I saw the third book in this series on my library's new book shelves and was intrigued, but decided to read the first book in the series first. This is a wonderful, touching, well-written and easy to read story, with lessons along the way. The characters are a mother who is aging and grown reclusive in her isolated family farmhouse; her daughter, who feels she was never "good enough" for her mother, who has become a "Steel Magnolia" but underneath it feels she will never be really good enough or loved by her husband; and her daughter, who is not recovering from her daughter being killed by a drunk driver, who has pruned everything but hate and revenge from her life and is about to prune her husband from her life. The daughter and granddaughter, out of duty, come to grandmother's house to see how bad things are and what they can do. Over time, a lot of belated telling stories of truth takes place, and each woman begins to see who she really is and how she got there. Through it all is the thread of quilting; grandmother is a life-time quilter, taught by her mother.

I heartily recommend this book, and am going to get the other two in this series from my library after work on Tuesday, because the library is closed today and Monday. I really like this author's respectful approach to her characters, telling the truth about each of them with care and love.

By Dawnk777 on Sunday, May 27, 2007 - 02:48 pm:

Wow, that sounds like a good book and one I would really enjoy!

By Bobbie~moderatr on Monday, May 28, 2007 - 02:41 pm:

Sounds interesting, a good summer read.. May have to go look into myself..

By Hol on Sunday, June 3, 2007 - 08:11 pm:

Ginny, that sounds fantastic! Thanks for the recommendation!

By Ginny~moderator on Sunday, June 3, 2007 - 11:21 pm:

I just finished reading the second and third novels in this series (Shenandoah Album series), Endless Chain and Lover's Knot, and they are equally good. All are set in the same rural area in the Shenandoah Valley. Endless Chain involves the new minister, his fiance, a woman who appears at first to be a Mexican immigrant, and more stories and truth telling. The third is about a reporter who plays a role in the second story, her husband's family history (tied to the creation of the Shenandoah National Park), and how they both recover when she is seriously, almost fatally wounded by a car thief and comes to this rural area to recover both from her injuries and what led to her being injured. The grandma and other characters from the first story play roles in the second and third, and characters from the second story are brought into the third. I won't spoil the stories for you. I do recommend them.

I don't generally read "women's" books, especially those set in pretty much modern times. They so often turn out to be "chick books", with a lot of sex and tumultuous relationships. These stores are about really good people and how they learn to live their lives in ways that make them happier people.

By Dawnk777 on Monday, June 4, 2007 - 10:23 pm:

I just got Wedding Ring, from the library, but I'm still reading Through the Brazilian Wilderness, by Theodore Roosevelt, so I won't be starting it right away.

By Hol on Monday, June 4, 2007 - 11:05 pm:

It sounds like the Debbie Macomber series, "The Shop on Blossom Street", "A Good Yarn", etc. Instead of quilting, it involves a knitting shop, and the characters are interwoven in all of the books, also.

I, too, don't usually read "chick books", but these characters are people you really care about.

By Dawnk777 on Tuesday, June 5, 2007 - 09:23 am:

I loved "Shop on Blossom Street!"

By Ginny~moderator on Tuesday, June 5, 2007 - 11:41 am:

Hol, I think there's a difference between "chick books" and books which focus on a woman or women and the interaction between them and significant people in their lives. I guess partly how I judge is based on how much of the book revolves around sex and whether the author is flippant about the characters' lives or treats them with respect. I will look for the Debbie Macomber books - thanks for the tip.

By Yjja123 on Monday, June 11, 2007 - 10:30 pm:

I have read this series. I agree that Debbie Macomber writes in a similar way. I enjoy both authors work.

By Dawnk777 on Tuesday, June 12, 2007 - 01:56 am:

I'm about halfway through the book now! Graduation and work have gotten in the way of me making more progress! I have more free-time tomorrow, though!

I love Debbie Macomber, too!

By Dawnk777 on Tuesday, June 12, 2007 - 02:32 pm:

I finished it! I couldn't sleep, in the middle of the night and I read for 2 hours! I kept reading, because my house was soooo quiet, from 2:30am to 4:30am.

(I think I had too much late night caffeine last night!)

I loved how the quilts brought the women together and through the quilts the grandmother found she had worth. She was trying to downplay the value of the quilts, but I don't think she had a clue what they were worth, to other people. I can't wait to read the next one, now!