Ashok and Priya Shah leave their home in India, where the written caste system is oppressive and restrictive and move to America, the land of dreams and supposedly a great country. They work hard and after 20:years are able to move into a gated, elite community. All is well until their young son is arrested and spends many hours in the custody of the police. For the first time they experience police brutality, racial profiling and discrimination against their brown skin. They are crushed because they thought they were safe from those things. They weren’t Muslim or Black. They quickly realized that there is an unspoken caste system in this country, that they were the lowest but they didn’t belong with the elite either. Though the outcome is positive it leaves them wondering if they can ever recover. I think the author covers the subject well but the title bothers me. Is it supposed to be sarcastic? Because the country the author paints is far from great. We as Americans have the potential to do better, I hope that we can

I was really looking forward to reading this book. I know nothing about the profession of Funeral Cryer and I was hoping to learn more. I was so disappointed. The entire book is the funeral cryer (the reader never learns her name) musing and whining about her job, her life, her horrid husband and his possible affair and her fantasies about another man over and over. The dialogue is stiff and unnatural and the writing is jarring. I enjoyed reading about when she would perform at a funeral but those passages were few and far between. I wanted to root for the funeral cryer because her life seemed so dismal but I couldn’t find the energy. I really would not recommend this book to anyone.

This is a book about a house. It’s a house that becomes the obsession and eventual demise of two men, one at the end of WWI and another at the start of WWII. It’s the scene of two, or is it three, murders involving the wives of these two men. It’s a house despised not only by these two wives but also the locals who believe it’s cursed and haunted. It’s a good, not great, murder mystery with an interesting twist at the end that makes it worth reading

It's difficult these days to comprehend what's happening to people especially children in Israel, Gaza, and Ukraine. Power struggles kill everyday people and there are places around the world that have dealt with oppression for centuries. The Daughters of Shandong highlights this struggle between Mao and Chang Kai-Shek, between Communists and Nationalists. Mao's cadres killed and tortured wealthy landlords in the name of giving back to the common man. This left many people, especially women and children with no family support. They were left to beg, steal, and survive anyway possible. This book tells the story of one such family, Hai, her sisters and her mother who are abandoned by their family and grandparents primarily because they are female and of no value. Hai is tortured in lieu of her father being the oldest. The family sets out on a journey to find their family which takes them deeper into poverty, despair and squalor in every new place along the way. But they are resilient and resourceful and finally rejoin their family in Taiwan. Hai and her sister, Di are able to break the bonds of tradition and gain an education and jobs. It's a book of faith, hope, charity and lots of luck. I loved every minute. It's also a great book for book clubs because it will spark a lot of discussion, especially about gender inequality

I tend not to read books with dysfunctional families as living with mine was hard enough. I was intrigued by this book though since living through war in Northern Ireland was far enough from my own experiences that I felt I could read it without bias. I’m so glad that I did. The seesaw between Brid’s chapters and Bernie’s were sometimes confusing but I was so interested in both women that I worked through it. Brid’s story especially is so filled with heartbreak, fear, regret, and then hope and resolve that I could not put her aside. My heart broke for Bernie’s struggles; her confusion about her love for her best friend, her difficult decision regarding her pregnancy, and her constant push and pull feelings for her mom. I was sad to end the book and my relationship with these two. I also learned so much about the Northern Ireland war with Britain and how conflicting feelings and the struggle of wanting peace but wanting a unified Ireland tore a country apart. This is a book for everyone to read.

There have been so many books written about WWII that it’s difficult to find one that tells a new story or Carrie’s a new perspective. This book is the rare story; richly written and hard to describe. It’s the story of the influx of European emigres during the war many of them who find themselves attracted to Hollywood and the opportunities there. It’s the story of a b movie studio called Mercury Pictures that hires many of these emigres. It’s the story, especially, of Italian emigres who come to America to escape the tyranny of Fascism only to find themselves living in under suspicion, curfews, and restrictions after Italy joins Germany in war. The story is so reach in characters that it’s almost overbearing and minor characters are given as much story as the main characters. The language is so beautiful to read and it’s rich metaphors are a joy to read. I loved this book and anyone who loves Hollywood, WWII literature and well written characters to fall in love with will love it too.

This book is a challenging read. It's an interesting story of survival in Haiti during a different time in the country's history. I learned so much about Haiti and the struggles of Haitians who continue to deal with corruption and dangerous politicians. Unfortunately the book is longer than it needs to be. It's bogged down with unnecessary detail and technology. I had to do a lot of skimming which, as a reader, is frustrating. But it did inspire me to do more research on the coups in Haiti.

Not quite. But I loved the movie. I rooted so hard for Mia Farrow, hated her husband and her creepy neighbors. In the end, she was a mother and she wanted to take care of that little monster. I rooted for Anna the same. After all she'd been through I wanted her to have her baby. But there was no denying that something was going on; her stalkers, her hallucinations, her weird obsession with raw meat, and, oh my, her constant pain. Everyone was suspect and no one could be trusted, including her husband. I'm the end, she was also able to have a baby and to finally be a mother. This book is also something more. It's a metaphor for the lack of support for pregnant mothers who suffer pain, discomfort and weird cravings and are told to take an aspirin or take a bath. We, as mothers, need a support system, maybe not witches!, of women who know the pain and discomfort of pregnancy and know what to do and how to hold each others hands. I probably wouldn't recommend this book for pregnant women but for anyone who has given birth, it's a yes

So after reading about the first twenty pages of this book I wasn't sure I wanted to go on. There's a lot of fluff in those pages and I was worried with such a short book that the fluff would take up a lot of the story. Happily, I didn't have to worry. The book is based on true events; the discovery of a treaty between Spain and France to financially support Napoleon's war against Britain. To do this, Spain intends to secretly bring riches from South America. France has promised that if the gold is not delivered, they will instead declare war on Spain. The plot is discovered by Thomas Grey, a member of His Majesty's Secret Service and it's up to him to get to Montevideo, intercept the ships carrying the gold and keep them from Spain. Along the way, he's captured by pirates, enlists the help and assists American sailors and engages in sea warfare. It's a fun story that kept me entertained but I doubt I'll read more of the adventures of Thomas Grey. He does go off on another assignment to help some of his new American friends but that will have to wait for a new book!

This book started out very slow for me. I’m not a fan of football and I found Bucky’s family to be incredibly unlikeable. I was hoping things would get better. Unfortunately, for me, not so much. I just could not connect with Bucky. I felt really sorry for his circumstances but it was difficult to get past the football references, the teenage hormones, the rage and the bad decisions. I almost stopped reading in the last section because it was just so odd, and, my gosh, there isn’t one appealing character in the entire book.

I don’t usually give gender labels to books but there is such a thing as Women’s fiction so I suppose this book would qualify as Men’s fiction so perhaps I’m judging unfairly. I would actually be interested to hear from a man that had read it. I give the book 2 stars for two reasons: I actually liked the ending, and the book also opened my eyes to how immigrants who have been deported may be treated. Some cash and see you later feels like a very broken system.

Marie Benedict never fails to find women live in the shadows of great men yet have the power to change or affect history. The Mitford sisters certainly fit this category and Ms. Benedict has recreated their stories in a way that is so fascinating. Diana and Unity, especially, who flirted and dined with Hitler putting even their lives on the line to support him. Even while he threatens their own Homeland. They are a study in what can happen to women who become enthralled with powerful men. My sympathies lied with their sister Nancy who tried to make sense of the insanity surrounding her sisters actions and treason and ultimately had to make a decision to protect her beloved country. This book has definitely inspired me to do more research on these fascinating sisters.

The Last Russian Doll is a beautifully written but very complicated book. At times it’s difficult to discern what is happening and I felt when finished that there was so much unresolved. As historical fiction, it is outstanding. A captivating story with well thought and well researched history. I learned so much about Russias past history, especially the Gulags, the siege of Leningrad and the building of the White Sea Canal where so many prisoners died. The book begins with two story lines. In 1991, Rosie struggles with her mother's addictions, is engaged to marry. She answers an ad to help a former Russian dissident returning to Russia to finish some research. Her motive is to discover why her father and sister were murdered. This story line started a little slow for me.

The other story line begins in early 1900 as a love affair between an outspoken Bolshevik and an aristocratic Russian princess in an unhappy marriage. This was much more appealing and what kept me reading. The storylines eventually converge and become one story that involves pain, hardship, heartache, love, discovery and hope. It’s well worth reading just to learn Russian history and the authors note about Putin’s Russia and his efforts to erase the ugliness of that history.

Occasionally I read a book that stops my heart, takes my breath away and pulls at all the emotions I can possibly feel at one time. River Sing Me Home is that book. It's the heartbreaking story of slavery in the Caribbean, those that did the backbreaking work on the sugar cane plantations. It's the story of the power of a mother's love and the sacrifices that slave mothers made to be reunited with their children that were torn away and sold. It's the story of friendship, determination and the desire of every human to find freedom whatever that means. I'm in awe of this book and the pain, hope, and love I felt in constant conflict with each other. It's a must read for every person

My favorite genre, or perhaps, obsession used to be WWII fiction. I stopped reading them because I wasn’t finding anything new and I felt I was becoming somewhat immune to the graphics which seemed to be inevitable. Shadows of Berlin is an exception. It’s a powerful and truly moving story of a survivor, one who carries the pain, the memory of the suffering and the guilt of surviving long after the war is over. Rachel has survived, moved to New York and married but her scars run so deep that they are at times so overwhelming, even after many years, that her marriage and even her life teeters on the edge. I felt her pain so deeply yet the story is written without being graphic which makes this story so unique. It left me rooting for Rachel, her husband and her soon to be baby,

This is the first book that I've read in a while that I could not put down. On the surface, it's the story of two adversaries, Sylvie, a rising psychic-medium who may be a fraud and Thomas, a journalist, out to prove she is one. Thomas wants a story and challenges Sylvie to do her next show without the prep she usually does researching her audience to find those looking to connect to their loved ones. She agrees and they begin a weeklong journey seemingly to come to a conclusion about what Sylvie is really about. It's difficult, at times, to know who to root for; Sylvie, who actually helps people whether her gift is real or not or Thomas who is driven to expose the those he sees as charlatans who prey on people, like his mother, desperate to find peace. Their divisive journey becomes a shared goal as they work to discover Sylvie's past. In the end, they are two very broken people that discover the best in each other while becoming their true selves.

I have to admit up front that I'm conflicted about this book. It's basically a book with two story lines but it's also packed full of little known snippets of information and the authors musings mostly about those little snippets. I actually found this to be the best part of this book, absorbing the information and looking things up. I did appreciate the story of her stepfather and his slow descent to dementia and death. I loved reading about her care of him as I'm dealing with some of this myself right now. The other people who move in and out of her life were much less interesting to me. I was pleasantly surprised to learn that Tehching Hsieh is a real person and I am inspired to learn more about him. I was frustrated with the authors ramblings and occasionally I found my mind wandering while reading and had to reread. I think this book would appeal to anyone dealing with a parents decline and perhaps anyone interested in performance art.

This book started out very slowly for me. I felt the writing was stiff and it wasn’t very interesting. But I also couldn’t put it down because I wanted to know about the lighthouse and it’s relevance to Amy’s story. Reading further, I was just confused as the story really didn’t make much sense. As the story progressed, I was intrigued to find out what was happening both to Amy and Ryan. It’s such a powerful love story not only between two people but also the love between parents and their children and the strength of love to make forever connections despite the tragedies that can occur. I dot know if it will be the same for everyone, but the book was very spiritual for me. It’s well worth reading

I was very hesitant to read this book. Greek mythology is not really my cup of tea. I certainly am glad that I did. The story of Ariadne, the daughter of Minos, king of Crete after the slaying of the Minotaur, her brother is a fascinating one. She finds herself on Naxos, the home of Dionysus, abandoned by Theseus after helping him to kill the Minotaur. Dionysus waltzes into her life as only the god of wine can, they marry, have many little boys and life is good. Or is it? There are so many references to the gods of Olympus and their impetuous acts that I was continually looking up the stories and thoroughly enjoying them. But it grows increasingly clear that, though goddesses are revered, feared and powerful, mortal women are oppressed, repressed and often the victims of a god’s anger though the crime may be perpetrated by a mortal man. It’s a fun read and highly recommended

Ugh. This book. I almost stopped reading it a dozen times but I trudged on thinking it had to get better. Nope. The book is in three parts. The first part is about two brothers in 18th century America planting apple trees and hoping to make their fortune selling them to settlers. Great, I thought. Sounds interesting. Unfortunately one of the brothers is a Faun, which even after reading the whole book I don’t understand why. Most of the brothers early chapters were musings about nature, living as a Faun, witches (!), etc. I honestly skipped a lot. The second story is more interesting. America now in the second half of the 21 st century only exists in the East. People have been forced out of the West to be volunteers in the East working farms for the good of a company run by one woman. A group of people who helped her start the company decide to sabotage it. The story is actually quite interesting until it too, morphs into the unbelievable. The last story of the three I won’t even bother to go into. The one redeeming value of this book is that it made me question whether it’s better to mechanically create extinct flora and fauna or whether it’s better to leave it all alone. That’s it

There is so much to love about this book. It's actually taken a couple of weeks to write a review because I wasn't sure how to put my emotions into words. It's the story of an unnamed young woman who identifies as a boy. She's struggled all her life with a body she despises and is too strangled by her culture to face who she is, especially to the people in her life. She's also struggling with the death of her mother, a death she feels partly responsible for. Her mother was an ornithologist and her love of birds sustains the young woman, an artist confined to expressing herself through street art. The young woman, who eventually takes the name of Nadir when he eventually accepts himself, finds a diary, one that describes a rare Ibis. Nadir recognizes the bird as an Ibis his mother claims to have seen and he sets out to find the author of the diary and the rare birds. Along the way he discovers that birds of various kinds are swarming the city and that the love of birds that he shared with his mother is leading him on his quest to find the truth. He also discovers the warmth, kindness and acceptance of the transgender and homosexual community. While Nadir discovers the truth of the diary, its part in his and his family's life and ultimately love it's an end that tugs at the heart. I loved this book