Reading Retreats: In Borders and Up a Tree

There are many interesting places to read a book, and today I want to share with you one of my favorite reading-places stories. It involves a book by one of our favorite authors: A Passion Most Pure by Julie Lessman.

It all began in Borders over a year ago, about a month or two before I was to graduate from high school. I began reading A Passion Most Pure little by little, snatching some reading time whenever we went to the mall. Then one day I "met" Julie on a blog, and I told her about how I was reading her book in Borders. I was promptly given the nickname "Borders Girl," and Julie and I formed a great friendship. I'm sure most of you would agree that Julie is one of the friendliest people you'll meet in the blogging world!

Anyway, I eventually got my dad to buy me the book. I don't think I was even halfway through when he bought it for me, so I got to enjoy the rest of it outside Borders. That's where the tree comes in.

For our senior class picnic we went to a local Boy Scout camp. There was a clearing with some trees where we gathered to hang out when we weren't running amok in the woods. Of those trees in the clearing, one of them became a fantastic "reading retreat!" I sat in that tree and continued reading A Passion Most Pure, falling more in love with the characters and becoming more entangled in their drama. What a book!

In time I finished A Passion Most Pure and I won an autographed copy of A Passion Redeemed. That's me with my great copy of the second book in Julie's series at my grandparents' house last year. And that might be an example of my "Why are you taking a picture of me right now?" face. ;)

I'll leave it to you, my readers, to decide whether the moral of this story is that Julie's books are wonderful and you can read them anywhere, or that reading in different, interesting places makes for a memorable experience and an entertaining story. Maybe it's both?

Book Discussion: A Passion Most Pure

Welcome to the first ever book discussion on "Seasons of Humility!" Before we get started, I wanted to share the poll results with you.

Our first poll asked the question: "What is your favorite genre of fiction books?" Of the eleven who responded, the breakdown was as follows:

• Suspense (1--9%)
• Romance (4--36%)
• Historical (5--45%)
• Science Fiction (0--0%)
• Mystery (1--9%)
• Other (0--0%)
  

It's nice to know that the people who read my blog share similar interests with me. Of course, the fact that you read my blog might be because we have similar interests! Funny how that works. =) Well, I read a lot of Christian Romance and Christian Historical Romance, so you can get your fix of your favorite fiction here!

As to the other poll, there was an overwhelming majority in favor of discussing Julie Lessman's A Passion Most Pure. (And this book just happens to fit into the Historical Romance category!) I am happy to oblige! Julie's debut book is simply fabulous! It's been about a year since I've read the book, though, so I hope I can still lead a good book discussion!

That being said, for any who haven't yet read the book, it is possible (actually, quite likely) that there will be some spoilers given away throughout the course of this discussion. If you're the kind of person who doesn't mind and you would still like to be a part of the discussion, feel free to join in! If not, however, than maybe just reading this far in the post will inspire you to pick up Julie's book. =) I highly recommend it!

And one more order of business: I have a wonderful surprise for all of you! Be sure to stop by on Friday, July 9, because I'm going to be featuring Julie Lessman here--on this blog! And yes, there will be a giveaway! It's going to spectacular, so be sure to mark your calendars!

And now for the book discussion! I'll get us started by asking a few questions and/or making a few comments on the book. How deep the discussion goes will be entirely up to you. I might be out and about for a while tomorrow, but I'll try to stop by occasionally to respond and guide the discussion as best I can. And I think Julie herself might grace us with her very sweet and very fun presence, so be on the lookout! =)

First, here's the description of the book from Revell:

"She's found the love of her life.
Unfortunately, he loves her sister.

As World War I rages across the Atlantic in 1916, a smaller war is brewing in Boston. Faith O'Connor finds herself drawn to an Irish rogue who is anything but right for her. Collin McGuire is brash, cocky, and from the wrong side of the tracks, not to mention forbidden by her father. And then there's the small matter that he is secretly courting her younger sister. But when Collin's affections shift, it threatens to tear her proper Boston family apart.

Book 1 of the Daughters of Boston series, A Passion Most Pure will carry your heart from the sophisticated streets of Boston to the green hills of Ireland as men go off to war and women long for their return. Full of passion, romance, rivalry, and betrayal, it will captivate you from the first page."

So (finally!) here are my observations/questions to get us going:

• The verse at the beginning of the book is Ecclesiastes 2:26, which says, "To the man who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge and happiness, but to the sinner he gives the task of gathering and storing up wealth to hand it over to the one who pleases God. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind" (NIV). Why do think Julie Lessman chose this verse to start out the book, and how do you think it fits with the story?

• I found it to be an intriguing twist that instead of having the story focus on three sisters--Faith, Hope, and Charity--only Faith and Charity have a "real" part. In fact, Hope was Faith's twin sister, but she died before the story even begins. What do you think the author was trying to say through this symbolism? What is the effect of having already lost "hope" before the start of the book?

• On page 303, Faith says, "Mitch, please understand, my faith means the world to me. I have every intention of saving my . . . well, my affections . . . for the man I marry. I want to see you, I do. But I can't indulge in 'favors,' as you put it, because they're wrong. That means if you and I are going to have a relationship, I need you to know I mean what I say. We can occasionally kiss, Mitch, but when I say no, the kissing is over. And if it isn't, the relationship is." What do you think of Faith's stand? Do you think she is demanding too much, or too little? Should she let a man she is not married to kiss her at all?

• When it comes to Collin, sparks fly for more than one sister. Do you think you could ever love a man who had loved your sister first? And do you think it's possible that a man can change because of a woman's love (or vice versa)? How would you be able to tell if he had truly changed, or if he was just putting on a show? (Feel free to cite examples from the book.)

Whew! I could go on and on, I'm sure. =) I've given you some food for thought, and I'd love to hear your feedback! Don't feel like you have to address all these questions! Address just one, or all if you desire. I'll check in later!

Let the discussion begin!