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Laure's Picks
If you are in a reading slump and need a page turner with an unexpected twist, this is the book for you.
Alicia Berenson is accused of killing her husband, but she has not spoken a word since the murder. Theo Faber is a criminal psychotherapist who is determined to get her to talk again while also dealing with personal problems of his own. Everyone seems guilty in some way, but the truth is truly unexpected. Alex Michaelides keeps you guessing until the very end in his suspenseful debut novel.
Written as fiction but based on facts, this book is the story of Maud Baum, the wife of L. Frank Baum. the author of The Wizard of Oz. The book begins in Hollywood in the late 1930s as the movie is being made. L. Frank Baum died twenty years earlier and Maud asserts herself onto the set as a consultant, determined to make sure that the movie stays true to her husband's words. In the process, she meets Judy Garland for whom she immediately takes on a protective role as she discovers the disconcerting behind the scenes expectations of this young actress. The story alternates between the 1930s and the late 1800s when Maud is a young girl growing up surrounded by her mother, Mathilda Gage’s feminism. As we further learn about her life as a college student, a young newlywed, a mother, a wife, a sister, a daughter, and as a woman juggling all of it at once, you see certain aspects of the Wizard of Oz slowly take shape. It is not surprising that L. Frank Baum dedicated The Wizard of Oz to his wife.This is great book and a fantastic portrayal of someone who played such an important role in an iconic piece of our culture. Whether you have read the book or seen the movie (or both!), this novel will make you want to curl up and enjoy it all over again.
This is a unique story that plays with time, reality, history and love in a way that I have never experienced before. Ben meets Kate at a party one night and they fall in love. Kate confides in Ben that she has had the same continuous dream since childhood where becomes Amelia and is transported into Elizabethan England. As she and Ben’s relationship grows, her dream becomes more and more real and begins to take over her life. She begins to notice that her actions in the past seem to change her present. She starts to believe that she has these dreams because she is meant to change history in some way. As Kate's dream becomes more and more encompassing, Ben and her friends become more and more concerned for her. Ben is torn between staying with the woman he loves or detaching himself to save his well-being and future. Beautifully written, Sandra Newman creates twists and turns that are unpredictable, and she does an incredible job taking the reader on this time and reality-bending journey.
Kids and parents alike will be laughing at this relatable bedtime story. Rodrick is always procrastinating before going to bed (he even goes so far as to ask for a pony!), but when his parents give him Sleepy, a “goodnight buddy” meant to help him fall asleep, Rodrick is given a little taste of his own medicine.
As a daughter and a parent of young children, this book brings tears to my eyes every time I read it. It is a beautifully illustrated story of a mother and her son, whom she nicknames Lamb, through the passage of time. From Lamb's birth to his adulthood, you see how their relationship changes at different milestones in his life, yet no matter where they are in their lives, whether together or apart, they always have each other's loving hands to come home to. This may be a picture book but it could also be a great gift for any parent.
How do you tell the world you aren't who they think you are? George was born in a boy's body and doesn't know how to tell her family and best friend, that she is a girl. When George's 4th grade teacher tells her class that they will be putting on a production of Charlotte's Web, George is determined to get the part of Charlotte because she thinks it is a first step in revealing her true identity to the world and finally having an opportunity to be herself in public. Despite the odds stacked against her, with the help of her best friend Kelly, to whom George finally tells the truth, there is a chance that George's wish still might come true.
This book is a well-written glimpse into the difficult life of someone wanting to be their true self when the rest of the world sees them differently. From page 1 you can't help but root for George and her happiness. (Ages 8-12)