Recently Read Books
by the Book of the Month Sunday School Class

Our September 2009 book was Imperial Woman written by Pearl S. Buck.  This is the story of Tzu Hsi, the last Empress of China.  Tzu Hsi was born into the lowest rank of the Imperial dynasty, but through her skill at manipulation, rose to power during the turbulent period of transition from an ancient to modern China.  Vilified by members of the royal court and revered by the peasants, she was a woman of many talents and contradictions.  Pearl S. Buck's knowledge of and fascination with the Empress's life are contagious. She reveals the essence of this self-involved and infamous last Empress, at the same time she takes the reader through China's struggle for freedom and democracy.

Our August 2009 book was The Night Birds by Thomas Maltman.

In July 2009 our text was For God and Country: Faith and Patriotism Under Fire.

The June 2009 selection was The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows.

April 2009 found us reading the classic book Little Women by Louisa May Alcott which tells the story of the March family and the girls' growth ito yough womanhood during our nation's Civil War era.

In March 2009 we read a #1 New York Times Best-Seller, Three Cups of Tea, was written by Greg Mortenson, the founder of Pennies For Peace.  This true story tells of one man's successful goal to build schools for Afghanistan children.  Or as another has put it, this is one man’s mission to promote Peace . . . one school at a time.

The February 2009 selection was Loving Frank by Horan.  This is a fictionalized version of the life of Frank Lloyd Wright; mainly of the years he lived with a mistress after abandoning his own family.

Our January 2009 book was Isaac's Storm by Erik Larson.  This is a true account of the hurricane that hit Galveston around 1900 which killed 6,000 people.  The book also tells about the start of our weather service.

During December 2008 we read “The Christmas Hope” by Donna VanLiere, the author of The Christmas Shoes and The Christmas Blessing.  This book is a story of love in the face of loss, joy when all seems hopeless, and how light can shine into the darkest places.  This book is on the New York Times best seller list.  ISBN: 0312334508 (224 pages).

The November 2008selection was “A Thousand Splendid Suns” by Afghan author Khaled Hosseini (the author of the best seller,“Kite Runner”).  This fiction book tells of the struggles in modern day Afghanistan through the eyes of people who live there.

Our October 2008 book was “A Place to Call Home” by Deborah Smith.  This is a story for any romantic who wants a bit of mystery, a lot of suspense, a tale of star-crossed lovers and a satisfying ending

In September 2008, the class read “The Whistling Season” by Ivan Doug.  A widowed father of three boys hires a housekeeper from a newspaper ad sight unseen.  She describes herself, "can't cook but doesn't bite."  She brings with her a surprise guest, her scholarly brother Morris.

The August 2008 selection was “Breakfast Epiphanies-Finding Wonder in the Every Day” by David Anderson.
AND/OR “Just Wives? Stories of Power and Survival in the Old Testament and Today” by Katherine Sakenfeld.  This book explores the stories of eleven women in the Bible and relates their struggles to today's women.

Our July 2008 book was Master Butcher's Singing Club by Louise Erdrich.  German soldier, Fidelis Waldwogel, returns home from World War I to marry his best friend's pregnant widow.  He packs up his father's butcher knives and sails for America where he sets up a meat shop with his wife, Eva.  This is a complex tale woven with intrigue, romance death and humor.

In June 2008 the selection was Known World, a story of black slave owners both before and after the Civil War.  And Abrham’s Well, a story of the Black Cherokee - African Americans, (both slave and free) who, along with native people, walked the Trail of Tears.

The May 2008 selection was Feeling for Bones by Bethany Pierce Olivia.  A 16 year-old budding artist tells of her struggles with anorexia.  This story is about family, faith, love, starting over, and life's curve balls. ($9.25).

The April 2008 book was Water for Elephants.  The narrator of the story is an elderly man living in a nursing home and hating it.  In a flashback, he thinks back to his youth when at age 21, and trained to be a veterinarian, he ran away and joined the train circus. ($9.80).

In March 2008 the selected books were: God in the Alley: Being and seeing Jesus in a Broken Worldby Greg Paul and Taught by America: a Story of Struggle and Hope in Compton (Calif.) by Sara Sentilles.  Both books came from the U.M.W. Readling List.

CURRENT SELECTION: To find out about the current book and the next class meeting, click here.

AGES: Young Adult to Older Adult
LOCATION: Wesley Wilderness Area
TIME: 9:45 a.m. on the third Sunday of each month
LEADER: Barbara Weaver