October's Book of the Month

Hello Everyone! I chose the picture posted above because it reminds me of reading to my daughter Mareena when she was little. Every afternoon until she was about eight or nine years old, we would take one of her books that she wanted to read or that she was reading and we would curl up together on my big bed. 

We would spend an hour or so reading a chapter of her book, and then take a nap together. Her absolutely favorite author at that time was an English author named Enid Blyton. Ahh, nice memories...

My picks for 'Books of the Month' will be decidedly more adult these days, but they will be from almost any genre. October's Book of the Month is: 

A Place Called Saturday by Mary Astor

Published as: A Place Called Saturday: A Novel in 1968

Publisher: Delacorte Press

Birth Name: Lucile Vasconcellos Langhanke

Born: 3 May 1906 in Quincy, Illinois
Died: 25 September 1987 in Woodland Hills, California

Canonical Name: Mary Astor

Pseudonyms: None

A Place Called Saturday by Mary Astor was the twenty-sixth book that I read in 2009. I had this book on my TBR pile since 14 October 2009. This book took me five days to read and was actually a reread for me from many years ago. I sent this book off to another good home on September 3, 2013!

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Mary Astor - A Place Called Saturday

26. A Place Called Saturday by Mary Astor (1968)
Length: 212 pages
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Started: 14 October 2009
Finished: 19 October 2009
Where did it come from? From Paperback Swap
How long has it been on my TBR pile? Since 14 October 2009
Why do I have it? I read this book several years ago and loved it.

In A Place Called Saturday by Mary Astor, a young newlywed named Cora is brutally raped by an unknown assailant and becomes pregnant. What follows is a story about the consequences of keeping the child when Cora doesn't know if it's her husband's or her rapist's child.

I loved this story and remember reading it years ago. I really felt for the characters and didn't want it to end. I give it an A+!

A+! - (96-100%)

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Amanda Eyre Ward - Forgive Me

25. Forgive Me by Amanda Eyre Ward (2007)
Length: 256 pages
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Started: 11 October 2009
Finished: 14 October 2009
Where did it come from? From a Library Book Sale
How long has it been on my TBR pile? Since 15 September 2009
Why do I have it? I like contemporary fiction and Amanda Eyre Ward is a new author for me.

I just finished reading Forgive Me by Amanda Eyre Ward. Nadine Morgan is a journalist who travels the world, covering dangerous and important events and running from anything that might tie her down. After a story turns tragic in Cape Town, South Africa, Nadine doesn't go back - or open her heart; until she hears the story of American Jason Irving.

Jason was beaten to death by angry local youths during the height of the aparteid era. Now, years later, his mother has been told that Jason's killers have applied for amnesty. His parents pack up and fly from Nantucket to Cape Town for the hearing determined not to bestow forgiveness.

Nadine follows the Irvings back to Cape Town, determined to lose herself in covering the hearing and trying to forget the ghosts of her past. During her time there in South Africa, Nadine befriends both the mother of the victim and the mother of the killers, leading to serious consequences. I loved this story and give it an A+!

A+! - (96-100%)

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Janice Graham - Firebird

24. Firebird by Janice Graham (1998)
Length: 301 pages
Genre: Historical Fiction
Started: 1 October 2009
Finished: 10 October 2009
Where did it come from? From a Library Book Sale
How long has it been on my TBR pile? Since 1 August 2009
Why do I have it? I like historical fiction and Janice Graham is a new author for me.


I just finished Firebird by Janice Graham. Ethan Browne is a Kansas doctor who chooses Katie Anne to be his bride, even though he is in love with Annette who just returned to town for her mother's funeral. Ethan sets out to win Katie Anne because he believes that is what he needs to do.

Ethan is also a rancher and Katie Anne has an aversion to the land he loves. She also is aware that he is in love with Annette, but is determined to hold on to him in spite of that fact.

Janice Graham's style of writing is beautiful, but in my opinion, the plot twist at the end is a little strange. I give this book a B!

B! - (80-88%)

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Reading Wrap-up for September at Moonshine and Rosefire

Hello everyone out there and I hope that you all had a terrific reading month for yourselves. I am known as Rosefire around the Internet and this is my new personal reading blog. I originally posted my reviews over at my daughter's blog, Emeraldfire's Bookmark but am now in the process of transferring them all over to my own blog. My daughter makes blogging look like so much fun that I thought that I would try it out for myself! :)

Anyway, I started out September with 632 books lying around the house and ended the month with 627 books unread. All of the books that I acquired this month came from Paperback Swap and a Library Book Sale we went to on the 15th.

Let me try to break down the influx for you:

Re-reads
- Peyton Place by Grace Metalious


Changes to the TBR pile 


Read from my TBR pile (Yes! I am a reading machine :))
- My Cousin Rachel by Daphne du Maurier
- Call in the Night by Susan Howatch
- Light on Snow by Anita Shreve
- The House at Sunset by Norah Lofts

Added to my TBR pile (oh well, you win some and you lose some! :))
- Three-Dimensional Needlepoint by Gale Litvak
- Complete Guide to Creative Needlepoint by Jo Bucher
- 120 Needlepoint Design Projects by Charles Barnes and David Blake
- Nature in Needlepoint by Eva Brent and Meg Merrill
- Forgive Me by Amanda Eyre Ward
- The Ghost Writer by Philip Roth

Taken off my TBR pile and sent to a new home (Yay! Happy Dance! :))
- The Ivy Tree by Mary Stewart
- Call in the Night by Susan Howatch
- Crown of Aloes by Norah Lofts

Well, there it is...the breakdown! All in all, a very good reading month for me. Here's a further breakdown:

Books Read: 5
Pages Read: 1,685
Grade Range: A+! to C!

So, there you go! The reading month that was September. I hope that you all had an equally good reading month; if not a little better. :) See you all next month! :)

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight