In My Library: Dear Carolina

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Us bloggers, we belong to a certain tribe. Truly it is a community of friends, whether we have met in real life (IRL in cyber speak) or simply communicate via social media.  So when one of our own fulfills a dream, its time to shout it out to the rooftops.

Such is the case with the recent publication of a  treasure of a novel by blogger Kristy Woodson Harvey, part of the mother/daughter duo who pen the popular, award-winning blog Design Chic.  Its easy to publish a blog--that all happens with a quick click.  But your own work of fiction? Publication of that is something to crow about.

The thing is, however, I would tell you to put Dear Carolina on your summer reading list whether I knew Kristy or not.  I plowed through the review copy she sent me, looking forward to that quiet time each evening when I put the computer aside and allow myself to pick up my "pleasure reading."

And what a pleasure Dear Carolina is.  With two strong female lead characters in the Southern tradition of the women found in Steel Magnolias, the reader is grabbed from the outset.  The book is written to baby Carolina by both her adoptive mother and her birth mother, and celebrates the two things I hold most dear, family, and here I get a bit mushy, faith.  Faith may mean something different to each of us, but perhaps we can all agree that faith allows us to choose our own path.  While we may be shaped by our circumstances, we are not bound by them.

No spoilers here, but both main characters make life changing decisions in such an affirming way that you can't help but be uplifted by the end of this novel.  As one of the main characters proclaims, "you can never have too many people who love you."

I loved Dear Carolina.  Go get it, and if you haven't yet purchased your Mother's Day present, get two copies.

If you need more of a reason to buy the book, Kristy is offering two great promotions.  One of the main characters in the novel, is a great cook, so Kristy created, with the help of some amazing food bloggers, the Dear Carolina companion cookbook. Everyone who buys the book between May 5 and May 10 (or pre-orders) will get a copy of that e-cookbook by emailing readdearcarolina@gmail.com. And everyone who emails proof of purchase is also automatically entered to win a $1,000 gift certificate to Shop Design Chic!

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Congratulations dear Kristy. Well deserved.

Photos via Kristy's website.