The Lost Bookshop

The Lost Bookshop is by Evie Woods. A charming fantasy novel told in three different voices. Opaline, from the past, and Martha and Henry from the present. Opaline, escaped an arranged marriage in the 1920s and fled to Paris. She got a job at Shakespeare and Company and then fled to Ireland and opened her own rare bookshop. Henry is an academic trying to track down a mysterious bookstore to find a rare manuscript. While trying to find the bookstore he meets Martha, who has fled an abusive husband and is working as housekeeper for a very odd elderly woman, who lives next door to where the mysterious bookstore is supposed to be located. The lives of all three are related in ways they are only beginning to comprehend. Will the Lost Bookstore be found? 

Ratings: 12th grade - 8 out of 10 - P (profanity) - AC (mature thematic content). 

Shakespeare: The Man Who Pays the Rent

Shakespeare: The Man Who Pays the Rent is by Judi Dench and Brendan O'Hea. A wonderful memoir by the great Dame Judi Dench. The book is more a conversation between Dench and O'Hea covering all of her appearances in Shakespeare's plays. This book is hilarious, irreverent, and a complete joy! A Reader's Corner Must Read. It's great for lovers of Shakespeare, theater, and behind the scenes tell all memoirs. 

Ratings: 11th grade - 10 out of 10 - P (profanity) = AC (mature thematic content). 

Brat Farrar

Brat Farrar is by Josephine Tey. An historical fiction mystery set on a horse farm. Patrick Ashby was the heir to a fortune, but he disappeared when he was young and now his brother is next in line to inherit. When someone turns up claiming to be the long lost Patrick, he seems to good to be true - and he is. Everyone in the family believes Brat is Patrick, except his brother. Then Brat's presence begins to stir up old secrets. Is it possible Brat is Patrick after all? A fun mystery with an interesting conclusion. 

Ratings: 11th grade - 8 out of 10 - AC (mature thematic content) - V (violence).

Rembrandt Is In the Wind: Learning To Love Art Through the Eyes of Faith

Rembrandt Is In the Wind: Learning To Love Art Through the Eyes of Faith is by Russ Ramsey. A wonderful nonfiction look at brokenness, art, and how God can use them both. This book is a must read for all Christians, especially those who love art. 

Ratings: 9th grade - 10 out of 10. 

Homage to Catalonia

Homage to Catalonia is by George Orwell. A memoir by the author of Animal Farm and 1984. In 1936, Orwell left for Spain to cover the Spanish Civil War and become a combatant. This memoir tells of the reality he saw on the ground and his disillusionment with the political factions. 

Ratings: Adult - 8 out of 10 - AC (mature thematic content).  

Modern Scholar: Singers & Tales: Oral Tradition and the Roots of Literature

Modern Scholar: Singers & Tales: Oral Tradition and the Roots of Literature is by Michael D. C. Drout. A compellingly interesting nonfiction lecture series on the oral tradition and the beginnings of literature. 

Ratings: Adult - 8 out of 10. 

Modern Scholar: A Way With Words

Modern Scholar: A Way With Words is by Michael D. C. Drout. A fascinating nonfiction lecture series on rhetoric and the art of persuasion. 

Ratings: Adult - 8 out of 10. 

Modern Scholar: The Norsemen: Understanding the Vikings and Their Culture

Modern Scholar: The Norsemen: Understanding the Vikings and Their Culture is by Michael D. C. Drout. A very interesting nonfiction lecture series on the history, culture, and religion of the Vikings. 

Ratings: Adult - 8 out of 10. 

The Year of Magical Thinking

The Year of Magical Thinking is by Joan Didion. A heartbreaking memoir of suffering, loss, and making it through. Right before Christmas in 2003. Joan Didion's daughter was placed in a drug induced coma when she came down suddenly with septic shock. Days later, the night before New Year's Eve, her husband died suddenly of a heart attack. This book is the story of Joan trying to pick up the pieces of her own life and still be there for her critically ill daughter. A stirring read. 

Ratings: 11th grade - 8 out of 10 - AC (mature thematic content).