BookBrowse | Book Reviews and Recommendations

The Bog Wife
by Kay Chronister

The Bog Wife (8/8/2024)

I usually enjoy fantasy, but this novel was too bizarre for me. The Haddesley family was so dysfunctional. The idea of a "bog wife" created from vegetation was weird. The mother who mysteriously disappeared is discovered alive in the bog and two of the children decide to return to the earth with her. I finished it, but can't recommend it. I gave it a 3 because I liked the writing style.

This Strange Eventful History: A Novel
by Claire Messud

This Strange Eventual History (4/12/2024)

4.5. The Cassars lived in Algeria from 1940 to 2010. They thought of themselves as 100 belonging there and 100 French citizens. Yet when Algeria became independent, they had to leave -not wanted in Algeria or France.
This is a story about a family, without roots, moving from country to country. Gaston and Lucienne, the parents, who have the perfect marriage, and their children, Francoise and Denise, who can never achieve this perfection. Based on the lives of the author's own family, the novel brings alive the thoughts, emotions, and desires of these individuals. I felt I really knew these people and cared about their lives.
I knew nothing about Algeria and would have liked to know more about their lives there.

Help Wanted: A Novel
by Adelle Waldman

Help Wanted (1/5/2024)

Team Movement clocks in at 3:55 AM. Under a demanding and self-absorbed boss, they empty the day's truck of merchandise, stock the shelves, and leave.
Then when there is to be a promotion, the Movement band together to ensure their choice wins.
A dark comedy about people living from paycheck to paycheck- their hopes and their fears.
I really enjoyed this book. It is so different from what I normally read. It describes the lives of people who often go unnoticed. The characters are real and their problems and faults are real, but I want them to succeed.

The Stone Home: A Novel
by Crystal Hana Kim

A Difficult Read (11/16/2023)

The Stone Home is based on true events. In the 70's and 80's, South Korea established an internment camp called The Brothers Home. Only 10 were homeless and many were children, dissidents, and people grabbed off the streets. 516 people died there over 20 years, and torture was common.
The story is told using alternating time lines and from the perspectives of a camp survivor, Eunju, and a young American Korean girl, Narae.
It is a story of a mother and daughter's love, and two brothers whose bond is put to an impossible test. There is no happiness here - it is cruelty, hopeless, and pain. It is well written, but the book is so depressing which is why I did not rate it higher.

Devil Makes Three: A Novel
by Ben Fountain

Devil Makes Three (8/20/2023)

I loved Fountain's book Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk, and Devil Makes Three is totally different. It was difficult to get into. There were many characters and too many details about government policies and organizations. However, learning about Haiti - the people, their culture and history was fascinating. I would not have picked this book on my own, it is a challenging read, but I'm glad I read it.

King of the Armadillos
by Wendy Chin-Tanner

King of the Armadillos (5/10/2023)

4.5 Such an interesting book. I had no idea that Carville existed and learned a great deal about Hansen's disease. Victor is a wonderful character - torn between his love for family and his music. I wanted the story to continue when Victor returned to New York.

Iron Curtain: A Love Story
by Vesna Goldsworthy

Iron Curtain (1/19/2023)

3.8 Milena, a Red Princess, living in luxury with limited freedom in an unnamed Communist country in the 1980's, meets Jason, a British poet. This it when it becomes unrealistic. She sleeps with him once, they fall in love in three days, and she follows Jason to England to live in Bohemian poverty, but she is free!
I did enjoy the contrast between the two cultures and the misconceptions of the Soviets and the British. I didn't connect with either character. The only thing in common was sex. The ending didn't resolve the issue of why Milena left in the first place.

Ghost Season: A Novel
by Fatin Abbas

Ghost Season (11/15/2022)

4.5 Five characters- an American, a cook, a translator, and a 12 year old boy are caught up in a conflict between the nomads and the Nilots. The setting is the border between North and South Sudan. The people are poor , illiterate, and because of climate change not able to provide for their families. Amidst the civil war these five individuals must put aside their differences to save one another. A realistic look at a world we cannot imagine.

Dinosaurs: A Novel
by Lydia Millet

Dinasours (9/26/2022)

Gil, independently wealthy at 45, has few friends and no family. He feels guilty about the money and spends his time volunteering. The book is about his developing relationship with the family next door.
This is a simple story - dryly funny, insightful, and emotionally moving.
I enjoy her writing and would also recommend A Children's Bible and Mermaids in Paradise.

Daughters of the Flower Fragrant Garden: Two Sisters Separated by China's Civil War
by Zhuqing Li

4.5!! (5/17/2022)

Fascinating true story of two sisters and best friends separated at the end of the Chinese Civil War. Jun ends up in Taiwan and sister Hong on the mainland -forced to denounce her sister and her family background. This is a personal account of the author's aunts which makes the book so insightful. I've read about Mao, the rise of communism, and the death of millions. But this book made it real describing the effect on one family. Highly recommend.

Dirt Creek: A Novel
by Hayley Scrivenor

Dirt creek (3/14/2022)

4.5 Australian mystery in a small, drought-ridden town. A 12 year old girl is missing and there are several suspects. Gorgeous writing, fabulous characters -adult and kids- and a plot that keeps the reader guessing. Great debut novel. Can't wait for the second.

The Family Chao: A Novel
by Lan Samantha Chang

The Family Chao (11/25/2021)

What a family! Loving, cruel, passionate, racist, forgiving-they are unforgettable. The father, who is murdered,had no redeeming qualities, which made everyone a suspect. The book was a combination of a mystery, love story, and family drama. Would recommend.

Morningside Heights: A Novel
by Joshua Henkin

Morning side Heights (3/28/2021)

Knowing friends dealing with dementia, this novel pulled me into this imperfect family - trying to understand each other, and how we fail; and yet we try again. I read the book in one day.

Ariadne
by Jennifer Saint

Ariadne (3/7/2021)

Haven't read Greek mythology since middle school. This book was a page turner. Loved the interaction between the gods and mortals; men and women. The two sisters, Ariadne and Phaedra are such strong characters who make decisions that are irreversible, and yet, we admire them.

The Phone Booth at the Edge of the World: A Novel
by Laura Imai Messina

4.5 (1/3/2021)

A wonderful book. I loved the concept - a phone booth with a wind phone placed in a lovely garden. A book of grief and despair, but mostly of hope. Although tragedy is a part of these characters, they accept it, help each other, and learn to love again.

With or Without You: A Novel
by Caroline Leavitt

With or Without You (5/6/2020)

This is a novel about relationships. Stella, a nurse; Simon, her long-term partner - a bass player for a rock band; and Libby, a doctor and Stella's best friend. When Stella awakes from a two month coma, she is no longer interested in nursing and becomes addicted to painting portraits - seeing the person's hidden feelings. Simon tries to cope with the change and becomes closer to Libby. The emotional changes in the three are described realistically and even with their flaws and mistakes, the reader wants each one to succeed.

The Prisoner's Wife
by Maggie Brookes

The Prisoner's Wife (2/12/2020)

3.5 I know I will be in the minority, but the book didn't hold my interest. I thought Izzy was spoiled and immature. I did enjoy the male characters. I've read a lot about WWII, but this novel I struggled to finish.

The Sun Down Motel
by Simone St. James

Creepy Mystery (11/5/2019)

The book got off to a slow start but became a page turner. The setting is small town Fell, NY. The chapters alternate between Viv in 1982 and her niece, Carly, in 2017, who is investigating the disappearance of her aunt. In my opinion , the ghostly inhabitants of the motel did not add to the plot, and the creepy door-to-door salesman character should have been more developed. All in all, the book was entertaining - a good fall/winter read.

Nothing to See Here
by Kevin Wilson

4.5! (6/9/2019)

Weirdly funny. Lillian is coasting along in life when her best and only friend asks her to watch her step-children (twins) who spontaneously combust when agitated. Great plot and wonderful characters.

The Care and Feeding of Ravenously Hungry Girls
by Anissa Gray

Wonderful first novel (10/5/2018)

I would rate this 4.5. A story of mothers, daughters, sisters, relationships, family secrets. Characters are so believable. I empathized with them all even though they made terrible choices.