Reading List 2012

Group I  World Affairs and History

1.  HOW THE STATES GOT THEIR SHAPES by Mark Stein. Historical oddities and trivia.  20  points 

2.  PATTON, MONTGOMERY & ROMMEL by Terry Brighton.  Three generals of WWII who were masters  of battle.  30 points

3.  CITIZEN IN CHIEF by Leonard Benardo & Jennifer Weiss.  The second lives of our U.S.  Presidents.  20 points

4.  A. LINCOLN by Ronald C. White, Jr.  A new biography to celebrate Lincoln's  Bicentennial.  20 points

5.  MRS. LINCOLN by Catherine Clinton.  Lincoln's first lady.  The ups and downs of her  life.  20 points

6. AMERICAN PASSAGE by Vincent J. Cannato.  The history of Ellis Island.  30 points

7.  EQUAL by Fred Strebeich.  Justice v. Gender.  Women reshape American law.  30 points 

8.  THE WOMAN BEHIND THE NEW DEAL by Kirstin Downey.  The story of Frances Perkins, the  first female Cabinet member.  20 points

9.  THE LAST LION edited by Peter S. Canellos.  The fall and rise of Ted Kennedy.  20  points

Group II  About People

10. TRUE COMPASS by Edward M. Kennedy.  The Senator discusses his life, his brothers and  his family.  20 points

11. BARACK AND MICHELLE by Christopher Anderson.  The story of our First Couple.  20 points

12. ATLAS OF THE NORTH AMERICAN INDIAN by Carl Waldman.  Explore the history, languages,  and lifestyles of our continent's oldest cultures. 30 points

13. ALWAYS LOOKING UP by Michael J. Fox.  His battle with Parkinson's Disease sends him on  a journey of self-discovery.  20 points

14. MIGHT AS WELL LAUGH ABOUT IT NOW by Marie Osmond.  Marie tells of her life.  20 points

15. HIGHEST DUTY: MY SEARCH FOR WHAT REALLY MATTERS by Captain Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger  with Jeffrey Zaslow.  The pilot who landed his plane in the Hudson River tells his story.   Not a life was lost.   20 points

16. THE LAST EMPRESSS by Hannah Pakula.  The story of Madame Chiang-Kai-Shek.  30 points

17. ABIGAIL ADAMS - A LIFE by Woody Holton.  Wife of our second president was quite a  character.  20 points

18. THE QUEEN MOTHER by William Shawcross.  Wife of a king and mother of a queen, Elizabeth  was a very popular person.  30 points

Group III  Religion & Philosophy

19. HISTORY OF THE CHRISTIAN FAITH edited by Ann Marie B. Bahr.  2,000 years of the  Christian Faith.  20 points

20. HAVE A LITTLE FAITH by Mitch Albom.  Albom writes of the rabbi who he knew as a child  and a black minister who he helps in later years.   20 points

21. ANCHORED IN LOVE by John Carter Cash  20 points

22. LIFE OVERFLOWING by T. D. Jakes.  20 points

23. FINDING STRENGTH FOR YOUR STRUGGLES  by Max Lucado.  20 points

24. EVERY DAY DESERVES A CHANCE  by Max Lucado.  20 points

25. ON THE ANVIL by Max Lucado.   20 points

26. TOUGH TIMES by Max Lucado.  20 points

27. WHAT JESUS DEMANDS FROM THE WORLD by John Piper.  20 points

Group IV  Special Interests

28. FOOD MATTERS by Mark Bittman.  A guide to conscious eating.   20 points

29. AMERICAN FOLKTALES, MYTHS & LEGENDS by Leslie Conron.  20 points

30. FRUITLESS FALL by Rowan Jacobsen.  How the honeybees have died off and what it means to  us. 20 points

31. SOMETHING FOR THE PAIN by Paul Austin.  A doctor's account of life and death in the ER.   20 points

32. THE NATIONAL PARKS by Dayton Duncan and Ken Burns.  The story of our National Parks.   20 points

33. JULIE AND JULIA by Julie Powell.  Julie sets out to cook every recipe in Julia Child's  Mastering the Art of French Cooking.   20 points

34. THE TRUE HISTORY OF TEA by Victor Mair and Erling Hoh.  The story of tea. 20 points

35. THE TASTE OF CONQUEST by Michael Krondl.  When pepper, cinnamon and cloves were as  valuable as gold.  20 points

36. BARBIE AND RUTH by Robin Gerber.  The woman behind the most famous doll in the world.   20 points

37. URANIUM by Tom Zoellner.  Hope, horror and Element 92.   20 points

38. IVORY'S GHOSTS by John Frederick Walker.  The history of the ivory trade.  20 points

Group V  Fiction

39. Albert, Susan Wittig,         WORMWOOD.  China Bayles is called on to solve another  murder.  20 points

40. Andrews, Mary Kay, THE FIXER UPPER.  A job of necessity becomes a labor of love.  20  points

41. Baldacci, David, FIRST FAMILY.  A kidnapping at Camp David involves two former Secret  Service agents who are called on to solve the problem.    20 points.

42. Barbieri, Heather, THE LACE MAKERS OF GLENMARA.  A young woman flees to Ireland to  start a new life.  She meets several women who have problems and she helps them start a  business.  20 points

43. Bradford, Barbara Taylor, BREAKING THE RULES.   A young English woman goes to New York  to become a model.  She falls in love and marries.  All kinds of things begin to happen but  all turns out in the end.  20 points

44. Bostwick, Marie, A THREAD OF TRUTH.  A young mother flees to a small town to escape an  abusive husband.  Her new friends stand beside her when she needs help.  20 points

45. Bowen, Rhys, ROYAL FLUSH.  Lady Georgianna has the job of trying to keep Mrs. Simpson  away from the Prince of Wales.  20 points

46. Bowen, Rhys, IN A GILDED CAGE.  Molly Murphy, an Irish immigrant, has many adventures  in New York City.   20 points

47. Brown, Dan, THE LOST SYMBOL.  Follow along as Robert Langdon tries to solve a puzzle.   20 points


48. Brunstetter, Wanda, A COUSIN'S PRAYER.   A young Amish woman suffers the aftermath of a  wreck in which her boyfriend is killed.  Will she find someone else?   20 points

49. Castillo, Linda, SWORN TO SILENCE.  Kate returns to the Amish town where she grew up as  police chief.  She still has many problems.   20 points

50. Chiaverini, Jennifer, THE LAST QUILTER.  A stash of old letters reveal some startling  events.  20 points

51. Clark, Carol Higgins, POPPED.  Reagan Reilly goes to Las Vegas to help a friend who is  having difficulties with a film he is producing.  20 points

52. Clark, Mary Higgins, NO PLACE LIKE HOME.  To protect her identity, Celia changes her  name but finds she is in danger anyway.  20 points

53. Clark Mary Higgins, JUST TAKE MY HEART.  Whose heart does the prosecutor in a murder  case have?   20 points

54. Clark, Mary Jane, DYING FOR MERCY.  Eliza and her news crew are in danger when they try  to solve a mystery.  20 points

55. Clement, Blaze, RAINING CAT SITTERS & DOGS.  A teenage girl is missing.  Can Dixie  solve the mystery?  20 points

56. Clipston, Amy, A GEFT OF GRACE.  An Amish woman has problems trying to raise her two  nieces whose mother died.  20 points.

57. Coben, Harlan, THE WOODS.  Lots of problems for Prosecutor Copeland as he tries to  raise his 6 year old daughter.  He would like to find  out what happened to his sister.  20  points.

58. Cook, Robin, INTERVENTION.   Can alternative medicine work?  That is the question Jack  and Laurie face as they hunt for a cure for their young son.  20 points.




59. Cussler, Clive, & Cussler, Dirk, CORSAIR.  A modern day pirate story.  20 points

60. Delinsky, Barbara, WHILE MY SISTER SLEEPS.  The story of two sisters.  One must make  decisions after her sister suffers a serous heart attack.  20 points

61. Eicher, Jerry S., REBECCA'S PROMISE.  Rebecca has promised to marry John but still  remembers a long ago love.  20 points

62. Eicher, Jerry S., REBECCA'S RETURN.  Doubts still lurk in Rebecca's mind.  Will she  find her true love?  20 points

63. Evanovich, Janet, FINGER LICKIN FIFTEEN.  A bar-b-que contest and other problems pop  up.  Can Stephanie solve them and keep Grandma out of trouble?  20 points

64. Francis, Dick and Felix, EVEN MONEY.   Lot's of things happen on the day of the Royal  Ascot.  20 points

65. Frank, Dorothea Benton, RETURN TO SULLIVAN'S ISLAND.  Asked to house sit her family's  home, Beth has problems but finds help from friends.   20 points

66. Gabhart, Ann H., THE BELIEVER.  A young woman takes her brother and sister to a Shaker  community when their parents die.  What will happen when she falls for a young Shaker man?   Love and marriage are forbidden.  20 points

67. Genova, Lisa, STILL ALICE.  The story of a woman with Alzheimer's Disease.   20 points

68. Grafton, Sue, U IS FOR UNDERTOW.  Kinsey is called upon to solve a mystery that  happened several years ago.  20 points.

69. Grisham, John, FORD COUNTRY.  A series of short stories that take place in the county  where Grisham's first book  A Time to Kill took place. 20 points
70. Hannah, Kristin, TRUE COLORS.  The story of three sisters.  20 points

71. Hess, Joan, THE MERRY WIVES OF MAGGODY.  A small town mayor plans a golf tournament but  no one knows how to play.  The winner ends up dead and everyone is a suspect.  20 points

72. King, Stephen, UNDER THE DOME.  Can you solve the mystery of the dome?  It's worth 70  points if you can.  70 points

73. Kinsella, Sophie, TWENTIES GIRL.  Lara's great aunt Sadie wants her to find a necklace  she has lost.  20 points

74. Lewis, Beverly, THE MISSING.  Why did her mother leave?  Can Grace find her? 20 points

75. Lewis, Beverly, THE SECRET.  Grace Byler wants to find out why her mother is so  restless and when she finally disappears will she be able to find her?   20 points

76. Macomber, Debbie, BACK ON BLOSSOM STREET.  A flower shop, new on Blossom Street, is the  setting for much of the action in this book.   20 points

77. Macomber, Debbie, THE PERFECT CHRISTMAS.  Cassie turns to a professional matchmaker to  find a husband.  He assigns her three tasks before she meets her mate.  Will she be  surprised?  20 points

78. Macomber, Debbie, MRS. MIRACLE.  A good Christmas story.  Will the twins like the new  housekeeper?  20 points

79. Macomber, Debbie, SUMMER ON BLOSSOM STREET.  Members of a knitting class all have  problems they help each other solve.  20 points

80. Medlicott, Joan, PROMISE OF CHANGE.   Another book in the Covington series.   20 points

81. Nicholson, Christopher, THE ELEPHANT KEEPER.  A young boy must decide which elephant he  will stay with when the two elephants are sold.  20 points

82. Palmer, Michael, THE SECOND OPINION.  Do they pull the plug on their father?  Three  doctors have to make the decision.  20 points

83. Patterson, James and Michael Ledwidge, RUN FOR YOUR LIFE.  Detective Bennett is called  on to solve a crime and must care for his ten children who have the flu.  Can he manage the  impossible?   20 points

84. Peterson, Tracie, A LADY OF SECRET DEVOTION.  Hired as a companion for a wealthy woman,  Cassandra has problems with the woman's son.   20 points

85. Peterson, Tracie, A LOVE TO LAST FOREVER.  Beth hunts for a husband.  20 points

86. Peterson, Tracie, A DREAM TO CALL MY OWN.  Lacy hopes to find her father's killer and  maybe a husband too.  20 points

87. Picoult, Jodi, MY SISTER'S KEEPER.  In order to save their daughter, parents have  another child.  Will it work?  20 points

88. Roberts, Nora, THE REEF.  Hunting buried treasure in the Carribean.  All kinds of  things happen.  20 points

89. Roberts, Nora, VISION IN WHITE.  Friends start a wedding chapel that provides a  complete wedding package and encounter all kinds of problems.  20 points

90. Roberts, Nora, A BED OF ROSES.  The florist of the group may have found a prospective  husband.  Will everything turn out all right?  20 points

91. Roberts, Nora, BLACK HILLS.  A boy and girl meet as teenagers then again as adults.   Will love win out?  20 points

92. Ross, Ann B., MISS JULIA DELIVERS THE GOODS.  Miss Julia has to make peace between Mr.  Pickens and Hazel Marie and get them married.  20 points  (All of the Miss Julia books have  been on past lists and are worth 20 points each)

93. Sparks, Nicholas, THE LAST SONG.  Forced to spend the summer with her father in a small  town, Ronnie soon falls for a young heart throb.  20 points

94. Wingate, Lisa, THE SUMMER KITCHEN.  A young woman and her brother try to stay out of  foster care and end up helping others.  20 points