Weekend Wrap Up #30

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba @The Caffeinated Book Reviewer It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on our blog for the week ahead. Here is what I have been up to this last week.

I rented Darkest Hour this week because, being the Harry Potter fan that I am, I wanted to see Gary Oldman’s Oscar winning performance. I have to admit his performance was pretty amazing.

CURRENTLY READING

Saturday Situation is put on by Pure Imagination. It is were we review our latest reads. Be sure to check out theirs as well.

This was a fabulous memoir by a Rwandan refugee.  I vaguely remember hearing about the troubles over there when I was in college.  The author, Clemantine, talks about how at the age of six, her and her older sister, Claire, had to escape from Rwanda and leave their parents behind.  What ensues is seven years of wandering, hunger, and pure survival. I was afraid this book would be graphic and hard to read but thankfully, the book focused on Clemantine’s struggle with healing and feeling worthy of a new life in America.

This was my first Clare MacKintosh novel and I was not disappointed! This thriller had me guessing from page one and just when I thought I had figured it out, there would be a twist.  One of my pet peeves of mysteries is convenient coincidences to move the story along.  This book did not do that.  The writing was superb and suspenseful.  There were at least two big twists that made me gasp and I couldn’t put the book down.  I will definitely be reading more by this author.

Stacking the Shelves is put on by Tynga at Tynga’s Reviews. Stacking The Shelves is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves. Here are the books I have added to my TBR list this week.

I checked this out from my local library.

Book Blurb

Anna Fox lives alone—a recluse in her New York City home, unable to venture outside. She spends her day drinking wine (maybe too much), watching old movies, recalling happier times . . . and spying on her neighbors.

Then the Russells move into the house across the way: a father, a mother, their teenage son. The perfect family. But when Anna, gazing out her window one night, sees something she shouldn’t, her world begins to crumble—and its shocking secrets are laid bare.

I bought this at Goodwill.

Book Blurb
In the quiet village of Carriveau, Vianne Mauriac says goodbye to her husband, Antoine, as he heads for the Front. She doesn’t believe that the Nazis will invade France…but invade they do, in droves of marching soldiers, in caravans of trucks and tanks, in planes that fill the skies and drop bombs upon the innocent. When France is overrun, Vianne is forced to take an enemy into her house, and suddenly her every move is watched; her life and her child’s life is at constant risk. Without food or money or hope, as danger escalates around her, she must make one terrible choice after another.

I received the following 3 books from First to Read

Book Blurb

Emerson, Georgia, and Marley have been best friends ever since they met at a weight-loss camp as teens. When Emerson tragically passes away, she leaves one final wish for her best friends: to conquer the fears they still carry as adults.

Book Blurb

A powerful and extraordinary novel, Flying at Night gives voice to an autistic child, trying to find his place in a world that doesn’t quite understand him.

Book Blurb

Told through the eyes of Zac, Juliet, and grandfather Mick, Little Big Love is a layered, heartfelt, utterly satisfying story about family, love, and secrets.

The Book Blogger Hop is put on by The Coffee Addicted Writer . There is a weekly prompt featuring a book related question.

THIS WEEK’S QUESTION IS SUBMITTED BY Kitty @ Vicarious Bookworm

This weeks prompt is…

   Who is your favorite children’s books author and why?

My answer…

Judy Blume

I loved Judy Blume as a child and as a teenager because she wasn’t afraid to write about real things happening in the world and real things happening to kids.  I think every girl my age as a teenager read “Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret” and the racy “Forever.”

I was lucky enough to meet Judy Blume a couple summers ago! She was so sweet and humble and had a great sense of humor.