The Tattooist of Auschwitz

This is a novel based on the true story of Lale and Gita Sokolov, two Slovakian Jewish prisoners at Auschwitz. Lale, being able to speak many languages, was given the job of tattooing the numbers on the incoming prisoners, he met Gita when she was in his line to be tattooed and was immediately taken with her.

Being the tattooist at the camp gave Lale much more freedom of movement then most prisoners and he came upon money and jewels from the murdered Jews to get food to keep other prisoners alive.

Where the Crawdads Sing

This is a very special book about a girl named Catherine Danielle Clark (known as Kya) who lived in a shack in the Marsh lands of North Carolina. The story begins in 1952 when at the tender age of six, Kya’s mom walked out of her life, never turning her head back to wave goodbye. As the days passed, her older siblings gradually left as well, leaving Kya alone to deal with her volatile father. Pa would leave the shack for days on end, then suddenly reappear without warning. Eventually, even he left for good. This left fourteen year old Kya to fend for herself. However, this very clever and resourceful girl drew upon memories of watching Mom cook and clean, and navigating the motor boat with her Dad.

 

Badlands

This is a  very exciting novel. This story is something you might hear on the nightly news. Cassie Dewell is now the Chief Investigator on the Bakken County Sheriff’s Department. She is tracking  a serial killer when she finds that the key to it all might come from an undersized boy on a bike who keeps showing up where he doesn’t belong. 12 year old Kyle witnesses a car accident and turns out to be the hero.

Walking on Water: A Novel (The Walk)

 

This book is #5 in the Walk Series. The series  is highly recommended. It is an excellent overview of our land according to a man who walks from Washington to Key West after losing his wife and contains his thoughts about life issues and what he’s learned. Richard’s books are full of advice, wonderful quotes, a fabulous story line and a book you cannot put down. His characters are real. If you are not familiar with Richard Paul Evans books, now would be a great time to introduce him into your life. His books are romantic but clean.

Bill O’Reilly’s Legends and Lies: The Real West

 

The true stories about the gun fighters and the law men, and the ladies, of the old west. Lots of interesting trivia to entertain you. Makes for a great series of history lessons.

Pioneer Girl: The Annotated Autobiography

For everyone who grew up reading  Laura Ingalls Wilder’s books, this is a must read. It is interesting to compare the television series and the actual history from an adult perspective. This book tells more than the tale of Laura, Pa and the other Ingalls’.

 

And the Good News Is…: Lessons and Advice from the Bright Side

Dana Perino takes us trough her life from an ranch to the oval office. She shares amusing and heartfelt stories from her days at the White House sparring with reporters in the Brady Press Briefing Room and advising the President in the Oval Office.

This is a good about working the White House with the President.

 

 

Killing Lincoln: The Shocking Assassination that Changed America Forever

All through grade school we studied American History. The teachers would always start with Christopher Columbus and go from there. It seemed we never made it to the later years. That is until high school when someone finally spoke up.  Thank goodness everyone one else backed that kid up and we had a good teacher. That was the year we studied WWII.  During all those years we learned about the Presidents and all the wars but not in great detail.  I didn’t know how much I didn’t know about President Lincoln until I read this book.

Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard did an amazing job in researching for Killing Lincoln. The book was thoroughly researched and well-written. In telling the story Mr. O’Reilly went way into the details leading up to the assassination and the aftermath.  He wrote the book in a way that keeps you captivated with the story. I couldn’t put it down.  More important than enjoying the book, I learned more than I ever expected about the Civil War, President Lincoln and John Wilkes Booth. I loved the book and highly recommend it. This book should be required reading in every school. It is that good.