Tag Archive | Lake Union Publishing

The Break-Up Agency by Sheila McClure

Oct10

Delightful

The Break-Up Agency by Sheila McClure is a most delightful contemporary novel that will leave you smiling.

The novel is about friendship and kind hearts. We need those around us who will always be there for us. There are some very kind hearts who just want to make the world a better place.

We hear of mission trips to bring medicine to those who have none. There are dangers lurking.

There is a beautiful dog, Gus, who is used as a PAT dog, helping anxious children who will open up when he is near. Gus’ boundless energy and affection really fill the characters and the reader with love.

The novel also has a character with a physical disability who does not let it hold him back.

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Stay by Catherine Ryan Hyde

Jul26

Interlinked

Stay by Catherine Ryan Hyde is a powerful story set over the summer of 1969. It consumed me from the start and filled my heart with love.

The story is told from a fourteen year old boy’s point of view in the first person. We really feel that we ‘know’ him. He is kind and cares deeply about those around him. He is loyal with a huge capacity to love. He champions the underdog and he does not judge.

We witness the damage that others inflict on lives when they judge. If you have not walked a mile in the shoes of another, you cannot possibly know them and you have no right to ever judge them.

Choices we make today will impact tomorrow. Our choices have consequences for us and those around us. If we had chosen differently, life may well have been dramatically altered. We are all interconnected.

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Dreaming Of Flight by Catherine Ryan Hyde

Jun11

Sowing And Reaping

Dreaming Of Flight by Catherine Ryan Hydeis the most delightful contemporary novel that completely warmed my heart. It is a hug in a book.

The novel looks at the topic of grief. We all handle grief differently. There is no right or wrong way, you just have to get through it. Our reactions to loss change. It is perfectly normal to swing from sad to mad in an instant.

Eleven year old Stewie forms a relationship with an elderly neighbour who reminds him of his Gam. Both the old and the young need each other. It is beautiful to witness the development of their relationship. As their relationship buds and blossoms, life begins to open up further for both. They need each other and bring out the best in each other.

Stewie is kindness personified. He always tries to help everyone and spreads love and kindness wherever he goes. If he spots a wrong, he makes it his mission to try to right that wrong.

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The Girls In The Attic by Marius Gabriel

Jul29

A Monstrous Lie

The Girls In The Attic by Marius Gabriel is a powerful, heart-wrenching historical novel that will remain with you long after the last page is read. It is a tribute to all those who lived and all those who perished in the Holocaust.

The novel is set in 1944 and 1945 as the Nazis are losing the war. Their cruelty is heightened as they wish to leave no witnesses.

We see life through the eyes of two Jewish sisters, hiding with the mother of a twice-decorated with the Iron Cross Nazi war hero.

The reader witnesses his battle with his conscience – to do what is required or to do what is right? Too many have blindly followed Hitler and joined in with the persecution of the Jewish people.

Not all Germans were Nazis. “A few are monsters, the rest look away” and some help. Many were guilty by omission. The reader is reminded that “for evil to flourish, it just needs good men to do nothing.” “While so many others stood back and watched evil happen, they had taken a stand against it.” Some stood up for what is right with no thought to their own safety.

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