First Frost by Sarah Addison Allen

I had to Google my own blog to find out when I read Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen (link leads to my review). 2007! I remember finding the ARC on a cart at my former library, where they occasionally give away advance reader copies rather than throwing them away as many libraries do. I loved the cover, the characters, the relationships, the crazy enchanted apple tree. I was excited to find a new author whose storytelling swept me away and couldn't wait to find out what she'd come up with, next. I've loved every book I've read by Sarah, but Garden Spells has always held a special place in my heart. So, I was excited when I heard the news that she was writing a book that continued the story of the Waverley family.

In First Frost, Claire and Sydney are older, happily married; they both have daughters. The Waverleys are always uneasy as they wait for the first frost of the season, when their crazy apple tree will bloom. Claire has stopped catering as her candy business has grown. She doesn't want to sell her recipes but she's finding it difficult keeping up with the orders and is clearly not as happy as she was during her catering years. Sydney is worried about Bay's potential relationship with a boy from the wrong family. Bay is headstrong like the rest of the women in the family, trying to find her way without being outwardly rebellious. Evanelle's health is failing. There's a stranger whose appearance in town is unsettling and then threatening. And, Claire and Sydney puzzle over whether or not every Waverley woman has a gift.

I love Sarah Addison Allen's writing, in general, but there is definitely something extra special about the Waverleys, their unique gifts and that hilarious apple tree. I kept my copy of Garden Spells and I'm glad I bought a copy of First Frost. I know I'll want to revisit both, in the future.

I have a copy of the British version of First Frost because I prefer paperback. In the past, I've kept a list of books that I want to buy in paperback for trips to the UK, but I've recently taken to buying from Book Depository if a paperback is not yet available in the U.S. (and I'm feeling impatient). I like both of the covers - the frosty apple on the American cover and the heavily floral British version. But, a part of me does wish one or the other had matched the artwork to that of Garden Spells.

Highly recommended - Familiar characters with Allen's trademark magical touch and lovely storytelling make First Frost another keeper.

©2015 Nancy Horner. All rights reserved. If you are reading this post at a site other than Bookfoolery  or its RSS feed, you are reading a stolen feed. Email bookfoolery@gmail.com for written permission to reproduce text or photos.

The Ship of Brides by Jojo Moyes & an F2F Report

The Ship of Brides by Jojo Moyes
Copyright 2005
Hodder & Stoughton - Historical Fiction (Post WWII)
482 pages

'Do you fancy going to one of these lectures?' Jean shouted, chewing gum as they made their way past the projection room. 'There's one on the strains of marrying a foreigner, next week.' Her voice, as it had all morning, carried over the noisy vibrations of the engines and the repeated piped calls, summoning Petty Officer Gardner or special sea dutymen to the commander's office.

Avice pretended not to hear her.

'I quite fancy the one on common difficulties in the first year,' Jean went on. 'Except our first year has been dead easy so far. He wasn't even there.'

--from The Ship of Brides, p. 91

But it was really the ship she loved: the size of it, like a leviathan, surely too huge to have been created by mere men, propelled by an epic strength through the roughest seas. She loved the scars, the streaks of rust that, despite years of painting and repainting, were visible on her skin, testament to the time she had spent at sea. Frances loved the infinite space visible all around her, the sense of boundless, irrevocable movement west. She loved the sense of possibility that the ship bestowed on her. The nautical miles and unfathomable fathoms that it opened up between her and her past as it glided through the water.

--from The Ship of Brides, p. 236

I wrote a little about The Ship of Brides when I finished reading and that was apparently enough to convince at least a few people to read the book. Maybe I should stick to two-line reviews? Nah.

The Ship of Brides is is a story based on an actual event. After WWII ended, 600 Australian WWII brides took a 6-week journey on an aircraft carrier to Great Britain to meet their husbands and begin their new lives. The story focuses on a set of brides who ended up living as roommates in the aircraft carrier, although you also get a broader perspective of the entire ship's population, as well as an understanding of the captain's frustrations and the thoughts of a marine whose wife found new love and desires a divorce from him so she can remarry and take the children along to the United States.

I could honestly go on all day about how wonderful this book was. The character development, the situations, the dialogue -- both that of the men and women on board -- the many interactions, friendships and even horrors were all utterly believable. There are endings both good and bad for brides on the ship, some of whom receive telegrams saying they're no longer wanted. The captain has his own challenges in a festering wound that he can't have treated because the replacement doctor is useless. He also must deal with the letdown of being forced into retirement.

What I loved most was the complete satisfaction felt upon the book's ending, which is utterly romantic for several of the characters, heartbreaking for others. The ending is absolutely perfect.

The bottom line:

The Ship of Brides by Jojo Moyes is definitely going to end up one of my favorite reads in 2010. I was swept away; I laughed, I cried. Lovely, believable writing and deft characterization with a tremendous amount of both internal and external conflict make The Ship of Brides a perfect read, in my humble opinion.

And, now the F2F report!

Many, many people asked me to share what my first experience with my new Face-to-Face book group was like. First, I should tell you the group read two books: Loving Frank by Nancy Horan and The Women by T. C. Boyle. I managed to check out Loving Frank from my library but didn't locate a copy of The Women. Both are about Frank Lloyd Wright's passion for women and his affairs, although Loving Frank focuses on Mamah, whom many consider the love of his life.

I didn't finish reading Loving Frank and actually had to return it to the library because there was a hold on it, but I knew about the shocking ending (which I won't spoil for those who haven't read it) and the members of the group described a portion as quite graphic and violent, so I'm perfectly happy with not having completed the reading of the book. Our leader encourages members to attend, whether or not they've managed to read a word.

So, what was the group like? They were a hoot! I have never sat with a group of women (and one man -- another fellow was unable to come, so it's not an all-female group) who are so passionate about books. They are noisy and fun, completely willing to accept each other's opinions, diverse as they are. In fact, they get so excited that they just holler right over each other. One woman said she thought Wright was, quite simply, "an S.O.B." and couldn't be convinced to view him otherwise. Almost all had viewed some of Wright's homes and one woman said, "He's gone down a notch in my mind. It'll be hard to look at his homes from the same perspective." Our fearless leader said, "I admire him," and sat quietly smiling.

What a blast!! And, even more fascinating . . . the home in which we met was designed by "a contemporary of Frank Lloyd Wright," and a man who was associated with Wright in some capacity. I believe the builder studied under Wright, but don't quote me on that. It was designed with the same long, low perspective -- a flat roof, sprawling rooms with high ceilings, the wondrous sense of spaces opening into spaces, and lots of windows placed to let in as much light as possible. The outdoor-indoor concept was evident and the sound of water bubbling in the background was soothing, although one member said, "It makes me want to pee."

Readers, your mouths would have dropped at the sight of the gorgeous floor-to-ceiling built-in shelves in more than one room. If I can talk our leader into letting me take a few photos, in the future, I will. But not till I've been around the group a while and gotten to know everyone. I'm really looking forward to our next meeting, which I'm told will be a relaxed Christmas affair at fireside with eggnog and "spiked and unspiked punch". Woot!

Just walked in, this week:

• The Dressmaker by Posie Graeme Evans from Atria Books
• The Pursuit of Happiness by Douglas Kennedy, also from Atria and
• A Widow's Story by Joyce Carol Oates from Ecco

In-Out Report:

-9 books donated

-7 books swapped

+3 books from publishers

+2 books from the library sale

Net: -11 books

My goal is to get rid of 10 books for every 1 that comes in. It's going to take a lot more work to get to that point, but I currently have quite an interesting line of stacks to sort through, in my hallway. Wish me strength.

Up next will be my review of Desiree by Annemarie Selinko and I'll attempt to pre-post some reviews before I take off a few days for Thanksgiving holiday. Kiddo is home!! So happy to have him around for a week!

Question:

Would you like to read future updates about my F2F group?

©2010 Nancy Horner. All rights reserved. If you are reading this post at a site other than Bookfoolery and Babble, you are reading a stolen feed. Email bookfoolery@gmail.com for written permission to reproduce text or photos.