The Seasonal Reading Challenge discussion
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The Paris Hours – Alex George – 3.5***
Paris 1927. Home to Josephine Baker, Maurice Ravel, Gertrude Stein and Marcel Proust. But in addition to the many famous “lost generation” members, the City of Light was also home to many who led much quieter lives. George tells the story of four such souls, whose stories converge over the course of one day and night in Paris. George deftly handled these different storylines to produce a cohesive tale. Despite the constant change in point of view, I never lost interest in where it was going. The connections between the characters really didn’t gel until the last couple of chapters, and the ending was a nice surprise.
LINK to my full review
I Am the Messenger – Markus Zusak – 2**
I picked this up because I enjoyed Zusak’s The Book Thief and was hoping for … well, not more of the same, but something that would spark some of the same feelings I had reading that work. In the end, I wound up confused about what was actually going on and found the entire premise rather unbelievable. Zusak joins the likes of author John Boyne for me – an author I’ve enjoyed at least once, perhaps even loved, but who is just as likely to completely disappoint me in another work .
LINK to my full review
The Cat Who Played Post Office – Lilian Jackson Braun – 3***
Another charming episode in the life of journalist James Qwilleran (known simply as Qwill) and his precocious Siamese, Koko. I like the series because I like Qwill. His work as a journalist gives him a reason to poke his nose in where it doesn’t belong. If he doesn’t pick up on the significance of a clue, well trust that Koko will point him in the right direction with a yip, yowl or repeated scratching at a seemingly ordinary box.
LINK to my full review
The Cold Millions – Jess Walters – 4****
This novel focuses on the two Dolan brothers: sixteen-year-old Rye and his older brother Gig. The story is told from multiple characters’ points of view, and some scenes are related more than once, giving the reader additional insight as the point of view changes in the same scenario. Based on actual events in 1909 Spokane, Washington, at the novel’s core is a class struggle that is reminiscent of what America is undergoing now just over a hundred years later. Walter is a masterful storyteller and I was engaged and interested from beginning to end.
LINK to my full review
Enemy Women – Paulette Jiles – 4****
In the last months of 1864, the residents of Missouri are being pushed and pulled between warring factions. I found this work of historical fiction fascinating and engaging. Adair is a strong woman even though she is barely out of girlhood. She remains resolute despite hardship. No horse – no problem – she will walk. She never loses sight of her goal – to find her father, to get home, to reunite her family.
LINK to my full review
These Precious Days – Ann Patchett – 5*****
This is a series of essays about Patchett’s life and her thoughts on a variety of subjects from marriage to career, to education, to family, to grief. I love Patchett’s writing. Here, she is most herself – honest, funny, empathetic, confused, angry, caring, and passionate. I greatly enjoyed reading about her own journey as a reader, writer and owner of a bookstore.
LINK to my full review
The Lager Queen of Minnesota – J Ryan Stradl – 4****
Helen and Edith are estranged sisters. Helen convinced their father to leave her the farm, and she and her husband started a very successful brewery with that nest egg. Edith lives quietly, working two jobs and raising her granddaughter, Diana. Stradal reveals the intergenerational story through multiple points of view. At its core this is a story about family. About the ties that bind us whether we recognize them or not. About perseverance and strength of character. About facing our fear of failure and taking risks. It’s about love and forgiveness.
LINK to my full review
Gods of Jade And Shadow – Silvia Moreno-Garcia – 3***
Digital audiobook performed by Yetta Gottesman.
Fantasy is not my thing, but this book completely captured me. I loved Casiopea, a young woman who is intelligent, curious, resourceful, and determined. She’s not about to take guff from anyone – human or demon. She’s up for every challenge she’s presented with on this crazy journey to help the Mayan god of death regain his throne. I loved the rather open-ended conclusion. Where will she go? I can only imagine, but I’d be willing to read about her further adventures.
LINK to my full review
The Porcupine Year – Louise Erdrich – 4****
Digital audiobook narrated by Christina Moore
Book three in the Birchbark House series sees Omakayas growing into young womanhood. Her leadership qualities are blossoming and becoming evident to the members of her community. The entire tribe is affected by the encroachment of white settlers who force them from their ancestral lands and send them in search of a new home. They endure a very harsh season, nearly starving, and losing a couple of valued members of the group. But always, Omakayas and her people rely on their traditions, beliefs and cooperation to survive and prosper.
LINK to my full review
The Hindi-Bindi Club – Monica Pradhan – 3.5***
This was highly reminiscent of Amy Tan’s The Joy Luck Club . We have two generations of three immigrant families – mothers and daughters. The central plot revolves around Kiran, who, having married against her parents wishes and now divorced, has decided to ask for their help in finding a life partner. I enjoyed learning a bit more of the history of India, and of the disparate cultures within the subcontinent. Just as in real life, it’s not all drama and angst. There is plenty of humor, tenderness, laughter and tears of joy. Oh, and Prahan includes some wonderful recipes at the end of each chapter.
LINK to my full review
Firekeeper’s Daughter – Angeline Boulley – 4****
Book on CD narrated by Isabella Star LeBlanc
Boulley’s debut is a gripping story. Eighteen-year-old Daunis Fontaine is a marvelous character, the daughter of an Ojibwe man and a white woman, she doesn’t quite fit in either in her hometown or on the nearby reservation. She’s on the path to success, intent on a career in medicine. But she IS a teenager, and her emotions sometimes overwhelm her. Boulley keeps the tension high with a number of twists and turns in the plot. As happens in real life, not all the bad guys get what’s coming to them, but the ending is nevertheless satisfying.
LINK to my full review
Lake Of the Ozarks – Bill Geist – 3***
Subtitle: My Surreal Summers in a Vanishing America. This is a charming memoir of the author’s teen-year summers spent working at his uncle’s resort at Lake of the Ozarks. He did any and all distasteful jobs and enjoyed the company of a bevy of lovely young women who served as housemaids and/or waitresses. The pay was abysmal, but they got free room and board and a sense of independence.
LINK to my full review
Icy Sparks – Gwyn Hyman Rubio – 5****
We know much more about Tourette’s Syndrome today than during the timeframe of this story (1950s), and I hope even the residents of rural Appalachia would be more compassionate about a young girl so afflicted. Icy Sparks jumps off the pages of this book straight into the reader’s heart. This is a child who is curious, intelligent, kind, loving, and who learns to stand up to bullies and fight for herself. She shows empathy and compassion in her dealings with others even when they ostracize and belittle her.
LINK to my full review
The Santa Suit – Mary Kay Andrews – 3***
This is a charming holiday rom-com with a bit of mystery. The small town is full of colorful characters, and as Ivy begins to become known around town she opens up to her new friends and to the possibility of a new romance. The ending is neatly tied up in a pretty ribbon, but hey, it’s a holiday romance, so I’m okay with that.
LINK to my full review
The Farm – Joanne Ramos – 4****
Digital audiobook narrated by Fran de Leon.
Jane, an immigrant from the Philippines, is searching for a better opportunity to secure the future for herself and her daughter. So, she agrees to be a surrogate mother for a significant payback upon delivery. While the original premise seems plausible, the reality of Jane’s situation quickly devolves into a somewhat dystopian nightmare. It certainly held my attention and I really wanted to see how Jane would fare in this scenario. I think this would be a work that book clubs would love to discuss.
LINK to my full review
The Last Word – Ellery Adams – 3***
This is book # 3 in the Books By the Bay cozy mystery series featuring Olivia Limoges, her dog Haviland, and a group of writers who meet regularly to discuss their works in progress. This plot involves an historical mystery of an escaped German POW during WW2, and a current-day award-winning author who is found murdered in his rental sea-side cottage. One thing I like about this series is how Adams slowly gives out the backstory of the characters, letting readers get to know Olivia, her extended family, and the residents of Oyster Bay over the course of the series.
LINK to my full review
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Marrying Winterborne – Lisa Kleypas – 3***
Book two in the Ravenels series focuses on Lady Helen Ravenel and Welsh department-store mogul Rhys Winterborne. Her family isn’t so keen on the engagement, but Lady Helen and Rhys will not be denied a wedding, even if they have to … well, if I told you that would spoil it. I certainly understand why Kleypas is so successful at the Regency romance genre. The road to happily ever after is full of bumps and detours to add tension and keep the reader turning pages, but the couple will get there.
LINK to my full review
Pray For Silence – Linda Castillo – 3.5***
This is book two in the Kate Burkholder series, set in an Ohio county with significant Amish population. This novel involves the brutal murders of a family of seven. I love murder mysteries that feature strong female leads, and I look forward to reading more of this series. But trigger warning: this is a very violent crime with some very disturbing discoveries about the victims and the perpetrators.
LINK to my full review
The Cat Who Played Brahms – Lilian Jackson Braun – 3***
Book five in the delightful cozy mystery series starring James Qwilleran, and his Siamese Koko. Qwill decides to take a sabbatical from the paper, and vacation at a remote cabin on a lake “up north.” Mooseville is certainly NOT the big city, but something mysterious is going on; several of Qwill’s cherished possessions go missing and then a neighboring cabin owner is murdered. I really enjoy this series. I like Qwill and I like Koko, and NO, the cat doesn’t talk but his meanderings and occasional reaction to a visitor frequently point Qwill in the direction of a significant clue.
LINK to my full review
A Good American – Alex George – 5***** and a ❤
Book on CD performed by Gibson Frazier
This is a family saga, covering four generations of the Meisenheimer family over a century. As happens in real life, the family intersects with many of the residents of the town, and the reader gets to view history through the lens of their experiences. It is a story of immigrants, a story of quintessential Americans, a story of struggle and triumph and defeat and unabashed joy. I absolutely loved it and as soon as I had finished it, I wanted to read it again.
LINK to my full review
The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane – Kate DiCamillo – 5*****
Book on CD performed by Judith Ivey
Oh, but I loved this modern-day fairy tale! Edward is a china rabbit, hand crafted and meticulously attired. He lives with Abilene and her parents and grandmother in a house on Egypt Street. And then … Well, you’ll have to read about his journey yourself. It’s about compassion, and sorrow and joy. About patience and perseverance and never, ever giving up hope. It’s about love and home and miracles.
LINK to my full review
Dying For Chocolate – Diane Mott Davidson – 3***
This is book two in the popular Goldy Bear Culinary Mystery series. It has all the elements of a successful cozy mystery series: an amateur sleuth whose career puts her in contact with a wide range of people (whether victim or suspect), a home situation with added tension, a love interest, and some great recipes. I have to admit that Goldy is pretty resourceful when getting herself out of a jam and doesn’t always rely on the big strong detective to save her. On the other hand, if she kept her nose out of business that isn’t hers … well we wouldn’t have this series.
LINK to my full review
Southtown – Rick Riordan – 4****
This is book five in the Tres Navarre mysteries. This is a hard-hitting detective series, and the body count climbs as the plot progresses. I like Tres. He’s intelligent and a bit sarcastic. The setting is practically a character, and Riordan includes many landmark locations that brought me back home again.
LINK to my full review
Taken To the Cleaners – Dolores Johnson – 3***
The first book in the Mandy Dyer cozy mystery series gets the dry cleaner involved with a local bag lady brings in one of the cleaner’s signature laundry bags, inside of which is a bloody suit. I figured out the killer long before either Mandy or the police, but it still held my attention. This was first published in 1997 and it shows … limited computer use, no cell phones. Still, I’d be willing to try another in the series.
LINK to my full review
The Violin of Auschwitz –Maria Àngels Anglada– 2.5**
I really wanted to like this book … no … I wanted to love this book. But it missed the mark for me. The basic story line is engaging and what kept me reading, but there were huge gaps that left me hungry for more detail. So, while the author played the reader’s heartstrings like a violin virtuoso, I felt that the book was unfinished.
LINK to my full review
The Second-Worst Restaurant in France – Alexander McCall Smith – 3***
This is the second book featuring Paul Stuart, the “renowned Scottish cookbook writer.” He’s struggling with his latest book so jumps at the chance to accompany his cousin, Chloe, to France, where he hopes to find his muse, or at least a few great meals. There is not much plot to move the story along. Rather, Paul just stumbles into situations in the village as he meets new and interesting people. What I like about this book and several of McCall Smith’s other works are the characters. I enjoy peeping into their lives for a bit and watching the goings on from afar.
LINK to my full review
The Night Masquerade – Nnedi Okorafor – 3.5***
The final book in the Binti trilogy, has Binti trying to broker peace between the Meduse and the Khoush. I really marvel at the world-building that Okorafor has achieved here. The imaginative alien species are a marvel. And because I had come to trust her writing, I went with the flow and didn’t question the abilities of Okwu or New Fish. I really like Binti, and since the ending is somewhat of a cliffhanger, I have to wonder if the trilogy is really over, or if Okorafor will write more about Binti.
LINK to my full review
A little "Christmas in July" ...
A Cowboy Under the Mistletoe – Jessica Clare – 3***
This is the second book I’ve read in this series set in and around Painted Barrel, Wyoming. It is, of course, a holiday cowboy romance. Sage Cooper is the nicest gal in town but nobody’s girlfriend. Jason is a veteran of Afghanistan trying to run from his PTSD by working on a ranch (something he’s never done before). I’m sure you can guess the plot. It’s a fast read and there are the requisite hot-and-steamy sex scenes. Not to mention a great dog, Achilles.
LINK to my full review
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My Kind of Christmas – Robyn Carr – 1*
In Carr’s defense I have not read any of the previous books in this series (and this one is # 18). So, I had no background on the residents of Virgin River or their previous interactions / relationships. That made me feel a little lost. I didn’t think the relationship between Patrick and Angie made sense. She’s suffered a traumatic brain injury, he’s “in love” with his dead partner’s wife. But they are going to have great sex anyway. Puh-leeze. Plus, there was very little – if any – actual Christmas cheer evident. In the spirit of the season, I’ll grant it 1 star.
Love, Loss, and What We Ate – Padma Lakshmi – 3.5***
I don’t read a lot of celebrity memoirs, but when a friend recommended this one I had to see what the fuss was about. From what she relates of her early adulthood (into her 40s), I got the impression that she identified herself by the man she was attached to, which irritated me. But I liked the portions of the book that took us back to her childhood in India, to the cultures, foods, sights, sounds and smells that helped form her. By the end I grew to appreciate the woman she has become.
LINK to my full review
I finished The Hills Have Spies and finished I Am Malala: The Story of the Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban and starting The Freedom Writers Diary
U Is For Undertow – Sue Grafton – 4****
Book # 21 in the mystery series starring private investigator and former cop, Kinsey Millhone. Grafton sure could write a compelling mystery! The plot moves forward at a steady pace, and the series includes a couple of wonderful side characters. Grafton purposely set the series in a time before cell phones and the internet, so Kinsey needs to use the old-fashioned resources of reverse directories and pay phones.
LINK to my full review
Upright Women Wanted – Sarah Gailey – 3***
I picked this up because I needed a book to satisfy a challenge and this was readily available at the library. What an interesting plot! Set in a future America under a fascist regime, the Librarians are a network of lesbian spies. It has all the hallmarks of a traditional Western, but with a fresh new twist.
LINK to my full review
Bettyville – George Hodgman – 4****
Hodgman, recently out of a job, moved back home to Missouri to help shepherd his mother along a path neither of them wanted to take. I found this tender and funny, heartbreaking and hopeful. There were times when I wanted to slap him (or Betty) upside the head and force one or both of them to face reality. There were times when I wanted to just wrap them in a blanket and give them little “now, now and there, there” comforting pats.
LINK to my full review
A Loyal Character Dancer – Qiu Xiaolong – 3***
Book two in the Chief Inspector Chen Cao mystery series set in Shanghai. I like this series. Chen is a complicated man. Educated and a poet, he walks the tightrope between political correctness and professional police duty. This makes for a more slow-moving work than is typical for mysteries. But I didn’t mind that so much. I appreciated the time spent on the history of this complex culture.
LINK to my full review
Eight Hundred Grapes – Laura Dave – 3***
This piqued my interest because of the setting in the Sonoma Valley, and the book jacket blurb led me to believe it would be a lighter, romantic read. There IS some romance involved … but … Georgia turns out to be a bit more complex that I originally gave her credit for. The resolution of the difficulties has to wait for a few complications to be ironed out, but the ending is still satisfying in a chick-lit romance sort of way. Not exactly tied up in a pretty bow … but the ribbon is there.
LINK to my full review
Candy And Me – Hilary Liftin – 3.5***
Hilary Liftin has had a lifelong addiction to candy. I can relate. As she recalls her childhood, adolescence, and young adulthood, she reflects on the many candies she consumed, adored, sought, hoarded and absolutely without guilt enjoyed. We have, both of us, learned to live with a sweet tooth, and moderate our consumption. But it was sure nice to take a walk down memory lane, when penny candy was plentiful, and I had a whole DIME to spend on it!
LINK to my full review
Hondo – Louis L’Amour – 3.5***
An iconic work of American Western genre, featuring a strong, rather taciturn, loner who lives, and is willing to die, by his principles, and a vulnerable but equally strong woman determined to keep her family home and protect what she holds dear. The setting is practically a character: the southeast corner of Arizona, populated by rattlesnakes, Gila monsters, coyotes, jackrabbits and pumas, not to mention the various Apache tribes fighting to regain their historic lands.
LINK to my full review
The Owl & Moon Cafe – Jo-Ann Mapson – 3***
Four generations of women work hard to support themselves with their small café, while giving to the community in their northern California town. As happens in real life, things get messy. Major illness, loss of a job, bullying and strained budgets are stressing all the Moon women. Not to mention a couple of men added to the mix. Secrets will come out. Fights will be had. Tears will be shed. At the end, I’m certain the Moon women will find a way to deal with whatever life throws at them.
LINK to my full review
The Hour of Land – Terry Tempest Williams – 3***
Subtitle: A Personal Topography of America’s National Parks. This is a book I would not have picked up were it not for being a book-club selection. Williams is a good writer, and there are times when her descriptions take the reader straight to the park she is visiting. Some of these passages are downright poetic. However, Williams spent less time on the park itself and its natural and/or historic wonders than she did on a political agenda. I don’t even disagree with her point of view, but it wasn’t what I expected or wanted from this book.
LINK to my full review
West With Giraffes – Lynda Rutledge – 4****
As the world struggles to escape the Great Depression, and on the cusp of a new World War, orphan Woodrow Wilson Nickel finds himself cast adrift in the wake of the devastating Hurricane of 1938. Stumbling about hoping to find some shelter he comes across a scene that completely changes his life. Rutledge based this work of historical fiction on an actual event; in 1938 two giraffes were transported across America from the Port of New York to the San Diego Zoo. Woody is a wonderful character, and narrator, and I was completely captivated from beginning to end.
LINK to my full review
The Seasonal Reading Challenge
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Authors mentioned in this topic
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The Last Midwife – Sandra Dallas – 3.5***
Good historical fiction set in 1880s Colorado mining town. I was interested in the birthing stories, and in the ways in which Gracy worked among both the men and women of the community. She’s a marvelously strong woman, and over the course of the novel we learn a few of her own heartaches and how she’s overcome and persevered. There were times when I thought the whole murder mystery was a bit too contrived, but it certainly held my attention.
LINK to my full review