Reviews by Gabi

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The Swans of Harlem
The Swans of Harlem: Five Black Ballerinas, Fifty Years of Sisterhood, and Their Reclamation of a Groundbreaking History
by Karen Valby
A Standing Ovation for The Swans of Harlem (2/3/2025)
The Swans of Harlem is a long overdue celebration of five African-American pioneers of the Dance Theater of Harlem. With the leadership and vision of Arthur Mitchell, these five ballerinas and others in the company paved the way for decades of Black dancers to come. They …more
The Excitements
The Excitements: A Novel
by CJ Wray
A Hidden Gem (2/6/2024)
Historic fiction meets Robin Hood in this delightful book about two nonagenarian WWII veteran sisters and a much cherished grand-nephew who is there as the sisters’ past unfolds into the present. Heartfelt, and sometimes heart-wrenching, this is a story of service, courage, …more
Alfie and Me
Alfie and Me: What Owls Know, What Humans Believe
by Carl Safina
Not What I Expected - 2.5 Stars (9/24/2023)
Natural science and ecology are among some of my favorite non-fiction genres so I wanted to love this book. While following Alfie's growth into an adult Eastern Screech Owl was interesting, the owl (and related nature) facts enlightening, and the two-way relationship with …more
Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone
Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone: A Novel
by Benjamin Stevenson
A Killer Mystery (4/12/2023)
It happened one snowy weekend…

Ernest Cunningham attends an ill-fated reunion of the notorious Cunningham family at an Australian ski resort - a reunion which turns into a weekend of family drama and murder. As Ernie investigates the murder of an unknown man, he encounters a …more
The Mostly True Story of Tanner & Louise
The Mostly True Story of Tanner & Louise
by Colleen Oakley
Need a Smile? (4/10/2023)
(No spoilers)

I absolutely loved this entertaining feel-good book. An easy low-key read about female friendships with a dose of intrigue and twists and turns.

Readers who liked “Killers of a Certain Age,” “The Brilliant Life of Eudora Honeysett” or Osman’s Thursday Murder …more
The Bangalore Detectives Club
The Bangalore Detectives Club: Detective Kaveri Mysteries #1
by Harini Nagendra
A 5 Star Start to a New Cozy Mystery Series (6/28/2022)
“The Bangalore Detectives Club” is a cozy mystery with a touch of historical fiction and international flavor.This gem of a book set in Bangalore in the 1920s features a cast of diverse characters and a realistic plot. Beyond the intrigue, the book introduces the reader to …more
Iona Iverson's Rules for Commuting
Iona Iverson's Rules for Commuting: A Novel
by Clare Pooley
All Aboard (6/20/2022)
When a myriad of events bring an unlikely group of train commuters into each other’s lives, these strangers seemingly with little in common find precious friendship and new beginnings. The characters, relatable and likable, are a celebration of diversity in terms of life …more
The Ghosts of Rose Hill
The Ghosts of Rose Hill
by R. M. Romero
Mesmerizing and Haunting (6/4/2022)
A one-of-a-kind coming of age story about a young Jewish teen sent off to spend her summer in Prague. Written in lyrical verse, this book enchanted me from the start. It is a love story and a ghost story intertwined by myth. Not usually one to read YA fiction or fantasy, I’ …more
Surviving Savannah
Surviving Savannah
by Patti Callahan
How to Survive Surviving (3/23/2022)
(No spoilers)
I went into “Surviving Savannah” expecting to love this book as historical fiction is one of my favorite genres and the premise of this book sounded fascinating. Unfortunately, I found the book just fair - a bit underwhelming. I liked the parallels and the …more
Braiding Sweetgrass
Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants
by Robin Wall Kimmerer
The Natural World Revisited (3/2/2022)
What an amazing and beautifully written book. I read a chapter, each an essay, a day and then reflected on it…savoring the messages. Braiding Sweetgrass, as the title implies, spoke to my mind, body, and soul. A melding of science and the learning passed down through …more
Crying in H Mart
Crying in H Mart
by Michelle Zauner
A Taste of Korea (2/13/2022)
“Crying in H Mart” is a heartfelt memoir of a daughter looking back on her relationship with her mother. The story is a recounting of the age-old challenge of a mother and daughter struggling to relate to one another’s worlds and the resulting tensions from differing …more
The Magnolia Palace
The Magnolia Palace: A Novel
by Fiona Davis
Mystery Enveloped in Art (1/27/2022)
Set against the backdrop of the art-filled Frick Mansion, a renowned sculptor’s muse, hiding in plain sight as a private secretary, finds herself in the middle of Frick family drama and entangled in a web of accusations. Decades later a winter storm brings together an …more
A Million Things
A Million Things
by Emily Spurr
Friendship Across The Ages (1/20/2022)
For readers who loved “The Brilliant Life of Eudora Honeysett” - here is another exceptional book about a very special and heartwarming friendship, forged by tough life circumstances, between a young girl and her elderly neighbor. I loved it - but needed a few extra tissues on hand.
The Island of Missing Trees
The Island of Missing Trees: A Novel
by Elif Shafak
As Told By A Fig Tree… (1/9/2022)
The Island of Missing Trees is undoubtedly one of my lifetime favorites. Cyprus, is an island divided, in turmoil, and people and nature alike are suffering years of unrest, escalating violence and the atrocities of an ethnic war. Cultural clashes, national identity and …more
Fencing with the King
Fencing with the King: A Novel
by Diana Abu-Jaber
Family Secrets Unveiled (1/1/2022)
An elegant novel "Fencing With the King" is unlike anything I have read recently. Throughout the book I felt transported to Jordan while watching the story unfold. Intricate and poetic storytelling, not always easy to follow, was fitting to the Hamdan family dynamics as …more
The Lincoln Highway
The Lincoln Highway: A Novel
by Amor Towles
Another Towles “Must Read” (10/23/2021)
“The Lincoln Highway” is another beautifully written book from Amor Towles. Admittedly, I was initially unsure about the book but about one-third into it I was totally engaged in the four boys’ individual tellings of how the fascinating events of their 10 day journey …more
Take My Hand
Take My Hand
by Dolen Perkins-Valdez
Left Me Smarter and Needing to Know More (9/11/2021)
The highest praise I can give "Take My Hand" is that it left me a smarter person for having read it. This book engaged me from the very first page. The book made me think and opened my eyes, leaving me wanting, actually needing, to learn more about the historical backstory — …more
The Turnout
The Turnout
by Megan Abbott
“The Turnout” a Turn Off (8/27/2021)
I had such high expectations for “The Turnout.” I even pre-ordered it based on the early reviews by the critics and because I was intrigued by the book having ballet as the backdrop. After all, “Every girl wants to be a ballerina” as it says in the book.

Not finishing a book …more
A Woman of Intelligence
A Woman of Intelligence
by Karin Tanabe
A 3.5 Star Worthwhile Read (8/20/2021)
It’s NYC in the 1950’s, the early years of the Cold War Era. Communism is a perceived threat. McCarthyism is in full swing. Katharina Edgeworth is living a privileged life as a wife of a doctor and a mother of two healthy spirited boys. An d yet, an educated, worldly, …more
A Peculiar Combination
A Peculiar Combination: Electra McDonnell Series #1
by Ashley Weaver
Criminals, Soldiers, Spies…oh my! (7/30/2021)
As fate brings them together, a spirited thief and a straight-laced Major become unlikely allies in war-time England as they join forces to thwart an attempt to deliver critical documents into the Germans’ hands. Intrigue, murder, and a sprinkling of romance, combined with …more
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