At The Edge Of The Orchard by Tracy Chevalier is set in Northwest Ohio in 1838. Settlers from New England bring starts of apple trees from home but also get seedlings from John Chapman, aka, Johnny Appleseed. To prove their land claim, they must have 50 apple trees producing within three years. This story was not only about the problems they faced, it was also about one of the sons who found his way to California and worked to pack seeds and seedlings of the Redwoods and Sequoias and ship them to England.
The General's Women by Susan Wittig Albert. I was already acquainted with this author from some of her light mysteries series. This is the first time I've read any of her more serious books. I really enjoyed reading about Eisenhower during WWII and the young Irish woman, Kay Summersby, who was his driver and alleged paramour. Albert does a good job of fleshing out the rumours using letters, memoirs and reports from the time. Ike was the first president that I have strong memories of.
Thomas Jefferson And The Tripoli Pirates by Brian Kilmeade and Don Yaeger is the history of the early 1800's Barbary War, which is where the line from the Marine Hymn, "From the halls of Montezuma to the shores of Tripoli" comes from. If I ever knew anything about this war, I had forgotten it. The book was interesting, but not great.
In The Midst of Winter by Isabel Allende - an appropriate book for this month. Three people brought together during a snowstorm in present day Brooklyn, NY. Their stories harken back to the turmoils in South and Central America during the 1970's. A very good read with a great twist at the end. I've read some of Allende before and now plan to go back and read some of her books that I haven't read.
Hold Tight the Thread by Jane Kirkpatrick is the third in her Tender Ties Historical Series. Had I realized that I might not have bought it at the Friends of the Library book sale - reading the first two in the series would probably have helped tie this third one in. Having said that, I still liked reading about the early settlement of Oregon. The main character, Marie Dorion, a Native American from the Ioway Tribe, is the only woman in the overland Pacific Fur Company expedition of 1810 sent to establish a post at Astoria. She and her third husband, a French Canadian, along with her and their children, then settle in the Willamette River Valley. I do enjoy historical fiction based on real people.
Savage Beauty by Nancy Milford is the biography of Edna St. Vincent Millay. I do like biographies and should read more of them. I especially enjoyed reading about this poet and all the others mentioned with whom she associated. Millay had a harrowing childhood. As the eldest, she had to care for her younger sisters after their parents divorced and the mother was often absent doing private duty nursing.
I always assumed that St. Vincent was a family name, but her father named her after the hospital where his younger brother's life was saved. Millay was known as Vincent most of her life. Milford is also the writer of another of my favorite biographies, Zelda. Her next book is to be about Rose Kennedy - another one I hope to read.
To wrap up my reading year, I read a total of 112 books. This was my lightest reading month, with six books; March was my heaviest, with 16 books read.
For the year, my two favorite reads this year were Lockdown by Laurie R. King and Nina George's The Little French Bistro. I hope both these authors have new books coming out in the new year. Happy reading!!
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