Happiness: The Crooked Little Road to Semi-Ever After
by Heather Harpham
Interesting (7/26/2017)
This memoir was interesting up to a point. Had I been in Heather's situation, I wouldn't have been as forgiving to the father. I also felt like I would have slapped the transplant Doc with the comment they waited longer than they should have. There was no need to plant that recrimination on the parents. The comment would have been even more horrifying if the transplant went south. It was interesting to compare my bone marrow (stem cell) transplant experience 10 years ago at age 49 with a toddler's.
I was especially pleased the author encouraged everyone to get into the bone marrow bank with a mouth swab. I would have gone one step further and told people to save their babies cord blood and their baby teeth.
Miss Jane
by Brad Watson
A beautiful book (5/19/2016)
Best thing I've read in years. I would give it 20 stars if I could. I can not share any better than the good reviews already expressed. A well written, beautiful and peaceful book.
All Is Not Forgotten
by Wendy Walker
Interesting (11/3/2015)
What I found interesting was the switching back and forth of the narrator. He is a psychologist who helps a rape victim who is a patient. Then he suspects someone he knows. How he plays two these things against each other and what he does is interesting. I even thought that the narrator might be the rapist. What a mess but the author does a good job of keeping everything straight for you. I read it in close to record time and I cannot say that this is because I was going to write a review. A very good book.
Three Many Cooks: One Mom, Two Daughters: Their Shared Stories of Food, Faith & Family
by Pam Anderson, Maggy Keet & Sharon Damelio
Better blog than book (3/4/2015)
I had never read the blog, so I knew nothing about these ladies. It seemed it could be an interesting read about 3 family members working in the same kitchen, something I couldn't do with my mother or sisters. The format they used -- each taking a chapter, telling a story and adding a recipe is a good way to do a blog but not so good for a book as there is no continuity. I should have read the blog before I read the book to get a feeling for these ladies. Going in cold, it was like someone you don't know tell family stories about their family. It's hard to generate any enthusiasm if you don't know them.
I didn't dislike the book, I actually wanted to like it. In the end I was ambivalent.
The Same Sky
by Amanda Eyre Ward
Superficial (11/24/2014)
Once you read the first two chapters you pretty much know how the book is going to end. Having recently been to Austin, I enjoyed remembering the various locations and businesses referenced in the book. Having dealt with infertility and adoption, I expected to be able to understand Alice's point of view. Knowing nothing about an immigrant's journey to this country, I expected to learn more about their experiences and hoped to understand their journey, and I will say I did. Overall though, I felt I read the abridged version. It seems like the author shortchanged Carla, Alice, Evian, and the principal, and four books about their stories might have been better than one. What happened to Carla that led her to Alice? What happened to the principal? What happened with Alice and Evian? Too many unanswered questions and loose ends for me.
The Hollow Ground: A Novel
by Natalie S. Harnett
It pulled me in and didn't let go (4/16/2014)
I started this book when I received it a month or two ago. Life got in the way and I had to put it down. Last week on a cruise I started it again and just couldn't put it down. It is truly an engrossing story on a couple of levels. I had watched a program a year or two ago about the Centralia coal fires. Learning more about the fires and how the families living in the area dealt with the situation on a daily basis was very interesting on it's own. Add in the personal story of Bridgid and her family, along with the secrets and intrigue associated with those secrets, and you've got one of the best novels I've read in the past several years.
The Last Enchantments
by Charles Finch
Too old for this (12/16/2013)
At 55 years old, it is quite possible I am simply too old to understand or have any empathy for this character and his friends. I definitely did not care about them in any way. The character goes from the insulated world of Yale to the insulated world of a political campaign back to the insulated world of Oxford University. Will and his friends feel they know of the world. Oh please. These self-indulgent, spoiled babies know nothing of real life and when it comes, it's going to hit them hard. Wouldn't bet they will be able to handle it, despite their prestigious education.
When I start reading a book, I am always hopeful that I will be able to develop, at the very least, an understanding of the main character(s). Unfortunately, this did not happen for me. This book just irritated. I wanted to slap Will and his friends. I had the same feeling of wasting my time that I did after reading Catcher in the Rye a few years ago with my book club.
Bitter River: A Bell Elkins Novel
by Julia Keller
It was good but... (7/17/2013)
I think it could have been better. The plot was good, the characters were well rounded and the setting worked well for the story. However, I felt the subplots, particularly one, was far fetched and given the small amount of info hard to swallow.
Had I known this was part of a series, I would have read the other book(s) first so as to getter a better feeling for the characters and their situations.
All in all, a decent summer read.
The Sisterhood
by Helen Bryan
I was so looking forward to it... (6/3/2013)
I've been mulling over this review for a week or so now. I couldn't figure out what the problem was for me.
There are several interesting story lines and the author did a good job telling each story. I really enjoyed reading each story for its own sake.
I couldn't figure it out and then it hit me – none of the stories were completed. The author did not tie up the loose ends of each story, and did not weave them together so the reader saw the whole picture.
The story(s) spanned from 1500's through current date. That's a lot of time to cover and there was only one weak thread that went through all of it. It was kind of like saying I am attached to my female ancestors for the past 400 years because we all had brown hair on our head.
The reader (and the author) would have been better served if each story line had been its own book with a beginning, middle and end. They should have been part of a series that clearly the relationship between the story lines and how each impacted the other. I would have bought them all.
Palisades Park
by Alan Brennert
Great read (3/14/2013)
I finished reading this book last week while on a cruise. It's a wonderful book for pleasure reading. I think we all have a "Palisades Park" from our youth - for me it was Riverview on the Northwest side of Chicago. I was taken there as a very little girl and have limited memories. The park was closed for a long time, but we would drive past nearly everyday and my parents would point out rides and stories from their younger days at the park.
These days we have the great corporate owned amusement parks as well as the local carnivals and fairs and generally we think we have an idea of what goes on behind the scenes, but this book dispels those ideas.
These was a lovely book that covered a lot of years, so naturally there were a lot of good times and bad times, both in history and personal lives. This book did a good job covering it all.
I will definitely be recommending this book to my book club.
With or Without You: A Memoir
by Domenica Ruta
Like looking at a bad accident (1/8/2013)
This was not the book to read over the holidays. While the writing was excellent, the story itself was horrific, kind of like driving past a bloody accident scene. You know you should look away and keep going, but something compels you to slow down and gawk.
With all the violence against children that we can't control these days, to read about a mother that deliberately abused her daughter, both mentally and physically was extremely depressing and enraging. To deliberately put your child in harms way, repeatedly, reserves you a special place in hell in my mind.
Though Kathi, the mother, made me sick, I still had hope the daughter could overcome. I couldn't read this book for any length of time; I had to put it down and calm down. In order to objectively review the book, I had to take time to digest it and think about it when I was finished.
I guess that makes it a good book, but not a nice story.
Would I recommend it to anyone? Probably not as it was much too dark and depressing for me.
Next to Love
by Ellen Feldman
Disappointed (5/1/2012)
I was so looking forward to receiving this book but it didn't deliver on it's promise. As Claude might have put it - it did not live up to it's potential. I felt I was reading book jacket description of any one of the character's lives. Each story would have been a much more interesting book on it's own as I would have gotten to know each character and their story better. I spent a lot of time trying to remember who was married to whom, as well as who the children, inlaws and friends belonged to. There were many subject matters that could have been expanded upon also, such as post-war effects on returning soldiers, their wives and families, the civil rights movement, the feminist movement and religious bigotry.
Too many situations and topics were stuffed into one book, the result being no new ideas or perspectives presented.
King Peggy: An American Secretary, Her Royal Destiny, and the Inspiring Story of How She Changed an African Village
by Peggielene Bartels, Eleanor Herman
Nothing short of inspirational (1/3/2012)
What a wonderful book! It shows what one small, insignificant person (as the world might consider them) can do to change the lives of so many people.
King Peggy is my new hero. Long live the King!
The Dressmaker: A Novel
by Kate Alcott
I was surprised (10/12/2011)
I usually don't read historical fiction, so I think I may have checked the wrong book selection when trying to get a First Impression book. However, when I received the book, I felt a responsibility to read it and review. I am so glad I did.
I was pleasantly surprised by just how good this book actually is. It presented a solid and interesting view of the sinking of the Titanic, the terrible choices that passengers and crew alike must have had to make, and the personal as well as political spins put into play at the hearings. Although the author could have taken the path of "high drama" just for drama's sake, doing so would not have produced a book better than this one. Also interesting was how the author tied into the story other events going on at the time, that changed our country particularly as they related to women.
I couldn't put it down. I was left wondering what happened to the characters and wanting to know more about their subsequent lives -- always a sign of a really good book.
Folly Beach: A Lowcountry Tale
by Dorothea Benton Frank
Expected more (6/25/2011)
I've read most of Benton Frank's books and absolutely love this beautiful part of the country, so I was excited when I received this book. Then I started reading. I don't care for reading "plays" although that part isn't really much of a play. I don't like going back and forth between time periods, so that was a little annoying. Finally, the timeline seemed a little rushed and unbelievable to me, given the dire circumstances that bring Cate back to Folly Beach. I really would have liked to have gotten to know the interesting, entertaining and quirky character's stories better. It's an entertaining beach book; not too deep or thought provoking. But, brought me back to a part of the country I love and made me remember and wish I was back there right this minute.
The Discovery of Jeanne Baret: A Story of Science, the High Seas, and the First Woman to Circumnavigate the Globe
by Glynis Ridley
A good textbook (2/1/2011)
I looked forward to receiving this book, as it seemed a good start to expanding my non-fiction reading list. I'm sorry to say I was disappointed. Although well research and well written, unfortunately it was very dry reading and had little to do with the life of Jeanne Baret. I understand this is due the lack of historical information about her specifically and women of that time in general, but I think it would have made a much better book if the author had "expanded" on the facts available and turned the book into a work of fiction based on true events.
Losing My Cool: How a Father's Love and 15,000 Books Beat Hip-hop Culture
by Thomas Chatterton Williams
Shattering preconceived notions (5/20/2010)
As a middle-class, middle-aged white woman living now in white bread suburbia, I often (even though I know I shouldn't) look at younger people and make assumptions based on how they speak, what they are wearing, what they are listening to, etc. This book was a needed whack upside my head reminding me things aren't always what they seem. This would be a great selection for book clubs and generate interesting discussion.
The Wives of Henry Oades: A Novel
by Johanna Moran
Pleasant surprise after all (12/27/2009)
The reason I asked to review this book was because the description was so intriguing. Then I received the book and based on the cover alone, thought I was in for a big disappointment. Turns out I was wrong. This is a great first novel. Taking historical facts, the author wrote a riveting novel from the perspective of both wives. I couldn’t stop reading it. Although the ending was a bit flat and abrupt, overall I greatly enjoyed this book and will recommend it to others. Maybe the cover art could be changed?
The Private Papers of Eastern Jewel
by Maureen Lindley
Unbelieveable and tiresome (8/31/2009)
I was looking forward to an interesting read about a strong woman living on the edge in an oppressive time and culture. What I got was a salacious book littered with the stereotypical ideas of Asian culture; geisha, opium, mysterious dreams, etc.
It was a disappointment from start to finish.
Valeria's Last Stand
by Marc Fitten
Oddly complex and entertaining (3/25/2009)
I started out not really liking this book, though I could empathize with the curmudgeon Valeria and found myself admiring her, even cheering her on on occasion. Surprisingly, the more I read, the more I identified with some characteristics in each of the main players. So, while I didn't necessarily like them, I could understand them and their motives.
It was an entertaining first novel, struggling to find a pace and get some steam going at the start till about halfway through. But once it found it's momentum - it held me till the end.
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