The Queen of the Big Time by Adriana Trigiani

This starts in the late 20's.  Nella is excited because she is going to get to go to school in town.  It all starts well, but then her father is in an accident and she has to go to work.  She caught on well and made her way up through the ranks.  She had a love that left her and she did her best to move on from that.  She made the best of her life and felt it was very full.  When her husband died she looked at things a little differently and embraced life a bit more.  Very well crafted with the angst of growing up, family duty and love.

A Place Called Freedom by Ken Follett

I really never tire of his books.  This takes place in the late 1700's and follows a woman that is fairly well off and a coal miner.  Their lives take interesting turns through Scotland, England and Virginia.  Follett's details with history and development of his characters makes it very hard to put his books down.  He has amazing talent and always leaves me wanting more.

Old Friend From Far Away by Natalie Goldberg

Subtitle: The Practice of Writing Memoir --  I have always enjoyed her books, ways of looking at things and really just breaking the writing down.  I am not saying that I am going to write memoir, but it did encourage you look at your life, ways to look deeper and different ways to look at your past.  Goldberg holds nothing back and can be quite raw, yet at the same time very encouraging.  For me she makes writing seem possible.  I know that I will be using this book as a reference and will go through it chapter by chapter and spread my wings of writing.

Secret Star by Nora Roberts

Book Three in Stars of Mithra -- The final installment of this series.  It followed the same formula of the other two.  A detective needs to solve this break in and another murder, murders of which seem to be stacking up.  Though, when he finds out that the person he thought was dead is not things get much more interesting.  In the end all works out and there is love in the air.  A very simple series to read if you just need to escape into a little fantasy for a while.

Narrow Margins by Marie Browne

Marie and her husband and family move onto a narrow boat in England and live and travel in the canals.  They did this out of necessity and really knew nothing.  It was a simple read that made you laugh out loud, shake your head and feel the pain of new and scary experiences.  It was not all fun and games, but they learned a lot and embraced the boat life.

Maine by J. Courtney Sullivan

I have had a day to mull this book over and I am still not sure how I feel about it.  The story takes place in a summer cottage on the coast of Maine.  The chapters are done by person and how they have or have not functioned in this very dysfunctional family.  Alice, the mother/grandmother has lived with a guilt that has not only tainted her life, but everyone she has been in contact with.  It was difficult to read when you saw the layers of selfishness, greed, martyrdom and raw confusion in all these peoples lives.  Personally I also thought the ending sucked, which really tainted my whole feeling about the book.

The Language of Threads by Gail Tsukiyama

Pei and Ji Shen flee from China to Hong Kong.  Through the silk work Pei has done she has connections there, a place to stay and someone to find her work.  They settle into things, but it is challenging and their past does haunt them.  The war comes and there is much suffering and loss, but they survive.  Pei does very well after the war with her own business and is able to reconnect with family.  This is a very simple description of a story filled with loss, pain, confusion and regret.  Tsukiyama writes with depth and color that brings you into such o foreign world and makes you feel more than just a sightseer.  This novel is a continuation of Pei's story, 'Women of the Silk', which is just as beautifully done.  A very well done piece of historical fiction

Karma Gone Bad by Jenny Feldon

Subtitle: How I Learned to Love Mangoes, Bollywood and Water Buffalo-- I really enjoyed this book.  Jenny's husband got a job in India and they were going to live there for two years.  She was looking forward to the adventure and the experiences she would have.  Things turned out to not be all they expected and she really struggled.  She was very whiny and had many a pity party.  It reached a point where her husband sent her back to the US.  Once home she had a hard time adjusting there too and realized she had to put a better foot forward.  She writes beautifully and I was drawn into all of her experiences.  At some level I feel I have been in her shoes and maybe that's why I liked this so much.  A very good memoir, something not to miss, in my opinion.