Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson

Here's a book that is absolutely TOUGH to put down even for a minute.  I finished this one very quickly.  I am going to be off in a few minutes to read the next volume of this story called "Forge." 

This is a story about a girl working as a slave.  She finds her owner has passed away.  Her owners last will was to set her and her sister, Ruth, free upon her death.  Things don't always work like they should and the new owner of the property (the nephew of her deceased owner.) has different ideas.   You grow to love Isabel all through the story.  It is one of the resiliency of the human soul.  It is one of hard work.  It will touch your heart.  I do not cry easily BUT I cried in this book.  I loved this book!

Cry the Beloved Country by Alan Paton

This book is beautiful.  I am still finding myself pondering some of the words and thinking about the story.  There are so many lessons to learn in this book.

This story is based on South Africa.  It is a story about a man who goes from his small village in search of his son in the big city.  In the process I learned much about South Africa that I did not know.  I fell in love with the characters and was inspired by their actions.  Human kindness, Poverty, Big Cities, Africa, Family, Politics, and Choices are all talked of in the book.  This book is written differently than most books I've read and I enjoyed learning a new way.  The conversations are written differently and many times I noticed that the dialogue had changed on me and I didn't notice it right away.  It kept me on my toes.

I highly recommend this book and recommend re-reading it if you have.  :)