Inside Jacket

I have been a fan of Katherine Center since she published her first novel The Bright Side of Disaster.  And then after reading Everyone is Beautiful and later Katherine Skyping into my book club, the deal was cemented. Katherine is pretty much full of awesome.  I’m an unabashed fan.  And I’m happy to report that after highly anticipating and reading her newest novel,  Get Lucky, I was not disappointed.

After growing up in Houston, Texas, Sarah Harper finds herself transplanted to Manhattan and is doing well in in her advertising career.  But one stupid decision changes it all, she forwards an inappropriate email to all of her co-workers, and is suddenly out of a job and has a lot of time on her hands.  So what better thing to do than go back home to visit her sister Mackie for Thanksgiving?

But what was going to be a simple vacation turns into something much longer as Sarah learns that Mackie has given up on having a baby due to infertility.  Sarah puts forth a plan that nobody can resist and that will change them all forever, sometimes not always for the better.

But the storyline, of course, isn’t so simple.  Memories of her deceased mother, reconnecting with her father whom announces he’s getting remarried and avoiding the hot ex-boyfriend whom she dumped horribly in high school play a role as she rediscovers who she is.  Add to that a new job at a non-profit which will literally put her on top of a library roof by herself for 102 hours, and there is plenty to keep the reader engaged.

This is a story about relationships.  With sisters, with friends, with parents, with co-workers and most important, with oneself.  Katherine Center has a way of writing that just pulls you into the story and you have to remember to stop and breathe every once in a while.  Or at the very least see if your kids have destroyed your house while you were previously engaged.  She’s just so darn good at what she does!

These characters were real and flawed.  Oh, there were times, when I wanted to say, “Sarah!  Do you have any idea what you’re doing?!”  But the beauty of the story is that Sarah is full of so many good intentions that she acts impulsively.  We, the reader, have the benefit of watching Sarah as she journeys on a very steep learning curve.  And Sarah certainly makes the journey well worth watching.

Those who go into this book expecting a quick, light read full of chuckles will find just that, but ultimately, will be surprised with the depth of emotion, story, and characters that labels Katherine Center has an author who has seemingly created a genre all her own.

And I LOVE the videos that Katherine makes.  Check these three out.  And tell me, how can you not help loving her!

The first ends with these words: “Your time is now. To be fearlessly resilient. To rebound with purpose and power. To lead with intention. To discover what you want – and go get it.” Powerful.

This video makes me want to get up, move around, and features words from Get Lucky:

And last, a video about sisters. A very appropriate celebration of Get Lucky:

Seriously, don’t skip them!  Already waiting anxiously for Katherine’s next book and passing off my copy of Get Lucky to everybody in my book club, who all audibly gasped when I mentioned her new book was out.

Links of interest: Today’s post is in conjugation with Katherine’s TLC blog tour, more blogger reviews, Katherine’s website, my book review of Everyone is Beautiful, The Bright Side of Disaster, my author interview with Katherine, Nikki’sguest post interview with Katherine, and let’s not forget her awesome soup.
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: Ballantine Books. April 6 2010.
Paperback, 288 pages. ISBN 0345507916
Get Lucky is available from your favorite independent bookstore, Powell’s, and Amazon.

Copyright 2009. Maw Books Blog

Maw Books has an affiliate relationship with several bookstores, including Indiebound, Powell’s, and Amazon . When you buy a product (not just books – any product), via one of my links, Maw Books earns income from the sale and as always, it’s much appreciated as all affiliate income is used to support the blog. There is no cost to you.

In Leaving Gee’s Bend by Irene Latham, ten-year-old Ludelphia Bennett only knows one way of life and that is sharecropping and the people in her small town.  In fact, she’s never left the town at all or explored the surrounding communities.

Life is relatively simple and happy but not without its sorrow as her mother loses baby after baby or without poverty due in part to the Great Depression.  There is one thing that Ludelphia loves more than anything and that’s to quilt.  Her mother says she was born to quilt and she’s never seen without a scrap of cloth and needle in her pocket.  The act of quilting and the subsequent act of contemplation that it brings is a thread that binds this story together.

When Ludelphia’s mother delivers her new baby early and falls deathly ill, her family is told that there is nothing that can be done.  But Ludelphia won’t give up that easily and takes off on her own to Camden, a town forty miles away in hopes of bringing the white doctor back with her.

The journey is eventful and challenging and tests Ludelphia’s courage and resolve. Remember she’s never been beyond her town’s borders before nor even seen a white person.  But in her attempt to save her mothers life will she end up dooming the entire town of Gee’s Bend?   It’s certainly possible.

I enjoyed learning more about this real town of Gee’s Bend which is steeped in quilting history and was the inspiration for this novel.  The book felt a bit slow near the beginning of the book but once Ludelphia began her journey, everything began to move along and I was fully invested in her story.  Many in the town believe in witchcraft which I felt brought an intriguing element to  not only the story’s beginning but its end as well.

Ludelphia is a strong and memorable character and while she may not always be the smartest in certain situations, I like young girl characters who know what they want and how to hold their own.

I can’t think of anything better to say then what Steph worded so well in her review:

It offers a memorable character and a compelling story with several interesting twists. It also provides fertile ground for discussion of quilting and folk art, sharecropping, poverty, racism, courage, and compassion, among other things.

The cover is ultimately what drew me to this cover. I knew I wanted to read it before I knew what is about.

Leaving Gee’s Bend is part of my themed reading for the month of February which celebrates Black History Month.  Join me this month as I explore books that celebrate the history of African-Americans.
Links of interest:  Irene Latham website, blog and Twitter.
Genre:  Middle Grade Historical Fiction, approx ages 9-12.
Publisher: Putnam Juvenile.  January 7, 2010.
Hardcover, 230 pages. ISBN 0399251790
Source copy: Unsolicited review copy (meaning it mysteriously showed up in my mail)
Leaving Gee’s Bend is available from your favorite independent bookstore, Powell’s, and Amazon.

Copyright 2009. Maw Books Blog

Maw Books has an affiliate relationship with several bookstores, including Indiebound, Powell’s, and Amazon . When you buy a product (not just books – any product), via one of my links, Maw Books earns income from the sale and as always, it’s much appreciated as all affiliate income is used to support the blog. There is no cost to you.