Friends, Food, Fellowship and Fiction – November 9, 2013 and Upcoming Book for January 11, 2014

Every Waking Moment by Chris Fabry

We had a blast that morning talking about that book and sharing our stories too!  This book is a wonderful book about a young lady who has a strange medical problem and she works at a retirement home and since she can’t remember her childhood, she takes stories from the residents.  There’s lots of mystery, sadness and love flowing through this book and we highly recommend it to everyone!

Our meetings start at 9:30am and we all bring dishes for breakfast and have a wonderful time of fellowship, then we have our picture made and then we settle down to let Carmen pass out her neat little booklet with questions for us to go over to help lead the discussion.  As if, 9 ladies need any prompting to talk about anything!!  We usually end around 11:30, not because we are finished talking (no way could we ever be finished talking!), but usually someone has somewhere to go and the meeting ends.  Well, not this time.  No one had anywhere to go and we stayed until about 1:30!

I know that most people who follow our blog are from around the country and even the world, but if anyone out there lives close enough to drive to Winterville, GA (or surrounding towns), we would love to have you join us!  We love new members and you do not have to belong to our church, you do not have to be a Baptist, you do not even have to be a Christian, but we do read Christian fiction and that’s the only requirement…that you love to read the best books available!!

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Our next meeting will be on Saturday, January 11, 2014 and we will be discussing Small Town Girl (Rosey Corner’s #2) by Ann Gabhart

The first book is Angel Sister and when we read that book we had no idea that Ann would write a sequel.  We are so thrilled she did!!  I have already read the book and it’s fantastic!  So, if you would like to join us, please stop by the Media Center, or send us a message through this post or our “Contact Us” section at the top of the page.

Carmen will be sending out an email to our current Book Club members soon to take the book order for Small Town Girl, or you can purchase the book yourself at our local Christian bookstore, The Carpenter’s Shop (if they don’t have it in stock, Brian will gladly order it for you) or if you have an e-reader you can get it electronically.  We do have one copy of this book in the Media Center, so come in and get your name on the list and let’s start reading!!!  If you have read Angel Sister, you will LOVE this book, it takes place 5 years after Angel Sister left off.  If you haven’t read Angel Sister, then, come on in and get to reading!  It’s a great book.

We don’t have a location for our January 11, 2014 meeting yet, but we will keep you updated when a location is decided.

Friends, Food, Fellowship and Fiction – September 21, 2013

For Every Season (Amish Vines and Orchards, Book 3) by Cindy Woodsmall

Once again we had the best time talking about this book.  This is the third in the series and thankfully, there will be a fourth! If not, I do believe we would have all jumped in a van and driven to see Cindy and got down on our hands and knees pleading for more!!!

We had tons of great food, just like always, but I was first in line (I don’t know why that always happens) and I was totally amazed when I got to a beautiful plate of apple strudel and laying on the plate was this cute little box with a cellophane cutout on top and you could see some more of the apple strudel inside.  The label on the box said “Orchard Bend Farms”.  I just stood there dumbfounded.  I’m like…what?  where did this come from?  Someone from the back of the line said “Maine” and then it’s like I had entered the Twilight Zone…I felt like I’d finally read so much fiction that I had actually entered into the book!  Finally, they drew me out of my stupor (they wanted food) and told me that Judy had the idea and Joanne made the box and label and bought the apple strudel from Publix!  I wish I had thought to get a picture of it.  It was just PERFECT!

After eating all the delicious food, we moved to the living room and sat down with our books/kindles and Carmen passed out our questions.  Once again we were all…Team Jacob and Team Samuel.  Although I will admit by the end of the book, I switched teams.  We were all talking, laughing, and having the best time and we wondered what Cindy Woodsmall would think of us as we discussed this book!  She would have love it!!!  Carmen did a great job, as usual with our handouts and questions and leading us in our discussion.

We are going to have to wait for Book 4, it doesn’t come out until April 2014, so we will be reading three other books for our November and January and March meetings.

Carmen has decided on Chris Fabry’s latest book for our November 9th meeting at Sylvia S. home.  The name of the book is, Every Waking Moment.  We will meet at 9:30am for breakfast and then, I’m sure, another lively discussion with lots of laughter and love!

Carmen will be ordering the books soon, so please let her know to order you one.  You can also download your own copy on your e-reader, or buy a copy at The Carpenter’s Shop (last week they had some in stock).  We also have a copy in the Media Center, so if you plan on reading that book, COME IN THIS WEEK and get your name on the list.  We only have one book and about 4-5 people who need to read it, so we have to get going and read fast!

If you are going to download your own copy on your e-reader, wait until 10/20 – 10/26, because Tyndale House will have it on sale for $1.99 on just about any e-reader you have!  So, this is a great deal that I hope you can take advantage of, thanks Tyndale!!!

Here’s the trailer to the book:

Women’s Book Club Meeting Information for September 21, 2013

For the past two meetings we have been reading and discussing Cindy Woodsmall’s series, Amish Vines & Orchards.  The final book, For Every Season, is coming out on August 20, 2013 and in order to keep the momentum going, we are moving our meeting from September 7th, 2013 TO September 21, 2013. That will give everyone enough time to get the book and read it before our meeting.

We can’t wait to see how Cindy brings this story to a close.  Who will Rhoda end up with, Samuel or Jacob?  What about Leah, will she leave the Amish like she’s always said she would do…maybe she ends up with Landon.  And what about that elderly couple in the woods and Rhoda’s strange visions of her sister and the voices she keeps hearing?  Oh, we can’t wait to read this book!!!

So friends, mark your calendars for Saturday, September 21, 2013 at 9:30am. We will be meeting at Carmen’s home this time.  Look for more information about the menu and directions in emails from Carmen.  Carmen has already ordered the books, so if you missed out on the order you can either buy a copy yourself (I’m sure The Carpenter’s Shop will have them in-stock) or download to your e-reader, or come in and read the Media Center copy.  If you plan on reading our copy, please come in soon and put your name on the waiting list, so everyone will have a chance to read the book before the meeting.  Don’t wait until the last two weeks before the meeting and all of you come in at once…it just won’t work…been there, done that!

You can visit Cindy’s website and read an excerpt from the upcoming book by clicking HERE.

Here is a YouTube video of Cindy talking about how and why she became a writer.  This video was made in 2010 (which was the year that we actually got to have our meeting with her at The Carpenter’s Shop…what a great meeting that was!).

Friends, Food, Fellowship and Fiction

The Women’s Book Club met this morning to discuss, The Winnowing Season (Amish Vines & Orchards #2) by Cindy Woodsmall

We had a wonderful time this morning.  Of course we ALWAYS have a wonderful time, but today I think we could have stayed all day laughing and talking and sharing our thoughts about this book.  Carolyn said she had recently read an article about how laughter released endorphins in our brains…if that’s so then our brains are full of endorphins right now!

For those of you who haven’t been to one of our meetings, we always start with breakfast, with each person bringing something.  Well, today I thought I would just list the food we had to make your mouth water and give you a good reason to start coming to our meetings. 🙂  We had:  2 different breakfast casseroles, hashbrown casserole, bacon (I think it was turkey bacon), banana nut bread, cream cheese sausage squares, fruit bowl (cantelope, strawberries, grapes, blueberries),  biscuits and jellies, juice, water and coffee! It was all delicious! (The only thing missing was grits!  We are Southern girls after all , and it’s almost a sin if you don’t have grits for breakfast!) 🙂

Carmen did another wonderful job on the handouts she gives us with questions to discuss.  Each handout had it’s own set of questions and we had 11…we only got to #6, but I think with all the discussion we covered just about everything except the strange happenings with Rhoda and the voices she’s hearing and the strange couple that lives in the woods.  We wonder what’s going on, but we figure that Cindy has that all taken care of in Book 3, For Every Season, that releases on August 20, 2013.  We can’t wait to see how Cindy wraps up this whole story.  Some of us are on “Team Jacob” and some on “Team Samuel” in regards to who we want to see Rhoda end up with.  It was a very lively discussion!!!!

Carmen thinks that with the late release of Book 3, we won’t have enough time to get it in and out to everyone to read in time for our September 14, 2013 meeting, so she’s in the process of deciding between two other books for the September meeting and then we’ll pick back up with, For Every Season, for our November  9th meeting.  We all wish Cindy had been with us for this meeting, I bet she would have just sat back and laughed and laughed at all of our opinions about the characters and what they should and shouldn’t do and what’s going on and what’s going to happen next!

We have two new members, Lindsey and Ella, who’s going to join us in September and we would love to have you!  If you come to our church or if you live close to us in Winterville, GA, we would love to have you join us.  Just drop by the Media Center or email us at wfbcmediacenter@gmail.com or comment on this post and we’ll fill you in on all the details.

I’ll post the information about our September meeting as soon as Carmen decides on our book.  If you would like to host the meeting just let Carmen know or come by the Media Center.

God’s blessings on all of you! And happy reading!

Women’s Book Club – The Winnowing Season by Cindy Woodsmall

July 2013 Book Club Selection

Our Book Club will be meeting on Saturday, July 13, 2013 at 9:30am in the home of Karen.  We will be discussing, The Winnowing Season (Amish Vines & Orchards #2) by Cindy Woodsmall.  For those of you who read, A Season of Tending, Book 1, you know that it ended leaving us all up in the air!  Now the story continues and we are looking forward to a wonderful meeting with breakfast and a great discussion of the book.  I’m sure Carmen has some wonderful questions to guide us through the book.

This will be a very special meeting because we will be meeting at Karen “new” home, which was her mom, Dyanne’s.  We still miss Dyanne and can feel her presence with us at every Book Club meeting.  And it will be like old times getting together at Dyanne’s old home, and seeing all the new renovations and touches that Karen has done to the house to make it hers.

One of our first meetings at Dyanne’s (in orange shirt) home in 2004. We discussed The Sister Circle by Vonette Bright and Nancy Moser.

If you haven’t read the book yet, you’ve still got plenty of time.  You can buy a copy at The Carpenter’s Shop or buy a e-book or come by the Media Center and check it out.  Once you get started reading it, you will not want to put it down.  It’s that good!  Can’t wait for Book 3 that’s coming out in September.

We Had A Great Time Today at Book Club

We had 7 members at our meeting  this morning to discuss, A Season of Tending (Amish Vines & Orchards #1) by Cindy Woodsmall.  Of course the food was delicious, but the conversation was even better!  No calories in talking.  We talked so much we probably burned off all the calories we ate!  I doubt that, but it would be nice if that could happen.

This book was so good.  And talk about a cliff hanger!  We are all so glad that the second book is already out, The Winnowing Season, and some of us have already read it or are currently reading it.  We had to be careful and not let any of the secrets out during our discussion.  We will be reading the sequel at our next meeting in July.  More details will follow.

We missed those who couldn’t be here today and hope you’ll be able to make it next time.

A Season of Tending by Cindy Woodsmall 5-11-13

A Season of Tending by Cindy Woodsmall – Book Club Selection for May 11, 2013 Meeting

We will be discussing  A Season of Tending (The Amish Vines and Orchards Series #1) by Cindy Woodsmall  on May 11, 2013 at 9:30am at the home of Malinda.  It’s not too late to read the book and join us. We have the book in the Media Center so come in Wednesday night or Sunday morning to check it out . It’s a fast read, because it’s so good you just can’t put it down!

Note of interest:  For those of you who have been in our club for many years, you may remember we read The Hope of Refuge by Cindy Woodsmall for our January 9, 2010 meeting held at  The Carpenter’s Shop with Cindy Woodsmall.  Brian Hill, owner of the Carpenter’s Shop, made all the arrangements  for Cindy to meet with us and it was a fantastic meeting with a fantastic author.

Below is a description of the book and I have also included a book trailer from YouTube about the book that you can watch.

From FamilyFiction.com

Old Order Amish Rhoda Byler’s unusual gift and her remarkable abilities to grow herbs and berries have caused many to think her odd. As rumors mount that Rhoda’s “gift” is a detriment to the community, she chooses isolation, spending her time in her fruit garden and on her thriving canning business.

Miles away in Harvest Mills, Samuel King struggles to keep his family’s apple orchard profitable. As the eldest son, Samuel farms with his brothers, the irrepressible Jacob and brash Eli, while his longtime girlfriend Catherine remains hopeful that Samuel will marry her when he feels financially stable.

Meanwhile, Samuel’s younger sister Leah is testing all the boundaries during her rumschpringe, and finds herself far from home in Rhoda’s garden after a night of partying gone badly. But Leah’s poor choices serve as a bridge between Rhoda and the King family when a tragic mistake in the orchard leaves Samuel searching for solutions. Rhoda’s expertise in canning could be the answer, but she struggles with guilt over the tragic death of her sister and doesn’t trust herself outside her garden walls.

As the lines between business, love, and family begin to blur, can Rhoda finally open up to a new life? And what effect will this odd, amazing woman have on the entire King family?

Women’s Book Club Discussing Promises to Keep by Ann Tatlock

Promises to Keep is a book full of surprises and insight.  Roz, the main character says that “bad memories are weeds and the good memories are flowers.”  However, Tillie, who is older and wiser believes that every moment of every hour is precious: “I ask God to help me remember the forgotten moments, and he always brings something good to mind…People look at greatness in the extraordinary and completely overlook the ordinary. That’s why those moments are all forgotten, counted as nothing.  It’s a terrible loss.”  One of the reasons to love this book is that it teaches us to embrace every day the Lord has given us.

We had 8 beautiful ladies to join us at our Book Club on Saturday, March 23, 2013.  Of course everyone had a wonderful time of fellowship while eating a delicious breakfast that everyone contributed to and then we had a great discussion of Promise to Keep by Ann Tatlock.  (Unfortunately, our photographer that has a tripod (me) was not able to attend, so Carmen was not in the picture…she was behind the camera.)

Promises to Keep by Ann Tatlock – March 23, 2013

Women’s Book Club on March 9, 2013 Has Been Cancelled

Our meeting of March 9th has been postponed due to the death of a dear lady from our church.  Her memorial service will be that day and I know most of us will be going to pay our respects to her.   We will let you know when the date is rescheduled.  Our next meeting TBA at the home of Jackie Chastain.  We will be discussing, Promises to Keep by Ann Tatlock. This book was a 2012 Christy Award Winner and named as one of the Top Ten Historical Novels of the year by Booklist Magazine.  Visit the author’s website at www.anntatlock.com for more information about her and her books.

You may purchase the book yourself (either e-book or regular book) or read the Media Center copy.  Carmen ordered books for several of you and three of you still need to come by to pay and get your book.  Those who are reading the Media Center copy, get your name on the list and please read it within a week, so others will have time to read it also.  Ladies, we only have TWO weeks until the meeting.

If you need some motivation to get started, read this review by Zu:

Promises to Keep by Ann Tatlock promises to keep you up at night or away from your work at work because you’re just not going to be able to put it down! The author draws you into the story and you can feel what each character is feeling…you laugh with them, you cry with (and for) them and you sit right now and have dinner with them. It’s one of my favorites and I can’t wait to discuss it in our March book club meeting.

We have a wonderful time at each Book Club.  First we always eat a delicious breakfast (of course!) and then settle down to have Carmen lead us in a discussion of our book selection.  We always have a wonderful time sharing our thoughts about the book and how God is working in the lives of the characters and how we can relate this to our lives.

In the past we have had a few special treats!  One meeting was hosted by our local Christian bookstore, The Carpenter’s Shop in Athens, GA, and Cindy Woodsmall (The Hope of Refuge) talked to us about her book and her life.  That was so special.  And two other meetings we arranged telephone conferences with the authors…Ann Gabhart (Angel Sister), and Jennifer Erin Valent (Cottonwood Whispers).  It was so wonderful to talk to each author and ask her about her book and how she comes up with her ideas and any future book plans.  We even watched a Youtube video from author Ginny Yttrup (Words) telling us about how she became a writer and a little bit about her book.

It’s always a great day at the Book Club meetings and we would love to have you join us.  You do not have to be a member of our church to join our group.

Happy Reading!