What Child Is This?

I read What Child is This?: A Christmas Story by Caroline B. Cooney for book club. It tells the story of several different people in a town, centered around two foster kids--Matt and Katie. I won't elaborate on the plot because I went into the book not having read the description, and I think it was better that way. Just know it's a beautiful Christmas story. :)

I thought this was a wonderful book. I read it in one day, and after reading it, I'm pretty sure I read it years ago when I was a teenager. The book is just a feel-good book, perfect for me to read a couple days before Christmas. It was a reminder of the true reasons behind the Christmas season and championed the idea that everyone can have good in them and can have hope, regardless of their circumstances.

Rating: * * * (3/3 = Loved it)

Chosen

Another friend in book club recommended The Chosen by Chaim Potok as one of her favorite books, so I borrowed it from her. The book takes place in New York in the 1940s, and Reuven Malther and Danny Saunders became acquainted after an accident at a baseball game. The young men have different upbringings--Danny is the son of a Hasidic rabbi (and is set to take his father's place one day), while Reuven is a Modern Orthodox Jew whose father is a professor. The boys become friends, and the book just follows their friendship over a few years. The book description reads, "The intellectual and spiritual clashes between fathers, between each son and his own father, and between the two young men, provide a unique backdrop for this exploration of fathers, sons, faith, loyalty, and, ultimately, the power of love."

This was a surprisingly engaging book. The book doesn't seem super interesting, but I wanted to keep reading and finished it pretty quickly. I was involved with the characters and their experiences and learned a lot about the different sects in Judaism. (I still was confused about a lot of the details on the sects and history or details regarding Judaism, but it didn't affect my reading of the book.) I thought it was a good read.

Rating: * * (2/3 = Liked it)

The Light between Oceans

I got The Light between Oceans by M.L. Stedman from the library after a friend in my book club recommended it as one of the most meaningful books she's read. The book is about Tom Sherbourne and his wife Isabel who live on an isolated island where Tom serves as a lighthouse keeper. Here's the rest of the summary from the book jacket: "Years later, after two miscarriages and one stillbirth, the grieving Isabel hears a baby’s cries on the wind. A boat has washed up onshore carrying a dead man and a living baby. Tom, who keeps meticulous records and whose moral principles have withstood a horrific war, wants to report the man and infant immediately. But Isabel insists the baby is a gift from God, and against Tom’s judgment, they claim her as their own and name her Lucy. When she is two, Tom and Isabel return to the mainland and are reminded that there are other people in the world. Their choice has devastated one of them."

This was a good book that I couldn't put down, but it was seriously a terrible, heart-wrenching read. I don't know if I'd really recommend it. It was just so terrible with situations that couldn't possibly end well. I didn't even know who to root for most of the time because there was no happy ending possible. I spent the last chapter sobbing, and then I tried to tell Connor the summary of the book and kept crying before I could finish. Anyway, I don't even know what to say about this book. It was super good and engaging but also just terrible. Maybe don't read it?

Rating: * * (2/3 = Liked it)