Nicole’s August Pick:  The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett. Plot: “The Pillars of the Earth tells the story of Philip, prior of Kingsbridge, a devout and resourceful monk driven to build the greatest Gothic cathedral the world has known…of Tom, the mason who becomes his architect — a man divided in his soul…of the beautiful, elusive Lady Aliena, haunted by a secret shame…and of a struggle between good and evil that will turn church against state, and brother against brother.” Reasons why I chose this book: Because my cousin Stacie won’t shut up about it.  Seriously.  For like 10 years,  I have heard nothing but nagging from her about how much I need to read this book.  Even though nagging is a tactic I use frequently (and to great effect, may I add), she’s bugging the crap out of me and I’d like the madness to stop before somebody gets hurt. Because the plot sounds like nothing I’d ever willingly choose to read on my own, which can sometimes be a good thing (thinking outside the box and whatnot).  Because I didn’t realize that it was once an Oprah Book Club pick until I went to purchase it on Amazon, at which point I’d already committed to reading it for August.  I was sort of horrified, but whatever.  C’est la vie.  (International flair!)

Nicole’s August Pick:  The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett.

Plot: “The Pillars of the Earth tells the story of Philip, prior of Kingsbridge, a devout and resourceful monk driven to build the greatest Gothic cathedral the world has known…of Tom, the mason who becomes his architect — a man divided in his soul…of the beautiful, elusive Lady Aliena, haunted by a secret shame…and of a struggle between good and evil that will turn church against state, and brother against brother.”

Reasons why I chose this book:

  • Because my cousin Stacie won’t shut up about it.  Seriously.  For like 10 years,  I have heard nothing but nagging from her about how much I need to read this book.  Even though nagging is a tactic I use frequently (and to great effect, may I add), she’s bugging the crap out of me and I’d like the madness to stop before somebody gets hurt.
  • Because the plot sounds like nothing I’d ever willingly choose to read on my own, which can sometimes be a good thing (thinking outside the box and whatnot). 
  • Because I didn’t realize that it was once an Oprah Book Club pick until I went to purchase it on Amazon, at which point I’d already committed to reading it for August.  I was sort of horrified, but whatever.  C’est la vie.  (International flair!)