A Lowcountry Wedding by Mary Alice Monroe

A Lowcountry Wedding by Mary Alice Monroe
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

4.0/5.0 - This is book four of the Lowcountry Summer series, and reading the other book descriptions, I'm sure I've read all of the previous ones, yet I only have a record of reading one. Huh, I'll have to do something about that.
In this book, wedding bells are ringing for Harper and Taylor, Carson and Blake. Or are they? Carson has real doubts about her ability to settle down and be a good partner. Harper and Taylor must deal with the elephant in the room - Harper's enormous wealth, inherited from her English grandparents. Can they come up with an acceptable solution to her grandmother's mandate for a pre-nup, which neither of them wants? The last sister, Dora and her partner, Devlin, face challenges of their own. Devlin wants to marry Dora, who keeps finding reasons to put him off. A surprise new character, the Reverend Atticus Green, shows up on Mamaw's doorstep and is immediately roped into performing the weddings, offering wise counsel to the three sisters.
The book draws you in to the lowcountry culture and setting, the beauty, the manners, the southern charm. I would love to visit there! I'm looking forward to finishing the series, including reading or reading the ones that I've missed. Definitely a good series for your summer reading, or for anytime during the year.
Book 142 of 2021

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The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran

The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

5.0/5.0 - I first read this in 1976 and used parts of it in our wedding vows.

You were born together, and together you shall be forever more.
But let there be spaces in your togetherness.
Sing and dance together and be joyous,
but let each one of you be alone..
And stand together yet not too near together..

This book has stood the test of time, both in my lifetime, and since it was published in 1923. The language is beautiful, the advice remains timely ("Work is love made visible.") The section on children is my favorite.

Your children are not your children.
They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself.
They come through you but not from you,
And though they are with you yet they belong not to you.

It is one of the few books that I wish to own.
Book 140 of 2021

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The Unlikely Adventures of the Shergill Sisters by Balli Kaur Jaswal

The Unlikely Adventures of the Shergill Sisters by Balli Kaur Jaswal
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

5.0/5.0 - After reading Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows last year, I was looking forward to this book. My library didn't have it, but I was able to get it through ILL. I enjoyed this in so many ways. First, it was a story about 3 sisters which immediately appealed to me. The sisters weren't very close, but to honor their mother's dying wish they take a pilgrimage to India, to reconnect and find out more about Indian culture and their religion. Each sister has secrets they are holding. Piece by piece they are revealed, both to the reader, and finally to each other, and they become a source of strength to each other. The book kept my interest to the very end, both through the sisters' stories, and the Indian culture.
AtY #44 A book whose title contains a negative
Book 139 of 2021


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Your Perfect Year by Charlotte Lucas

Your Perfect Year by Charlotte Lucas
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

3.5/5.0 - I wasn't sure about this at first, and if suicide (off screen) is a trigger for you, you won't want to read it. The premise of the story is that Hannah loves Simon, (view spoiler)[but Simon discovers he has leukemia. After watching both of his parents die from cancer, he decides he can't do that to Hannah, and drowns himself. (hide spoiler)] Hannah creates a journal for Simon, activities to encourage him to get out and live "his perfect year." On New Years Day, Simon leaves the journal on Jonathon's bike and walks away. Jonathon has inherited a publishing house, and while he loves literature, he doesn't love running it. He is vaguely discontented with his life, but he isn't sure why. When he discovers the bag with the journal, he tries to find the owner, but when that fails, he reads the journal and intrigued, decides to follow the advice. The interesting parts of the book are how Jonathon and Hannah just miss meeting each other numerous times, and what happens when they do.
Book 137 of 2021

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A Journal of the Plague Year by Daniel Defoe

A Journal of the Plague Year by Daniel Defoe
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I found this very hard to rate. On the one hand, it was an interesting look back at the plague in 1665 through the lens of a recent pandemic survivor. On the other hand, lists upon lists of laws, number of deaths, etc. This is definitely a book that in retrospect I should have read, rather than listened to because I would have been able to skim through those parts.
Book 132 of 2021

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Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time by Dava Sobel

Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time by Dava Sobel
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

4.5 rounded to 5 stars - I learned so much that I didn't know about time and navigation from this short little book. In 1707 four English ships crashed and were destroyed when they went off course and ran into a rocky coast. The problem was caused by their inability to navigate by longitude. Latitude was not a problem, it had been by the stars, but longitude involved calculations of ship time against port of departure time, and needed a very accurate timepiece to do it. The British Parliament set aside a prize of 20K pounds for anyone who could solve the problem in 1714. John Harrison, a carpenter and self-taught clock maker worked for more than fifty years on this, producing better, lighter and more accurate timepieces, until he was awarded half the prize in 1765 and the other portion several years later. The book was incredibly readable and made familiar persons such as Isaac Newton, Edmund Haley, John Harrison and George III come alive.
Book 133 of 2021

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The House of Unexpected Sisters by Alexander McCall Smith

The House of Unexpected Sisters by Alexander McCall Smith
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

4.0/5.0 - There's something about this series that always makes me smile. It's a quiet series, where a kind person, Mma Ramotswe, drinks tea, lives simply, and tries to solve problems for other people as the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency.
Pop Sugar #19 A book that discusses body positivity
Book 129 of 2021


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Off to be the Wizard by Scott Meyer

Off to Be the Wizard by Scott Meyer
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

4.0/5.0 - Martin is a coder who finds his name is a file. After manipulating it, he finds he has magic powers and ends up in medieval England. He becomes Philip's apprentice, learns to do things, falls for Gwen, and helps conquer the bad guy. It was a fun book to listen to, purchased from Audible. We'll probably listen to more of the series on a trip.
Book 128 of 2021

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These Is My Words: The Diary of Sarah Agnes Prine, 1881-1901, Arizona Territories by Nancy E. Turner

These Is My Words: The Diary of Sarah Agnes Prine, 1881-1901, Arizona Territories by Nancy E. Turner
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

4.0/5.0 - Based on the actual diaries of her ancestor Sarah Agnes Prine, the author, Nancy E. Turner, tells us the story of a teenager who travels with her family to the Arizona Territories. She is a brave and talented young woman, who is good with a weapon, and protects her family as needed. The trail is difficult, though, and many who begin the journey don't make it to the end, including several members of her family. The diaries cover the next twenty years, during it, you can see her growth from dependent child to strong, loving mother. She continues to learn new skills and obtain as much education as she can and the language and grammar in the diary reflect that. The characters are realistic, the description of the time interesting. A good, if long, book.
Book 125 of 2021

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