There were 13 reviews posted of this book in CBR9. There isn’t much more I can say about this book that hasn’t already been said by all of those wonderful reviewers here. While my life experience could not be farther from Starr Carter’s, I’m thankful to Angie Thomas for giving me the opportunity to spend some time with her. The basic premise of the story has been discussed at length here and just about everywhere, so I’ll just list some of the things that will stay […]
The rough poetry of life…
As much as I wish I could enjoy Russian classics, I tend to get bogged down in the political and philosophical discussions that go on and on and on and on. Most of the characters come across as self-important and obstinate and everyone just sits around arguing and insulting one another. I know this is an oversimplification but I just don’t get the appeal. “The Summer Guest”, a contemporary novel and only Russian adjacent, only reinforced that for me. Three stories are interwoven here: A husband […]
Put down the random similie generator and no one will get hurt.
I now know that it is possible to love a book and be completely irritated by it in equal measure. This will most likely be the most negative review of a book that I am giving 5 stars. Infinite Home is a beautiful word salad tossed with mixed results. I audibly groaned through the first two chapters. Alcott knows her way around the English language, but she wields it like a butcher knife that has become dusty with disuse after the household converted to veganism. SERIOUSLY. […]
Can you hear me now?
I like my alone time. I need my alone time. Accept for rare cases when I am totally immersed in a particular book, I can’t read when there is too much background noise: TV, music, conversations. I prefer silence so that trying to block out other sounds doesn’t constantly pull me out of my reading. I also often have a Pavlovian response to the various dings my cell phone makes. My body’s reaction to cell phone alerts is something like the nonverbal equivalent of Ugh!, particularly when […]
A lepidopterist and a taxidermist walk into a mystery.
Another Victorian murder mystery rife with witty banter, palpable sexual tension, and painfully tender interludes. This is the third book in the Veronica Speedwell Mystery series by Deanna Raybourn. If you have read the other two books, you need no encouragement. If you haven’t, read them NOW. They are completely addicting. If you need further encouragement, this is the FIRST sentence of A Treacherous Curse: “I assure you, I am perfectly capable of identifying a phallus when I see one,” Stoker informed me, clipping the words sharply. “And that […]
Did she say yes to the dress?
This is the first Jo Walton book that I have read and only heard about her through reading Cannonball Read reviews (thanks, guys!). Although this isn’t the Walton title that I was looking for at the library (Among Others), it sounded interesting and landed in my TBR pile. I was truly captivated by the first 2/3. The last 1/3? Not so much. A woman suffering from dementia, and now confined to a nursing home, reflects on her life. Pretty straight forward, BUT, she “remembers” two […]