Saturday Spotlight: A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini

July 7, 2018August 28, 2018 Saturday Nite Reader20 Comments

Introducing Saturday Nite Reader’s weekly meme: Saturday Spotlight! Each Saturday I will spotlight a book I have read or am currently reading; and, of course what I think is special about it. I invite you to participate as well! Just link back to my weekly post and don’t forget to add your spotlight link in the comment section for all to see. Happy Sharing! XO, Nikki

This Week:
A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini

Published: May 22, 2007 by Riverhead
Category: Historical Fiction
British Book Award for Best Read of the Year (2008); Book Sense of the Year Award for Adult Fiction (2008); California Book Award for Fiction (Silver) (2007); Exclusive Books Boeke Prize Nominee (2007); Lincoln Award Nominee (2011)

My Future Mother-in-Law would gift me this book during one of my first trips to meet her. Once I started it, I could not put it down. I do remember it was right before dinner and the polite house guest in me (plus someone newly introduced to the family) should have been helping, but I couldn’t step away from this book. My husband (then boyfriend) called me in for dinner, but my future MIL responded along the lines of: leave her alone and let her finish, the book is that good. Thanks Mom 😉

A Thousand Splendid Suns is the first book I recommend to anyone when asked to recommend my favorite book: I don’t even have to think about it, I just spit it out (not literally, don’t worry).Read More »

Saturday Spotlight: The Rainmaker by John Grisham

June 30, 2018August 28, 2018 Saturday Nite Reader20 Comments

This Week:
The Rainmaker by John Grisham

Published: April 28, 1995 by Doubleday
Category: Fiction, Legal Thriller
New York Times Best Selling Author

I read The Rainmaker in HS for fun – this was not a normal activity. I could barely read my required English assignments, but for some reason I would visit my school library and select books that I thought were more worth my time. That is another story for another day, as I had quite the reading preference (i.e. Girl, Interrupted; She’s Come Undone, a Janis Joplin biography = teen angst down pat). I picked up The Rainmaker after reading A Time to Kill. I thought I wanted to be a lawyer: the kind of lawyer in both Grisham novels that would fight for the underdog – the less powerful – and obviously prevail in defeating “the big bad man” in the end every single time.Read More »

Saturday Spotlight: The Red Bandanna by Tom Rinaldi

June 23, 2018September 8, 2018 Saturday Nite Reader17 Comments

This Week:
The Red Bandanna by Tom Rinaldi

Published: September 6, 2016 by Penguin Press
Category: Nonfiction, Biography, Inspirational

I purchased The Red Bandanna after I saw an ESPN piece on Welles Crowther (below). Welles saved at least ten people in the South Tower on September 11th, but would not make it out alive. After reading the book in one sitting I was more than just moved: I had to tell others Welles’ story.

This past 2017, on the anniversary of September 11th, I book fairy dropped two copies of the book with a red bandanna tied to each one. One was left on the Path train and the second in locker 19 (Welles’ number) at my local Soulcycle. This would be the first time I was a book fairy, and an important one at that. I didn’t have the book fairy stickers just yet so I printed out my own message and taped it to the book in hopes that someone will read this book and gift it or book fairy drop for another to read: spreading Welles’ story further.

It wasn’t just a book to me, it was Welles’ story: one that he could not tell himself. I think of Welles from time to time; men like him restore my faith in humanity when I need it most.

In 2017, a full documentary called Man in Red Bandana was released. It is narrated by Gwyneth Paltrow and runs 1 hour and 19 minutes.

Goodreads Stats:
4.19 average rating * 1,284 Ratings * 217 Reviews
Saturday Nite Reader rating: 5 disco balls
Read More »

Saturday Spotlight: My Sister’s Keeper by Jodi Picoult

June 16, 2018June 15, 2018 Saturday Nite Reader22 Comments

This Week:
My Sister’s Keeper by Jodi Picoult

Published: April 6, 2004 by Atria Books
Category: Fiction, Contemporary
New York Times Best Selling Author

I vividly remember reading this book at my desk during a lunch break and ugly cried before that term even reemerged as a trend: this was back in 2006.

This is the book that started my never ending love of Jodi Picoult books. Fast-forward 12 years and I have collected all her books in hardcover: I had to scour used book stores and online until I found every single last one. Have you done the same thing with your favorite author?

I do have one piece of advice: stay away from the movie. It did not do this book justice at all, not even close. It was a completely different ending, and the shocking twist of the book’s ending made the book what it was. I can’t believe they changed it, what was Warner Bros. thinking?!

Goodreads Stats:
4.06 average rating * 938,135 Ratings * 31,584 Reviews
Saturday Nite Reader rating: 5 disco balls

Goodreads Synopsis:
Anna is not sick, but she might as well be. By age thirteen, she has undergone countless surgeries, transfusions, and shots so that her older sister, Kate, can somehow fight the leukemia that has plagued her since childhood. The product of preimplantation genetic diagnosis, Anna was conceived as a bone marrow match for Kate — a life and a role that she has never challenged…until now. Like most teenagers, Anna is beginning to question who she truly is. But unlike most teenagers, she has always been defined in terms of her sister — and so Anna makes a decision that for most would be unthinkable, a decision that will tear her family apart and have perhaps fatal consequences for the sister she loves.

‘My Sister’s Keeper’ examines what it means to be a good parent, a good sister, a good person. Is it morally correct to do whatever it takes to save a child’s life, even if that means infringing upon the rights of another? Is it worth trying to discover who you really are, if that quest makes you like yourself less? Should you follow your own heart, or let others lead you? Once again, in ‘My Sister’s Keeper’, Jodi Picoult tackles a controversial real-life subject with grace, wisdom, and sensitivity.

Have you read this book? Do tell! Have a book to spotlight: remember to share your links in the comments below.

Purchase Links
Amazon: Kindle Paperback Audible
Barnes & Noble: Nook Paperback Hardcover

My Jodi Collection:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BgCEdp0DZlj/?taken-by=saturday_nite_reader

You may also find me here:

Please note: this post contains Amazon and B&N affiliate links. If you purchase this book through the links above I will earn a small fee; at no additional cost to you. This will help me purchase more books to read and recommend to you all!

Saturday Spotlight: The One-in-a-Million Boy by Monica Wood

June 9, 2018June 7, 2018 Saturday Nite Reader11 Comments

This Week:
The One-in-a-Million Boy by Monica Wood

Published: April 5, 2016 by Headline Review
Category: Fiction, Contemporary
Nautilus Book Award for Fiction: Large Publisher (2016)

I came across this gem through a widget on the sidebar of my Goodreads homepage one day. Not sure exactly why it popped up, but I was so glad it did!

After reading the synopsis (below), I was certainly intrigued. It was my turn to pick our next book club read and after seeing its Goodreads stats my decision was easily made. I enjoyed this book immensely: I laughed, I cried, I needed a hug. The book brings you on a journey: one that I recommend all experience. You will adore the characters and also need a hug in the end. (All these hugs, as someone who isn’t a huge fan of them who am I becoming?!) If it also helps: when my book club discussed our favorite read of the year this one came up several times.

Goodreads Stats:
4.11 average rating * 17,986 Ratings * 2,875 Reviews
Saturday Nite Reader rating: 5 disco balls

Goodreads Synopsis:
The incandescent story of a 104-year-old woman and the sweet, strange young boy assigned to help her around the house — a friendship that touches each member of the boy’s unmoored family.

The story of your life never starts at the beginning. Don’t they teach you anything at school?

For years, guitarist Quinn Porter has been on the road, chasing gig after gig, largely absent to his twice-ex-wife Belle and their odd, Guinness records–obsessed son. When the boy dies suddenly, Quinn seeks forgiveness for his paternal shortcomings by completing the requirements for his son’s unfinished Boy Scout badge.

For seven Saturdays, Quinn does yard work for Ona Vitkus, the wily 104-year-old Lithuanian immigrant the boy had visited weekly. Quinn soon discovers that the boy had talked Ona into gunning for the world record for Oldest Licensed Driver — and that’s the least of her secrets. Despite himself, Quinn picks up where the boy left off, forging a friendship with Ona that allows him to know the son he never understood, a boy who was always listening, always learning.

The One-in-a-Million Boy is a richly layered novel of hearts broken seemingly beyond repair and then bound by a stunning act of human devotion.

Have you read this book? Do tell! Have a book to spotlight: remember to share your links in the comments below.

Purchase Links
Amazon: Kindle Paperback Hardcover Audible
Barnes & Noble: Nook Paperback Hardcover Audio

The Author, Monica Wood, discusses The One-in-a-Million Boy:

Saturday Spotlight: The Little Book of Feminist Saints by Julia Pierpont

June 2, 2018June 2, 2018 Saturday Nite Reader19 Comments

First Up:
The Little Book of Feminist Saints by Julia Pierpont and beautifully illustrated by Manjit Thapp

Published: March 6, 2018 by Random House
Category: Nonfiction, History, Feminism, Biography
A Stylist Must-read Book of 2018

The collection highlights 100 women throughout history, and around the world, who have been inspirations, trailblazers, and fighters for women.

Goodreads Synopsis:
In this luminous volume, New York Times bestselling writer Julia Pierpont and artist Manjit Thapp match short, vibrant, and surprising biographies with stunning full-color portraits of secular female “saints” champions of strength and progress. These women broke ground, broke ceilings, and broke molds. Open to any page and find daily inspiration and lasting delight.

Some of the 100 women showcased include authors Anne Frank, Maya Angelou, The Bronte Sisters, Eleanor Roosevelt, Louisa May Alcott, Emily Dickinson and Jane Austen.

I have committed to reading one profile each day and on the last day I will write a post on my own feminist saint (the 100th chapter in the book is just that).

If you have this book and/or would like to participate in my 100 day challenge that would be lovely. Start anytime, there is no set day. Happy Reading!

Purchase Links
Amazon: Kindle Hardcover
Barnes & Noble: Nook Hardcover

Meet the Author & Illustrator:

You may also find me here:

Please note: this post contains Amazon and B&N affiliate links. If you purchase this book through the links above I will earn a small fee; at no additional cost to you. This will help me purchase more books to read and recommend to you all!