Fall and winter are absolutely fabulous times to curl up with a good book darlings and SO MANY of you sent in your book recommendations for fellow readers. There were so many in fact we couldn’t include them all so here here is the curated list of your recommendations and why you love them. I am so excited to pick some of these up! And without further ado… your reviews!

“The Ocean at the End of the Lane” by Neil Gaiman: Mythology, ancient yet modern about life and self sacrifice viewed as a child in a grown ups world. These book garners so much discussion in Book Club. Highly recommend . – Charlotte Alger

“The Gratitude Diaries” by Janice Kaplan: It’s a great book on how looking on the bright side can transform your life. I am a person who looks at things in a positive way, but the author has many ways in which to be grateful that never came to my mind. A very good read! I also just finished “Make Your Bed” by Admiral William H. McRaven (U. S. Navy Retired). He writes about how little things, like making your bed, can change your life and maybe the world. I am working my way through “Portraits of Courage” by former President George W. Bush. President Bush is paying tribute to America’s warriors by painting their portraits and telling their stories. It is very moving how these men and women have gone into battle to protect our freedoms and have come back forever changed people. Sometimes it is a hard read, but it is important for me to hear and remember their stories and be forever grateful for their sacrifices. – Karen Jackson

“A Gentleman In Moscow” by Amor Towles: It is a delightful and engaging read about the Russian Revolution and its aftermath. – Lela Gahweiler

“A Gentleman in Moscow” by Amor Towles: It is the best book I have read this year. It is a beautifully written book with some very compelling characters, especially Count Rostov. The book is a work of art that needs to be savored. It won the Goodreads Choice Award for best historical fiction book in 2016. May you enjoy it as much as I did! – Dale Anne DeHart-Grigas

“Bregdan Chronicles” by Ginny Dye: It is a book series that brings the Civil War and Reconstruction to life with characters that are easy for readers to relate to now. The issues that she brings forth in these books are very relevant to many of the issues that we face today. Ms. Dye writes one or two books per year and I can’t wait for the next one to be released! – Andie Nations

Any book by Anne Rivers Siddon: I rarely cry, but she can make me do it usually once a book. Her depth of flawed human characteristics and Southern family interactions combine to make terrific fireplace/toddy/blankie reading. – Janet

“The Art of Hearing Heartbeats” by Jan-Philipp Sendker: This is a rare novel of a young blind man’s journey from Burma to New York, a beautiful story. I belong to two book clubs and do a lot of reading too. The book I have just finished reading “Little Princess” (not a fairy tale ) by Conor Brennan is a memoir of a young man who decides after graduating from college to travel around the world before he pursues his career and while traveling decides to volunteer in an orphanage in Nepal. It’s an amazing true story. – Theresa Levy

“Daphne Du Maurier: The secret life of a renowned storyteller” by Margaret Forster: I just finished this book. I also belong to a book club. I love mysteries and biographies but I read about everything. It’s an obsession for me. – Pauline Cambridge

“The Tea Rose” by Jennifer Donnelly: It is the first in a series of three and takes place in England starting in 1898 following a family from poverty to success. I loved this series – Maureen Scicchitano

“The Waiting” by Cathy LaGrow: It is a beautiful story of a mother’s love and a long awaited reuniting of mother and daughter. – Connie

“Lilac Girls” by Martha Hall Kelly: It is based on the real life story of a New York socialite and her work with concentration camp survivors. An excellent read- challenging with unforgettable characters and a look at history from a female point of view – Jane

The Mitford series by Jan Karon: Wonderful characters, great story lines, good clean fun. – Arianna Burke

“Cutting for Stone” by Abraham Verghese: Excellent writing by the author with intriguing characters and story. It is the one book that I hated to see end. I have never read the same book twice, because of all that I want to read, but someday, I will read this one again. I have kept it in my library for that very reason. – Sharron Gisler

“I, Eliza Hamilton” by Susan Holloway Scott: Only just started but it is a wonderful tale of wife and helpmate of Alexander Hamilton and an extraordinarily strong female character. – Lucie Wisehart

“Drawing Lessons ” by Patricia Sands: I enjoyed this book because it had so many similarities to my life. The story takes place in “‘Van Gogh country”, Provence, France. For years the protagonist has been living with her husband’s devastating dementia, watching the man she loved slip away. Encouraged by her family, she has travelled to France to participate in an artists workshop and rediscover her inner-artist. She learns it is never too late to start over. A warm and gentle feel good novel. – Judy McHattie

“Love Anthony” by Lisa Genova: For those of you interested in autism, This is a novel, but it is well researched. The author is a neuroscientist, who also wrote “Still Alice,” one of my all-time favorite books. So I guess this is two recommendations in one. Genova has a way of taking you inside the mind of her characters, giving the reader a glimpse of what it might be like to live with a diagnosis of autism (“Love Anthony”) or dementia (“Still Alice”). She combines her clinical knowledge with her ability to vividly describe life experiences. – Ellen Schultz

“Fall On Your Knees” by Ann-Marie MacDonald: Absolutely loved everything about this book! The setting, the characters, their psyche, their prejudices; the characters’ abilities, inabilities, and their disabilities; the beginning and the end. I did not find it dark, as others did. I saw life and its situations, causes and effects, choices, and consequences. I experienced love in all its beauty and its ugliness under all the scars. – Pamela Smith

“A Shepherd Looks At Psalm 23” by W. Philip Keller: This is not a new book, but it may be new to you! It is a short but powerful read about a favorite Scripture for many people. The author of the 23rd Psalm, King David, was a shepherd, and the book’s author, Keller, was one as well. This Psalm has brought so many people comfort and confidence. The book provides insights from a shepherd’s viewpoint and knowledge. It will greatly increase the reader’s appreciation of this precious Psalm. Powerful book about a powerful Psalm! Highly recommended! – Micki Johnston

“The Other Einstein” by Marie Benedict: It is about Albert Einstein and the personal and professional relationship between him and his first wife, Meliva Maric’, who was also a physicist. Another recent favorite is “In this Grave Hour”  by Jacqueline Windspear. Windspear writes a series of historical fiction about Britain during the Great War (WWI) up to the beginning of WWII. Her lastest book published this year, begins in September 1939. The main character throughout the series is Maisie Dobbs, a nurse and a detective. – Peg McNulty

“The Greater Journey” by David McCullough: It is about the artists and inventors who travelled to Paris in the 1800s. It is non-fiction and filled with interesting tales of the impact living in Paris had on their lives and development of their art. – Beverly Stuck

“The Discoverers” by Daniel Boorstin: The book is about all the discoveries that have advanced civilization: Time, clocks, map making, sailing, understanding the wind, the closed Chinese society – are topics I’ve covered so far. I’m in the section on Christopher Columbus now, about 1/3 of the way through this exciting book. This book has every detail any history lover wants to know – things that were never in the text books. Things only a researcher or specialist would know – all written in a way to make you want to keep reading.
I keep this book in my car and read it at lunch and dinner when I go out. I purchased for $2.00 at my library’s used book sale. I will read this book at least a couple more times; it’s that rich. So much to learn with joy. Excellent writing, too. – Helen Albanese

Any book by Preston and Child, Vince Flynn, or John Sanford: The Pendergast series by Preston and Child is so good as are the mysteries in Sanford’s Lucas Davenport or Virgil Flowers series and Vince Flynn’s series. They are so well written. – Anita Price

Thank you to everyone who participated! It was so much fun to read all the submissions. See anything that might interest you? Let me know in the comments!