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Page 49 July 2013 ‘Sandcastle Girls’ author will speak to book club By Amanda Goossen At the beginning of 2013, this self- proclaimed “book junkie” found herself invited to the Brandeis National Committee’s Annual Book and Author Event at The Phoenician. The event is a community favorite every year, welcoming four to six authors to speak to the hundreds of guests enjoying lunch and listening to writers speak about their books, their careers and their lives. To say I was entertained would be a massive understatement. The only way to describe my afternoon with Brandeis: life changing. I listened to the authors speak that afternoon and was truly blown away. Each had their own way of using their 20 minutes. Some were shy, yet spoke beautifully, and others took over the stage and demanded attention with powerful, humorous and inspirational stories. They made me desperate to read their books. And now that I have, the written words have proven to be just as commanding as the people who penned them. I’m honored to say that for the July meeting of the Arcadia News Book Club, Chris Bohjalian, author of The Sandcastle Girls , as well as 12 other novels, will SKYPE with us. Listening to Bohjalian speak on stage at The Phoenician that afternoon, I sat awestruck. At one point I won- dered if my jaw was on the table. His stories are captivating, his conviction for his topic, real. Join us 7 p.m. Aug. 1 (this is in fact the July meeting; there will be an August meeting at the end of the month). We will meet at Terra Java Coffeehouse, 3619 E Indian School Road and enjoy dessert, coffee, tea and lemonade. For more information, or to let us know you’ll be attending, please email Amanda@ ArcadiaNews.com. BOOK CLUB SELECTION The Sandcastle Girls By Chris Bohjalian Author Chris Bohjalian was determined to write the story of his family’s history. As the grandson of Armenian survivors, Bohjalian knew the most important story he would ever tell would be that of the 1915 Armenian genocide. His passion for this story pours off every page. Masterfully weaving between past and present, the author tells the story of two women. Elizabeth Endicott is a young American volunteering to deliver food and medical aid to refugees of the Armenian genocide at the beginning of the First World War. When she meets Armen, an Armenian engineer desperate for revenge after the death of his wife and daughter, they quickly find comfort in each others arms. Decades later, Elizabeth and Armen’s granddaughter, Laura, begins to unravel the mysterious past of the grandparents she adored yet never understood. The more Laura learns, the more her research becomes a mission to understand the family history that has been tragically hidden for generations. The history, the characters, the love, passion and heartache that fill The Sandcastle Girls work together to make it quite simply one of the most well-written and stunning novels I have ever read. I beg you to read Bohjalian’s words and learn about a part of history rarely spoken of. SUMMER READING RECOMMENDATIONS The Kings and Queens of Roam By Daniel Wallace Daniel Wallace, beloved author of Big Fish , brings fans a beautiful new novel with his same imaginative style. Once again, Wallace uses elaborate stories and color- ful phrases to design a world of make believe, only this time, between sisters. What comes next are tall tales meant to deceive and one sister forced to fight for her freedom. Carry On Warrior: Thoughts on Life Unarmed By Glennon Doyle Melton In 2012, Glennon Doyle Melton wrote an essay on her blog, Momastery.com, titled “Don’t Carpe Diem.” The essay was shared online more than a half a million times in one week and was eventually picked up by the Huffington Post. Literary agents went crazy for the woman who wrote honestly about her experience as a mother. The result is Carry On Warrior: Thoughts on Life Unarmed and is an honest and funny take on the life so many of us lead, but few admit. Motherhood is hard, frustrating and full of insanity. Melton tells it like it is, reminding everyone that we’re all in the same boat and rarely is there even a bit of perfection. Continued on page 51 NMLS# 179446 / BK0902429 / NOVA NMLS 3087 9JGPYQTMKPIYKVJſTUVVKOG JQOGDW[GTUKPCTGCNGUVCVG VTCPUCEVKQPEQOOWPKECVKQP KUPŏVCNWZWT[KVŏUCPGEGUUKV[ 6JG4QUU6GCOCVNOVA ® *QOG.QCPUGZGORNKſGUVJKU KFGC#UCTGUWNVYGTGEGPVN[IWKFGFCſTUV VKOGJQOGDW[GTVJTQWIJVJGRTQEGUUCPFENQUGF UWEEGUUHWNN[QPGYGGMGCTN[+YQWNFJGCTVKN[ TGEQOOGPFVJGKTUGTXKEGU &GDDKG(TC\GNNG #TECFKC#IGPV%QNFYGNN$CPMGT Senior Loan Officer 602.791.5861 www.asktomross.com W Wh hy y T To op p p p A A Age en nts I In n n O Ou ur r M M Mar rk ket t T T Tr ru us st t U Us: