What I've Read This Week

What I've Read This Week . . .

A Season for Scandal by Marian Devon -- Regency romance

Lord Dalton's father, the Earl of Rexford, makes him promise to stop his carousing and find a bride before the Earl's imminent death. Dalton is furious at his father's demands. His father wants him to marry the daughter of one of the famous beauties of the Earl's day. Dalton feels like he can't refuse his father's dying wish so off he goes to Almack's to view his potential bride (along with all the sons of his father's peers). Jenny, Claire and Sylvia are cousins, daughters of the four famous sisters who captivated the ton with their beauty 21 seasons ago. This next generation fails to live up to the expectations of the ton: Jenny is too tall and too outspoken and Claire is too plump. Only Sylvia can rival their mothers' famous beauty. None of the cousins wants to make their come out this Season but they are happy to be together though they don't know each other very well. Lord Dalton decides to marry Sylvia but Jenny feels that a rake would not be a good husband for her sweet cousin and decides to deflect his attention. Unfortunately Dalton can't stand Jenny and Jenny's sharp wit. Jenny also makes an enemy of the sharp tongued Mr. Roderick Chalgrove, the successor to Beau Brummell. Plump Claire worries about her weight and a family secret that everyone seems to know expect her. She finds an ally in an unexpected place who helps draw her Claire out of her shell. Sylvia remains a mystery but she's loyal to her cousins. The cousins take Society by storm and find love where they least expect it. This is a charming, sweet novel in the tradition of Georgette Heyer. It's fun and funny and there are some plot twists that were entirely unexpected. There was great character growth not usually shown in Regency novels of this type. I really liked the depth of the characters and how they changed each other for the better. It seems to be well researched but high sticklers beware for Jenny is not your typical 19th century miss. This is one of the better Regency novels and I highly recommend it to fans of the sweet Regency style novels. 

With the Might of Angels : The Diary of Dawnie Rae Johnson (Dear America) by Andrea Davis Pinkney -- Middle Grades Historical Fiction

During the 1953-1954 school year, Dawnie is a normal 12 year old African-American girl living in the small town of Hadley in Virginia. Her town is strictly divided along color lines. She's forbidden by her parents to go to Ivorytown the white section of town but that doesn't stop her from dreaming about the brand new school there. Dawnie dreams of becoming a doctor and she knows that the stinky, falling down school and ancient tattered textbooks of her school won't help her achieve her dream. Dawnie keeps her dreams to herself, writing them down in her precious diary, a birthday gift from her autistic younger brother. Dawnie finishes 6th grade at the top of her class and spends the summer jumping on her Pogo stick and playing baseball but come fall, her life changes forever when the Supreme Court decides schools must be integrated. Dawnie has passed the competency exam proving she's smart enough to compete with the white kids so her parents give her permission to integrate. Dawnie hopes to share this experience with her best friend Yolanda and another child from their class, but only Dawnie's parents approve of integration. The decision to attend an all-white school causes a lot of stress for both Dawnie and her family. They meet with opposition from both the white and black communities. A young minister from Alabama visits Dawnie's church and encourages non-violent resistance and Dawnie learns that she can write down all her rage and hatred in her diary while studying hard to stay on top. Finally, she finds an unexpected ally and they challenge each other to pull through. This is a remarkable story of a fictional girl based on real life people and events that took place not that long ago. It's really eye opening to read the comments coming from the white community regarding their ignorant assumptions about African-Americans. Even more surprising was the opinions of many of the members of Dawnie's community who didn't believe in integration. It's really hard to believe this story takes place less than 100 years after the Civil War and just over 50 years ago. The writing is lively and entertaining as well as thought provoking. The author includes many historic events that occurred during this time as well as the usual historical note and information about her own life which inspired the novel This book is a must read for all ages.