Peace Like a River by Leif Enger: Book Review

Synopsis from GoodReads: Born with no air in his lungs, it was only when Reuben Land’s father, Jeremiah, picked him up and commanded him to breathe that Reuben’s lungs filled. Reuben struggles with debilitating asthma from then on, making him a boy who knows firsthand that life is a gift, and also one who suspects […]

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Ahab’s Wife by Sena Jeter Naslund: Book Review

Ahab's Wife by Sena Jeter Naslund Book Cover

Synopsis from the book cover: From the opening line–“Captain Ahab was neither my first husband nor my last”–you will know that you are in the hands of a master storyteller and in the company of a fascinating woman hero.  Inspired by a brief passage in Moby-Dick, Sena Jeter Naslund has created an enthralling and compellingly […]

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The Postmistress by Sarah Blake: Book Review

5 Stars. Beautiful. I opened this novel, already in love with the cover, and fell in love with the writing contained within. It’s not a beauty that keeps you at arm’s distance. It’s a beauty that seductively whispers, “Come closer. Read what I have to say. See what I’m showing you.” And then it […]

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War for the Oaks by Emma Bull: Book Review

War for the Oaks by Emma Bull Book Cover

Eddi McCandry is a rocker with a big heart. She attracts the attention of the Seelie Court and her life is turned upside down. I absolutely loved this. If you know me, and maybe if you don’t, you know that Charles de Lint is my favorite author. This is something very much in the same […]

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Persuasion by Jane Austen: Book Review

5 Stars. My favorite Austen! Captain Wentworth! *sigh* Or is it *swoon*? This was a nice blend of Austen’s pointed social commentary and a (bitter)sweet romance. Anne’s family is just awful. They are silly, vain and entirely too class-conscious. They insist on their “inferiors” showing them the proper amount of deference and […]

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Fair and Tender Ladies by Lee Smith: Book Review

I’m an Appalachian mountain girl. I felt like I knew Ivy from the first sentence. She truly seemed to come to life on the pages. I came along a few generations after her time, but I felt like she could be one of my grandmothers. She talked the way I probably still talk 🙂 Education […]

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A Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly: Book Review

Mattie Gokey is an intelligent high school senior living in rural New York in 1906. As this book unfolds, we are following two different, intertwined arcs of Mattie’s life: the earlier months when she is desperate to get to college and the later months when she’s working at a summer lake resort where a young […]

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The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan: Book Review

The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan Book Cover

Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief hits theaters today. I have to admit that I’m pretty excited to see it. I loved the book, the cast is amazing, and the trailer is exciting. I just wish that they had found an actor who is actually Percy’s age to play Percy. He’s what–12 in […]

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Soulless by Gail Carriger: Book Review

I have waited entirely too long to write this review and gotten too deeply involved in Ken Follett’s World Without End, so this review is going to suck a little. Which is a pity because I had thought of all kinds of witty things I was going to write and now I’ve lost them. Miss […]

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Anne of Green Gables by L. M. Montgomery: Book Review

My favorite book growing up was Anne of Green Gables by L. M. Montgomery. It’s still one of my all-time favorite books. I have to confess that the first time I tried to read it, I thought it was boring. I’d seen the movie somewhere and grabbed the book at the library, and I think […]

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