{"id":771,"date":"2016-01-06T13:06:43","date_gmt":"2016-01-06T18:06:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/liclblog.townoflongisland.us\/?p=771"},"modified":"2016-01-06T13:08:34","modified_gmt":"2016-01-06T18:08:34","slug":"favorite-books-read-in-2015","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/liclblog.townoflongisland.us\/?p=771","title":{"rendered":"Favorite books of 2015: a top 10 list"},"content":{"rendered":"

Amidst all the wonderful books I read last year, here are some of my favorites (in somewhat chronological order)<\/strong><\/span><\/h1>\n

 <\/p>\n

A fine romance: falling in love with the English countryside\"fine<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

By Susan Branch<\/p>\n

Lent to me by my friend, coworker, and kindred spirit, Melissa, reading this book\u00a0was a great way to start the New Year. This wonderfully illustrated and told story of Susan Branch\u2019s love affair with not only the English countryside but also her husband who she met in her home town on Martha\u2019s Vineyard.<\/p>\n

The good braider : a novel<\/em><\/p>\n

By Terry Farish\"good<\/a><\/p>\n

I read this young adult novel for the Maine Historical Society book group about \u201cHome.\u201d This book, written in free verse, tells the story of a young refugee woman from Sudan who is adjusting to life in Portland, Maine. A must read for anyone who lives or works in Portland, to appreciate what some of our fellow Portlanders have gone through to call our fair city home.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Under the wide and starry sky: a novel<\/em><\/p>\n

By Nancy Horan\"under<\/a><\/p>\n

This lyrical story, mentioned several times in previous blogs in 2015,\u00a0about Robert Louis Stevenson and his wife Fanny educated me about this author of \u201cTreasure Island\u201d and \u201cKidnapped\u201d in an entertaining way. \u201cLouis\u201d and Fanny travel the world in search of good health (and fodder for stories) for Louis before his early death at the age of 44 in the Samoan Islands.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

To bless the space between us: a book of invocations and blessings<\/em><\/p>\n

By John O\u2019Donohue\"to<\/a><\/p>\n

I really loved this man\u2019s poetry \u2013 so much that I shared \u201cFor a new father\u201d with a coworker who had his first child last spring, and \u201cFor a new position\u201d with friends who started a new job. Other favorites are for a new home, for the traveler, for marriage, and for work.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Hawaii: a novel<\/em><\/p>\n

By James Michener\"Hawaii<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

This book, which I bought for myself on my birthday at an antique store, took up several months of my summer, in anticipation of a cruise to Hawaii that Michael and I took with my mom. While quite a tome it kept my interest and was great historical background for our trip. It was a\u00a0wonderful book for reading on Long Island\u2019s beaches, as well as on the cruise ship with my mother, while enjoying our afternoon tea.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Quiet: the power of introverts in a world that can\u2019t stop talking<\/em><\/p>\n

By Susan Cain\"quiet\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Lent to me by a fellow introvert, this book was encouraging for those of us who fall into that spectrum.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

For all of us, one today<\/em><\/p>\n

By Richard Blanco\"for<\/a><\/p>\n

I recommended this for my book group without reading any of Richard Blanco\u2019s work, and promptly fell in love with his words \u2013 while he is a poet his prose was just as joyous. This book, about his journey as the inaugural poet for President Obama\u2019s second term, inspired me to read some of his poetry books.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Broken for you<\/em><\/p>\n

By Stephanie Kallos\"broken<\/a><\/p>\n

Another book group selection, I really loved this book. The book is full of quirky characters \u2013 my fellow book group participants thought it too unreal, but I said, \u201coh no, this is just like living on an island where quirky characters abound!\u201d I loved the setting (Seattle), the characters, and the story. I was sad when it ended.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

From holidays to holy days: a Benedictine walk through Advent<\/em><\/p>\n

By Alfred Holtz\"from<\/a><\/p>\n

This was my Advent reading, which was a wonderful way to ease into the Christmas season. Written by a Benedictine monk in New Jersey and his observations of the street scenes in the light of the Benedictine philosophy and way of life, I was uplifted and inspired.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

A week in winter: a novel<\/em><\/p>\n

By Marcia Willette\"week<\/a><\/p>\n

Finally, another wonderful author introduced to me by Melissa (see the first book in this list) \u2013 Marcia Willette, a British writer who sets many her novels in Cornwall. I loved this book with the setting and great ending (although a bittersweet love story amidst, which is where the title came from). Fortunately Marcia Willette has written many books so I\u2019m eager to enjoy her books for years to come.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

What were some of your favorite books in 2015?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Amidst all the wonderful books I read last year, here are some of my favorites (in somewhat chronological order)   A fine romance: falling in love with the English countryside By Susan Branch Lent to me by my friend, coworker, and kindred spirit, Melissa, reading this book\u00a0was a great way to start the New Year. … Continue reading Favorite books of 2015: a top 10 list<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[328,210],"class_list":["post-771","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-books","tag-328","tag-favorite-books"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/liclblog.townoflongisland.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/771","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/liclblog.townoflongisland.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/liclblog.townoflongisland.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/liclblog.townoflongisland.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/liclblog.townoflongisland.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=771"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/liclblog.townoflongisland.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/771\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":783,"href":"https:\/\/liclblog.townoflongisland.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/771\/revisions\/783"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/liclblog.townoflongisland.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=771"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/liclblog.townoflongisland.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=771"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/liclblog.townoflongisland.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=771"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}