Books, books and more books.

So what have you been reading lately? Almost everyone I know has read, or is currently reading "The Book of Negroes" by Lawrence Hill. Have you read it? I've tried to read it twice but just couldn't get into it. Other people have said the loved it. I usually enjoy historical fiction, but...

I started reading "Any Known Blood" also by Lawrence Hill. I'm almost finished it and I'm really enjoying it. This one takes place in modern day and follows a 38 year old bi-racial man who tries to trace his family heritage back and forth from the US to Canada via the underground railway and back again. It's another long novel though, so be warned it will take you awhile to read it.

The kids and I went to the library the other day and I found the great book called "The Bite of the Mango". Have you heard about this? I read a review of it a few months ago and I kept meaning to request it from the library. It's the true story of Mariatu who was growing up in Sierra Leone quite happily until the age of 12 when armed rebels attached and brutally cut off both her hands so she would go the president and show him what happens to people who vote for his party. I was a little skeptical that I could read this true life account but it's fascinating. She writes quite simply and doesn't dwell on the savagery of the attack but more about her journey and her ability to recover from the event. It's a true story about what it is like to be child victim of war and the ability to transform her life. Mariatu is now a UNICEF Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict.

I also picked up a Carol Shields book called "A Celibate Season" that looks good. I read her "Stone Diaries" a few years ago and enjoyed it, so hopefully this will be good too. This one's about a married couple who are faced with a 10 month separation and this is their letters to each other over that period of time.

Did you ever read "Songs in Ordinary Time" by Mary McGarry Morris? I think it was one of Oprah's book club selections. The first line is "The murder is seldom discussed without someone recalling that warm summer autumn night years before when Martha Hogan was only seventeen, and Bob Hobart, a classmate, offered her a ride home from the library." I'm hooked. Can't wait to read it.

And in big anticipation of my oven being back "on line", I picked up Rachel Ray's Big Orange Book". By this time of year I am so very tired of the usual summer type foods and looking for inspiration for some new recipies that are easy but yummy. So I should probably look through this book before I head to Costco this weekend. Hmmm, maybe I'll do that while I eat my lunch today.

Let me know if you've read any of these books, and any suggestions you have for my next trip to the library.