This book by first-time novelist, Anna Jean Mayhew, had a hold on me that wouldn’t let go. The Dry Grass of August shares similarities with the knock-out best seller The Help by Kathryn Stockett which is a film in production and scheduled to be released in August. It also tells a story of the south in the 1950′s and 1960′s when black family helpers were essential to running homes and raising children.

Jubie, a thirteen year old girl from North Carolina, narrates a tragic story of racism that changes her world with it’s personal and horrific impact. Her mother, siblings and black maid, Mary, are heading to visit an uncle in Florida. Signs of racism are experienced by Mary which are upsetting for Jubie, who loves Mary and is ashamed that she must endure scorn and primitive conditions in motels and at rest stops. On the return trip a tragedy occurs that forever changes the family.

The history of race relations in the south is painful to experience through Mayhew’s book. As a young teen during the 60′s I remember viewing some of the same unfair conditions on a trip through the south to visit an aunt and uncle in Florida. The truth of the hate exhibited toward blacks in the south during that time is a dark blot in my memory.

Lady Duff Gordon journeyed from England to Egypt in 1862, leaving behind her husband and family, to attempt a cure for her consumption. Accompanied only by her Lady’s Maid, Sally Naldrett, Gordon told of her experiences settling in the town of Luxor, where she mingled with both locals and travelers and learned to speak Arabic, in her book Letters From Egypt.

Mistress of Nothing is a fictionalized account of Gordon’s time in Egypt, told from the perspective of the Lady’s Maid, Sally, who accompanied Gordon on her travels. Sally embraces the country and people of Egypt and discovers a freedom that would have been impossible for her in England. Sally is loyal to and cares for Lady Gordon and believes that care and loyalty is returned until she finds herself in unexpected circumstances and is shunned by her employer. Through Sally’s eyes we see the beauty of the Egyptian landscape, it’s fascinating history and the kindness of its people. The story explores issues of race, class, friendship and loyalty in Victorian times. Sally’s character changes and grows in the face of adversity–learning Arabic, finding work to support herself, learning to rely on no one else, she takes control of her destiny and carves out a new life for herself in a foreign land. The appeal of Sally’s character as she makes her way in the world and the descriptive power of the author to evoke the sights and sounds of Egypt make this a very satisfying story.

Robin Oliveira has debuted in a powerful way with her Civil War novel, My Name is Mary Sutter. She states in her explanation behind the book that after she learned that seventeen Civil War nurses became surgeons “ a beguiling stranger began to declare herself”. Mary Sutter was the name she gave to this strong, determined young midwife who had a passion to learn everything she could about medicine. Mary leaves her very comfortable home and practice to apply as a nurse to the wounded troops in Washington DC. Excluded by Dorothea Dix, Superintendent of Army nurses, because of her young age she finds the worst hospital in the city and makes herself useful doing the most menial work of scrubbing and cleaning. The brutal necessity of amputation became her proving ground as she aids a doctor as he learns through trial and error. The errors resulted in the deaths of many of the men from either overdoses of chloroform or infection because of unclean conditions and instruments.

Mary takes supplies out to the battlefield after the carnage of Antietam and becomes one of the surgeons doing multiple amputations. The book has sad drama as we follow her twin sister’s love and marriage to the same man that Mary loves. When a baby is to be born to the couple, Mary is torn between leaving the needy injured soldiers and going home to be midwife to her twin. The wealth of research that Ms. Oliveira crafted into this novel makes it a remarkable telling of one little known aspect of the Civil War.

History comes alive in Here Be Dragons by Sharon Kay Penman. This book has everything: royalty, battles, politics, adventure, betrayal, genealogy and love triangles. Joanna, daughter of King John of England, is promised in marriage to Prince Llewelyn of Wales. As in most royal marriages during the twelfth century, alliances were forged for political reasons. Very small daughters were promised in marriage to king’s sons in order to protect land or gain it. Fourteen year old Joanna is fearful of leaving her home and marrying a stranger in a foreign land where the language is even stranger. Her husband, Llewelyn, eighteen years her senior, treats her with much kindness and Joanna eventually falls deeply in love with him.

Forging this bond between England and Wales does not mean they live in harmony. Her father and husband are constantly battling over land rights and power. At one point Joanna must beg her father to spare her husband’s life. Joanna and Llewelyn’s love is not without additional complications. Llewelyn strays at times and Joanna falls into adultery. This wrenching love triangle ends with her lover’s death by hanging and forgiveness given to Joanna because of the deep love her husband has for her.

The history is carefully researched and detailed in this first book of a trilogy. We learn so much of the culture and minds of the medieval people. The difficult Welsh names and pseudo-period language that Penman uses makes this a novel that takes much concentration. The plots are complex and involve many different real monarchs that lived during that time period but the writing is excellent and worth the time necessary to truly absorb this period in history.

Francine Rivers, author of Redeeming Love, one of the classic works of Christian fiction that has held a spot on the Christian Bestseller Association’s top-selling titles, was a romance writer for a decade before encountering Christ and turning to Christian fiction. She has written numerous novels since then with Christian themes and won many accolades and awards.

Her Mother’s Hope is the first of a two part series that is a semi-autobiographical history of her mother’s family covering several generations. A rift between her mother and her grandmother that was never known to be mended was the idea that Francine has explored in the first book of Marta’s Legacy. Many miles of geography are covered as Marta travels from her home in Switzerland, escaping a hard, abusive father, to London where she cares for Lady Daisy, a lonely but loving woman who encourages Marta to do more with life by moving to Canada, a land of promise. Here she meets and marries a devoted man and begins her family. Her first child is a healthy son, Bernhard. Her second, a small daughter, Hildemara Rose, who fights to live. This begins the story of Marta’s struggle to raise Hildemara in a way that will help her be strong and independent. She sees her own weak, late sister in Hildemara and fears her daughter may come to the same end that Elise did. How can efforts to teach and disciple become so complicated that love is hidden? We leave Hildemara and Marta at the end of Her Mother’s Hope at a crossroads. The story continues in Her Daughter’s Dream, now available at Manhattan Public Library.

The history of the miracle drug, penicillin, that helped the U.S. efforts to win World War II is the subject of Lauren Belfer’s new novel, A Fierce Radiance. She has written a gripping fiction read blending enough fact to create a desire to learn the truth about the history of this important medicine.

Claire Shipley is a single mother and photojournalist for Life magazine. She is sent on assignment to document a promising new drug made from molds. So begins the story that draws us into romance, love, murder and intrigue during a period in our nation’s history like no other. Medicine was deparately needed to help our wounded soldiers. Our enemies also were willing to go to great lengths to procure such important secrets.

The War department took over control from all researching pharmaceutical companies and prevented any one company from profiting from this medicine. These companies secretly continued to research into alternate antibiotics so they could make huge profits from people desperate for something to save their loved ones. Lauren Belfer shares in an epilogue, (Historical Note) the true facts she put into her novel and a list of recommended books for learning more about the development of antibiotics.

Tatiana de Rosnay has written ten books in her native French and the first one to be written in English was her smash hit Sarah’s Key that has sold over 2 million copies.. In that book she jumps between two time periods to tell the story of a secret hidden during the 1942 round-up of Jews in Paris and discovered 60 years later.

This newest story follows a similar premise of a family secret kept hidden for decades. Antoine, a divorced architect, wants to surprise his sister on her fortieth birthday with a trip to a special vacation place from their childhood. Together they experience mixed feelings as sights and people remind them of their mother who died when they were small. As they travel back to Paris Melanie remembers a startling repressed memory that disturbs her to the point of driving off the highway and rolling their auto. Melanie is hospitalized with a broken back and no memory of the event.

A Secret Kept delves into family relationships that mold us into the adults we become. Do we really know who our parents were and why they relate to us as they do? What are our expectations of each other and how can we forgive those we love when they don’t meet our expectations.