The Invention of Wings by Sue Monk Kidd - the author describes this book as a thickly imagined story inspired by the life of the real protagonist. Sarah Grimke is 11 when she is given a slave for her birthday. The story follows the lives of Sarah and Handful, her slave, as they strain against the expectations of society. It won't spoil the story to say that Sarah and her sister became the first women to speak out for abolition and women's rights.
4 stars
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Tag Man by Archer Mayor - tag man likes to break into wealthy people's homes, look around, and eat some gourmet food before leaving a note that says tag on it. Then he discovers something that puts him in danger. I enjoyed this book, maybe because the regular characters were more in the background and the story was also told from tag man's viewpoint.
3 stars
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Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson - poor Major Pettigrew, England's standards are changing all around him and his only child seems to be interested only in making money. Then he becomes friends with Mrs. Ali from the village store. Loved the very dry humor of Major Pettigrew.
3 stars
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Paradise City by Archer Mayor - a rather convoluted story involving stolen jewelry, illegal aliens used as slave labor and three different police agencies. Also told from many different viewpoints.
3 stars
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These is My Words by Nancy E. Turner - a fictionalized account of the author's great-grandmother in the years 1881-1901. Quite a spunky woman.
4 stars
Saturday, January 25, 2014
Sunday, January 19, 2014
Jan 12-18, 2014
Stella Bain by Anita Shreve - a woman comes to in a military hospital during WWI not knowing who she is. She journeys to England and is taken in by a doctor and his wife. Not so much a story of the war as it is a story of a woman finding herself.
4 stars
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After Dark by Wilkie Collins - published in 1856, this is a collection of six short stories woven together by "Leah's Diary". Evidently a story couldn't just be told back then without preface upon preface, it took forever to get to the first story. Too many words.
2 stars
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Paw Prints at Owl Cottage by Denis O'Connor - I like the stories the author tells of his cats, I didn't always like the way he told them. Also, as a psychologist, he seemed to want to treat his cats as people in almost demanding their affection. I am ambivalent.
3 stars
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Empty Mansions: The Mysterious Life of Huguette Clark and the Spending of a Great American Fortune by Bill Dedman - Huguette was the daughter of W.A. Clark, a man who made millions in the copper industry. In 2009, it was discovered that she owned 3 mansions but was living in a hospital and had been for 20 years. Could have been a very dry book but was not.
3 stars
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Twenty-eight and a Half Wishes by Denise Grover Swank - Rose Gardner is 24 and has been belittled and mistreated by her mother all her life. She's also psychic and has visions of usually mundane things which she then blurts out. So most of her town thinks she's weird. But when her mother is killed and she is a suspect she finally begins to stand up for herself. I saw this series mentioned on another site and the first book was free on Kindle so then I was hooked.
3 stars
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Twenty-nine and a Half Reasons
Thirty and a Half Excuses
Falling to Pieces
Thirty-one and a Half Regrets all by Denise Grover Swank - the continuation of Rose Gardner's changing life. She's still learning about herself and still getting caught up in murder and mayhem. These are part romance novels and there are sex scenes that get more graphic with each book. While I've enjoyed these books, I don't think I'll read the new one coming out later this year. Evolving into a storyline that aggravates me and too graphic.
3 stars for all except Falling to Pieces, 2 stars. It was one of those .5 books that are supposed to bridge the gap between two "real"books and it was mostly a retelling of the previous book.
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Saints of the Shadow Bible - Rebus is back and the Complaints Dept of the police force is re-opening a 30 years old case he and old workmates were involved with. This tangles with a current case and there are lots of turns and twists and wondering who can be trusted. Figured it out at the same time as Rebus so that left me feeling quite smart.
4 stars
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Dragons of the Autumn Twilight by Margaret Weis - actually, this was a graphic novel based on the book, my library doesn't have a copy of the book. Too many characters for a graphic novel where the art doesn't help you distinguish them.
2 stars
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Blue Hour by T. Jefferson Parker - a retired detective undergoing cancer treatment is called back to help an unseasoned detective track down a serial killer. Quite exciting at the end.
3 stars
4 stars
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
After Dark by Wilkie Collins - published in 1856, this is a collection of six short stories woven together by "Leah's Diary". Evidently a story couldn't just be told back then without preface upon preface, it took forever to get to the first story. Too many words.
2 stars
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Paw Prints at Owl Cottage by Denis O'Connor - I like the stories the author tells of his cats, I didn't always like the way he told them. Also, as a psychologist, he seemed to want to treat his cats as people in almost demanding their affection. I am ambivalent.
3 stars
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Empty Mansions: The Mysterious Life of Huguette Clark and the Spending of a Great American Fortune by Bill Dedman - Huguette was the daughter of W.A. Clark, a man who made millions in the copper industry. In 2009, it was discovered that she owned 3 mansions but was living in a hospital and had been for 20 years. Could have been a very dry book but was not.
3 stars
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Twenty-eight and a Half Wishes by Denise Grover Swank - Rose Gardner is 24 and has been belittled and mistreated by her mother all her life. She's also psychic and has visions of usually mundane things which she then blurts out. So most of her town thinks she's weird. But when her mother is killed and she is a suspect she finally begins to stand up for herself. I saw this series mentioned on another site and the first book was free on Kindle so then I was hooked.
3 stars
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Twenty-nine and a Half Reasons
Thirty and a Half Excuses
Falling to Pieces
Thirty-one and a Half Regrets all by Denise Grover Swank - the continuation of Rose Gardner's changing life. She's still learning about herself and still getting caught up in murder and mayhem. These are part romance novels and there are sex scenes that get more graphic with each book. While I've enjoyed these books, I don't think I'll read the new one coming out later this year. Evolving into a storyline that aggravates me and too graphic.
3 stars for all except Falling to Pieces, 2 stars. It was one of those .5 books that are supposed to bridge the gap between two "real"books and it was mostly a retelling of the previous book.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Saints of the Shadow Bible - Rebus is back and the Complaints Dept of the police force is re-opening a 30 years old case he and old workmates were involved with. This tangles with a current case and there are lots of turns and twists and wondering who can be trusted. Figured it out at the same time as Rebus so that left me feeling quite smart.
4 stars
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dragons of the Autumn Twilight by Margaret Weis - actually, this was a graphic novel based on the book, my library doesn't have a copy of the book. Too many characters for a graphic novel where the art doesn't help you distinguish them.
2 stars
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Blue Hour by T. Jefferson Parker - a retired detective undergoing cancer treatment is called back to help an unseasoned detective track down a serial killer. Quite exciting at the end.
3 stars
Sunday, January 12, 2014
Jan 5 - 11, 2014
The Burglar Who Counted the Spoons by Lawrence Block - the author thought he was retired and then discovered he had one more Bernie Rhodenbarr in him. Bernie is a bookseller/thief but his stories aren't so much about the thefts as all the things that happen before and after. Lots of witty talk and quite a bit of innuendo. I had a lot of fun reading this.
4 stars
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Bookman's Tale by Charlie Lovett - a recently widowed antiquarian bookseller finds a watercolor of a woman looking just like his wife. This leads to a possible important find in Shakespeare literature. A few sex scenes, not gratuitous.
4 stars
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The Spark: A Mother's Story of Nurturing Genius by Kristine Barnett - a true story of a boy who has an IQ higher than Einstein's. But his genius was almost lost when he was diagnosed as autistic and his parents were told he would never read.
4 stars
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Beyond Belief: My Secret Life Inside Scientology and My Harrowing Escape by Jenna Miscavige Hill - the author's parents were part of Sea Org, the part that runs Scientology, and they practically abandoned her for the cause. Her uncle is the man who runs everything now. Although the story itself was interesting the writing was not. Lots of acronyms, almost as bad as reading something military. It's hard to believe she had a co-writer, the book was very poorly edited. I have to say I skimmed the middle parts.
2 stars
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Beasts and Super-Beasts by Saki - first published in 1914 by H.H. Munro using his pen name of Saki. A collection of very short stories poking fun at British society of the time. Some of them don't age well and are certainly not politically correct. I especially enjoyed the stories of people refusing to be bored by tellers of tall tales by telling even more tall tales themselves.
3 stars
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Seven Keys to Baldpate by Earl Derr Biggers - written in 1913, it's a story of lies, corruption and romance, all told in a light-hearted style with lots of clever lines. My idea of what was going on kept changing as more people kept coming to Baldpate Inn, which is closed for the winter.
4 stars
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The Automobile Girls in the Berkshires by Laura Dent Crane - written in 1910. I couldn't decide if this was supposed to be written for adults or children, it was very Nancy Drewish.
1 star
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Bat by Jo Nesbo - the first book in the Harry Hole series finally published in the US. It gives some background we've been missing because the books are published out of order. Harry is in Australia helping find a serial killer. Not quite as good as the brooding set in Norway books.
3 stars
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Fairyland: A Memoir of My Father by Alysia Abbott - Alysia's mother was killed in a car accident when she was 2 and she and her gay father move to San Francisco. She recounts what it was like growing up there in the 70's and 80's.
3 stars
4 stars
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Bookman's Tale by Charlie Lovett - a recently widowed antiquarian bookseller finds a watercolor of a woman looking just like his wife. This leads to a possible important find in Shakespeare literature. A few sex scenes, not gratuitous.
4 stars
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Spark: A Mother's Story of Nurturing Genius by Kristine Barnett - a true story of a boy who has an IQ higher than Einstein's. But his genius was almost lost when he was diagnosed as autistic and his parents were told he would never read.
4 stars
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Beyond Belief: My Secret Life Inside Scientology and My Harrowing Escape by Jenna Miscavige Hill - the author's parents were part of Sea Org, the part that runs Scientology, and they practically abandoned her for the cause. Her uncle is the man who runs everything now. Although the story itself was interesting the writing was not. Lots of acronyms, almost as bad as reading something military. It's hard to believe she had a co-writer, the book was very poorly edited. I have to say I skimmed the middle parts.
2 stars
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Beasts and Super-Beasts by Saki - first published in 1914 by H.H. Munro using his pen name of Saki. A collection of very short stories poking fun at British society of the time. Some of them don't age well and are certainly not politically correct. I especially enjoyed the stories of people refusing to be bored by tellers of tall tales by telling even more tall tales themselves.
3 stars
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Seven Keys to Baldpate by Earl Derr Biggers - written in 1913, it's a story of lies, corruption and romance, all told in a light-hearted style with lots of clever lines. My idea of what was going on kept changing as more people kept coming to Baldpate Inn, which is closed for the winter.
4 stars
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Automobile Girls in the Berkshires by Laura Dent Crane - written in 1910. I couldn't decide if this was supposed to be written for adults or children, it was very Nancy Drewish.
1 star
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Bat by Jo Nesbo - the first book in the Harry Hole series finally published in the US. It gives some background we've been missing because the books are published out of order. Harry is in Australia helping find a serial killer. Not quite as good as the brooding set in Norway books.
3 stars
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fairyland: A Memoir of My Father by Alysia Abbott - Alysia's mother was killed in a car accident when she was 2 and she and her gay father move to San Francisco. She recounts what it was like growing up there in the 70's and 80's.
3 stars
Saturday, January 4, 2014
Dec 29, 2013 - Jan 4, 2014
The Return of the King by J.R.R. Tolkien - good prevails and the king returns.
4 stars
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Alex by Pierre Lemaitre - my first book of 2014 and it was a doozy. The author earned the CWA International Dagger award for this book and it's his first translated into English. A woman is kidnapped and held prisoner with the stated intent of being watched until she dies. The story alternates between her viewpoint and that of the policeman trying to find her. Lots of plot twists. Pretty gritty and violent, I think most of my readers would find it too much. There is a previous novel featuring the same policeman and it would have been nice to read it first for some important context. I hope more of his novels will be published here.
5 stars
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Thunder Keeper by Margaret Coel - this is part of a series I haven't read in quite awhile so I'm really behind. I have a sneaking suspicion I may have read this before. Indian reservation priest John O'Malley is told in confession that a suicide was murder and tries to find more evidence.
2 stars
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Red Herring by Archer Mayor - a Joe Gunther mystery, I'm catching up and am at least in this decade now. Three unrelated deaths may actually be the work of a serial killer. A little too much science/technical explanation and Willy Kunckle is still a jerk.
3 stars
4 stars
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Alex by Pierre Lemaitre - my first book of 2014 and it was a doozy. The author earned the CWA International Dagger award for this book and it's his first translated into English. A woman is kidnapped and held prisoner with the stated intent of being watched until she dies. The story alternates between her viewpoint and that of the policeman trying to find her. Lots of plot twists. Pretty gritty and violent, I think most of my readers would find it too much. There is a previous novel featuring the same policeman and it would have been nice to read it first for some important context. I hope more of his novels will be published here.
5 stars
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Thunder Keeper by Margaret Coel - this is part of a series I haven't read in quite awhile so I'm really behind. I have a sneaking suspicion I may have read this before. Indian reservation priest John O'Malley is told in confession that a suicide was murder and tries to find more evidence.
2 stars
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Red Herring by Archer Mayor - a Joe Gunther mystery, I'm catching up and am at least in this decade now. Three unrelated deaths may actually be the work of a serial killer. A little too much science/technical explanation and Willy Kunckle is still a jerk.
3 stars
Thursday, January 2, 2014
The 5 star books from 2013
First, a reminder of how a book gets a 5 star rating:
The Art Forger by B A Shapiro - is a Degas a forgery or the real thing? There are two stories in this book - the main character is making a copy of a Degas that is supposed to be an original and at the same time she is becoming convinced that the original is a forgery.
The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce - recently retired Harold receives a letter from an old friend and on his way to post a reply he begins a walk to see her almost by mistake. Quite a different book and I really enjoyed it.
The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman - a young couple living on an island tending a lighthouse in the 1920's find a baby in a lifeboat along with her dead father. Decisions are made which affect many people.
Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan - takes place in the near future. A young man takes a job in a bookstore and discovers all is not as it seems. He tries to figure out what's going on and stumbles across a mysterious group searching for eternal life. Really much lighter than it sounds and really hard to explain.
With or Without You by Domenica Ruta- a memoir of a very badly raised woman and she is still struggling with it. Pretty raw and with language. I found it fascinating.
Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend by Matthew Dicks - Budo is the imaginary friend of Max, an autistic boy. When Max is in danger, Budo must rescue him in spite of the fact no one can see or hear him. I loved this book. The observations Budo makes about Max's parents and the other adults around them are quite interesting. My heart was really pounding near the end. Just the kind of quirky and different book I like.
The World's Strongest Librarian: A Memoir of Tourette's, Faith, Strength, and the Power of Family by Josh Hanagarne - absolutely loved this book. He makes his parents sound wonderful, which is so refreshing. I felt he was quite honest about his struggles.
The Universe Versus Alex Woods by Gavin Extence - A 10 yo boy is hit in the head by a meteorite. He's already "different" and this makes him more so. He meets an elderly man and life takes an even more interesting turn. I love the way this author writes. I found it funny, sad and interesting even though I don't agree with his thoughts on God and life after death.
The Light in the Ruins by Chris Bohjalian - I loved the way this book flowed. It alternates between 1943 and 1955 in Italy. During the war an Italian family loses their villa and several members of their family. And in 1955 someone starts killing the remaining members. It's not really a mystery in the typical sense, but the story of the family and then one of the police officers in particular. Really had me going and I had no idea who the killer was. Totally surprised.
The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker - my library labeled this as historical but it should be labeled fantasy history. A Golem is made for a man on his way to America, but he dies on the journey and she is left masterless. A Jinni is accidentally released from his bottle in a small tin smith's shop in New York in 1898. Somehow the two meet and touch several lives. I really found myself immersed.
The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt - a 13 year old boy is left parentless when his mother is killed in an explosion at a museum. He's shunted from family to family and basically left to raise himself. A 771 page book that just kept me reading and reading.
The Other Typist by Suzanne Rindell - I was drawn into this book on the very first page and finished it in one sitting. The story of a mousy police typist during the 1920's. She's gradually drawn into a different world by one of the other typists. The ending was a shock, I still don't know what to think.
- It has to interest me from the first page.
- If it's a mystery, I can't guess the bad guy.
- I don't read the end to see if I should keep reading.
- I have to enjoy the way the book is written.
- Nothing irritates me. And believe me, after 57 years of reading I'm easily irritated.
The Art Forger by B A Shapiro - is a Degas a forgery or the real thing? There are two stories in this book - the main character is making a copy of a Degas that is supposed to be an original and at the same time she is becoming convinced that the original is a forgery.
The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce - recently retired Harold receives a letter from an old friend and on his way to post a reply he begins a walk to see her almost by mistake. Quite a different book and I really enjoyed it.
The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman - a young couple living on an island tending a lighthouse in the 1920's find a baby in a lifeboat along with her dead father. Decisions are made which affect many people.
Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan - takes place in the near future. A young man takes a job in a bookstore and discovers all is not as it seems. He tries to figure out what's going on and stumbles across a mysterious group searching for eternal life. Really much lighter than it sounds and really hard to explain.
With or Without You by Domenica Ruta- a memoir of a very badly raised woman and she is still struggling with it. Pretty raw and with language. I found it fascinating.
Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend by Matthew Dicks - Budo is the imaginary friend of Max, an autistic boy. When Max is in danger, Budo must rescue him in spite of the fact no one can see or hear him. I loved this book. The observations Budo makes about Max's parents and the other adults around them are quite interesting. My heart was really pounding near the end. Just the kind of quirky and different book I like.
The World's Strongest Librarian: A Memoir of Tourette's, Faith, Strength, and the Power of Family by Josh Hanagarne - absolutely loved this book. He makes his parents sound wonderful, which is so refreshing. I felt he was quite honest about his struggles.
The Universe Versus Alex Woods by Gavin Extence - A 10 yo boy is hit in the head by a meteorite. He's already "different" and this makes him more so. He meets an elderly man and life takes an even more interesting turn. I love the way this author writes. I found it funny, sad and interesting even though I don't agree with his thoughts on God and life after death.
The Light in the Ruins by Chris Bohjalian - I loved the way this book flowed. It alternates between 1943 and 1955 in Italy. During the war an Italian family loses their villa and several members of their family. And in 1955 someone starts killing the remaining members. It's not really a mystery in the typical sense, but the story of the family and then one of the police officers in particular. Really had me going and I had no idea who the killer was. Totally surprised.
The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker - my library labeled this as historical but it should be labeled fantasy history. A Golem is made for a man on his way to America, but he dies on the journey and she is left masterless. A Jinni is accidentally released from his bottle in a small tin smith's shop in New York in 1898. Somehow the two meet and touch several lives. I really found myself immersed.
The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt - a 13 year old boy is left parentless when his mother is killed in an explosion at a museum. He's shunted from family to family and basically left to raise himself. A 771 page book that just kept me reading and reading.
The Other Typist by Suzanne Rindell - I was drawn into this book on the very first page and finished it in one sitting. The story of a mousy police typist during the 1920's. She's gradually drawn into a different world by one of the other typists. The ending was a shock, I still don't know what to think.
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