Category: Reviewed by Linda

On Jack’s 5th birthday, Ma creates a celebration out of the meager resources available to her. She has lived in an 11′ by 11′ foot “room” for 7 years, since she was kidnapped and held by a sexual predator.  Jack’s whole life has been defined by the room and items doled out by “Old Nick.”  Although based on a terrifying premise, this is a story of courage, determination, and love.  Beautifully told in Jack’s words, this is a story of the great love of a mother for her child, creativity in the face of want, and the persistence of a woman in her fight for freedom from captivity.

Outlander is the first in a series of seven novels (with more coming!)  Hurtled back in time more than two hundred years to 1743 Scotland, World War II nurse Claire Randall finds herself caught in the midst of a world torn apart by violence, pestilence, and revolution.  Her application of 20th-century attitudes and medical knowledge to a more primitive time is fascinating; the history of the clans’ fight for independence is compelling; and the love that grows between Claire and young soldier Jamie Fraser is unforgettable.  The subsequent books continue their story, bringing them to Revolutionary War-era America. You’ll want to read it again and again!

The format of this 1974 Pulitzer Prize-winning historical novel of the Battle of Gettysburg is unconventional, alternating between the reflections of Northern and Southern soldiers, both high and low ranking. The result is a personal and compelling description of the battle that many historians see as a critical turning point in the ultimate resolution of the Civil War. Mr. Shaara’s son, Jeffrey, has written both “prequels” and a sequel to his father’s work, in the same conversational style. The Killer Angels will stand alone, or as part of the series, and will give you an understanding of war in a very personal way. Don’t be surprised if you want to read it again and again!