The cover of books is often what will help me decide if I am going to read it. Somehow this cover does not indicate the true nature of the magical tale on pages. I read it slowly and savored the uniqueness of the story. Vivid characters and landscapes that grow in one's mind. Definitely a book to share coffee and discussion with friends.

The title is promising and I devoted multiple hours reading this novel only to be anxious to finish. Reading it was like walking into the middle of a movie - wanting to have a beginning to find what the story is about. The characters were indeed interesting and fortunately the author provides a cast list which does help to set the scene. Maybe my popcorn was not salty enough but this was not the novel I hoped it would be.

Paper Names is a winner of a novel! It begins slowly and builds to a full crescendo!

The characters are perfectly drawn and though the story begins in New York about an immigrant family from China, it weaves back and forth though the family's lifetime. I personally felt each high and low as the characters moved through their lives. It also involves an American lawyer who helps them in many ways but has his own dark secret. The story will remain with you. Kudos to the author!

This story which was based on true facts of the children who were send out of Ghettos to Christian families begins with Ana and Oskar. Their mother gives them to a family to raise during the Nazi occupation of Poland. It ends two decades later in Israel when their past comes to light. I found the structure of the book confusing; especially because the characters seem to appear without any background. It was not a page-turner but I certainly had sympathy for trials and difficulties of the characters and was relieved when the there was a resolution at the end.

Oh, what a read! It is fiction so close to fact that one could believe it all. It was narrated by Jack Kennedy's close friend, Lem Billings. He tells how he stood in for Jack taking Jackie every Sunday to art galleries and parties while Jack was busy entering politics. He mentions all the stores and restaurants I remember here in Washington in the 1950s. Jackie's encounter with Joseph Kennedy is fascinating. A real page turner, it feels like you are inside the trio's love affair and complicated marriage. And because the media was not on 24/7, much of their private life was quiet to those of us on the outside.

When a teen age girl goes missing in a small town in Australia their world is turned upside down. Rich character descriptions added to the different twists give us a plot that no one would expect to solve until the last page is turned. Very modern in concept, along with the background of another country's culture; a new detective constantly under stress to prove herself very little is needed to make this novel a winner. Like any small town each character has their secrets and the solution is one big surprise.

This excellent and riveting and well researched story of the final years of the 300 year Russian monarchy which focuses on the oldest Daughter of Nicholas II is amazing. Bryn Turnbull has included a list of characters, a bibliography and in the author's note she tells how and why she wrote about Olga. The story begins in 1907 in Russian and ends in 1952 in Ontario, Canada. The personalities of each of the characters stands out and in the end it is love and loyalty. Olga's great grandmother was Queen Victoria and she was the one who carried the hemophilia gene. The cover is a perfect beginning to carry you away to the Russia of yesterday.

This was a most incredible view of battlefield medicine during World War I. Two sisters, one a nurse the other an excellent mechanic arrived in the midst of the horrors of the battles- a time when war machines were changing, medicine was evolving and endless wounded needed their care. In addition the author has presented romance among and between sexes and a dysfunctional family that had to come to terms with the woman's movement. In the beginning I thought it might be a good book club book as the story keeps one engrossed with the excellently drawn characters; on the other hand there are vivid sexual descriptions that might not be appropriate for some groups. The cover of the book is enchanting. Well researched.

Exceptional historical fiction about a young women from England who is wrongly accused of stealing. She is sent to prison and then exiled to Australia. After a while she is able to make a new life. The detail and characters are well described and I thought it was one of the best books I've read in many, many months.

This well-known author has written a story of the hundreds of Jews who lived in the forests of Poland during WWII. It is based on factual details; a unique female hero who has instincts beyond belief. She is told that the "knowing of impossible things is a gift from God".

The story is a sad tale and it is important to read the author's notes. The cover is beautiful. The title foretells what the story's ending will be. There were many sentences that one wants to hold in thought. It is not a summer beach read book; it should be read in a quiet surroundings with a note pad by your side.
I would suggest it as suitable for a book group that is interested in the fate of the Jewish people in Poland.