What We Can Know is so rewarding a dystopian novel that it is hard to review. In 2119 and beyond, the earth is essentially made up of many islands. Physical infrastructure and documents and artifacts have been lost to the tsunamis that tore through the world. Most of what is left from a historical perspective … Continue reading What We Can Know – Ian McEwan
Author: Emily Leader
I have been an avid reader since Dick and Jane met Sally. At age 7, I read my parents' first edition of "To Kill a Mockingbird." I am a retired lawyer and so read almost only fiction for pleasure. I'm adding in nonfiction these days, largely on social justice matters but also history, biography, and weird topics that catch my imagination. I used to read only serially, one book at a time. Presently, I read paperbacks, hardcovers, listen to audible, listen to CDs and read online through Net Galley. Covid-19 has caused me to read a lot so I have re-upped my Goodreads challenge for 2021 and am starting to review at least my favorite finds annd, perhaps, some stinkers.
Virgil Wander – Leif Enger (Narrator Macleod Andrews)
It is impossible not to use huge mental exclamation points when reading a Leif Enger novel, because his prose is so elegant yet he paints everything that is ordinary with authenticity appropriate to each character, each setting, each story. In 2024, when I read an advanced reader copy of the novel, "I Cheerfully Refuse," Leif … Continue reading Virgil Wander – Leif Enger (Narrator Macleod Andrews)
Deeper than the Ocean – Mirta Ojito (Narrator – Kim Ramirez)
This is one of the best books I've read this year. 10 Stars!! In the early 20th Century, Catalina, lovely young woman/girl lives in the Canary Islands where her family cultivates olive trees. Things are going poorly and her father is ill. Catalina is forced to marry a man who is a good match financially. … Continue reading Deeper than the Ocean – Mirta Ojito (Narrator – Kim Ramirez)
The Land in Winter – Andrew Miller (narrated by author)
The Land in Winter wasn't what I expected…. it was way better than what I expected. Some would call it a domestic drama, which I would have run from and then I would have missed this beautifully written story. It is 1962. The setting is rural Great Britain and the players are ut two couples/four … Continue reading The Land in Winter – Andrew Miller (narrated by author)
George Falls Through Time – Ryan Collett (narrator – Samuel Barnett)
This book was both touching and a hoot. George, a young gay man who was recently fired and who recently went through a break up is presently earning less than a living as a dog walker when two of the dogs he is walking escape. As he dashes into a nearby park to look for … Continue reading George Falls Through Time – Ryan Collett (narrator – Samuel Barnett)
Berlin Shuffle – Ulrich Alexander Boschwitz (narrator – Neil Hellegers)
I'm really annoyed! Ulrich Alexander Boschwitz wrote this amazing novel in 1937 and died 5 years later after publishing only one other novel and I feel like I've been cheated. I want more, more, more of his unique style, his choice of characters and his storytelling. We have in Berlin Shuffle the stories of a … Continue reading Berlin Shuffle – Ulrich Alexander Boschwitz (narrator – Neil Hellegers)
The Forget-me-Not Library – Heather Webber (narrators Hallie Ricardo and Stephanie Willis)
The Forget-Me-Not Library is a sweet and hopeful novel, part coming of age, part magical- realism-light and generally a story about a small town with a lot to give when a person arrives there in need of some special healing. Juliet, a young woman from Michigan, was struck by lightening. She has physically recovered, but … Continue reading The Forget-me-Not Library – Heather Webber (narrators Hallie Ricardo and Stephanie Willis)
Sisters in the Wind – Angeline Boulley (Audio Book Narration by Isabella Star LaBlanc)
Sisters in the Wind is a lovely book, part coming of age, partly about incredible resilience and a lot about trauma. Lucy's very close to her father. He is very socially conservative and rigid but loving in her upbringing. Her mother died when she was very young. But then, her father starts dating for the … Continue reading Sisters in the Wind – Angeline Boulley (Audio Book Narration by Isabella Star LaBlanc)
Happy People Don’t Live Here – Amber Sparks (Audio Narrator – Erin deWard)
Count me as a person who adored this novel! I read the audio version, well narrated by Erin deWard. It is a fantasy in part. The story, which includes some past trauma for a number of the characters which causes them to life in ways that seek to control their environments in odd and arguably … Continue reading Happy People Don’t Live Here – Amber Sparks (Audio Narrator – Erin deWard)
The Turner House – Angela Flournoy (Amazing audio narrator: Adenrele Ojo)
I've taken far too long to review this amazing novel, wanting to do it justice. the Turner house, a small residence on Yarrow Street in Detroit, was home to Francis and Viola and the thirteen children born to them. Francis and Viola grew up in the same Arkansas town and he did right by her … Continue reading The Turner House – Angela Flournoy (Amazing audio narrator: Adenrele Ojo)
They Called me Bookworm 