A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini

I realize that I’m behind the crowd with reading this book, but I think it’s interesting that I started reading it on the day Osama bin Laden was captured and killed.  I wish I had read it earlier.  Everything about this fictional story of 2 remarkable women tugged at my heartstrings.  I was outraged at the men for their treatment of women and girls, and was so touched by the ending.  If you have never read a book about women of the Middle East, this is a great introduction.

The Boleyn Inheritance by Philippa Gregory

This book was not as good as The Other Boleyn Girl.   It seemed to drag at the end, going back and forth between the three women: Anne of Cleves, Jane Boleyn and Katherine Howard.  Although I loved finding out what happened to King Henry’s next wives, the novel itself fell short for me. 

Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese

This book is like good braised meat.  It cooks really slowly but in the end you have a tender and delicious masterpiece.  I took my time with this novel, not just because it was rather long (over 600 pages) but also because I had to let each section sink in before moving on.  Told in 4 parts, this novel is the story of Marion Praise Stone’s journey as a brother, son, lover, and doctor. As the story grew, elements of surprise and magic kept me hooked, and the ending brought it all together for a sweet finish. 

Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford

The title of this book struck me first.  Followed by the fact it was about the Japanese internment during WWII.  I loved that it told a story about an old man and a child (him as a boy).  However, I became disappointed about halfway through the book when I could easily tell where it was going and how it would end.  It was too predictable for my taste, but I finished it.  It ended just as I thought it would, no surprises.  This would be a good book for a high school student learning more about the Japanese internment, but not as a novel for an educated adult.    

Keeping Faith by Jodi Picoult

Picoult novels never disappoint me.  In this book, issues of divorce, affair, and stigmata take center stage on trial.  I love how Picoult moves from first person to third person seamlessly, even within chapters.  This story kept and held my attention the whole way through.  I'm now only sad that I don't have any more Picoult novels here on the island to read! 

Mennonite in a Little Black Dress: A Memoir of Going Home by Rhoda Janzen

There were several points in this book where I started laughing out loud.  Rhoda Janzen tells her story with a great blend of honesty and word play.  At one point, I was almost in tears from laughing so hard while sitting alone on my couch.  Although I had to fight through some “academia” related paragraphs, there were so many other moments of pure enjoyment that this book earns a top recommendation from me. 

The Heretic Queen by Michelle Moran

More or less a sequel to Nefertiti, The Heretic Queen is another wonderful piece of historical fiction about the Queens of Egypt.  This time told as a first person account from the aspiring Queen, the main character is well developed and easy to identify with.  The story is filled with jealousy, trickery, politics, and love.