January 2009

New and Recommended Fiction

People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks Now Available in Paperback: Hanna Heath, an Australian rare-book expert, is offered the job of a lifetime: analysis and conservation of the famed Sarajevo Haggadah. Priceless and beautiful, the book is one of the earliest Jewish volumes ever to be illuminated with images. When Hanna discovers a series of tiny artifacts in its ancient binding, she begins to unlock the book's mysteries. Inspired by a true story, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Geraldine Brooks takes the reader on a journey of a rare illuminated manuscript through centuries of exile and war. Click Here for the reading group guide.

Lark & Termite by Jayne Anne Phillips From admired writer Jayne Anne Phillips comes a rich, wonderfully alive novel. Lark & Termite is set during the 1950s in West Virginia and Korea. It is a story of the power of loss and love, the echoing ramifications of war, family secrets, dreams and ghosts, and the unseen, almost magical bonds that unite and sustain us. Told with deep feeling, the novel invites us to enter into the hearts and thoughts of the leading characters. Click Here for the reading group guide.

The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy Compared favorably to the works of Faulkner and Dickens, Arundhati Roy's debut novel is a modern classic that has been read and loved worldwide. Equal parts powerful family saga, forbidden love story, and piercing political drama, it is the story of an affluent Indian family forever changed by one fateful day in 1969. The God of Small Things is an award-winning landmark that started for its author an esteemed career of fiction and political commentary that continues unabated. Click Here for the reading group guide.

The Ladies' Lending Library by Janice Kulyk Keefer It is August of 1963. The women of the Kalyna Beach cottage community gather for gin and gossip, trading the current racy bestsellers among themselves as they seek a brief escape from the predictable rhythms of children and chores. But dramatic change is coming this summer as innocence falters and the desire for change reaches a boiling point, threatening to disrupt the warm, sweet, heady days and the lives of parents and children, family and friends, forever. Click Here for the reading group guide.

Two Rivers by T. Greenwood In Two Rivers, Vermont, Harper Montgomery is living a life overshadowed by grief and guilt. Since the death of his wife 12 years earlier, Harper has narrowed his world to working at the local railroad and raising his daughter the best way he knows how. Still wracked with sorrow over the loss of his life-long love and plagued by his role in a brutal, long-ago crime, he wants only to make amends for his past mistakes. Then one fall day, Harper finds an unexpected chance at atonement. Click Here for the reading group guide. Click here to see our One to Watch feature for T. Greenwood and Two Rivers on Bookreporter.com.

The Lost Recipe for Happiness by Barbara O'Neal It's the opportunity Elena Alvarez has been waiting for --- the challenge of running her own kitchen in a world-class restaurant. Haunted by an accident of which she was the lone survivor, Elena knows better than anyone how to survive the odds. With her faithful dog, Alvin, and her grandmother's recipes, Elena arrives in Colorado to find a restaurant in as desperate need of a fresh start as she is --- and a man whose passionate approach to food and life rivals her own. Click Here for the reading group guide.

For Christian Readers

• New Christian Guides:
• All I Need is Jesus and a Good Pair of Jeans: The Tired Supergirl's Search for Grace by Susanna Foth Aughtmon
• The Edge of Light: At Home in Beldon Grove, Book 1 by Ann Shorey
• Fireflies in December by Jennifer Erin Valent
• Loving Cee Cee Johnson by Linda Leigh Hargrove
• No Place for a Lady: Heart of the West Series, Book 1 by Maggie Brendan
• Paper Roses: Texas Dreams Trilogy, Book 1 by Amanda Cabot
• Prayer Power: 30 Days to a Stronger Connection with God by Peter Lundell

Registered Book Club Promotion

For January we have two very special opportunities for Registered Book Groups. Our featured titles this month are Matrimony by Joshua Henkin and Still Alice by Lisa Genova. Groups who have registered with us by Wednesday, January 14th have the chance to win author chats and/or free books. If your group is not registered, click here to register.

Click here for details.


New Guides

• All I Need is Jesus and a Good Pair of Jeans: The Tired Supergirl's Search for Grace by Susanna Foth Aughtmon
• The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein
• The Break-Up Diet: A Memoir by Annette Fix
• The Edge of Light: At Home in Beldon Grove, Book 1 by Ann Shorey
• Finding Iris Chang: Friendship, Ambition, and the Loss of an Extraordinary Mind by Paula Kamen
• Fireflies in December by Jennifer Erin Valent
• Firmin by Sam Savage
• The Flower of Grass by James E. Robinson
• The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy
• Gods Behaving Badly by Marie Phillips
• Going to See the Elephant by Rodes Fishburne
• Hazardous Duty: Squeaky Clean Mysteries, Book 1 by Christy Barritt
• Houston, We Have a Problema by Gwendolyn Zepeda
• How Evan Broke His Head and Other Secrets by Garth Stein
• An Incomplete Revenge: A Maisie Dobbs Novel by Jacqueline Winspear
• Lost and Found by Carolyn Parkhurst
• The Ladies' Lending Library by Janice Kulyk Keefer
• Lark & Termite by Jayne Anne Phillips
• Lima Nights by Marie Arana
• The Lost Recipe for Happiness by Barbara O'Neal
• Love and Other Natural Disasters by Holly Shumas
• Loving Cee Cee Johnson by Linda Leigh Hargrove
• No Place for a Lady: Heart of the West Series, Book 1 by Maggie Brendan
• Paper Roses: Texas Dreams Trilogy, Book 1 by Amanda Cabot
• People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks
• Prayer Power: 30 Days to a Stronger Connection with God by Peter Lundell
• The Pre-Nup by Beth Kendrick
• See You in a Hundred Years: Discover One Young Family's Search for a Simpler Life...Four Seasons of Living in the Year 1900 by Logan Ward
• Still Alice by Lisa Genova
• Suspicious Minds: Squeaky Clean Series, Book 2 by Christy Barritt
• The Third Chapter: Passion, Risk, and Adventure in the 25 Years After 50 by Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot
• This One is Mine by Maria Semple
• Two Rivers by T. Greenwood
• What I Was by Meg Rosoff
• When Southern Girls Grow Old: Three Homecomings by Elizabeth Doak Sherman
• White Bird Black Bird by Val Wake

Oprah's Book Club Selection
The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski


This month's prize:
Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah


Get a Book Club Makeover
Whether your book club is just a few months old or has been around for a while, you might be in need of a Book Club Makeover from ReadingGroupGuides.com. After reading your emails --- and talking to book clubs across the country --- we see that book groups often can fall into a routine and need a bit of livening up. It's ReadingGroupGuides.com to the rescue! We'll select groups each month for makeovers, review the problems, and make suggestions. Interested in a Book Club Makeover for your group? Click here for details.

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