Another Net Galley find, TWERP is the story of Julian Twerski: a boy growing up in NYC (Queens) in 1969. Julian’s made a major error in judgment and has gotten suspended for bullying another kid (eventually revealed through the story). When he returns to school, his English teacher suggests that he keep a diary of his life and events and tell the story of what happened through his own words (and if he does the journal, he gets out of writing a report on Shakespeare!). Through Julian’s diary we get to know him, his pack of friends, his family, and what life is like for him. He’s a typical sixth grader with a slightly annoying but sometimes helpful older sister. His friends are a garden variety of boys who get into scrapes. He has a crush on a girl in his class (but so does his friend!). He even holds the title of “fastest kid in sixth grade”, but is finding that he might lose that honor this year. All in all, this book made for a great kids’ read: sometimes serious but often funny. I’d happily get it for our school library for our 4th-6th graders. I haven’t read Mr. Goldblatt’s other books (which are for adults) but you can tell he put his heart – and a piece of himself – into Julian’s story.
I grabbed this book from the shelf at the children’s section of the library. I have read most of Lois Lowry’s works, and I did not know this one. It tells the story of Katy Thatcher, a precocious ten-year-old and daughter of the town doctor, growing up at the turn of the 20th century. Katy likes to accompany her father on his rounds and she wants to be a doctor herself when she grows up. She becomes intrigued with Jacob, the adolescent brother of their household help. Jacob is a gentle and shy boy, who doesn’t speak, but has a quiet relationship with animals and a fascination with how things work. Katy reaches out to Jacob to try to befriend him. In time, the book moves to a terrible and tragic conclusion.
I loved this story and the characters in it. One of Lowry’s strengths as a writer has always been character development and this is evident once again here. This book could open some good discussions with students on understanding differences. In the story, Jacob is referred to as “touched”. Today he would most likely be seen as on the spectrum for autism/PDD. Katy’s compassion for him is quite beautiful; however, due to the traumatic ending of this book, I would recommend it for older children, grades 5/6 and up.
I’ve read all the James Patterson and Maxine Paetro “Women’s Murder Club” books. Just out is number twelve: THE 12TH OF NEVER, which I managed to get at the library even though there is a long wait for it. In this installment (number 12 obviously!) Lindsay and Joe have a baby girl. Lindsay is learning to balance the demands of motherhood and the demands of her job. Baby Julie is the light of their lives, but then she falls ill (and that’s all I’m saying about that!).
Meanwhile, down at the precinct, Lindsay is faced with some tough cases. A rather odd English professor comes in to announce that he is dreaming of murders happening. No one really takes him seriously until the murders DO happen, very much the way he predicts they will. This case gets more confounding as time goes on. At the same time, the high-profile girlfriend of a star 49er football player is murdered, and then her body disappears from Lindsay’s best friend and medical examiner, Claire’s, lab. At the same time, Yuki, another murder club member, is prosecuting the case of her career against a sleazy lawyer who is accused of killing his wife and child. And, last but not least, reporter Cindy is having relationship issues with Lindsay’s partner, Richie.
All in all, there’s a lot going on in this novel. It moves quickly and I read it in a day or two. I have to say it wrapped up quickly, especially the missing body/murder part. I still don’t fully understand how the precognition piece and how the murders involved happened. Without saying too much, I will say I found that piece far-fetched. Also (SPOILER ALERT) I found the missing body/missing security guard problem kind of far-fetched, too (everyone seemed to think of the guard as a suspect and not a potential victim – perhaps to create another suspect?). However, overall I enjoyed this read, as I have the other ones in the series!
I have really enjoyed the Maggie Hope cozy mystery series by Susan Elia MacNeal and was thrilled to get the latest one through Net Galley. In this third installment (the previous two were reviewed earlier), expert mathematician and British spy Maggie is being dropped over enemy lines into WWII Germany. In a parallel story, her mother’s daughter (Maggie’s half-sister) is working as a nurse and discovers that children with developmental and physical disabilities are being secretly sent to gas chambers by the Nazi’s and vows to work against the Nazi’s (and her mother). In yet another storyline, Maggie’s dear friend David is being pressured by his parents to marry, but he is gay. And finally Maggie’s former fiance who everyone thinks is dead awakes and finds himself in a German hospital.
What will happen? Will Maggie survive behind enemy lines? Will Elise, her half-sister, save the children? Will Maggie and Elise meet? Will David have to renounce the man he loves and enter into a marriage of convenience? And will Maggie find herself in a love triangle with John, her lost love, and Hugh, her current flame? Of course, you need to read to find out!
I really enjoy this series. It’s a historical cozy, my favorite kind, and Ms. MacNeal certainly does her research! I have chatted with her on Twitter and Facebook and even asked if she time travelled in order to get the details so right (FYI – she doesn’t). The Maggie Hope books are fun to read and are one of my favorite genres (WWII). I particularly like how the story continues across books. I recommend them to those who like cozies, especially of this period. Looks like another book will be coming out next year!
Thank you to NG and Bantam Publishers for my copy!
As you know, I love, love, love Hamish Macbeth and MC Beaton’s series of cozies about him. In this latest one, Hamish solves the mysterious death of a woman who first reports her sketchbook missing, then winds up dead. There are lots of suspects but not many motives. Who did she see and why would they feel she was a threat to them? One note to regular readers of this series: Hamish’s love life is again center stage as he struggles with the Priscilla/Elspeth love triangle and a new fling. Personally, I’d like to see him make up his mind! Not my favorite in the series, but a fun, quick read nonetheless. I got my copy from the library!
For my recent trip I purchased three Maeve Binchy stories for my kindle. I had wanted to read “A Week in Winter”, Ms. Binchy’s final book. “A Week in Summer” was a short story that was available. “The Builders” is more of a novella, written as part of an adult literacy campaign in Ireland. I enjoyed all three!
In the short story “A Week in Summer”, a married couple decide they will spend a week’s holiday one summer in order to recharge their middle-aged lives. They find themselves in the midst of a town-wide yearly festival where they meet new friends and discover new interests while rediscovering their relationship. This was a sweet story that was only 99 cents on Kindle!
Next I read the short book, “The Builders”. This less-than-one-hundred-pages novella tells the story of Nan Ryan, a middle-aged widow who takes an interest in the builders working next door to her.Who exactly were the people who had lived there and died so tragically? Who is fixing up the house and for what reason? What will the builders find? Nan builds a friendship with one of the men working there and together they analyze and discuss the situation. Another typical Binchy story – this one was written as part of an adult literacy campaign contribution.
Finally I read Maeve Binchy’s final book: “A Week in Winter”. I was so sad as I read this novel, knowing it was her last. It was typical Binchy fare: a young woman who has been unlucky in love returns home to Ireland and opens what is essentially a B&B in order to give folks a relaxing ‘week in winter’. Chicky, the proprietress, is the common link running through this story as each chapter focuses on one of the members of the household or one of the guests for that first week in winter in which they open. There are two doctors who are escaping a tragedy, a crotchety older woman, a young man who loves music, a librarian who has second sight, and several more. We get to know each one as their stories intertwine.
I have always loved Binchy’s books. I can’t say which is my favorite: “Light a Penny Candle”? “The Glass Lake”? “Evening Class”? Her older works I enjoyed more than her more recent ones (“Quentin’s” and onward). This is classic Binchy however. There’s a warmth and a goodness to these stories that, while I am sure some folks might find it cloying, gives me comfort. As I read the last page of this novel (or the last screen I should say, as it was on kindle), I had an image of Chicky standing at the door of her inn and Maeve standing next to her – welcoming travellers to their little bit of Ireland.
RIP, dear Maeve, and know that your stories live on!
I picked up this short mystery while at the library and read it on the plane to California two weeks ago. At first I was a bit skeptical – Willa Cather and Edith Lewis solving mysteries?? But I have to say, I really enjoyed this delightful delving into the personalities of Willa and Edith and the “Cottage Girls” of the early 20th century.
About fifteen years ago I went through a “Cather phase”, where I read all her writings and some biographies on her. I found her so interesting and such a gifted writer. Edith Lewis, for those who don’t know, was Willa’s partner and closest friend. This book made them come alive, along with their other female friends, a group of independent and educated women who summered on Grand Manan in the 1920’s and were known collectively as the “Cottage Girls”.
The mystery itself was enjoyable and well-plotted, I thought. In essence, Edith is painting one day when she witnesses a body plunging off a cliff to the rocks below. Is it an accident – or murder?
Highly recommended to those who enjoy this historical genre, and to fans of great women authors! I’ll be curious to see if Ms. Hallgarth has this as the start of a series or not. She is an expert on Cather and clearly “knows” her well.
I’ve read all of Tracy Chevalier’s books, so I was excited to get THE LAST RUNAWAY from Amazon as a treat for myself (SOME SPOILERS AHEAD). In this interesting take on the pre-Civil War experience, Honor Bright, an English Quaker, has come to Ohio with her sister who is to marry. Sadly her sister dies during the journey and Honor arrives alone, with few prospects and only knowing her was-once-to-be-brother-in-law. She first stays in town with a milliner, Belle, who is as saucy and tough as she is kind-hearted. Honor sews for her and rests up before the rest of her journey. However, Belle’s brother, Donovan, is lurking around. He’s a slave catcher and he is relentless in his job. Honor finds herself strangely drawn towards him, while she is at the same time repulsed by his heartless undertakings.
When Honor finally arrives at the was-once-to-be-brother-in-law’s house, his brother has also just died and the widow is keeping house with him. Since two’s company and three’s a crowd, Honor jumps at the chance of marrying a kind Quaker man (Jack Haymaker) and joins his family of dairy farmers: a surly mother and a quiet, unfriendly sister. But Honor is still thinking about the runaway slaves that she sees coming through Ohio, and she wants to help. This causes a huge conflict with her family, because of past difficulties they suffered for helping slaves escape. Will Honor follow her conscious? Or will she bend to the will of the Haymakers? And what will become of the tension between her and Donovan?
As mentioned before, I’ve read all of Chevalier’s books, but this one seems different to me. Can’t quite put my finger on it, but the writing seemed simpler (not that that’s a bad thing, just an observation). I liked this story and I certainly kept reading, but – to be honest – sometimes Honor Bright irritated me. She seemed to just go through the motions of life (until the end), while men regularly fall in love with her and women are jealous of her. She is meek and passive and then does what she wants. She retreats into silence for a while to basically punish her family. She leaves her husband and ultimately makes him chose the life he’s carved out for himself or life with her. I found her selfish and self-centered and immature. The ending held some brightness to it, and I had hope that Honor would go on and become more woman and less girl.
Fans of Chevalier or of mid-1800’s US historical fiction will most probably enjoy this novel!
Happy Spring! This is our front door. Happily you can see there is no snow on it, or near it, or leading up to it – and my (faux) forsythia wreath looks quite cheerful! In New England we have about three weeks of spring and then – bam! – time for humidity and summer. 🙂
Saturday Snapshot is hosted by Alyce at http://www.athomewithbooks.net You can participate by posting an appropriate-for-all picture you or a friend/family member took, then linking it to Alyce’s site.
The other night the moon was spectacular! I don’t have the best resolution here, but this is what it looked like when we got home at about 7 PM.
You can participate in Saturday Snapshot hosted by Alyce at www.athomewithbooks.net . Just post a picture you or a family member/friend have taken and link it to her site (appropriate for all viewers!).
