Carol Goodman

There are a few authors I keep an eye on because I consistently enjoy their books and Carol Goodman is one of them. One of the things I like most about her books is the way she interweaves historical information into them so even though I'm always entertained by the story, I also feel like I learn a little something. Her most recent endeavor, The Night Villa tells the story of UT Professor Sophie Chase who joins an expedition to uncover a villa in Herculaneum that was buried by the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in AD 79. The story has a twist, as do all of her novels, involving a gunman, a sinister cult and an ex-boyfriend, which will leave you entertained and wanting more. If you enjoy this, I would also recommend her other novels, The Sonnet Lover, The Drowning Tree, The Ghost Orchid, The Seduction of Water, and The Lake
of Dead Languages.

I Love History!

History was always one of my favorite subjects in school and that has translated into a love of historical fiction, although I am especially drawn to two periods in history - Elizabeth I and WWII. In that spirit, here are some books that will entertain you, and you just might learn something too.

The first book is one that I read for the first time so long ago and may be what originally started my obsession with Elizabeth I. It's Legacy by Susan Kay and although she takes some liberties mixing history with imagination, it is a very entertaining read. Sensationalistic, yes, but entertaining nonetheless. The second is Elizabeth and Mary: Cousins, Rivals, Queens by Jane Dunn. This novel traces the history and success of two queens who ruled in male dominated societies and although the two cousins never met, their lives were incredibly interconnected. If you want others in this genre, I can also recommend I, Elizabeth (Rosalind Miles), Mary Queen of Scotland and the Isles (Margaret George) and The Other Boleyn Girl (Philippa Gregory).

Along the WWII theme, I can recommend several books. The first, Skeletons at the Feast (Chris Bohjalian) tells the story of a Germany family who flees across Germany with a Scottish POW. Along the way they join forces with a Jewish escapee from an Auschwitz-bound train and are hoping to reach the Allied forces before being overtaken by the dreaded Russians. The next is A Thread of Grace (Mary Doria Russell) about a group of Jewish refugees who are escorted into a small Italian town for safe keeping, only to discover that Mussolini has surrendered Italy to Hilter, putting them into danger once again. The story tells us of a little known group of Italian citizens who sheltered over 40,000 Jews from work camps or execution. And some others you may enjoy are The Reader (Bernard Schlink), The Resistance (Anita Shreve) or The Key to Rebecca, Hornet Flight or Jackdaws (Ken Follett).

The rest of these have nothing to do with WWII or Elizabeth I but are great reads in their own right and will introduce you to other places and times. The first is the Into the Wilderness Series by Sara Donati. These are kind of similar to the Outlander series, only these take place primarily in United States post-Revolutionary War. There are several novels in this series and it traces one family, the Bonners, throughout their lives and the lives of their children. The next is James Clavell's Shogun - a story about Japan in the late 16th century and the English "barbarians" who washed ashore one day. The descriptions of the Japanese society and culture of the time are amazing and almost breathtaking; it's really eye opening to read about the differences between the Westerners and the Japanese. The final recommendation is another series - the Earth Children series by Jean M. Auel. There are five books in the series and they tell the story of the dawn of modern humans in Ayla, a cro-magnon girl growing up in the ice age, whose family is lost in an earthquake. She is picked up by a traveling clan of neanderthals looking for a new home and thus her story and struggle begin.

Not Just for Young Adults

I just finished reading the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series and was so pleasantly surprised by the level of writing. While technically classified as Young Adult, I didn't feel like they were written at to a lower reading level at all - in fact the stories were extremely entertaining. It made me think, what other YA series are so good that they transcend the label? Here are a few to get you started:

The Traveling Pants series by Ann Brashares: The first book in this series introduces us to Tibby, Bridget, Lena and Carmen, four girls who have been friends since before they were born, and who are about to spend their first ever summer apart. But on the day before they are to scatter, they discover a pair of pants, bought at a vintage store that miraculously fit all of them perfectly, despite their different body types and heights. They determine to send these magic pants to each other throughout the summer to help keep in touch and remain close. The chapters are narrated by the different girls and you get a feel for each of their different voices. This is maintained throughout the rest of the series, through which we get to see the girls grow up both together and apart. Series: Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, Second Summer of the Sisterhood, Girls in Pants, Forever in Blue.

Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery: This is an oldie but goodie - and hopefully there aren't many of you out there who haven't already devoured this series. Although technically there are 8 books in the series, the first 6 are the ones most read. They tell the story of Anne (with an E) Shirley, who was recently adopted by the Cuthbert's on Prince Edward Island, Canada. Ann has carrot red hair, is incredibly smart, and talks and dreams way too much. Ann is essentially an every-girl if there is such a thing. The series tracks her from a young girl of 11 throughout her entire life, to when she is a mother herself. If you haven't read them, or haven't in awhile, please do yourself a favor and check them out. Books: Anne of Green Gables, Anne of Avonlea, Anne of the Island, Anne of Windy Poplars, Anne's House of Dreams, Anne of Ingleside, Rainbow Valley, Rilla of Ingleside

The Bartimaeus Trilogy by Jonathan Stroud: These are along the same lines of the His Dark Materials or Harry Potter series' in that they definitely have a fantasy slant, but these definitely enough of a difference to make these fresh and interesting. Nathaniel is a boy magician who is apprenticed to Arthur Underwood, an inferior magician, who mostly ignores him. That is until Nathanial insults the famous magician Simon Lovelace, in public no less, and Underwood is too pathetic to help him. Angry and disgusted, Nathaniel throws himself into the task of learning as much magic as possible and summons a very powerful djinni, Bartimaeus, to help exact his revenge. The trilogy continues on from there with Nathaniel making friends and enemies along
the way and ends with an epic showdown between Nathaniel and Lovelace. You'll definitely enjoy the dark humor and will find yourself rooting for and against the various characters. Books: The Amulet of Samarkand, The Golem's Eye, Ptolemy's Gate

And of course, I'll reference again the Harry Potter Series and the Twilight Series.

Philip Roth

Some people are obsessed with Philip Roth, especially Portnoy's Complaint and American Pastoral. I never read the first, but did read the second and really didn't get the attraction. It was an OK novel, I guess, but I struggled to really get into the story, even though my roommate at the time was practically disowning me for not loving the book. However, there is one of his books that I absolutely loved and want you all to read... immediately!

It's The Plot Against America and I first read it back in 2003 right before the election and the eeriness of it all made the hairs on my neck stand up.

The book is the ultimate "what-if" scenario; what if Charles Lindbergh had defeated Franklin Roosevelt for the presidency in 1939? Lindbergh had the sympathy of the public behind him after the kidnapping of his son, and was already popular due to his aviation heroics. However, once in office, Lindbergh exhibited blatant antisemitism and ends up creating nationwide pogroms. The story is narrated by a Jewish boy growing up in Newark, NJ and is both gripping and touching.

You will be captivated from the first page and despite the fact that the novel takes place 70 years ago, there are some scary parallels to today.

A quick read

I just finished reading a cute, short young adult book called The Midnight Twins by Jacqueline Mitchard. It's the story of twin girls, Mally and Merry, who are born on different days in different years, even though they're only minutes apart. They've always been able to read each others thoughts and communicate in "twin talk" but on their 13th birthday their lives change in the midst of a fire and they suddenly have powers beyond anything they'd ever thought possible. It's a pretty short book, I finished it in a couple hours today, and I just found out that it's the first book in a planned trilogy.

Non-Fiction that reads like fiction

I don't often read non-fiction and I'm not quite sure why. Probably because most of the non-fiction titles I see are usually biographies or autobiographies and for the most part, that just doesn't interest me. Which I find kind of interesting since history in general fascinates me. Despite my less than enthusiastic response to the genre, I have found several non-fiction books that I have enjoyed. So for those of you who aren't into fiction, these books should interest you.

The first two are by James Bradley and are both true accounts of the pacific theater in WWII:

Flags of our Fathers tells the story of the historic flag raising on Mount Suribachi on Iwo Jima. It not only tells us the history of the flag raising itself, but also delves into the back stories of the men who raised it. One of the men who was immortalized in the famous picture, was the author's father, John Bradley. It was only after his father's death that the author discovered the role he'd
played.

Flyboys is about the rise of the US Air Force, and the pivotal role they played in the battles of the pacific theater, specifically the battle of Chichi Jima. Many men were shot down that day; one was rescued by a submarine and went on to become President. Eight others were captured by Japanese troops and until this book came out, the story of what happened to them was never revealed.

Three Cups of Tea tells the story of one man whose failure led to his success. In 1993, Mortenson was trying to climb K2 when he became too ill to continue on. He spent seven weeks recuperating in the tiny Pakistani town of Korphe. In return for their generosity, he pledged to build the first school in the impoverished town. The story tells the tale of the author's struggles to fulfill on that promise and the eventual development of the Central Asia Institute whose mission is to fight Islamic extremism in the region through collaborative efforts to alleviate poverty and increase access to education, especially for girls.

Night by Elie Weisel is, as one reviewer put it, "the longest short book I've read." Weisel tells his own story of the concentration camps and the survivor's guilt that followed him. It's not a long book but the sparsity of it makes that much more of an impact. I just don't have the words to adequately describe this book so please, read and discover it for yourself.

Ken Follett's Masterpieces

A few years ago, my brother was reading a book and when he finished, he handed it to me, stating that I'd love it. We were on vacation and I started reading it immediately and couldn't put it down the rest of the trip. The book was Ken Follett's Pillars of the Earth, first written in 1989; you may not have realized that the book was almost 20 years old since it's had a huge resurgence lately thanks to Oprah's book club. Part of the frenzy was driven by the fact that Follett was about to release a sequel to his popular novel. The original story follows a group of people in Kingsbridge, England and the challenges associated with building a cathedral in medieval England. I decided that in order to follow World Without End, the sequel, I should reread POTE and was honestly a bit apprehensive - would it hold up over time? Would I enjoy it as much this time around? The answer is a resounding YES! And WWE is a worthwhile successor; not a sequel in the traditional sense since it picks up about 200 years after the ends of POTE, but it is still
Kingsbridge, and the characters are the descendants of those we came to know, love, respect and in some instances, hate. While both books are hefty, the story is very engrossing, and you will come to care deeply about these characters.

If you enjoy these two, try also Ildefonso Falcones' Cathedral of the Sea, about a cathedral in Barcelona or John Shors' Beneath a Marble Sky, about building the Taj Mahal.