The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver

A lovely story about a girl from a small town who reinvents herself as she travels across America to Arizona, gaining a delightful new companion on her way. Taylor was a reluctant guardian at first, after all she left her home town to escape the seemingly inevitable early motherhood experienced by her peers. As she gets to know the little girl she finds the thought of life without her unbearable, and is willing to take great risks to keep her.
I found the characters well written and much of the detail very well thought out, little things like the baby wearing the T-shirt saying "Damn, I'm Good!", and the chilli sauce factory. I really need to read the sequel, Pigs in Heaven now!

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

I seem to have had this book lying around for years, in fact I think I have had it lying around for years, and have never read it. It finally workrd its way to the top of my TBR pile (with a little help from the What's in a Name 3 and Memorable Memoirs reading challenges, and I'm so pleased it did.

Marguarite's grew up between the wars in Southern USA, a time and place where lynchings of black men and segregation of the races were still very real. Brought up by her grandmother she and her brother Bailey lived a life ruled by adults, the church and strict standards of behaviour, punctuated by eventful visits to their parents. Funny, tragic and uplifting in parts, I can see why this book is so well recommended.

The Persian Pickle Club by Sandra Dallas

I read this book last week and enjoyed every page of it. I was drawn into the story of the women of a community in Kansas during the depression of the 1930s, women who connected through their common love of quilting. The social hierarchy and the way each of the women had their own speciality food which they prepared for their group meetings rang a few bells within groups I have been involved with! The community is so tightly knit that even the most dreadful secret is kept despite a newcomer trying to find out the truth about events. The poverty experienced by some was dealt with very well, emphasising the pride felt by those who had to do without and the support provided by those who were in a position to offer help.

I would definitely read more by this author, I liked her style of writing and found that it suited the subject matter really well. Despite not all in this book being bright and cheery it left me with a warm feeling that humanity is essentially good.

What's in a Name Challenge

I've chosen my books for this challenge, they are as follows:

1. A book with a food in the title: The Persian Pickle Club, Sandra Dallas Read

2. A book with a body of water in the title: Death on the Nile, Agatha Christie

3. A book with a title in the title: The Lost Queen, Norah Lofts

4. A book with a plant in the title: The Bean Trees, Barbara Kingsolver Read

5. A book with a place name in the title: Hollywood Dodo, Geoff Nicholson

6. A book with a music term in the title: I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Maya Angelou Read

Quite a varied selection, and all from the huge stack of books I'm trying to work my way through.