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Reviews by Joan P. (Owego, NY)

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Activities of Daily Living
Activities of Daily Living: A Novel
by Lisa Hsiao Chen
Activities of Daily Living (1/11/2022)
I found this a difficult book. There are two main threads. One tells about The Artist, the life and accomplishments of a Chinese immigrant that is a performance artist. The second tells of The Father who is slowly walking the path to dementia and death. Time and it's …more
New York, My Village
New York, My Village: A Novel
by Uwem Akpan
New York, My Village (8/12/2021)
New York, My Village shows the many subtleties of racial bias framed by the experiences of a young Nigerian writer who comes to America to learn the publishing business at a small American firm. The Biafrin fight for independence is the subject of a book of remembrances he …more
Morningside Heights
Morningside Heights: A Novel
by Joshua Henkin
Morningside Heights (4/1/2021)
Morningside Heights could be called, the story of a marriage. Spence, a charismatic professor marries Pru, his student. He is an atheist and she has been raised in a Kosher home. He has a son, Arlo, being raised in a haphazard way by his ex wife, Linda. Together, Pru and …more
Smalltime
Smalltime: A Story of My Family and the Mob
by Russell Shorto
Smalltime (2/22/2021)
Smalltime is a very interesting narrative history of a family and the Mafia in a small city in Pennsylvania. Russell Shorto is urged by friends and family to tell the story of his grandfather, Russ, and his life of crime. As he listens and records stories he finds to fully …more
Big Girl, Small Town
Big Girl, Small Town
by Michelle Gallen
Big Girl Small Town (10/24/2020)
Big Girl, Small Town is set in times of truce in Northern Ireland. There is still animosity toward the occupying English and uneasiness between the Catholic and Protestant townspeople.

Majella has lost her uncle who was involved with the IRA, her father has disappeared, and …more
Daughter of the Reich
Daughter of the Reich: A Novel
by Louise Fein
Daughter of the Third Reich (3/11/2020)
I found this to be a very interesting glimpse into growing up as the Third Reich came to power in Germany. We see this through the eyes of Herta, a young German girl, who is excited and entranced by Hitler and his plans for her country. Her father, a newspaper editor, …more
Small Days and Nights
Small Days and Nights: A Novel
by Tishani Doshi
Thought Provoking Novel (12/5/2019)
I found Small Days and Nights an interesting book. Grace tells of her upbringing. Her mother and father had a strange relationship and a very big secret that Grace is faced with after the death of her mother. The author is a poet and I found the descriptions of the places …more
Cartier's Hope
Cartier's Hope: A Novel
by M. J. Rose
Cartiers Hope (9/10/2019)
If you want to learn more about New York high society in the early 1900s, this novel gives you a glimpse into the times. It also gives insight into the world of jewelers, gems, and especially the fabled Hope diamond.

Vera Garland, the main character, leads a double life. She …more
Travelers
Travelers: A Novel
by Helon Habila
Travelers (5/5/2019)
Interesting book. It is divided into six books. Each could be a stand alone short story and it took me awhile to find the thread that tied it all together. The book tells of immigrants that come to Europe from Africa. Some come for education, some for work, and many come …more
The Last Collection
The Last Collection: A Novel of Elsa Schiaparelli and Coco Chanel
by Jeanne Mackin
The Last Collection (2/21/2019)
I found this an interesting story about the rivalry between two famous couturiers in the days before Paris fell to the Germans in WWII. It captures the sense of foreboding while Parisians waited for the inevitable. I would have rated it higher if the writing had been better. …more
House of Stone
House of Stone
by Novuyo Rosa Tshuma
House of Stone (12/7/2018)
I have mixed feelings about this book. The history of Zimbabwe is marked with bloodshed and violence and this novel explains the many factions involved in the fight for independence. Told by the people who lived this nightmare, it was very intriguing. The main characters …more
The Care and Feeding of Ravenously Hungry Girls
The Care and Feeding of Ravenously Hungry Girls
by Anissa Gray
The Care and Feeding of Ravenously Hungry Girls (10/7/2018)
What is really a fascinating plot is made even better by great characters. They are troubled people and the author skillfully shows the roots,of their dysfunction.

Althea and Porter are sent to jail when their daughter, Kim, turns them in for fraud. Family is called on to …more
Sold on a Monday
Sold on a Monday
by Kristina McMorris
Sold On a Monday (8/3/2018)
A depression-era news photo of two children with a "For Sale" was a picture that the author could not erase from her memory. McMorris used it to write a fascinating novel about what might have happened to these children. Lots of twists and turns and just when you think you …more
The Travelling Cat Chronicles
The Travelling Cat Chronicles
by Hiro Arikawa, Philip Gabriel
The Traveling Cat Chronicals (5/1/2018)
This is really the story of Satoru, a Japanese man, told by his loving cat, Nana. Saturn can no longer care for Nana so he makes visits to old friends to find a suitable home for the cat. Each friendship reveals much about what a good man Satoru is and we discover that he …more
A Place for Us
A Place for Us
by Fatima Farheen Mirza
A Place For Us (3/23/2018)
This is one of the best books that I have read in years. I'm no fan of flashbacks or multiple narrators but this author makes it work. We are introduced to a religious Islamic family in America, Layla, Rafiq, and their children, Hadia, Huda, and Amar. Piece by piece Mirza …more
French Exit
French Exit
by Patrick deWitt
French Exit (1/29/2018)
All I could think as I read this was, what a whacky book! It's reminiscent of the 1930s black and white, high society movies. After more thought, I realized how clever De Witt was to bring all these interesting characters together to tell a crazy story about the desperation …more
Our Lady of the Prairie
Our Lady of the Prairie
by Thisbe Nissen
Our Lady of the Prairie (11/3/2017)
This book has more plot lines than most trilogies. Each, if fully explored would make a book. The main story concerns Phillipa who leaves her husband of 26 years for a colleague, Lucius. Phillipa and Michael have raised a I dysfunctional daughter, Ginnie, who seems to have …more
Stay with Me
Stay with Me
by Ayobami Adebayo
Stay With Me (8/10/2017)
The constant political instability in Nigeria is the backdrop to this story of love and secrets. Akin, the husband, and Yijeda, the wife, face infertility, family pressures, and dark secrets that finally force them apart. I am always fascinated with cultures that blend the …more
The Almost Sisters
The Almost Sisters
by Joshilyn Jackson
Almost Sisters (5/4/2017)
No Gimmicks! No changing narrators! No flashbacks! "Almost Sisters" is a good story beautifully written. Leia Birch is confronted with two problems to begin the book. She finds herself pregnant as a result of a one time encounter with a man she met at a conference and her …more
The Book of Summer
The Book of Summer
by Michelle Gable
The Book of Summer (3/7/2017)
Family sagas are my favorites and so I really enjoyed. "The Book of Summer". I'm not a great fan of the narrative switching between the past and present but this time it worked for me. The seeds of the present are planted in the past and produced some " aha moments". The …more
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