You know, my reading time seriously suffers when I have a book coming out, LOL. Much of June seems to have vanished into the abyss of marketing and brainstorming and signing/shipping books. I’m not complaining–I’ve had a blast. But I haven’t been reading quite as much as usual, I have to say…
Roseanna’s Reads
Audio
This isn’t a book I’d ever have picked up on my own, but my husband got it with our Audible credits and then was so enthusiastic about it that he insisted I give it a listen too. And it’s been surprisingly fascinating, LOL. The premise of the book is that in sales/advertising/marketing, you have to ignore logic and reason and look for the “magic”–the things in human psychology that actually attract us to something despite what we “should” want. It’s an incredibly interesting take on the question of “how do we foster excitement about our products?” and introduces right off the bat to a revolutionary concept: don’t put it on sale. Just put more ducks in your advertisement. 😉
Plus, it’s narrated by the author, and who doesn’t enjoy listening to an English man deliver his own humor in that dry, deadpan way? I’m thoroughly enjoying this book–and getting some fun new ideas too. (As a note, this book does have some language in it, so if you’re sensitive to such things, steer clear.)
For My Bookclub
I’ve kinda read this one before. 😉 I’m not rereading, but I didn’t want to just delete the category, so, you know…Look at the pretty cover! LOL
For the Interview
My June interview was with Lauraine Snelling, and we were talking about her fun new contemporary, Half Finished. In this book, a group of ladies in a small city get together to begin what they call a UFO group–UnFinished Objects–and it really takes off. Crafters of all varieties start meeting once a week with the goal of finishing unfinished projects that are cluttering up their closets and lives. And of course, along the way life happens, and the friendships between these ladies (and some men too) are what gets them through.
I love this concept and also loved learning from Lauraine that it was inspired by a group she put together a few years ago. If you’re looking for a fun read that focuses on women of retirement age (though pretty much all generations are represented), then I highly recommend Half Finished.
This book has been making the rounds in my family, and my sister handed it to me a couple weeks ago. I hadn’t had time to pick it up for quite a while, but I finally cracked the cover, and it didn’t take me long to get sucked into life in the North Carolina marsh in the 50s and 60s.
(This definitely isn’t a Christian book–so just be aware of that. There’s some language and some sex. I haven’t found it to be at all over the top in those respects, but just FYI.)
I’ve enjoyed the split timeline in this book, especially, I think, because they’re only split by a few years. It’s been so interesting to see the crime in the more modern line and then work my way to what really happened in the older one. The word-pictures painted about marsh life are just gorgeous. This is definitely a book that makes me want to explore nature and find my place in it.
Overall, definitely a book that sucks you in and haunts your thoughts!
Rachel’s Reads
Hi folks! I am super excited to share my current reads with you. You may know me as
Bookworm Mama as
well as being Roseanna’s Assistant! I LOVE books and sharing my love of
books with others! Here is what I’ve been reading this month…
For My Bookclub (& Audio)
Wow. Wow. Wow!!! My dear friend (and co-founder of our Book Club,
Oh! Books) Lydia has been telling me to read Hazel Gaynor for MONTHS. And now that I finally have, WHY DID I WAIT SO LONG?!?!?!?!
The Lighthouse Keeper’s Daughter is the first official read for
Oh! Books and I devoured the audio in a day and a half…Split-Time Historical Fiction, this story expounds on the bond of family and the deep roots passed down from generation to generation. This story really touched my heart. The narrator was fabulous! Having to tackle several accents and she expressed the emotion in such a powerful way I just wanted more. I highly recommend this one for sure!
NOTE: This is not a Christian read. There is some language, but otherwise clean.
For Fun/Review
So…I loved
The Lighthouse Keeper’s Daughter so much that I HAD to read more by Hazel Gaynor. I downloaded
The Girl Who Came Home and listened to it while I drove 300+ miles to a family reunion, oh ya, that’s one way lol. I’m not super fond of driving and listening to this story helped keep me from stressing out too much. This story was fabulously done. Broke my heart and kept me on the edge of my seat. Unfortunately, we all know the fate of the
Titanic. But Ms. Gaynor kept the story engaging and unique. A split-time historical fiction read, you will get sucked into this thrilling and harrowing tale.
NOTE: This is not a Christian read. There is some language, but otherwise clean.
Ahhhh!!!! I love this story!!!! I am not finished with it yet (watch my blog for the review) and I wish there were more hours in the day to spend reading.
Until the Mountains Fall is the third book in the Cities of Refuge series by Connilyn Cossette (who I got to meet at CFRR 2019 and she is SUCH a delight! I LOVE HER) *ahem* anyhoo…..Connilyn writes Biblical Fiction in a way that I have never, personally, read before. She takes the approach of writing Historical Fiction that is SET during a Biblical period. This, to me, makes it so much easier to relate to the story, to SEE the setting, and to understand and comprehend the Bible stories that coincide in a more efficient way. If you haven’t read anything by Ms. Cossette, I recommend starting with
A Light on the Hill.
With the Kids
We didn’t quite finish all the reading for their schoolwork this year. So over the summer we will catch up on the read-alouds.
Homer Price is a fun and easy read about a boy who lives in a small town back when people still used a horse and wagon and cars weren’t very common. He has unique adventures and is quite the ingenious kid. The boys love having me read to them at lunch time.
Roseanna M. White is a bestselling, Christy Award winning author who has long claimed that words are the air she breathes. When not writing fiction, she’s homeschooling her two kids, editing, designing book covers, and pretending her house will clean itself. Roseanna is the author of a slew of historical novels that span several continents and thousands of years. Spies and war and mayhem always seem to find their way into her books…to offset her real life, which is blessedly ordinary.