Patty Pick for 10/27/16 are Some Interesting Political Books for the Season

During this election year, we have seen our political process at its best at times, and sometimes at its worst. This will not be the most contentious election ever fought in our country, but it will definitely be written about and remembered for a very long time, no matter your political persuasion. On that vein, I have collected a list of some of the more well-known nonfiction and fiction books on politics and/or our country's presidency. The fact that I can even write this blog openly about our election system and we can all choose who we want to vote for is one of the most cherished and valued parts of being an American.

We, Americans, are a hardy breed. We have survived countless wars and tragedies during the years as America grew into a country and aged into the nation we have now. Through it all we would come together to fight sometimes even each other, but always to mend ourselves back into a united group for the good of all. The one thing that we all have in common is our love for this country we call home. Let's hope that we never forget the citizens that have fought for this right and the struggles our country has endured to find it's way to becoming the greatest country in the world. Why do countless people around the globe try their best to find their way to our shores and become part of the American dream? 

So enjoy these fiction and nonfiction choices if you like. That is our God-given right, that we have fought for over countless generations, choice. And please Vote for the candidate(s) of your choice, be part of the solution. Our country is an amazing place and my hope is that we all remember that going forward. 

There are many good political books and fiction books following political story lines, so I have chosen some of my favorites and some on my to-read list to share with you all. Hope you find some of your new favorites on the list. 

1)  Team of Rivals by Doris Kearns Goodwin
2)    Primary Colors by Anonymous
3)    The Lucky Ones by Doris Mortman
4)    All the King's Men by Robert Penn Warren
5)    The Run by Stuart Woods
6)    Hartsburg, USA by David Mizner
7)    Game Change by John Heileman & Mark Halperin
8)    Middlemarch by George Eliot
9)    The Race by Richard North Patterson
10)    The Last Election by Gary H. Collins
11)  Transfer of Power by Vince Flynn
12)  Almost anything by Brad Thorr & Tom Clancy

Patty Pick for 10/20/16 is "The Nightingale" by Kristin Hannah

                                                                                                                         I've heard so much about this book and it definitely lived up to it's reputation! At first, I thought,

"Oh, no, another World War II book." My book club and myself have read so many over the last
few years, but this is not another World War II book. The characters are believable and full. The setting of the war from the view of the French people makes for a mesmerizing look at history.

Isabelle and Vianne are two sisters that are trapped in their lives due to the war and due to their individual circumstances. You will understand by the end of the book that the war in which they are embroiled, does not define their entire lives. They both rise above their doubts and fears to create new, but incredible lives, memorable lives. But war is not easy nor pretty and this novel by
Kristin Hannah does not cut out the ugly parts.

Vianne Mauriac is a young wife living in the quaint town of Carriveau with her husband and daughter. She is a school teacher and they live an idyllic life together in her parents old house.
Vianne is afraid of everything and when her husband, Antoine, go off to war she is left to handle
things on her own. As the war advances and the town is invaded by the Nazi's, she finds herself
living with a Nazi officer. She is trying to walk a tightrope through the war, not giving aid but not
allowing herself, her friends, and her daughter to suffer too much damage. Her younger sister has other ideas.

Isabelle has rebelled her entire life. Since their mother passed away, their father has pushed away
the two sisters. Fighting her way through boarding school after boarding school, she has finally
found her way home to her father and his book store at the start of the war. With the looming
Nazi invasion, her father sends her off with family friends to go stay with her sister, but the pampered
Isabelle faces some of the most harrowing days of the war just trying to get to Carriveau. She meets
Gaetan, a young man determined to fight back, who helps her arrive at her sister's house. Isabelle becomes determined to fight back also and she usually gets her way.

From that start the two sisters fight the war in their own ways. Neither is better or easier for their survival but they bravely fight anyway. With help, love and determination, they fight the Nazi
invasion of their country in their own way. You will not feel how they can survive, but you must
read this book to find out if they do. The story is told in beautiful language that flows across the page and builds vivid pictures of their stories. A huge thumbs up!!

Patty Pick for 10/6/16 is "Dear Carolina" by Kristy Woodson Harvey

What would you do if you were asked to take a baby from one of your
young relatives who realizes that she can not raise it? What drives a
mother to give up her child so it can have a better life than she can give it?
These are some of the hardest questions anyone can ever answer. In "Dear Carolina" two women must face those very decisions. Jodi makes her alone
and Khaki makes her with her loving husband, Graham.

Khaki and Jodi are "cousin-in-laws" and both have their crazy lives. This novel is woven with Southernisms and terms only a Southerner can comprehend at times. Khaki seems to have it all, a wonderful husband, a full and productive life, a child and a successful career. Jodi is her husband's young cousin who has struggled through life with an alcoholic mother and a rash of wrong decisions to her credit. Her father, Graham's brother, has died. When she ends up pregnant by her abusive boyfriend, she decides to have the baby and make a family with Ricky.

Unfortunately Jodi's boyfriend has other ideas. As she realizes what lies ahead for her child, she makes the most difficult decision a mother can make. After Jodi asks Khaki and Graham to adopt her child, life unfolds in different directions for each mother. Khaki worries that Jodi will change her mind and want this new, beautiful baby back from her care. Jodi is torn wanting to be a mother and
overcome her own demons but knowing she made the right decision for Carolina.

Told to us from each woman's perspective as letters to Carolina, we read the story of her life as told to her from the two mothers. This story weaves a distinct flavor of Kinston and North Carolina with a douse of New York decorating culture for good measure. Your feelings will be pulled into the story and the unique way the tale is told will make for a special read. You know how this ends but getting there will be the treat! Thumbs UP for this one!