading army. His path and Anna’s will cross.

Five hundred years later, in a library in Idaho, octogenarian Zeno, who learned Greek as a prisoner of war, rehearses five children in a play adaptation of Aethon’s story, preserved against all odds through centuries. Tucked among the library shelves is a bomb, planted by a troubled, idealistic teenager, Seymour. This is another siege. And in a not-so-distant future, on the interstellar ship Argos, Konstance is alone in a vault, copying on scraps of sacking the story of Aethon, told to her by her father. She has never set foot on our planet.

THE MAID

By: Nita Prose

Published: January 4, 2022

Publisher: Ballantine Books

Fiction/Mystery

Format: eBook

I think this one sounds so fun and a different type of mystery novel that isn’t just about finding the killer, but finding the main character’s purpose.

Molly Gray is not like everyone else. She struggles with social skills and misinterprets the intentions of others. Her gran used to interpret the world for her, codifying it into simple rules that Molly could live by.

Since Gran died a few months ago, twenty-five-year-old Molly has had to navigate life’s complexities all by herself. No matter—she throws herself with gusto into her work as a hotel maid. Her unique character, along with her obsessive love of cleaning and proper etiquette, make her an ideal fit for the job. She delights in donning her crisp uniform each morning, stocking her cart with miniature soaps and bottles, and returning guest rooms at the Regency Grand Hotel to a state of perfection.

But Molly’s orderly life is turned on its head the day she enters the suite of the infamous and wealthy Charles Black, only to find it in a state of disarray and Mr. Black himself very dead in his bed. Before she knows what’s happening, Molly’s unusual demeanor has the police targeting her as their lead suspect. She quickly finds herself caught in a web of deception, one she has no idea how to untangle. Fortunately for Molly, friends she never knew she had unite with her in a search for clues to what really happened to Mr. Black—but will they be able to find the real killer before it’s too late?

A Clue-like, locked-room mystery and a heartwarming journey of the spirit, The Maid explores what it means to be the same as everyone else and yet entirely different—and reveals that all mysteries can be solved through connection to the human heart.

AND THE BRIDGE IS LOVE

By: David Biro

Published: October 12, 2021

Publisher: Lake Union Publishing

Fiction

Format: eBook

I love friendship stories, especially ones that span a lifetime.

Three friends, two secrets, one love—and the journey of a lifetime.

Every week for twenty years, three friends meet in a leafy enclosure under the Verrazzano Bridge: Gertie, a feisty Norwegian divorcée and former athlete; Maria, a family-obsessed Italian American widow; and Corinna, a book-loving, hash-smoking eccentric. Together they sit and watch the sea as the ships—and the last years of their lives—sail by. On the eve of Gertie’s eightieth birthday, they realize that time is running out. Gertie decides she wants to travel the world. Maria secretly plots to reunite Gertie and Corinna with their estranged families. And Corinna falls in love.

As the three women strike out in different directions, a series of events unfolds that threatens to destroy the most precious thing of all: their friendship. Heartfelt and humorous, And the Bridge Is Love invites readers to travel alongside these dynamic women in this inspiring novel about love, family, and forgiveness. 

THE WOMAN AT THE FRONT

By: Lecia Cornwall

Published: September 28, 2021

Publisher: Berkley

Historical Fiction

Format: eBook

I don’t often read WWI stories but this one caught my attention.

When Eleanor Atherton graduates from medical school near the top of her class in 1917, she dreams of going overseas to help the wounded, but her ambition is thwarted at every turn. Eleanor’s parents insist she must give up medicine, marry a respectable man, and assume her proper place. While women might serve as ambulance drivers or nurses at the front, they cannot be physicians—that work is too dangerous and frightening.

Nevertheless, Eleanor is determined to make more of a contribution than sitting at home knitting for the troops. When an unexpected twist of fate sends Eleanor to the battlefields of France as the private doctor of a British peer, she seizes the opportunity for what it is—the chance to finally prove herself.

But there’s a war on, and a casualty clearing station close to the front lines is an unforgiving place. Facing skeptical commanders who question her skills, scores of wounded men needing care, underhanded efforts by her family to bring her back home, and a blossoming romance, Eleanor must decide if she’s brave enough to break the rules, face her darkest fears, and take the chance to win the career—and the love—she’s always wanted.

REMEMBER

The Science of Memory and the Art of Forgetting

By: Lisa Genova

Published: March 23, 2021

Publisher: Harmony

Non-Fiction

Format: Hardcover

I purchased this one because I love Genova’s fictional writing and expected her research on memory to be meticulous as well. I wanted a physical copy, but I had forgotten I had also put in a hold for the audiobook through Libby. So, when it came in, I listened to it. It is read by Genova and is very approachable and not bogged down in statistics or medical jargon. I really enjoyed this book and am glad I also have a copy to refer back to and reread at my leisure.

A fascinating exploration of the intricacies of how we remember, why we forget, and what we can do to protect our memories, from the Harvard-trained neuroscientist and bestselling author of Still Alice.

Have you ever felt a crushing wave of panic when you can’t for the life of you remember the name of that actor in the movie you saw last week, or you walk into a room only to forget why you went there in the first place? If you’re over forty, you’re probably not laughing. You might even be worried that these lapses in memory could be an early sign of Alzheimer’s or dementia. In reality, for the vast majority of us, these examples of forgetting are completely normal. Why? Because while memory is amazing, it is far from perfect. Our brains aren’t designed to remember every name we hear, plan we make, or day we experience. Just because your memory sometimes fails doesn’t mean it’s broken or succumbing to disease. Forgetting is actually part of being human.

In Remember, neuroscientist and acclaimed novelist Lisa Genova delves into how memories are made and how we retrieve them. You’ll learn whether forgotten memories are temporarily inaccessible or erased forever and why some memories are built to exist for only a few seconds (like a passcode) while others can last a lifetime (your wedding day). You’ll come to appreciate the clear distinction between normal forgetting (where you parked your car) and forgetting due to Alzheimer’s (that you own a car). And you’ll see how memory is profoundly impacted by meaning, emotion, sleep, stress, and context. Once you understand the language of memory and how it functions, its incredible strengths and maddening weaknesses, its natural vulnerabilities and potential superpowers, you can both vastly improve your ability to remember and feel less rattled when you inevitably forget. You can set educated expectations for your memory, and in doing so, create a better relationship with it. You don’t have to fear it anymore. And that can be life-changing.

THE BIG BOOK OF 30-DAY FITNESS CHALLENGES

60 Habit-Forming Routines to Make Working Out More Fun

By: Andie Thueson

Published: November 19, 2019

Publisher: Ulysses Press

Non-Fiction/Health/Fitness

Format: Paperback

I really dislike working out, but I thought this book sounded like it would make working out more fun and help with the decision fatigue of what to do.

We all know we should be getting some level of physical activity every day. But it’s hard to decide which kind. And it’s even harder to find the time. Packed with fun fitness ideas, this creative and colorful book offers over 60 month-long challenges that solve both those issues.

Each challenge is broken down day by day so you always know exactly what you should be doing, and provides a tracker so you can see your progress. The challenges range from low-impact yoga flows to running routines to family group activities, and also include support challenges and habits to improve your mental toughness and endurance.

MASTER YOUR CORE

A Science-Based Guide to Achieve Peak Performance and Resilience to Injury

By: Dr. Bohdanna Zazulak

Published: June 27, 2021

Publisher: TCK Publishing

Non-Fiction/Health/Fitness

Format: Paperback

I know I need a stronger core and I hope this book will help with that.

The term core stability has been overhyped and misconstrued, leading people astray with endless crunches and swinging kettlebells, onto a fast track to injury and despair. Instead of following the latest injury-prone fad, you’re about to discover a set of 50 science-based core exercises to tone your body and train your core for functional performance whether you’re training for a world championship or just trying to walk without falling.

Dr. Bohdanna Zazulak has devoted her career to figuring out why so many women get injured in sports and everyday life. What she discovered is that properly training your core muscles is the most important thing you can do to improve your health, build strength, and reduce your risk of injuries (for men and women).

In this book, Dr. Zazulak explains in simple terms what core stability truly means from a scientific perspective, and how a stable core directly relates to less injuries, better performance, and better physical, mental, and emotional health.

THREADS OF YOGA

Themes, Reflections, and Meditations to Weave into Your Practice

A Guide for Students and Teachers

By: Pamela Seelig

Published: September 28, 2021

Publisher: Shambhala

Non-Fiction/Health/Fitness

Format: Paperback

I’m not sure how I ended up with so many health and fitness books this month, but even though I am not a regular yoga student, I am interested in learning more about yoga. Balance and quieting my mind are two things I would like to work on in regards to yoga and these topics are mentioned in the book.

Deepen and enliven your yoga practice with 30 themes based on Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras that can inspire on and off the mat.

Yoga draws many practitioners because of its physical benefits, but it is often the experience of peace that people return for. Threads of Yoga supports those seeking to learn more about yoga’s deeper spiritual teachings. Each short chapter introduces a foundational yogic theme, such as letting go, the breath, the yamas and the niyamas, and the chakra system. Each theme is accompanied by practices, including meditation, complementary poses, breath work, or quotes to contemplate. It is an ideal guide for both practitioners and teachers who want to connect with the spiritual wisdom of yoga, deepen their personal practice, or develop and support a theme for yoga class. 

PERSONAL EFFECTS

What Recovering the Dead Teaches Me About Caring for the Living

By: Robert A. Jensen

Published: September 28, 2021

Publisher: St. Martin’s Press

Non-Fiction

Format: eBook

I always love these types of behind-the-scenes stories, especially when they are medical-related.

You have seen Robert A. Jensen–you just never knew it. As the owner of the world’s largest disaster management company, he has spent most of his adult life responding to tragedy. From the Oklahoma City bombing, 9/11, the Bali bombings, the 2004 South Asian Tsunami, Hurricane Katrina to the 2010 Haitian Earthquake and the Grenfell Tower Fire, Jensen is at the practical level of international incidents, assisting with the recovery of bodies, identifying victims, and repatriating and returning their personal effects to the surviving family members. He is also, crucially, involved in the emotional recovery that comes after a disaster: helping guide the families, governments, and companies involved, telling them what to expect and managing the unmanageable. As he puts it, “If journalists write the first rough draft of history, I put the punctuation on the past.”

Personal Effects is an unsparing, up-close look at the difficult work Jensen does behind the yellow tape and the lessons he learned there. The chronicle of an almost impossible and grim job, Personal Effects also tells Jensen’s own story, how he came to this line of work, how he manages the chaos that is his life, and the personal toll the repeated exposure to mass death brings, in becoming what GQ called “the best at the worst job in the world.”

A rare glimpse into a world we all see but many know nothing about, Personal Effects is an inspiring and heartwarming story of survival and the importance of moving forward. Jensen allows his readers to see over his shoulder as he responds to disaster sites, uncovers the deceased, and cares for families to show how a strong will and desire to do good can become a path through the worst the world can throw at us. 

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THE DOWNSTAIRS GIRL

By: Stacey Lee

Published: August 13, 2019

Publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers

YA/Historical Fiction

Format: Paperback

This is the third book of Lee’s that I want to read. I noticed her first because we have the same name, just different spellings. My middle name is Le. Plus, I have heard many other readers rave about her books.

By day, seventeen-year-old Jo Kuan works as a lady’s maid for the cruel daughter of one of the wealthiest men in Atlanta. But by night, Jo moonlights as the pseudonymous author of a newspaper advice column for the genteel Southern lady, “Dear Miss Sweetie.” When her column becomes wildly popular, she uses the power of the pen to address some of society’s ills, but she’s not prepared for the backlash that follows when her column challenges fixed ideas about race and gender. While her opponents clamor to uncover the secret identity of Miss Sweetie, a mysterious letter sets Jo off on a search for her own past and the parents who abandoned her as a baby. But when her efforts put her in the crosshairs of Atlanta’s most notorious criminal, Jo must decide whether she, a girl used to living in the shadows, is ready to step into the light. With prose that is witty, insightful, and at times heartbreaking, Stacey Lee masterfully crafts an extraordinary social drama set in the New South.

A CHARMED LIFE

By: Little Silver Charm – as told to Diane White

Published: April 19, 2016

Publisher: Old Friends Press

Non-Fiction

Format: Paperback

I picked this one up on our Kentucky vacation at the Old Friend’s Farm. It’s the story of their mascot Little Silver Charm and her life on the thoroughbred retirement farm.

Little Silver Charm combines the best of his popular blog with photographs from Barbara Livingston, Equisport Photos, Connie Bush and others. In his inimitably witty style the miniature horse tells the story of life at Old Friends, the daily events, the quirks of his Thoroughbred fellow retirees, and his important work as the farm’s official spokeshorse. Old Friends’ equine retirees include Kentucky Derby winners Silver Charm and War Emblem and 150 others, well known and unknown. The profits from this book help support the retired horses at Old Friends, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization with three locations open to the public.

GUITARS

Made by Hand Book 4

By: Patricia Lakin

Published: October 5, 2021

Publisher: Aladdin

Non-Fiction

Format: eBook

I hadn’t heard of this Made by Hand series before which includes skateboards, drums, and bicycles. I am hoping to get a physical copy also as I bet this is a very neat book.

Go behind the scenes and see how craftsman Meredith Coloma makes custom guitars by hand with this nonfiction book that’s full of photographs and illustrations about the incredible process.

Discover where the earliest guitars were made and how the instrument has evolved. Then come to the present day to meet Meredith Coloma, someone so passionate about guitars that she learned how to make them by hand. In Meredith’s workshop, there are shelves of ebony, maple, spruce, and western red cedar woods. The tool benches are filled with chisels, clamps, and rulers. Curled wood shavings and sawdust cover the floor. The sweet smell of newly cut wood fills the air. Go step-by-step with Meredith through her process of making guitars. Charts, infographics, and bold photographs make this a perfect book for reluctant readers and visual learners. 

BARN AT NIGHT

By: Michelle Houts

Illustrated by: Jen Betton

Published: September 14, 2021

Publisher: Feeding Minds Press

Fiction

Format: Hardcover Picture Book

You know I love all books that are farm-related and especially ones that would make good bedtime stories.

When you grow up on a farm, adventures happen all day long—even at night! On a cold winter evening, a father and daughter go out to the barn and are welcomed with a warm scene. Who is awake, who is asleep, and who is just making their first appearance in the barn? Michelle Houts’ lyrical poetry paired with Jen Betton’s glowing watercolors create a warm and wonderful bedtime story—best shared together. 

THE COLLECTORS

by: Alice Feagan

Published: May 4, 2021

Publisher: Kids Can Press

Fiction

Format: Hardcover Picture Book

I loved finding things in nature as a child…a neat rock, a flower, a mushroom. I wonder what these two friends will collect on their adventure.

Nature lovers and collectors of all kinds will love this high-adventure quest story about two brave and clever girls who head into the forest in search of something extraordinary. Winslow and Rosie have been building an impressive collection of natural wonders, and now it’s nearly complete. With just enough space left for one final piece, the girls set off into the forest to find something extraordinary. Their journey takes them far — along the creek, across the valley, through the spruce grove and up the mountain. And while they find many extraordinary things, nothing is just the right extraordinary thing. When the girls find a deep, dark cave, they decide to venture farther than ever before. Surely, a mysterious cave must hold something extraordinary.

SAGUARO’S GIFTS

By: Kurt Cyrus

Illustrated by: Andy Atkins

Published: August 15, 2021

Publisher: Sleeping Bear Press

Fiction

Format: Hardcover Picture Book

Since I live far from the desert and know very little about cactuses, I can’t wait to check out this story and its message of how we all have something to share with our neighbors and community.

Celebrating a birthday is always a happy occasion but never more so in this desert community then when it’s a centenary for a grand Saguaro cactus! For one hundred years, the majestic cactus has anchored this vibrant neighborhood, providing food, shelter, and shade to the local wildlife inhabitants. In beautiful rhyming text, the creatures that depend on Saguaro’s gifts come to pay homage, including the tiny bat that sips nectar from the plant’s flower, the finches looking for a place to build their nest, and the grateful tortoise that enjoys its fruit. Magnificent artwork brings the desert landscape and creatures to life, showing the interdependence between plants and animals. Readers young and old will appreciate this timely message of how essential even an old cactus is to our environment and the world we all share. Back matter includes information on the interdependence of the desert community. 

CAT & DOG

A Tale of Opposites

By: Tullio Corda

Published: September 7, 2021

Publisher: Red Comet Press

Fiction

Format: Hardcover Picture Book

I’ve already skimmed this one and LOVED it. Simple yet fun!

Cat and Dog are not the same, in fact they are very different and the perfect subjects for a tale of opposites. Enjoy their adventures as they fight and play, chase and hide, in an escapade that includes some special high-drama storytelling in the illustrations of this deceptively simple book. Tullio Corda depicts a relationship that is familiar to us all and provides a clever surprise ending. A truly relatable tale in just 32 words!

BEFORE WE SLEEP

By: Giorgia Volpe

Illustrated by: Paolo Proietti

Published: September 7, 2021

Publisher: Red Comet Press

Fiction

Format: Hardcover Picture Book

Another great bedtime story to add to my collection.

A red fox and a gray dormouse joyfully play in their forest home as the season begins to change from fall to winter. Soon, the dormouse must hibernate, and the friends will part. As the time for sleep nears, the fox tries to keep the dormouse awake. Sleep indeed must come, but not before the two friends have shared one last story, knowing they will be together again in the spring.

This gentle friendship story is the perfect allegory for the bedtime ritual. And the reassuring message is clear: “I will be there for you when you wake.”

MISTER FAIRY

By: Morgane de Cadier

Illustrated by: Florian Pigé

Published: September 7, 2021

Publisher: Red Comet Press

Fiction

Format: Hardcover Picture Book

I love the message of this story, we all have hidden talents that maybe we just haven’t realized yet. A great story for a child who feels like they don’t fit in.

Mister Fairy is not like other fairies; try as he might, he has not yet found his own special talent. In fact, all the animals laugh when he tries to copy what the other fairies do. So, Mister Fairy travels far from his forest home to another place where, almost by accident, he discovers and shares his special gift.

Sometimes your talent is hiding in plain sight, it just takes the right time and place to reveal what was there all along. Mister Fairy is a touching, humorous story about fitting in, self-discovery, and finding one’s place in the world.

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Which one (or two or three) of these books will you be adding to your list?

To see all the posts featuring new books on my shelves, click HERE.

So many books, so little time!