5 Stars. So, this is not the cleanest edit and it’s not Literature, but I grinned from ear-to-ear the entire time I was reading. I couldn’t wait to see how it ended but at the same time, I didn’t want it to end. It’s an adorable retelling of Cinderella set in the geeky fandom world, and I loved every minute of it […]
Shotgun Lovesongs by Nickolas Butler: Book Review
4.5 Stars. I’m sitting here thinking about what it was, exactly, that I liked about this book. I can’t really say that it was about much of anything. It’s just a slice of everyday life. But I think what stands out to me most is that this is a book about male friendship. Not “good buddies” or even battle-forged bonds. These guys just like […]
Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne: Book Review
3 Stars. Eh. Axel was a whiny wimp who complained endlessly about having to go on the trip. The minute his uncle, Professor Liedenbrock, started to get the least bit angry with him over his dithering, Axel would cave and blithely go along with whatever ridiculous plan the professor has in mind. Axel was generally the one with […]
The Discreet Hero by Mario Vargas Llosa: Book Review
3 Stars. I’m about to write a huge sweeping statement that I really shouldn’t but here goes. I just don’t do well with South American authors. That’s not fair. I’ve only read three or four, I think. But I never have a clue what’s actually going on. What’s real, what’s not, what the “not real” things are supposed to […]
The Tea Rose by Jennifer Donnelly: Book Review
3 Stars. I’m so torn. I adore A Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly. Like, top-five-books-ever adore it. So I know she can write. But this is her debut novel and it shows. It also got laughably melodramatic. There’s a better word to describe this book but it’s escaping me. Dickensian? Maybe. Fiona’s tragedies just pile one on […]
The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker: Book Review
4 Stars. As I write this, it’s been a year and a half since I listened to The Golem and the Jinni and I still think about how good it was. Then I feel a pang of guilt that I haven’t reviewed it and spread the love. So here we go. Details have faded a bit but I do remember that I loved innocent Chava and jaded Ahmad. Chava was […]
Bel Canto by Ann Patchett: Book Review
4 Stars. I liked this a lot more than I expected to. That description makes the book sound like something it isn’t. It isn’t about the politics of the country or anything like that; it’s about the people and the possibilities within them. There isn’t much action but there is a lot of character development and relationship […]
The Zig Zag Girl by Elly Griffiths: Book Review
3.5 Stars. I’ve never read any of Elly Griffiths’ other mysteries but this one was good. I had a vague guess as to “whodunnit” but I didn’t really know why or how. There was a more personal twist at the end that did surprise me quite a bit. I like surprises. But somehow the whole novel felt a bit gray. DI Stephens seems to have […]
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 […]
The Penderwicks in Spring by Jeanne Birdsall: Book Review
4 Stars. This book got a little dark! I was surprised! The Penderwicks have always had their childhood troubles but as an adult listening, they don’t seem insurmountable to me. My heart ached for Batty now. Poor thing. She’s always been the baby of the family, so I guess I’m used to thinking of her that way. I had a hard time […]
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 […]