Twelve-year-old BFF’s Ginnie West and Tillie Taylor, want to be sisters. Ginnie's widowed dad plus Tillie's divorced mom could equal a lifetime of round-the-clock girl talk and slumber parties. Too bad Dad vowed to never marry again.
Ginnie and Tillie come up with the perfect scheme to change his mind: ‘Operation Secret Sisters’ (aka OSS). After all, if they can’t get Dad to move on, Tillie can’t move in.
When Monique isn’t writing, you can find her playing taxi driver to one or more of her 12 children, plotting her next novel, scrapbooking, or being the “Mamarazzi” at any number of child-oriented events.
Even though she realizes there will never be enough hours in any given day, Monique tries very hard to enjoy the journey that is her life. She shares it with a terrific husband, her dozen children and 3 in-law kids, eleven granddarlings, 5 cats, and many real and imaginary friends.
She is the author of five published books (and several unpublished ones) and is in two anthologies. You can find more about Monique and her works at: www.moniquebucheger.blogspot.
The Secret Sisters Club is a heartwarming story about friendship, horses, familial love, and all the joys and problems that go with them. Two best friends want to become sisters and so they set out to make it happen by setting up Tilly's Mom with Ginny's Dad. The road to sisterhood does not run smooth, however.
Monique has created distinct and lovable characters set in a vibrant farming/ranching community. They have understandable problems and resolve them reasonably. This is very important to me when reading a book, having characters remain true to themselves and the world the author created. Monique has Baby Bear pacing, nothing dragging, nothing rushed - it's juuust right. While this book is slotted for middle-grade, it definitely has appeal for all ages. I recommend you crack open a copy and meet these people for yourself :)
Or better yet, get your copy on Audible! Hillary Straga's narration makes Monique's wonderful story sparkle and really come alive with her nuances and varied voices. Her diction and articulation loses nothing at 2x speed, which is generally how I listen to Audible books. The entire experience was highly entertaining and had me laughing and crying throughout.
~Heidi A. Wilde (me ;) )
