The Secret, Book & Scone Society by Ellery Adams: Book Review
I’m classifying this as a cozy mystery simply because the murder and investigation fit that genre. But it’s way darker than I expected. The four main characters have some very troubling secrets in their pasts. It was nice to watch them share their stories and start to heal together though. I didn’t […]
Even As We Breathe by Annette Saunooke Clapsaddle: Book Review
3.5 Stars. Even As We Breathe caught my eye because it’s set in my part of the world (Asheville, NC) and it’s written by a Cherokee woman. I wanted to add some diversity to my Southern Lit challenge so I picked it up. This was a beautifully-written coming-of-age story. Cowney (rhymes with county) is struggling to find his place in the […]
First Frost by Sarah Addison Allen: Book Review
3.5 Stars. It’s been so long since I read Garden Spells that I felt just a bit lost as I started this. The outlines settled in quickly for me though. My favorite chapters were the ones about Bay. That nameless longing for something, knowing it’s out there, just not being able to reach it–I think we all felt something like this as teenager […]
All Over but the Shoutin’ by Rick Bragg: Book Review
4.5 Stars. Mostly what I took away from this book is humor and grace. Somehow Rick Bragg’s first memoir is the last one I’ve read and I have literally laughed ’til I cried in every one. I’ve read my family members bits here and there and retold stories I remember and made everyone listening to me laugh too. Maybe they’re just […]
I Am One of You Forever by Fred Chappell: Book Review
Jess, his mom, dad, grandmother and farmhand/adoptive brother, Johnson, live a quiet life in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. They farm, visit with relatives, play some baseball, and get up to a whole lot of no good, as my grandmother would say. Jess’s dad is a mischief-maker. He just can’t help it. Johnson […]
Season of the Dragonflies by Sarah Creech: Book Review
The Lenore women grow a rare flower that is the secret ingredient in their powerful perfume. Each generation, only a few women are chosen to wear their coveted scent. These women inevitably rise to the top of their professions and become the envy of the world. But Willow, Mya, and Lucia Lenore, the current generation, […]
Salt by Isabel Zuber: Book Review
Title: SaltAuthor: Isabel ZuberGenres: Historical Fiction, Southern LiteratureFormat: Paperback Synopsis: John Bayley meets Anna Stockton when she’s in her late teens. He decides right away that he’s going to marry her. She looks to be a strong woman who knows how to work. After burying two wives, that combination appeals to John. The rest of […]
Oral History by Lee Smith: Book Review
The Cantrell family has lived in Hoot Owl Holler in the mountains of Virginia for as long as anyone can remember. They love hard, play hard, and suffer deeply. There doesn’t seem to be any in-between for them. Oral History follows…let’s call it three…generations of Cantrells, starting with handsome Almarine and his run-in with a […]
The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls: Book Review
This is the story of Jeannette Walls’s childhood growing up with a father who adored his children but who also neglected them shamefully and became downright scary when he drank. Her mother was a carefree spirit who couldn’t be bothered to take care of her children. She thought it was good for them to learn […]
Moon Women by Pamela Duncan: Book Review
4 Stars. I loved this book. I met author Pamela Duncan at a book festival a few years ago and just chattered away at her. I never do that. I’m usually all tongue-tied at author signings and rarely get out more than “Please” and “Thank you.” But it just felt like she was one of my kind of people and so I rattled on while she […]
The Prince of Frogtown by Rick Bragg: Book Review
4 Stars. Having now read one of Bragg’s books and listened to another, I am torn about the best medium. I’m left thinking that the best thing for everyone would be if his publishers just gave us one of those readalong books I remember from when I was little. “You’ll know it’s time to turn the page when you hear the chime ring like this […]