The Yellow Bird Sings by Jennifer Rosner

It is 1941 and we find Roza and Shira hiding in a barn after they fled the city where they lived.

Roza saw her parents and husband killed, and she realized the only way to keep her daughter safe was to run.

Shira was only five, had a gift for music, but could not make a sound. 

They hid for approximately 400 days in a barn.  It definitely was difficult to keep a five-year-old child quiet, but Shira did it.

It eventually became too dangerous to keep hiding. The farmer's wife took Shira from Roza and sent her to an orphanage while Roza fled into the woods.

Your heart will break for the characters as you wonder how you would feel about having to send your children away to protect them.

We follow both characters as they yearn for each other and try to survive without each other - Shira in a convent and Roza on the run freezing and barely surviving in the woods.

You will be drawn into the lives of Roza and Shira and ache along with them.

THE YELLOW BIRD SINGS is a beautiful, but heart wrenching story. It is a story of bravery and endurance.

If you enjoy historical fiction, learning of musical prodigies, and books lyrically and beautifully written along with a story line that pulls you in, you will not want to miss this book. 

It will stay with you long after you close the cover. 5/5

This book was given to me by the author in exchange for an honest review.

The Secret French Recipes of Sophie Valroux

PHOTO SOURCE:
TYPORAMA
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THE SECRET FRENCH RECIPES OF SOPHIE VALROUX

BY SAMANTHA VERANT

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Information in this post is courtesy of Tara O'Connor of Penguin Random House.

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THE SECRET FRENCH RECIPES OF SOPHIE VALROUX (Berkley Trade Paperback; On Sale September 8, 2020), Samantha Vérant’s debut fiction novel, is the story of a young female chef who journeys to France with aspirations of earning a coveted spot in an elite kitchen despite inherent challenges that stand in her way.

 

As empowering as it is whimsical and charming, THE SECRET FRENCH RECIPES OF SOPHIE VALROUX is a book not to be missed. 

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ADVANCED PRAISE FOR THE SECRET FRENCH RECIPES OF SOPHIE VALROUX:

Featuring an ambitious young chef, an elegant château, and the enduring charm of the French countryside, The Secret French Recipes of Sophie Valroux is the perfect escape! Pour yourself a glass of wine, put on a Charles Trenet album, pick up this book, and you’re there...” –Ann Mah, bestselling author of The Lost Vintage

“I savored every page of The Secret French Recipes of Sophie Valroux. Join a ‘ruined’ chef as she rebuilds her life at an ancestral chateau, rekindles an old romance, and, of course, labors in the grand kitchens where aspirations are fostered and dreams brought to fruition. With an ear for language, evocative sensory details, and delectable recipes, Samantha Verant invites us to take our seat at the table and relish a delicious sojourn in the south of France. And just remember: never trust a skinny chef.” —Juliet Blackwell, New York Times bestselling author of The Lost Carousel of Provence, Letters from Paris, and The Paris Key

“The Secret French Recipes of Sophie Valroux is a scrumptious novel about family, love, and food, layered like the very best dishes, each bite revealing another luscious note. If you love fiction and food, Samantha Verant serves it up right.”—Amy E. Reichert, author of The Coincidence of Coconut Cake

“Samantha Vérant brings her love of France and food to this vibrant, gratifying book. The recipes and characters leap off the page and Vérant deftly appeals to all five senses, as well as the heart. A perfect novel for anyone who enjoys good food and a great tale.” —Michelle Gable, New York Times bestselling author of A Paris Apartment and The Summer I Met Jack

“Indulge in the delicious story of a professional chef, spiced with a French château and sweetened with a love story. A charming read.” —Janice MacLeod, author of the New York Times bestseller Paris Letters and A Paris Year

“Verant transports us to the enchanting setting of Southern France and the magic of an  exquisite French kitchen. This delectable novel is pure escapism through the delicious dishes made by chef Sophie’s expert hands, the romance involving a childhood friend, and the splendor of France. Verant’s amazing recipes are included as the perfect companion to this tasty debut.”—Roselle Lim, author of Natalie Tan's Book of Luck and Fortune

“A passion for all things gourmet leaps off the page in Samantha Verant’s newest novel. Told from the perspective of a determined female chef, set amid a beautiful French backdrop, The Secret French Recipes of Sophie Valroux is a delicious tale of self-discovery.  Thoroughly enjoyable!”—Nicole Meier, author of The Second Chance Supper Club

“Told with pep and so-vivid-you-can-taste-it food descriptions, The Secret French Recipes of Sophie Valroux is a sumptuous, transporting read from start to finish. What a pleasure to follow Sophie's journey, one of love, family, and confidence lost—and found—through food.”—Jessica Tom, author of Food Whore: A Novel of Dining & Deceit

 

ABOUT THE SECRET FRENCH RECIPES OF SOPHIE VALROUX:

French-born American chef Sophie Valroux had one dream: to be part of the 1% of female chefs running a Michelin-starred restaurant. From a young age she was taught to cook by her grandmother, a French culinary icon who helped Sophie rise to the top of the foodie scene. But when Sophie is sabotaged by a fellow chef, her dream goes up in flames: she is fired and her reputation is left in ruins. To add icing to the cake, she learns that her beloved grandmother has suffered a stroke.

Sophie books a flight back to France faster than you can say au revoir. In her grandmother’s absence, it’s up to Sophie to lead the kitchen at her family’s countryside luxury chateau. A visit to the chateau is also a trip down memory lane, complete with familiar sights and tastes—and even some characters from her past, particularly an old flame. It’s here that Sophie learns to rebuild herself and her career, and where she discovers that returning to her culinary roots may just be the recipe she needs to heal her mind and heart.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

 

Photo Credit:  Susy Barratt

Samantha Vérant is a travel addict, a self-professed oenophile, and a determined, if occasionally unconventional, at home French chef. She lives in southwestern France, where she's married to a French rocket scientist she met in 1989, a stepmom to two incredible kids, and the adoptive mother to a ridiculously adorable French cat. When she's not trekking from Provence to the Pyrénées or embracing her inner Julia Child, Sam is making her best effort to relearn those dreaded conjugations.

Relaunch of The Book Of Lost Names by Kristin Harmel

 

You heard it here first! 

As of today, #TheBookofLostNames (July 21; @gallerybooks), the instant #nytimes #bestseller by @kristinharmel, is finally back in stock everywhere! 

If you haven’t yet read this #historicalfiction novel that @people calls “a heart-stopping tale of survival and heroism,” now’s your chance to snap it up! 

#OrderNOW! Copy & paste this link: http://bit.ly/BOLNisBack #wwiifiction #kristinharmel #gallerybooks 

 

SYNOPSIS: 

Inspired by an astonishing true story from World War II, a young woman with a talent for forgery helps hundreds of Jewish children flee the Nazis in this unforgettable historical novel from the New York Times bestselling author of the “epic and heart-wrenching World War II tale” (Alyson Noel, #1 New York Times bestselling author) The Winemaker’s Wife. 

An engaging and evocative novel reminiscent of The Lost Girls of Paris and The Alice Network, The Book of Lost Names is a testament to the resilience of the human spirit and the power of bravery and love in the face of evil.

MY REVIEW IS HERE.

ALL INFORMATION IN THIS POST OTHER THAN MY REVIEW IS COURTESY OF Meg Walker |Tandem Literary: Publicity & Marketing

Spotlight Shiloh Valley by Doris Dumrauf

PHOTO SOURCE:
TYPORAMA
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SHILOH VALLEY

BY DORIS DUMRAUF

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Information in this post is courtesy of the author.

 

Ms. Dumrauf is looking for bloggers/reviewers who may want to read and review her book.  

E-mail me, and I'll send her your information.

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ABOUT THE BOOK:

 

Shiloh Valley is a powerful depiction of the choices we make in pursuit of our dreams, and the sacrifices we bear to make them a reality.

Rhenish-Bavaria, 1849: Revolution is sweeping across the province, changing the lives of three young people from different social classes forever.

Desperate for freedom and adventure, and trapped in a profession he hates, nineteen-year-old Martin Dupree eagerly joins the rebels. When his own father causes the revolution to flounder, Martin turns to America for deliverance.
 

Katrin Weber, adored by Martin but betrothed to a man she does not love, boldly leaves home to strike out on her own until a tragedy suddenly ends her hard-won independence.

Drafted into the rebel army, Katrin’s brother Nikolaus wants nothing more than to return to the comfort of his small family farm. But life has other plans, forcing him and Katrin to likewise seek their destiny in America. It isn’t all milk and honey, as the America of the 1850s is breaking apart over the question of slavery, forcing the young immigrants to make difficult choices.

From the vineyards of the Rhine Valley to the banks of the Mississippi, from rebel skirmishes to the battlefields of the Civil War, Shiloh Valley follows their quest for freedom and struggle for survival. 

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

 

PHOTO CREDIT:
Nicole MC Photography

 

Doris Dumrauf is an award-winning author and bird photographer. She grew up in the Cold War era West German state of Rheinland-Pfalz, a region with a long history of emigration resulting from poverty and political turmoil. She was inspired to write Shiloh Valley following a trip to American sites of German settlements and an article about the revolution of 1849. Since moving to the United States in 1995, Doris has published nonfiction articles, her novel Oktober Heat, and two nature books. She divides her time between writing, nature photography, and public speaking.

Fiction Titles:

Oktober Heat

Nonfiction Titles:

Create Your Own Backyard Wildlife Habitat

Common Backyard Birds 

Life in a Wetland

This Week at Silver's Reviews - 9/6 - 9/12

A fun, full first week of September.

Hope you can stop by.

 

A Lot of Good Titles

 

All were good reads.

Let me know which you have read?

FEATURING: BELOW THE STAIRS by Margaret Powell

What a delightful book even though the subject of being a kitchen maid in a wealthy household was far from delightful. 

FULL REVIEW HERE.