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It's almost Easter. It is the most Holy time of the year. It is the day when Jesus Christ rose from the dead. Some people call it Resurrection Sunday. However, according to A. J. Swoboda, Friday and Saturday are just as important. So, there is Good Friday, Saturday and Easter Sunday. Good Friday and Saturday typify a time of heavy darkness: On Friday, Jesus is crucified. On Saturday, there is deadly silence. In A Glorious Dark, the author beams his light on to darkness proving that in darkness there is hope, and in darkness there is change. In our darkest periods, is the light at the end of our tomb. In our dark times, there is no reason to give up. There is no shame in having a Messiah whom some people might think of as a Fallen hero because He laid in a dark grave. There are also answers in our most silent periods. Those lonely times can lead us into our community. The strength of the book A Glorious Dark by A.J. Swoboda is that the author is able to take the full Holy period, with its dark days, and make those days sing with personal commitment and hope. A. J. Swoboda does bridge the wide gap of darkness and light. This is the time of seed growth, light after darkness. A. J. Swoboda's thoughts about Communion gave me pause. Yes, Communion is a way for a community to enter into relationship with God during, after and before Holy Week. Communion is indeed a celebration of Divine love. The broken are accepted. Those living in a perplexed dark are accepted. Nonetheless, my mind pondered this question. Who should or should not take part in such a Holy ceremony? Are there boundaries to be observed within the community? If we choose, all of us are able to receive the gift of a risen Savior on the third day, Easter. Perhaps, therein lies the answers to the ritual of Communion. http://ajswoboda.com/

I haven't read the poetry book yet. I fell in love with the title. It made me laugh. The video reminded me so much of the conversations I have with my cat. Believe it or not, my cat is a Tuxedo. She is black and white like the one in the video. Her pattern is a bit different. My cat wears a white and black mask. I always think of Zorro for some reason. Thanks for entering me in the Daily Dose.

I am crying. It is odd because this is my shortest book review. I do not want to write one word that would spoil the treasury of moments in this novel. I can only write stupendous. Thank you Mr. Chris Cleave.

Jesus Calling by Sarah Young "Jesus Calling" by Sarah Young is filled with spiritually practical, simple steps for the mature Christian or babe in Christ. Each devotional ends with a scripture or scriptures. This addition of scriptures to the author's thoughts always helps me in a better meditation. The scriptures are like a memory tool for me. The devotions for each day and month are reality based. For example, we shouldn't expect a perfect day everyday just because we have chosen to live the way that the Lord has chosen for mankind. Some days are horrible. Sarah Young calls these days "the sludge of the fallen world." Sarah Young in "Jesus Calling" gently guides us in ways to share an intimacy with God. I look forward to growing and changing through the use of this devotional. It is a God sent gift. Also, the book is small and very attractive. That means it can go with me anywhere. It is just one more added benefit.

The Dream Room by Marcel Moring "The Dream Room" by Marcel Moring is about a small family. There is the mother, father, son and grandparents. The family lives in England. The grandparents are of Dutch and English descent. When the book begins, the family are faced with hard ecnomic times. It is after WWII. When the mother also loses her job, a neighbor has the perfect idea. This family will help him with his business. It is a dream come true. The neighbor is a doll doctor. He also sells airplane kits to hobbyists. For whatever reason, customers are coming into the shop looking at the completed airplanes hanging from the ceiling instead of looking at the kits on the shelves. The art of crafting has gone by the wayside. Why buy the kit? If the plane is already put together, buy the ready made. Perhaps, the war is to be blamed. People fear the passing of time. Time and life are fragile. David's family live above the doll hospital. The family decides to put the planes together for their neighbor, the doll doctor. I like to think a lot of love and thought went into building each airplane. The father had been an air pilot during the war. When his parachute crashed, by serendipity he discovered his soon to be wife. She was his nurse while he recuperated from many broken bones. This book is about love and dreams on many different levels. I especially enjoyed reading about the romance between David's father and mother. The way they met one another is unforgettable. There is the mother's love of the Dream Room at David's grandfather's home. In the Dream Room is a curved window and a seat where David's mother would sit dreaming while looking out to sea or reading a book that takes her faraway. Then, of course, there is the father's love of flying. "When he flew his mind emptied and there was nothing but the thrust of the plane...." There is also David's passion for cooking. I love culinary books. This part of the book was really enjoyable to me. I always see male chefs in restaurants or in a movie or on tv. I never think about what these men must have been like as little boys. It's fascinating. Also, I felt throughout the book a feeling of crossing the globe: Paris, England, Holland and Germany. It made me think about the origins of ourselves and our neighbors. We are complex. Each of us is made up of many different places like a patchworked globe. We are like roses, petal upon petal, layers and layers of shaded differences brought together by the beginnings of love. At the end of the book, Marcel Moring keeps us in the Dream Room through the words of a fable. I will think more about that fable tonight.

"So Long a Letter" by Mariama Ba is a spectacular book. Ramatoulaye is a widow when the novel begins. We meet her while she is in mourning. Soon, we learn about the other sorrows of her heart. Times throughout which she cried and cried. Her healing strength comes through writing this letter to Aissatou. Because the friendship means so much to her Ramatoulaye names her daughter after Aissatou. I thought this was a beautiful way of showing appreciation for a friend who always had a listening ear and a nonjudgmental heart. In this letter to Aissatou, Ramatoulaye gives details about her marriage to Madou Fall. This lengthy letter is like a flashback in time. Both Aissatou and Ramatoulaye faced the identical situation with their men. Each woman chose a different way to handle their new circumstances. Still, neither woman judges the other woman. I adored the book for so many reasons. I loved the friendship between the two African women. I enjoyed learning about the West African culture and I liked learning more about the African male. At the last page, I had my pen ready to write down other titles by Mariama Ba. Unfortunately, this is her first and last novel. "Ba died tragically in 1981 in Dakar after a long illness, just before her second novel Le Chant Ecarlate appeared. "So Long A Letter" by Mariamb Ba is translated from the French by Modupe Bode-Thomas. If anyone can translate the French phrase, I would appreciate knowing the name of the novel in English.

"Gatsby's Girl" by Caroline Preston is a powerful novel based on real people. Ginevra Perry/Granger is F. Scott Fitzgerald's first love. It isn't long before the relationship ends due to an assortment of reasons. Ginevra abruptly ends the relationship. All through her life she will look back and wonder did she make the right choice. These feelings lead Ginevra to continue following F. Scott Fitzgerald's life by reading his novels and clipping newsworthy items from the newspapers. She wonders whether characters like Daisy Buchanan in "The Great Gatsby" are remembrances of her on the written page. It is like turning back the clock to the Roaring Twenties as Caroline Preston unfolds their story. The novel swells with emotion as Ginevra's life and F. Scott Fitzgerald's life and Zelda's life goes around and around in regrets and a need for love and identity. It is a book about a Lost Generation, a generation still able to help us better understand ourselves. The novel is great. It is Historical Fiction at its best.

Posted November 24, 2008, 11:55 AM EST: Fra Filippo, a Carmelite monk, and Lucrezia, a novititate, are two of the most unforgettable characters in "The Miracles of Prato" by Laurie Albanese and Laura Morowitz. This is Historical Fiction at it's best. The story takes place during the Fifteenth Century. During this time Fra Filippo Lippi is a monk as well as a very talented artist. One of his famous patrons is Cosimo De Medici. Lucrezia, a novititate, from the Santa Margherita convent becomes the woman who will pose as The Holy Mother for one of his paintings. While he paints Lucrezia, Fra Lippi falls in love with this beautiful woman. Sadly, in Prato it is well known that Fra Lippi is weak when it comes to fleshly desires. Amazingly, he does not succumb to the beauty of Lucrezia. He respects her as he would the Virgin Mary. Nothing unsavory happens between he and Lucrezia during their time together in the monk's bottega. Although these two people hold themselves above reproach, scandal takes over their lives. The monk and novititate meet all sorts of obstacles. I cried while reading the novel. I thought about the power held by men in high religious establishments. I pondered the fact that beauty can become a curse rather than a blessing to women. I wondered about marriage vows. Is there more than one way for a couple to become legally married? The novel constantly awakened thoughts and made me question age old philosophies. "The Miracles of Prato" is also suspenseful. Fra Lippi sees a flash of red walking quickly past him more than once as he travels about the city. Who is it? There is a missing child. Where is the baby? Who took the child? Then, there is the Sacra Cinola, the belt of the Madonna. It is a Holy relic. If it does not remain in the right hands, what will happen? Is their a curse attached to the Sacra Cinola? Do miracles flow from the green and gold belt belonging to the Virgin Mary? Saint Thomas was the one who gave the Sacra Cinola to the Holy Mother. Teresa de' Valenti is one of the people who believes she has witnessed a miracle from The Gift of Heaven. With the miraculous birth of her son, Ascanio, Teresa de' Valenti chooses to always believe in the truth and virtue of Lucrezia. More than once, she will show her appreciation to Lucrezia. Laura Albanese and Laura Morowitz have written an extraordinary novel.It is a portrait of long lasting love. I anxiously await their next book.

The Power of a Secret I loved Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards. I am anxious to read her next book. This book touched my heart. There wasn't one character that I could put out of my mind. This book proved to me we can't change our lives. We can only accept what is given to us. The husband tried to fix his family's world. All the while he was destroying himself and the lives of people who became involved with him. The book is powerful. There is always victory in hope. This is proven by Phoebe.

The Sister by Poppy Adams is fantastic. If you like to ask what makes a character or characters tick, you will love this book. It is also a novel about family. While reading the book, I realized how tightly woven together a family becomes through the years. The environment in which the family lives and grows definitely has its role in our psychological growth. Whether separate or together a family remains a unit playing upon each other like musical instruments. This book is like an organ. There are pipes, more pipes and many keys. Layers upon layers of musical melodies to read and reread. At the end, the mind still wonders why. Poppy Adams definitely deserves applause for this novel. bookluver

Why do we pick a book? Sometimes I, like this instance, fall in love with the title. Secondly, which soon became my number one reason, I fell in love with the partnership of Sherlock Holmes and Mary Russell. Since their first encounter, I have followed the pair on other adventures. The adventures never grow less exciting only more exciting.

Never having lived in a warzone, "The English Patient by Michael Ondaatje gave me a greater understanding of the horrors of war. Three men and one woman remain living in a villa in the Tuscan hills. The villa has been destroyed by bombs during WWII. The lives of these four people, Hana, Kip, Caravaggio and the English patient are also damaged deeply. The poetic way in which Michael Ondaatje writes is spectacular. Somehow the poetic prose took me under the skin of the characters. I began to see and feel what the people felt as if I were there walking with Kip to find undiscovered mines, with Caravaggio as he shared conversations and morphine with the English patient, listening to Hana read "Kim" by Kipling to the burnt and unrecognizable English patient and falling down a well of memories with the English patient. Herodotus always in his line of vision.

Brother, I'm Dying by Edwidge Danticat is a moving memoir. The people in Haiti go through their struggles with the desire to survive without loss of honesty. Edwidge Danticat interweaves her family tree into the story. While her father and uncle deal with aging and death, Mrs. Danticat never stops caring for uncle and father while at the same time expecting her first baby. Also, the reader experiences an immigrant's first feelings and their treatment when they step on the shores of Miami. The answer, for Haitians, is astounding. To the very last page, Brother, I'm Dying is magnificent.

Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy is a great classic. The story takes place in France and England during the horrific French Revolution. The story is fast paced. It is a mystery, a love story and Historical Fiction wrapped all in one. Once you begin the book it is impossible to put down until you discover the identity of the Scarlet Pimpernel. The Scarlet Pimpernel is smarter than smart outwitting all the people looking for him. While these people continue to chase and search, the Scarlet Pimpernel continues is mission. His mission is to save the French Aristocrats and take these people to the safe shores of England, far away from the guillotine which takes the life of men, women and children daily.

Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel is a delicious book. It is a love story wrapped in divine Mexican dishes. The romance is peppered with jealousy, undying love, the desire to hold on to old traditions. Reading the book is like being invited into a Mexican home for a short visit to experience magical realism. Will I ever forget the characters in this drama? No. I will always remember Tita, Rosaura, Pedro, Mama Elena, John and all of the other characters. How happy I feel that Esperanza's daughter saved Tita's cookbook for us to enjoy.

Cry, the Beloved Country by Alan Paton is a great book. It is a story which takes place in South Africa. It is a story about the great love of two fathers, their heartbreak, their forgiveness. It is also about South Africa's struggle to grow and become healthier.

Every so often I must travel back to Anne Tyler's Baltimore. Again, the place and characters are not disappointing. Anne Tyler writes about extraordinary people living ordinary lives. One of these people is Barnaby Gaitlin and his family in A Patchwork Planet by Anne Tyler. He makes money in a totally humble way. Reminding the reader money isn't as important as satisfaction in what you do. The Patchwork Planet is great. You won't regret reading it.

Luncheon of the Boating Party: A Novel by Susan Vreeland is beyond wonderful. She brought Auguste Renoir to life. On every page I felt his passion for painting. The models became my neighbors. For the first time I began to see models as people with other lives. Models pose with happy hearts and sad hearts. For a time models sacrifice their duties, their loves in order to help someone else achieve a dream. What can I say? I can only say thank you to Susan Vreeland for writing such a fantastic book.

Anne Tyler's Digging to America is wonderfully magical. It is a mirror into the soul of America. There are Iranians, Chinese, Koreans, and those who have been born in America. Anne Tyler uses her pen to lightly entertain. Next, she shows the psychological and/or emotional struggles of all these Americans. While reading the book, I saw the strengths of newly arriving Americans. The newcomers to America are exquisitely agile in walking the tightrope of America. Digging to America filled me with gratitude for the founding of America and its philosophy. America is a place of freedom. This is a place where old and new traditions are welcome. Thank you Anne Tyler for helping me to appreciate the differences in each American.

It is World War II. Many paintings in the Hermitage are taken away and hidden before Germany's army can invade Leningrad. On the walls are just empty gilded frames. There is hope and faith that the famous paintings are gone from the walls for only a short time. In the meantime, Marina and Anya build a memory palace. Memorizing each painting and its rightful frame on the wall. This will ensure that each piece of Art will return to its original place. This is also an easy way to discover which paintings are still missing. Marina loves this museum. Her memorization is like a prayer as she walks the halls of the Hermitage. She remembers all the painted Madonnas. She knows the name of each artist. Many years later Marina suffers Alzheimers disease. During this time her mind leaves the present and wanders back to the war days spent in the Hermitage. Her family is confused. Her few words make no sense to her husband, daughter and son. It is amazing how Debra Dean in a first novel is able to catch the past. For me, the past became the present just like it became for Marina. The novel 'Madonnas of Leningrad' by Debra Dean is beauty mixed with sadness. It is a song in prose to be read and remembered.

Portrait of an Unknown Woman by Vanora Bennett is a fantastic Historical Fiction novel. I felt part of the Thomas More family living in England during a time of religious persecution. It was also a time of tested loyalties whether to husband or father. During this Medieval period Vanora Bennett not only took me into the life of a famous artist, Hans Holbein. I was also introduced to Thomas More as a man with a family and not just somone I had read about in an encyclopedia. Also, I have gained a deeper appreciation of Art. There are so many hidden meanings in one painting. A painting can tell a family's secrets. Hans Holbein discovered the More's family secrets. He painted those secrets on to his canvas. Each day I couldn't wait to open this book and read more about this time in Medieval History. I am anxious to read more books by Vanora Bennett.

In the quiet village of Lochdubh this Christmas season there are problems and small mysteries to keep Hamish Macbeth on the run. The story is great whether you are a Scrooge or a Santa Claus at heart. Whomever you are it's fun spending Christmas in a Scottish village with Hamish and the other village people.