Gooseberry Island
by Steven Machester
Paperback: 300 pages
Publisher: Story Plant, The; Reprint edition (January 6, 2015)
Amazon Paperback Link
Kindle Edition
File Size: 1386 KB
Print Length: 300 pages
Publisher: Story Plant, The; Reprint edition (January 6, 2015)
Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
Amazon Kindle Link
Note: I received a review copy of this book free from the author, Steven Manchester. The review posted below is based on my personal thoughts while reading the book.
Ratings: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
My thoughts:
The story of Gooseberry Island focuses on David McClain, a ranger who had a one time war trip in Afghanistan. When he met Lindsey Wood, he believes he found his soul mate in her. Both tried to make the long distance relationship work and have been counting the days til his return to Gooseberry Island.
Bad things happened with David and his war brothers. Right after they traveled back home, all of them suffered Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. PTSD is so common for those who served in combat. Lindsey is a daughter of a war veteran who after I guess more than 20 years, the man is still suffering PTSD. Although she loves David so much, she believes it is highly likely that they would separate as she saw this happen to her mom and dad.
Gooseberry Island for me is not at all just a love story. It talks about friendship, family, pride, honor, etc. It was such a heart-warming story. I love every character, not just David and Lindsey. Every story made my heart ache especially Big Al's and Max's. I know someone who married a soldier who is on a war tour and recently she was complaining that she didn't get too see enough of her husband and their babies are looking for their dad. Ok, it was not really complaining but more like a frustration over raising their kids alone. I know she loves the man so much and she reminds me of David and Lindsey.
I highly recommend this book especially to those people on LDR (long distance relationship) / who are married to a soldier.
About the book:
They met at the worst possible moment...or maybe it was just in time. David McClain was about to go to war and Lindsey Wood was there at his going-away party, capturing his heart when falling for a woman was the last thing on his mind. While David was serving his country, he stayed in close contact with Lindsey. But war changes a person, and when he came home very little had the same meaning that it had before – including the romance that had sustained him. Was love truly unconquerable, or would it prove to be just another battlefield casualty?
Gooseberry Island is the most nuanced, dramatic, and romantic novel yet from a writer whose ability to plumb the depths of human emotion knows few peers.
About the author:
Steven Manchester is the author of the #1 bestsellers, Twelve Months and The Rockin' Chair. He is also the author of the award-winning novel, Goodnight, Brian, as well as the critically-acclaimed novels, Pressed Pennies and Gooseberry Island. He has also written A Christmas Wish (Kindle exclusive), Wilbur Avenue (novelette), Just in Time (novelette) and The Thursday Night Club (novella), while his work has appeared on NBC's Today Show, CBS's The Early Show, CNN's American Morning and BET's Nightly News. Three of Steven's short stories were selected "101 Best" for Chicken Soup for the Soul series. When not spending time with his beautiful wife, Paula, or their four children, this Massachusetts author is promoting his works or writing. Visit: www.StevenManchester.com
My Mother's Secret: Based on a true Holocaust story
Author: J.L. Witterick
Paperback: 208 pages
Publisher: iUniverse (March 25, 2013)
Amazon Link
Kindle Edition
File Size: 561 KB
Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
Publisher: iUniverse (February 4, 2013)
Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
Amazon Link
Note: I received a review copy of this book free from Westwind Communications. The review posted below is based on my personal thoughts while reading the book.
Ratings: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
My thoughts:
My Mother's Secret tells the story of Franciszka Halamajowa and her daughter Helena. While Franciszka and Helena were real Holocaust heroines, most of the characters and events depicted in the story are fictional. During Hitler's invasion in Poland, Franciszka and Helena hid two Jewish families and a young German soldier all in their home for more than a year. Franciszka's son also helped the Jews during this difficult time but later met his death while transporting a wagon full of supplies to the Jews hiding in the forest.
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| Franciszka Halamajowa |
I hate seeing/reading depressing movies/books. I actually stopped reading/watching Jodi Picoult's and Nicholas Sparks' because of the tragic storylines. However, there is one that I cannot resist reading/watching. Hitler's Holocaust stories. After having seen Schindler's list and Life is Beautiful (Italian) films, I took special interest in reading Holocaust stories.
In reading My Mother’s Secret, I was given (again!) a chance to reflect the life I’m living. Would I be able to help other people knowing that helping them could lead to the death of my own family? Francisza risked her life and her daughter’s to save other people. She knew if the Germans found out about the Jews hiding in their house, they would kill them. But it didn't matter. They were so brave to provide help to people who asked for it. It was really inspiring yet terrifying.
When Helena's long time German boyfriend proposed to marry her, Helena had to choose between her happiness and the lives of the Jewish families living with them. This is the part where Helena almost chose happiness:
Franciszka to Helena:
“Helena, there are three kinds of people in the world. One that would have seen the suffering cat and not have given it a second thought. Another that would have seen the same cat and said to themselves, ‘Oh, isn’t that a pity,’ before continuing about their business. Finally, there is the kind who sees the suffering, feels the empathy, and then goes one step further by taking action to help. That is you. You didn’t leave the cat there to perish. I am proud that you are my daughter. Think what a wonderful place the world would be, if everyone was like that.”
Heart breaking. . . . choosing between what you want and what is right. . .
Considering this is a debut novel of the author, I thought it was well- written. If I didn’t read the part in the book where the author told the readers how the book was published, I would have never guessed this was her first. I highly recommend this book, like any other Holocaust stories, My Mother's Secret is totally life-changing. The story will definitely remain with me for a long long time.
About the book:
Franciszka and her daughter are unlikely heroines. They are simple people who don't stand out… that is, until there is a crisis. In 1939, the Nazis come to Poland and start to persecute the Jews. These are unreasonable times when providing shelter to a Jew has become a death sentence. Despite this, both Franciszka and her daughter hide Jewish families and a German soldier in their small home. For all of them to survive, she will have to outsmart the German commander and her neighbors.
When you look at a piece of steel, can you tell whether it is the ordinary kind used to make forks and knives or whether it is the superstrength type used to construct bridges and high-rises? The honest answer is no. You cannot tell until you apply extreme pressure. People are like that.
This story is a reminder that there are no profiles for courage and character, and that who we become is always a personal choice.
This is my first book, but it feels like something that has been waiting for me for a while.
I just had to be still enough to hear it. As the words flowed and formed, shaping ideas in their dance, it felt divine.
Writing was a process far more intimate than I could have predicted. To be authentic and honest, it is your own life that you draw upon and so, telling a story reveals the truths that reside in your own heart.
I loved creating this story. To be able to say that anything is possible if we connect with each other through kindness, understanding, and courage—and to do it with reference to true events—well, that was exhilarating.
If this story somehow manages to touch you, if it somehow manages to remind you of your own humanity, then I will be incredibly happy.
Living with gratitude,
J. L. Witterick
About the author:
J.L. Witterick always wanted to write a book that would make a difference. She found inspiration to do so based on a true story of courage that occurred during the Holocaust. A child of poor immigrants, she learned empathy, compassion and kindness first hand and wrote it into this story. Now an accomplished investment professional, she has decided to donate proceeds of the book sold at Indigo/Chapters to the Love of Reading Foundation, which buys books for children who cannot afford them. She remembers buying used books from the Salvation Army for 5 and 10 cents when she was a child. J.L. Witterick lives in Canada.
jenny@mymotherssecret.com
mymotherssecret.com
