Thursday, November 17, 2011

Book Review: Remembering You

I recently read the book Remembering You by Tricia Goyer as part of a LitFuse Blog Tour.

What a great book.

Basically, Ava Andrews is 30something and her life is falling apart.  Her fiance left her days before the wedding, and she has not been able to focus at work.   So she now finds herself in danger of losing her dream job -- producing a television morning show.

Then, her mother breaks her leg... and asks Ava to accompany Grandpa Jack on a battle site tour in Europe specifically for members of the Eleventh Armored Division.  Ava's mind starts turning... and she decides she wants to turn this into a working vacation by videotaping the sites and the interactions with the vets -- and especially her grandfather -- and send those back as segments for the show.

But arriving in Europe, things go wrong... first, they are met at the airport by her Grandfather's best friend and his grandson Dennis.  Dennis, her first love, who she hasn't been able to forget.  And then they discover the tour has been canceled.  The four of them take off to do the tour themselves... and Ava has the chance to videotape these two men, and later a lot of other soldiers from their Division, and to get a glimpse into what World War II was like from the perspective of these then-young boys marching across Europe, seeing horrific things, and eventually liberating a concentration camp.

The story is fiction... but it is based on real-life stories.  Tricia had the amazing opportunity to talk to veterans of the Eleventh Armored Division and to hear their stories... stories of battles, and stories of liberating Mauthausen. 

Working these stories into this fictional romance was brilliant, and watching Ava interact with her grandfather and get the chance to really get to know the young man he was... well, wow.

My grandfathers did not fight in World War II.  Reading this makes me really wish I had had one more chance with both of them, a chance to hear their stories.  Reading this makes me realize that even if my kids are too young to truly appreciate hearing their grandpa's stories, it is NOT to late for me to talk to my father...

You can read an excerpt and lots, lots more at the author's site.


Tricia Goyer is celebrating the release of her novel, Remembering You, with a KINDLE Touch Giveaway for you ... and for the friend of your choice. Then on 11/29 she'll be wrapping up the release of Remembering You with a Book Chat Party!

During the first half of the party Tricia will be chatting, sharing a sneak peek of her next book, and giving away a ton of great stuff. Then she'll head over to her website for a Live Chat! Readers will be able to chat with Tricia via video or text.

Don't miss your chance to win a Kindle Touch for yourself ... and to "remember" a friend this holiday with a Kindle Touch for them!

Read what the reviewers are saying here.


One grand prize winner will receive:
  • A Brand New Kindle Touch and a Kindle Touch for a Friend (winner's choice!) 
  • A copy of Remembering You by Tricia Goyer for each
Enter today by clicking one of the icons below. But hurry, the giveaway ends at noon on November 29th. Winner will be announced at Remembering You Facebook Party on 11/29. Tricia will be hosting an author chat (on Facebook and Live from her website) and giving away copies of her other WWII books and gift certificates to Starbucks and Amazon.com. So grab your copy of Remembering You and join Tricia on the evening of the 29th for an author chat, a trivia contest (How much do you know about WWII?) and lots of giveaways.

Enter via E-mail Enter via FacebookEnter via Twitter

Don't miss a moment of the fun. RSVP today and tell your friends via FACEBOOK or TWITTER and increase your chances of winning. Hope to see you on the 29th!


Disclaimer:  I received this book through LitFuse.  No other compensation was received.  All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

3 comments:

mysteryhistorymom said...

This book sounds wonderful! Just added it to my list!:) Lori

Unknown said...

This sounds like a book I would love. Would I let my 12 year old read it? I'm just curious what you think of that. I don't usually let her read romance novels, but her Grandma has let her read a couple of Janette Oak books.

Debra said...

You know, Amy, I would consider it.

I would let Connor read it. I was trying to decide if I should encourage him to read it already.

Inappropriate content... there are one or two romantic kisses. (There may have been an Ava kissing Grandpa Jack or even Grand-Paul scene, but that's not the same!) There's a few lines about ummm, how muscular/attractive Dennis is. Oh! There is some speculation about whether or not Grandpa Jack had a love interest in Belgium (I think it was Belgium...) and whether he might have a child. He didn't, btw, but still... the discussion isn't graphic, but it is there.

Violence -- there is a fair amount of recounting war stories, and I guess the appropriateness of some of that might depend on your 12 year old. Some of it only feels graphic because as adults we've seen newsreels and read stories about the horrors of the concentration camps in particular.

I'd be totally comfortable with my 14, 12.999, and 11 year olds reading it... but they are boys, too, and I'm interested in them getting a bit of that 'harsh realities of war' perspective, if you know what I mean.

I think my kids could handle the story at 12... YMMV...