The Women in the Castle by Jessica Shattuck

A compelling story about three women who at the end of World War 2 share a previously luxurious castle home. trying to pick up the pieces of their lives in a devastated Germany. An interesting exploration of people who had to deal with what they knew about the horrific actions of the Hitler regime, their secrets, denials, acquiescences that enabled them to survive the horrors of the Holocaust and the war.

In The Great Green Room by Amy Gary

 An informative, interesting and quick read that focuses on this author's private life and relationships over the years she attended college and then developed into a children's author. It leaves me desirous to know more about her writing. I am familiar with only the most well known like Goodnight Moon and The Runaway Bunny. I do not want to be negative about this book but I find that I do need to express my regret that the book is so focused on this author's personal life. She was such a giant in writing children's books, and also in establishing children's books as a lucrative genre. I would love to know more about her impact on children's literature. It is sad to realize that she died so young. What other treasures might she have produced?

The King's Curse by Philippa Gregory

Fascinating historical fiction about Plantagenet Margaret Pole and her very precarious relationship to the Tudor family during the reigns of King Henry VII and then his son, King Henry VIII.  Married off to a kindly knight, she raises her family in rural obscurity hoping to avoid the horrible fate of her father and brother, both of whom were executed. She and her husband become foster parents for Arthur, the Prince of Wales, and then her life becomes gradually more intertwined in the Tudor Family travails as she develops a close relationship with Catherine of Aragon, and involved in caring for Princess Mary. Rich in detail and flavor, this book adds the perspective of an important player in the Tudor story.

Before We Visit The Goddess by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni

Absorbing narrative of three generations of Indian women. Well written novels about family trials, tribulations, and triumphs as well, provide a reader with much to contemplate, and a diversity of cultural experiences enriches our understanding of life.

Music of the Ghosts by Vaddey Ratner

Very difficult book to read/absorb about Cambodians who endured and survived the horrific Pol Pot regime.