A stranger, Savannah, appears at Joy and Stan’s door with a bloody forehead seeking shelter from an abusive boyfriend. They take her in and in exchange, Savannah cooks and cleans for them until a connection between her and the Delaney family is discovered. Then she disappears and foul play is suspected.

Esme comes to realize that there are many words relating to women that are deemed not important enough to be included in the dictionary. She collects these words and stores them in a box that she labels “The Dictionary of Lost Words.”

“Imagine a place, a special place, where the husbands are everywhere, yes, but instead of just putting the dishes in the sink when finished eating, they put them in the dishwasher, they carry up the items left on the stairs and put them away, they refill children’s water glasses at 3 a.m. and lead sleepy toddlers back to their own beds, they write thank you notes, etc.”

Laurence Bergreen’s book In Search of a Kingdom tells the true story of the heroics of Francis Drake and the wisdom of Elizabeth I that laid the foundations that would impact world history for centuries.

This is such a well crafted story with some great questions to ponder...how would you feel if you were invisible, if no one remembered you? How do you convince yourself that you are enough? What are the consequences of making a deal with the devil?

As the fly leaf says, “Part adventure, part historical saga, and part coming-of-age love story, the book explores what it means to be changed by the grace of animals, the kindness of strangers, the passing of time, and a story told before it’s too late.“

In his book Glory Days: The Summer of 1984 and the 90 Days That Changed Sport and Culture Forever L. Jon Wertheim sets the stage for a recounting a year that had monumental impact on sports and culture and all of life.

“Set in Constantinople in the fifteenth century, in a small town in present-day Idaho, and on an interstellar ship decades from now Anthony Doerr’s gorgeous third novel is a triumph of imagination and compassion, a soaring story of children on the cusp of adulthood in worlds in peril, who find resilience, hope and - a book.”

This would be an interesting book to discuss in a book discussion group...do you believe that God gives the power to heal to others? And what do you think the role of women in the church should be?

“February 29, 1944. I have gone by many names. Some of them are real - but most are carefully constructed personas to get me through checkpoints and across borders. They are lies scribbled on forged travel documents. Typed neatly in government files, Splashed across wanted posters. My identity is an ever-shifting thing that adapts to the need at hand. Tonight, I am Hélène.”