Wednesday, December 12, 2018

The Book Review Club (December 2018)




Welcome to the December edition of The Book Review Club, our last meeting of 2018! With all the holiday shopping, it's a good time of year to be buying books. Books make great gifts! And our reviews might just help you pick out the perfect book for someone on your list. Happy Holidays!




ANNE FRANK'S DIARY: THE GRAPHIC ADAPTATION
Adapted by Ari Folman
Illustrations by David Polonsky

The Anne Frank Foundation (founded in 1963 by Otto Frank, Anne's father) wanted to update Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl so that Anne's story would be more accessible, more relevant to young people of the 21st century. To this end, the Foundation commissioned Ari Folman to adapt the diary and David Polonsky to illustrate it. The two are co-creators of the Waltz with Bashir,  a critically-acclaimed animated film about Israel's 1982 invasion of Lebanon.

Mr. Folman and Mr. Polonsky say right off the bat they aren't trying to improve on Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl. And let's face it; they couldn't. In fact, I was a little trepidatious about reading the graphic version because I so, so love the book.

As it turns out, the graphic version is terrific. I read it in two sittings and bought the hardcover for one of my sisters. The graphic version captures Anne's teenage attitude, her issues with her mother, her jealousy of her "perfect" sister, her romantic interest in Peter van Daan. The graphic version captures Anne's humor and insights. And it captures the ups and downs of hiding for two years with several people in the Annex, the horrors of what was happening outside the Annex in 1942-44 Amsterdam and the fears of discovery by the Gestapo. An example of how the graphic version is updated for today's reader is a page entitled "It's always about me and my sister." Fun, right?! I'm looking forward to the animated version, which will be released next year.

To give you a sense of the exquisite illustrations, here's a somewhat blurry photo (sorry!) I took with my phone of the Characters' page.  The illustrations are truly magnificent. They're very detailed. I laughed at the illustration of the bossy Mrs. van Daan on the chamber pot.

Here's a link to a short, but lovely, trailer for Anne Frank's Diary: The Graphic Adaptationclick here for trailer

And here's a synopsis of Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl from Barnes and Noble: In 1942, with the Nazis occupying Holland, a 13-year-old Jewish girl and her family fled their home in Amsterdam and went into hiding. For the next two years, until their whereabouts were betrayed to the Gestapo, the Franks and another family lived cloistered in the "Secret Annex" of an old office building...In her diary Anne Frank recorded vivid impressions of her experiences during this period.

(Dear FCC: Bought)

And now....onto the rest of our reviews. Please click through. You won't want to miss a single one!



MIDDLE GRADE FICTION BOOK REVIEWS

Jody Feldman: MASCOT by Antony John (MG, contemporary)

Phyllis Wheeler: THE HOTEL BETWEEN by Sean Easley (fantasy)


ADULT FICTION BOOK REVIEWS

Jenn Jilks of Cottage Country: THE WIFE by Meg Wolitzer (women's)
                                                  MOON OF THE CRUSTED SNOW by Waub Rice (sci fi)

Linda McLaughlin: A BRUSH WITH SHADOWS by Anna Lee Huber (historical mystery)

Margy Lutz: DARKEST BEFORE THE DAWN by Mikel Martin (Canadian mystery)

Patti Abbott:  NEWS OF THE WORLD by Paulette Jiles (historical)

Sarah Laurence: KILLING COMMENDATORE by Haruki Murakami (magical realism)


NONFICTION REVIEWS

Ray Potthoff: SERGEANT STUBBY by Ann Bausum (historical)

Lucy Sartain of Ranting and Raving: THE GIRL WITH SEVEN NAMES by Hyeonseo Lee
                                                            (memoir)


Note to Reviewers: Any errors (broken link, missed review, etc), just shoot me an email or leave a comment. Thank you so much for your reviews!

Wednesday, October 3, 2018

The Book Review Club (October 2018)



Welcome to the October edition of The Book Review Club. As Anne of Green Gables said, "I'm so happy I live in a world where there are Octobers."  Do take a moment in your busy life to stop and smell the . . . marigolds! It's October's flower. I hope you enjoy this month's book reviews. (Pictured on the left is a marigold from my garden. )



EVERLASTING NORA 
by Marie Miranda Cruz (middle grade, contemporary)

Manila is the capital of the Philippines and is bursting at the seams with a population of about 10 million. The North Manila Cemetery is very busy and overcrowded and hosts 70 to 80 funerals daily. Around 10,000 poor live in shanties on tombstones and in mausoleums in the cemetery.

In EVERLASTING NORA, Nora and her mom take up residence in the North Cemetery following a fire that took Nora's dad's life and burned down the family house. Nora is forced to quit school (she would've been in sixth grade) and help earn money by selling flowers to mourners and washing laundry with her mom.

And then one night, Nora's mom doesn't come home.

Imagine that for a moment. A twelve-year-old girl is alone in her father's mausoleum. In the middle of a large cemetery. At night. And she doesn't know where her mother is.

Tagalog words are sprinkled throughout the book. (There's a glossary in the back if you get lost. I didn't.) There are many references to local dishes. Sensory and plot details highlight the Filipino setting.

EVERLASTING NORA is a story about extreme poverty and gambling and a child who must deal with her world that has completely fallen apart. This is also an uplifting story where friends become family, and people change for the better.

Well done, Marie Miranda Cruz!



Here's a photo from last night when I got to play "host" at Mysterious Galaxy for Marie's book signing. Fun!!!  Photo credit: Kathy Krevat    (Dear FCC: ARC)



And now....onto the rest of our reviews. Please click through. You won't want to miss a single one!

MIDDLE GRADE AND YOUNG ADULT FICTION BOOK REVIEWS

Jody Feldman: MAXI'S SECRETS (Or What You Can Learn From a Dog) by Lynn Plourde (MG)

Linda McLaughlin: THE GIRL WHO DRANK THE MOON by Kelly Barnhill (MG, fantasy)
                                 SPLENDORS AND GLOOMS by Laura Amy Schlitz (MG, Victorian Gothic)

Phyllis Wheeler: MY YEAR IN THE MIDDLE by Lila Quintero Weaver (MG, historical)

Sarah Laurence: SADIE by Courtney Summers (YA, contemporary)


ADULT FICTION BOOK REVIEWS

Jenn Jilks of Cottage Country: SMALL GREAT THINGS by Jodi Picoult (women's)

Lucy Sartain of Ranting and Raving: THE WIFE BETWEEN US by Greer Hendricks and
                                                            Sarah Pekkanen (thriller)

Patti Abbott:  IN A DRY SEASON by Peter Robinson (mystery)

Stacy of the Cat's Meow: LESS by Sean Greer (literary)


MEMOIR REVIEWS

Jenn Jilks of Cottage Country: UNHINGED by Omarosa Manigault Newman

Margy Lutz: MY FIRST SUMMER IN THE SIERRA by John Muir 

Ray Potthoff: HUNDRED MILES TO NOWHERE by Elisa Korenne





Note to Reviewers: Any errors (broken link, missed review, etc), just shoot me an email or leave a comment. Thank you so much for your reviews!





Wednesday, June 6, 2018

The Book Review Club (June 2018)



Welcome to the June 2018 edition of The Book Review Club. We'll be taking a two-month summer hiatus to read and play and generally enjoy life. We'll return in September. Today we bring you more reviews of books we've enjoyed in the hopes of adding to your To-Be-Read pile. Please scroll down after my review where you'll find everyone's links. We wish you a terrific summer!



THREE TIMES LUCKY
by Sheila Turnage 
(middle grade, mystery)

I'm a little late to the "Mo and Dale" (the BFF 6th grade detectives in THREE TIMES LUCKY) party. While I was reading my way through my TBR pile, this gem of a mystery was busy becoming a Newbery Honor and a NY Times Bestseller!

From the back cover: Meet Mo LoBeau: natural-born detective. Mo's summer is looking good. But that's before the murder, the kidnapping, the car crash, and the hurricane. If ever there was a time for Mo to put her detective skills to work, this is it. Good thing Mo's always been lucky.
There's lots to ❤️ about this quirky, upbeat, Southern-flavored mystery.  


The characters are odd and interesting and layered. Moses "Mo" LoBeau is outspoken and loyal. Her best friend, Dale Earnhardt Johnson, III, is the best of best friends, a bit of a worrywart and more of a risk taker than Mo. Miss Lana, the only mother Mo has ever known, dons a variety of wigs and outfits and constantly changes the theme of the cafe she runs with the Colonel. The Colonel lost his memory years ago and has a secret past. Then, add in a host of off-the-wall Tupelo Landing residents.

Besides solving the mystery both Mo and Dale deal with personal issues. Eleven years ago, Mo floated into Tupelo Landing during a hurricane. She wants to find her mother and sends messages in bottles up the creek. Dale's dad is an abusive alcoholic.

And, and, and....there's an actual murder. Two, in fact!

If  I still haven't convinced you to pick up THREE TIMES LUCKY for your classroom, your library, your 10+ year-old kids who need to lose themselves in a book this summer...how about this quotation from Newsday:

"An irresistible narrator - a literary descendant of Scout Finch of To Kill a Mockingbird."

(Dear FCC: Bought. And I plan to buy the other books in the series, including THE LAW OF FINDER KEEPERS, which comes out in September. )

And now....onto the rest of our reviews. Please click through. You won't want to miss a single one!

MIDDLE GRADE REVIEWS

Phyllis WheelerTHE JOLLY REGINA by Kara LaReau 
                            THE UNCANNY EXPRESS by Kara LaReau


ADULT FICTION BOOK REVIEWS

Jenn Jilks of Cottage Country: EXCESSIVE FORCE by Alok Mukherjee (adult, memoir)

Jenn Jilks of Cottage Country: MADE FOR WALKING by Andy Peake (history of the boot)

Linda McLaughlin: DESPERATE DUCHESSES by Eloisa James (romance)

Patti Abbott:  THAT KIND OF MOTHER by Rumaan Alam

Ray Potthoff: COLD MOUNTAIN by Charles Frazier (historical)

Stacy of the Cat's Meow: THE FEMALE PERSUASION by Meg Wolitzer (literary)



ADULT NONFICTION REVIEW

Lucy Sartain of Ranting and Raving: MY PRIDE AND JOY by Adamson (memoir)

Margy Lutz: THE GOLDEN SPRUCE by John Vaillant (biography)

Sarah Laurence: HUNGER: A MEMOIR OF (MY) BODY by Roxane Gay (memoir)




Note to Reviewers: Any errors (broken link, missed review, etc), just shoot me an email or leave a comment. Thank you so much for your reviews!


Thursday, May 3, 2018

The Book Review Club (May 2018)



Welcome to the May 2018 edition of The Book Review Club. Apparently, the first weekend in May is World Naked Gardening Day. Who knew!! If you're so inclined, here's a link to WNGD: right here. In the meantime, please scroll down after my review where you'll find links to terrific reviews of terrific books.



I LOVE YOU, MICHAEL COLLINS
by Lauren Baratz-Logsted 
(middle grade, historical, fiction)

A little from the flap: It's 1969 and the country is gearing up for what looks to be the most exciting moment in U.S. history: men landing on the moon. Ten-year-old Mamie and her classmates are given an assignment to write letters to the astronauts. All the girls write to Neil Armstrong ("so dreamy") and all the boys write to Buzz Aldrin ("he's got the great name!"). Only Mamie writes to Michael Collins, the astronaut who will come so close but never walk on the moon, because he is the one who must stay with the ship.

I'll be honest. I was hooked from the flap copy.  Who doesn't love a story about space travel? With a feisty, independent protagonist? Especially one who's only ten years old! Listen to this: When asked what they wanted to be when they grew up, all the girls in the class wanted to marry an astronaut. All the boys wanted to be an astronaut. What did our independent, free-thinking protagonist respond to the teacher? "How should I know?...I'm ten!"

Yes, there's humor in this book. There's natural opportunity for humor with Mamie's self-absorbed teen sister, her gifted best friend and, of course, Mamie's own forthrightness.

Sprinkled throughout the story are interesting tidbits of history. Take Tang, for example. Because the astronauts drink Tang during their travels, Mamie and her best friend, Buster, drink Tang while watching the Apollo 11 on (color!) TV. There's a a suggested reading list at the back of the book.

I do love a book told in letters. I love the way it lets you get inside a character's head. Personally, I've never been able to write an epistolary novel, but that Lauren Baratz-Logsted is some kind of brilliant! Mamie begins writing to Michael Collins as part of a school assignment. She continues writing to him as her family life becomes more and more complicated. In fact, Mamie ends up home alone. You can see the parallel: Michael Collins alone in the spaceship and Mamie alone in her house. Both do what it takes to keep things running smoothly for those they're waiting for.

I Love You, Michael Collins is an entertaining, heartwarming, informative read. It'd make a great addition to your school library. It'd be a terrific summer read for your 4th through 7th grader (roughly speaking). Oh, and I'm not the only person who loves this book. I Love You, Michael Collins was recently nominated for the Florida Sunshine State Young Readers Award.

(Dear FCC: One magical word: library. Although I wish I knew the author. I have a feeling we'd get on great and have lots to gab about over a coffee. All that to say, this is an independent book review of a book I loved. Next I plan to read Zombie Abbey, also by Lauren Baratz-Logsted.)

And now....onto the rest of our reviews. Please click through. You won't want to miss a single one!

MIDDLE GRADE/YOUNG ADULT FICTION BOOK REVIEWS

Jody Feldman: THE MISCALCULATIONS OF LIGHTNING GIRL by Stacy McAnulty
                                                                                                                       (contemp, MG)
                                                                                                               
Phyllis Wheeler: LITTLE BIGFOOT, BIG CITY by Jennifer Weiner (fantasy, MG)

Sarah Laurence: SOMEDAY, SOMEWHERE by Lindsay Champion (contemporary, YA)


ADULT FICTION BOOK REVIEWS

Lucy Sartain of Ranting and Raving: SWEET TEA TUESDAYS by Ashley Farley (women's)

Linda McLaughlin: A BACHELOR ESTABLISHMENT by Jodi Taylor (historical romance)

Patti Abbott:  THE CHIMNEY SWEEPER'S BOY by Barbara Vine (mystery)

Ray Potthoff: VARINA by Charles Frazier (historical)


NONFICTION REVIEW

Jenn Jilks of Cottage Country: GRANDMOTHERING by Linda Eyre

Margy Lutz: DRAWN TO SEA by Yvonne Maximchuk


Note to Reviewers: Any errors (broken link, missed review, etc), just shoot me an email or leave a comment. Thank you so much for your reviews!

Wednesday, April 4, 2018

The Book Review Club (April 2018)



Welcome to the April edition of The Book Review Club. You're in for a marvelous spring treat as my critique partner, Kelly Hayes, is in charge of the review on my blog this month. And she's reviewing the most recent book by Patricia Abbott, one of our very own reviewers. Win-win! Oh, and did I mention I Bring Sorrow has a starred review from Publishers Weekly?! So, win-win-win! Please scroll down after Kelly's posts to links to everyone else's reviews.


I BRING SORROW 
by Patricia Abbott (short stories)

The short stories in Patricia Abbott's new collection, I Bring Sorrow and Other Stories of Transgression,  are incredibly varied in genre, style, and time period and so rich in unique characters and subject matter, I worry I won't do them justice in just a few paragraphs. But I will do my very best. Perhaps my best bet is to share the impressions that still linger with me after reading this collection.

The last three words of the subtitle: "Stories of Transgression" offer a clue as to the underlying themes and motifs that run through these stories. Almost all the characters have transgressed somehow, gone awry, or off the deep end. There is a haunting sense of lapse and failure, all the more moving because it is so recognizable.

For instance, Andrea, narrator of the first story, "On Pacific Beach," who flies into San Diego periodically to check on her aging homeless mother who no facility can keep off the street for too long and who long ago stopped recognizing her daughter. Andrea's anxiety for her mother's safety is palpable and her feeling of helplessness is universal.

Or Gas, the failing old school fisherman in "Um Peixe Grande" who saves the life of a gangster whose gratefulness is a double-edged sword. Complacency makes Gas eventually ignore his warning first impression of the gangster, and take a reward from him. Gas thinks he can tell good guys from bad guys and friends from enemies. But he's wrong.

And then there's the sci-fi story, "The Annas," set in the year 2097 in a post apocalyptic society where fifty women are taxed with nurturing and preparing fifty android copies of themselves for the new world. Our narrator, the original human Anna is a stickler for excellence and has a rather Eugenicist bent. She takes her role as mentor very seriously and even hatches a plot to overthrow the other mentors. One could say she is a victim of her own success.

One thing is clear from reading these stories: Abbott is not concerned with giving her main characters the moral high ground which is one of the things that makes her stories and her characters so interesting. Another is her obvious mastery of the suspense element. Many of these stories have twists, which I find an added bonus in a short story, especially when it's done well.

Despite their myriad transgressions, the characters in these stories don't just bring sorrow. They bring the heat of human connection with all its jagged edges and the inevitable transgressions.


(Dear FCC: Kelly received an ARC to read for this review. But do you know Kelly? She has strong ideas and can't be budged. She wouldn't review a book she didn't like, ARC or no ARC. 

And now....onto the rest of our reviews. Please click through. You won't want to miss a single one!

MIDDLE GRADE/YOUNG ADULT FICTION BOOK REVIEWS

Jody Feldman: THE LAST BOY AT ST. EDITH'S by Lee Gjersten Malone (MG, contemporary)

Phyllis Wheeler: ALCATRAZ VS THE EVIL LIBRARIANS by Brandon Sanderson (MG, fantasy)

Ellen Booraem: TESS OF THE ROAD by Rachel Hartman  (YA, fantasy )


ADULT FICTION BOOK REVIEWS

Jenn Jilks of Cottage Country: BONE BOX by Faye Kellerman (mystery)

Linda McLaughlin: A CURIOUS BEGINNING by Deanna Raybourn (historical mystery)

Patti Abbott:  THE PERFECT NANNY by Leila Silimani (crime)

Ray Potthoff: THE INVENTION OF WINGS by Sue Monk Kidd (historical)

Sarah Laurence: THE BEAR AND THE NIGHTINGALE by Katherine Arden (fantasy, historical)
                           THE GIRL IN THE TOWER by Katherine Arden (fantasy, historical)
                     
Tanya Sutton: THE LONEY by Andrew Michael Hurley (horror, mystery, historical)


NONFICTION REVIEW

Margy Lutz: GUMBOOT GIRLS by Jane Wilde and Lou Allison (memoir)



Note to Reviewers: Any errors (broken link, missed review, etc), just shoot me an email or leave a comment. Thank you so much for your reviews!


Wednesday, March 7, 2018

The Book Review Club (March 2018)



Welcome to the March edition of The Book Review Club. Some of us are dealing with weather. Some of us aren't. But it's always good to learn of books others have enjoyed. Your To-Be-Read Pile can never be high enough! After my post, please scroll for links to everyone's reviews. Remember to wear green on the 17!




WHAT HAPPENS NEXT 
by Susan Hughes (author)
and Carey Sookocheff (illustrator)

A bully has popped up in my current manuscript. I decided I needed get to know her and her motivations a little better, this character that has unexpectedly taken over pages and somewhat changed the storyline (as bullies are no doubt wont to do!).

So, I read a few books about bullies, fiction and non-fiction. And today I'm reviewing a superb picture book about bullying.

What Happens Next really touched my heart. It's the story of a young boy* who dreads going to school because of Bully B who blocks his way, shoves his books, calls him names. We see how the victim sometimes feels: "Bad. Very bad." We see how the bully's friends respond: "Laugh." We see what others do: "Nothing." Eventually, the child confides in his mother who helps him plan a conversation with the bully about what the two of them, what humans, in general, have in common. And can I just say I love the unconditional love of Sparky, the dog.

*The protagonist could as easily be a girl. We don't learn the child's name. I suspect this ambiguity is intentional. After all, any gender can be bullied. At the end of the book, we do learn the bully's name.

Here's the mother explaining the bully's behavior (and this really spoke to me):
What Mom Says Next:
That everyone has their own way of looking at things and people. That each person's way of looking is made up of where they're standing and how they got there. It's made up of what's in their mind, what's in their heart, and what's in their imagination.

What Happens Next is about empathy and courage and giving power to children and finding commonalities. The ending is not pat, but, instead, encourages healthy conversation for all ages about dealing with bullies. The format is interesting. The illustrations compliment the message.

Heartily recommended. And did I find help for dealing with the bully who wandered into my work-in-progress? I did.

Here's a link to the book trailer: right here

(Dear FCC: Don't fall over in a dead faint, but I actually requested this ARC. Good thing I did because I LOVED the book. Hence, the review.) 

And now....onto the rest of our reviews. Please click through. You won't want to miss a single one!

MIDDLE GRADE FICTION BOOK REVIEWS

Phyllis Wheeler: THE HOSTAGE PRINCE by Jane Yolen and Adam Stemple (fantasy)


ADULT FICTION BOOK REVIEWS

Patti Abbott:  WOMAN IN THE WINDOW by A.J. Finn (thriller)

Stacy of the Cat's Meow: HER BODY AND OTHER PARTIES by Carmen Maria Machado 
                                         (short stories)


NONFICTION REVIEWS

Ellen Booraem: BORN A CRIME by Trevor Noah (memoir)

Jenn Jilks of Cottage Country: -THE PLOT TO HACK AMERICA by Malcolm Nance (political)
                                                  -FIRE AND FURY by Michael Wolff (political)

Linda McLaughlin: DESTINED FOR WAR: CAN AMERICA AND CHINA ESCAPE
                                THUCYDIDES'S TRAP? by Graham Allison (political)

Lucy Sartain of Ranting and Raving: THE RHINO WITH GLUE-ON SHOES
                                                            edited by Lucy H. Spelman and Ted Y Mashima (zoology)

Margy Lutz: THRU-HIKING WILL BREAK YOUR HEART by Carrot Quinn (memoir)

Ray Potthoff: LOST IN THE WILD by Cary J. Griffith  (adventure/survival)                        



Note to Reviewers: Any errors (broken link, missed review, etc), just shoot me an email or leave a comment. Thank you so much for your reviews!

Wednesday, February 7, 2018

The Book Review Club (February 2018)



Welcome to the Feb 2018 edition of The Book Review Club. THIS MONTH MARKS OUR NINE-YEAR ANNIVERSARY! Sorry. I couldn't help but yell. That's a lot of reading and reviewing! Click below my post for links to good reviews of good books! And Happy Belated Groundhog Day!




THE GIRL WITH SEVEN NAMES 
by Hyeonseo Lee (memoir, North Korea)

I gravitate toward books about North Korea. I visited the DMZ and looked across into North Korea. One of my sisters has traveled twice to North Korea to help with food aid. I always wonder if our daughter, adopted as a baby from South Korea, might have relatives in the North.

The Girl with Seven Names is Hyeonsea Lee's memoir of her escape from North Korea to China. She eventually made her way to a life in South Korea. Lee left N. Korea as a seventeen year old!

This book is divided into three sections: Lee's childhood in North Korea, Lee's escape to China and South Korea, Lee's efforts to get her brother and mother to defect to South Korea. Each section is equally riveting.

Lee talks of witnessing her first public execution at age seven. She describes the weekly "life purification sessions" where "everyone took turns to stand up, accuse someone and confess something." She talks about the racism and isolation she faced as an illegal North Korean in China. She bribed officials with the little money she had. She worried constantly about being turned in and then repatriated. She feared for the family she left behind.

Lee had to come to grips with the North Korean propaganda she grew up with. Think of all the unlearning. She fell in love with an American despite the well-known North Korean saying: "Just as a jackal cannot become a lamb, so American imperialists cannot change their rapacious nature."

You may have seen Lee's Ted Talk. Millions have watched it. The link is ... here.

I like the Ted talk. It's 12 or 13 minutes. But the book has so much detail. And it's all those big and little details I love. Such as: "I wanted to be an accordionist. It's a popular instrument in North Korea and a woman who could play it well had no difficulty making a living." A woman can earn a living playing the accordion in North Korea. Who knew?!

I'lll end with this: "People are probably asking themselves why a country such as mine still exists in the world. Perhaps it would be even harder for them to understand that I still love my country and miss it very much. I miss its snowy mountains in winter, the smell of kerosene and burning coal. I miss my childhood there...I should be comfortable with my new life, but I'm still the girl from Hyesan who longs to eat noodles with her family at their favorite restaurant."

(Dear FCC: Keeping it short and sweet: Bought for Kindle)

And now....onto the rest of our reviews. Please click through. You won't want to miss a single one!

MIDDLE GRADE FICTION BOOK REVIEWS

Jody Feldman: THE PURLOINING OF PRINCE OLEOMARGARINE
                         by Mark Twain and Philip Stead with Illustrations by Erin Stead


ADULT FICTION BOOK REVIEWS

Margy Lutz: ARTEMIS by Andy Weird (sci fi)

Ray Potthoff: FRONT by John Sanford (mystery/thriller)

Sarah Laurence: PACHINKO by Min Jin Lee (historical)


NONFICTION REVIEWS

Jenn Jilks of Cottage Country: FANTASYLAND: HOW AMERICA WENT HAYWIRE
                                                  by Kurt Andersen (social commentary)

Lucy Sartain of Ranting and Raving: THE ELEPHANT WHISPERER by Lawrence Anthony
                                                             with Graham Spence (memoir)

Stacy of the Cat's Meow: JUST MERCY by Bryan Stevenson (memoir)



Note to Reviewers: Any errors (broken link, missed review, etc), just shoot me an email or leave a comment. Thank you so much for your reviews!

Wednesday, January 3, 2018

The Book Review Club (January 2018)



Happy New Year! Bonne AnnĂ©e! Frohes Neues Jahr! Blwyddyn Newydd Dda! You get the gist. It's a brand new shiny year. Full of possibilities. And adventures. And books. And, of course, our reviews. Enjoy!


WHITE HEAT 
by M.J. McGrath (adult, crime)

WHITE HEAT is the first of three books in the Edie Kiglatuk mysteries. It received starred reviews and was longlisted for the CWA Gold Dagger Award.

Here's the Amazon plot synopsis: Half Inuit and half outsider, Edie Kiglatuk is the best guide in her corner of the Arctic. But as a woman, she gets only grudging respect from her community's Council of Elders. While Edie is leading two tourists on a hunting expedition, one of them is shot and killed. The Council wants to call it an accident, but Edie and police sergeant Derek Palliser suspect otherwise. When the other tourist disappears, Edie sets off into the far reaches of the tundra for answers.

Who doesn't love a mystery with a no-nonsense, tradition-bucking, bilingual (Inuktitut/English), Arctic hunting guide protagonist who boils iceberg chips for tea and chews wedges of igunaq (fermented walrus gut)? Not saying Edie doesn't have her demons. She does. She battles alcoholism ("The years of drinking had taken away what pride she might once have had.") and harbors mixed feelings about her ex-husband. But our Edie has ethics and courage in spades. When the elders, who "huddled together like a group of harried musk ox" wanted to ignore a qalunaat's (white man's) death, Edie takes matters into her own hands.

As Melanie McGrath, the author researched and wrote THE LONG EXILE, a non-fiction book about Inuit families. So, she definitely knows her stuff! In WHITE HEAT, the Canadian Arctic itself is a character. You practically need to wear a winter coat to read it!

I love everything Arctic. Visiting that area is on my bucket list. But I do believe anyone who enjoys a well-crafted, well-written mystery set in an exotic locale with a spunky, but flawed, heroine will enjoy WHITE HEAT.


(Dear FCC: Bought for my Kindle. Happy New Year!) 

And now....onto the rest of our reviews. Please click through. You won't want to miss a single one!

CHAPTER BOOK/YOUNG ADULT FICTION BOOK REVIEWS
Jody Feldman: JASMINE TOGUCHI: MOCHI QUEEN by Debbi Michiko Florence (chapter bk)

Sarah Laurence: FAR FROM THE TREE by Robin Benway (YA, contemporary)


ADULT FICTION BOOK REVIEWS
Ellen Booraem: GLASS HOUSES by Louise Penny (mystery)

Linda McLaughlin: LADY DARBY MYSTERY SERIES by Anna Lee Huber (historical mystery)

Margy Lutz: A TANGLED WEB by Mike Martin (mystery)

Patti Abbott:  SILENCE OF THE GRAVE by Arnaldur Indriadson (crime)

Stacy of the Cat's Meow: SHARP OBJECTS by Gillian Flynn (psychological thriller)


NONFICTION BOOK REVIEWS
Jenn Jilks of Cottage Country: THE GREAT GOULD by Peter Goddard (biography)

Lucy Sartain of Ranting and Raving: WE'RE GOING TO NEED MORE WINE by Gabrielle Union
                                                             (autobiography)

Ray Potthoff: THE CRUSADES by Thomas Asbridge (history)

Note to Reviewers: Any errors (broken link, missed review, etc), just shoot me an email or leave a comment. Thank you so much for your reviews!