Autumn Softly Fell by Dominic Luke. It's the story of a young girl, Dorothea, who is unceremoniously dumped off one night at the home of her father's brother, who married into wealth. I'd kind of hoped it would bear some resemblance to one of my favorite books, The Rising of the Lark (Ann Moray), and it does, but there are also echoes of The Secret Garden and R.F. Delderfield's Valley Saga. It's apparently book I of a family saga and I may have to buy sequels as I am finding is quite engrossing. Luke's ability to get into the mind of an 8 year old girl is astonishing.
Last week I read Nefertiti's Sister by Felicia Roche, a very interesting historical, and Good Kings, Bad Kings, by Susan Nussbaum. The latter takes place in a home for disabled young people in Chicago and each chapter is told in a different voice, some of the caregivers and others of the different kids living there. It was both sad and uplifting and I couldn't make up my mind about it.
On another note, yesterday I was talking with a young friend who is really into fantasy literature. When she said she hadn't even heard of Anne McCaffrey or Ursula LeGuin, my mouth fell open. They are foundational! So I gave her a list and promised to lend her some of my books.
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