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Reviews by Barbara F. (Santa Rosa, CA)

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Minding Ben: A Novel
by Victoria Brown

Minding Ben (12/28/2010)

I would recommend this book without reservation. The narrative is compelling and draws the reader into the frustration, unfairness and sometimes the small joys of the illegal immigrant life in New York City. I was often unsure of whether I was reading a memoir or a novel. I …more

Solomon's Oak: A Novel
by Jo-Ann Mapson

Enjoyable Read (10/1/2010)

Jo-Ann Mapson fans will thoroughly enjoy "Solomon's Oak". She deals with the age old problems of abandonment and with sympathy without being maudlin. The story is Glory's story, how she deals with the loss of her husband and then takes on a foster child who has suffered …more

Anthropology of an American Girl: A Novel
by Hilary Thayer Hamann

Long, dull and tedious (9/12/2010)

I could not finish this book. Many reviews relate the pertinent details and all are more interesting than the book itself. Long, dull and tedious sums it up. Save your strength and read something else.

The Handbook for Lightning Strike Survivors: A Novel
by Michele Young-Stone

Lightning Strikes (5/2/2010)

The Handbook for Survivors of Lightning Strike Survivors is a well written, sympathetic but not sentimental, book about the coming of age of two distinctly different people. Lighting strikes, both real and metaphorical, provide the structure of the book. Lighting strikes …more

The Map of True Places
by Brunonia Barry

The Map of True Places (4/5/2010)

I enjoyed reading The Map of True Places, but it wasn't a book that kept me awake late into the night reading it. Zee, the main character, has many problems that involve many characters and this seemed to lead to lots of introduction but not a lot of development. I would …more

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Book Jacket — Lessons in Chemistry
by Bonnie Garmus

Praised by *Parade* and *The New York Times Book Review*, this debut features a 1960s scientist turned TV cooking star.

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