BookBrowse | Book Reviews and Recommendations

Reviews by Patricia W. (Desoto, TX)

Awake in the Floating City: A Novel
by Susanna Kwan

Awake in the Floating City by Susanna Kwan (4/21/2025)

Readers who enjoy descriptive stories that allow for contemplation or reflection will especially like this book. The setting is intentionally dreary due to mass flooding from climate change. Many lost their lives and many now live in buildings with the first few floors …more

Help Wanted: A Novel
by Adelle Waldman

Help Wanted by Adelle Waldman (1/3/2024)

I loved this book. It was so interesting to read about the people who worked in the early morning to unload the delivery trucks at a retail store. Each had his/her own challenges and life situations that influenced where and when they could work. Some workers had to deal …more

Daughters of Shandong
by Eve J. Chung

Daughters of Shandong (11/9/2023)

I loved this story set during the Communist takeover of China. I learned about the history and culture of China which highlighted the destruction of the people and their way of life during this time, the brutality of war, and gender inequality. From the story's emphasis on …more

Above the Salt: A Novel
by Katherine Vaz

Above the Salt (10/5/2023)

The story began in the mid-nineteenth century in Madeira, a Portuguese Island, and continued to the early twentieth century in the United States. It was interesting to read about the world during this time span. The story showed the struggles to survive through hardships, …more

Digging Stars: A Novel
by Novuyo Rosa Tshuma

Digging Stars by Novuyo Rosa Tshuma (7/13/2023)

Digging Stars is a story about a young girl living in Zimbabwe whose accomplished father lives in America. Through the story, I was allowed to see how children's perceptions of their parents and of other countries influence their lives and how perceptions can change as …more

The All-American: A Novel
by Joe Milan Jr.

The All-American (2/3/2023)

It was so interesting to read a book from a male teen's/young man's perspective and how he compared life events to football. The emotions of the teen, Bucky, are raw and evident. The story provides a glimpse into how some people living in poverty in rural America live, …more

The Nazi Conspiracy: The Secret Plot to Kill Roosevelt, Stalin, and Churchill
by Brad Meltzer, Josh Mensch

The Nazi Conspiracy (12/30/2022)

For people who do not enjoy history books, this story is written in an interesting, readable style. While reading about the conspiracy, the story also tells of the culture and politics of the time. The reality that unchecked power can lead to such oppression, prejudice, and …more

The Immortal King Rao: A Novel
by Vauhini Vara

The Immortal King Rao (4/6/2022)

This is a thought-provoking story with timely treatments of climate change, economic systems, wealth disparity, resistance, and the influence of technology. Vara writes of a new government in which people of the world become "Shareholders" and build up social capital in …more

Peach Blossom Spring: A Novel
by Melissa Fu

Peach Blossom Spring (2/22/2022)

Reading about other cultures and history deepens my understanding of the world. From Peach Blossom Spring, I learned about the culture and history, beginning in 1938, of China and later of Taiwan. The struggles and upheaval of the people created by war were heartbreaking. …more

Free: A Child and a Country at the End of History
by Lea Ypi

Free (11/19/2021)

I found Lea Ypi's personal story of growing up in Albania during socialism and then as the country transitioned from socialism to political pluralism engrossing to read. It was enlightening to learn what she was taught in school, including how to think about her country. …more

Everybody: A Book about Freedom
by Olivia Laing

Everybody (5/18/2021)

Everybody is an interesting, extensively researched book about the human body and freedom. Laing has the exceptional ability to make connections among events and thoughts of particular times and to point out the struggles of individuals and of societies. I enjoyed reading …more

Smalltime: A Story of My Family and the Mob
by Russell Shorto

Smalltime (2/22/2021)

I enjoyed Smalltime. It gave me a better understanding of immigrants including the dire circumstances of some of their lives in their birth countries, how difficult it was for them to make a living in the United States, and how these hardships affected their family lives …more

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Book Jacket — Lessons in Chemistry
by Bonnie Garmus

Praised by *Parade* and *The New York Times Book Review*, this debut features a 1960s scientist turned TV cooking star.

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