My Father's Dragon Trilogy by Ruth Stiles Gannet

My Father's Dragon, Elmer and the Dragon, The Dragons of Blueland

One night a small orange cat appears on Elmer Elevator's doorstep and tells him a fantastic story. Far away on the island of Tangerina, a young dragon is being held captive. The cat is back for help, wanting to rescue the dragon. Elmer packs his bag with bubblegum, clementines, rope, and other trinkets and sets off in the night from his city home.

Elmer journeys in a  burlap sack aboard a ship to his destination, but that is only where the adventure begins. The dragon is is closely guarded, and Elmer will meet an array of characters along his trip. He will creatively defy them with humorous maneuvers as he makes his to the his new friend.

His adventures will span the length of three stories, easily read and enjoyed with illustrations to accompany them. This is by far my favorite series to read aloud. From first grade to adult-hood, these books are magically fun and creative.

In the Unlikely Event by Judy Blume

During the 1950's a small New Jersey town is rocked by a series of tragic events. This book chronicles that heart-wrenching time and those left behind to pick up the pieces. Each time hope claims to rear its little head in this town, another fiery crash occurs. Beyond the crash, the town itself begins to fall apart. How can they stop this? Should the airport be closed? Will moving away erase the trauma?

Not necessarily uplifting, this story describes the a town ravaged by tragedy and the impact on the lives of its inhabitants. Based on true events, Blume stays true to reality and weaves fictional characters into the events. Judy Blume is a talented writer, but steer clear if you already have a fear of flying, this will not help! If you aren't faint of heart, the book is an captivating journey through one random year of tragedy and the perspectives of many.

The Sparrow Sisters by Ellen Herrick

A modern day witch hunt has ensued in a small New England town. Over the centuries, the Sparrow sisters have cultivated a garden of remedies and offered their guidance to their town's medical needs.

When a new doctor arrives, doubting their "magic", Patience Sparrow will vehemently defend her practices. Anger changes to attraction, and the doctor and mysterious woman soon pair up to assist their town. But soon, it won't be just the doctor calling her into question.

Suddenly a young boy who spent his days at the Sparrow's nursery is found dead in his kitchen, traces of the herbal remedies in his system. Patience insists all she's done is help this town. The town that once came to her to solve all their problems has now placed her in a little cell, awaiting trial.

Did she knowingly put this young boy in danger? In a witch-hunt climate, can she possibly survive? Once mob-mentality takes its hold, is there any decision left to be made? Will they find the key evidence left behind, tucked neatly under Matty's bed?

The Sound of Glass by Karen White

The Sound of Glass by Karen White

At night, the soft wind rustles the sea glass wind chimes strewn across the shingles of the house. Created in the mysterious attic, they begin to unravel a mystery and connect events and lives across the years. A story of new beginnings and rushed endings; of two women: one hoping to start their life over, the other hoping to give her son the life she no longer can.

After inheriting a new house from her grandmother-in-law, widowed Merritt hopes to start her life over, leaving behind a troubled past in Maine. She comes hoping to find solace, but instead is met by her bubbly, obnoxious Southern stepmother and her quiet young son.

Merritt's husband left South Carolina years ago and never looked back. Merritt will unravel the mystery of why he left, why he found and married her, and why she was called to this house in the low-country.

The Matchmaker by Elin Hilderbrand

Dabney has lived a safe life on a beautiful island. With her stiff collars and perfectly placed headbands, she has always exuded organization and order. Dabney keeps her life perfectly placed, masking her fear of leaving Nantucket by being the island's biggest fan. Decades ago, she passed up the love of her life to stay on the island. Twenty years later, she has a seemingly happy marriage and a college-aged daughter.

While Dabney goes about making matches among her friends and colleagues, always choosing the perfect mates, her own marriage begins to quietly fall apart. With the arrival of her long-lost soulmate, back from decades abroad, her resolve to live a perfectly manufactured life begins to crumble away. 

Dabney spends her summer days carrying on and escaping reality by the pool; believing she can live two lives simultaneously.

But looming within the bright days of a Nantucket summer a deep secret festers. Bad health ignored, perfect plans intact, suddenly Dabney may not have forever to make her mind. She may have less time than she thinks. Nantucket is a summer place with summer people. As the season ends and the crowds depart, the colder seasons settle in. And with the colder seasons comes a cold, hard truth. Dabney must face a daunting reality: that life is imperfect, that love is often uncertain, and that sometimes, we don't have all the time in the world. As time ticks away, what will Dabney choose?

First Frost by Sarah Addison Allen

The summer days are dwindling and the Waverley sisters are eagerly awaiting the arrival of First Frost. It is another enchanting, captivating book sprinkled with mystical fantasy and playful magic.

It's been five years since we last met the Waverley sisters in Garden Spells. Bay is now a teenager, crafting her special talent of knowing where people belong; Claire is capitalizing off her supreme candy-making skills; Sydney is running a successful salon. But things are slowly moving off-kilter. The salon is robbed, Bay is humiliated, Claire is losing her focus.

The Waverley sisters have small, mystical talents that are just a little above normal. Sydney can give the most beautiful haircuts that will land a client a job; Claire's candies can provide insight and support; Bay can tell others where someone, or something, belongs. This quirky crew inhabits their small North Carolina town that is full of as much charm as each of its residents.

But as the hots days of summer melt into the cool nights of autumn, a different sort of breeze blows through town. Hints of smokey aromas, glimpses of a tattered coat: a vagabond named the Great Banditi.

An old, tattered stranger has made his way into this small community. The Great Banditi makes his living off of a different sort of magic: blackmail and black magic. And he is out for his next financial endeavor. But what does he have on Claire? Can the magic of this town settle on the shoulders of the Banditi like the sweet, dew first frost settles on the apple tree?

Once again, Sarah Addison Allen writes a captivating story that releases you from reality and encompasses you in its magical grasp. You leave the story fully satisfied and happy, content with the beautifully strung together words that carry you from page to page.

Hector and the Search for Happiness

Hector has a problem. He is a very good psychiatrist and everyone wants to see him. He is a good listener, but he cannot figure out what makes people happy. He can't even figure out what makes many of his clients unhappy! Hector feels dissatisfied.

And here his journey begins. Hector will travel the world discovering what makes people happy.

Lesson 18: The sun and the sea make everybody happy. Agreed!

Hector takes notes and make lists, learning quickly that asking people if they are happy is the LAST way to find out what makes people happy. He learns that upgrading to first class makes him happy, but the next time he flies he is expecting these amenities. So he learns a lesson: comparison is the thief of joy.

As Hector continues on his journey, travelling to his friends in a variety of countries, he continues to gather observations through his experiences and interactions. The culmination of his journey will be a meeting with a professor who is attempting to quantify and measure happiness. 

So, has Hector done it? Has he gathered the elements of happiness together in one place? Can happiness be measured or it can it only be felt in moments?

The writing is simple, fun, and amusing. Hector is lovable and his journey is remarkable; with a few mishaps along the way. His lessons are pure and simple.

One day while I was reading, I heard a clip from a facebook page playing in the background. Suddenly, my ears perked up as I heard the narrator describe travelling to Okinawa, a place of happiness and longevity, and what they discovered there. He said they went to see the youngest islanders to map where this journey to health and happiness seemed to begin. Below is the clip.

For Lifelong Happiness, Look to Okinawa

Happy: A Documentary, a clip from the documentary