Most recently, I read Eileen Rendahl's book Do Me, Do My Roots.  

After 2:00 A.M. one morning, thirty-two- year-old Emily Kinney, was awakened by a phone call from her mother, Jessica.  Emily found out her father, Gordon, had a heart attack.  Emily immediately drove to St. E's Hospital where she met up with her mother and two older sisters, Leah and Claudia.  Going to St. E's made Emily very uncomfortable.  Two years prior, her husband Vince died from a brain tumor at the same hospital.

The sisters were at Leah's house one night dying their hair.  They talked about their father's heart attack.  Emily changed the subject when she told her sisters she would like to start dating again.

Not too long into the book, the character of Jake was introduced.  Jake, was Vinces' best friend since elementary school.  Before Vinces' death, Jake made a promise to him that he would help Emily take care of her young daughter, Abby.  Throughout the book, I felt Jake had an attraction to Emily.  My hope was they would end up together.

Author Eileen Rendahl put a little of herself into the character of Emily.  Just like Emily, Rendahl lost her husband to a brain tumor.  Plus, she's the youngest of three sisters.  By adding these two real life links to the story, Rendahl made Emily feel realistic.  Enjoyable reading!

 To start off my summer of reading season, I decided to write a book review of  Nicholas Sparks' novel, Nights In Rodanthe.

Sixty-year-old Rocky Mount, North Carolina resident Adrienne Willis comforted her  thirty-one-year-old daughter, Amanda, who lost her husband, Brent to testicular cancer.  After months of seeing  Amanda suffer such sorrow, Adrienne went to her house.  She told Amanda  about a man named Paul Flanner...

Sparks' story flashed back to the winter of 1988.  At the time Adrienne was forty-five and the divorced mother of three teenagers.  Her friend, Jean, owned a bed and breakfast Inn in Rodanthe, North Carolina.  Jean asked Adrienne to watch over the Inn for a weekend while she attended a wedding.  While Adrienne was there, fify-four-year-old former doctor Paul Flanner checked in.  A Nor'Easter rolled into town that weekend, as Adrienne and Paul got to know each other well.  Will their love last?

Sparks' writing is deep.  He shows true emotions not only for the story itself but for the characters as well. This is the type of book I would read at the beach.

September 4th 1990 forever changed the lives of Brooke and Jean Ellison and those close to them in their book Miracles Happen. 

Written in the alternating voices of both Jean and Brooke, they talk about what that morning was like in the Ellison household in Stony Brook, New York. Brookes' older sister, Kysten, and younger brother, Reed, were still asleep.  Their mother, Jean, started her first day of teaching Special Education students.  Edward Ellison, a Social Security worker, took the day off from work so he could  see his wife Jean and middle daughter, Brooke, start their first days of work and school.  Brooke, was excited to enter the seventh grade at Murphy Junior High School.  It was orientation day for the seventh graders.  Before Jean left for work, she and Edward went over Brooke's bus schedule.  She was supposed to be picked up at 9:00 A.M. and dropped off at 1:00 P.M. Edward, was supposed to meet her at the bus stop.

After watching both Jean and Brooke leave, Edward took Reed who was now up to get a haircut from a barbershop.  After leaving the store, they returned home.  By this time Kysten was up.  Edward and Kysten, waited for Brooke  to come home.  When Brookes' bus came, she didn't get off.  A neighbor of theirs, Pearl, drove up to talk to Edward.  A  friend of Brookes' came running up the street screaming that Brooke was hit by a car on Nicolls Road.  Edward and Kysten, raced to the scene in Pearl's car.  On Nicolls Road, Edward didn't see anything out of the ordinary until he looked up the road.  What he saw next was a parents worst nightmare: police cars, an ambulance, a smashed up car, and Brooke's limp body lying in the road.  She was taken to Stony Brook University Hospital. Jean, got her life changing call at work.  A co-worker drove her to the hospital.  Brooke was in a coma.  No one knew whether she would live or die.  Once the doctors knew the extent of Brooke's injuries, they told the Ellison's the grim news.  If Brooke lived she would be paralyzed from the neck down without the use of her arms and legs.  She would be in a wheelchair and on a respirator the rest of her life.

Once Brooke came out of the coma, she was moved to a rehabilitation hospital in New Jersey.  Throughout her seven month stay, Jean, stayed with her.  Edward, along with the help of his mother, raised Kysten, and Reed on Long Island.  He went back to work.  Brooke and Jean went onto write how tough it was to be seperated from family and friends.  Through them, I felt their pain.  Even though Jean was taking care of Brooke, she desperately wanted to be with her husband and children.  She really wanted to go back to teaching. So Brooke would not fall behind her seventh grade class, Jean got  the requirements Brooke needed such as textbooks, to have her study while she was still in rehabilitation.

In May of 1991, Brooke finally came home.  The Ellison house was renovated to make it wheelchair accessible.  That summer Jean and Edward went to a CSE meeting to discuss Brooke's physical handicap.  The Ellison's wanted the school district to hire a nurse for Brooke, since they couldn't afford one themselves when she returned to school.  They were turned down.  The school district thought it would cost too much money.  Jean took over the nursing job.  In September of 1991, Brooke, joined her eightth grade classmates at Murphy Junior High School.

Brooke accepted her physical handicap.  Most of her friends, classmates, and teachers accepted her too.  Other people had a hard time.

Throughout junior high and high school, Brooke got good grades.  She applied to Harvard University and was accepted.  A couple of years later, she graduated with a degree.

Miracles Happen is the inspiring true story that tests the bonds of a mother/daughter relationship.  Even though Brooke can't do the things we take for granted like brushing her teeth or going for a walk, she has accomplished a lot with her life by going to college.  This is recommended reading for anyone who needs inspiration in their lives.

 Mother's Day is just around the corner.  To coincide with Mom's special day, I decided to write a book review of Claire Cook's Multiple Choice.

Forty-something-year-old March Monroe lived in the Boston area along with her husband, Jeff, their eighteen-year-old daughter, Olivia, and their fourteen-year-old son, Jackson.  March, was a directionality coach who helped people organize their lives.  She decided to go back to college at Olde Colony Community College. While attending college, she decided  to intern at WQBM radio in the kitchen department. At the first meeting, she ran into her daughter, Olivia, who was a freshman at Boston University.  When a disc jockey left WQBM, March and Olivia were asked to host their own show by their boss, David Callahan.  They named their show, I'm Rubber, You're Glue where people can call and talk about whatever is on their minds.

After I first picked up Multiple Choice, I thought it would be a story about a mother/daughter bonding relationship, attending the same college, and graduating together.  This was a totally different story, from what I expected.

Cook's story was kind of dull-witted.  This wasn't her best work.

 Los Angeles, California resident, Dora’s (she didn’t have a last name) life was falling apart.  She had no career.  Dora, was separated from her second husband, Palmer.  Unlike most women who deal with depression by eating, Dora channeled hers in a different way.  She went on a three day reading binge in her apartment.  Dora, used to do this as a young child.  Dora and her older sister, Virginia, always heard their parents fight over their mother being an alcoholic.  Virginia would give them the silent treatment.  Dora, on the other hand, would binge read. This helped her escape from the real world.

After the third day of keeping herself captive in her own apartment, Dora, shopped at a small independent neighborhood bookstore, McKenzie’s.  There she met an employee named Fred.  They liked each other and started dating.  Life was now different for Dora.

Parts of this book were sad, while other parts had me laughing.  Both Mack and Kaufman, mixed in the sadness and laughter really well when they were writing this novel.

The character of Dora was very smart for not following in her mother’s footsteps.  There should be more people like her.

America watched in horror on September 11th 2001, as two airplanes smashed into the World Trade Center.  Kristen Breitweiser published her book, Wake-Up Call The Political Education Of A 9/11 Widow.

Life was good for Kristen Breitweiser.  She had a handsome husband, Ronald 'Ron.' They had a beautiful two year old daughter, Caroline, a Golden Retriever, Sam, and a nice house in New Jersey.  Kristen's world was forever shattered on 9/11.  She was getting ready to take Caroline to her speech therapist.  Ron called Kristen from his office at Fiduciary Trust from the 94th floor of the south tower of the World Trade Center.  He told her to put on the television, an explosion happened at the north tower.  Ron told  Kristen he was ok and his building wasn't hit.  After saying a few other things, Ron ended the conversation by saying, 'I love you.'  That was the very last time Kristen heard from Ron.

After the 9/11 attacks, Kristen, and a few other widows went to Washington, D.C.  to confront the government and to get a 9/11  investigation going. Before the horrible attacks, the government knew this was going to happen.  They failed to stop it.

Instead of remaining quiet about her feelings, Kristen rightfully took her anger out on the government so another terrorist attack doesn't  happen again.  9/11 could have been prevented.  The book was very informative.  This is truly someone fighting for a safer America.

Some extra marital affairs wreck marriages.  Elizabeth Berg explored this subject in Say When.

Frank and Ellen Griffin were married for ten years.  They lived in Chicago and had a beautiful eight-year-old daughter, Zoe.  Frank, loved his wife deeply.  Ellen, had an affair with a younger man, Peter.  Frank was so distraught. After admitting to the affair, Ellen asked Frank to move out of their house.  Frank would not budge.  They lived together leading seperate lives.

Throughout the book, I felt sorry for the character of Frank.  He seemed so lost and lonely.

Berg, better known for writing about womens issues took on a different challenge of writing this story from a man's point of view.  Very few female writers could do this.  One thing is that some real life married people are in the same situation like Frank and Ellen.  Praise goes to Berg for writing about how one spouses affair could affect the other spouse.

Meet the Knapp family from New Haven, Connecticut in Ann Beattie's book, Falling In Place.  John Knapp Sr., and his wife, Louise, had three children:  Mary, age fifteen and in love with singer Peter Frampton, obese ten-year-old John Joel, and five-year-old Brandt.

To the outside world the Knapps seemed like the picture perfect family.  They were far from it. The story was set in the early summer.  Mary, flunked high school English.  She had to attend summer school.  Aside from being overweight, John Joel, had a violent streak.  During the week, John Sr., lived in New York because of his job.  He had a young mistress, Nina, who lived in New York City.  On the weekends John Sr.,  returned home to his family.  Louise, had no idea an affair was going on.

The story was way too flawed.  It seemed like Beattie rushed to write this book really fast in order to full fill her book contract obligations. Falling In Place, will have no place on my bookshelf.

Most recently, I read Lisa Beamer’s and co-author Ken Abraham’s book ‘Let’s Roll! Ordinary People, Extraordinary Courage.’

The Beamers lived in Cranbury, New Jersey with their two sons David and Drew.  Lisa’s husband, Todd, worked for Oracle Software Corporation.  He traveled a lot.  At the time, Lisa was five months pregnant with their third child.

On the morning of September 11^th 2001, Lisa, was about to go grocery shopping when the phone rang.  A friend called and told her to put on the television.  Lisa, watched in horror as a second airplane smashed into The World Trade Center.  A half an hour later, another airplane hit the Pentagon. A fourth airplane, United Airlines Flight 93, crashed in Shanksville, Pennslyvania.  Lisa, had a sinking feeling Todd was on board that flight.  Later it was revealed the passengers rushed the hijackers.  Todd’s voice could be heard on a recording.  He said, “’Let’s Roll!’”

Written in her own words, Lisa, recalled Todd’s life.  He grew up in a close knit religious family.  He was very smart, had a lot of friends, and was very athletic.

Todd and Lisa, met at Wheaton College in Chicago.   They had so much in common, including their love for Christian religion.  Three years after dating, they were married.

In the face of tragedy, Lisa was an inspiration to me.  She would be an inspiration to you too if you read her book.

Most people have that one special relative they are close to whether it's an aunt, uncle, or in some cases a grandma.

Before I started to read James Patterson's novel, Sam's Letters To Jennifer, I thought it was going to be the usual dense story about a man writing love letters to his wife or girlfriend.  I ended up being wrong.

Chicago Tribune columnist Jennifer (no last name was given), left her Chicago apartment after receiving a devastating phone call that would forever change her life from family friend and minister, John Farley.  Her grandma Samantha 'Sam' Standford, fell and was in a coma at Lakeland Medical Center in Wisconsin. Once she arrived at the hospital, Jennifer met with Farley, who gave her the keys to her grandma's house.  At the house, Jennifer, discovered letters of hope and happiness in her old bedroom from Samantha directed at her.  While Jennifer stayed at the house, she ran into her old childhood friend Brendan Keller, who held the keys to her happiness.

One of the things I look for in an author, is to make sure their stories don't drag on.  Patterson, follows that method by keeping the chapters short which keeps his readers interested.  Sam's Letters To Jennifer,was way better than Suzanne's Diary For Nicholas. Aside from his writing mystery novels, I would like to see more fictional novels from Patterson.  This would be wonderful for his career.

James Patterson, best known for his mystery novels such as Kiss The Girls and Along Came A Spider, wrote a different kind of novel exposing the softer side of himself titled, Suzanne’s Diary For Nicholas.

Katie Wilkinson, was an editor at a New York City publishing house.  She and Matthew Harrison, met while she was editing his book of poems.  They started dating and fell in love.  Matthew, unexpectedly broke up with Katie.  He sent her a package containing his deceased wife, Suzanne’s diary she kept for their baby son, Nicholas.  What Katie read was uplifting, yet very sad diary entries.

The characters Patterson created each faced grief, which made them believable and respectable.  A while back, I read that Suzanne’s Diary For Nicholas, was being made into a movie.  I hope this is true.

Long time rock journalist Lonn Friend, published his memoir Life On Planet Rock.

Friend, got his start writing album reviews for Larry Flynt's Chic magazine. Friends' boss and personal friend, Althea Flynt, got him an assignment to write a story about heavy metal music in her husband's Hustler magazine.  In 1987 at age 33 Althea died from AIDS.  One week after her funeral, Friend, went to the offices of RIP magazine (another Larry Flynt publication) for a job interview.  He got the job as an editor.

RIP, was one of the top heavy metal magazines that set the world on fire in 1987.  Things were going great in Friend's personal life.  He had a beautiful wife, Joyce, a darling daughter, Megan, and a nice house.

To get really great stories, Friend had to tour across the world with bands like Metallica, Motley Crue, and Guns N'Roses. Being away from home a lot, put a strain on his marriage.

Due to the decline of heavy metal music, RIP closed its doors in 1994.  Friend, was hired by Clive Davis of Arista Records as a talent scout.  Every band Friend thought had talent, turned out to be a flop.  The Arista job didn't last.

Friend wrote Life On Planet Rock, with honesty.  He wrote it from both sides of the fence.  He had both jobs only some of us dream about.

Before I go to buy a book, I usually read the first few pages to see whether or not I would be interested in reading it.  Chuck Palahniuck's Diary, kept my interest.

Forty-one year old Waytansea Hotel waitress, Misty Wilmot, lived with her husband, Peter, and their twelve year old daughter, Tabbi, on Waytansea Island.  Peter, a contractor, was left in a coma after attempting suicide.  Peters' mother, Grace, urged Misty, to go back to her love of painting and keep a coma diary for each day he was in a coma.

Palahniuck's writing was mysterious with an edge.  Through him, I felt the character of Misty's anger in her diary entries directed at her husband for attempting suicide.  Palahniuck, should be a bestselling author.

The entire world watched on television the horrific events unfolding on September 11th, 2001.  United Airlines Flight 93 crashed in Shanksville, Pennslyvania.  Lyz Glicks' husband, Jeremy, was on that doomed flight.

Glick, along with co-author Dan Zegart, wrote a book about her husband's life titled Your Father's Voice. She wrote stories about Jeremy in the form of letters, so her daughter Emerson, would someday get to know her father.

Glick, started off the book the day after 9/11.  She stayed at her parents house in Upstate, New York with her 3 month old  daughter, Emerson.  The day before on America's darkest day, Jeremy, called to tell her  his airplane  had been hijacked.  He and the other passengers rushed the hijackers.

The thing I liked about this book was how Glick kept flashing back between the past and present, like when she and Jeremy first met in Biology class in ninth grade to her life without him after 9/11. 

Howard Hunt's book Young Men On Fire, took me back to a time when life was innocent and free.  A time when I thought America was safe from acts of terrorism.  Hunt's book took place in Manhattan, New York City four days before the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center.

On September 7th, 2001 thirty-six year old Jim Troxler traveled by airplane from Los Angeles, California to New York City to meet up with his younger brother, Martin.  Jim and Martin, were going to drive down to Florida to visit their dying father, Alan.  Little did Jim know, Martin and his friends, Greg "C.C." Baxter, and Big Guy had a wild night out on the town planned for him.

Hours after bar hopping, drinking, and doing drugs, the guys met women at a nightclub UZI.  After leaving the nightclub, they all took a cruise on a boat across New York City.  This is my favorite scene.  It captured the atmosphere of the New York City nightlife before America's darkest day.

Hunt characters were intelligent young men who let their hair down by partying.  He should write a squeal to Young Men On Fire,this time dealing with the events of 9/11.  I want to see more work from this author.

For some of us, we think about our first true loves.  Alan Lightman, focuses on that subject in his book, Reunion.

A fifty-something man, Charles, (none of the characters had last names) went back to his thirty year college reunion.  While visiting his old college, he relived one memory near and dear to his heart: at age twenty-two, Charles, had an affair with a beautiful girl, Juliana, a New York City Ballet dancer.

Lightman, shows deep true compassion for his characters and the story itself.

While browsing through the bargain book section of my local bookstore, I purchased Good Hair by Benilde Little.

New Jersey newspaper journalist Alice Andrews lived in Manhattan.  She visited her friend, Cheryl, who lived in Atlanta, Georgia.  On an airplane back to New York, Alice met Dr. Jack Russworm.  Shortly after meeting, they began dating.

Little’s writing was straight forward and to the point.  The characters she created were a little flawed, which made them seem like real life human beings.  This is good for a first time author.

This is definitely a book that didn’t belong on a bargain bookshelf.

For most humans, dogs bring joy to our lives.  They are there for us through the good times and bad.  Dogs love their masters unconditionally. 

Newspaper columnist John Grogan, wrote a novel about his beloved dog titled Marley & Me.

John and his wife, Jenny, bought their yellow Laborador Retriever they named Marley from a breeder.  From the moment they took Marley home, he was an instant terror.  He ripped through screen doors and failed dog obedience school.  Marley, was there with them through tough times as well as good times.

Some of the stories Grogan wrote about his dog, had me laughing.  Other stories touched my heart.

Go out to your local bookstore to purchase Marley & Me.  Your hard earned money will be well spent.

Tony Parsons' Man And Wife started where his last book Man And Boy left off.

Both Man And Boy and Man And Wife took place in London.  In the first book, Harry Silver, cheated on his wife Gina.  They ended up divorced and shared custody of their son, Patrick.  Harry, started dating Cyd.

Now, in the second book Man And Wife Harry And Cyd get married.  Told in the voice of Harry, you get a sense of what it's like to blend two families together.  Cyd, had an eight year old daughter, Peggy, from a previous marriage.

Parsons' flawlessly wrote this book from a man's point of view.  He also pointed out a very interesting question:  Can a marriage work the second time around?

People could be driven to commit suicide.  Jan Goldstein, focuses on this touchy subject in his novel All That Matters.

Life couldn’t get much worse than it was for twenty-three year old Jennifer Stempler. Her Mom, Lili, was killed by a drunk driver five years earlier. Her film producer father, Barry Stempler, never made the time to spend with her.  Feeling lonely with no one to turn to Jennifer attempted suicide in Venice Beach, California. Some people found her on the beach.  Upon hearing the news, her grandma Gabby Zuckerman (Lili’s Mom) flew out from New York.  She took Jennifer back home to care for her.  What followed next was a story filled with hope and inspiration.

Goldstein’s writing amazed me.  He seemed to understand the women characters.  Not many male authors could write from a woman’s standpoint.  This is one author not to be missed out on.

Valentine's Day, is just a few days away.  To get you into the holiday mood, I decided to review Jennifer Crusie's novel Anyone But You.

Forty year old divorcee, Nina Askew, moved into an apartment building.  After a month of living there, she adopted a male Basset Hound mix she named Fred from an animal shelter. Nina, taught Fred how to use her building's fire escape through a window to use the bathroom.  When Nina fell asleep, Fred left through an open window.  He walked down a few flights of stairs to thirty year old emergency room doctor Alex Moore's apartment.  On Fred's collar ID tag he saw Nina's apartment number and brought Fred back to her apartment.

Cursie's characters were flawless as well as her writing.  She had me laughing in all the right parts of this novel.

Terrible tragedies can happen in life.  Dani Shapiro and her family faced such a tragedy, as she recalled in her memoir Slow Motion.

Twenty-three year old New Jersey native, college dropout , and actress Dani Shapiro was vacationing at a California health spa when she received a  phone call that would forever alter her life.  Shapiros’ parents, Paul and Irene, were critically injured in a car accident.  Upon hearing the horrible news, Shapiro, hopped onto the next airplane home to be with her family.

Throughout the book, Shapiro wrote about being brought up in a strict Orthodox Jewish family, her cocaine and alcohol use.  What interested me most about Dani’s story, was reading about her affair with her married boyfriend, Lenny Klein.  They met at Sarah Lawrence college.  Dani, was a roommate of Lennys’ stepdaughter, Jessica.

Another thing I liked about Shapiro’s book, was how she pieced together the events after her parents car accident.  This made her look at life differently.  Shapiro’s book was  like reading a fictional novel.

Recently, I read Anna Quindlen's Blessings.

Ex-convict Charles 'Skip' Cuddy was paroled from prison after serving time for robbery.  He lived and worked as a caretaker at Lydia Blessing's estate.  One morning, Charles, woke up to find a baby girl on Mrs. Blessing's driveway in a box.  She was later named Faith.  Charles and Mrs. Blessing kept Faith a secret for a few months.

To be really honest, I thought the story was ok.  In real life, a baby left on a driveway would have to be reported to the police immediately.  However, I do have to give credit to Quindlen for trying to prove that some convicts do change.  That is not always the case.

The day I bought Tiffanie Debartolo's strangely titled book 'How To Kill A Rockstar,' I thought to myself  'This is one book I should immediately read.'

Twenty-six year old Ohio music journalist Eliza Caelum's life went nowhere.  Her ex-boyfriend, Adam, dumped her for a woman he met at StarBucks.  Plus, her job at the Plain Dealer magazine stunk. Eliza's luck changed when she interviewed her favorite musician, Doug Blackman.  Three months after the Blackman interview, Eliza, moved to Manhattan New York City to take a job with Sonica, a monthly music magazine.  Elizas' older brother, Michael, a guitarist for the struggling rock band, Bananafish, lived there with his wife, Vera.  They helped Eliza out by giving up their old two bedroom apartment for her to share  with Bananafish lead singer, Paul Hudson.  At first, Eliza, didn't like Paul because of his neurotic behavior.  Shortly after they got to know each other, Paul and Eliza fell in love.  I personally didn't like Paul.  The character of Paul Hudson seemed to me like an arrogant guy who only thought of himself (like most rockstars).

With the help from Eliza, Bananafish were mentioned in a few newspapers and magazines.  While their fan  base grew, they were signed to a record deal.  They were headed for rock n' roll stardom.

Aside from Debartolo writing 'How To Kill A Rockstar' from the heart, the research she did on this book was superb.  Debartolo, seemed to know the music industry like the back of her hand.  This is one writer with the knowledge for music.

Usually, I write book reviews of books I enjoyed reading.  Sometimes, while I  write a book review, I end up not liking the storyline.

Reading Jenny McPhee's book, The Center Of Things made me want to fall asleep.  Marie Brown, was a New York City journalist who wrote for the tabloid the Gotham City Star.  Marie, started to write an obitaury about actress Nora Mars who was in a coma.  Instead, it turned  into a scandalous story.

The worst part was when Marie and her friend, Marco, met in a library.  They would always talk about the physics of life science.  This dragged on way too much throughout the book.

The characters were too flawed, which made the story even less interesting.  Now, I could see why this book was on the bargain bookshelf at my local bookstore.  I  should have lef it there.