Hanna's Daughters~

I thought a little tidbit about the author might be interesting as we begin our journey through Hannah's Daughters. I'm excited to read this one. The last book was wonderful and it looks like the next one is going to be great as well!

Marianne Fredriksson, née Persson (March 28, 1927, Gothenburg – February 11, 2007, Österskär) was a Swedish author who worked and lived in Roslagen and Stockholm. Before becoming a novelist, she was a journalist on various Swedish newspapers and magazines, including Svenska Dagbladet.

Fredriksson published fifteen novels, most of which have been translated into English, German, Dutch and other languages. Most of her earlier books are based on biblical stories. A central theme in her writings is friendship because, as she maintained, "friendship will be more important than love" in the future.

"A Curse Dark as Gold" Discussion

I hope you all loved this book as much as I do.  It was my second time reading it, and I loved it just as much, and maybe even a little more.  Here were some of my thoughts as I read:

1.  I was drawn into the book within the first page.  Did any of you feel the same way, and why?

2.  Charlotte feels responsible for her entire village. Do you think this feeling is justified? Why or why not?

3.  What did you think of Uncle Wheeler?  Did you have any clue, until the end, that he was also involved with Jack Spinner?

4.  I liked Randall Woodstone from the moment he first appeared in the story.  How did he contrast to Charlotte's uncle?  What did you think of his engagement gift to her (the plate that said "Great Courage Breaks Ill Luck")?

5.  I found it interesting how the mill seemed to try and communicate with Charlotte, like when it showed its disapproval of Jack Spinner.  What did you think about this?

6.  When she finds herself in desperate straits, Charlotte makes some extraordinary choices about who she can trust to ask for help. Do you think she made the right decisions, or could she have turned elsewhere for assistance? What would you have done?

I hope you enjoyed it!!
 
And just in case you didn't know, February's book will be "Hanna's Daughters," by Marianne Fredrickson.

random thought for january

If you could invite two characters and two authors to dinner, who would you invite?

Reminder and a question . . .

Hi all,

Just a quick reminder about our January book, A Curse Dark as Gold.  (All the info is in a post below)  It is fantastic, and so I hope you all get a chance to read it.  I just started rereading it, and I remember why I loved it so much the first time.  I think I will plan the discussion for the 29th of January, but I may post it earlier so that everything will be fresh in my head when I do it.  So if it comes up on here early, no worries :).

Also, I think we assigned the next few months, but I have already forgotten who has picked what months and what books they have picked.  I was thinking about getting library requests in, and so I was wondering if we could post a list of what will be coming the next few months.

That said, I hope you all had a fantastic Christmas and New Year's.  In my blog I wrote down all the books I finished in 2009, and if you want to read it, go here.  I would love to know what all of you read too, that is, if you feel like sharing.  Have a great January and happy reading!

Lisa