The Quiet Librarian – Allen Eskens

Hana, a Bosnian refugee, dresses in frumpy clothes and stays out of the way as an employee at a library in Minnesota. And then, one day, a detective comes in to ask her about her friend, Amina. She is dead. Her grandson, a seven year old orphan, now has no family. And Hana fears the … Continue reading The Quiet Librarian – Allen Eskens →

Atonement – Ian McEwan (Audio Narrator- Jill Tanner)

Believe me friends, I do still read print! I just tend to zoom through audiobooks at increased speed while getting things done. This time, I turned to a novel that shows up on top {name your number} books of the last {name the number of years or centuries}. I have avoided reading Atonement, because the … Continue reading Atonement – Ian McEwan (Audio Narrator- Jill Tanner) →

Life Hacks for a Little Alien – Alice Franklin (Audio narrated by Sally Phillips)

This book, written in the third person is about a little girl who is neurodivergent being raised by an engineer father and a mother who seems neurotic but in a common way when we first meet her. Hester. That's a spoiler I guess, because at first, we just hear about the child in a very … Continue reading Life Hacks for a Little Alien – Alice Franklin (Audio narrated by Sally Phillips) →

What You Are Looking For Is in the Library – Michiko Aoyama (Audible narrators -Hanako Footman, Susan Momoko Hingley, Kenichiro Thomson, Wilson Ting, Shiro Kawai)

In a ward in Tokyo there is a community building next to the elementary school. The two buildings used to be attached but now, to get to the community building you have to walk around back to the separate entrance. There are free adult classes, a farmers market some days and a large room that … Continue reading What You Are Looking For Is in the Library – Michiko Aoyama (Audible narrators -Hanako Footman, Susan Momoko Hingley, Kenichiro Thomson, Wilson Ting, Shiro Kawai) →

A Love Song for Ricki Wilde – Tia Williams (Audio Narrators: Mela Lee and Preston Butler)

I don't do Romance novels. Oops. This is a lovely and well plotted tale of Richard Wilde, Jr. fourth daughter (Ricki) of the Wilde funeral home chain Wildes -- and the misfit. Ricki's older sisters grew up to run franchises and please their Dad. Their mother just drinks booze these days. Ricki just wants to … Continue reading A Love Song for Ricki Wilde – Tia Williams (Audio Narrators: Mela Lee and Preston Butler) →

The Women – Kristin Hannah (audio narrator Julia Whelan)

Wow. I read The Women via an audio edition. How to start? Not everyone will be able to read this book. It is raw and for many of us who were old enough to be US citizens during the Vietnam war and the years that followed it, this brings home so many issues, some that … Continue reading The Women – Kristin Hannah (audio narrator Julia Whelan) →

David Copperfield – Charles Dickens

Audio format. Narrator: The astounding, incomparable Richard Armitage.After reading Barbara Kingsolver's "Demon Copperhead" (560 pages/21 hours 3 minutes audio)(Another fabulous audiobook), I determined to finally conquer "David Copperfield" (36 hours and 31 minutes/1264 pages) With a writer whose books range from the quick read "A Christmas Carol (144 pages)" to, well, "David Copperfield," I've just … Continue reading David Copperfield – Charles Dickens →

Demon Copperhead – Barbara Kingsolver (Audible)

As a long time Kingsolver fan, I've learned she can take us on journeys wildly unlike the last novel and always move me. I chose to listen to the audio book of Demon Copperhead due to having a lot of driving to do over the last few months. That doubled the blessing with a narrator … Continue reading Demon Copperhead – Barbara Kingsolver (Audible) →

Roses in the Mouth of a Lion -Bushra Rehman (Audible)

I requested and listened to the audio version of Roses in the Mouth of a Lion, the story of Razia, growing up in Corona, Queens, part of a large Muslim immigrant neighborhood. I want to say this immediately: this is definitively one of those times when hearing the author read her novel was a phenomenal … Continue reading Roses in the Mouth of a Lion -Bushra Rehman (Audible) →

The Making of Her – Bernadette Jiwa

Joan Egan grew up poor, living in a house on the Cranmore Housing Estate in Dublin. She was the eldest child, the "mistake" that led to her parent's hasty marriage. Her mother died when she was thirteen. Her father, always a heavy drinker never did well after that . The youngest four children are parceled … Continue reading The Making of Her – Bernadette Jiwa →