The Books I Read - Just for Fun - In January

Started today, 1/30/21
This is the Pride & Prejudice variation I thought I had last time. It made an impression on me. It all starts when Elizabeth received those 2 letters from Jane, but Lydia didn’t run away with Wickham this time. She died in an accident. It deepens into a mystery as Elizabeth learns about Lydia’s last days. This version struck a chord with me because of the way Elizabeth grows as a character. She remembers Lydia’s flaws, but she also finds a value in her that hasn’t been acknowlged in any other book.
 
Amazon’s Description:
Jane Austen’s beloved Pride and Prejudice is readapted in this regency tale of love in the face of tragedy. Mr. Darcy is thwarted in his attempt to propose to Elizabeth Bennet at Hunsford when he encounters her minutes after she receives the sad news from Longbourn of her sister’s death. His gallantry and compassion as he escorts her back to Hertfordshire begins to unravel the many threads of her discontent with him. While her family heals from their loss, Darcy must search London for answers – answers that might bring justice, but might also just mark the end of his own hopes with Elizabeth. Is it true that nothing can be lost that love cannot find?
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Started 1/19/21                                                     Finished 1/30/21
I am a HUGE fan of Pride and Prejudice, and I bought this one back in 2013. I’m rereading it because I love how Linda weaves the language of flowers and human misunderstanding into this story.
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Amazon’s Description:
“ Pride and Prejudice” and the language of flowers…
When Fitzwilliam Darcy leaves the inn in Lambton after a tense but fruitful visit with Elizabeth Bennet, her words cultivate his hopes. “Less naturally amiable tempers than Mr Bingley’s have found ways to forgive you.” Has she excused his flaws of character and errors in judgement? While dining at Pemberley, Elizabeth is confounded when Darcy says of her scent, “Now I find I am more fond of lavender than ever… certainly even more fond of it than I was in, say, April.” Has he pardoned her intemperate assault on his pride?

As her esteem blossoms into love and his desire flourishes into devotion, the meanings of every leaf and petal allow Elizabeth and Darcy to express emotions too vulnerable to speak aloud. But can messages in fronds and leaflets save their fragile hearts when scandalous news arrives from Longbourn?
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Started 1/15/21                                         Finished 1/18/21
I picked this book because one of my writing mentors suggested it. The beginning confused me, but I’m glad I pushed on. It’s not my typical read. It’s way more character driven, but I liked taking a look at the world of the severely disabled and their caretakers. It wasn’t the ending I hoped for, but it fit this story, and I’m glad I read it.

Amazon’s Description:
They had nothing in common until love gave them everything to lose . . .  Louisa Clark is an ordinary girl living an exceedingly ordinary life—steady boyfriend, close family—who has barely been farther afield than their tiny village. She takes a badly needed job working for ex–Master of the Universe Will Traynor, who is wheelchair bound after an accident. Will has always lived a huge life—big deals, extreme sports, worldwide travel—and now he’s pretty sure he cannot live the way he is.

Will is acerbic, moody, bossy—but Lou refuses to treat him with kid gloves, and soon his happiness means more to her than she expected. When she learns that Will has shocking plans of his own, she sets out to show him that life is still worth living.

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Started 1/13/21                                                       Finished 1/15/21
I’ve never read book 2, but I’ve loved Book #1 since 1980. Now I wonder why I didn’t.
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Madeleine had me hooked in the first chapter. Something is wrong with Charles Wallace, and strange things are happening. I wanted to know what was going on, and why!
Good news for Charles Wallace – love was the answer! It always is.​

Amazon’s Description:
It is November. When Meg comes home from school, Charles Wallace tells her he saw dragons in the twin's vegetable garden. That night Meg, Calvin and C.W. go to the vegetable garden to meet the Teacher (Blajeny) who explains that what they are seeing isn't a dragon at all, but a cherubim named Proginoskes. It turns out that C.W. is ill and that Blajeny and Proginoskes are there to make him well – by making him well, they will keep the balance of the universe in check and save it from the evil Echthros.

Meg, Calvin and Mr. Jenkins (grade school principal) must travel inside C.W. to have this battle and save Charles' life as well as the balance of the universe.
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Started book 1/6/21                                                    Finished 1/13/21
This is my 6th time through this book. The first time was in 1980 when I took my kiddie lit class. It’s required if you want to be an elementary teacher. For me, it was love at first  page!

I was disappointed in the movie. My advice, if you love a book, skip the movie. 40 years later – the book doesn’t disappoint. I remember how much I loved Meg, Charles Wallace, and Calvin, and IT feels more relevant than ever before.
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Amazon’s Description:
A tesseract (in case the reader doesn't know) is a wrinkle in time. To tell more would rob the reader of the enjoyment of Miss L'Engle's unusual book. A Wrinkle in Time, winner of the Newbery Medal in 1963, is the story of the adventures in space and time of Meg, Charles Wallace, and Calvin O'Keefe (athlete, student, and one of the most popular boys in high school). They are in search of Meg's father, a scientist who disappeared while engaged in secret work for the government on the tesseract problem.

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Finished book – 1/5/21
I bought my kindle version in 2011, and I’ve read it at least half a dozen times.

I love this book because I remember the 70’s, Dick Clark, and the $20,000 Pyramid. I was transitioning from high school to college back then. I also love time travel, and Rebecca Stead had a great take on how it could be done.

Each time my next book is a Wrinkle in Time. That’s because Wrinkle plays a huge part in how Rebecca wove the story.
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Amazon’s Description:
Shortly after a fall-out with her best friend, sixth grader Miranda starts receiving mysterious notes, and she doesn’t know what to do. The notes tell her that she must write a letter—a true story, and that she can’t share her mission with anyone.
 
​It would be easy to ignore the strange messages, except that whoever is leaving them has an uncanny ability to predict the future. If that is the case, then Miranda has a big problem—because the notes tell her that someone is going to die, and she might be too late to stop it.

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