New year, new books!

As I've said many, many times, Fannie Flagg is one of my favorite authors. It's not just because she writes a fantastic, twisting plot that keeps you attentive or because her characters are real and fully fleshed-out - it's also because she writes about things that matter. Her newest book, The All-Girl Filling Station's Last Reunion is about women in the workplace in the 40s during World War II and how that affected girls then and also now.

Fannie Flagg ran two stories parallel from one another in this book, which really was fascinating as it began to come together. One story follows Fritzi and her family in the 40s, trying to get by through the war and the other story follows Mrs. Sookie Poole in present day Alabama, a 60-year old woman who finds out she is adopted, though her mother has never told her. 

I would have thought that Fannie Flagg's newer books would pale in comparison with my favorite older ones like Welcome to the World, Baby Girl!, but it's just not true. The story is just as interesting, and the characters are ones that you grow to love. Her last one, I Still Dream of You is hysterical and is well worth the read, too!

I recently read Holly Black's Doll Bones. I have to preface this review with the fact that I absolutely ADORE anything that Holly Black has ever written. If you haven't read Holly Black, get your hands on Tithe or her new one The Coldest Girl in Coldtown. 

That being said, Doll Bones was a creepy adventure following three kids intent on burying the china doll to give her a "proper burial".  Since I'm a complete baby with creepy stories and movies, this book did give me a few nightmares. It was still a fun story from start to finish, with some eerie moments that will make your hair stand on end. 

Also, am I the only one who thinks that Neil Gaiman and Holly Black should write a book/movie/play together?

And speaking of Neil Gaiman, I read his new children's book (I work in the Children's Room at a library, which is why I read all of these) Fortunately, the Milk. 

Neil Gaiman is one of my favorites for many reasons - mainly because he makes the weird into the normal in his stories. This one was a laugh-out-loud read and a quick one. It seemed like the perfect before-bedtime story. 

Fannie Flagg: Funny Name, Killer Books

Fannie Flagg is definitely one of my top five favorite authors. She's written eight books, plus a southern cooking cookbook! She started writing plays and acting when she was very young and has been pretty much been fantastic all of her life. I've read all of her books and they are all incredible. Fannie Flagg just UNDERSTANDS how characters should be and exactly how they can overcome issues. That's what I love about her.  My very favorite book of hers is:

Dena Nordstrom is a big city girl with a big city job and all the stress that goes with it.  Her ties to her Southern roots are tenuous at best. When she finally visits her family, whom she hardly remembers, she is desperate to leave the Southern town as fast as she can to get back to the big city.  All that big city stress gets her down as soon as she returns to the city and she has to figure out what she really wants in life. 

Daisy Fay and the Miracle Man is a wonderful story of a down to earth young girl who deals with her problems as they come: which is seemingly all the time. I loved this story and I highly recommend it to anyone who wants a good laugh as well as a little heartbreak.

Of course this is how most people know Fannie Flagg: Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe. The movie is great, the book is better (obviously) and yet this is how most people form their opinion about Fannie Flagg. I say, stop that this instant because she's written books better than this one.  Don't get me wrong, I love Fried Green Tomatoes, I really, really do. But it's no Welcome to the World, Baby Girl or I Still Dream about You, which is her latest book. 

This is Fannie Flagg's most recent novel and I am in love. Ever since I read it two years ago on Cape Cod on our family summer vacation, I cannot say enough good things about it. This is the plot: Maggie Fortenberry is a lovely, polite, very mild-mannered and sweet sixtyish year old. She's decided her life is basically over (although she has a job and some excellent friends) and the time has come to kill herself. Maggie plans this out meticulously through the book by closing bank accounts, giving away clothing, and determining how exactly she will carry out the suicide. This book was wonderfully dark, yet exceptionally comedic. 

I also love A Redbird Christmas because it's about a crotchety old man named Oswald who, after visiting the doctor, discovers he is very close to death. Cold Chicago isn't doing him any good, so he decides to relocate to the little old town of Lost River in the deep South. What he finds there are some great neighbors, crazily hot weather, and a deep relaxation that can only come with a town that time has forgotten. 

Give these a try and let me know how you like them!