HAPPY BIRTHDAY DOM

Today is my husband's 70th birthday.  As a young boy, he believed that the parades with the marching bands and the fireworks were for him.  Of course, as he got older, he realized that wasn't the case.

But maybe it should be.

He may not have served his country during wartime, but I think of him as a hero.

He grew up in a small town in Pennsylvania, the only child of second-generation Italian immigrants.  His father worked as a stone mason; his mother stayed home and kept the house.  They didn't have much money, but they tried to live a comfortable life.

Dom started working as a young boy, caddying at a local golf course.  During high school, he played sax in a small band, getting gigs where they could.  He'd give all his band money to his mother.  When he graduated from high school, he had an opportunity to go away to school on a baseball scholarship.  Instead, he decided to remain in his small town so that he could work and help his parents.  When all his buddies were going off to Penn State, he was working the graveyard shift at Lansdale Tube.  After a year, he had saved enough money to go to Villanova University.  He paid for it himself; no student loans.  And the cost was high - $300 a semester which was a lot of money at that time.

After graduating from Villanova, he worked for a dairy, delivering milk early in the morning.  He had gotten married and had a baby son, and he realized he wanted more.  He would work all day, then take a train down into Philadelphia, transfer to the elevated, and attend night classes at Drexel University, 3 nights a week for 3 years.  It was tough, but he finished and got his Master's degree.

His marriage didn't work out, but he never became an absentee father.  He spent every weekend with his young son.  He sent support money over and above what he was required to pay, even paying the mortgage and all the utility bills for his ex-wife.

We got married in 1970.  He left his job - working for a land development company doing dinners each night - and took a job in another dairy.  But he wanted to be able to provide more so he worked a part-time job at night.  He would sell cemetery plots, home repairs, correspondence school courses, carpeting - whatever he could find - he could sell anything.  He still spent weekends with his son, even after our daughters were born.  He never turned his back on him.

Through the years, he made a few more job changes and we made a few moves.  When we were living in Kentucky, his son came to live with us for a few years.  We all moved to Georgia, and Dom continued to work 2 or 3 jobs at a time.  He wanted to be sure that we would always have enough money and would never have to do without.  He made it possible for me to go back to school.

Time passed.  The children went to college, married, moved out of our house.  Dom still continued to work hard so that his children wouldn't have to worry about money.  The children have given him times of joy and times of sorrow.  But he's never turned his back on them.  Our door is always open to them.  He still does things for them and our grandchildren - puts gas in their cars, cuts their grass, fixes their houses.

He can't do all the physical things he used to be able to do.  Time is taking its toll on him.  But he's not one to quit.  He's cut down his working to 2-3 days a week now, but he never sits still for too long.  He finds contentment in puttering around the house and yard, playing with Maggie, putting carrots outside for the baby bunnies.

He's worked hard all his life.  He never thinks of himself - everything is all for his family.  He's a hero to me.

Happy birthday, Dom.  I love you.

MEMORIAL DAY 2010

Sure, it's a day for picnics with the family.  Baseball games, swimming in the pool.  Hot dogs and hamburgers on the grill.

But don't forget to remember the men and women who served our country and gave their lives so that we CAN enjoy the picnics with the family, the baseball games, the pool, the food on the grill.  Fly your flag and show your pride in this great country and the people who made it great.

MIDNIGHT IN THE GARDEN OF GOOD AND EVIL

MIDNIGHT IN THE GARDEN OF GOOD AND EVIL by John Berendt

From the book jacket:

Shots rang out in Savannah's grandest mansion in the misty, early morning hours of May 2, 1981.  Was it murder or self-defense?  For nearly a decade, the shooting and its aftermath reverberated throughout this hauntingly beautiful city of moss-hung oaks and shaded squares.  John Berendt's sharply observed, suspenseful, and witty narrative reads like a thoroughly engrossing novel, and yet it is a work of nonfiction.  Berendt skillfully interweaves a hugely entertaining first-person account of life in this isolated remnant of the Old South with the unpredictable twists and turns of a landmark murder case.


It is a spellbinding story peopled by a gallery of remarkable characters:  the well-bred society ladies of the Married Woman's Card Club; the turbulent young redneck gigolo; the hapless recluse who owns a bottle of poison so powerful it could kill every man, woman, and child in Savannah; the aging and profane Southern belle who is the "soul of pampered self-absorption"; the uproariously funny black drag queen; the acerbic and arrogant antiques dealer; the sweet-talking, piano-playing con artist; young blacks dancing the minuet at the black debutante ball; and Minerva, the voodoo priestess who works her magic in the graveyard at midnight.  These and other Savannahians act as a Greek chorus, with Berendt revealing the alliances, hostilities, and intrigues that thrive in a town where everyone knows everyone else.

Having just returned from a short trip to Savannah, I had to re-read this book.  I had read it years ago and had seen the movie.  But this time I could picture just where different scenes took place.  As we took a trolley tour through Savannah, different locations were pointed out to us:  Mercer House, Clary's drugstore, the Hamilton-Turner house, the different squares.  We saw the Bird Girl statue that is pictured on the front of the book.  It had stood in Bonaventure Cemetery but was moved to the Telfair Academy a few years ago.

The book, while telling the story of Jim Williams and the murder at Mercer House, goes way beyond that one story.  In fact, the murder and the four subsequent trials of Jim Williams take up only a portion of the book.  It is almost a tour of Savannah itself, detailing the many famous houses and locations and the people who live there.  Savannah is such a wonderful city, full of history and tradition - and this book gives you a good look into all of it.

Read the book, watch the movie - then take a trip to Savannah.  You'll have a great time!

LIFE IS GOOD

Headache free for 2 days now.  The sun is shining.  The house is quiet.  Maggie is sleeping.  Dom is working.  Sitting on the back porch with a glass of iced tea, and re-reading MIDNIGHT IN THE GARDEN OF GOOD AND EVIL.

Nothing to complain about here!

How's your Saturday?

MIGRAINE

Nothing more needs to be said

COMPLETED CHALLENGES 2010

I'm trying to clean up my sidebar so I'm eliminating a couple of challenges that I've completed.

The New York Challenge only required 1 book, but I read 2.  So that one is finished.  Thanks to Jill for hosting this fun challenge.

The Ireland Reading Challenge required 4 and I finished 4.  So that one is also completed.  Carrie hosted this challenge and did a great job.

And the 2010 Pub Challenge required 10 books published in 2010, and I've already read 15.  I'll call that one more than completed.  Thanks to Michelle for again hosting this great challenge.

I kept the number of challenges down this year because I wanted to be able to pick up and read any book that might appeal to me and not have to worry about having time to read all the challenge books.  It looks like that plan is working.

If you're interested, I have all the books that I read for each challenge listed on my other blog, Challenge Me.

THE SHADOW OF YOUR SMILE

THE SHADOW OF YOUR SMILE by Mary Higgins Clark was read for the 2010 Pub Challenge.


From the book jacket:

At age eighty-two and in failing health, Olivia Morrow knows she has little time left.  The last of her line, she faces a momentous choice:  expose a long-held family secret, or take it with her to her grave.


Olivia has in her possession letters from her deceased cousin Catherine, a nun, now being considered for beatification by the Catholic Church - the final step before sainthood.  In her lifetime, Sister Catherine had founded seven hospitals for disabled children.  Now the cure of a four-year-old boy dying of brain cancer is being attributed to her.  After his case was pronounced medically hopeless, the boy's desperate mother had organized a prayer crusade to Sister Catherine, leading to his miraculous recovery.


The letters Olivia holds are the evidence that Catherine gave birth at age seventeen to a child, a son, and gave him up for adoption.  Olivia knows the identity of the young man who fathered Catherine's child:  Alex Gannon, who went on to become a world-famous doctor, scientist, and inventor holding medical patents.


Now, two generations later, thirty-one-year-old pediatrician Dr. Monica Farrell, Catherine's granddaughter, stands as the rightful heir to what remains of the family fortune.  But in telling Monica who she really is, Olivia would have to betray Catherine's wishes and reveal the story behind Monica's ancestry.


The Gannon for tune is being squandered by Alex's nephews Greg and Peter Gannon, and other board members of the Gannon Foundation, who camouflage their profligate lifestyles with philanthropy.  Now their carefully constructed image is cracking.  Greg, a prominent financier, is under criminal investigation, and Peter, a Broadway producer, is a suspect in the murder of a young woman who has been extorting money from him.


The only people aware of Olivia's impending choice are those exploiting the Gannon inheritance.  To silence Olivia and prevent Monica from learning the secret, some of them will stop at nothing - even murder.

It's been a while since I've read a book by Mary Higgins Clark.  This one was a typical Higgins Clark book.  Lots of red herrings and the real whodunnit isn't revealed until the very end of the book.

Not a great literary work but fun to read.  At age 83, Ms. Higgins Clark can still write enjoyable books.

ANYONE WANT TO BUY A HOUSE? OR TWO?

A little while ago, I was waiting for Dom to bring in some groceries from the car.  Waiting, waiting, waiting.  I couldn't imagine where he could be.

Then he walks in and tells me that he and Donna's neighbor on the other side had just killed a big black snake that was lying under a tree on Donna's front yard.

Make your offers now!

PRAYERS FOR SALE

PRAYERS FOR SALE by Sandra Dallas

From the book jacket:

It's 1936 and the Great Depression has taken its toll.  Eighty-six-year-old Hennie Comfort has lived in Middle Swan, Colorado - up in the high country of the snow-covered Rocky Mountains - since before it was Colorado.  When she first meets seventeen-year-old Nit Spindle, Hennie is drawn to the young grieving girl.  Nit and her husband have come to this small mining town in search of work, but the loneliness and loss Nit feels are almost too much to bear.  One day she notices an old sign that reads "Prayers for Sale" in front of Hennie's house and takes out her last nickel.  Hennie doesn't actually take money for her prayers, never has, but she invites the skinny girl in anyway.  The harsh conditions of life that each has endured help them to create an instant bond, and a friendship is born, one in which the deepest of hardships are shared and the darkest of secrets are confessed.


Sandra Dallas has created an unforgettable tale of a friendship between two women, one with surprising twists and turns, and one that is ultimately a revelation of the finest parts of the human spirit.

Hennie seemed to know just what Nit needed and was able to provide for her, becoming almost like a mother to the young girl.  Hennie knew her days in Middle Swan were numbered, and she had much to do before she could leave.  She had told many stories of her life to Nit, and had to find an ending to one before it was too late.

I've read Sandra Dallas' books before and although I didn't feel this was her best, I enjoyed it.  And I have her latest waiting on my bookshelf right now.

THE MIDDLE PLACE

THE MIDDLE PLACE by Kelly Corrigan was read for my real-life book club.

From the back of the book:

At thirty-six, Kelly Corrigan had a marriage that worked, two funny, active kids, and a weekly newspaper column.  Even then, she still saw herself as the daughter of a garrulous Irish-American charmer, George Corrigan.  She was living deep within what she calls the Middle Place - "that sliver of time when parenthood and childhood overlap" - and comfortably wedged between her adult duties and her parents' care.  But when Kelly finds a lump in her breast - and gets the diagnosis that on one wants to hear - and when her beloved father, too, learns that he has late-stage cancer, Kelly finally takes the leap and grows up.  And through her bravely honest, funny, and inspirational memoir, she takes us with her.

When I first heard about this book, I mistakenly thought the "middle ground" referred to the time of life when we, as adults, find ourselves parenting our own children and also our parents.  Which is where I was not too many years ago.  Finding out the book wasn't what I had expected was a disappointment.

I can't say that I liked Kelly that much.  She seemed to me to be much too dependent on her parents, actually on her father.  She didn't seem to care too much for her mother - she was definitely a Daddy's girl.  Even though she was married, she still needed her father's approval for everything she did.  She even kept her maiden name when she married, so she could still be thought of as George's daughter.  I've been taught to believe that when a girl marries, she takes her husband's name and starts a new family and her first devotion should be to her husband.  Maybe that's old-fashioned now.

I have realized that I just don't like memoirs.  I can only think of one that I've read in the past few years that didn't make me want to throw the book in the trash.  This wasn't that one.

SAVANNAH

I got back last night from a couple of days down in Savannah.  What a beautiful city!  This picture is one of the main streets down near the river - look at the size of those live oaks with all the hanging Spanish moss.

I went with one of my bowling buddies - Vicki - and we had such a great time.  I always knew Vicki was funny, but I swear she is certifiable!  We took a couple of trolley tours through the city, seeing all the beautiful squares and parks. In the afternoon we took a sightseeing cruise down the Savannah river, and in the evening took a ghost tour.  There are a lot of ghost tours - we somehow managed to pick the worst of all of them.  We had more fun making fun of the narrator of the tour - she was an over-the-top drama queen striving for an Oscar - than we did seeing the sights.

We saw some sights from "The Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" - the Mercer House where the murder took place:

The statue of the "Bird Girl" which used to be in Bonaventure Cemetery, and was then moved to the Telfair Museum, where we weren't allowed to take pictures.  We managed to get a picture of a replica of the statue in another museum.  She's behind glass so those green globes are reflections of some lights:

We saw Forrest Gump's bench:

We wanted to eat at Mrs. Wilkes's Boarding House, but were told the line started forming around 10 a.m. for the 11:00 a.m. opening - we just didn't have the time for that.  Here's Paula Deen's restaurant - Lady and Sons.  We didn't eat there though:

And being so close to one of my favorite spots - Hilton Head - we had to take a little side trip to see the ocean:

We also drove out to Tybee Island to see the lighthouse - of course my camera battery had died and I don't have any pictures of it.

Much of our time was spent doing silly things - things neither of us can ever discuss.  One of those "I won't tell what you did if you don't tell what I did" things.  But I'm sure Vicki and I will always get a chuckle when we hear certain words and names:  cocoon, Bertha, wait, Norris and Terea, Ed, the parking police, driving one way.  Ah, the stories I could tell!

There were a lot of places that we would have like to have seen if we had more time and more comfortable shoes.  I'm hoping that Dom and I can go down for a visit in the fall.

If you've never been to Savannah and have a chance to go - please do.  It's a great, great place!

HOLD UP THE SKY

HOLD UP THE SKY by Patricia Sprinkle was read for the 2010 Pub Challenge.

From the back of the book:

Mamie Fountain believes that our lives are part of a rich and complex tapestry woven by God.  But when her retirement is put on hold by a secret she can't bring herself to share, she can't see a life pattern that makes any sense to her.  Margaret Baxter, Billie Waits, and Emerita Gomez are in similar situations.  One month ago, Margaret had the home and family she'd always wanted.  Now they've been taken away.  Billie managed to care for her severely handicapped daughter with a little help from her estranged husband - until he disappeared.  Emerita became an immigrant from Mexico when she was forced to choose between losing her husband and breaking the law.


These four women were accustomed to taking care of themselves and those around them.  Suddenly, they're overwhelmed by tough times.  When they band together on a drought-stricken farm, they must open their hearts and share their burdens before they can find the bounty that lies hidden in their changed circumstances...and see the glorious pattern in the tapestry that was there all along.

I thought this was a so-so book.  I've read Christian fiction before, but this one was a little too preachy for me.

The writing style was confusing at first.  Within a single chapter, the narrator of the story would change from one to another with no indication of who was speaking.  It took a few chapters to get used to that style, and then the narration was done by Billie through the end of the book.  I didn't feel any connection to any of the characters.  They all seemed to have a mean streak.

Just not my cup of tea.

BUSY SUNDAY

One of my bowling buddies and I are going to Savannah tomorrow for a couple of days, so I have a lot to do to get ready.

Laundry!  I'm changing the linens on the bed, so everything needs to be washed.  Then regular laundry - Dom will need clean clothes this week.  Then all the towels need to be done, including the ones I use when I give Maggie a bath.

I did grocery shopping yesterday, so the pantry, refrigerator and freezer are stocked.  I still need eggs and bread, but Dom is going to BJ's this afternoon and will pick them up.

I have to decide what clothes to take and then do some ironing before I pack.  I'm not sure what we'll be doing there, so I need to pack for all possibilities.  I know we'll do the trolley tour of Savannah and some sight-seeing and shopping.  And I think we'll do a dinner cruise on a riverboat and possibly a ghost tour at night.  We might take a quick trip over to Tybee Island and we're planning to go to Hilton Head on Wednesday before we come home.  I'm just hoping there's no rain and the temperatures aren't too high.

I'm not taking the laptop with me, so there will be no Internet until we get home.  I might possibly go into withdrawal!  No blogs, no Facebook, no Farmville!

"See" you when we get back!

GOOD NEWS

Just back from the dermatologist.  My stitches are out and the incision looks great.  My final path report - margins clear, no evidence of further melanoma.  I had my full body scan and he didn't find anything that looked suspicious.  I'll need body scans now every 6 months for 3 years.

YAY!

HOW HIGH THE MOON

HOW HIGH THE MOON by Sandra Kring was read for the 2010 Pub Challenge.

From the back of the book:

Ten-year-old Isabella "Teaspoon" Marlene has been a handful ever since her mother, Catty, dumped her with an old boyfriend and ran off to Hollywood.  Teaspoon fights, fibs, never stops singing, and is as unpredictable and fearless as a puppy off its leash.  Still, Teddy Favors, a man who has taken his share of kicks, is determined to raise her right.


Teaspoon wants to be better for Teddy - even it that means agreeing to take part in a do-gooder mentorship program and being paired up with Brenda Bloom, the beautiful reigning Sweetheart of Mill Town.  Against all odds, as the summer passes, this unlikely duo discover a special friendship as they face personal challenges, determined to follow their hearts instead of convention.


It's while Brenda and Teaspoon are putting together the grandest show the Starlight Theater has ever seen that Catty returns to Mill Town, shattering illusions and testing loyalties.  But by the final curtain call, one determined little girl shows an entire town the healing that can happen when you let your heart take center stage.

Loved , loved, loved this book!  Sandra Kring is definitely on my list of favorite authors.  She captures the spirit of a tough-on-the-outside-but-scared-on-the-inside little girl perfectly.  All the characters come alive - Teaspoon, her neighbor Charlie, the Taxi Stand Ladies.  I can see Teaspoon singing and dancing to "Sisters" and belting out "How High the Moon."

If you haven't read anything by Ms. Kring, grab one of her books - any one - and get ready to laugh and cry.

THURSDAY THINGS

Today is shaping up to be an exciting day (said with a strong note of sarcasm).  Shelby is bringing over some shorts she needs hemmed, and then I'm planning to defrost Donna's freezer in her garage.  The ice is really thick - I don't think I can even get the food out first.  She said she doesn't care if I save the food or not.  Later a trip to the library to pick up a couple of books I had on hold.  Maybe even a little reading time this afternoon.

Yesterday, I bowled in the afternoon after bowling 3 games in the morning.  Since I won't be bowling next week (one of my bowling team members and I are going to Savannah for a couple of days), our whole team decided to come in early and pre-bowl.  My scores weren't too bad, but nothing to write home about.

I'm getting my stitches out tomorrow morning, and I'll get the final path report then also.  I'm sure it's OK since I haven't heard anything from the doctor yet.  Then it's cards in the afternoon.

Wow - don't I lead the most glamorous life!!!  Try to contain your jealousy!

HANNAH'S LIST

HANNAH'S LIST by Debbie Macomber was read for the 2010 Pub Challenge.

From the book jacket:

One the anniversary of his beloved wife's death, Dr. Michael Everett receives a letter Hannah had written him.


In it she reminds him of her love and makes one final request.  An impossible request - I want you to marry again.  She tells him he shouldn't spend the years he has left grieving her.  And to that end she's chosen three women she asks him to consider.


First on Hannah's list is her cousin, Winter Adams, a trained chef who owns a cafe on Seattle's Blossom Street.  The second is Leanne Lancaster, Hannah's oncology nurse.  Michael knows them both.  But the third name is one he's not familiar with - Macy Roth.


Each of these three women has her own heartache, her own private grief.  More than a year earlier, Winter broke off her relationship with another chef.  Leanne is divorced from a man who defrauded the hospital for which she works.  And Macy lacks family of her own, the family she craves, but she's a rescuer of strays, human and animal.  Macy is energetic artistic, eccentric - and couldn't be more different from Michael.


During the months that follow, he spends time with Winter, Leanne and Macy, learning more about each of them...and about himself.  Learning what Hannah already knew.  He's a man who needs the completeness only love can offer.  And Hannah's list leads him to the woman who can help him find it.

Each spring I look forward to the next Blossom Street book by Ms. Macomber.  I order the book automatically, knowing that I'll enjoy it.

This one didn't disappoint.  Sure, it follows a certain pattern.  Michael's choice was obvious from the beginning.  But it was a fun book to read, warm and cozy - just like all of Ms. Macomber's books.

There are times for reading deep, heavy books.  Time for mysteries and adventure.  And times like this - for a nice easy read.  Ms. Macomber and her books fill a certain need, and fill it well.

THE WIFE'S TALE

THE WIFE'S TALE by Lori Lansens was read for the 2010 Pub Challenge.

From the book jacket:

On the eve of their silver anniversary, Mary Gooch is waiting for her husband, Jimmy - still every inch the handsome star athlete he was in high school - to come home.  As night turns to day, it becomes frighteningly clear to Mary that he is gone.  Through the years, disappointment and worry have brought Mary's life to a standstill, and she has let her universe shrink to the well-worn path from the bedroom to the refrigerator.  But her husband's disappearance startles her out of her inertia, and she begins a desperate search.


She boards a plane for the first time in her life and flies across the country to find her lost husband.  So used to hiding from the world, Mary learns that in the bright sun and broad vistas of California, she is forced to look up from the pavement.  And what she discovers fills her with an inner strength she's never felt before:  perfect strangers who come to her rescue, an aging, sometimes hostile mother-in-law who needs her help, friends who enjoy her company.  And through it all, Mary not only finds kindred spirits, but reunites with a more intimate stranger no longer sequestered by fear and habit:  herself.


With the generosity and delicate grace that had readers falling in love with her best-selling novel, The Girls, Lori Lansens brings us another moving and beautifully wrought story, this time of a woman taking small yet courageous steps toward her authentic self.

I loved this book.  And I loved Mary Gooch.

Mary, at 302 pounds, had always found refuge in food.  But when her husband leaves her, she finds herself unable to eat.  She is afraid of falling victim to eating once again.  But she finds a purpose in life and friends who look beyond her size and like her for herself.

The writing in this book was beautiful, so descriptive.  I borrowed this one from the library, but I'm going to buy a copy so that I can read it again and again.

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY

WHISTLIN' DIXIE IN A NOR'EASTER

WHISTLIN' DIXIE IN A NOR'EASTER by Lisa Patton

From the book jacket:

Leelee Satterfield seems to have it all:  a gorgeous husband, two adorable daughters, and roots in the sunny city of Memphis, Tennessee.  So when her husband gets the idea to uproot the family to run a quaint Vermont inn, Leelee is devastated ... and her three best friends are outraged.  But she's loved Baker Satterfield since the tenth grade, so how can she not indulge his dream?  Plus, the glossy photos of bright autumn trees and smiling children in ski suits push her over the edge.  After all, how much trouble can it really be?


But Leelee discovers pretty fast that there's a truckload of things nobody tells you about Vermont until you live there:  mud season, vampire flies, and the danger of ice sheets careening off roofs, just to name a few.


The inn they've bought also has its own host of problems:  an odor that no amount of potpourri can earas, tacky decor, and a staff of peculiar Vermonters.  The whole operation is managed by Helga, a stern German woman who takes special delight in bullying Leelee.  Needless to say, it doesn't take long for her to sdtarty wondering when to drag out the moving boxes again.


When an unexpected hardship takes Leelee by surprise, she finds herself left alone with an inn to run, a mortgage to pay, and two daughters to raise.  But this Southern belle won't be run out of town so easily.  Drawing on the grit and inner strength she didn't know she had, Leelee decides to turn around the inn, her attitude, and her life.  In doing so, she makes friends with her neighbors, finds a little romance, and relizes there's a lot more to love about Vermont than she first thought.


In this comedic debut, Lisa Patton paints the charming fish-out-of-water tale of one woman who learns to stand up for herself - in sandals and snow boots - against all odds.

This was a cute book.  The story was a little predictable, but fun.  Leelee (I HATE that name!) had a lot of spunk after she was forced to handle things on her own.  This book reminded me of the old Newhart TV show, where Bob bought an old inn in Vermont.  Quirky characters and strange situations made this an enjoyable, easy read.  And even though the author made Vermont sound like a terrible place during most of the year, I'd love to visit.

THE KITCHEN HOUSE

THE KITCHEN HOUSE by Kathleen Grissom

From the back of the book:

When a white servant girl violates the order of plantation society, she unleashes a tragedy that exposes the worst and best in the people she has come to call her family.


Orphaned while onboard ship from Ireland, seven-year-old Lavinia arrives on the steps of a tobacco plantation where she is to live and work with the slaves of the kitchen house.  Under the care of Belle, the master's illegitimate daughter, Lavinia becomes deeply bonded to her adopted family, though she is set apart from them by her white skin.


Eventually, Lavinia is accepted into the world of the big house, where the master is absent and mistress battles opium addiction.  Lavinia finds herself perilously straddling two very different worlds.  When she is forced to make a choice, loyalties are brought into question, dangerous truths are laid bare, and lives are put at risk.


THE KITCHEN HOUSE is a tragic story of page-turning suspense, exploring the meaning of family, where love and loyalty prevail.

I thought this was a fantastic book.  Told by two narrators, Belle and Lavinia, the reader is given a look into two interpretations of the same actions.  Lavinia is brought to the plantation and becomes a member of the black slaves' family.  But as she matures, she is forced to live the life of a white lady of society, all the while never forgetting her black "family."

This book told clearly the life of a black slave in the early 1800's.  The reader could feel their pain and heartache as they watch other slaves be beaten, die of hunger, or be sold from their plantation.

Although a hard story to read, I think it is one worth reading.

BYE-BYE MELANOMA

I saw the dermatologist yesterday and he removed a 5 mm margin all around the area he removed last week.  Lots of internal sutures and 6 external.   I'm not worried at all about this path report.  I read the first one and the margins were clear although one area was close to the margin.

So now I'll have a 1 -1/2 inch scar to remind me how lucky I was to have this taken care of early.  I'm scheduled for a full body scan on May 20.

The doctor did a nice sewing job.  I have a couple of dresses to hem - I wonder if he wants a part-time job?

THE LAST TIME I SAW YOU

THE LAST TIME I SAW YOU by Elizabeth Berg was read for the 2010 Pub Challenge.

From the book jacket:

From the beloved bestselling author of HOME SAFE and THE YEAR OF PLEASURES comes a wonderful new novel about women and men at their fortieth high-school reunion.


To each of the men and women in THE LAST TIME I SAW YOU, this reunion means something different - a last opportunity to say something long left unsaid, an escape from the bleaker realities of everyday life, a means to save a marriage on the rocks, or simply an opportunity to bond with a slightly estranged daughter, if only over what her mother should wear.


As the onetime classmates meet up over the course of a weekend, they discover things that will irrevocably affect the rest of their lives.  For newly divorced Dorothy Shauman, the reunion brings with it the possibility of finally attracting the attention of the class heartthrob, Pete Decker.  For the ever self-reliant, ever left-out Mary Alice Mayhew, it's a chance to reexamine a painful past.  For Lester Hessenpfeffer, a veterinarian and widower, it is the hope of talking shop with a fellow vet - or at least that's what he tells himself.  For Candy Armstrong, the class beauty, it's the hope of finding friendship before it's too late.


As Dorothy, Mary Alice, Lester, Candy, and the other classmates converge for the reunion dinner, four decades melt away:  desires and personalities from their your reemerge, and new discoveries are made.  For so much has happened to them all.  And so much can still happen.


In this beautiful novel, Elizabeth Berg deftly weaves together stories of roads taken and not taken, choices made and opportunities missed, and the possibilities of second chances.

This book brought back memories of my last class reunion.  The goal of losing weight so I'd look more like I did in high school.  Finding the "perfect" dress to wear.  The anticipation of seeing long-lost friends and a first love.  The wondering about how former classmates would look and act.  The fun of reestablishing friendships and making new ones.

I think Ms. Berg captured all these feelings in this book.  I love reading books where I feel a connection.  I definitely connected with this one.  She captured the hopes and fears of being seen and judged by people from the past.  And the realization that those same people may not have been what they seemed, that their lives weren't perfect either.

Oh, my high school reunion?  It was great.  Being with my old friends, it was as if I had just seen them a week before.  The high school cliques disappeared.  The former boyfriend, there with his wife, was as sweet as ever.  Now I'm looking forward to my next reunion - our 50th - in a few years.

Here's a picture of me with two of my closest friends from high school - along with our school mascot.

THE LAST SURGEON

THE LAST SURGEON by Michael Palmer was read for the 2010 Pub Challenge and the 2010 Medical Mystery Madness Challenge.

From the book jacket:

Michael Palmer's latest novel pits a flawed doctor against a ruthless psychopath who has made murder his art form.  Surgeon Dr. Nick Garrity, a vet suffering from PTSD - post-traumatic stress disorder - spends his days and nighs dispensing medical treatment from a mobile clinic to the homeless in D.C. and Baltimore.  In addition, he is constantly on the lookout for his best friend, Umberto Vasquez, who was plucked from the streets four years ago for a secret military mission and has not been seen since.


Psychiatric nurse Jillian Coates wants to find her sister's killer.  The police ruled her death a suicide, but Jillian does not believe that Belle Coates, an ICU nurse, took her own life, even though every bit of evidence indicates that she did.  Belle has left a subtle clue the connects her with Nick Garrity - a clue that only Jillian can decipher.


Together, Nick and Jillian determine that each of those involved in a fatally botched case in an operating room three years ago is dying, one by one.  Their discoveries pit them against genius Franz Koller, the highly paid master of the "non-kill" - the art of murder that does not look like murder.  As doctor and nurse move closer to finding the terrifying secret behind these killings, Koller has been given a new directive:  His mission will not be complete until Jillian Coates and Nick Garrity, the last surgeon, are dead.

I love medical mysteries, and Michael Palmer is one of my favorite authors of this genre.  This book absolutely did not disappoint.  The reader knew from the beginning who the killer was, but the reason for the murders didn't come out until near the end of the book.  It was full of suspense as Nick and Jillian had to figure out all the connections and stay one step ahead of Koller.

I think there are a few books by Mr. Palmer that I haven't read yet - I'm heading over to my library website to see if I can rectify that.

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY

Today is our 40th anniversary!  We didn't have a fancy wedding - we got married by a JP in Elkton, MD.  It was just the 2 of us.  My mom threw us a little party a few weeks after.  That's the dress I wore on our wedding day.

On our 7th anniversary, we decided to renew our vows in church.  Susan and Donna were our attendants.  Afterward, we had a little party back at our house.

Happy Anniversary, Dom!  I love you!

APRIL BOOKS

Can you believe it's May already?  Where has the time gone?


I finished 11 books in April.  Most of them were good, some much better than others.

SECRET SISTERS by Tristi Pinkston (2010 Pub Challenge)

IRREPLACEABLE by Stephen Lovely

MISS JULIA DELIVERS THE GOODS by Ann B. Ross

THE PIANO TEACHER by Lynn York (What's in a Name 3 Challenge)

NOT MY DAUGHTER by Barbara Delinsky (2010 Pub Challenge)

HOUSE RULES by Jodie Picoult (2010 Pub Challenge)

CONSPIRATA by Robert Harris (2010 Pub Challenge)

DELIVER US FROM EVIL by David Baldacci (2010 Pub Challenge)

A RELIABLE WIFE by Robert Goolrick

SAVING CEECEE HONEYCUTT by Beth Hoffman

STIFF by Mary Roach


How did you do, reading-wise, in April?