BookBrowse | Book Reviews and Recommendations

Reviews by Carolyn F. (San Carlos, CA)

The Land of Decoration: A Novel
by Grace McCleen

I really wanted to like this book (4/3/2012)

I wanted to like it because of the blurb and I really loved ROOM but I had to slog my way through this one. I could not develop any empathy for the characters because I did not believe them. I honestly would not recommend this book.

A Box of Darkness: The Story of a Marriage
by Sally Ryder Brady

A BOX OF DARKNESS (1/8/2011)

This is a beautifully written book that resonated with me on so many levels. By the end of the book I felt as if I had spent an extended period of time with a beloved friend. Brady takes us on a roller-coaster ride of emotions seems, to me, to be brutally honest.
I loved the …more

The Journal Keeper: A Memoir
by Phyllis Theroux

The Journal Keeper (1/14/2010)

A beautifully written book, this book makes me think every time I pick it up. I read memoirs hoping to learn something about how to deal with the curve balls life throws at me, and this book helped me springboard from her journal entries to situations in my own life. …more

Blacklight Blue: The Third Enzo Files
by Peter May

Good, but.... (9/12/2008)

This book certainly held my attention but I found it a bit convoluted. I liked the characters well enough that I wanted to know them better and I liked the writing well enough to buy the first two books in this series. But the ending left me unsatisfied; I kept looking for …more

Red Rover
by Deirdre McNamer

Lovely prose but..... (9/20/2007)

I wanted to like this book because the prose is so beautifully done, but the plot gets lost in all the description and mood setting. You have to be reading very carefully in order to catch the plot advancement. Because of the history and time period this could have been a …more

Before I Die
by Jenny Downham

Before I Die (9/19/2007)

I really did not like the first half of the book. The tone, to me, was one of being talked down to. Also, Tessa was not sympathetic even though she was dying. Her father at one point told her she was a monster and I agree. During the second half I did start feeling some …more

BookBrowse Book Club

Lessons in Chemistry
by Bonnie Garmus

Praised by Parade and The New York Times Book Review, this debut features a 1960s scientist turned TV cooking star.

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The Lilac People
by Milo Todd

For fans of All the Light We Cannot See, a poignant tale of a trans man’s survival in Nazi Germany and postwar Berlin.

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Daughters of Shandong
by Eve J. Chung

Based on the author’s family story, comes an extraordinary novel about a mother and her daughters’ escape from Taiwan.

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