Get a Book Club Makeover

Whether your book club is just a few months old or has been around for a while, you might be in need of a Book Club Makeover from ReadingGroupGuides.com. After reading your emails --- and talking to book clubs across the country --- we see that book groups often can fall into a routine and need a bit of livening up. It's ReadingGroupGuides.com to the rescue! We'll select groups each month for makeovers, review the problems, and make suggestions. Interested in a Book Club Makeover for your group? Click here for details.


Special Contests and Features

Win a Copy of SARAH'S KEY by Tatiana de Rosnay for Your Group

We are celebrating the paperback release of Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay --- a mesmerizing story in which a mysterious past unfolds, the present is torn apart and the future is irrevocably altered --- with a special contest. Ten groups will have the opportunity to each win up to 12 finished copies of Sarah's Key, which is now in stores, for their group.

More About Sarah's Key:
Paris, July 1942: Sarah, a 10-year-old girl, is taken with her parents by the French police as they go door to door arresting Jewish families in the middle of the night. Desperate to protect her younger brother, Sarah locks him in a bedroom cupboard --- their secret hiding place --- and promises to come back for him as soon as they are released.

Six years later: Sarah's story intertwines with that of Julia Jarmond, an American journalist investigating the roundup. In her research Julia stumbles onto a trail of family secrets that link her to Sarah and to questions about her own future.

Click here to read all the contest details.
Click here for the reading group guide.

Win a Copy of SHELTER ME by Juliette Fay for Your Group

We are celebrating the release of Shelter Me by Juliette Fay --- a beautifully written debut novel about heartbreaking loss and emotional redemption --- with a special contest. Thirty-five readers will have the opportunity to each win one advance copy of Shelter Me, which will be in stores on December 30th, for their group.

More About Shelter Me:
After the sudden death of her husband, Janie LaMarche is swamped by tides of grief and rage. Yet she's forced to confront the onward march of her life by an unlikely cast of interventionists: her two small children, her Ipecac-toting aunt, the "unflinchingly nice" parish priest and the contractor hired by her husband to build her a porch, whose involvement in her family's life becomes more ingrained with every beam he installs.

This stirring debut from author Juliette Fay is filled with insight on how we carry on after a loved one's death --- and how we must often force ourselves to embrace solace from those who show up to help us weather the tides of our grief.

Click here to read all the contest details.
Click here for the reading group guide.


New and Recommended Fiction

Home to Holly Springs: Father Tim, Book 1 by Jan Karon Now Available in Paperback: Jan Karon enchants us with the story of the newly retired priest's spur-of-the-moment adventure. For the first time in decades, Father Tim returns to his birthplace, Holly Springs, Mississippi, in response to a mysterious, unsigned note saying simply: "Come home." Little does he know how much these two words will change his life. A story of long-buried secrets, forgiveness and the wonder of discovering new people, places and depth of feeling, Home to Holly Springs will enthrall new readers and longtime fans alike. Click Here for the reading group guide.

A Dog Named Christmas by Greg Kincaid Todd McCray is a developmentally challenged young man living with his parents on their Kansas farm. While listening to the radio one day, Todd hears that the local animal shelter is seeking temporary homes for dogs during the Christmas week; Todd immediately wants to participate. Once Todd wins over his reluctant father, George, the McCray family find themselves with Christmas, a loyal, obedient dog that weaves his way into the hearts of the McCray family and their friends. When the time comes to give Christmas back, however, it is George who finds he is having a hard time letting go. Click Here for the reading group guide.

Good Luck by Whitney Gaskell After life as she knows it falls apart, Lucy Parker heads off to Palm Beach to hide out at the home of an old college friend. But just as Lucy begins to envision a new life for herself, the past catches up with her. Lucy would give up every penny to have her old life back ---- but just as she's ready to cash it all in, fate has one last surprise in store for her... one that will show her exactly what she's worth. Click Here for the reading group guide.

For Christian Readers

New Christian Guides:

One Holy Night by J. M. Hochstetler

It's Not About Me: Second Glances Series, Book 1 by Michelle Sutton

Registered Book Club Promotion

For November we have a very special opportunity for Registered Book Groups. Our featured title this month is While My Sister Sleeps by Barbara Delinsky. Groups who have registered with us by Friday, November 14th have the chance to win free books for their entire group. If your group is not registered, click here to register.


New Guides

• The 7th Victim by Alan Jacobson
• The Art of Social War by Jodi Wing
• Bitter Sweets by Roopa Farooki
• The Brass Verdict by Michael Connelly
• Brother, I'm Dying by Edwidge Danticat
• Carry Me Home by Sandra Kring
• The Common Bond by Donigan Merritt
• A Country Called Home by Kim Barnes
• A Cut Above: Shop-Til-U-Drop, Book 3 by Ginny Aiken
• Dancing in the Lowcountry by James Villas
• Dead Boys: Stories by Richard Lange
• Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World by Vicki Myron with Bret Witter
• A Dog Named Christmas by Greg Kincaid
• The Forbidden Daughter by Shobhan Bantwal
• The Gifted Gabaldón Sisters by Lorraine López
• Goldengrove by Francine Prose
• Good Luck by Whitney Gaskell
• Home Another Way by Christa Parrish
• Home to Holly Springs: Father Tim, Book 1 by Jan Karon
• It's Not About Me: Second Glances Series, Book 1 by Michelle Sutton
• John 3:16 by Nancy Moser
• The Letters by Luanne Rice and Joseph Monninger
• Listening Is an Act of Love: A Celebration of American Life from the StoryCorps Project, edited and with an introduction by Dave Isay
• Longings of the Heart: Sydney Cove Series, Book 2 by Bonnie Leon
• Lulu in Marrakech by Diane Johnson
• My Sister Dilly by Maureen Lang
• Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout
• One Holy Night by J. M. Hochstetler
• One Perfect Day by Lauraine Snelling
• Out of Her Hands by Megan DiMaria
• The Paper Bag Christmas by Kevin Alan Milne
• Reporting the War: Freedom of the Press from the American Revolution to the War on Terrorism by John Byrne Cooke
• Rhapsody in Red by Donn Taylor
• Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay
• Sea of Poppies by Amitav Ghosh
• Seal Woman by Solveig Eggerz
• The Saturday Wife by Naomi Ragen
• Shelter Me by Juliette Fay
• A Silent Ocean Away: Colette's Dominion, by DeVa Gantt
• Sinful Too by Victor McGlothin
• The Smart One and the Pretty One by Claire LaZebnik
• The Street of a Thousand Blossoms by Gail Tsukiyama
• Testimony by Anita Shreve
• Thank You for All Things by Sandra Kring
• Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace . . . One School at a Time by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin
• Three Minutes on Love by Roccie Hill
• Tuesday Night at the Blue Moon by Debbie Fuller Thomas
• Until We Reach Home by Lynn Austin
• A Week in October by Elizabeth Subercaseaux
• While My Sister Sleeps by Barbara Delinsky
• The Whitest Wall by Jodee Kulp

Oprah's Book Club Selection
The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski


This month's prize:
The Street of a Thousand Blossoms by Gail Tsukiyama

Labels: 2008