~Waiting On Wednesday~

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking The Spine.

Here's my pick!

How To Save A Life by Sara Zarr:


Jill MacSweeney just wants everything to go back to normal. But ever since her dad died, she's been isolating herself from her boyfriend, her best friends--everyone who wants to support her. You can't lose one family member and simply replace him with a new one, and when her mom decides to adopt a baby, that's exactly what it feels like she's trying to do. And that's decidedly not normal. With her world crumbling around her, can Jill come to embrace a new member of the family?

Mandy Kalinowski knows what it's like to grow up unwanted--to be raised by a mother who never intended to have a child. So when Mandy becomes pregnant, she knows she wants a better life for her baby. But can giving up a child be as easy as it seems? And will she ever be able to find someone to care for her, too?

Critically acclaimed author and National Book Award finalist Sara Zarr delivers a heart-wrenching story, told from dual perspectives, about what it means to be a family and the many roads we can take to become one.

Hardcover, 352 pages

Expected publication: October 18th 2011 by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

more details...

ISBN

0316036064 (ISBN13: 9780316036061)

What are YOU waiting for?

Just in Time for Valentine's Day!

The Art of Kissing by William Cane

Product Description

In The Art of Kissing, William Cane reveals that there is more to kissing than simply locking lips. Through a hundred thousand interviews he has discovered the truth about what men and women do, think, and feel when they kiss. Their input and his expert knowledge can help you to master the secrets of great kissing.

With specific techniques for more than thirty types of kisses, this updated and revised edition features:

* Overcoming first kiss shyness
* Secrets to increasing your 'kissability'
* Complete instructions on French Kissing
* Electric kisses, neck kisses, ear kisses and much more

Transform your kissing technique, pucker up with passion, and master The Art of Kissing today!

• Hardcover: 368 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin (January 5, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312615809
• ISBN-13: 978-0312615802

What are YOU waiting for today?

~Waiting On Wednesday~

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine.

My pick this week is Unfinished Desires: A Novel by Gail Godwin.

Product Description

From Gail Godwin, three-time National Book Award finalist and acclaimed New York Times bestselling author of Evensong and The Finishing School, comes a sweeping new novel of friendship, loyalty, rivalries, redemption, and memory.

It is the fall of 1951 at Mount St. Gabriel’s, an all-girls school tucked away in the mountains of North Carolina. Tildy Stratton, the undisputed queen bee of her class, befriends Chloe Starnes, a new student recently orphaned by the untimely and mysterious death of her mother. Their friendship fills a void for both girls but also sets in motion a chain of events that will profoundly affect the course of many lives, including the girls’ young teacher and the school’s matriarch, Mother Suzanne Ravenel.

Fifty years on, the headmistress relives one pivotal night, trying to reconcile past and present, reaching back even further to her own senior year at the school, where the roots of a tragedy are buried.

In Unfinished Desires, a beloved author delivers a gorgeous new novel in which thwarted desires are passed on for generations–and captures the rare moment when a soul breaks free.

• Hardcover: 416 pages
• Publisher: Random House (January 5, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345483200
• ISBN-13: 978-0345483201

What are YOU waiting for today?

Waiting On Wednesday

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine.

The Handbook for Lightning Strike Survivors by Michele Young Stone


From Netgalley:

On a sunny day in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, in 1977, Becca Burke, flame-haired daughter of Mary and Rowan Burke, was struck by lightning. She was eight years old. No one believed her, even when her Winnie-the-Pooh watch kept losing time and a spooky halo of light appeared over her head in every photograph taken after the strike. She was hit again when she was 16. Becca survived, but over time she would learn that outsmarting lightning was the least of her concerns.

Buckley R. Pitank never knew his real father, but his mother was the love of his life-- until the day she was struck and killed by lightning on a boat in Galveston, Texas, just as they were making a new home far away from their troubled past. Reeling from the loss of the one person who truly understood him, Buckley returns to Mont Blanc, Arkansas, to live at the mercy of his mother's estranged husband, the Reverend John Whitehouse. When he finally escapes, Buckley's quest to understand the power of lightning will lead him around the country and into the heart of a young woman who once thought she was alone in the world.

Publisher: Random House

• Category: Fiction
• Format: Hardcover, 384 pages
• On Sale: April 13, 2010
• Price: $24.00
• ISBN: 978-0-307-46447-7 (0-307-46447-4)

What is your Waiting On Wednesday pick for this week?

Waiting On Wednesday

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine.


Madison Stanton doesn't know where she is or how she got there. But she does know this - she is dead. And alone in a vast, dark space. The only company Maddy has in this place are luminescent objects that turn out to be all the things she lost while she was alive. And soon she discovers that, with these artifacts, she can reexperience - and even change - moments from her life.
Her first kiss.
A trip to Disney World.
Her sister's wedding.
A disastrous sleepover.
In reliving these moments, Maddy learns illuminating and frightening truths about her life - and death.

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Balzer + Bray (September 29, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061776793

What are YOU waiting for today?

Waiting On Wednesday

Waiting On Wednesday is hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine.

My pick for this week's WOW is The Journal of Helene Berr:

Synopsis

Not since The Diary of Anne Frank has there been such a book as this: The joyful but ultimately heartbreaking journal of a young Jewish woman in occupied Paris, now being published for the first time, 63 years after her death in a Nazi concentration camp.


On April 7, 1942, Hélène Berr, a 21-year-old Jewish student of English literature at the Sorbonne, took up her pen and started to keep a journal, writing with verve and style about her everyday life in Paris — about her studies, her friends, her growing affection for the “boy with the grey eyes,” about the sun in the dewdrops, and about the effect of the growing restrictions imposed by France’s Nazi occupiers. Berr brought a keen literary sensibility to her writing, a talent that renders the story it relates all the more rich, all the more heartbreaking.

• Publisher: Weinstein Books
• Pub. Date: November 03, 2009
• ISBN-13: 9781602860940
• Sales Rank: 125,904
• 304pp

What books are YOU waiting for today?

WAITING ON WEDNESDAY

Waiting On Wednesday is hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine.

From Amazon.com:
Product Description
From the acclaimed author of Acts of Faith (“A miracle . . . You can hardly conceive of a more affecting reading experience”—Houston Chronicle), a blistering new novel about the brutality and beauty of life on the Arizona-Mexico border and about the unyielding power of the past to shape our lives. Taking us from the turn of the twentieth century to our present day, from the impoverished streets of rural Mexico to the manicured lawns of suburban Connecticut, from the hot and dusty air of an isolated ranch to New York City in the wake of 9/11, Caputo gives us an impeccably crafted story about three generations of an Arizona family forced to confront the violence and loss that have become its inheritance.

When Gil Castle loses his wife in the Twin Tower attacks, he retreats to his family’s sprawling homestead in a remote corner of the Southwest. Consumed by grief, he has to find a way to live with his loss in this strange, forsaken part of the country, where drug lords have more power than police and violence is a constant presence. But it is also a world of vast open spaces, where Castle begins to rebuild his belief in the potential for happiness—until he starts to uncover the dark truths about his fearsome grandfather, a legacy that has been tightly shrouded in mystery in the years since the old man’s death.

When Miguel Espinoza shows up at the ranch, terrified after two friends were murdered in a border-crossing drug deal gone bad, Castle agrees to take him in. Yet his act of generosity sets off a flood of violence and vengeance, a fierce reminder of the fact that while he may be able to reinvent himself, he may never escape his history.

Searingly dramatic, bold and timely, Crossers is Philip Caputo’s most ambitious and brilliantly realized novel yet.

• Hardcover: 464 pages
• Publisher: Knopf (October 6, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0375411674

What are YOU waiting for?

~Waiting On Wednesday~

Ciao Bella by Gina Buonaguro and Janice Kirk

While in Europe researching her next novel, twenty-something American Tulia Rose falls headlong into a romance with a handsome sidewalk artist. As he takes her on a tour of Europe's artistic treasures, she begins writing the story of the painter Raphael and his secret lover.

Yet as her own affair grows deeper, Tulia's sidewalk artist grows more mysterious. Why does he seem so familiar? And what is his connection to the great Renaissance painter?
Set in Paris and Italy, this lyrical first novel interweaves two parallel love stories, offering readers a unique view on the research and inspiration that goes into creating historical novels such as The Girl with the Pearl Earring and The Birth of Venus.

Hardcover: 256 pages
Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books (October 13, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0312379927

~Waiting On Wednesday~

Waiting on Wednesday is a meme hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine.


Americans In Space by Mary E. Mitchell



Life is a challenge for 36-year-old Kate Cavanaugh, high school guidance counselor to a motley group of at-risk students. Two years after finding her young husband dead in bed beside her, Kate’s storybook life has vanished, and she and her two children are still reeling. Her daughter Charlotte, once a sweet girl, has morphed into an angry, tattooed, tongue-studded teen; and Hunter, Kate’s four-year-old, keeps his feelings sealed tight inside and an empty ketchup bottle clasped to his heart. When a tragedy occurs at the Alan B. Shepard High School, it’s Kate who finds herself in need of counsel and guidance. What she does next catapults her and her family down an unfamiliar road, on a trajectory into space—toward understanding, forgiveness and healing.
Hardcover: 304 pages
Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books (October 13, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0312372450

~Waiting On Wednesday and Cover Attraction~

Waiting on Wednesday is a meme hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine.

Cover Attraction is hosted by Marcia at The Printed Page. She says "I'm a very visual person and love beautiful or interesting cover art. It entices, and invites me to stop and take a peek, instead of walking right on by.

My pick for both this week is:

Ladies of the Lake by Haywood Smith
Release Date 9/1/09
From Amazon.com:

Sisters Dahlia, Iris, Violet, and Rose—all with grown children of their own—have a complicated relationship, so when their grand - mother’s will requires them to spend the whole summer—without friends or family—“camping in” at her run-down lodge on re mote Lake Clare in order to inherit the valuable land, old rivalries and new understanding emerge, with plenty of laughs along the way. Desperate to save her Buckhead home from foreclosure after being left in the lurch, recent divorcee Dahlia must complete the summer and sell her share immediately. Practical, even-tempered Violet will be no problem, but Iris has been Dahlia’s nemesis since she learned to say, “no” to her big sister. And super-sweet, quirky Garage Sale Queen Rose is so “green” she’d test the patience of a saint. As tempers flare and old secrets are revealed, four grown women discover that the past is never truly buried.

What are YOUR picks this week?

~Waiting On Wednesday~ 7/1/09

Waiting on Wednesday is a meme hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine.

~The Last Song~ by Nicholas Sparks

From Amazon.com:

#1 bestselling author Nicholas Sparks's new novel is at once a compelling family drama and a heartrending tale of young love.

Seventeen year old Veronica "Ronnie" Miller's life was turned upside-down when her parents divorced and her father moved from New York City to Wilmington, North Carolina. Three years later, she remains angry and alientated from her parents, especially her father...until her mother decides it would be in everyone's best interest if she spent the summer in Wilmington with him. Ronnie's father, a former concert pianist and teacher, is living a quiet life in the beach town, immersed in creating a work of art that will become the centerpiece of a local church.

The tale that unfolds is an unforgettable story of love on many levels--first love, love between parents and children -- that demonstrates, as only a Nicholas Sparks novel can, the many ways that love can break our hearts...and heal them.

This title is due to be released September 8, 2009

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
ISBN-13: 978-0446547567

~Waiting On Wednesday~

I used to read Jeffrey Deaver a lot. My favorite novel of his was The Coffin Dancer. This one caught my eye...It sounds creepy and full of suspense! I am definitely going to add this to my ever-growing wish list! The book is due to be released July 1, 2009.

Waiting on Wednesday is a meme hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine.


From Booklist
Deaver is bound to slip up sometime. But not this time. This novel, which follows on the heels of Sleeping Doll (2007), again stars California Bureau of Investigation agent Kathryn Dance and, like its predecessor, is tightly constructed with a suspenseful story and plenty of plot twists. Deaver, perhaps more than any other crime writer, is able to fool even the most experienced readers with his right-angle turns, and this story of a serial killer who uses social networks to find his prey is full of them. Deaver’s investigators are very good at their jobs, and in order to fool them (and us), he must be exceedingly clever, as well as just a little bit deceitful (having characters say things that turn out not to be true, for example, even though they believed the things when they said them). So far Deaver has avoided accidentally telegraphing a plot twist in advance, but someday, surely, he’ll out-clever himself. Or maybe he won’t. This is an excellent entry in what promises to be a series as popular as the author’s Lincoln Rhyme novels. --David Pitt --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

• Publisher: Center Point Pub; Lrg edition (July 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1602854963

~Cover Attraction and Waiting On Wednesday~

My Cover Attraction and Waiting On Wednesday are one and the same; Best Friends Forever by Jennifer Weiner! Publish date July 14, 2009.

Cover Attraction is hosted by Marcia at The Printed Page. She says "I'm a very visual person and love beautiful or interesting cover art. It entices, and invites me to stop and take a peek, instead of walking right on by."

Waiting on Wednesday is a meme hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine.

From Amazon.com:

Some bonds can never be broken...

Addie Downs and Valerie Adler will be best friends forever. That's what Addie believes after Valerie moves across the street when they're both nine years old. But in the wake of betrayal during their teenage years, Val is swept into the popular crowd, while mousy, sullen Addie becomes her school's scapegoat.

Flash-forward fifteen years. Valerie Adler has found a measure of fame and fortune working as the weathergirl at the local TV station. Addie Downs lives alone in her parents' house in their small hometown of Pleasant Ridge, Illinois, caring for a troubled brother and trying to meet Prince Charming on the Internet. She's just returned from Bad Date #6 when she opens her door to find her long-gone best friend standing there, a terrified look on her face and blood on the sleeve of her coat. "Something horrible has happened," Val tells Addie, "and you're the only one who can help."

Best Friends Forever is a grand, hilarious, edge-of-your-seat adventure; a story about betrayal and loyalty, family history and small-town secrets. It's about living through tragedy, finding love where you least expect it, and the ties that keep best friends together.

Why I like the cover: I am a sucker for any book that has a beach scene on the cover. I love the muted colors on this cover, they are soothing to the eye. I can also identify with the two friends walking on the beach, maybe in the late afternoon, sharing stories and secrets.

Publisher: Atria (July 14, 2009)
ISBN-10: 0743294297

~Waiting On Wednesday~

Waiting on Wednesday is a meme hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine.

Die For You by Lisa Unger
Publication date: June 2, 2009

From Amazon:

Isabel Raine thought she had everything–a successful career, a supportive family, and a happy marriage to the man she loved. Then one ordinary morning, her husband, Marcus, picks up his briefcase, kisses her good-bye, and simply vanishes. That day, all her calls to him go straight to voice mail; the messages she leaves at his office go unreturned, too. Panicking after finally receiving a call from his cell phone in which all she can hear is a man’s terrified cry, Isabel calls the police. But they aren’t interested. Men leave, they tell her. They leave all the time. Desperate to find her husband, Isabel races to his office. But instead of finding him, she finds herself in the middle of an FBI raid. Hours later, she awakens in the hospital with a severe concussion and a homicide detective by her bedside waiting to question her about Marcus Raine–the real Marcus Raine. Now the only thing Isabel knows for sure is that her husband of five years is gone. Where is he and who is he are questions no one seems able to answer. But Isabel will not rest until she discovers the truth about the man she loves, even if it means risking everything–including her own life. Bestselling author Lisa Unger takes us on a nightmarish journey from bustling, glamorous New York City to the murky, twisted streets of Prague, seeking the answer to one bone-chilling question: What if the man you love, the one sleeping beside you, is a stranger?

What are you waiting on this week?