Reviews by Marie A. (Warner, NH)

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Smalltime
Smalltime: A Story of My Family and the Mob
by Russell Shorto
The Search for Answers (3/1/2021)
I enjoyed reading SMALLTIME because it is both interesting and informative in its personal and historical aspects. Shorto informs the readers about the reasons Italians came to the United States and also what tempted them to become involved in the illegal activity of the …more
The Yellow Bird Sings
The Yellow Bird Sings: A Novel
by Jennifer Rosner
THE YELLOW BIRD SINGS (12/12/2019)
As the atrocities of war and its effects rage on, a mother and her five year old daughter are secreted for safekeeping in a barn in Poland. Silence, stories and song are used by Roza to protect her daughter. The yellow bird is imaginary, and his song plays in Shira's mind …more
Courting Mr. Lincoln
Courting Mr. Lincoln
by Louis Bayard
COURTING MR. LINCOLN (2/28/2019)
I especially enjoyed the voices of Mary Todd and Joshua Speed as they expressed their views and feelings in their own words. This technique gives the reader insight into the relationships, moods, and frustrations between and among the characters.

Bayard's entertaining and …more
Home Sweet Home
Home Sweet Home
by April Smith
Revisiting History (12/18/2016)
April Smith is retelling the true story of John and Sally Goldmark and paralleling them through her own characters the Kusaks. The author shows how misunderstandings, interpretations, accusations, and fears during a particular period in history can affect the lives of …more
Shocking Paris
Shocking Paris: Soutine, Chagall and the Outsiders of Montparnasse
by Stanley Meisler
SHOCKING PARIS (1/19/2015)
In SHOCKING PARIS, Stanley Meisler has painted an informative narrative of Eastern European expatriate artists--Modigliani, Chagall, and Soutine--in the School of Paris between World War I and the beginning of World War II. The relevance of the artists, their works, the …more
Vanessa and Her Sister
Vanessa and Her Sister
by Priya Parmar
A View Into The Lives of the Bloomsbury Group (11/3/2014)
Priya Parmar does a commendable job in weaving fact with fiction in VANESSA AND HER SISTER. The author's technique of Vanessa's journal entries and correspondence via letters and telegrams among members of the Bloomsbury group adds to the uniqueness of this novel.
…more
The Race Underground
The Race Underground: Boston, New York, and the Incredible Rivalry That Built America's First Subway
by Doug Most
The Race Underground (12/28/2013)
An interesting account of what was involved in determining the best means of implementing an effective rapid transit system and its locomotion in two late Nineteenth Century major East Coast cities.

Most does a commendable job in outlining the individual differences between …more
A Man of His Own
A Man of His Own
by Susan Wilson
A Man Of His Own (8/15/2013)
So much more than what I had expected...

Using different points of view, Susan Wilson, with great simplicity and understanding, has written a heartwarming story of pain, complex relationships, and believable conflict resolutions.

This is much more than a dog story, though Pax …more
The Daughters of Mars
The Daughters of Mars
by Thomas Keneally
Endurance (6/5/2013)
In The Daughters of Mars, Thomas Keneally aptly provides his readers with the horrors, pain and destruction of war, specifically World War I, on humanity and on the environment. Furthermore, we are privy to the relationship between the Durance sisters, both Australian …more
The Aviator's Wife
The Aviator's Wife
by Melanie Benjamin
Who Were The Lindberghs? (12/23/2012)
In this novel, Melanie Benjamin successfully delves into a complex life led by complex characters. Exquisitely portrayed is Anne Morrow Lindbergh in a way few have been privy to. She is not the shrinking violet forever stuck in the shadow of her famous husband but rather a …more
The First Warm Evening of the Year
The First Warm Evening of the Year: A Novel
by Jamie M. Saul
Out of the Past...And Into? (4/21/2012)
When I received this novel, I couldn't wait to read it. I wish I could say that it held my interest. I can't because as I read page after page, I became like the characters--stuck in the past with ghosts from the past, waiting for and hoping for something to happen, waiting …more
Accidents of Providence
Accidents of Providence
by Stacia Brown
Accidents of Providence (12/23/2011)
The author does a good job in referencing history and in presenting characters--some based on real people who lived in London during the 17th Century and other fictitious characters who fit in and complement the story.
The story is woven around the Puritan assumption that a …more
The Homecoming of Samuel Lake
The Homecoming of Samuel Lake: A Novel
by Jenny Wingfield
What's Not to Like? (7/13/2011)
What's not to like in a book filled with traditions, family values, miracles, faith, integrity, unforgettable characters, the author's ability to weave a well-conceived story--and of course the forces of good and evil? I hated to see this book end; it was a page turner. …more
Outlander
Outlander
by Diana Gabaldon
Interesting, but... (3/22/2011)
A friend of mine expressed great interest and enthusiasm after reading this series; therefore, I couldn't wait to read Outlander. Though I found the book an interesting read, I doubt that I will continue with the series.

I must admit that the reason this book holds the …more
A Box of Darkness
A Box of Darkness: The Story of a Marriage
by Sally Ryder Brady
A BOX OF DARKNESS (1/15/2011)
A poignant, compelling memoir which allows the reader to revisit the ever haunting question: "Does one ever really know another person" along with the ever present human frailty of ignoring the truth about those whom we love until we are forced to face stark realities.

I …more
Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter
Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter: A Novel
by Tom Franklin
M-I-S-S-I-S-S-I-P-P-I (10/1/2010)
Great title, realistic, sympathetic characters, interesting plot, readable narrative style! In Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter, Tom Franklin has mastered well the ingredients of a memorable novel. Though some reviewers have hinted at predictable events, this is, nevertheless, …more
The Confessions of Catherine de Medici
The Confessions of Catherine de Medici: A Novel
by C.W. Gortner
The Confessions of Catherine de Medici (5/24/2010)
The trials and tribulations of Catherine de Medici "in her own words." An interesting, successful technique to present the reader with events in the life and times of a complex historical figure whose life story is permeated with sadness, betrayals, exaggerations and …more
The Wives of Henry Oades
The Wives of Henry Oades: A Novel
by Johanna Moran
Interesting But Not Riveting (12/5/2009)
I am a big fan of historical fiction; unfortunately this book did not hold my interest. I was anticipating a more interesting read because of the subject matter. One weakness I found was the underdeveloped, flat characters. Although the author conveyed the …more
Sweeping Up Glass
Sweeping Up Glass
by Carolyn Wall
Sweeping Up Glass (8/10/2009)
Carolyn Wall's novel would present itself well at a women's group book club. The discussion could be spirited in exploring the following aspects presented in the novel: love, hate; honesty, deception; good, evil; sanity, insanity; courage, cowardice; benevolence, animosity; …more
The Weight of a Mustard Seed
The Weight of a Mustard Seed: The Intimate Story of an Iraqi General and His Family During Thirty Years of Tyranny
by Wendell Steavenson
An Iraqi General's Dilemma (2/6/2009)
Wendell Steavenson reveals the book's main character, Kamel Sachet, through interviews she conducted with fellow military peers, associates, friends, and family members. Sadly, death has silenced Sachet; therefore, his voice is never heard.

Through these interviews, Sachet's …more
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