A SIMPLE HABANA MELODY by Oscar Hijuelos

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HIJUELOS, O

World-famous Cuban composer Israel Levis returns home after being imprisoned in a World War II concentration camp. His spirit seems broken but a spark remains for the love of his life, Rita Valladores, for whom he wrote a famous rumba. This is an enchanting and captivating books.

LICK CREEK by Brad Kessler

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KESSLER

Emily Jenkins and her widowed mother Ada live in the hills of West Virginia in the 1920s. Power is coming to the valley along with “electric men” who make a deal with the women for the right of way on their land. All turns to dust when the supervisor, Robert Daniels, plies her with liquor and rapes her. Overwhelmed with rage, Emily vows revenge on the power company through acts of sabotage.
Her life is altered when a young lineman, Joseph Gershon, is struck by lightning and brought to the Jenkins house to recuperate. His tales of immigration from Russia enthrall Emily and the two fall in love. Only Emily’s obsessive hatred for Daniels stands in the way of their happiness. A dramatic conclusion brings the story full circle.

KNITTING CIRCLE by Ann Hood

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HOOD
Mary Baxter loses her only child, little Stella.
In their grief Mary and her husband find themselves isolated and disconnected, even fromeach other. Mary’s mother encourages her daughter to go to Big Alice’s shop to learn to knit. At the knitting circle six ladies surround Mary: Scarlet, Lulu,Beth,Harriet, Ellen and Alice. Each member shares with Mary a new knitting technique, along with her own story of loss and recovery. Initially, Mary is reluctant to tell her story. Eventually hours of knitting and listening help her to relate her own experience of suffering. Soon Mary begins to reclaim her life and rediscovers a renewed love for her husband.

COLD MOUNTAIN by Charles Frazier

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FRAZIER

A love story and adventure featuring Inman, a wounded Confederate soldier who walks out of a hospital ward, tired of war and senseless killing. He begins a long journey to see Ada, his sweetheart. Ada too has seen some hard times since her father's death. She has not a clue as to making the farm work and seems destined for failure until the arrival of Ruby.

Inman's trip back to his true love is long and treacherous, filled with solitude and savagery. Like Ada, Inman acquires the courage and tenacity to reach the end of his goal.