Sign up for our newsletters to receive our Best of 2024 ezine!

Reviews by Emily C. (Naples, FL)

Order Reviews by:
Alfie and Me: What Owls Know, What Humans Believe
by Carl Safina
A Pleasant Surprise (10/1/2023)
I requested to review an ARC copy of Alfie and Me by Carl Safina, thinking that it was just another tale of the relationship between an eastern screech owl and the author. And, it is that to be sure.

But, it turned out to be much more. Safina and his wife Patricia rescued amore
Stealing: A Novel
by Margaret Verble
A Harrowing Chapter in American History (1/11/2023)
Margaret Verble, an enrolled citizen of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma has written a gut-wrenching novel that reveals the ugly side of Native American Boarding Schools in the 1950's.

According to The National Native American Boarding School Coalition, between 1869 and the 1more
In the Time of Our History
by Susanne Pari
Perfect Read for Weeks in the Dark (10/19/2022)
When Hurricane Ian struck Florida, the power was out and destruction reigned everywhere. It was a perfect time to occupy myself, using a flashlight, to read IN THE TIME OF OUR HISTORY by Susanne Pari. This is a fast paced story of an Iranian-American family caught betweenmore
Fly Girl: A Memoir
by Ann Hood
A Fun and Informative Trip (4/19/2022)
The moment I saw this memoir I knew I had to read it. Based on the experiences of Ann Hood as a flight TWA attendant, it is an entertaining and informative telling of her experiences at the end of the "glamour days" of flying.

Hood was hired at a time when "perceptions ofmore
On a Night of a Thousand Stars
by Andrea Yaryura Clark
A Winning Debut Novel (3/6/2022)
Andrea Yaryura Clark has written a historical novel that propels us along to read chapter after chapter without putting the book down. Alternating between the years 1975-1976 and 1998, Clark tells the story of Paloma's search for the background of her father's (Santiagomore
The Last Grand Duchess: A Novel of Olga Romanov, Imperial Russia, and Revolution
by Bryn Turnbull
PRINCESS OLGA UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL (12/10/2021)
As a retired history teacher and lover of historical novels, I couldn't wait to dig into Bryn Turnbull's novel about Olga Romanov and her family during the days of the Russian revolution and beyond. I wasn't disappointed. It is a spellbinding tale of Olga and the Romanovmore
The Sunset Route: Freight Trains, Forgiveness, and Freedom on the Rails in the American West
by Carrot Quinn
A disappointment (7/9/2021)
If you're looking for a true life adventure story, then The Sunset Route by Carrot (Jenni) Quinn is for you. Quinn grew up in Anchorage, Alaska, with her schizophrenic Mother and her brother in extreme poverty. Her absentee father had no contact with his family. When Carrotmore
When Broadway Was Black: The Triumphant Story of the All-Black Musical that Changed the World (aka Footnotes)
by Caseen Gaines
A Triumphant Story (3/27/2021)
When I was a high school history teacher back in the 1970's, I created and taught the first Black History course ever offered. One aspect of Black History with which I was unfamiliar was the role of African Americans in music history. For this reason I was interested inmore
The Splendid and the Vile: A Saga of Churchill, Family, and Defiance During the Blitz
by Erik Larson
Another Erik Larson hit (1/17/2020)
I have loved all of Erik Larson's books but this one is his best in my never-to-be-humble opinion. Of course, I am a huge fan of Winston Churchill, so that may also influence my 5 star rating.

I admire Larson as a writer is because his writing style is so intimate. As I readmore
Father of Lions: One Man's Remarkable Quest to Save the Mosul Zoo
by Louise Callaghan
Much More Than A Story About Animals (11/6/2019)
I selected to review this title because I am a fan of animals. I hold to Abu Laith's belief that, "Within every living being...there was a personality, a life with needs and likes and things they hated".However, journalist Louise Callaghan has written a book that is so muchmore
The Volunteer: One Man, an Underground Army, and the Secret Mission to Destroy Auschwitz
by Jack Fairweather
Witold Pilecki's Heroism Defying the Nazi Regime (5/9/2019)
As a former history teacher, I am always fascinated with newly published accounts of historical events unknown to me. It is for that reason that the reading of Jack Fairweather's THE VOLUNTEER absorbed me for days and nights on end.

Fairweather, a former correspondent formore
At the Wolf's Table
by Rosella Postorino
A Great Untold True Story (11/5/2018)
As a retired teacher of both history and English, I thought I had read all there was to read at World War II and Hitler's Germany. I was wrong.

AT THE WOLF'S TABLE by Rosella Postorino details a little known aspect of Hitler's Germany in this well-written and engaging novel.more
Fly Girls: How Five Daring Women Defied All Odds and Made Aviation History
by Keith O'Brien
A Historical Gem (7/5/2018)
As a retired teacher of high school American history, I thoroughly enjoyed this historical gem. This is an area of American history with which I was totally unfamiliar, except for the story of Amelia Earhart. Had this book existed 30 years ago when I was teaching, I wouldmore
Mothers of Sparta: A Memoir in Pieces
by Dawn Davies
Mothers of Sparta (10/11/2017)
My ARC of Mothers of Sparta by Dawn Davies arrived a few days before Hurricane Irma struck Naples. While our power was off for five days, I was so captivated after reading the first paragraph that I continued to read it by flashlight and finished it in two days. Memoirs aremore
Victoria
by Daisy Goodwin
A Different Perspective (1/8/2017)
Everything I have previously read about about Queen Victoria had to do with her later years as a Mother, Wife, and grieving Widow. This book, dealing with her childhood years and her years immediately following her Coronation, gave me a much complete picture of how shemore
Mercies in Disguise: A Story of Hope, a Family's Genetic Destiny, and the Science That Rescued Them
by Gina Kolata
MERCIES IN DISGUISE (11/21/2016)
Mercies In Disguise presents a real life crisis situation that reads like a suspense novel. The advances of modern science have given us many positive things. However, they have also presented us with many critical choices that have to be made that can affect our attitudesmore
  • Page
  • 1

Top Picks

  • Book Jacket: Model Home
    Model Home
    by Rivers Solomon
    Rivers Solomon's novel Model Home opens with a chilling and mesmerizing line: "Maybe my mother is ...

BookBrowse Book Club

Book Jacket
The Rose Arbor
by Rhys Bowen
An investigation into a girl's disappearance uncovers a mystery dating back to World War II in a haunting novel of suspense.
Book Jacket
The Berry Pickers
by Amanda Peters
A four-year-old Mi'kmaq girl disappears, leaving a mystery unsolved for fifty years.
Who Said...

A library is a temple unabridged with priceless treasure...

Click Here to find out who said this, as well as discovering other famous literary quotes!

Wordplay

Big Holiday Wordplay 2024

Enter Now

Your guide toexceptional          books

BookBrowse seeks out and recommends the best in contemporary fiction and nonfiction—books that not only engage and entertain but also deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world around us.