BookBrowse | Book Reviews and Recommendations

Tell Me How This Ends Well
by David Samuel Levinson

Tell Me How This Ends Well (4/1/2017)

This book is disturbing, hilarious, satisfying (Julian got what he deserved), ridiculous and in many ways all too real (though I fervently hope that the book's raging return of anti-Semitism never becomes real). I rated it a 4 rather than a 5 because it seemed to get bogged down in unnecessary detail a few times, but overall I found it well worth my time. I plan to recommend it to my book club.

The Book That Matters Most: A Novel
by Ann Hood

The Book that Matters Most (6/15/2016)

I'd give this book four and a half stars. It was a slow starter for me, but after I got into it a bit, the book grabbed me and I couldn't put it down. Although I'm glad that the book club I lead isn't organized the way the one in this book is, there were some wonderful insights on great books (and suggestions for reading lists) that could be useful to book groups. Ava's character grows and matures throughout the book, as does that of her daughter, Maggie. This novel has a mystery element and a somewhat surprising ending. I would recommend it, especially for book clubs.

Tuesday Nights in 1980
by Molly Prentiss

Tuesday Nights in 1980 (1/13/2016)

I'm an auditory rather than visual artist and would never live in NYC, but Prentiss' first novel still held my interest and attention until the end, so I'm sure that fans of art and NYC will love this book. I do wish the author had tied things up at the end, but not everyone likes to do that. Tuesday Nights in 1980 would be a good choice for a book club.

What Lies Between Us
by Nayomi Munaweera

What Lies Between us (12/3/2015)

This story was difficult and painful to read at times and is a reminder of the lifelong effects of child sexual abuse and particularly incest. In spite of its brutal truth and tragic ending, it was a beautiful, captivating story that kept me under its spell from beginning to end. I plan to recommend this book to my book club and to read the author's first book.

When the Moon Is Low: A Novel
by Nadia Hashimi

When the Moon is Low - Not what I'd hoped (9/10/2015)

I was more a than a little disappointed in this book, especially after reading Khaled Hosseini's endorsement. The story itself is compelling as well as timely, particularly as the world is in the midst of a crisis involving Syrian refugees. But the family's experiences were fairly tame compared to the horrors that real-life refugees live through every day. The writing in general was not very deep or detailed and felt a bit contrived, and characters were not well developed. The book ended without telling readers what happened to the family, which I don't mind in some books but found annoying in this one. I have not read Ms. Hashimi's first book, but on the basis of this book alone, I certainly would not compare this author with Khaled Hosseini.

Make Your Home Among Strangers
by Jennine Capó Crucet

Make Your Home Among Strangers (4/15/2015)

In her debut novel, Crucet wrestles with illegal immigration, cultural differences and expectations, family dysfunction and loyalty, and issues encountered by low-income students attending expensive, prestigious schools and by first-generation Americans who are the first in their families to attend college - - and masterfully weaves it all into a memorable story. She shows us that although we are all products of our upbringing, it is possible, sometimes inevitable, and often desirable to move beyond what we came from. Hers is a talent to watch, and I am already anxiously awaiting her next book. I plan to put Make Your Home Among Strangers on my book club's list for 2016.

Sisters of Heart and Snow
by Margaret Dilloway

Sisters of Heart and Snow (3/11/2015)

I would give this book a 4.5 - good enough that after finishing it, I immediately bought the author's first book. This was a very compelling story; one of those books that is very difficult to put down. The characters and story both felt real and believable. There were a couple of things I found slightly distracting about the writing: the parts of the story that occurred in San Diego in the present day were sometimes narrated in the third person and sometimes by Rachel in the first person. Since the point of view wasn't identified in the chapter headings (as the time and place were), this inconsistency was sometimes a bit difficult to follow. The author's tenses were also inconsistent at times. I read an uncorrected proof, so perhaps these issues will be resolved before publication along with typos and other minor errors. In any case, they didn't interfere with my enjoyment of the book, and I recommended it to my book club.

He Wanted the Moon: The Madness and Medical Genius of Dr. Perry Baird, and His Daughter's Quest to Know Him
by Mimi Baird with Eve Claxton

He Wanted the Moon (2/2/2015)

This book tells a tragic story of lives destroyed by the mental illness of the author's father. It is a stark reminder of how poorly understood mental illnesses such as bipolar disorder were, even as recently as the 1940s. I expected more information about Dr. Baird's own research into what was then known as manic depression, although I realize that there may not have been any since his research was halted by his illness. I felt that the book was too detailed (I don't think that including all of Dr. Baird's descriptions of his hospitalizations added much, especially since they were not particularly realistic) and not detailed enough (the book covered only a couple of years of Dr. Baird's life and skimmed over that of the author). While understanding that these memories and the things she learned about her father were extremely important to the author, I am not sure who this book would appeal to.

Whispering Shadows
by Jan-Philipp Sendker

Whispering Shadows - A Compelling Read (1/12/2015)

I would give this book a 4.5 overall. It might have been a 5 except for the slightly disappointing resolution of the actual murder mystery, which I thought was a little simplistic or Perry Masonish. Sendker's descriptions of Hong Kong and China provide cultural insights that enrich the overall experience of the book. Paul and Christine's separate losses and handled with sensitivity and realism and, ultimately, hope. This book was difficult to put down and inspired me to find his earlier novels. Whispering Shadows would make a good book club selection.

The Same Sky
by Amanda Eyre Ward

Under the Same Sky (10/31/2014)

This was my first book by this author, but after reading this I will be looking for others by her. Although there were some aspects of this story that weren't quite believable and there were a few inconsistencies in the details of the story (which hopefully will be corrected before publication), it was overall a good read. Both of the parallel stories were compelling, but I thought the characters in Carla's story were a little better developed than those in Alice's. Carla's story is especially relevant now, when immigration is an often hotly debated issue.

The Book of Strange New Things: A Novel
by Michel Faber

Strangely Compelling (8/28/2014)

I don't normally read science fiction, and this book was a slow starter for me, but it improved quickly enough to keep me interested. The main character, Pastor Peter Leigh, was unlikeable (his preachy letters to his wife were particularly annoying) and unrealistic (I know a lot of pastors, most of whom have been pastors longer than Peter, and none of them know the entire Bible by memory), and wasn't much fonder of the other characters...in fact, the Oasans were my favorites. The story sucked me in, though, and I wanted to see how it turned out, so I was a little disappointed in the ending, which leaves one hanging. But it also left me thinking, both while I was reading it and after I finished it, and for me that means the author did something right.

Brutal Youth
by Anthony Breznican

And I'd thought I hated high school... (5/24/2014)

This story is disturbing and at times painful to read. I disliked it until I realized that it was really the majority of the characters that I detested. St. Mike's has to be one of the worst parochial schools ever, with a disinterested, ineffective, and sometimes corrupt staff and some very nasty students. Most of the parents in this story are neglectful, abusive and apathetic - - and those aren't even the parents of the worst kids! Breznican tells a compelling, relevant story that his readers will not soon forget. Brutal Youth reminds me of Koch's The Dinner in its ability to provoke thought and discussion. I will recommend this book to my book club.

The Devil in the Marshalsea
by Antonia Hodgson

The Devil in the Marshalsea (3/9/2014)

This is a well-written, well-researched combination mystery/historical novel with great period detail and graphic depictions of the horrific atmosphere of one of London's debtor's prisons.

The Venetian Bargain
by Marina Fiorato

The Venetian Bargain (12/29/2013)

Books like The Venetian Bargain are making historical fiction one of my favorite genres. This was the first book of Marina Fiorato's that I've read, and after finishing it I bought two of her other books and added one to our book club reading list. Her period detail is authentic, and the story itself is compelling if not spellbinding. There were some technical glitches which hopefully will be corrected in the final editing process, but even if not, I didn't find them deal-breakers. Overall, this was a very good read.

Safe with Me
by Amy Hatvany

A Compelling Read (11/10/2013)

With the exception of a few incidences of "that would never happen" (a personal pet peeve), this is a well-told story and a well-written book. The entire book is written in the present tense, except for when a character's past experience is related, and the author succeeds in accomplishing this consistently. Only Maddie's account is in the first person, making her stand out as the most important character. Ms. Hatvany deals well with the subject of organ donation, exploring the perspectives of the physician, the donor's next of kin, and the recipient and family. However, I wish she had left the domestic violence out of this book; I don't think it really added anything and it was so egregious that (for me at least) it distracted from the overall story line. For those reasons, I probably would not recommend it to my book club.

A Thousand Pardons
by Jonathan Dee

I apologize for not liking this book (10/28/2012)

This is the first of Jonathan Dee's books I've read, and I was looking forward to it. Initially the book caught my interest, but somewhere around the middle it seemed to start wandering. It is superbly written, but the plot doesn't rise to the level of the writing and the characters didn't make me love them, hate them or care what happened to them. Some of the events are so unlikely as to be ludicrous, and the book ends without resolution of the major issues. I feel as though I've read a book about nothing.

Reviews by Sally H. (Geneva, OH)

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