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Aug 28, 2014
A New Day Rising by Lauraine SnellingMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
I'm sold on this series! It reminds me of the old TV mini-series, Centennial, that was so popular in the 1970s. A true saga of a family with all their trials and triumphs.
This is book 2 and it's every bit as good as the first one. Ingeborg Bjorklund is an easy heroine to love. She's no one-dimensional stick figure. Complicated and complex, she's a little bit of most of the women I know and admire. After the heartbreak and spiritual renewal in book 1, I was thrilled to cheer her on as she continued to scratch a living out of the thick North Dakota sod.
I love finding a series like this that is more than a decade old and completely written. No waiting for the next book to be published! Highly recommend... and moving on to book 3.
Aug 21, 2014
An Untamed Land by Lauraine SnellingMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
I wasn't sure what to expect from this book. I'm reading the series on the recommendation - and loan - from a friend. But wow... I didn't expect the grittiness within these pages.
The raw emotions, the struggles, the realities of life with no sugar coating to glaze them over. This is powerful reading. It's the type of book where you want to have the next one in the series sitting next to you when you finish the one you're reading. This isn't a simple "happily ever after" type of story. It more real than that.
I highly recommend this book to people who like historical fiction, well researched and true to its time period. Set in North Dakota in the 1880s, Lauraine Snelling paints a picture of hardship, sacrifice, and triumph over the untamed prairie. But it's not without cost.
Ingeborg Bjorklund immigrates from Norway with her husband, his son, his brother and sister-in-law. They make their way to the plains of North Dakota and find a land that will work as hard to break them as they work to tame the land.
Aug 16, 2014
The Lady and the Officer by Mary EllisMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
I've read several of Mary Ellis's books and this one is my favorite so far. A touching depiction of the Civil War from a woman's point of view, it centers on divided loyalties.
Madeline Howard is a widow, left alone when her Union soldier husband was killed at the beginning of the war. During the battle of Gettysburg, she is rescued by a handsome Union soldier from her burning home. Sparks fly between them that have nothing to do with the fire.
With little more than the clothes on her back, Madeline makes her way to her closest relatives. . .in the Confederate capitol of Richmond.
Very enjoyable story with strong, likable characters. I highly recommend this one!
Aug 7, 2014
One Nation: What We Can All Do to Save America's Future by Ben CarsonMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
I honestly didn't know what to expect from this book. I decided to read it based on interviews I'd read and heard from Dr. Carson. Every time the man opens his mouth, common sense falls out. I wanted to know more.
The book is a collection of Dr. Carson's thoughts on today's hot-button issues. He pulls no punches and takes no prisoners, discussing everything from political correctness to Washington in-fighting and everything in between. He offers practical - common sense - ways to look at the issues and suggests strategies - common sense - to deal with them.
This isn't a bash-and-dash-to-the-polls type of book. It's a thoughtful look at what it's going to take to move past the morass that is our current political system. Dr. Carson offers hope. It's a refreshing read for that alone.
I'm tickled pink and every other color I can think of to know that Dr. Carson is considering a run for the White House. We need common sense in Washington again. It's been a long, long time.
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