Boy Toy by Barry Lyga

Josh feels like an outcast in his small town. At eighteen, he's still suffering with the aftermath of being molested by his seventh-grade teacher when he was twelve, and it hasn't gotten any easier with time. Even though his name was never released during the course of her trial, everyone knows about his past.

During that same time five years before, Josh hurt one of his closest friends, Rachel. Now Rachel is forcing him to confront what he did to her and what happened to him all those years ago. But can Josh come to terms with what happened and move on?

This is a powerful story of the aftermath of child molestation, told from the victim's viewpoint. An emotional read.

Confessor by Terry Goodkind

Confessor is the last book in the epic Sword of Truth series. Once again, we join Richard and Kahlan as the world seems lost to evil. Both struggle with their own problems--Kahlan still not knowing who she is, and Richard desperate to find both her and a solution to everyone's problem--the Fellowship of the Order.

But other things threaten the good of all. With the Boxes of Orden in play once again, Richard strives to find a solution that will keep the world out of the Keeper's clutches--and out of despair. This final book is a climatic end to the story which began so long ago with Wizard's First Rule--with the final and most important wizard's rule of them all.

A masterful story that pulls elements from the other 10 novels in the series. The story begins with Wizard's First Rule.

Phantom by Terry Goodkind

Phantom, the sequel to Chainfire, and the second-to-last book of the Sword of Truth series takes off from where Chainfire ended. Goodkind has once again weaved magic throughout a world torn apart by strife.

As the final battle between those who believe the world is nothing but worthless and those who believe their lives are their own to live approaches, Richard must find a way to keep hope alive for all who follow him with faith in his abilities. Unknown players strike without warning, however, and he is lost to the cause once again. As he struggles to find Kahlan and anyone who might remember her, he is reminded time and time again that the world as they know it is coming to an end--unless he can stop it.

Phantom is a powerfully moving story that continues the Richard and Kahlan saga. To understand the entire story, one should begin with Wizard's First Rule.

My Name is Anne, She Said, Anne Frank by Jacqueline van Maarsen

If you like non-fiction try this one. We all know the story of Anne Frank but this one is from a different perspective. This is written by a friend of Anne's. Jacqueline tells about her parents and their background before introducing Anne into the story. Jacqueline was surprised to learn one day that her friend was gone. A letter was left behind saying that she and her family had gone to Switzerland. Jacqueline had no reason to believe that wasn't true and looked forward to seeing her friend again after the war. It was Anne's father Otto who broke the news to her. In the meantime we learn about life in Amsterdam during the war. If you like this genre I think you will find this interesting.

The Faraday Girls by Monica McInerney

This is the newest book by Monica McInerney (see post about The Alphabet Sisters below). As with that one, this is a story about families and how they relate to one another. In this one, the five Faraday sisters have kept telling a lie for 20 years - to protect each other, to protect their father, and to protect their beloved niece. When the truth comes out, the solution involves more lies which brings up the question - when do lies hurt and when are they good? Not necessarily a nice, tidy ending but one that fit the characters...and the lies.

Organize Your Life 650.11 Eis

If my friends knew that I had checked out a book with this title, they would assume that it was a fiction book. It isn't. We have lots of books at the Library that deal with de-cluttering and organizational tips and tools. I have several of these books at home. (I may not be able to put my hands on them right away but I do own some) Organizational books are one of my favorite genre of books. Why are there so many of them? My theory is this - there are the people who are natural born neat freaks. They cannot for the life of them imagine why someone would need a book to tell them to make their bed or put something back when you are finished with it or to get rid of clothes that haven't fit for 10 years or....... you get the point. Then there are the people like me. We think that the next trip to the container store or the next book (in this case) will be the answer to our dysfunction. It never really works which is why we always read the next book. This book is more up-to-date because it addresses the age of electronics. Everything else is what you would expect - make your bed, put things back when you are finished, get rid of clothes that haven't fit for 10 years.................... I haven't made any changes at home yet----------- maybe tomorrow I'll start. In the meantime I will continue to keep my eyes open for the next organizing book.

The Alphabet Sisters

This is an earlier book by Monica McInerney who wrote the book The Faraday Girls. As in her new book, this one is filled with the relationships between family members. In this book we are introduced to three adult sisters who have not spoken to one another in years. Their parents accept the situation but their paternal grandmother wants to put an end to the estrangement. Grannie uses her 80th birthday as an excuse to guilt everyone into coming together again. I'm sure that you can already guess the ending - but how they get there is the real story. If you are looking for sex, violence and suspense....well look somewhere else. If you like Maeve Binchy and Rosamund Pilcher-type books you will enjoy this one.