Jan Notzon's Blog, page 10
July 23, 2025
Suffer Not the Mole People
From: "Sarah reads"
What an absolutely fantastic book this is. Everytime I picked this up I was amazed how better it got. I also know that this book will be with me for a long time.
I have never read this author before but this will be changing. The imagination of this author is something out of this world and he has a great talent for being a great storyteller.
What an absolutely fantastic book this is. Everytime I picked this up I was amazed how better it got. I also know that this book will be with me for a long time.
I have never read this author before but this will be changing. The imagination of this author is something out of this world and he has a great talent for being a great storyteller.
July 21, 2025
Review by Gina Rae Mitchell
Notzon’s writing doesn’t pull any punches. He digs into his characters’ flaws and complexities, making sure no one comes out looking like a saint. Even Justin, with all his good intentions, wrestles with disillusionment and doubt. The book takes a hard, honest look at what it means to believe in change and if that change is even possible in today’s world.
If you’re looking for a feel-good story where justice wins and everything wraps up neatly, this isn’t it. To Sing Like a Mockingbird is raw, complex, and sometimes painful, but it’s the kind of novel that stays with you long after you turn the last page. It’s also one that would make for an incredible book club discussion. See below for a list of possible discussion questions to get you started.
If you’re looking for a feel-good story where justice wins and everything wraps up neatly, this isn’t it. To Sing Like a Mockingbird is raw, complex, and sometimes painful, but it’s the kind of novel that stays with you long after you turn the last page. It’s also one that would make for an incredible book club discussion. See below for a list of possible discussion questions to get you started.
July 20, 2025
To Sing Like a Mockingbird
July 18, 2025
A wonderful book with a little bit of everything, it has mystery, drama, and many deep themes that make it stick with you after you read it.
I thought this novel was an excellent fusion of depth and suspenseful twists.
The storyline and characters were captivating.
It's clear the author invested a lot of effort into crafting this book, with every twist adding to its unique appeal.
--Samantha Turley
A wonderful book with a little bit of everything, it has mystery, drama, and many deep themes that make it stick with you after you read it.
I thought this novel was an excellent fusion of depth and suspenseful twists.
The storyline and characters were captivating.
It's clear the author invested a lot of effort into crafting this book, with every twist adding to its unique appeal.
--Samantha Turley
July 14, 2025
karla_bookishlife
To Sing Like A Mockingbird, a novel in six acts opens with a prologue reminiscent of a Shakespearean play with the chorus directly addressing the audience in a soliloquy pondering some of life's greatest questions:
"What is it that we ultimately seek? What drives some to bloody conquest, others to the insatiable pursuit of wealth...How comes it that there are those completely fulfilled by a life of quiet contemplation?".
In the course of six acts, the protagonist Justin finds himself pulled amongst men striving for these vastly varying things. He runs up against childhood friends and his family as he attempts to fulfill his job role . His story weaves and interlocks with very different characters - a corrupt county sheriff and a drug cartel boss. All of flawed humanity is on display as their stories merge. Once school friends, their lives diverged and once again convene, doggedly marked by the choices made in life. There is tragic realism as we glimpse the inner makings of each character.
The setting merges as a character in its own right, reminiscent of Elliot's "Wasteland" or Steinbeck's barren landscapes as Texas reveals itself as the cesspool of sordid drugs and corruption. This is a profound and moving read.
"What is it that we ultimately seek? What drives some to bloody conquest, others to the insatiable pursuit of wealth...How comes it that there are those completely fulfilled by a life of quiet contemplation?".
In the course of six acts, the protagonist Justin finds himself pulled amongst men striving for these vastly varying things. He runs up against childhood friends and his family as he attempts to fulfill his job role . His story weaves and interlocks with very different characters - a corrupt county sheriff and a drug cartel boss. All of flawed humanity is on display as their stories merge. Once school friends, their lives diverged and once again convene, doggedly marked by the choices made in life. There is tragic realism as we glimpse the inner makings of each character.
The setting merges as a character in its own right, reminiscent of Elliot's "Wasteland" or Steinbeck's barren landscapes as Texas reveals itself as the cesspool of sordid drugs and corruption. This is a profound and moving read.
July 9, 2025
Video Review
If I can paste it, here is a brief video review of To Sing Like a Mockingbird, (If goodreads will allow it.)
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DIE_PY...
Yay! Success. As long as it stays up.
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DIE_PY...
Yay! Success. As long as it stays up.
June 26, 2025
Stabbed in the back
I find it inordinately unfair that goodreads will post reviews from a blog tour and then remove them immediately afterwards.
My god, we authors have to go through hell trying to promote our work. Blog tour reviewers ARE NOT PAID!!! They get recommendations from the blog tour coordinator. That's all!
I just don't understand how a company that purports to help readers AND authors can do everything in their power to undermine us authors with our every endeavor.
Isn't it already hard enough for us?
My god, we authors have to go through hell trying to promote our work. Blog tour reviewers ARE NOT PAID!!! They get recommendations from the blog tour coordinator. That's all!
I just don't understand how a company that purports to help readers AND authors can do everything in their power to undermine us authors with our every endeavor.
Isn't it already hard enough for us?
June 24, 2025
Steffany .O (coffee over apples)
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May 25, 2025
Thank you to breakeven books for sending me a digital copy in exchange for a review. This slice of life story unfolding in 6 acts is a sad one. But it based in a reality that many who are familiar with the south west, incarceration system, living within bounds of cartel territory or an educator can understand.
The men at the center of this story walk different paths of morality, though those paths crossed when they were younger leading to life long relationships, they deviate when confronted with using their career paths to affect change. In someway this can be seen as a story about generational differences as we have characters varying in age, bringing cultural baggage with them. For sure it will get you to stop and think about what is important to a life worth living.
Read
May 25, 2025
Thank you to breakeven books for sending me a digital copy in exchange for a review. This slice of life story unfolding in 6 acts is a sad one. But it based in a reality that many who are familiar with the south west, incarceration system, living within bounds of cartel territory or an educator can understand.
The men at the center of this story walk different paths of morality, though those paths crossed when they were younger leading to life long relationships, they deviate when confronted with using their career paths to affect change. In someway this can be seen as a story about generational differences as we have characters varying in age, bringing cultural baggage with them. For sure it will get you to stop and think about what is important to a life worth living.
June 18, 2025
Financial Advisor Review
Mary Lostetter
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Great book!
Great book!
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Reviews
Great book!
Great book!
June 16, 2025
Non-writing week
Took a break from writing to help a friend recover from Hurricane Helene. They have a sheep farm in the North Carolina mountains. A lot of the work was done by volunteers from all over the country. it is wonderful to know how people will take time away from their own affairs to help out their fellow man. It's truly inspiring.
Tending toward a hermit's life squirreled away in my house writing, reading and (making an effort at) marketing, I was oblivious to the extent of the damage way high in the mountains. I tend to think of hurricanes as ocean-front events. It just never occurred to me that such a tropical storm could make its way to such high inland elevations. They are calling it a 5,000-year storm!
Did some hard but rewarding work building fences. Just walking up those mountains got my heartrate much higher than any of my workouts do. Then, driving in those metal posts just about did me in.
Well, it was a good feeling even if my contribution was paltry by comparison.
Tending toward a hermit's life squirreled away in my house writing, reading and (making an effort at) marketing, I was oblivious to the extent of the damage way high in the mountains. I tend to think of hurricanes as ocean-front events. It just never occurred to me that such a tropical storm could make its way to such high inland elevations. They are calling it a 5,000-year storm!
Did some hard but rewarding work building fences. Just walking up those mountains got my heartrate much higher than any of my workouts do. Then, driving in those metal posts just about did me in.
Well, it was a good feeling even if my contribution was paltry by comparison.
June 4, 2025
Review by Gina Rae Mitchell
Jan Notzon’s To Sing Like a Mockingbird isn’t just a story—it’s a gut punch. It pulls you into a world where morality isn’t black and white, idealism gets tested at every turn, and where the weight of our choices and circumstances shapes who we become.
Set in the harsh environment of an impoverished area of Texas, the novel’s main protagonist is Justin Kopekne, a teacher who truly believes in the power of education to change lives. But when his brightest student, Míriam, is murdered, his faith in the system—and in himself—starts to crumble. After the school is shut down, Justin needs time to process his grief. He retreats to his brother and sister-in-law’s home, only to find himself confronting an even deeper reckoning: the starkly different paths he and his childhood friends have taken.
Set in the harsh environment of an impoverished area of Texas, the novel’s main protagonist is Justin Kopekne, a teacher who truly believes in the power of education to change lives. But when his brightest student, Míriam, is murdered, his faith in the system—and in himself—starts to crumble. After the school is shut down, Justin needs time to process his grief. He retreats to his brother and sister-in-law’s home, only to find himself confronting an even deeper reckoning: the starkly different paths he and his childhood friends have taken.
