It's almost Mother's Day!

It’s almost Mother’s Day and that means it’s time to think about what to buy your favorite mother, aunt, or grandmother.  Here are some of my recent choices that just might make her day. The right side of this page offers links to the websites and pages of some of the best independent bookstores where you can find these gems and where they’ll wrap them for you as they offer great advice about other books your mother might enjoy. Men: this makes Mother’s Day giving very easy. I’ve also included links to full reviews of any books already reviewed on this site. Make your Mom happy, buy her a book!

Everything Brave is Forgiven by Chris Cleave is my choice for the reader who loves a magnificent story with beautiful language and a lasting message. The World War II setting is so real you’ll feel the hairs on the back of your neck rise as you live through the Blitz. This book would be an excellent selection for any mother who belongs to a book club. http://hungryforgoodbooks.blogspot.com/2016/05/everyone-brave-is-forgiven-by-chris.html G/GPR/PP/SN, BC

The Summer Before the War by Helen Simonson is for the woman who adored Downton Abbey and who loves a book that both entertains and educates. It’s also for the reader who loves to find parallels between past events and those of today. http://hungryforgoodbooks.blogspot.com/2016/03/the-summer-before-war-by-helen-simonson_28.html GPR/PP/SN, BC

Becoming Grandma by Leslie Stahl is for the grandmother or grandmother-to-be who can’t quite believe how happy she is. GPR/SF/SN

The Girl in the Red Coat by Kate Hamer is for the mom who wants to read a fabulous thriller with engaging characters. Moms will identify with eight-year-old Carmel’s mother’s quest to find her daughter when she disappears from a British festival. The novel showcases not just a mysterious disappearance but also the ways a mother and daughter might survive such a wrenching separation. It also features a complicated and evil villain which always adds to the enjoyment of any mystery.  GPR, BC

Love That Boy by Ron Fournier is for the mom who understands that love is always unconditional and who might want to share this gem with the fathers she loves. http://hungryforgoodbooks.blogspot.com/2016/04/love-that-boy-by-ron-fournier.html GPR/SF/SN, BC

Furiously Happy: a Funny Book about Horrible Things by Jenny Lawson is for the mom who relishes sarcasm and doesn’t like to read sentimental books. Furiously Happy is for David Sedaris, Tina Fey and Augusten Burroughs fans. It’s a searing memoir of living through depression and mental illness as seen through Lawson’s irreverent lens. Who’d think you could snort out loud when reading (or listening) to someone telling about living in darkness. Buy mom the audio version to hear Lawson’s perfect rendering. S, BC

The Charm Bracelet by Wade Rouse is for the mother who wants a

light, romantic read that’s just predictable enough to make her happy. She'll read about three generations of women linked by the stories their charm bracelets reveal as they look for happiness. D

Lilac Girls by Martha Hall Kelly is for the mom who loves historical fiction based on real people and who lists The Nightingale and Sarah’s Key among her favorites. It’s for the mom who likes her historical novels supported by meticulous research. http://hungryforgoodbooks.blogspot.com/2016/04/lilac-girls-by-martha-hall-kelly.html GPR/PP/SN, BC

Symphony for the City of the Dead: Dimitri Shostakovich and the Siege of Leningrad by M.T. Anderson is for the history and music loving mom or grandmother especially if she has a fifteen to twenty-year-old child or grandchild she might want to encourage to read it with her. I recently led a book discussion of it and men and women of every age enjoyed it. It’s also a title with parallels to today. It's written for ages 15 - 20, but adults love it. DC/G/PP/SN, BC