North Liberty Readers discussion

1. A Column of Fire
2. The Lemon Tree: An Arab, a Jew, and the Heart of the Middle East
3. Lilac Girls
4. Crossroads of Twilight
5. The Dark Talent
6. Alaska
7. Stone's Fall
8. The King's Curse
9. The Crystal Cave
10. Alexander Hamilton
11. Here be Dragons
12. The Hammer of Thor

+1. The Throne of Fire
+2. The Golem and the Jinni
+3. Out of Captivity: Surviving 1,967 Days in the Colombian Jungle
+4. Stonehenge

I LOVE YOUR LIST. Start crossing some off! I'm dying to see how you like The Lilac Girls. My mom loved it. I am still on the fence....I still believe I've read better WWII writing. But it was certainly a must to read for the topic's sake....I can't get the girls' faces out of my head.....

I really enjoyed The Golem and the Jinni.....

Oh my, I really did enjoy The Lilac Girls. It really did need to be about 100 pages longer at the end. The end was so abrupt. It was a hard one to read just because of the content - the surgeries and the basically PTSD that she suffered from after. Literally gut-wrenching. I've been told that a prequel is coming, so I'll be looking to read it.

I've been really bad about my list this year. I need to get off my lazy butt and focus on the books on this list. They're all books that I want to read, I just don't have the discipline this year to focus. I am looking forward to reading the Golem and the Jinni! Maybe I'll do that one next!

I just finished Lilac Girls this weekend! I agree with Jenni that it could have been a little longer. I appreciated the author's notes at the end about how she found the stories and the real people that survived these ordeals.

I liked the Golem and the Jinni also!

Oh my Sonja, I'm about 1.3 of the way through Pastel Orphans. I think it is the same narrator as the Patrick Rothfuss books. The story is neat being told through the eyes of a young kid. It's heartbreaking though!

It is the same narrator (Nick Podehl). I picked that book up because he was the narrator. He also reads The Skinjacker Trilogy: Everlost / Everwild / Everfound that I'm pretty sure I've given you too.

I'm trying to make myself read books other than WWII historical fiction, but I keep being drawn to these stories somehow (Lilac Girls, Pastel Orphans, etc.) despite how heartbreaking they are.

Same here! (And yes, I have the Skinjacker books. I'll read those next I think.)

I need to read the Pastel Orphans also.

It's so easy to find WWII stories....

The Lotus Eaters was....AMAZING. Vietnam. Female journalist.

The descriptive writing was some of the most tangible I've read. It was wonderful....and gut-wrenching. I recommend. AND.....it's so hard to find novels on Vietnam with a female lead. Not to mention....Vietnam period. Loved it. Need to find more novels of Vietnam that I haven't read. And I've read much on that.

Have you guys read The Handmaid's Tale....and are you planning to watch the movie.....OR...have you been watching the series on HULU?

I am 14th in line for The Handmaid's Tale at the library! Totally want to read it so I can then watch the series. YOU?????

You need to read Pastel Orphans. Very moving.

I'm going to try to run to the library and get The Lotus Eaters. You are making me feel the need to read this book. FAST!

I think I may have The Handmaid's Tale. Let me look tonight!

I read The Handmaid's Tale a few years ago. It was one that I had to force myself to keep reading. I don't remember a lot of details, but it was not one that I cared for at the time. I might try to read it again now (a few years older/wiser, and in a different political climate).

I read The Handmaid's Tale years ago....like....20.....because it won the Pulitzer and I remember it being the first real dystopian novel I had actually read. Now, dystopian novels are the RULE rather than the exception it seems. I recall having to really concentrate.....to put myself into the novel...since it was strange to me.

I remember loving the politics of it. The feminism topics it brings up. The social class roles....

It was definitely a book WAY before it's time.

I have the book and really want to read it again.

That said.....I'm determined to....first read the book (if possible) before the release of the movie...(July maybe?)
Then, watch the movie.....and THEN....do the HULU series. I've heard great things about the HULU series.

I'm still thinking about The Lotus Eaters.

There was a time I couldn't get enough of Vietnam lit. In high school I did a Lit Program on it. I ADORED watching China Beach and Tour of Duty. I love listening to Vietnam era music....I've read quite a bit of historical fiction from this era and watched all the movies.....

I feel like a TOTAL GEEK telling you guys this and.......

ITS SO REFRESHING SINCE YOU GUYS WILL LOVE ME ANYWAY!!! Ha!!!

Unfortunately....there just aren't ANY books about the WOMEN in Vietnam. So.....when I found this one....I couldn't put it down. It's crushing. It's transcending. It's beautiful. It will change you. AND......(as for me) it's still not enough. Because unless you were actually there...it's impossible to present the experience tangibly. The horror.

My insanity about Vietnam as a teenager is why I'm such a patriot today. We are a family who STRONGLY supports our military. BECAUSE of my insatiable research into Vietnam and the soldiers and how....as a country....we Just. Can't. Fathom.

So.....ladies! Let me know about The Handmaid's Tale....I'd love to delve into it if you are guys are starting. I would read it next.....

Pam - want to read it with me? I'm getting close to the top of the wait list at the library, but I could always get the nook version or a paperback copy. I'd love to read it with someone! I'm also going to read Lotus Eaters. I'm NEVER going to finish my challenge list this year! I've sidetracked SOOO much and my books aren't easy books!

I'm ready when you are for The Handmaid's Tale.....I have a hard copy.

And I just FLEW through In the Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvaraz. It's a niche book for me....as I love Latin American culture and history....but i loved it....and it is very empowering as a woman. Now I'm frantically researching the true story of the Mirabal sisters. I love when a book changes me......and makes me feel like a better person.....this is one of those.

Pamela, I just got The Handmaids Tale. You ready to read?