"The Visionist" by Rachel Urquhart~Exotic Read

SUMMARY :


An enthralling first novel about a teenage girl who finds refuge--but perhaps not--in an 1840s Shaker community.

After 15-year-old Polly Kimball sets fire to the family farm, killing her abusive father, she and her young brother find shelter in a Massachusetts Shaker community called the City of Hope. It is the Era of Manifestations, when young girls in Shaker enclaves all across the Northeast are experiencing extraordinary mystical visions, earning them the honorific of "Visionist" and bringing renown to their settlements.

The City of Hope has not yet been blessed with a Visionist, but that changes when Polly arrives and is unexpectedly exalted. As she struggles to keep her dark secrets concealed in the face of increasing scrutiny, Polly finds herself in a life-changing friendship with a young Shaker sister named Charity, a girl who will stake everything--even her faith--on Polly's honesty and purity.

PARTICULARS OF THE BOOK :

Published by:  Little, Brown & Co.
Pages:  338
Genre:  Historical Fiction
Author:  Rachel Urquhart
Websites:  See  http://www.littlebrown.com  re this author
http://www.rachelurquhartwriter.com

ABOUT THE AUTHOR :

Rachel Urquhart’s 

Career as a Magazine Journalist and the Debut Writer of The Visionist

Though she has split her life (and her personality) living on a farm in Massachusetts and in an apartment in New York City, Rachel Urquhart was born in Manhattan and, at the ripe old age of 40, moved to Brooklyn. Since everyone in her new neighborhood had children and dogs and held close the fantasy of someday publishing a novel, she fit right in. She was fortunate enough to begin her magazine career at Spy—a job so singular that it would prove to ruin her desire to ever want to work full-time anywhere else. Lucky for her, Vogue stepped in and saved her from herself. She has spent her entire adult life as a writer, contributing pieces and the occasional snippet of fiction to a variety of publications, including Spy, Vogue, Allure, The New Yorker, The New York Times, Tin House, Elle, Harper’s Bazaar, Food & Wine, Travel & Leisure, Vanity Fair, Women’s Times and The Reader. She has also written three “lifestyle” books for the ChicSimple series (Knopf), and worked as an editor, at Vogue and, more recently, in service of college-bound teenagers and people in need of a decent toast. It took an abnormally long time for her to begin—and then complete—The Visionist, her first novel, and her heart goes out to anyone who finds him or herself in a similar predicament. She received her M.F.A. in Fiction from Sarah Lawrence College, and lives with her husband, two sons, two dogs and two cats.
*Photo by Sarah Shatz


THE BOOKISH DAME REVIEWS :

In the 1990's my husband, a real estate broker,  took me to a location in rural Massachusetts that had been a Shaker community.  It was on a beautiful landscape of rolling hills and stream with a vast expanse of sky.  The property was on the market for such a reasonable price I was shocked.  The buildings left were stark and eerie in their vastness and simplicity. There was a barn and a main building.  A lone sheep made its way across a narrow stream.  We went into the "main" building made of weathered blue wood.  It was huge and had an echoing emptiness to it.  Small windows...swept, unpolished wooden floors and plain walls...a narrow staircase.  The place felt haunted.  It was about three stories tall, but it seemed to reach to the sky.  I had a strange feeling about the whole place, as if people were watching us.  Beautiful as the entire package seemed, it was ghostly.

Rachel Urquhart has written a book that has made the Shakers come alive.  I've always had a fascination with them and their seemingly ethereal religious lives. They have seemed ghostly, as well, in their unattainable ways.  In a lifestyle not quite Quaker and perhaps far from Amish, the Shakers seemed even more set apart to me than other splinter religions.  In this novel I've had a glimpse of what their lives might have been like and it is magical in Urquhart's hands.

The storyline is rich and interesting primarily featuring Polly, a girl who has escaped an abusive father by murdering him only to find shelter with the Shakers who believe she is a "visionist," one especially selected to have spiritual insights and messages. We also follow another character's crime procedural as he ferrets out Polly's secret.  And, finally, we are brought into the mind of the Shaker sister who takes Polly into her heart and takes us into the intimacy of the community.  The three narrations carry the novel adding depth to the story.

Ms Urquhart is an author with strong talents.  It's hard to believe this is a debut novel.  Her literary voice is mature, her vision exotic and her story will touch your heart.  The world of the Shakers is unveiled and the lives of her characters evolve like a well-spring.

This is one of those books you have to read this year.  I can't say enough about it!

5 stars                           Deborah/TheBookishDame

 

"The Lake House" by Marci Nault~Reclaiming "Home"

SUMMARY :

Achingly tender, yet filled with laughter, The Lake House brings to life the wide range of human emotions and the difficult journey from heartbreak to healing.

VICTORIA ROSE. Fifty years before, a group of teenage friends promised each other never to leave their idyllic lakeside town. But the call of Hollywood and a bigger life was too strong for Victoria . . . and she alone broke that pledge. Now she has come home, intent on making peace with her demons, even if her former friends shut her out. Haunted by tragedy, she longs to find solace with her childhood sweetheart, but even this tender man may be unable to forgive and forget.

HEATHER BREGMAN. At twenty-eight, after years as a globe-trotting columnist, she’s abandoned her controlling fiancé and their glamorous city life to build one on her own terms. Lulled by a Victorian house and a gorgeous locale, she’s determined to make the little community her home. But the residents, fearful of change and outsiders, will stop at nothing to sabotage her dreams of lakeside tranquility.

As Victoria and Heather become unlikely friends, their mutual struggle to find acceptance—with their neighbors and in their own hearts—explores the chance events that shape a community and offer the opportunity to start again.

PARTICULARS OF THIS BOOK :

Published by:  Galley Books/Simon&Schuster
Pages:  383 plus Reader's Group Guide
Genre:  Fiction/General
Author:  Marci Nault
Website:  http://www.MarciNault.com   and http://www.101dreamscometrue.com
Purchase this book:  Barnes & Noble


ABOUT THE AUTHOR :

Marci Nault, originally from Massachusetts, lives in California and has a passion for travel and figure skating.  the founder of the motivational website 101 Dreams Come True, she has been featured in newspapers and magazines, and on radio stations.  Visit her at her websites as listed above for more interesting information on her!


INTERVIEW !!!!

The Bookish Libraria is thrilled to be able to sponsor this interview with Marci Nault today.  Welcome, Marci!  Let's get right down to the questions...

1)       Tell us something about yourself, please.  How do most people describe you?

 

Most people describe me as an explosion of vibrant energy. I tend to be friendly and outgoing and I haven’t learned the rule of not speaking to strangers. As a writer, people fascinate me and I love to hear their stories. I figure if I can be open about my story then others will feel comfortable to share their dreams and lives with me. I believe that our dreams are a road map to the person we’re meant to be and the life we’re meant to live. I’ve spent the last five years going after my life-list and out of the 101 Dreams Come True that I’d written down I’ve accomplished 89. You can follow my journey and learn more at www.101dreamscometrue.com. The thing that most people don’t know about me is that I can also be incredibly shy and I’ve had to work hard to overcome it.

2)      Briefly, from where did the idea for your novel germinate?

 

I had a nighttime dream that I’d found the perfect house and bought it on the spot without doing any research. When I moved in I realized all my neighbors were almost fifty years my senior and some weren’t happy to have me while others wanted to interfere in my life and set me up with grandsons. When I woke I knew I had to write the story.

3)      Who first told you you could write well, and how did it affect you?

 

 For the most part people told me that I couldn’t write. They said that though I had great ideas my structure was poor. I spent years writing in secret. When I wrote my first novel and sent it to agents they said I was a great storyteller, but that it wasn’t a book they could sell because at the time love stories weren’t in style. I’d planned to give up on becoming a novelist, but their positive feedback kept the dream alive. When I decided to write, The Lake House, I read books on craft and grammar and taught myself how to be the best writer I could. I wrote some really horrible stuff and edited many times before finalizing the manuscript. When my agent first spoke to me and told me that I wasn’t just a writer but a true poet in my descriptions I didn’t know what to say. I kept wondering if she really meant it. As more people said it, I realized that I’d become the writer I’d always aspired to be through tremendous hard work.

4)      Which contemporary authors do you most admire?

 

Ann Patchett’s Bel Canto is by far my favorite story. When I met her I was star struck. She was shy and very gracious. I enjoy reading Jodi Picoult and Kristen Hannah along with Pamela Ribon.

5)      Which are your favorite classical authors?

 

 F. Scott Fitzgerald, Judy Blume (okay she’s not classical but as a young child I felt she was a master), Walt Whitman, Charles Dickens, and Jane Austen.

6)      Jump into any book, which character would you be?

 

 I’d actually like to be Heather in my own novel, The Lake House, just to be able to live in Nagog and have root beer floats with Tommy. I did think about being Hermione from Harry Potter because she’s a bookworm and a witch. But the character I always related to in my childhood was Sarah from “A Little Princess.” No matter what happened to her she believed in love and used her imagination to make her world better.

7)      If you could have 5 historical people to dinner, who would they be?  What would you have to eat?

 

 If I could have dinner with five historical people I’d want to do it in a vineyard overlooking Florence, Italy. We’d eat fresh ricotta with warm bread, lovely spinach (the Italians make it taste wonderful), and pasta (cooked al dente) with fresh vegetables and a light pesto sauce. We’d have decadent chocolate truffles with strawberries for dessert. Oh, onto the people, (I got slightly caught up in remembering the food of Florence) Michelangelo, Leonardo Da Vinci, Mary Magdelaine, Jane Austen, and Einstein.

8)      Read any good books in the past 6 months?        The Language of Flowers

9)      Favorite two tv shows:        “Friends” and “The Big Bang Theory”

10)   Favorite movie of all time:     Sabrina

11)   Are you working on a new book?

 

Yes. It’s about how memories affect who we are, and that’s all I can say right now.

12)   Anything else I forgot to ask you?

I’m an avid adult competitive figure skater. I salsa and tango dance, and I love to travel the world.

 

Thanks so much for stopping by, Marci.  Wonderful interview with lots of personal information that gives us good insight into who you really are!  I think I do see some "Heather" in you. :]  We'll look forward to your new book when it comes out. 

 

 

THE BOOKISH DAME REVIEWS :
 

"The Lake House" is a refreshing and timely read for this generation.  It's the story of an era nearly lost, actually, when friendships were close and communities were tight-knit; as well as what happens when one or two of the "flock" step out of the mold and then come "home."  It's also the story of what makes a place a "home" and what constitutes family in a broader sense.
 

Part love story, coming of age, and coming to grips with loss and grief, this is the perfect book for those who love one that tells a rich and heartfelt tale.  It's a great read for any place and time...not only for beachy, summer days, but throughout the year when you want to be taken away to a sort of Nicholas Sparks place and time.
 

Marci Nault is an accomplished writer.  She's a fine character interpretor with an eye for the depth and meat of angst and reality.  Her people are carefully created and beautifully developed so that they could be your every day friends and neighbors.  Her love interests ring true to life and break your heart with their easy and touching ways.  She stealthily causes them to plant themselves before you realize it, making it impossible to stop reading her novel until you find out what happens to all of them in the end!
 

I'm not one who loves "chick lit," so don't look for this to be in that category.  It's much more than that.  Better writing, stronger storyline, a more unique grip on human relationships...

I think you'll really like this book for the summer.

 

5 stars               Deborah/TheBookishDame

 

 

 

"The Shortest Way Home" by Juliette Fay ~ A Great Read

"The Shortest Way Home" by Juliette Fay

SUMMARY:

A NOVEL FULL OF HUMOR AND HOPE FOR FINDING YOURSELF WHERE YOU LEAST EXPECTED

 

Sean has spent twenty years in Third World war zones and natural disaster areas, fully embracing what he’d always felt was his life’s mission. But when burnout sets in, Sean is reluctantly drawn home to Belham, Massachusetts, the setting of Fay’s much-loved Shelter Me. There, he discovers that his steely aunt, overly dramatic sister, and quirky nephew are having a little natural disaster of their own. When he reconnects with a woman from his past, Sean has to wonder if the bonds of love and loyalty might just rewrite his destiny. Completely relatable, The Shortest Way Home is another perfect serving of a slice of life from the irresistible Fay.

Winner of the Library Journal Award for Best Women's Fiction


PARTICULARS OF THE BOOK :
Published by:  Penguin Group
Pages:  416
Genre:  General Fiction
Author Website:  Juliette Fay

Trailer of the Book:

SOMETHING ABOUT THE AUTHOR :

Juliette Fay’s first novel, Shelter Me, was a 2009 Massachusetts Book Award Book of the Year. Her second novel, Deep Down True, was short-listed for the Women’s Fiction Award by the American Library Association. She received a bachelor’s degree from Boston College and a master’s degree from Harvard University. She lives in Massachusetts with her husband and four children. The Shortest Way Home is her third novel.

 

 

THE DAME'S TAKE ON THE BOOK :

Juliette Fay has written a compulsively readable book about the pull of love and commitment over the draw of what can seem to be selfless motives and adventure.   This is a book that was so absorbing I read it through without stopping to breathe in one afternoon.  There are hints of Anne Tyler in Fay’s simple, stating- the-facts writing style…heartbreaking moments of the ordinary that capture you.   A book to be read with a cup of tea or three and an uninterrupted few hours to yourself.

The characters drawn in this novel are just lovely and beloved.  Kevin, a child with sensory  integration disorder, is charming and loveable while he presents a plethora of problems to his “just passing through” uncle.  The uncle--Sean, fighting  his own demons of concern over inheriting his family’s genetics for Huntington’s Disease, only wants a respite from the fear and from being  a “war weary” nurse in horrific Third World countries.  However, he finds his home town and his own family as challenging as those he just tried to escape. Other characters are equally well-defined and loveable in Fay's truth-telling.  They reach out from the pages and live in your imagination.

I found the conflicts of Sean’s decision to go back to his mission work vrs his need to be responsible for his nephew and failing aunt…and to find lasting love and acceptance in his hometown, brilliantly and beautifully represented.  I loved the story and felt the pressures of Sean’s conflict with him.   The inspirations and recognition of his  authentic self gained from old friends and family serve as a lesson for Sean and us.  This is a deeply moving story.  I felt myself drawn in several times, and moved to tears.

Juliette Fay’s prose is beautiful and deftly handled.  She has a way with words and with imparting wisdom. This is a book to enjoy and savor.  I’m inspired to read all of her books.

4.5 stars              Deborah/TheBookishDame