The Briar Club by Kate Quinn

 Several women in our Monterey Book Club mentioned at our Christmas luncheon at Bloomington Country Club that they had enjoyed this book. While we were deciding on a process to choose this year's books, we all agreed to read this one for January and make our final decisions for the rest of the year at our January meeting. So I put in a request at the library for this book, and happily, it came through in time for me to read it.

I liked the setting of the 50s, of course, and all the attendant TV, music, and food references for that time period. The boarding house with all of its interesting characters were also fun to read about. The mysterious murders unfold along the way, and in the end are justified because the two murdered characters were so despicable. This is not reality, but it's kind of a fun ride. This is not deep or compelling reading, but it is fun and mostly fairly light.

There are two historical situations that I was unfamiliar with. One is that the Russians set up a whole mock American city in order to train their spies. Russians learned to speak flawless English, shop in supermarkets, etc., so they could easily fit in as natives in America. That was fascinating to read about, and also the shock that these spies were astounded to learn that what they actually found in America was even better than the mock up version, and many apparently defected.

The other situation was a mock invasion in Texas where a whole town reacted to a mock Russian invasion. It was called Operation Longhorn. I'm still hazy on why this was done or what the learning was supposed to be, but how weird! This book also illustrated the panic that was rampant among people accused of being Communists or gay; the McCarthy era. And Edward R. Murrow makes a brief appearance calling him out on his newscast. It made me think, I wish a respected Republican would do the same with Trump! Some are trying, but there is so much hate flying in both directions that we don't hear them...They don't stand out. 

At any rate, this story was enjoyable with strong and interesting characters. Would I seek out other work by this author? Probably not...but maybe. I really liked the author's notes at the back explaining some more of the historical context and who was real and who was fictional. It's a fun way to learn some history, for sure. 

Magic Lessons by Alice Hoffman

 This author came up in a few different Instagram posts, so I decided to give her a try. She has written a lot of books, so I was hoping to find someone I could enjoy in multiple ways, and this book is a prequel to some of her supernatural and witch stories. I found her at the library in St. George during a spell between some good books and decided she was worth a try.

I would say the story was interesting, the characters interesting, and the setting fascinating as it wove in some history of the mood and paranoia surrounding the Salem Witch Trials. I wouldn't say the characters were fully developed, but it was more about the movement of the characters and the people around them that moved the story along. It was also more about love and life...this author frequently waxed philosophical as she wove the story along. The ending is illustrative of her oft-repeated themes:

"Drink chamomile tea to calm the spirit. Feed a cold and starve a fever. Read as many books as you can. Always choose courage. Never watch another woman burn. Know that love is the only answer."

I got a little tired of the spells and herbs, but many (of the herbs, at least!) would probably work! I liked how the Owens women were unique and loved their red boots. It was interesting to see how this power could go wrong when the daughter uses magic to go to the dark side. All of it was interesting, but not enough for me to read any more by this author. It did awaken a desire to learn more about the real Salem Witch Trials...

The Secret Lives of Booksellers and Librarians by James Patterson and Matt Eversmann

 This was a freebie I picked up somewhere, and I was arrested by the bright yellow cover. I know James Patterson is a popular author, so I thought it would at least be entertaining. And it was!

Each person's entry was an individual essay, and the essays were divided into categories. Actually, the categories made no sense at all; hello, was there an editor home? but it didn't really matter, because each essay was fairly interesting in and of itself. 

Some of the essayists were booksellers and some were librarians. All of them had interesting vignettes to share about their reading and recommending lives. What became a little annoying was that someone obviously told them to write in the present tense, even though they were recounting past experiences. It was a little strange.

I've kept the book around, though, because several of them mention their favorite authors and some of their favorite books. I thought it would be handy to explore some of their recommendations, but I wish I had marked them as I read the book, because I'm having trouble finding them now... 

This kind of book is convenient for me, though, because I can read an essay or two and then go to sleep. I don't get hung up on a long plot. It occurs to me, though, that I might want to gift this to my friend Sally Mielke, who is a retired librarian. She might like it...

The Ten Day Daughter by S. Michael Wilcox

 This little book was on some give-away table, so I thought I'd give it a try. I admire S. Michael Wilcox and have listened to many of his talks and he is accessible, spiritual, humble, and brilliant. Even though this is an older book, I thought it would probably be interesting at the least, and great at the best. 

It was published in 2012, and I think this may have been an early retirement project for him. It's an interesting read, about a homeless pregnant young woman who needs help, but constantly refuses it. The Wilcox family tries to take her in and help her, but she is skittish and fearful. I enjoyed the wondering about what her past was, and what she would do next, but I got a little tired of all the tears and crazy. Wilcox's wife spent lots of time crying too, and it begins to feel like the mental challenges and hysteria are contagious. Still, I had to admire what it took to try so hard to help someone, especially someone who did not want help. And the rest of the family was at an age and stage where taking this on was obviously complicated and challenging.

And, surprisingly, there was no happy ending. There was no resolve. I actually appreciate that Wilcox has no easy answers or rationale or explanation. It made me wonder what he thinks about this experience years later. Did he ever understand more of what happened or why? That would be fascinating to know...

It's going to Deseret Industries now, so someone else can read it and wonder, "What would I do in a similar situation?" And, "Am I doing enough to love my neighbor?" In that regard, it was inspiring...

Doing Small Things with Great Love by Sharon Eubank

 The subtitle is "How everyday humanitarians are changing the world"

I follow Sister Eubank on Instagram, and was intrigued by what she was saying in her video snippets. I've always admired her, and have great respect for her work. She's open and vulnerable and obviously works very hard. I expected this book to be good, but it's even better than I expected! It's not just a description of the best ways to help the world, it's a very compelling call to action, I feel its pull.

 I especially resonated with the part about cash being sometimes the best way to help. This is counterintuitive to me, because I've always assumed it would be misused or lost. It resonated with me, though, because I remember when I was working with Native American populations to help them in college, some of them didn't have gas money to get to campus, or menstral supplies to stay active during their periods! Sister Eubank also pointed to research that says cash is most often NOT misused as I had assumed. 

I also like her emphasis on working locally, right where we are. And doing small things, which lead to great things. It's encouragement to see that the small things really are and become big things. Here are some of my favorite quotes:

..."many of the issues development dollars are trying to address were caused or made worse by the incalculable amounts of money, resources, and human capital extracted from Africa over hundreds of years of colonizing forces. Money alone does not solve these problems. In the absence of ethical leadership, self-determination, and the protection of basic human rights, development aid has proved to do very little to change the reasons communities and countries are poor."

"One of the reasons religious communities and faith-based organizations can often act as powerful change agents is that they are inherently made up of overlapping trusted networks."

"Trusted networks are inclusive.

Trusted networks protect alternate views.

Trusted networks foster choices.

Trusted networks hold themselves and others accountable.

Trusted networks can form councils that act."

Then she lists (beginning on page 62) 10 best practices for councils, which is a fantastic list.

And I love this paragraph from page 70:

As Westerners, as people with resources, as graduates of higher education--we don't say it aloud but--our underlying attitude is so often that we know what is best for people, how to solve their problems--we will teach them. This never works. We have no idea what is best for people. We rarely know what is best for ourselves. We do not have the solution to their problems. 

Then she goes on to list five categories of questions to ask to get started... beginning on page 70.

All of these points are illustrated with interesting stories from Sister Eubank's world wide experiences, and they ALL resonate with me and my experiences on the reservation. 

Here are the questions...

1. What help do you want?

2. What are you able to do yourselves?

3. What help do you want from the community?

4. What will you do when the need comes up next time?

5. Is it a local solution?

The term "second disaster" (page 30) was new to me, but I wasn't unaware that it happens. It's the tragedy of help gone awry...examples of huge clothing donations rotting on the beach because there was no plan for distribution. And refrigerators sent to Haiti who had no electricity after their earthquake. 

At the end of each chapter, Sister Eubank offers thoughtful questions for reflection, and then my favorite chapters, 9 and 10, invite us to ACT in specific ways. 

The Unmaking of June Farrow by Adrienne Young - heard on Libby app - 12 hours

 I don't recall who recommended this book to me, but I had to wait months for it on Libby. At first it was intriguing, but I got tired of the constant hysterical stress that this woman was under. Practically the whole story is stress-ridden and frantic. The characters are interesting, but rather mysterious. I was hoping for a mystery, which it is, but it was a weird, thriller kind of mystery that had so many time travel complications that I couldn't really follow it that well. Still, I persevered, because the descriptions of the land and the flowers were beautiful, and I kept hoping it would all make sense. It kind of came together, but it was not particularly satisfying...

Still, it gave me an interesting diversion as I walked the miles around our neighborhood this beautiful fall. Once I'm into a story, it's hard for me to stop. I know I dislike sci-fi, and this is similar. I should have known better and given up sooner. Oh well...the reader had a lovely southern accent...

A Carol for Mrs. Dickens by Rebecca Connolly

 This little Christmas book was nestled next to The Mansion at the library, which was what I was looking for... But this one looked intriguing so I checked them both out. It is a sweet little story, based on the real Mrs. Charles Dickens and is set in their time period. Mrs. Dickens admires her husband's exuberance, but is worn out. This little story shares how she got her Christmas spirit back, and it's sweet and focused on the "real" meaning of Christmas. It's fun to read about the Victorian traditions and fun parties, but the spirit of the season is missing. How Mrs. Dickens brings it back, through dreamy memories, is good to read about. I was hoping it might help ME feel more of the Christmas spirit, and it did, even though it's not quite Thanksgiving. I want to start early and feel it longer! I was also hoping it might be a giftable book, but it's not quite at that level. Still, a fun and good little read.