Sapphire Skies

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9781743099117Sapphire Skies – Belinda Alexandra

Abstract

2000: The wreckage of a downed WWII fighter plane is discovered in the forests near Russia’s Ukrainian border. The aircraft belonged to Natalya Azarova, ace pilot and pin-up girl for Soviet propaganda, but the question of her fate remains unanswered. Was she a German spy who faked her own death, as the Kremlin claims? Her lover, Valentin Orlov, now a highly-decorated general, refuses to believe it. Lily, a young Australian woman, has moved to Moscow to escape from tragedy. She becomes fascinated by the story of Natalya, and when she meets an elderly woman who claims to know the truth behind the rumours, Lily is drawn deeper into the mystery. From the pomp and purges of Stalin’s Russia through the horrors of war and beyond – secrets and lies, enduring love and terrible betrayal, sacrifice and redemption all combine in this sweeping saga.

Group Comments

One reader found the Russian history very interesting but didn’t find the writing style was good. The book was an easy read and different aspects of the dual storyline and the topics raised, eg. Moscow Metro, animal rescues. This book was recommended by the BBC Book Club in 2014 and it was an easy book to read. One reader found the enduring love of Valentin for Natalya touching and sweet. The trauma of life under the various political regimes was very clearly depicted.

Read by – The Second Tuesday Evening Book Group.

2015 IMPAC Shortlist

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IMPACWhen talking about reading diversity, the International IMPAC Dublin Award truly reflects the fiction works from world literature for the past 20 years. Nominated by public libraries around the world, the IMPAC Award is presented annually for a fiction work written in English or translated into English. The Award is an initiative of Dublin City Council the municipal government of Dublin which now retains full ownership of the award. The Award aims to promote excellence in world literature.

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2015 CBCA Awards Shortlist

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The Children’s Book Council of Australia has announced its 2015 Book of the Year shortlist for children and young adults.

This year The CBCA celebrates its 70th anniversary and it certainly has made its mark in the children’s literary landscape in Australia.

Please follow this link to see the full list of titles. Parramatta City Library welcomes you to reserve those titles and also invite you and your kids to participate our library’s reading activities.

Parra Reads Recipes – April 2015

Aside

parra reads recipes logo new2The theme for April was ‘Easter Eats’ and the club members had a great time looking at some of the wonderful Easter food traditions from different cultures, fish seemed to be a common theme.
The recipes shared at this meeting could be adapted to be used to celebrate the Easter (or any other) occasion. Every Occasion Ice Cream Cake and Sweet and Sour Sauce were the recipes shared for this month. Don’t forget – next months theme is ‘Creative Cakes’ and the meeting will be on Thursday 14 May at 2.30pm at Parramatta Library.

every occasion ice cream cake2Chinese sweet and sour sauce

Quick News – 2015 Hugo Awards Finalists

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hugo_smThe Hugo awards have presented the world best science fiction titles and this year’s finalists have been announced recently. Worldcon, World Science Fiction Convention, will decide the winners for each category.  You can go to the following link to find the all finalists for each category.

http://www.thehugoawards.org/hugo-history/2015-hugo-awards/

(Please note : “Hugo Award” and The Hugo Award Logo are service marks of the World Science Fiction Society, an unincorporated literary society.)