Three Weeks With My Brother - #TeaserTuesday and First Chapter/First Paragraph/Tuesday Intros

    Nicholas Sparks fans will adore this memoir, and even though he isn't my most favorite author, I enjoyed it a lot. I like the way Sparks wove his life story into the round-the-world trip he took with his brother Micah, relating memories from his past in a natural way as the brothers reminisced. Their humble childhood surprised me.
    Thank you to my new walking-group friend, Donna, for loaning the book to me.

Genre: Memoir
Book Length (Trade paperback): 356 Pages
Amazon Link: Three Weeks With My Brother
Author's Website: Nicholas Sparks

The book begins with a prologue, explaining how Nicholas Sparks and his brother decided to go on the "Heaven and Earth" round-the-world trip to exotic places. I'm sharing the First Paragraph from Chapter 1:
     Many stories begin with a simple lesson learned, and our family's story is no exception. For brevity's sake, I'll summarize.
     In the beginning, we children were conceived. And the lesson learned - at least according to my Catholic mmother - goes like this:
     "Always remember," she told me, "that no matter what the church tells you, the rhythm method doesn't work."

Teaser Tuesday (from Page 148 in the paperback edition):
Because we couldn't afford the sort of treats that other kids seemed to get - cookies, Twinkies, Ho-Hos, etc. - we developed a binge mentality when the opportunity presented itself. If we were visiting someone's house, for instance, we'd devour whatever we could, eating until we felt like we would burst.

Synopsis (from Goodreads):
The day the brochure came was a typical one. With a wife and five small children, a hectic schedule, and a new book due to his publishers, Nicholas Sparks was busy with his usual routine. The colorful mailer, however, described something very different: a tour to some of the most exotic places on Earth. Slowly, an idea took hold in Nicholas's mind and heart. In January 2003, Nicholas Sparks and his brother, Micah, set off on a three-week trip around the globe. It was to mark a milestone in their lives, for at thirty-seven and thirty-eight respectively, they were now the only surviving members of their family. And as they voyaged to the lost city of Machu Picchu high in the Andes. . . to mysterious Easter Island. . . to Ayers Rock in the Australian outback. . . and across the vast Indian subcontinent, the ultimate story of their lives would unfold. Against the backdrop of the wonders of the world and often overtaken by their feelings, daredevil Micah and the more serious, introspective Nicholas recalled their rambunctious childhood adventures and the tragedies that tested their faith. And in the process, they discovered startling truths about loss, love and hope. Narrated with irrepressible humor and rare candor, and including personal photographs, Three Weeks with my Brother reminds us to embrace life with all its uncertainties. . . and most of all, to cherish the joyful times, both small and momentous, and the wonderful people who make them possible.

Teaser Tuesday is hosted by Jenn of Books and A Beat. Post two sentences from somewhere in a book you're reading. No spoilers, please!

Link at Books and A Beat

First Chapter/First Paragraph/Tuesday Intros is hosted by Bibliophile By The Sea. To participate, share the first paragraph (or a few) from a book you're reading or thinking about reading soon.

Link at BibliophileByTheSea

Twitter: @SandyNachlinger

Facebook: sandy.nachlinger

Nobody's Cuter Than You - Teaser Tuesday and First Paragraph / First Chapter

Nobody's Cuter Than You: A Memoir About the Beauty of Friendship arrived in the mail as a surprise gift from my good friend Sandra Allen, co-author of I.O.U. Sex, and I've just started reading it. So far, it's sweet and funny, and I've seen lots of passages that I can identify with. The book is a memoir about friendship, especially the author's friendship with Amy Gulley. It's classified as "Christian Living" on its Amazon page, but it isn't preachy so far. Thanks for a delightful gift, Sandra! 
      Here's how the memoir starts (after an introduction):

First Paragraph:
      I dropped off my daughter, Caroline, at camp for the first time ever yesterday and am in the midst of what can only be described as an emotional hangover. Perry and I helped her get her room for the week all set up, and then I hugged her good-bye as her little eyes filled with tears. At that point I basically had to sprint down the hallway without daring to cast a look back over my shoulder lest I be like Lot's wife and dissolve into a pillar of salt. Or maybe just tears. 

Teaser Tuesday (from Page 29 - trade paperback):
(FYI: Melanie has started a new school in seventh grade.)
Junior high girls aren't generally known for their kind and welcoming ways, and my experience proved to be no exception to this rule. These are the years that are a bad cocktail of insecurity, hormones, and believing you know all there is to know about life while you incessantly worry about whether your boobs are ever going to show up. 

Genre: Memoir / Christian Living
Length: 200 Pages (plus Appendices)
Amazon Link: Nobody's Cuter Than You
Melanie Shankle's Blog: Big Mama


Synopsis (from Amazon):
There is nothing as precious in life as a friend who knows you and loves you in spite of yourself. Yet over the last couple of decades, we’ve substituted the joy of real friendship with cheap imitations. We settle for “community” on Facebook and Twitter and a series of text messages that allow us to communicate with someone without the commitment. We like each other’s beautifully filtered photos on Instagram and delude ourselves into believing we have a community. But real friendship requires effort. It’s showing up, laughing loud, and crying hard. It’s forgiving and loving and giving the benefit of the doubt. It’s making a casserole, doing a carpool pickup, and making sure she knows those cute shoes are 50 percent off. Written in the same comedic style as the New York Times bestsellers Sparkly Green Earrings and The Antelope in the Living Room, Nobody’s Cuter than You is a laugh-out-loud look at the special bond that exists between friends and a poignant celebration of all the extraordinary people God had the good sense to bring into our lives at exactly the right moments. From the friendships we develop over a lifetime to the ones that wounded us and the ones that taught us to love better, Melanie Shankle reveals the influence our friends have on who we were, who we are, and who we will become. And on a day when our jeans feel too tight, our chins have decided to embrace hormone-related acne reminiscent of our teen years, and our kids have tested the limits of our sanity, they are the ones who will look at us and say, “Nobody’s cuter than you!”

Teaser Tuesday is hosted by Miz B of A Daily Rhythm. Post two sentences from somewhere in a book you're reading. No spoilers, please!
Link at ADailyRhythm.com

First Chapter/First Paragraph/Tuesday Intros is hosted by Bibliophile By The Sea. To participate, share the first paragraph (or a few) from a book you're reading or thinking about reading soon.

Link at BibliophileByTheSea

Reflections of Mamie - Teaser Tuesday

Today's Teaser Tuesday post features a memoir: Reflections of Mamie.  Written in a casual conversational style, as if talking with a friend, Rosemary "Mamie" Adkins relates her story of physical and emotional abuse at the hands of her mother. Though much of the book is hard to read, it offers hope for those who have experienced this same mistreatment.

My Teaser:
It became blatantly clear to me that escaping was the only answer; otherwise, I would never live to see my next birthday. Now, more than ever, I knew that it was time to make some viable, elaborate plans.
(Page 114)

Genre: Memoir / Nonfiction
Number of Pages: 298
Amazon Link: REFLECTIONS OF MAMIE
Mamie's Website: Link Here

NOTE:
REFLECTIONS OF MAMIE was named Book of the Month for January by Goodread's "Modern Good Reads" group. Congratulations, Mamie!

Synopsis from Amazon:
The story begins in the early 1950's suburbs of Houston, Texas. Mamie is a young child of four who was unwanted, afraid, abused and with nowhere to turn, learned that she had to stand alone. Her only friends were her older brother, an abused child himself, and her nanny, who begged their mother to stop beating them. The father, though he loved his children, remained passive to the end. A victim himself, the only protection he offered was a warning to stay out of their mother's reach. 

This story shares Mamie's heroic battle to keep her dreams alive and hold on to her spirit. How she finds her way out of fifty-four years of abuse is yours to discover in her fascinating memoirs. 

Mamie reminds you throughout every step of her journey that she is a survivor. Indeed, it was her consummate ability to hope, plan and dream that kept her going from four to fifty-four when the abuse finally ended. The saying that, ‘you can beat the tar out of the girl but you will never break her spirit without her permission’ explains her secret to survival. But did her story end there? What other surprises does Mamie have in store for you? Does her journey end with another dream?

Mamie has a special love of animals so she has elected to support two charities with donations from the sales of her book: Dreamcatchers for Abused Children (Link Here) and Kitsap Rescue Humane Society (Link Here).

Mamie and her book carry the same message-NEVER GIVE UP!

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn't give too much away -- you don't want to ruin the book for others)
• Share the title and author too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR lists if they like your teasers
• Leave a comment on MizB's Teaser Tuesday post (HERE) and include your link so everyone can find your post.
  

A GOOD HOME - Book Beginnings on Friday and Friday 56

When I began reading A GOOD HOME, I knew nothing about the author. I've since discovered that Cynthia Reyes is an award-winning journalist in Canada. This memoir, however, doesn't focus on her achievements. Instead, it's the story of a woman who has overcome significant challenges in her life. With beautiful descriptions of settings in Jamaica and Canada, I enjoyed following Cynthia's journey and visiting her homes along the way.  

Book Beginning (Prologue):
     The fire glows brightly, the wood floors nearby reflecting its warmth. The burning logs smell of maple and apple wood. Embers spark. Wood ash sifts through the grate.
     It's a quiet evening in our old farmhouse northeast of Toronto.

Friday 56:
     If the mythical Don Quixote had ever fathered a daughter, I would have been that daughter, racing off on my horse, wielding a too-short lance, ready to fight Mandeville's high and mighty every time one of them openly disparaged or otherwise mistreated poor or uneducated people in my presence. 

Genre: Memoir
Number of Pages: 307
Amazon Link: A GOOD HOME

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Anyone can participate in Book Beginnings and Friday 56. 

   Click here to connect to other Book Beginnings posts  

   (sponsored by Rose City Reader.)

   Find other Friday 56 bloggers here 
   (sponsored by Freda's Voice).