Literate Housewife

#142 ~ The Triumph of Deborah

The Triumph of Deborah by Eva Etzioni-Halevy Deborah was an amazing woman. She is a beloved and honored Hebrew prophet, judge, and leader. She loves God and His people and wants to live in peace with those living around them. Unfortunately, the Hebrew people were seen as intruders. After a shaming encounter with Sisra, the [...]

Filed Under: book review, fiction Tagged With: Barak, biblical fiction, Canaanites, Eva Etzioni-Halevy, Hebrews, King Jabin, Sisra, The Triumph of Deborah

#141 ~ Mermaids in the Basement

11 Feb By Literate Housewife 6 Comments

Mermaids in the Basement by Michael Lee West Imagine finding evidence that your boyfriend, an up and coming movie director, was cheating on you with one of his starlets through a gossip magazine. Imagine also that your mother Shelby and beloved step father just recently died in a plane crash, you’ve never had a good [...]

Filed Under: Books, Culture Tagged With: Alabama, book review, family secrets, fiction, Mermaids in the Basement, Michael Lee West, Port Clear, Southern fiction

#140 ~ The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

7 Feb By Literate Housewife 9 Comments

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows In this novel, Shaffer and Barrows tell a story of chance encounters and destiny through letters mailed mainly between Juliet Ashton, a British author, and several citizens of Guernsey in the Channel Islands. Relationships that begin as a fluke when [...]

Filed Under: Books, Historical Fiction, War Through the Generations Tagged With: Annie Barrows, audio book, book review, Guernsey, Historical Fiction, letter writing, Mary Ann Shaffer, Nazi occupation, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, War on the Margins, War Through the Generations Reading Challenge

#139 Tomato Girl

1 Feb By Literate Housewife 11 Comments

Tomato Girl by Jayne Pupek During Nanowrimo 2008, Karen Harrington posted an article that Janet Finch wrote to encourage participants, “Dear Author – ‘Make Trouble for Your Characters.’ “ Jayne Pupek did just that for Ellie Sanders, an adolescent girl growing up in a home with a mentally ill mother. Ultimately, she is the one [...]

Filed Under: Books Tagged With: book review, fiction, infidelity, Jayne Pupek, parents with mental illness, Southern fiction, Tomato Girl

#138 ~ Etta

30 Jan By Literate Housewife 6 Comments

Etta by Gerald Kolpan I am not typically one for reading Westerns. The American West has never held my imagination the way it has for so many people. Still, when Etta was offered as an Early Reader choice on LibraryThing in December, I requested it and was lucky enough to snag it. I don’t think [...]

Filed Under: Books, Historical Fiction, Reading Tagged With: Black Hand, book review, Butch Cassidy, Early Reviewer, Etta, Etta Place, fiction, Gerald Kolpan, Historical Fiction, Kid Curry, LibraryThing, Sundance Kid, train robbery, Western, Wild Bunch

Exciting News about Historical Fiction Lovers Book Club!

21 Jan By Literate Housewife 8 Comments

As I mentioned before, I joined the Book Clubs application on Facebook and started my own online book club Historical Fiction Lovers. We started the club reading Loving Frank and seven of us completed the Reader’s Guide and Review form. There was some really good discussion, especially about Mamah and her choices. I found out [...]

Filed Under: Books, Historical Fiction Tagged With: Book Club of the Month, book clubs, Facebook, February book club pick, Loving Frank, Michael C. White, Nancy Horan, Soul Catcher

I Have a Winner!

21 Jan By Literate Housewife 3 Comments

Thanks to everyone who shared their hopes and opinions about yesterday’s inauguration. As promised, I added everyone’s name to the List Randomizer to determine who would win a free copy of What Would Martin Say? by Clarence B. Jones. The winner is: Stacybuckeye! Congratulations, Stacy! Please send me an email with your mailing address and [...]

Filed Under: Books Tagged With: book giveaway winner, Clarence B. Jones, Obama inauguration, What Would Martin Say?

Inauguration Day Memories and What Would Martin Say? Giveaway

20 Jan By Literate Housewife 12 Comments

On January 20, 1977, I was just over 5 years old. I was in kindergarten that year and what I remember was the parade. What I remember is sitting on the carpet in front of the TV in our first family home in Sparta, MI. I am not sure if I was watching the original [...]

Filed Under: Family, Life Tagged With: Barack Obama, Inauguration memories, Jimmy Carter's Inaugural Parade, watching history

#136 ~ The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

19 Jan By Literate Housewife 3 Comments

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button by F. Scott Fitzgerald Before the movie hype, I’d never heard of this short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald. I’m not necessarily sure that I knew that he wrote short stories. With the exception of The Great Gatsby, which is one of my all-time favorite novels, I never studied [...]

Filed Under: Books, Culture, My Life with Books, Reading Tagged With: elder care, F. Scott Fitzgerald, infant care, reverse aging, Review, short story, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

What Would Martin Say? Highlight and Giveaway

19 Jan By Literate Housewife 9 Comments

If ever there was a cause to celebrate Martin Luther King, it is today. As we are about to embark upon the first African America presidency, it is apparant just how far we’ve come as a nation. “I Have a Dream” is one of my favorite American speeches. It never fails to give me chill [...]