Blast From the Past: August 2010

Once again it's time to look back at what I was reading a decade ago.   Here are the highlights from August 2010:

The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender - this is one of those books that a good friend recommended to me. Rose has the gift of tasting emotions which allows her to know more about the inner feelings of family members than anyone else.  I am not always a fan of magical realism, but remember enjoying this book. Coincidentally, Bender has a new book that was just published.

Same Kind of Different As Me: A Modern Day Slave, An International Art Dealer, and the Unlikely Woman Who Bound Them Together by Ron Hall, Denver Moore, and Lynn Vincent - this is an uplifting non-fiction account of a homeless man and his friendship with a wealthy art dealer.  I've seen this used for many book clubs, but enjoyed the feel-good story all on my own.

My Life With the Lincolns by Gayle Brandeis- Mina believes her family is the Lincolns reincarnated. It's her job to protect her father from assassination and her mother from madness. Set in 1966, I loved the historical fiction aspect of this book.

A Fierce Radiance by Lauren Belfer -I loved this book and promptly bought another book by this author with good intentions of reading it quickly.  (It is still sitting on my bookshelf). This is a historical fiction novel set during WWII involving Claire Shipley a photographer who is providing an account of the development of antibiotics. 

Diamond Willow by Helen Frost- this was an Iowa Children's Choice award book several years ago and a novel in verse with the poems taking on the shape of a diamond. Willow is growing up and wants to have the responsibility of mushing the dogs to her grandparents' house.  This doesn't go as planned, leaving Willow in need of rescue.

How about you? What were you reading in August of 2010? What about last year? Have you read any of these books?