Dreams of Joy by Lisa See Reviewed by Lisa Howe

  Dreams of Joy is a sequel to the book Shanghai Girls, and if I had one word to describe this book, it  would be "powerful."  Lisa See is one of my all-time favorite authors and she has not let me down again this time.  It is a fictional tale of a young girl trying to find her way in this world. It takes you from Chinatown in California to small rural villages and big cities in China.  The authors descriptions of the characters and cities  are vivid and beautiful, but also real and at times, mind-boggling. This story takes place in 1957 when 19 year old Joy runs off to join The New Society of Red China and faces many dangers in the Communist regime.  Joys mother then returns to China to try and find her and runs into many old demons and difficult challenges.  The biggest challenge of all is how to get back out of China.  If you haven't read Shanghai Girls, you definately need to read that first, but Dreams of Joy is a treasure!

Founding Gardeners. The Revolutionary Generation, Nature and the Shaping of the American Nation. Reviewed by Judith C.

When one thinks of the founding of our nation, you do not immediately think of gardening. Andrea Wulf has vividly recounted the founding of our nation through the "Founding Fathers" love of agriculture, botany and planting. The book tells of a time when the leaders of this new nation knew that if the United States were to ever succeed, we needed to be independent of reliance on other nations for our basic needs such as food and manufactured goods. George Washington was so devoted to his love of Mount Vernon (his home plantation) that on the eve of the Revolution, when British warships gathered off Staten Island, he wrote to his estate manager about planting the gardens. (Some of those very trees are still standing today) Wulf writes of John Adams and Thomas Jefferson's very close friendship and how they traveled in English countryside examining gardens. James Madison and Jefferson's New England countryside tour, and John Adams' obsession with manure. Most of all the call to a republican state (not political party) where an agrarian society it to be held  in the highest esteem; preservation of natural resources prevailed, and thinking of the collective good above personal gain. 

I found this books to be absolutely inspiring and a must read for a gardener and/or history buff.

The Sandalwood Tree by Elle Newman. Reviewed by Lisa H

     The Sandalwood Tree starts off in India in 1947, where an american couple have relocated to start a new life with their son.  They move into a brick colonial bungalow in a  small village to try and escape the violence surrounding India and Britain. It is in walls of that bungalow, where a dark secret is hidden.  When a series of old letters dating back to 1857 is discovered, the mistress of the house is compelled to find out what happened to the occupants and the author of the letters.  The search leads the mistress to temples and bazaars and finally back to her bungalow.  While searching for history the mistress and her husband try to reconnect with each other after a difficult separation during World War II. The author does a wonderful job describing India and its many traditions, celebrations and tragedies.  While the book does jump back and forth between 1857 and 1947, it is not difficult to follow. It is a story of forbidden love in a forbidden country between forbidden races and cultures.