Paperback Archives - Page 17 of 27

The Map of Love by Ahdaf Soueif: Book Review

The Map of Love tells two stories. Primarily, it is about Anna Winterbourne, living in the early 1900s, and her fascination with Egypt. In the present, Isabel Parkman and Amal al-Ghamrawi have found a trunk of Anna’s journals and letters and set out to piece together her story, while living their own. The writing in this book was beautiful. There were some parts where the author seemed to be trying to show what a colorful, vibrant place her Egypt is and those just glowed. But my problem with beautiful writing is that I very often get bogged down and get bored and wish I could just get on with the story. I wish it didn’t happen, but it does. That happened for me here. I really enjoyed reading Anna’s story. She’s an interesting, brave woman who isn’t afraid to break out of the mold that’s been made for her. Unfortunately, I couldn’t stand Isabel and I was indifferent to Amal. I’m not exactly sure what the point of the book was. There definitely was a message, I just can’t decide how to take it. As an American reading a book by an Egyptian author, I’m afraid of misreading something. But, right or wrong, what I took away was the author trying to tell me that there’s more to her country than what I see in the news, and the problems that exist began in colonial times under British rule, but now under their own rule they aren’t doing any better. The poor are still oppressed and nothing seems to be changing. I hope I didn’t read all that wrong. That being said, I got bogged down in the politics, both present and past. I don’t know anything about Egyptian history and it felt like that was almost necessary to be…

Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi: Book Review

4 Stars. I just read Art Spiegelman’s Maus about a month ago and loved it. I thought I would go ahead and give this other highly-acclaimed graphic novel/memoir a try. I enjoyed it, if that’s the correct word, but it didn’t affect me quite the same way Maus did. I’m not too sure why. Maybe it’s because I know more about WWII than [...]

Moloka’i by Alan Brennert: Book Review

Seven-year-old Rachel Kalama is living in Honolulu in 1893. Her life is punctuated with a child's hopes and dreams and drama. Her father is a sailor, and she loves it when he comes home on leave, mostly because she's excited to see him, but also because she loves to hear his stories about the wider world and for the exotic dolls he brings home to her. Then she's diagnosed with leprosy. Native Hawaiians are incredibly susceptible to the disfiguring, deadly disease. To prevent the spread, all who are diagnosed are sent to Kalaupapa, a lepers' colony on the island of Moloka'i. This sounds a little depressing. Seven-year-old girl sent away from all her friends and family to await death. But Rachel is stronger than that. She is lucky that has a very strong resistance to the disease, and she has a form that is slow-moving anyway. She has a hard time at first (who wouldn't in her shoes?) but she forms her own family in the colony, and she chooses to live. I loved her. I loved that she never gave up hope, that she lived a life that was as normal as it could be, she loved to read, she loved to surf, and she loved her chosen family. I loved that as she grew older she fought hard for improvements to conditions in the colony. She was a heart of this community. She always dreamed of and longed for the wider world. When something happens in her life that would have broken many women, she hurt but she kept on hoping. I missed her when I finished this book. Rachel was the biggest draw of the book for me, but I also enjoyed reading about this part of history. I had never heard about it until I came…

Kushiel’s Dart by Jacqueline Carey: Book Review

This started out a little slow for me. It dragged along for about the first 150 pages. Then the action started and I couldn't put it down. To oversimplify the plot, this is the story of Phèdre, a masochist who sleeps with her patrons not only for money, but also for state secrets. So, there were [...]

Rising Tide by John M. Barry: Book Review

Telling the story of an epic flood of the Mississippi River in 1927, this book explores the early history of flood control efforts and a rivalry that made flood controls at the time practically a joke, the politics involved in decisions for handling the flood itself, the politics of disaster relief, and the impact of the flood into the future. It's too much. There is a ton of interesting detail in this book, but I got bogged down in the details. Any one of the above aspects of the flood would have made an interesting, shorter book on its own. Putting them all together made me read at a stupefying pace and left me confused as to who was who and what was going on where. Just too much. However. The author makes a lot of good points. He asserts that the flood was responsible for hundreds of thousands of African Americans migrating out of the Mississippi River valley, the slow decline of New Orleans, the death of a way of life in the South, the eventual shift of the black vote to Democrats, the beginnings of big government in America, and could someday lead to the mouth of the Mississippi transferring over to the Atchafalaya. It's interesting to see how one event led to so many changes in America. Reading this as the Mississippi is currently having another epic flood is interesting too. I have to say that I've gotten pretty good at keeping my head in the sand when it comes to national news, but this flood has even made it into my awareness. Today's flood is being compared to the flood of 1927. I read a brief article about it before I wrote this review, and I now have an understanding of the flood control measures that…

Without Reservations by Alice Steinbach: Book Review

Journalist Alice Steinbach decided that she was going to take a break from the life she was living. She was happy, but she felt that she needed some time to get acquainted with herself now that her two sons were grown. So she planned an open-ended months-long trip to Europe. She had only the vaguest of itineraries and very few travel reservations. She went to Paris, London, Oxford, Milan, Venice, Rome, Siena, and Asolo. I genuinely liked the Alice Steinbach I found in these pages. She is intelligent, educated, and interested. My copy is littered with post-it flags marking books she mentions that I have to read or artists whose work I want to look up. She is curious and she is friendly and she is a traveler, not a tourist. My Post-It Flags Her writing is beautiful. I've had a sort of "I'd like to go to Paris but, you know. That reputation Parisians have" attitude for a while. Within pages, I was dying to go. The city came alive for me as she described it. I want to follow in her footsteps and take the time to just stand in the light in the chapel of Sainte-Chappelle. I want to buy a ridiculously expensive French dress. I want to see the Carré Rive Gauche celebrate Five Extraordinary Days. Ms. Steinbach is a curious, friendly traveler. She strikes up friendships wherever she goes and writes meaningfully about the people she meets. She is willing to learn whatever they teach her either directly or indirectly. Paris was the strongest section, but I enjoyed her other destinations as well. She dislikes Rome, for a very good reason, but I wish she had liked it. I somehow loved the city when I visited. Each chapter begins with a picture from a postcard…

The Battle of the Labyrinth by Rick Riordan: Book Review

Annabeth has finally gotten her own quest. She must lead a group through the Labyrinth to find Daedalus, its creator, and ask for help defending the camp from Luke and Kronos's minions. She's only supposed to ask two people to help her, but she insists that Percy, Grover, and Tyson all come along. Of course the Labyrinth is as confusing as expected, full of traps, pitfalls, and Kronos's monsters. I was glad to have Annabeth back! I really missed her in The Titan's Curse, and this time she was practically the star of the show. But she's crazy-jealous and that did get a little old. I don't blame her. But, still, this is Annabeth. I don't associate insecurity with her. I don't know that I have a whole lot different to say from my reviews of the other books in the series. I still love these characters, I still love Percy's narration, and I still frantically turn pages to get to the end. I did love the way Daedalus and the Labyrinth were portrayed. I had forgotten that he created the Labyrinth in the first place. The emotion in these "kid's books" always surprises me. There's the adrenaline from the battles and humor from Percy being a smartass. But this one had some genuinely sad and bittersweet moments too. Again, highly recommended for "kids" of all ages. My reviews of The Lightning Thief, The Sea of Monsters and The Titan's Curse. Read an excerpt. Find author Rick Riordan on his website, his blog, Twitter, and Facebook. Buy The Battle of the Labyrinth at Malaprop’s | Better World Books I have an affiliate relationship with Malaprop's, my local independent bookstore, and Better World Books. I will receive a small commission at no cost to you if you purchase books through links…

Mary, Called Magdalene by Margaret George: Book Review

This is the story of Mary Magdalene's entire life, from childhood to her death. I enjoyed seeing this controversial historical figure in her own element, with no one sitting in judgment of who she was and her relationship to Jesus. The woman who emerged from these pages was initially very troubled. She was doing her best, but she was literally plagued by demons. She met Jesus when she had given up all hope. He gave her her life back, but her old life didn't want her back. Her family was ashamed of her, partially because of the time she had spent alone with unrelated men, and partly because she believed Jesus's message. With nowhere else to go, she became one of his first followers and traveled and worked miracles in His name. My problem was that it was too long. Had it been about half this size, it would have been perfect. I started to feel like this whole group was wandering up and down Israel without any real idea what they were doing. There are only so many pages of that I can read. I haven't read very many historical fiction books set around Jesus and his apostles, so I liked seeing all of them as "real" people, in language I could understand. I had a much better idea of their individual personalities after finishing this. I'll be the first to admit that I'm no Biblical scholar, but I feel that the author stayed true to the sense we get of them in Scripture. I also liked seeing what everyday life was like in those times. I especially liked reading about women's lives. Since I mentioned the relationship with Jesus, I'll say that I thought it was pretty delicately handled. I am pretty open-minded, but it all felt plausible…

The House on Tradd Street by Karen White: Book Review

Melanie Middleton is an excellent Realtor in the exclusive district of Charleston known as South of Broad, yet she hates the houses she sells. She sees the old mansions as termite-infested money pits. Still, the money is good and a girl's gotta eat, right? One day she is summoned to the home of elderly Nevin Vanderhorst at 55 Tradd Street. After a disconcerting meeting in which Mr. Vanderhorst only seems concerned in finding out if Melanie can see the ghost of his mother in the front yard (she can, but only admits it reluctantly), he sends her on her way. Days later, she finds out the old man has passed away and left his historic home to her--if she wants it. He has left behind a letter explaining some family history and asking her to find out what happened to his mother when he was 8 years old. Mrs. Vanderhorst disappeared and was never seen again. Well, who can resist a plea like that, from practically beyond the grave? Certainly not Melanie, who has a big heart that she likes to hide behind her career-woman persona. With some loyal, talented friends, Melanie sets out to restore the house and solve the mystery. Charleston and ghosts are a perfect fit. (There's a very long story that I won't get into here about a ghost tour I went on in the city. Needless to say, my husband will be going on any future ghost tours alone. No, I didn't see a ghost.) One of the first things anyone thinks of in connection with Charleston is the beautiful old homes. So this was a very atmospheric book that had me ready to drive on down to Charleston for another visit. I think my one problem is that the characters were a little...expected? That's…

Maus II: A Survivor’s Tale: And Here My Troubles Began by Art Spiegelman: Book Review

This is the continuation of the true story of Vladek Spiegelman's survival as a Jew in WWII Poland. Most of what I wrote in my review of Maus I still stands, but there’s a bit more of the author’s feelings included. You can see the catharsis he’s going through as he writes this novel. He’s painfully honest about the conflicting feelings he has toward his father and his mother. Again, most of Vladek’s survival relied on luck, but I was left in awe of his ingenuity and his talent for survival. But the man would drive me crazy. I was left wondering if he was the way he was because of what he went through or if he was just born that way. This book touches on prejudices we still have today, even people who should know better. I have to admit that I was welling up before I had read one word of the story--and I'm not a crier. Maus I and Maus II are just such powerful books. Still highly, highly recommended. Reviewed August 14, 2009 Read an excerpt. Buy Maus II: A Survivor's Tale: And Here My Troubles Began at Malaprop’s | Better World Books I have an affiliate relationship with Malaprop's, my local independent bookstore, and Better World Books. I will receive a small commission at no cost to you if you purchase books through links on my site.