Will try to get to this more in October. Read mostly children's and young adult books in September. Back to the semester and the days are just too full!
BooksSeptember 2011
1. Hidden by Helen Frost (young adult book)
2. The Sherlock files: the missing heir by Tracy Barrett (intermediate book)
3. Mystery by Jonathan Kellerman
4. Les miserables by Victor Hugo
5. Life is but a dream by Cheryl Sherman
6. Commentary on the whole Bible vol 1 of 6 by Matthew Henry
7. Missing on superstition mountain by Elise Broach (intermediate book)
8. Astronaut academy by Dave Roman (graphic novel)
9. Level up by Gene Luen Yang (graphic novel)
10. Killer Pizza, the slice by Greg Taylor
11. The map of me by Tami Lewis Brown (intermediate book)
12. When you reach me by Rebecca Stead (intermediate book)
13. Anya's ghost by Vera Brosgol (graphic novel)
14. My life undecided by Jessica Brody (young adult)
15. Lost, a dog called Bear by Wendy Orr (intermediate book)
16. One summer by David Balducci
17. Crazy love by Leslie Morgan Steiner
18. How to die of embarrassment every day by Ann Hodgman
19. Americus by MK Reed and Jonathan Hill (graphic novel)
20. Bake sale by Sara Varan (graphic novel)
1) Told in two voices, this is the story of a young girl who is abducted when a stranger steals her mother’s car. The abductor does not know she is in the car and she eventually escapes unharmed. The second voice is the daughter of the abductor. Years later, these girls go to the same summer camp and discover the identity of the other. Very well done.
2) A great mystery book for fourth to six graders who may delight in trying to solve the crime. Main characters are a sister and brother who are distantly related to Sherlock Holmes.
3) In stellar Kellerman fashion, there is blood and gore as well as psychological motivation. The clues are there, it’s not his fault that I usually miss them all!
4) It took several weeks to make my way through this tome; however, it was well worth it!! If you have not read this, get it free on your Kindle.
5) Not worth reading, not sure why I pursued to the end.
6) Another one that took months to go through. I am now contemplating, more Matthew Henry or move on to a more modern commentator on one of the books in the New Testament. Any thoughts?
7) Another mystery for young people. Why do authors, even female authors, feel they have to make girls peripheral characters? Can’t girls be brave and rescuers as well as boys?
8) A graphic novel about a young boy who goes away to school in outer space. All the usual school plots: bullies, bad teachers, etc, but this time it takes place in outer space.
9) Another graphic novel, this time for slightly older readers. The story is about a boy whose father wants him to be a doctor, but he wants to play video games. Through many tortuous incidents, the boy ends up being a surgeon and his years of conquering video games give him the skill: eye-hand coordination, that he needs.
10) A somewhat gory fantasy about a trio of high schoolers who fight monsters while working at pizza shop that doubles as a front for a monster fighting cadre of super stars.
11) When Margie’s mother leaves the family, this 12 year old takes matters into her own hands, commandeers her father’s car and tries to find where her mother has gone. Touching story of how Margie always feels inferior to her younger, smarter sister, but still feels the need to take care of her.
12) A Newbury winner, this book uses time travel to tell the story of how Miranda and Sal negotiate their sixth grade year, including how Sal’s life is saved by a classmate who comes back in time to save him from being hit by a bus. Stead uses L’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time as a touchstone book for Miranda and as a way to explain time travel. Definitely one that I would recommend.
13) A graphic novel for high schoolers, this did nothing for me, but might be good for reluctant older readers.
14) Brooklyn is 15 and continuously makes bad decisions, so she decides to put her life decisions onto a blog and let readers vote on her decisions. Cute and perfect for upper middle school or early high school readers.
15) A story of a boy whose parents are divorcing. His dog is important to him so when the dog runs away while moving, it is devastating. The dog is soon found along with a new friend who loves animals. Pretty simplistic and a little didactic.
16) One of my book club members loves David Balducci, so I thought I’d give him a try. Formulaic writing, with no special style. Will not read any more of his numerous books; good, that will save LOTS of time!
17) Joined a second book club and we read this book, then talked for 2 hours about abusive men and abusive relationships. Kind of scary and kind of sad. One thing that came up was: how honest was Steiner in saying at the end that her life is now perfect? We will probably never know!
18)
19) A memoir written about the first 10 years of the author’s life. Supposedly geared toward intermediate kids and she writes directly to the kids at times. I am not sure if this will interest young readers, but I found it hilarious, as she is from the same era as me and many of the memories are all too familiar!
20) A graphic novel within a graphic novel. The story of a high school boy who loves books, has few friends and spends time at the library. The GN within is a fantasy and attempts are made to ban this book from public libraries. Great to share during banned book week (just past).
21) A graphic novel with main characters shaped like cupcakes and eggplant. Cupcake is trying to sell extra baked goods so he can go on a trip to Turkey with Eggplant. Not much plot, but cute pictures and this may entice some young person to read.
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Friday, September 2, 2011
August Books, a long list, but some good ones!
Books-August 2011
1. Lost and found by Carolyn Parkhurst
2. This baby by Kate Banks (picture book)
3. Jack and the beanstalk by Nina Crews (picture book)
4. Fractions=trouble by Claudia Mills (intermediate book)
5. Oh, Harry! By Maxine Kumin (picture book)
6. Prudence wants a pet by Cathleen Daly (picture book)
7. The weird sisters by Eleanor Brown
8. Don't stop now by Julie Halpern (young adult)
9. Otto the boy who loved cars by Kara LaReau (picture book)
10. Melvin and the boy by Lauren Castillo (picture book)
11. Escape by night: a civil war adventure by Laurie Myers (intermediate book)
12. The lost sister by Russel D. McLean
13. The shimmering blond sister by David Handler
14. A cat like that by Wendy Wahman (picture book)
15. The lost and found pony by Tracy Dockray (picture book)
16. Jonathan and the big blue boat by Philip C. Snead (picture book)
17. Bone dog by Eric Rohmann (picture book)
18. Thelonious Mouse by Orel Protopopescu (picture book)
19. Long story short by Siobhan Parkinston (young adult)
20. The glass lake by Maeve Binchy
21. The one and only Stuey Lewis by Jane Schoenberg (intermediate book)
22. Shimmer by Alyson Noel (young adult)
23. The case of the nosy neighbor by Lori Copeland (audio book)
24. These Things Hidden by Heather Gudenkauf
25. The abandoned lighthouse by Albert Lamb (picture book)
1) I have read two of Parkhurst’s novels and loved them both. This is about a reality game on TV and focuses on a mother/daughter who need to communicate. Interesting premise and the games she made up for the game part were creative and seemed like they might actually show up on a TV show.
2) A lovely story of a toddler who is wondering about the new baby in her Mommy’s belly.
3) I liked this retelling of an old story with realistic pictures.
4) I like Claudia Mills’ take on early chapter books. Her characters are likable and nothing too bad ever happens. Would that we all lived in that world!
5) Harry is a helpful horse, cute story, a little contrived.
6) Prudence begs her parents for a pet and finally ends up with a puppy. A good story if parents are planning to get a dog.
7) I loved this book, it is written in first person plural in the voice of three sisters. Their father is a Shakespeare scholar, so there are an abundance of erudite quotes. Fun to read!
8) This is what happens when best friends (boy and girl) go on an adventure right after graduation. Oh, and yes, the girl is secretly in love with the guy. Does he love her, too?
9) Otto turns into a car and has a hard time finding others to play with. Or is it just a dream? Clever story and great illustrations.
10) Melvin is a turtle, brought home by a boy who finally realizes that turtles should live in ponds.
11) I did not like this book, for reasons enumerated in earlier posts.
12) A Scottish private eye; the story of a young girl who was kidnapped, or ran away. The main character finds her and she is safe. Good, but not really my type of story.
13) A great detective story with a white film critic and a black CT state trooper as the main characters. Kind of a fun read.
14) In case you ever wondered, this is what a cat wants in a best friend.
15) Too sophisticated for the intended audience. However, my daughter who is a horse lover would probably love this!
16) Jonathan takes a boat trip around the world, picking up his crew as he goes. Very nice pictures.
17) A little boy misses his dog who died; but he reunites with him on Halloween in the cemetery.
18) Thelonious loves the scat of jazz and makes beautiful music to the great annoyance of the cat.
19) Told from the point of view of Jonathan, this is the story of an abusive family and how the 14 year old boy tries to comfort and protect his 8 year old sister. Sad, but all too often, it may be true.
20) Read for book club, that was unfortunately canceled due to the Hurricane. A convoluted story of passion, love, marriage and betrayal, common elements in Binchy’s books. Well-told!
21) A short chapter book for young readers. Stuey has his share of problems, but they all get solved with relative ease!
22) A weird after-life story that throws in an historical perspective. With all the focus on vampires, ghosts and nether worlds, this book, part of a series will probably be a big hit.
23) I was not crazy about the voice of the person reading this book and the story itself was a little too preachy.
24) I read this in two days and requested another book by this author. Well-written, compelling characters and a little bit of a mystery, but the author gave good hints along the way.
25) A strange tale of a bear, a boy and his puppy spending the night in a non-working lighthouse. When the little boy and his dog climbed into a random row boat and floated out to sea, I thought it was a little over the top.
1. Lost and found by Carolyn Parkhurst
2. This baby by Kate Banks (picture book)
3. Jack and the beanstalk by Nina Crews (picture book)
4. Fractions=trouble by Claudia Mills (intermediate book)
5. Oh, Harry! By Maxine Kumin (picture book)
6. Prudence wants a pet by Cathleen Daly (picture book)
7. The weird sisters by Eleanor Brown
8. Don't stop now by Julie Halpern (young adult)
9. Otto the boy who loved cars by Kara LaReau (picture book)
10. Melvin and the boy by Lauren Castillo (picture book)
11. Escape by night: a civil war adventure by Laurie Myers (intermediate book)
12. The lost sister by Russel D. McLean
13. The shimmering blond sister by David Handler
14. A cat like that by Wendy Wahman (picture book)
15. The lost and found pony by Tracy Dockray (picture book)
16. Jonathan and the big blue boat by Philip C. Snead (picture book)
17. Bone dog by Eric Rohmann (picture book)
18. Thelonious Mouse by Orel Protopopescu (picture book)
19. Long story short by Siobhan Parkinston (young adult)
20. The glass lake by Maeve Binchy
21. The one and only Stuey Lewis by Jane Schoenberg (intermediate book)
22. Shimmer by Alyson Noel (young adult)
23. The case of the nosy neighbor by Lori Copeland (audio book)
24. These Things Hidden by Heather Gudenkauf
25. The abandoned lighthouse by Albert Lamb (picture book)
1) I have read two of Parkhurst’s novels and loved them both. This is about a reality game on TV and focuses on a mother/daughter who need to communicate. Interesting premise and the games she made up for the game part were creative and seemed like they might actually show up on a TV show.
2) A lovely story of a toddler who is wondering about the new baby in her Mommy’s belly.
3) I liked this retelling of an old story with realistic pictures.
4) I like Claudia Mills’ take on early chapter books. Her characters are likable and nothing too bad ever happens. Would that we all lived in that world!
5) Harry is a helpful horse, cute story, a little contrived.
6) Prudence begs her parents for a pet and finally ends up with a puppy. A good story if parents are planning to get a dog.
7) I loved this book, it is written in first person plural in the voice of three sisters. Their father is a Shakespeare scholar, so there are an abundance of erudite quotes. Fun to read!
8) This is what happens when best friends (boy and girl) go on an adventure right after graduation. Oh, and yes, the girl is secretly in love with the guy. Does he love her, too?
9) Otto turns into a car and has a hard time finding others to play with. Or is it just a dream? Clever story and great illustrations.
10) Melvin is a turtle, brought home by a boy who finally realizes that turtles should live in ponds.
11) I did not like this book, for reasons enumerated in earlier posts.
12) A Scottish private eye; the story of a young girl who was kidnapped, or ran away. The main character finds her and she is safe. Good, but not really my type of story.
13) A great detective story with a white film critic and a black CT state trooper as the main characters. Kind of a fun read.
14) In case you ever wondered, this is what a cat wants in a best friend.
15) Too sophisticated for the intended audience. However, my daughter who is a horse lover would probably love this!
16) Jonathan takes a boat trip around the world, picking up his crew as he goes. Very nice pictures.
17) A little boy misses his dog who died; but he reunites with him on Halloween in the cemetery.
18) Thelonious loves the scat of jazz and makes beautiful music to the great annoyance of the cat.
19) Told from the point of view of Jonathan, this is the story of an abusive family and how the 14 year old boy tries to comfort and protect his 8 year old sister. Sad, but all too often, it may be true.
20) Read for book club, that was unfortunately canceled due to the Hurricane. A convoluted story of passion, love, marriage and betrayal, common elements in Binchy’s books. Well-told!
21) A short chapter book for young readers. Stuey has his share of problems, but they all get solved with relative ease!
22) A weird after-life story that throws in an historical perspective. With all the focus on vampires, ghosts and nether worlds, this book, part of a series will probably be a big hit.
23) I was not crazy about the voice of the person reading this book and the story itself was a little too preachy.
24) I read this in two days and requested another book by this author. Well-written, compelling characters and a little bit of a mystery, but the author gave good hints along the way.
25) A strange tale of a bear, a boy and his puppy spending the night in a non-working lighthouse. When the little boy and his dog climbed into a random row boat and floated out to sea, I thought it was a little over the top.
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
More books for kids
How to catch the kid market (or not)
Otto: The Boy Who Loved Cars by Kara LaReau (illustrated by Scott Magoon): Red-headed Otto loves car and has car paraphernalia all over his house and his room, including car pajamas and a bed shaped as a racing car, until one night he turns into a car and he can't eat, he can't get on the school bus and no one will play with him on the playground. When Otto wakes up the next day, he is glad to be a boy and finally willing to think about activities and food that do not involve cars. A simple object lesson with cut cartoony pictures, aimed at little boys who love cars, certainly a place for this one.
The Lost and Found Pony written and illustrated by Tracy Dockray: The pictures in this book are delightful, but the text and concepts are too sophisticated for a young audience. It reminded me of Black Beauty and the author alludes to this book in her end notes. This might be appropriate for older readers who love horses, but it failed to keep my interest.
Fractions=Trouble by Claudia Mills: Written for the second and third grade set who are just beginning to read chapter books, this tells the tale of Wilson who is a great artist, but needs help with fractions. A well-told school tale that should hold the interest of both boys and girls who are ready for early chapter books. Mills knows what she's doing.
Escape by Night: A Civil War Adventure by Laurie Myers: I was disturbed by this book on many levels. The title (A Civil War...) indicates a northern perspective, however it is set in Augusta Georgia. No one in the south would refer to this war as the Civil War; it is still known as the War between the States all over the South. The story itself is well told, has a nice plot and pulls the reader in to the adventure. It also will lead the teacher to talk about issues of slavery and right and wrong. However, the author refers to Woodrow Wilson at the end of the book, and infers that the main character is based on Wilson (who was called Tommy as a young boy). But, if the author did any historical research at all, she would know that Wilson is one of the most bigoted of our US presidents and did more than any other president to undermine the civil rights of African Americans, so it was a little galling to have him depicted in this story as a boy who went out of his way to help free a slave. When we present historical information to children, we need to be sure that we are presenting facts and not glorified myths.
Otto: The Boy Who Loved Cars by Kara LaReau (illustrated by Scott Magoon): Red-headed Otto loves car and has car paraphernalia all over his house and his room, including car pajamas and a bed shaped as a racing car, until one night he turns into a car and he can't eat, he can't get on the school bus and no one will play with him on the playground. When Otto wakes up the next day, he is glad to be a boy and finally willing to think about activities and food that do not involve cars. A simple object lesson with cut cartoony pictures, aimed at little boys who love cars, certainly a place for this one.
The Lost and Found Pony written and illustrated by Tracy Dockray: The pictures in this book are delightful, but the text and concepts are too sophisticated for a young audience. It reminded me of Black Beauty and the author alludes to this book in her end notes. This might be appropriate for older readers who love horses, but it failed to keep my interest.
Fractions=Trouble by Claudia Mills: Written for the second and third grade set who are just beginning to read chapter books, this tells the tale of Wilson who is a great artist, but needs help with fractions. A well-told school tale that should hold the interest of both boys and girls who are ready for early chapter books. Mills knows what she's doing.
Escape by Night: A Civil War Adventure by Laurie Myers: I was disturbed by this book on many levels. The title (A Civil War...) indicates a northern perspective, however it is set in Augusta Georgia. No one in the south would refer to this war as the Civil War; it is still known as the War between the States all over the South. The story itself is well told, has a nice plot and pulls the reader in to the adventure. It also will lead the teacher to talk about issues of slavery and right and wrong. However, the author refers to Woodrow Wilson at the end of the book, and infers that the main character is based on Wilson (who was called Tommy as a young boy). But, if the author did any historical research at all, she would know that Wilson is one of the most bigoted of our US presidents and did more than any other president to undermine the civil rights of African Americans, so it was a little galling to have him depicted in this story as a boy who went out of his way to help free a slave. When we present historical information to children, we need to be sure that we are presenting facts and not glorified myths.
Monday, August 15, 2011
Four New Picture Books
I recently received a box of new books for the fall list. Are these books the ones that will become classics? Probably not, but here are four of the picture books that caught my eye:
This Baby by Kate Banks: a great book for parents to share with young children when expecting a new baby. Written as a poem, it moves poetically through the wondering of what the new baby will be like. Lots of soft pictures of the mother's belly and toddlers wondering what is to be.
Jack and the beanstalk by Nina Crews: a new version of an old tale told with words and photographs, set in contemporary times. A good book to share with young children as a way to make comparisons.
Prudence wants a pet by Cathleen Daly: a predictable story about Prudence who begs and begs for a pet, trying out a branch and a stick before her parents finally give in and get her a kitten. Fun to share, not extremely memorable.
Oh, Harry! by Maxine Kumin, Kumin is a renowned American poet and this tale about a horse with a calming attitude is written in verse, albeit sometimes a little clunky. Harry can not only calm other horses, but has the ability to calm a mischievous 6 year old as well. Sweet story, pictures were stylized, not exactly eye-catching or appealing.
Next: some new fiction for young adults. Too many books!
This Baby by Kate Banks: a great book for parents to share with young children when expecting a new baby. Written as a poem, it moves poetically through the wondering of what the new baby will be like. Lots of soft pictures of the mother's belly and toddlers wondering what is to be.
Jack and the beanstalk by Nina Crews: a new version of an old tale told with words and photographs, set in contemporary times. A good book to share with young children as a way to make comparisons.
Prudence wants a pet by Cathleen Daly: a predictable story about Prudence who begs and begs for a pet, trying out a branch and a stick before her parents finally give in and get her a kitten. Fun to share, not extremely memorable.
Oh, Harry! by Maxine Kumin, Kumin is a renowned American poet and this tale about a horse with a calming attitude is written in verse, albeit sometimes a little clunky. Harry can not only calm other horses, but has the ability to calm a mischievous 6 year old as well. Sweet story, pictures were stylized, not exactly eye-catching or appealing.
Next: some new fiction for young adults. Too many books!
Thursday, August 11, 2011
July book list (sorry it is late!)
1. The forgotten garden by Kate Morgan
2. June Bug by Chris Fabry
3. Devil bones by Kathy Reichs (audio book)
4. No good deeds by Laura Lippman (audio book)
5. Kabul beauty school by Deborah Rodriquez
6. Soccer world Spain by Ethan Zohn and David Rosenberg (SLJ review)
7. Being me by Wendy L. Moss (SLJ review)
8. Listening is an act of love by Dave Isay
9. Middlemarch by George Elliot
10. South of superior by Ellen Airgood
11. Live to tell by Wendy Corsi Staub
12. A family affair by Mary Campisi
1. This was recommended to me by two of my sisters. It was a good read, if a little long. I liked the characters and the way the story played out. The author kept me guessing as to what would happen.
2. Written by a Christian author who wrote part of the Left Behind series for kids, I thought it would be a little preachy, but it was not. He said at the end that he was trying to retell the story of Les Miserables, so I had to download Les Mis on my Kindle, interesting connection.
3. About a third of the way through this book, I realized that I had read the book a few years ago. No matter, Kathy Reichs is a good story teller, even the second time around.
4. I had not read this one before, but I have read a few of Lippman’s books about Tess Monaghan, a Baltimore private detective. It made me think I should read more of these, fun to read about places in B’More that I now know and love!
5. We read this book for book club. I enjoyed Rodriguez’ style, but wondered as I read it about the veracity of her claims as well as the safety of some of the women since she was telling secrets about women still living in Afghanistan. It seems that NPR has done an expose of her and it seems that her memoir may not be all memoir. Perhaps it was too good to be true?
6. Reviewed for SLJ: good book, but where are the girls? Come on, Zohn, it can’t be that hard to give a few facts about women playing soccer in Spain!
7. A self-help books for tweens. Too bad we live in a society where they need this kind of help!
8. One of my faves this month. I would read this book again, or more from this author. So many truly wonderful stories. If you see this, you must read it!!
9. This has four good love stories, but lots of extraneous information. I felt like I slogged through it, bit by bit!
10. Right before vacation, I heard of this book on NPR. I downloaded it to Kindle and Chris and I both read it while we were in HI. It was a lovely story and very well told. I would look for more by this new author.
11. An old friend recommended this author and I was able to get this book on the Kindle. Suspenseful, good character building and tiny bit of romance. Would read her again.
12. 99 cents from Amazon on the Kindle. I just read this and could hardly remember it. Romance, but not well written. Don’t bother!
2. June Bug by Chris Fabry
3. Devil bones by Kathy Reichs (audio book)
4. No good deeds by Laura Lippman (audio book)
5. Kabul beauty school by Deborah Rodriquez
6. Soccer world Spain by Ethan Zohn and David Rosenberg (SLJ review)
7. Being me by Wendy L. Moss (SLJ review)
8. Listening is an act of love by Dave Isay
9. Middlemarch by George Elliot
10. South of superior by Ellen Airgood
11. Live to tell by Wendy Corsi Staub
12. A family affair by Mary Campisi
1. This was recommended to me by two of my sisters. It was a good read, if a little long. I liked the characters and the way the story played out. The author kept me guessing as to what would happen.
2. Written by a Christian author who wrote part of the Left Behind series for kids, I thought it would be a little preachy, but it was not. He said at the end that he was trying to retell the story of Les Miserables, so I had to download Les Mis on my Kindle, interesting connection.
3. About a third of the way through this book, I realized that I had read the book a few years ago. No matter, Kathy Reichs is a good story teller, even the second time around.
4. I had not read this one before, but I have read a few of Lippman’s books about Tess Monaghan, a Baltimore private detective. It made me think I should read more of these, fun to read about places in B’More that I now know and love!
5. We read this book for book club. I enjoyed Rodriguez’ style, but wondered as I read it about the veracity of her claims as well as the safety of some of the women since she was telling secrets about women still living in Afghanistan. It seems that NPR has done an expose of her and it seems that her memoir may not be all memoir. Perhaps it was too good to be true?
6. Reviewed for SLJ: good book, but where are the girls? Come on, Zohn, it can’t be that hard to give a few facts about women playing soccer in Spain!
7. A self-help books for tweens. Too bad we live in a society where they need this kind of help!
8. One of my faves this month. I would read this book again, or more from this author. So many truly wonderful stories. If you see this, you must read it!!
9. This has four good love stories, but lots of extraneous information. I felt like I slogged through it, bit by bit!
10. Right before vacation, I heard of this book on NPR. I downloaded it to Kindle and Chris and I both read it while we were in HI. It was a lovely story and very well told. I would look for more by this new author.
11. An old friend recommended this author and I was able to get this book on the Kindle. Suspenseful, good character building and tiny bit of romance. Would read her again.
12. 99 cents from Amazon on the Kindle. I just read this and could hardly remember it. Romance, but not well written. Don’t bother!
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Listening is an act of love
I just finished reading Dave Isay's book of essays taken from the thousands of hours of recordings at the story corps project. The stories are funny and full of pathos, made me laugh and cry and feel great empathy for the people telling their stories. If you read one book this summer, let this be it! I had this for weeks from the library, wasn't sure if I would read it and almost took it back, then I finally opened it yesterday and couldn't put it down! So glad I didn't let this slip through my fingers!
Monday, July 4, 2011
June reading
Books- June 2011
1. Christmas at the mysterious bookshop edited by Otto Penzler
2. Simply from scratch by Alicia Bessette
3. Murder on the rocks by Karen MacInerney
4. Silver Sparrow by Tayari Jones
5. Then by Morris Gleitzman (young adult)
6. The widow's war by Sally Gunning
7. Nineteen minutes by Jodi Piccoult (audio book)
8. Empire of the summer moon: Quanah Parkee and the rise and fall of the Comanches the most powerful Indian tribe in American history by S. C. Gwynne
9. Dixie divas by Virginia Brown
10. Life is so good by George Dawson and Richard Glaubman
11. Crunch time by Diane Mott Davidson
12. Daniel Derondq by George Elliot
1. Short stories by mystery writers that were commissioned by Otto Penzler one each year for several years at Christmastime. Each story is set all or in part at the mysterious book store.
2. A love story and a story of grief, explores issues of broken families and friends that become our family, I was comforted by this book.
3. Formulaic mystery set at a bed and breakfast on an island in Maine, fun to read, nothing special!
4. A complicated story of a man who has two families, each including a daughter of roughly the same age, one daughter knows about the other and one does not, told in the voices of each daughter. Very well done.
5. Very well done, story of Jewish children who are running from the Nazis. Heartbreaking, and hard to read.
6. A kindle special recommended by two friends, Libby is at the mercy of her parsimonious son-in-law when he husband drowns. She finds a way to make the law work in her favor so she can stay in her house.
7. Another timely novel by Piccoult, well-written, bur some of the plot elements, especially the end were a little shaky, much easier to listen to her books than to read them.
8. Quanah Parker's mother was a white woman who was captured by the Comanches when she was young and then married a chief, and had three children, Quanah became the first and only chief of the Comanche tribe. Great read about the end of the Comanche nation.
9. Another formulaic mystery with a little bit of romance thrown in. I would not read another one by this author.
10. This book blew me away. If you read one book from this list, this is the one to choose. Thanks to my friend Kathy for recommending this.
11. I love Davidson's stories of Goldy the caterer who is always finding dead bodies and getting into trouble. But, it does seem that maybe Goldy could leaner a lesson or two and not meddle quite so much!
12. Very long and written with an old world style that makes it hard to read, but filled with pithy statements about life, particularly women's place in the world. Worth the time and effort.
1. Christmas at the mysterious bookshop edited by Otto Penzler
2. Simply from scratch by Alicia Bessette
3. Murder on the rocks by Karen MacInerney
4. Silver Sparrow by Tayari Jones
5. Then by Morris Gleitzman (young adult)
6. The widow's war by Sally Gunning
7. Nineteen minutes by Jodi Piccoult (audio book)
8. Empire of the summer moon: Quanah Parkee and the rise and fall of the Comanches the most powerful Indian tribe in American history by S. C. Gwynne
9. Dixie divas by Virginia Brown
10. Life is so good by George Dawson and Richard Glaubman
11. Crunch time by Diane Mott Davidson
12. Daniel Derondq by George Elliot
1. Short stories by mystery writers that were commissioned by Otto Penzler one each year for several years at Christmastime. Each story is set all or in part at the mysterious book store.
2. A love story and a story of grief, explores issues of broken families and friends that become our family, I was comforted by this book.
3. Formulaic mystery set at a bed and breakfast on an island in Maine, fun to read, nothing special!
4. A complicated story of a man who has two families, each including a daughter of roughly the same age, one daughter knows about the other and one does not, told in the voices of each daughter. Very well done.
5. Very well done, story of Jewish children who are running from the Nazis. Heartbreaking, and hard to read.
6. A kindle special recommended by two friends, Libby is at the mercy of her parsimonious son-in-law when he husband drowns. She finds a way to make the law work in her favor so she can stay in her house.
7. Another timely novel by Piccoult, well-written, bur some of the plot elements, especially the end were a little shaky, much easier to listen to her books than to read them.
8. Quanah Parker's mother was a white woman who was captured by the Comanches when she was young and then married a chief, and had three children, Quanah became the first and only chief of the Comanche tribe. Great read about the end of the Comanche nation.
9. Another formulaic mystery with a little bit of romance thrown in. I would not read another one by this author.
10. This book blew me away. If you read one book from this list, this is the one to choose. Thanks to my friend Kathy for recommending this.
11. I love Davidson's stories of Goldy the caterer who is always finding dead bodies and getting into trouble. But, it does seem that maybe Goldy could leaner a lesson or two and not meddle quite so much!
12. Very long and written with an old world style that makes it hard to read, but filled with pithy statements about life, particularly women's place in the world. Worth the time and effort.
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