Calling Me Home
by Julie Kibler
Great Debut Novel (11/27/2012)
Calling Me Home is a touching story about a man and a woman who come from different life styles but are joined together by love. It is also a story of two women who develop a strong friendship and a deep respect for each other on a road trip from Texas to Ohio. The story touches on many emotions. I laughed, I cried, I became angry and in the end, I felt a deep appreciation for the diverse people in my life.
A great debut novel by wonderful storyteller, Julie Kibler. I will be watching for her next book.
The Edge of the Earth
by Christina Schwarz
Enjoyable Read (10/16/2012)
Christina Schwarz's poetic style of writing and colorful, diverse characters make this a delightful read. I enjoyed this book from beginning to end. It's a story of love, understanding and accepting the differences of others, overcoming difficult situations and finding one's place in life.
Live by Night
by Dennis Lehane
Interesting Storyteller (8/15/2012)
Live by Night is an interesting and colorful book about a gangster's life during the prohibition era. The changing activities of the strong characters helped to hold my attention from beginning to end. Dennis Lehane is a good storyteller and I will be interested in reading more books by this author. I would recommend this book to adults who are interested in stories with some historical background.
A Lady Cyclist's Guide to Kashgar: A Novel
by Suzanne Joinson
Not a Favorite (5/7/2012)
This book is two stories in one with some chapters taking place in the early 1920s and the other chapters set in present day. The first part of the book, I'm sorry to say, bored me, but I felt obligated to read on. About half way through the book, the present day story started to show signs of becoming interesting. At that point, I continued to read only the chapters that took place in present day and that part of the book turned out to be a decent story. I have no desire to go back and read the unread chapters.
I was somewhat irritated to read the back cover of the book where it equated this book to Major Pettigrew's Last Stand and The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, two of my favorite books; in my opinion, this book was not in the same league.
The Secrets of Mary Bowser
by Lois Leveen
A Wonderful History Lesson (4/15/2012)
This is a story about the life of Mary Bowser, a remarkable women who found the courage to do unthinkable deeds to fight for her beliefs. The author's picturesque style of writing and use of antiquated dialogue takes the readers back to the sights and sounds of the 1800s. I will certainly recommend this book to others....it is a great history lesson for readers of all ages
All Woman and Springtime: A Novel
by Brandon W. Jones
Intensely powerful story (3/15/2012)
All Women and Springtime is an intensely powerful story about the sex trafficking of young Korean girls and it is explicitly written; so much so that portions of the book were emotionally difficult to read and I found myself skipping over the sexually abusive parts. And yet, the story drew me in and haunted me to continue reading with ever so much hope that there might be a happy ending. This book is certainly not for young readers.
