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Author: Martha Hall Kelly The novel follows the lives of three women during and after World War II: Caroline Ferriday, a New York socialite; Kasia Kuzmerick, a Polish teenager turned resistance courier; and Herta Oberheuser, a German doctor. As war begins, Caroline helps French orphans and later Ravensbrück survivors. Kasia's youth ends when she and her family are arrested for resistance work and sent to Ravensbrück, where they endure horrors, including medical experiments by Herta. Herta, seeking a career, becomes a willing participant in camp atrocities. After the war, Caroline learns about the 'Rabbits'–Polish prisoners who had experimental surgery at Ravensbrück–and works to bring them to America for treatment and justice. Kasia, traumatized, struggles to heal while wanting revenge. Their paths meet as Caroline champions the Rabbits' cause, leading to a confrontation with Herta during the Ravensbrück trials. The novel explores resilience, the search for justice, and the lasting effects of war. It ends with the Rabbits' journey to America and the connection between Caroline and Kasia. This was a timely read for me because I personally know Rita Brezka, a TWC member and a Polish holocaust survivor. Rita will be telling my book club her story of survival at our January book club meeting. Rita was not quite 5 when WW11 began and Poland was divided up between Germany and Russia. She was 7 when the Germans came to exterminate the 3000 Jews that lived with her in the Tuczyn ghetto. The ghetto, however, fought back and staged a fiery revolt. What happened over the next 3 days was a horrific slaughter and less than 600 Jews were able to escape far enough into the woods to find some safety. That did not stop the Germans for continuing to look for them and Rita spent the next year in hiding during the daylight hours in a shallow trench she calls a “grave”. At the end of the war, Rita and her family were then taken to a Displaced Person’s camp in Italy, where she lived for the next 2 years. From there, she immigrated (illegally), to Argentina, where she spent the next 12 years. We loved reading the Lilac Girls and hearing Rita’s story, but the world now seems like it’s turning upside down again. We can’t forget these stories. Additionally, our book club has created a library slideshow presentation on Rita's story for sharing with other book clubs. Contact information for Debby can be found on the TWC website. Reviewed by Debby Peck, Chair Tuesday Bookends Book Club |
The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell Author: Robert Dugoni Sam Hill’s life began on March 15, 1957 in the SF Bay Area suburban town of Burlingame. At birth, Sam is afflicted with ocular albinism – he has red eyes! Sam’s mother, a devout Catholic ardently believes that her son has been blessed by God and that Sam is fated to live an extraordinary life. Will this prediction come true? This was the story of Sam’s life and his friends and the challenges of being different. It explored themes of friendship, love, resilience, ethics, bullying, forgiveness and religious faith (among other things!). Most of our readers enjoyed this novel. We all agreed that the book was very readable, uplifting and relatable. Most of the key characters were likeable. You could really root for them. The novel generated an emotional resonance with all of our readers. It had a sweet undercurrent and filled the reader with hope. The book generated a thoughtful and lively discussion about Sam, his parents, friends and foes and what makes an extraordinary life. Reviewed by Fiction Addiction Book Club |
Author: Jane Green Book Ends delivers a sparkling tale of old friends reunited and old jealousies rekindled. Catherine Warner and Simon Nelson are best friends: total opposites, always together, and both unlucky in love. Cath is scatterbrained, messy, and since she had her heart broken a few years back, emotionally closed off. Si is impossibly tidy, bitchy, and desperate for a man of his own. They live in London’s West Hampstead along with their lifelong friends, Josh and Lucy, who are happily married with a devil-spawn child and a terrifying Swedish nanny, Ingrid. Recommended by Barb Shea |
Author: Kathryn Stockett In 1933 Oxford, Mississippi, Prohibition is on the wane, and the Great Depression is tightening its grip. Poor and rich folks alike have fallen on hard times, even as the old social order remains. For women on the margins, the options are few and the price of dignity and self-determination is unbearably high. Recommended by Patsy Holbrook |
Author: John Sandford Shay Remby arrives in Hollywood with $58 and a handmade knife, searching for her brother, Odin. Odin’s a brilliant hacker but a bit of a loose cannon. He and a group of radical animal-rights activists hit a Singular Corp. research lab in Eugene, Oregon. The raid was a disaster, but Odin escaped with a set of highly encrypted flash drives and a post-surgical dog. When Shay gets a frantic 3 a.m. phone call from Odin, talking about evidence of unspeakable experiments and a ruthless corporation and how he must hide, she’s concerned. When she gets a menacing visit from Singular’s security team, she knows that her brother’s a dead man walking. What Singular doesn’t know, yet, is that 16-year-old Shay is every bit as ruthless as their security force and she will burn Singular to the ground, if that’s what it takes to save her brother. Recommended by Barb Shea |
Author: Mitch Albom Twice is a profound exploration of love, regret, and the complexity of human choices. The novel follows Alfie Logan, a man with the extraordinary ability to “time jump” and alter key moments from his past As he revisits significant events in his life, particularly his relationships and the loss of loved ones, he grapples with the consequences of trying to rewrite history. Alfie’s journey is a poignant reflection on how our decisions shape our lives, and how even with the power to change the past, some things—like love and loss—remain beyond our control. Mitch Albom weaves a compelling narrative that examines how our attempts to avoid pain and regret can often lead to more heartache and confusion. Recommended by Patsy Holbrook |
Author: Catherine Steadman If you could make one simple choice that would change your life forever, would you? Erin is a documentary filmmaker on the brink of a professional breakthrough; Mark a handsome investment banker with a bright future. They seem to have it all. But do they? On a dream honeymoon to the tropical island of Bora Bora, Mark takes Erin scuba diving. Everything is perfect. Until they find something in the water. Something that will change their lives forever. Erin and Mark decide to keep their discovery a secret. No one else needs to know; they trust each other implicitly. But someone else does know. And in situations like these, it is far better to trust no one, not even those closest to you. With piercing insight and fascinating twists, Something in the Water challenges the reader to confront the hopes we desperately cling to, the ideals we’re tempted to abandon, and the perfect lies we tell ourselves. It’s one that unfolds into a wild, page-turning ride! Recommended by Patsy Holbrook |
Viola Davis and James Patterson have written an incredible courtroom drama and created the most unforgettable character in years. A New York Times best seller. |
Author: Anne Patchett An intimate novel about the transformative power of the written word and the beauty of slowing down to reconnect with the people we love. Filled with knowledge that only comes from a life fully lived, The Correspondent is a gem of a novel about the power of finding solace in literature and connection with people we might never meet in person. It is about the hubris of youth and the wisdom of old age, and the mistakes and acts of kindness that occur during a lifetime. |
If Cats Disappeared From The World Author: Genki Kawamura You will enjoy this New York Times bestseller! You don't even need to be a cat owner to appreciate the book. This fictional book has the main character received a doctor's diagnosis with limited time left. He is estranged from his family and living alone with his cat, Cabbage. The devil shows up and makes him an offer to extend his life another day. He has to agree to give up something that he values for more time. It gets harder as he has to continue this process to live. As objects are removed from the world, he reflects on the life he has lived, his joys, regrets and the people he's loved and lost. It is a quick read at only 168 pages. The Japanese author takes you on a journey with his character. It offers humor and the seriousness of making decisions. The story is simple but makes you ponder his decisions. Recommended by Marilyn Dopler |
Isola Author: Allegra Goodman Inspired by the real life of a sixteenth-century heroine Heir to a fortune, Marguerite de la Rocque de Roberval, was a young noblewoman who lived in France during the 16th century. According to contemporary accounts, she fell in love with her guardian's servant on a journey across the sea to New France (now Canada). As punishment, the pair were abandoned on an uninhabited island where they struggled to survive. Goodman's fictionalization imagines Marguerite's life before and after this event, the hardships she endures while stranded, and the faith that helps her survive. Once a child of privilege who dressed in gowns and laced pearls in her hair, Marguerite finds herself at the mercy of nature. As the weather turns, blanketing the island in ice, she discovers a faith she’d never before needed. | 
Ironwood Author: Michael Connelly Detective Sergeant Stilwell knows that his posting on Catalina Island is no paradise, but to most residents, it seems blissfully separated—by twenty-two miles of ocean—from the troubles of Los Angeles County. But now a threat is coming to his safe haven. Acting on a tip from a confidential informant, Stilwell and his deputies watch a plane land in the middle of the night at the Airport in the Sky, a remote airstrip in the mountains. A duffel bag of drugs is dropped and the deputies move in, but things quickly go sideways. While Stilwell chases the fleeing pickup man into the mountainside brush, shots are fired on the runway and the plane flies off. An internal inquiry follows. While under orders to remain in the sheriff’s substation, he finds in the lost and found a valuable backpack that was never claimed. He traces it to a woman who disappeared while hiking on the island four years ago. But then why was the pack only turned in two months back? Now thoroughly intrigued, he follows the mystery all the way to the LAPD’s Open-Unsolved Unit and Detective Renée Ballard. Stilwell and Ballard work the case from both sides of the channel, and soon realize they are on the trail of a criminal who revels in taunting the authorities. Meanwhile, frustrated at being shut out of an investigation on his own island, Stilwell risks his already shaky standing in the department to pursue a case whose reach is wider than he ever imagined. |
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