Pages of the Mind

September's Book

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The Book Thief By Markus Zusak

 ***HERE IS A SMALL FACT***
You are going to die
1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier.
Liesel, a nine-year-old girl, is living with a foster family on Himmel Street. Her parents have been taken away to a concentration camp. Liesel steals books. This is her story and the story of the inhabitants of her street when the bombs begin to fall.
***SOME IMPORTANT INFORMATION***
This novel is narrated by Death. It’s a small story, about: a girl, an accordionist, Some fanatical Germans, A Jewish fist fighter, And quite a lot of thievery.
Another thing you should know: Death will visit the Book Thief three times . . .

August's Book

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 My Horizontal Life by Chelsea Handler:

Many people feel like a one-night stand is something to be ashamed or embarrassed of. I disagree...' We've all (well not quite all, perhaps) had at least one: a one-night stand. Often embarrassing and uncomfortable, occasionally outlandish, but most times just a necessary and irresistible evil, the one-night-stand is a social rite as old as sex itself and as common as a bar stool. Enter Chelsea Handler. Gorgeous, sharp, and anything but shy, Chelsea loves men...Lots of them. "My Horizontal Life" chronicles Chelsea's romps through the bedrooms of a host of potential suitors, uncovering what can happen in one night of passion between a man and a sometimes very intoxicated woman. From her short fling with a Vegas stripper named Thunder to her even shorter fling with a very short man, she recalls her myriad one-night stands with hilarious honesty. "My Horizontal Life" is a sensationally frank and funny memoir of sexual life, and a gloriously quirky take on why we do the things we do. Whether you have been there yourself or not, its one guilty pleasure you won't be ashamed to talk about in the morning...

July's Book

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By popular vote, this month's book club book is Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen.

As a young man, Jacob Jankowski was tossed by fate onto a rickety train that was home to the Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth. It was the early part of the great Depression, and for Jacob, now ninety, the circus world he remembers was both his salvation and a living hell. A veterinary student just shy of a degree, he was put in charge of caring for the circus menagerie.
It was there that he met Marlena, the beautiful equestrian star married to August, the charismatic but twisted animal trainer. And he met Rosie, an untrainable elephant who was the great gray hope for this third-rate traveling show. The bond that grew among this unlikely trio was one of love and trust, and, ultimately, it was their only hope for survival.



June's Book

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Nearing 30 and trapped in a dead-end secretarial job, Julie Powell resolved to reclaim her life by cooking, in the span of a single year, every one of the 524 recipes in Julia Child's legendary Mastering the Art of French Cooking. Her unexpected reward: not just a newfound respect for calves' livers and aspic, but a new life--lived with gusto.

Visit Julie Powell's blog at: http://juliepowell.blogspot.com/ 




May's Book

Jane was a sweet, funny, chubby seven-year-old, desperately seeking love from her self-obsessed mother, Vivienne, and a father who was wrapped up in a new life with his beautiful young girlfriend. Jane's only friend was handsome, funny, thirty-something Michael. Michael was different; no one else could see him, nor did they believe he existed beyond the realms of Jane's very creative imagination. They would talk from morning until night. As Jane grew older though, the time came for Michael to leave Jane's side. Jane couldn't forget him though. Over twenty years since Michael said goodbye, Jane catches a glimpse of that unforgotten face, her heart pounding, she can't believe it is true - could it really be Michael? This time though Michael isn't just a figment of her imagination. But will the path of true love be a smooth one? And will Jane get her happy ever after? "Sundays at Tiffany's" is a heart-warming romance about a girl who until now has lived her life on the sidelines, about what it feels like to fall in love, a tale of soul mates.

http://www.jamespatterson.com/index2.html



April's Book

Anna is not sick, but she might as well be. By age thirteen, she has undergone countless surgeries, transfusions, and shots so that her older sister, Kate, can somehow fight the leukemia that has plagued her since childhood. The product of preimplantation genetic diagnosis, Anna was conceived as a bone marrow match for Kate - a life and a role that she has never questioned… until now. Like most teenagers, Anna is beginning to question who she truly is. But unlike most teenagers, she has always been defined in terms of her sister - and so Anna makes a decision that for most would be unthinkable… a decision that will tear her family apart and have perhaps fatal consequences for the sister she loves. My Sister's Keeper examines what it means to be a good parent, a good sister, a good person. Is it morally correct to do whatever it takes to save a child's life… even if that means infringing upon the rights of another? Is it worth trying to discover who you really are, if that quest makes you like yourself less? http://www.jodipicoult.com/


Book Club