#32: Dandelion Summer by Lisa Wingate

Dandelion Summer was another book I picked up during a leisurely shopping trip to Barnes and Noble with my girls and a good friend.  It sounded interesting, was a bargain table book, and the price was too good to pass up for a book that sounded promising.  And, one of my favorite authors (Kristin Hannah) gave a favorable comment on the back cover, so Dandelion Summer came home with me. 

What a great choice!  This story has the most unusual storyline with the most unlikely characters, it's hard not to love it and to remember every detail of the plot.  J. Norm  (a retired space engineer who recently lost his wife and needs a bit of help around his house) and Ephiphany (a high school girl from the wrong side of life) are thrown together in Dandelion Summer when J. Norm's daughter, Deborah, hires Epie to cook for J. Norm a couple times a week.  They not only become friends, but they learn from each other, grow because of each other, and end up helping each other discover their families.  In J. Norm's case, his real family.  There is a bit of a mystery in the plot, as well, which helps to keep the story moving forward, and this mystery is created in such a way that it's hard not to be sucked in and to back J. Norm and Epie as they make bad choices (like Epie driving without a license) in order to find out the truth behind J. Norm's dreams and memories. 

The story is told in my favorite way--the first chapter is told by J. Norm, the second by Epie, and they alternate through the end of the book.  I love this technique as you get the first person perspective from both characters as well as being able to get to know each character more deeply.  It's hard not to love each character, too.  J. Norm is exactly as you'd expect: retired, extremely intelligent, wealthy, set in his ways, and doesn't want anyone to bother him. He is busy trying to figure out the meaning behind some random dreams and memories and can't be bothered to eat, or to remember that he can't walk up and down the stairs.  Epie is a smart, bi-racial high school girl who just wants to still be at her old school where people believed in her and where she actually had some friends.  She finds a friend in J. Norm, and he in her.  It's an unlikely friendship, but it works.  By the end of the book, their friendship has developed into more of a familial relationship and it's so touching, I dare you not to need some tissues!  There are other characters in the book besides these two, and you get to know them through the eyes of Epie and J. Norm, but these two are definitely my favorites!

As I read, I found myself thinking that Rob, my amazing husband, was going to turn out like J. Norm.  I don't know if he will ever have to live without me, but if he should, I imagine that he will take to someone fussing over him about as well as J. Norm.  Rob doesn't like to have to ask for help, he wants to do things his way, and if he ever gets to a point in his life where he can't climb stairs because of a heart condition, he might as well just not be alive at all.  It will devastate him not to be independent.  I can see him hoping to find his own version of Epie, someone who will stand guard and will signal him when one of our girls comes by to check on him, so that he's in his chair with no signs of not following directions anywhere near.  But, I also thought of Rob as J. Norm's chapters progressed and I got to know him and understand him better.  Rob is the father of two girls, and while he is an amazing father, he is also the primary provider for our family.  (I know that I work, but it's hard to support a family of 4 on a teacher's salary) Because of his work, he is away from home often.  He travels, works weekends, and most days isn't home until around 6:00.  As a result, homework is done before he gets home, the stories of the day have been told, and the girls are winding down, or are not even home because of sports and other school commitments.  I think Rob often feels as though he wishes he could be more to the girls than a taxi/ATM.  J. Norm felt the same way and these feelings of his come through in his chapters.  J. Norm ends up writing a letter to his daugther that appears a little past the middle of the story that brought me to tears.  The letter makes it clear that J. Norm is a very sensitive man, who wishes he could've been more to his daughter.  In this letter he gives her advice from the point of view of a father.  I was touched by the wisdom of the letter, but also by how much of it my own husband actually does.  It makes me realize that he is teaching our girls some valuable lessons about their value and place in this world and I am so very grateful for this.  Mothers are necessary, but fathers can teach girls so much that mothers never could.    I am so blessed to be married to such a wonderful man who has so many great things to teach my girls.   I won't ruin the ending of the book, because it is just a fabulous way to end this moving story, but J. Norm shows more of his kind and giving spirit to Epie at the end of the book.  Again, I thought of Rob, someone who isn't afraid to share his wealth and knowledge with those who need it, and imagined that if given the chance, he would do for someone exactly as J. Norm did for Epie. In fact, I know he would.

I treasure Dandelion Summer and am again reminded that some of the best books can be found not on the main shelf front and center, but at little lower and to the left.  Don't assume that because books are on the bargain table that they are cast offs that are no good and not worth your time. 

My next real book has come again from the sale table at BN.  It's another book about South Carolina.  I enjoyed CeeCee so much that I can't wait to get back to SC in my mind and meet some more interesting characters. 

Happy reading, everyone!
:)  Dodie

#31: Saving CeeCee Honeycutt by Beth Hoffman

I went shopping several weeks ago with a good friend and ended up buying 5 books that day.  Two were from the clearance table at Barnes and Noble.  Saving CeeCee Honeycutt was one of them.  The other (Dandelion Summer) I am reading now and am loving as much as I loved CeeCee.  I guess it goes to show that sometimes you can find real treasures for very little money in the bargain bin!  It also proves that some of the best books are NOT the ones that everyone is currently reading and that we should all take a chance on authors whose names we might not recognize immediately.

Saving CeeCee Honeycutt is a glorious book that I hope everyone will read.  It's truly a feel good book that will have you laughing out loud, smiling as you turn the pages, and wanting to be a better person.  The characters are created in such as way that you wish you were their neighbors.  For those of you who loved the characters in The Help, but may not have liked the racial issues that dominated the book because it was often heavy, Saving CeeCee Honeycutt is the book for you! 

CeeCee is a twelve year old girl who suddenly finds herself leaving her home and moving to Savannah, Georgia.  The book details one year in her life and is truly an inspirational book in so many ways.  I did notice, it was hard not to, that there are only 2 men in the entire book, and they are not created in a favorable light.  This book is clearly about the complicated relationships that exist amongst women, but these relationships are explored in a such a fun, playful way that it's hard to not admit that, as a woman, you just might be guilty of some of the crazy behavior, too! 

I almost wish that I had saved this book for my trip to the beach in two weeks, because it is the sort of book that you could easily read and completely enjoy while you sunbathed on the beach.  But, I just got an email a couple of days ago that Emily Giffin (who wrote Something Borrowed, Something Blue, and Babyproof, just to name three) has a new book coming out just a few days before we leave for the beach.  I can't wait to sit back in my beach chair and read that one, so I am glad CeeCee is done and hopefully Dandelion Summer will be finished by then, too.  Besides, I still have those other 4 books that I bought with my friend to read!  I'm sure they will all end up in my beach bag! 

Happy reading, everyone!
:) Dodie

P.S. Saving CeeCee Honeycutt will be on my top 10 list this year.  I truly loved it and know that you will, too.  I dare you not to laugh out loud and for those of you who read it...enjoy the flying slugs and the little fight at the end!  Hysterical! 

#30 When They First Met by Debbie Macomber

I have to be honest and admit that this is not an entire book, but a short story meant to entice readers into reading a new series of books by Debbie Macomber.  (But since I only read one book during the entire month of June, I am counting this story as a book!) She's a favorite author of mine and I was deeply saddened to learn last year that her renowned series of Cedar Cove books was ending.  Apparently, I was not the only one upset by this so Macomber has begun a new series of books about Cedar Cove called The Inn at Rose Harbor.  To get her readers excited about this new series, Macomber published in e-format this short story, "When They First Met."  It's only about 25 pages long, but I am hooked.  I have the release date of the first book on my calendar and can't wait for August 14 to get here. 

The story of Paul and Jo Marie Rose touched my heart.  The premise is the saddest thing I have read in a long time and I will not be a spoiler and ruin it for anyone who is interested in this new series.  But, I can tell you that I am overly anxious for August and am thrilled to get to know a new cast of characters in a series that is sure to be as wonderful as the first Cedar Cove series of books.  Jo Marie and Paul are unforgettable. 

This short story is only available in digital format and you can get it for $0.99.  It's well worth the dollar, even though it's only 25 pages.  I bet it will hook you, too! 

Happy Reading!
:)  Dodie

#29 Dropped Dead Stitch by Maggie Sefton

Yes, it has taken me an entire month to read one 284 page book.  Hard for some to believe, I know, but with the ending of school, some personal things I have been dealing with, and with a vacation to Disney World, there hasn't been a lot of time to read.  I promised myself this year that I would read when I found time and would lead my life as I felt necessary, trying hard to read when it worked and not forcing the pages to be turned when it didn't.  I guess I proved that this month, huh?

Dropped Dead Stitch by Maggie Sefton is number 7 in a series of knitting mysteries starring Kelly Flynn.  I have loved them all, and this one is no different. I will admit that it was hard to read at times, as this particular mystery deals with sexual assault, which is never easy to have to think about.  Regardless, it was a good story with an ending that made sense and was not predictable, which is always good for a murder mystery. 

Books 8 and 9, borrowed from my mother, are on my shelf, but I am not quite ready to read them yet.  They are easy and light reads (despite the murders that take place in each one) but I am ready for something a bit different.  My next book is called Saving CeeCee Honeycutt and I am excited to read a book by a new author.  I'll be sure to let you know how what I think of it.

Happy reading!
:) Dodie

#28 The Road to Grace by Richard Paul Evans

It has taken me longer to read this book, a mere 173 pages, than books twice, even three times,  its size.  All I can say, is that quite like the main character of The Road to Grace, recently, I have found myself on a journey and it has taken me some time to get back to where I know I need to be.  But, here I sit once again, in front of my home computer, typing my reaction to a book.  I am now exactly where I need to be. 

In The Road to Grace, Alan Christofferson continues his trek from Seattle, Washington, to Key West Florida.  While the first two volumes in the series kept me enthralled, this third book was a slow start for me and a slow read until the last 50 pages or so.  However, looking back, this one must might be my favorite of the three.  The characters Alan meets as he walks this time through South Dakota, Iowa, and Missouri have the most to teach him about forgiveness and the genuine good nature and hearts of people.  There are certainly bends and twists along his path, literally and figuratively, and there's a moment in the last chapter that made me cry tears of fear and pain for Alan, while shaking my head and wondering exactly how much more this man would be subjected to.  As it was last year, it's going to be a very long 365 days before I can find out what happens next and if The Walk will even continue for Alan.

I have always known in my heart that books mean more to a person when they can relate, when the book speaks to their soul, or teaches them a lesson that can't be taught in any other way.  Books often force us to take a long hard look at ourselves, turning the mirror back onto us, forcing us to often see what we really don't want to look at.  Or, as for me this time, books can often make clear what reality makes muddy. 

I said at the beginning of my blog that lately I have been on my own walk.  Not literally, but I have been on a journey that has taught me so much about myself, what I value in life, and how I want to live out the next 50 years.  The truth is, the cause of the journey is irrelevant and what I was walking for matters to no one but myself and my family, but I find the timeliness of reading The Road to Grace rather meaningful.  Was I not supposed to read the book quickly?  What if I had finished it within days of buying it?  Would it have left a mark on my soul as it did now, knowing that the events of the past week, the events that sparked my personal walk, opened my heart and mind to the possibilities of The Road to Grace? I doubt it.  I think I was supposed to carry this book with me on my journey, reading as I found time, pondering when I had a moment or two, and then wrapping it all up tonight, on a night when I had time to reflect and to truly understand the book's meaning and it's meaning to my life in particular.

As I sometimes do when I read, I have highlighted several passages that have particular meaning for me.  The first is, "We chain ourselves to what we do not forgive."  Lately I have been chained and I am ready to be set free.  Holding resentment in your heart is a true burden.  It is debilitating and I am so ready to move on.  Yet, I can't quite bring myself to forgive.  It's like Alan said in my next favorite passage, "Desire.  It is not the ability to walk that pleases God, it is the desire to walk."  I have the desire to forgive, but am not quite ready to make the leap.  But at least I am headed in the right direction.  The reverse of this is also true...I am hoping in my heart that those who I have asked to forgive me will consider letting their burden be released.  Because, for all of us, "He who does not forgive is guilty of the greater sin."  I only wish that was true--that not forgiving was the greatest sin. 

My walk, my journey, brought me home, back to the people who love me most, and I would not have it any other way.  Alan's walk might end, but it might continue on, as he searches for meaning in his life.  He will never return home, but he just might discover what I have learned over the past few weeks.  Home can sometimes be a place, but sometimes "home" is found where ever the ones you love happen to be.  My "home"goes to work and school each day and we meet back at 5225 Chappell Ridge Place almost every evening.  But, if one day those three people, who matter more to me than anything in the world, didn't come home at the end of the day, then my home wouldn't be home any more.   It's no wonder to me, then, that Alan began his walk when his "home" disappeared.  I think I would have done exactly the same thing.

I leave this series for another year and begin my search for a new book to read.  I think I need something lighter.  Between The Road to Grace and the Fifty Shades Trilogy, I have been reading a lot of heavy words lately.  Time to load up the beach bag for a little fluff.  I wonder if I have any cowboy books left?

Happy Reading, everyone!
:)  Dodie

#27 The Last Boyfriend by Nora Roberts

(This is going to be my shortest blog ever.)

Cute story!  Read the first in the series before reading this one, otherwise you will surely get confused.  Just go ahead and throw both of them in your beach bag!  Light story, great characters, a good read. 

Happy Reading!
:) Dodie

#25 and #26 Fifty Shades Darker and Fifty Shades Freed by EL James

Fifty Shades of Grey presented us with the beginning of a story of a controlling man, both sexually and otherwise, and the girl who falls in love with him.  We get to go inside their bedroom and while some women were shocked (like the lady who was chatting about this book with her hairdresser while I got my hair cut close by, claiming that it was absolute trash and filth), others were gloriously happy, as they were finally able to reach inside and admit that they enjoyed a healthy sex life with their husbands (like the women that were on the Today Show happily admitting that they hadn’t had such great sex with their husbands in a long time) and that they even might want to try some more adventurous activities inside their bedrooms.  

But, once all of those amazing discoveries were made, we close Fifty Shades of Grey and are presented with Fifty Shades Darker and things take a sudden change.  No longer are women talking about Fifty Shades.  The fun and games of the first book takes a much darker turn, yet we keep reading because we can't stop.  We have to know how it all turns out.  I found myself reading Fifty Shades Darker at a fast pace because of this, but not always liking what I read.  The story is a disturbing one, well--Christian's story is a disturbing one, and it isn't always easy to read.  I found myself being amazed with Ana, her strength and her love for Christian was amazing.  Her strength was often challenged and she often questioned her love for him.  I also found myself thinking that I just wouldn't be able to do it.  I could never love a man like Christian.  And then, the next thing I knew, Christian started changing and I started to rethink my views about Christian.  And then I started wondering--can a women really change a man?  Or, better yet...can love really change a person?  

Let us turn now to book three: Fifty Shades Freed.  I wondered from the beginning if this title meant that Ana was freed from Christian or if Christian was freed from his past.  I won't ruin anything by telling you what I think now.  But, what I will say is this.  EL James saved the best for last.  Without a doubt, I liked Fifty Shades Freed the best of the three books.  I was not overwhelmed with sexual details as I was in book 1, and I wasn't scared to death like I was in book 2.  Instead, I was able to finally read a story that was filled with love, packed with action, and that made me smile when the finished the last page.  The book does take you on an emotional roller coaster, but it's so worth it in the end.  And, yes, I think love can change a man. 

When I blogged about Fifty Shades of Grey, I mentioned that EL James led me to believe in her interview on The Today Show that her book was just a story, and pretty much a story about sex.  Well, that was a gross misinterpretation on my part and five seconds into book 2 you will see that sex is just how Christian deals with things (a loosely quoted line from Ana in book 3).  Sex is the cover-up for the real story.  In fact, in book 3, EL James often glosses over the more intimate scenes and instead elaborates on the conversations between Christian and Ana, giving us insight into their emotions and feeling towards each other and their families.  You are going to have to read the series to discover what the sex is covering up--I am not about to ruin that for any reader.  But, it's worth the read, I promise.  It really is a great story about love, romance, and the importance of family.  When you hear people whispering about Fifty Shades, you can just roll your eyes at them because you know better.  This isn't a book about sex at all.  It's a book about how love, real, true, deep love, can soften the hardest heart and can lighten the blackest soul.  Anyone who thinks these books are about sex just doesn't get them. 

Happy Reading!  I am off to begin Nora Roberts' second book in the Inn Boonsboro series.  I can't wait to get re-acquainted with a ghost and a very hunky architect!  

:)  Dodie