I found A Spy in the Struggle a little puzzling. The concept was unique and I like how it touched on real issues and was topical (there is even a Covid-19 reference) but the main character was so flat. Her thinking was very black and white and childlike. It was very difficult to believe she … Continue reading
I’ve read quite a few books that I haven’t written about here over the last few weeks. We had a super busy weekend (mushroom festival! fancy dinner out! Ft McHenry! Korean food!) followed by having a horrible cold for an entire week that I am still getting over. I also did a lot of cooking … Continue reading
I’ve been reading this series since I was about 12 so of course, I pre-ordered Y is for Yesterday almost 9 months ago and read it the day it came out. I’ve always enjoyed Kinsey Millhone and her weird peanut butter and pickle sandwiches and affinity for the elderly. Kinsey was in her early 30s … Continue reading
I’ve read that The Best Kind of People has been optioned by Sarah Polley as a movie and reading it, I can totally see why that would happen. It almost reads like a script as-is (Zoe Whittall does write for television so that makes sense)–a valued member of the community and high school teacher who … Continue reading
Another book I had mixed feelings about. It was a mashup of a memoir of a woman who never married and the profiles of 5 (6?) “spinsters” throughout history that Kate Bolick found inspiring. Looking at GoodReads, it seems like a lot of people liked the historical woman part and didn’t love the memoir bits. … Continue reading
A Spool of Blue Thread was not my favorite Anne Tyler. I always liked Ladder of Years best, personally, although now I see the protagonist who seemed like a real, old, established adult to me when I first read it was only supposed to be 40. Oy. Living in Baltimore, I do like to read books that … Continue reading
I came across this book because the author is the father of the girl who wrote the memoir of growing up in the Chelsea. I googled her parents because I was intrigued by who would raise a girl who graduated high school in 2016 and put out a memoir shortly after. Her mom is an … Continue reading
I have read all of Nick Hornby’s books even the music essay ones and somehow it took me until now to read Funny Girl. I guess my library hiatus had more casualties than I thought. I enjoyed the beginning of the book. Barbara from Blackpool goes from being Miss Blackpool for an hour to … Continue reading
I think I am getting old because I spent the whole book thinking “where are your parents?”. I’ve read a couple Megan Abbott books and they are generally pretty good. YA but long, well written and a little dark. Dare Me is the story of two best friends, their cheerleading squad and the new, troubled … Continue reading
After reading an exhaustive history of Southern food and some pretty serious memoirs about mental illness I thought I’d go for something lighter. Oddly, The Perfect Neighbors took longer to read than all of those previous books. I have no idea why! The writing was pretty simple and the plot wasn’t terribly complex. I didn’t love the … Continue reading
