Category: Bookish Question

Bookish Question #340 | What’s the best novel you’ve read based on a true story?

I tend not to read novels based on true stories. I think that’s because I like to not know what’s going to happen during the story (even if I can guess how the novel is going to end, which is pretty much the case with every romance novel ever published).

If a novel is based on a true story, then I might know (or can Google) what’s going to happen.

(And I have done so.)

So if I do read novels based on true stories, I’d rather not know until I finish reading.

(Which might have been why I stopped reading stories set in Tudor England.)

I knew nothing about the history behind Before We Were Yours by Lisa Wingate until I read the book.

I’d never heard of Georgia Tann or the Tennessee Children’s Home Society orphanage scandal, which made the story a powerful read.

Here’s the Amazon description:

Memphis, 1939. Twelve-year-old Rill Foss and her four younger siblings live a magical life aboard their family’s Mississippi River shantyboat. But when their father must rush their mother to the hospital one stormy night, Rill is left in charge—until strangers arrive in force. Wrenched from all that is familiar and thrown into a Tennessee Children’s Home Society orphanage, the Foss children are assured that they will soon be returned to their parents—but they quickly realize the dark truth. At the mercy of the facility’s cruel director, Rill fights to keep her sisters and brother together in a world of danger and uncertainty.

Aiken, South Carolina, present day. Born into wealth and privilege, Avery Stafford seems to have it all: a successful career as a federal prosecutor, a handsome fiancé, and a lavish wedding on the horizon. But when Avery returns home to help her father weather a health crisis, a chance encounter leaves her with uncomfortable questions and compels her to take a journey through her family’s long-hidden history, on a path that will ultimately lead either to devastation or to redemption.

Based on one of America’s most notorious real-life scandals—in which Georgia Tann, director of a Memphis-based adoption organization, kidnapped and sold poor children to wealthy families all over the country—Lisa Wingate’s riveting, wrenching, and ultimately uplifting tale reminds us how, even though the paths we take can lead to many places, the heart never forgets where we belong.

Find Before We Were Yours online at:

Amazon | BookBub | Goodreads

What about you? What’s the best novel you’ve read based on a true story?

 

What's your favourite novel based on a real-life person?

Bookish Question #339 | What’s your favourite novel based on a real-life person?

Mine is Legacy by Susan Kay.

It’s an older book, first published in the 1980s, and I haven’t read it in more than thirty years …

On that basis, I should probably re-read it to see if it lives up to my memories.

It’s my favourite book because it’s about the life of Queen Elizabeth I. We studied Tudor England in my final year of high school, and Elizabeth I was obviously a key figure in the Tudor period.

The novel brought Elizabeth to life for me (and several of my classmates) in a way that the textbooks didn’t, and we were all convinced that helped us pass our final exam.

What about you? What’s your favourite novel based on a real-life person?

 

What is one character trait that will cause you to close the book?

Bookish Question #338 | What is one character trait that will cause you to close the book?

What is one character trait that will cause you to close the book? I finish most of the books I start, so it didn’t take long to come up with an answer to this question.

Stupid.

I don’t like stupid characters. I don’t like characters who make stupid decisions then spend the rest of the book (or movie) complaining about or trying to fix the mistake.

I would like to qualify that statement by saying stupid is not the same as naivete or immaturity or lacking conventional intelligence. Forrest Gump is an example. He is not clever, but he is not stupid. His actions are consistent with his character.

So what is stupid?

Stupid is a character doing something when they should know better.

Stupid is doing the thing everyone said not to do, then expecting the reader to sympathise when something bad happens.

Stupid is the main character moving to a small town in another country where they stand out as the only non-local, then joining all the local clubs when they’re trying to hide from the evildoers.

Stupid is the main character quitting a well-paid job with health benefits to do … well, pretty much anything, then not knowing how they’re going to pay for their sick child’s health problems.

Stupid is the main character going to investigate the strange noises in the basement, even though the 911 operator told them to stay upstairs until the police arrive.

Get the picture?

I used to finish these books, but no more. There are too many other books to read.

What about you? What’s one character trait that will cause you to close the book?

Bookish Question #337 | Which do you prefer: jilted bride or runaway bride?

Interesting question!

I’m not a big fan of either trope, and can’t remember the last time I read either a jilted or a runaway bride.

A jilted bride is always going to have my sympathy …

As long as she’s a likeable character–and romance heroines tend to be likeable.

A good novel always needs a good story question, and a jilted bride is a great story question: why has he jilted her?

For a jilted bride story to work as a romance for me, one of two things need to happen. Either the initial couple either have to end up together (which means he needs to have a really good reason for jilting her in the first place, and he needs to convince me he’s not going to do the same thing again).

Or she ends up with a different guy, one who will treat her right. For this to work, we need to find out something about the first fiance which shows she never really knew him.

Otherwise, I’m left wondering if she really knows what it means to love someone until death us do part.

A runaway bride is similar but different.

For a runaway bride story to work for me, I have to understand why she ran away. Did she decide she didn’t love him enough (or at all)?

Did she discover something about him that shows her he’s not the man she thought he was (this probably works best in romantic suspense, when she finds out he’s an assassin for hire or something similar).

If so, be the runaway bride. Leave before the wedding.

Even in real life, I would absolutely say to anyone that if they are having any second thoughts about marriage, they should call off the wedding. Despite the inconvenience and the expense, that’s going to be easier than working through a divorce later.

What about you? Do you prefer a jilted bride or a runaway bride romance?

Bookish Question #336 | What is the most recent book you read in a single day?

Because of You by Australian author Hannah Currie, which I recently reviewed (click here to read my review).

It’s an enjoyable story of a teenage girl who goes to Thailand on a short-term missions trip, and what she learns about herself and God during the trip. Some of the scenes are based on Hannah’s own mission trip to Thailand, and I particularly enjoyed those scenes.

I hadn’t planned to read the whole book in a single day (do we ever?), but I found it hard to put down.

What about you? What’s the most recent book you’ve read in a single day?

 

Have you read a Christian novel that features a character on holiday?

Bookish Question #334 | Have you read a Christian novel that features a character on holiday?

I’ve read a lot of holiday romances and (recently) more than a few road-trip romances.

But the first title that came to mind when I read this question was an older story: Whispers by Robin Jones Gunn, which was first published in around 1995. But even after almost thirty years, I can still remember most of the key points.

Teri is a Spanish teacher from Glenbrooke, Oregon, who goes on holiday to Maui to visit her sister. She hopes to reconnect with Mark, the marine biologist she met last summer, but (if I remember correctly), he’s now in a serious relationship.

She then somehow reconnects with her high school crush (Steve, I think), and Gordon, better known as Gordo, an Australian pastor with a second job as a pizza delivery guy.

Looking back, the plot has nods to Pride and Prejudice in that Teri is initially attracted to Steve, who now strikes me as a Wickham character, and ignores the slightly uncoordinated Gordo. Gordo isn’t really a Darcy figure – he’s not proud and he isn’t rich and he has no secret history with Wickham – but he’s a good man who loves Jesus and respects Teri.

One of the reasons I remember this story after so many years is because of Y’s catchphrase: “until”. Terri eventually asks him what “until” means, and … that’s the one thing I can’t remember about the story.

If you’ve read it, let me know. Otherwise, I’ll have to re-read it (oh, dear. What a sacrifice).

What about you? What novels have you read that feature a character on holiday?

What's the first Christian novel you remember reading?

Bookish Question #333 | What’s the first Christian novel you remember reading?

I read all the Narnia books as a child, but they were never specifically written or marketed as Christian fiction, so I don’t think they count.

I also read and enjoyed Joni by Joni Eareckson in my early teens (so only a few years after it was first published in 1976). That’s definitely Christian, but is nonfiction so definitely doesn’t count.

The first overtly Christian novel I remember reading was This Present Darkness by Frank Peretti, which I read when I was about eighteen. My aunt bought it and loaned it to my mother (who never read it). I read it and the sequel, Piercing the Darkness, and the duology got me started on many happy years reading Christian fiction.

What about you? What’s the first Christian novel you remember reading?

Bookish Question #332 | What’s the oldest book you own?

I have inherited my great-grandmother’s Book of Common Prayer, which was gifted to her by her mother over 100 years ago. This is definitely the oldest book I own.

I have also inherited my grandmother’s King James Bible and her copy of Mrs. Beeton’s cookbook, and my grandfather’s copy of the Shorter Oxford English Dictionary. All date from the 1940s, which feels old until I consider the Book of Common Prayer.

What about you? What’s the oldest book you own?

Bookish Question #331 | What’s the most recent book you’ve bought?

I often preorder ebooks, which means there are two possible answersto this question: the most recent book I’ve ordered, and the most recent book that has landed on my Kindle.

Funnily enough, both are from the same series: Trinity Lakes Romance.

The most recent book I’ve ordered is Blue Skies Dreaming by Amanda Deed, which releases at the end of May. It features Nick Gordon, an Australian skydiving instructor who travels to Trinity Lakes because he’s chasing a girl: online influencer Violet Reynolds.

And the newest release to land on my Kindle is In Truth and Love by Jenny Glazebrook, which brings together responsible pastor’s daughter Jodie and somewhat less responsible Brandon Taylor, son of Luke Mcaffrey, better known as the Junk Man.

Blue Skies Dreaming by Amanda Deed In Truth and Love by Jenny Glazebrook

And the most recent book I’ve downloaded  to review …

Before We Were Us by Denise Hunter, an amnesia story I’m looking forward to reading.

What about you? What’s the most recent book you’ve bought? (Or borrowed. Or downloaded.)

Which character would make the worst travel companion?

Bookish Question #330 | Which character would make the worst travel companion?

Last week, I looked at characters I’d like to go on holiday with. Wes and Sunny from The Billionaire’s Teacher by Elizabeth Maddrey won because of the location: the Caribbean.

But a great location doesn’t guarantee a great holiday.

For example, I wouldn’t go on holiday with journalist Callie Brown from Poison Bay and Venom Reef by Belinda Pollard.

They are great books and set in some of the best locations in Australia and New Zealand, but come with a significant body count that puts me off holidaying with them.

I really wouldn’t want to travel with any character from The Jewel of the Stars series by Adam Collings.

This isn’t the fault of any of the characters, nor is it any commentary on the quality of the stories. (Christian science fiction is a small genre, and i love the Jewel of the Stars series).

The reason these characters win my “worst travel companion” award is the situation the poor characters are in.

Imagine this …

You’re looking forward to a cruise through the stars on a spaceship with all the mod cons. Great, right?

You’re only a couple of days into your cruise when your entire planet and everyone you know and love is destroyed by aliens. Now you’re cruising the universe, looking for somewhere safe. Not fun.

What about you? Which fictional character do you think would make the worst travel companion?