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Published Apr 2011
400 pages
Genre: Literary Fiction
Publication Information
It's more than just a recipe - it's a way of life.
For fans of Kristin Hannah and Kate Jacobs, Darien Gee's deeply felt and utterly charming novel follows two estranged sisters, three newfound friends, and - ultimately - a whole town brought together by a simple loaf of Amish Friendship Bread.
In Avalon, Illinois, a woman and her young daughter return home to find a plate of Amish Friendship Bread along with a bag of starter on their doorstep. There's no note, just a yellow sticky with the words, "I hope you enjoy it." The instructions tell them to feed the starter over a ten-day period, then bake two loaves and share the remaining starter with three other people.
At the insistence of her five-year old daughter, Julia Evarts reluctantly follows the instructions. Soon, the bread and its starter are making their way through the town of Avalon, touching the lives of its residents in ways both comical and unexpected. Julia befriends Madeline Davis, 74, owner and proprietor of Madeline's Tea Salon and Antiques who harbors a secret of her own, and Hannah de Brisay, 28, a concert cellist who relocates to Avalon after the premature end of her career and marriage.
Julia's sister, Livvy, is struggling with her own loneliness as she and her husband, Tom, try for a child of their own. Julia's husband, Mark, is tired of the sadness that seems to have taken over their lives for the past five years. As the town of Avalon becomes overrun with the Amish Friendship Bread starter, a kernel of a story presents itself and activist and reporter Edie is quick to jump on it, even if it means pointing a finger at Julia as the instigator and dividing the small community that they live in.
When a neighboring town is devastated by high floods, Julia and her friends supply loaves of the bread to the residents and volunteers. As word spreads, so does help. Soon the entire town of Avalon is doing their part to aid their neighbors in need as they put their differences aside. Friendship Bread is a captivating, engaging novel about life and loss, friendship and community, and what endures even when the unthinkable happens.
Book includes friendship bread recipe and baking instructions
"Yes, the premise is hokey, but Gee's women characters are written with affection... Readers looking for a quick, easy fix of heartwarming optimism could do worse." - Publishers Weekly
"This entertaining series debut by Gee... will appeal to fans of tearjerkers..." - Library Journal
"Deliciously entertaining! You'll root all the way as these characters stumble toward forgiveness, understanding, and ultimately, celebration. A perfect book club selection, Friendship Bread is a treat worth sharing with all the women in your life." - Kate Jacobs, New York Times bestselling author of The Friday Night Knitting Club
"The wonderful characters in Friendship Bread face life-changing adversity of the sort that either brings us down or transforms us into better people. Darien Gee has a writer's heart and a baker's sense of mixing it all just right. The result is a book you will read over and over." - Nancy Pickard, New York Times bestselling author of The Scent of Rain and Lightning
"Friendship Bread is a poignant, utterly compelling read. Darien Gee has deftly created a small town so endearing, you won't want to leave. Friendship Bread is a novel you won't soon forget." - Patricia Wood, national bestselling author of Lottery
"Friendship Bread is a vivid, tender portrait of friends, a window into the intricacies of friendship itself. Darien Gee writes with great warmth and wisdom, with deep insight into her characters. She is a wonderful writer." - Luanne Rice, New York Times bestselling author of The Geometry of Sisters
"As comforting, warm and delicious as a slice of freshly-baked friendship bread." - Jane Green, New York Times bestselling author of Promises to Keep
This information about Friendship Bread was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Darien Gee has written three novels as Mia King, but this is her first novel writing in her own name. Visit her at FriendshipBreadKitchen.com
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