Tag Archives: sandra kring

Fiction and Fabric, Round 4

With the beginning of Spring this week, I want to introduce the book we will be sharing for this round of Fiction and Fabric.  I have really enjoyed each of these book sharing events. Just in case you haven’t participated, you can read more about them here and here.  In a nutshell, I select a book that I would like to share. Those interested sign up (very quickly) in the comments. We then start reading it (the same copy) one after the other. I send the book with three fat quarters of fabric that I tie to the book in some way to the first person. Once that person has read the book, she makes a little note in the front cover saying what she liked (or didn’t like) about the book and sends it to the next person with three fat quarters that she chooses, again based on the book.

It has been great fun to hear the thoughts of the other readers as well as seeing what fabric they send.  Beginning with this round, if you are on Instagram, please share a picture of the book and the fat quarters you receive.  Let’s tag it #fictionandfabric. I don’t always get to see the other fabrics people select and it would be nice to see the different choices.  Remember that if you sign up, please don’t keep the book for too long – try to read it within three weeks and have it sent off to the next reader. If you choose “media mail” for shipping it is much less expensive (though it may take a bit longer to arrive). For this round, I am only opening it to readers in the US. We have had people in the UK and Canada participating but the book takes such a long time to get there and it is fairly expensive for the person that has to mail it out of the country as well as the international reader when she mails it back into the states.  I am sorry about this.  If anyone has suggestions on making it more feasible, please let me know in the comments.

More about the book!! I first read The Book of Bright Ideas when it was loaned to me by my good friend, and fellow book lover, MaryAnn.  We meet for coffee each month (we used to work together) and often bring a book we think the other might enjoy.  I loved the book. It is a coming of age story set in small town USA and told  from the perspective of a young girl. She is living in a fairly dysfunctional family when two sisters move into town.  They are free spirits with a very different approach to life. The story follows the friendship of the two young girls, Button and Winnalee, as well as the relationship that develops between older sister, Freeda, Button’s mother, and Aunt Verdella. The story is set in the 1960’s when women were becoming a bit more independent and wanting to experience more in life. As with many good stories, the ending took me by surprise. I read this one quickly because it held my interest throughout.

This is the first book I have read by Sandra Kring. Ms, Kring resides in northern Wisconsin and this is her second novel to be published. She tells us that the idea came to her as she watched two young girls playing dress up and she began to think about the importance of that first close friendship made between two people. From there the character of Button evolved and told the story of how this happened to her one summer. There is a sequel to this book, A Life of Bright Ideas, in which Sandra brings Button and Winnalee back together two years later as eighteen year old young women living in the 1970’s. I haven’t yet read it but I plan to. When the first book ended, I was left wanting to know what becomes of these two little girls. Luckily, I will be able to read about it. 🙂

I know you will enjoy it as much as I did.  Sign up in the comments, first come first served. The group is limited to six people or it takes too long for the book to make its way through the group. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask. Have a wonderful weekend everyone.

Sign ups are closed. We will do another round of Fiction and Fabric in June!