Book Nook Cafe discussion

Here is the Folder and thread to tell us what your monthly reads for March
2025 were.

Please provide:
~ A GoodReads link
~ A few sentences telling us how you felt about the book.
~ How would you rate the book

Here are my March reads.

Hitler's People: The Faces of the Third Reich by Richard J. Evans
Format: eBook
Non Fiction
Rating: 2/5 Did not meet my expectations

This book is a series of bios on the major players and some not so well know who bought into the whole Nazi philosophy. It seeks to explain who were the Nazis and what motivated them.

My main issue is the writing style. I found it to be very dry. You could probably read the Wikipedia on each person and get the same info. The book is around 500 pages. I think it needed to be edited way down. Additionally, I don't think he was able to adequately address his main premise regarding what caused these people to commit war crimes. Perhaps that is an unanswerable question.

Healthy Brain, Happy Life by Wendy Suzuki
Format: Audio Book
Non Fiction
Rating: 3/5 Good

Dr. Wendy Suzuki is an award winning neuroscientist. She is a professor at the New York University Center for Neural Science.

In this book she experiments on herself to show brain plasticity. That is the brain's ability to adapt and change its structure and function throughout life. The book is part memoir and part science. The science is basic and accessible to the average reader.

At first I wasn't sure where this book was going. She explains that she is forty years old, overweight, shy, workaholic. She also has a limited social life. During the course of the book she demonstrates that change is possible as she overcame most of these problems.

She explains that exercise is key for brain health. I also appreciated that the first things she tries, doesn't always work out. However, she doesn't give up. She pushes herself to step outside her comfort zone and and makes herself do things to overcomer her shyness.

I listened to the audio. She is an excellent narrator. She is clear and modulates her voice well.

I thought the book was informative. I appreciated the simple way she explains the science of how the brain and memory function. I found her to be inspiring because we learn that we do have the capacity to change even in later life due to neuroplasticity of the brain. If you are just starting out with an exercise or a meditation practice, this book may well give you the motivation you are seeking.

The Only One Left by Riley Sager
eBook
Fiction
Rating: 2/5

I thought the first half of the book was good. It had a fun gothic vibe.

It's about a young caregiver, Kit, who was accused of leaving meds out for her ill mother to commit suicide. There wasn't enough evidence to convict her. She lives with her dad and they don't get along. She needs a job and the only one she can get is to be a caregiver for a women, Lenora Hope, who had a stroke and can't speak or move. The women is accused of killing her parents and sister.

The book is 400 pages. One hundred too much, IMO. However, that wasn't my main issue. The second half of the book takes so many ridiculous twists and turns and becomes so convoluted that is hard to follow. It became difficult to keep track of the characters. The numerous twists are so cockamamie it almost became laughable.

I am in the minority opinion on this one. So your millage may vary.

The Message by Ta-Nehisi Coates
eBook
Non Fiction
Rating 3/5

This is part memoir and part travelogue. It's comprised of four parts or essays. Coates discusses his experiences in Dakar, Senegal; Columbia, SC; and Palestine. He also talks about what it means to him to be a Black writer.

I think the effort and time one puts into reading the book is worthwhile and certainly timely given current events. The viewpoint it contains is important and one that the general public doesn't often hear in the main stream media.

However, if you haven't read this author before, I would recommend reading his other book first. Between the World and Me.

An Abundance of Katherines by John Green
Format: Audio Book
Fiction
Rating 2/5

I enjoyed this audiobook. However, what really made the book was the narrator, Jeff Woodman. I know if I read this one, I wouldn't have enjoyed it half as much.

This is a YA book. So I am not the target audience.

The book follows teen Colin Singleton, who is doesn't have much luck in the girlfriend department. He has been dumped by 19 girls named Katherine, Hence the title. His best friend is Hassan Harbish. They decide to take a road trip. They end up in rural Tennessee town called Gutshot.

The book was interesting and at times funny. However, it also was a bit slow and unrealistic at times. The first half was good but the second half disappointing.

The Art of Power: My Story as America's First Woman Speaker of the HouseNancy Pelosi
Format: eBook
nonfiction
Rating: 4/5

Nancy Pelosi was elected the 52nd Speaker of the House in 2007. She was the first women Speaker. This memoir covers events during that time.

The first chapter deals with the horrendous attack on her 83 year old husband in 2022. She wasn't home and her husband was in bed asleep. The attacker came into the home looking for her. He hit Paul Pelosi in the head with a hammer. He had a fractured skull and other injuries that required surgery. He still suffers from headaches and dizziness. The hand surgery he required has left him unable to do simple tasks like button his shirt. There is also the mental anxiety that I doubt one every gets over. His attacker was sentenced in 2024 to thirty years in prison.

The rest of the book covers the January 6th insurrection, the Iraq war, Covid, 9/11, 2008 financial crisis and the Afghanistan war to name a few topics.

The book gives you a good view into the personalities, politics and the legislative process, including what went on behind the scenes. It's very insightful.

The book is well written and easy to understand. There are also photos

Source Code: My Beginnings by Bill Gates
Format: eBook
Non fiction Memoir
Rating: 3/5

This is a memoir by William Henry Gates III, known as Trey to his family. This book mostly covers his childhood and college years. It is the first of three planned memoirs by Gates. The second will cover his years at Microsoft and the third his philanthropy.

His father was a partner in a law firm. His mother was on board of directors for First Interstate BancSystem and the United Way. I found her to be what we would call today a "Tiger Mom". She was very strict and expected her kids to excel. Bill, however, chaffed at her rules.

Gates was fortunate that he went to an exclusive private boys school and had the benefits a wealthy family brings. He says, today he would probably be diagnosed on the autism spectrum. Gates says, his interests were reading, math and being alone in his head.

He definitely put the work in. Gates unquestionably had drive and grit. It appears he slept little. Computers and coding became his life.

I think people who are interested in coding and computers will find the book intersting.

Everything Is Tuberculosis by John Green
Format: Audio book
Non Fiction
Rating: 5/5

The audiobook is narrated by John Green. He does a wonderful job.

TB is a bacterial infection that primarily affects the lungs. Tuberculosis is the deadliest infectious disease in the world. Aside from the few years were Covid took the dubious honors, TB kills the most people. The sad part is that no one need die of this disease. Unfortunately, there is a wide disparity between the care given in wealthy countries and poor ones.

In 2019, John Green met Henry Reider, a young tuberculosis patient at a Hospital in Sierra Leone. They became good friends. We learn more about TB through Henry's personal journey.

The book is very accessible to the average reader. It's only around 200 pages. This an important book and I absolutely recommend it to all.

Hello everyone! For the month of March, I read a grand total of four books.

My first book this month was Hatchet by Gary Paulsen. I wrote an entire review on it, which you can read here.

This is a book with a very simple plot: A boy named Brian tried to survive in the wilderness as he awaits rescue.

The plot may be very simple, but by God, this book really takes advantage. For one thing, the way Brian adapts, the way he utilizes the resources he does have, and the way he does his best to remain hopeful makes for something that's not only believable, but fascinating as well. Like, if a kid like Brian were actually put into this situation, this is how they would most likely handle it.

Speaking of survival, I really love how the book took a relatively simple location like an "L-Shaped" lake and gave it so much importance in Brian's efforts to survive. Also, (view spoiler)[through the survival pack Brian finds in the downed plane (hide spoiler)], this book makes a really profound point about how having (view spoiler)[the survival pack (hide spoiler)] from the get go would've fulfilled Brian's needs at the cost of learning how to be self-sufficient and capable. But it doesn't feel like its pulling it out of thin air because the reader actually sees Brian struggle but also become a more capable and independent individual.

However, the one issue I do have is that the divorce/affair element is really underdeveloped and felt like little more than a way to kick off the plot rather than a way to further develop Brian and his family.

Rating: A-

The next book I read was If We Survive by Andrew Klavan. My review on it can be found here.

What starts out for Will, Meredith, Jim and a few others as a job rebuilding a school in a poor South American village turns into a fight for their life as they try to escape the country from violent revolutionaries.

When it comes to the characters, this book absolutely knocks it out of the park. I think my favorites are Will, Meredith, and Jim. From being fun to being a badass who steps up in spite of their fear and tragic backstory to being someone who evolves in an unexpected but welcome way, they all have something unique and interesting to offer. On top of that, the pacing is intense and it's not afraid to respectfully handle the darker topics it tackles.

That being said, I really didn't care for how it would rely on contrived coincidences to get the main characters out of trouble at points. It just felt cheap and something that the book should've been above doing.

Rating: A-

Another book I read in March was Immortal Lycanthropes by Hal Johnson. Full review here.

The plot of this book is kind of hard to explain, but the best way I can describe it is that a disfigured kid named Myron ends up going on this cross country quest, interacting with were-people called Immortal Lycanthropes, getting into all kinds of misadventures, and trying to figure what type of Immortal Lycanthrope he is.

Despite the hard to describe plot, this was actually a pretty cool book. One thing that I really enjoyed was how the little spins this book put on its shapeshifting system were creative, but still made sense and (seeing as how there can only be one Immortal Lycanthrope per species) allowed the reader to try and figure out what animal Myron is. I always love when a story can put its own little twist on shapeshifting and have it work and here, it's no exception.

Oh and I have to talk about the narrator (who is not Myron). The narrator really takes this story to the next level by giving the book this blend of elegance and humor. Speaking of elegance, not only are the illustrations fantastic in their own right, but they really mesh with the narrator's style. The ending is also a major highlight for me because it's just so satisfying and surprising.

The one thing I wasn't too crazy about was the excessive and ridiculous amount of times Myron got knocked out or passed out. Like, you could genuinely make a drinking game out of it and actually get super drunk. To me, it just felt really repetitive and really lazy, as if the author was struggling to think of ways to move the plot along.

Rating: A-

The final book I read for this month was Mask of The Deer Woman by Laurie L. Dove. I have an entire review on it here if you wish to read it.

So this book centers around Carrie Starr, a former member of the Chicago police force who, after being terminated from her position, is forced to return to her father's rez and investigate the disappearance of rez girl Chenoa, as well as investigate other disappearances and stuff. Oh and there's also a vigilante spirit called the Deer Woman.

Now, on the surface, this has all the makings of a phenomenal book and it does have a number of things going for it. For example, the prologue and the first two chapters do such a wonderful job establishing the plot and characters in a way that doesn't spoil everything, the big reveal was surprising but made sense in hindsight, and Junior was a very flawed yet fascinating and likable character.

However, it just ended up being a major letdown.

One of my biggest gripes is that Carrie herself is a dispicable character. I think my actual review describes her best: "She's either drunk, high, starved, or some combination almost all the time and she barely gives a shit about the investigation. Hell, in chapter twenty-five, Carrie deliberately shoots at a spot inches away from a dog to try and get it to stop barking when firing a warning shot into the ground would've accomplished the same thing. Now this moment wouldn't have been that bad if it was used to kickstart Carrie into kicking her drug and alcohol habit or if she received meaningful consequences for this. But no. This novel does absolutely nothing with it. I understand she was under the influence. But whenever Junior is under the influence, this novel does not at all hesitate to call him out or punish him. So why should it be different for Carrie? Speaking of consequences, the only real consequences Carrie receives are losing her Chicago police job and being forced to work on the rez as a result of shooting a man who killed her daughter and being threatened with termination from her Rez Marshal position. But even then, Carrie was happy to lose her position on the Chicago police force and she barely takes the investigation more seriously (at least, seriously enough to get her drug and alcohol habit under control and adequately feed herself). Now, I would be willing to forgive all of this if the reader wasn't supposed to sympathize with Carrie, Carrie actually became a better person, or Carrie received more meaningful consequences. But, the reader is supposed to sympathize with Carrie. She's struggling to cope with the loss of her murdered daughter despite successfully avenging her and Carrie's father was absolutely awful. Oh and aside from forming a friendship with Junior, forming a stronger connection with her heritage, and hiring a secretary to lessen her workload, she barely grows as a character, let alone becoming a better person.

I also hate the way the book barely let the Deer Woman do anything of significnce, didn't even let her help in the final fight or show off her vigilantism against those who did horrible things to women, and had her apparent weakness be one of the most common minerals on Earth. Not only is this poor characterization within the context of the book, but it's also a godawful representation of the real Deer Woman from real life Native American mythology. This really sucks because I think a female Dexter with shapeshifting powers can make for a compelling character that's a force to be reckoned with.

On top of that, there are some major plot holes that the book never bothers to fill (like why building a casino isn't an option when it would've accomplished the Saliquaw's goal of getting out of poverty with a lot less trouble and how nothing comes of the fact that a beloved mayor was killed shortly before an election). It's like the book just expects the reader to go along with it and not question them when it could've easily implemented some plausible explanations, which just infuriated and confused me to no end.

Rating: D-

Overall, I would say March was a mostly solid month for me!

🌻March has been a stressful month for me. I've been on a reading slump and I've been reading on and off. I've been more focus on my activities and duties on my life that I have less time reading a book. But hopefully, this April will be a good month for me. For this month, I've read only 1 book and I've enjoyed it so far.

MARCH
• Emma on Thin Icing by Coco Simon
💌My review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Alias Reader wrote: "Here are my March reads.

Hitler's People: The Faces of the Third Reich by Richard J. Evans
Forma..."


Impressive selection! Of them, I'm most interested in the Gates autobiography, which seems quite self-aware.

Honestly, I could tell the premise of 19 Katherines would be tough to pull off!

Hailey wrote:

"Hello everyone! For the month of March, I read a grand total of four books.
..."

Three top rated books in March is very nice, Hailey.

Sorry you had one clunker.

Patricia wrote: "🌻March has been a stressful month for me. I've been on a reading slump and I've been reading on and off. I've been more focus on my activities and duties on my life that I have less time reading a ..."

I hope April is less stressful for you, Patiricia.

I'm happy to see you did enjoy your March read. A good book can help a lot during stressful times.

John wrote:
"Impressive selection! Of them, I'm most interested in the Gates autobiography, which seems quite self-aware...."

Thank you, John.

I'll be interested in your thoughts on Source Code: My Beginnings.

Alias Reader wrote: "Here are my March reads.

Hitler's People: The Faces of the Third Reich by Richard J. Evans
Forma..."

What a full and varied list of Books Read in March, Alias. I appreciate your observations about how hearing the book might have favored your final rating. This makes sense to me.

Thanks, also, for the full recap.

I'm glad you enjoyed the recaps, deb.

When I made the post I actually was surprised at how much I had read in March.

I skimmed Broken Country and actually read every word of A Fatal Lie, and Ian Rutledge mystery.

I have no idea what to read in April. I want to read another Ian Rutledge, but they all seem to have wait lists, so I put my name on a few. Some said they no longer had the right to loan the book. :-(

Hailey wrote: "Hello everyone! For the month of March, I read a grand total of four books.

My first book this month was Hatchet by Gary Paulsen. I wrote an entire review on it, which you can read here.

This is ..."

Hailey, as we are on the road, my online time is limited, therefore, i didn’t read your full reviews this time. However what you shared was good and covers each book. I appreciate the work that must go into both. Thanks for sharing both here.

Deer Woman had such promise—what a shame to waste the title component so fully. Pity.

Patricia wrote: "🌻March has been a stressful month for me. I've been on a reading slump and I've been reading on and off. I've been more focus on my activities and duties on my life that I have less time reading a ..."

Patricia, at least the book you read was one you ended up liking. Also, maybe a spur for further reading, which may help with your slump. Better reading fun in April, book friend!

Before I list what I read in March, I want to mention a book I finished in December, but I've not mentioned earlier (and I know some people in Book Nook are interested in it)

The Inverts I gave this 4 stars.
This was difficult to rate because some parts of it I really liked and others didn't work for me. For me, this was a book about friendship, love and relationships. The two main characters were both gay and had entered into a "lavender" marriage for protection (the main part of the book was set between the 1920's and early/mid 1040's).
Although many aspects of their relationship were specific to their sexual orientation and the time in which they lived, aspects of what Ms Jeans wrote about (e.g. jealousy, how character traits can irritate over time) is true of any long-term relationship, so she was commenting to some degree about all long-term relationships. I loved that facet of the book.

The plot also included a murder that seemed an afterthought to me. I suspect the publishers made the author add it to increase the appeal to mainstream readers. Personally I didn't think the book needed it.

However, there was a tiresome focus on the less glorious aspects of being human throughout the book. I think every emission that the human body is prone to got a mention at some point (except earwax) and the characters were described experiencing many of them. That was pretty boring: been there, experienced them myself and didn't need the descriptions. I imagine that's the same for most readers. I suspect the author was trying to be edgy, but it was about as edgy as a 5 year old running up to you, screaming "Poo!" and running away chortling because they think they have shocked you to the core. I'm willing to read more from this author (the good parts were VERY good), but I hope she soon gets out of touch with her inner 5 year old.

March's Books
Brain on Fire: My Month of Madness (4 stars) This was a surprisingly engaging depiction of the author's experiences of a serious neurological condition, especially as she didn't have clear memories of being ill, the medical condition was complicated (and which she explained really clearly) and the difficult subject matter (it was hard to read of someone going through this dreadful illness).

Breakfast at Tiffany's and Three Stories I rated this 4 stars overall but Breakfast at Tiffany's was my least favourite of the 4 stories (3 stars). I think that's because Holly Golightly was an obvious forerunner of the "Manic pixie dream girl" *snorts in disgust*. This edition also contained "House of Flowers" and "The Diamond Guitar" (both 5 stars) both of which packed powerful emotional punches right from the start. The last story was "A Christmas Memory" (4 stars) This seemed rather pedestrian at first but built to such an emotional climax it had me in tears at the end, which doesn't happen often when I'm reading.

Legends & Lattes 4 stars
This was called "big-hearted" on the cover and I think this is a good description. It wasn't particularly whimsical as many feel-good books seem to be and it wasn't so sweet I worried about tooth decay while I was reading, but reading it would cheer me up if I was feeling down. If cosy fantasy is a genre that's what this is. Come to think of it, if cosy fantasy isn't a genre I think Travis Baldree has just invented it.

A Flicker in the Dark 4 stars
This was a complete contrast to Legends and Lattes. It was a murder mystery that focused on a woman, Chloe, whose father was a convicted serial killer. Although he was in prison, the murders had started up again. It was a roller-coaster of a read. Chloe had plenty of flaws, probably due to her childhood and some of her actions were ethically indefensible, but I still retained enough sympathy for her I cared what happened.

Journey by Moonlight 3 stars
I admire this book more than I liked it, but I think I didn't really understand it. The translator wrote an afterword where he said it contained "... irony, deeply Middle-European in character", but I missed the irony. This might be because I was quite disturbed by some almost reverential references to suicide in the book. In his afterword, the translator explained Mr Szerb "probes the national obsession with suicide" (Mr Szerb was Hungarian), The book doesn't focus on death/suicide though, it's a minor feature in the book, although it raised strong feelings in me. I don't think I'd read anything else by Mr Szerb (assuming anything else has been translated into English).

Much Ado about Nada 4 stars
Despite the title, this was inspired by Persuasion by Jane Austen. I enjoyed it, mainly for the depiction of how the main character negotiated being a young Muslim woman who wanted to live according to her faith, but also enjoy life in 21st Century Toronto. Romance isn't my favourite genre, but I thought this would be OK and would enable me to tick off the romance book from the 2025 challenge without too much pain (I was correct). I thought some elements of the plot were implausible, but I usually think that of romance plots and this was better than most.

Feed 2 stars
This was a political thriller set in an almost post-apocalyptic zombie world (civilisation as we know it hadn't quite come to an end). It took itself far too seriously and could have done with a serious edit (of around 200 of the 571 pages). The characters weren't particularly well described either, which did not help. Still, I did finish it, so I gave it 2 stars.

Silent Parade I've not reviewed this yet, but it'll get 2 stars (at most) when I do. This started out feeling more like a cosy crime than a police procedural, mainly because the first part was focused on introducing the cast of thousands (Yep, it was one of those). To help matters, some of the characters were referred to using more than one name, which was possibly not one of the author's better ideas. Anyhow, once the characters were introduced, the author started focusing on the plot, which started to get really interesting and then started getting complex, went right through "I'm going to need a diagram to keep track of what's been discovered" and well into "Oh puh-lease, have you ever heard of the phrase 'Less is more'?" To be fair, the author is Japanese, so he might not have heard of "Less is more", but I am disappointed that he didn't realise he was seriously overdoing things. I've heard good things of The Devotion of Suspect X, so I might try that in future, but I'm not going to read any other of Keigo Higashino's books.

Since I hardly ever rate any books 5 stars (they have to be truly outstanding for that), to have 5 4 star reads out of 8 is a really good month for me.

KeenReader wrote:

However, there was a tiresome focus on the less glorious aspects of being human throughout the book. I think every emission that the human body is prone to got a mention at some point (except earwax)."

This made me LOL

Well done on your March reading. You had a very nice month. I enjoyed reading your reviews.

KeenReader wrote: "Before I list what I read in March, I want to mention a book I finished in December, but I've not mentioned earlier (and I know some people in Book Nook are interested in it)

[book:The Inverts|547..."

I enjoyed reading your reviews, KeenReader, your wit is a delight.

I actually thought the author of the first novel couldn’t really be named Crystal Jeans. ‘Tis true, but lends itself to jokes, due to the body function issues you mentioned.

Your thoughts on Capote’s Christmas story is similar to mine. I didn’t expect it from him. I was touched.

Flicker sounds intriguing, so i added it to my TBR. Thanks.

I am one who really liked Devotion of Suspect X but was disappointed in the subsequent novel while i still have Parade on my list, I’ll be in no rush to read it. I am grateful for your comments.

In all, as you note, this was a healthy list of books read. Congratulations on completing several promos & enjoying the process. Thanks for sharing here.

Here are my March reads:



The Farming of Bones by Edwidge Danticat
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Historical Fiction
Set in Haiti & the Dominican Republic
Amabelle, a Haitian-born servant working in the Dominican Republic is caught up in the turmoil of the last 1930s when ultra-nationalist Generalissimo Trujillo calls for an ethnic cleansing of the country. I didn't know anything about this period in history and thought Danticat did a wonderful job of telling Amabelle's story, though I was a bit disappointed with the "open" ending.



The Bread the Devil Knead by Lisa Allen-Agostini
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Contemporary, Literary Fiction
Set in Port of Prince, Trinidad
This was a really hard book to read (trigger warnings for child abuse, sexual assault, domestic violence and more). But I loved the author's storytelling and style. This was my first Trinidadian novel and while I didn't understand all of the language, I thoroughly enjoyed it.



How to Read a Book by Monica Wood
⭐⭐
Fiction
Set in Maine, US
I'm an outlier it seems, but I just did not enjoy this one. I thought the writing was shallow, the characters even more shallow. I had to check half-way through, thinking it must be written by a man, based on the amount of commentary on all of the women. The storyline was good for the first half, then completely fell apart (unrealistic at best).



Dogs of War by Adrian Tchaikovsky
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Science Fiction, Dystopia
This was a pleasant surprise. It was chosen for a SciFi book club I recently joined, and I was not thrilled with the choice. Rex, our mostly-dog, part-human (?) MC was an intriguing narrator, and the book was really well-done. This is a timely book as we head into more AI-led technology and the moral dilemmas that arise.
Those who've enjoyed Klara and the Sun would probably like this one too.



The Night Guest by Hildur Knútsdóttir
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Thriller, Horror
Set in Reykjavik, Iceland (translated from Icelandic)
Iounn wakes every day tired and can't figure out why - until she leaves her fitness watch on one night and realizes she's been sleepwalking all night.
This was another pleasant surprise. I would say it's less "horror" more psychological thriller of sorts. There's no real satisfying ending (which may account for the low rating on Good Reads?), but there's a lot left to the imagination. This would make for a fun book club book I imagine.



The Door by Magda Szabó
⭐⭐⭐
Fiction, Historical Fiction
Set in Hungary (Translated from Hungarian)
This was just OK. It's probably a "me" problem. I just couldn't get into the story line following 2 characters who were just so bitter and ridiculous. The older woman is the epitome of the "curmudgeon" but not in an endearing way. The younger woman is so wrapped up in her own problems (which are few by the way) and comes across as just kind of silly. I wanted to reach through the book and shake her a few times.
Again, I'm an outlier for this one so maybe take my criticism with a grain of salt :)

Here are mine, not a bad month ...



https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3... by https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... ⭐️⭐️


Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2... by https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️


Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...


https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3... by https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️



Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...


https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2... by https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️


Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5... by https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️


Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Lindsey wrote: "Here are my March reads:
"

A very nice month of reads, Lindsey ! It was an eclectic selection.

Though you weren't thrilled by The Door by Magda Szabó I'm intrigued by it and I also don't think I've read a book by a Hungarian writer. So I'm adding it to my TBR notebook to check out further.

John wrote: "Here are mine, not a bad month ...
..."

A very nice month indeed. I like the mix of books you read.

The History and Uncertain Future of Handwriting
sounds interesting. The topic of handwriting seems to always push peoples buttons. Many bemoan the demise of cursive for block writing.

Personally, I haven't written in cursive since maybe 4th grade.

Alias Reader wrote: "Though you weren't thrilled by The Door by Magda Szabó I'm intrigued by it and I also don't think I've read a book by a Hungarian writer. So I'm adding it to my TBR notebook to check out further."

I hope you love it! I really wanted to appreciate it more than I did. Please report back if you do read it :)

Lindsey wrote: "Here are my March reads:

The Bread the Devil Knead

The Farming of Bones by Edwidge Danticat
"

Edwige Danticat has been on my radar for a few months now. So has Lisa Allen-Agostini. I'll have to think about The Bread the Devil Knead though. Thanks for the warning.

John wrote: "Here are mine, not a bad month..."

I've got The Secret Lives of Colour on my TBR. I might move it up a few places after reading your review.

Lindsey wrote: "Here are my March reads:



The Farming of Bones by Edwidge Danticat
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Historical Fiction
Set in Haiti & the Dominican Republic
A..."

It looks like a good month of reading, Lindsey, if not great. I liked the last one more than you but also felt some disconnect.

Thanks for sharing here about them.

John wrote: "Here are mine, not a bad month ...



https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3... by https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... ⭐️⭐️


Review: https://www.goodrea..."

John, thank you for the links. Just this week i bypassed Forks, so may circle around to it, after all. I appreciate your note on don’t miss or not.

I hand wrote two letters this week & ended up apologizing for both. What a mess! While i blamed computers, i know my penmanship was never easy to read.

How folks post with phones, i’ll never understand because this larger iPad is tough enough.

I’m abbreviated my list, in that i’m linking to the pages from my ‘25 Challenge write-ups are, giving the post number. Sloppy, yes, lazy, indeed but time is not on my side this week.

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
This is for the first5 titles.
#113. The Third Man—Graham Greene

#124. Not Without Laughter—Langston Hughes

#135. Lysistrata—Aristophanes

#145. Number the Stars—Lois Lowry

#150. A Glancing Light—Aaron Elkins

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

#153. Maisie Dobbs—Jacqueline Winspear. I also read, but didn’t review Birds of a Feather, the second in the series.

#154. I Am Legend—Richard Matheson.

#162. Other Voices, Other Rooms—Truman Capote.

#167. Casino Royale—Ian Fleming.

NOT YET reviewed. The Sea Around Us—Rachel Carson. She is an excellent writer with a gift for describing science to lay readers. In this 1950s published book, she describes the planet formation, the waters on Earth, tides, minerals and numerous aspects of the Seas. Even though outdated (1960 update, btw), the description and effects of our geology is understandable.

You read a lot this month deb. You also had quite the varied list.
Nice.

#145. Number the Stars—Lois Lowry

I've not read this YA author. I know she is famous. I should put her on my list. Thanks for the idea.

Alias Reader wrote: "Lindsey wrote: "Here are my March reads:
"

A very nice month of reads, Lindsey ! It was an eclectic selection.

Though you weren't thrilled by The Door by [author:Magda Szabó|516892..."

I liked The Door.

madrano wrote: "How folks post with phones, i’ll never understand because this larger iPad is tough enough.

I’m abbreviated my list, in that i’m linking to the pages from my ‘25 Challenge write-ups are, giving th..."

For some reason, I can only cut and paste my monthly reads on the phone, but not edit them afterwards, which is why the result is less-than-elegant.

Alias Reader wrote: "John wrote: "Here are mine, not a bad month ...
..."

A very nice month indeed. I like the mix of books you read.

The History and Uncertain Future of Handwriting
sounds interesting..."

We had to write cursive in private school (5 - 8 grades). I hated it, glad to move on!

KeenReader wrote: "Edwige Danticat has been on my radar for a few months now. So has Lisa Allen-Agostini. I'll have to think about The Bread the Devil Knead though. Thanks for the warning."

I thought the author did a good job of not leaning into the trauma (the way some authors exploit and sort of glamorize it, in a way), but it was still heavy at times. Worth the read though.

John wrote: "Alias Reader wrote: "
A very nice month of reads, Lindsey ! It was an eclectic selection.

Though you weren't thrilled by The Door by [auth..."

I'm definitely the outlier with The Door! I'm glad it's been appreciated by others in this group.

madrano wrote: "How folks post with phones, i’ll never understand because this larger iPad is tough enough.

I’m abbreviated my list, in that i’m linking to the pages from my ‘25 Challenge write-ups are, giving th..."

What a great month you had Deb!

Lindsey wrote: "John wrote: "Alias Reader wrote: "
A very nice month of reads, Lindsey ! It was an eclectic selection.

Though you weren't thrilled by The Door by [auth..."

I'm definitely the outli..."

No problem at all. We can't all agree.

madrano wrote: "Patricia wrote: "🌻March has been a stressful month for me. I've been on a reading slump and I've been reading on and off. I've been more focus on my activities and duties on my life that I have les..."

Thank you so much madrano! I really hope that I can read more books this April:) Happy Reading and enjoy this month!

Alias Reader wrote: "You read a lot this month deb. You also had quite the varied list.
Nice.

#145. Number the Stars—Lois Lowry

I've not read this YA author. I know she is famous. I should put her on my list. Thanks..."

Alias her YA novel The Giver is probably her best known work. Classic, maybe?

John wrote: "We had to write cursive in private school (5 - 8 grades). I hated it, glad to move on..."

How i looked forward to learning cursive & liked using it all through school days. The joy of connecting letters pleased me. Pity it’s unreadable today.

Lindsey wrote: "What a great month you had Deb!..."

Thanks, Lindsey. I hasten to add that many of the ‘50s books are well under 300 pages, which sped my reading rate.

madrano wrote: "Alias Reader wrote: "You read a lot this month deb. You also had quite the varied list.
Nice.

#145. Number the Stars—Lois Lowry

I've not read this YA author. I know she is famous. I should put h..."

I would call the Giver a classic

March:

Bibliolepsy
Good: learning about the Philippine revolution Bad: Didn't always like the narrator 3/5
America Fantastica
Satire about American misinformation.
The Fellowship of Puzzlemakers
Unique story, MC had to use puzzle clues to discover the mystery of his identity and biological parents 4/5
Walden, or Life in the Woods and On the Duty of Civil Disobedience
Reminder to scale back and enjoy nature. 4/5
Wow, No Thank You.: Essays
Hilarious series of essays. Laughed so much it hurt at times. 5/5
How to Age Disgracefully
Also had funny moments but too neatly tied up and some over the top scenarios. 4/5 because it made me laugh
Reasons to Stay Alive
memoir/self help/informational about anxiety and depression. 4/5

madrano wrote: "How folks post with phones, i’ll never understand because this larger iPad is tough enough.

I’m abbreviated my list, in that i’m linking to the pages from my ‘25 Challenge write-ups are, giving th..."

I only post on my phone when the laptop and iPad are packed up for the night. It's a pain! Not just due to size but because the functionality is reduced. In addition to no links, you can't edit or reply 😡. But being an insomniac, I am NOT a morning person so I get everything ready the night before including tossing my work bag with my laptop in the car.

madrano wrote: "Alias her YA novel The Giver is probably her best known work. Classic, maybe?
."

I did read that one years ago. Though I can't recall the story. I see I gave it a good rating of 3/5.

Thanks for the memory nudge.

Denise wrote: "March:

Bibliolepsy
Good: learning about the Philippine revolution Bad: Didn't always like the narrator 3/5
America Fantastica
Satire about American misinformation. ..."

You enjoyed all the books you read in March. That's wonderful. How you fit in the time to read with your demanding job I'll never know. Good for you !

Denise wrote: "I would call the Giver a classic..."

Glad to know I’m not alone in considering it so.

Denise wrote: "March:

Bibliolepsy
Good: learning about the Philippine revolution Bad: Didn't always like the narrator 3/5
America Fantastica
Satire about American misinformation. ..."

Wow, No Thank You sounds fun! Nice reading month, Denise!

Denise wrote: "But being an insomniac, I am NOT a morning person so I get everything ready the night before including tossing my work bag with my laptop in the car..."

You are on top of things, Denise. I’ll admit to being one who MUCH prefers my desktop computer, so i’m a grouch on the road, as far as this goes.

Alias Reader wrote: "ago. Though I can't recall the story. I see I gave it a good rating of 3/5.

Thanks for the memory nudge..."

You know, i read it as an adult, then, within a year a film version was released. For me, it was a letdown, Meryl Streep or not.

Alias Reader wrote: "Hailey wrote:

"Hello everyone! For the month of March, I read a grand total of four books.
..."

Three top rated books in March is very nice, Hailey.

Sorry you had one clunker."

Thank you, Alias! Clunkers, studs, or somewhere in-between. Whatever they are, every book has something to teach me.

madrano wrote: "Hailey wrote: "Hello everyone! For the month of March, I read a grand total of four books.

My first book this month was Hatchet by Gary Paulsen. I wrote an entire review on it, which you can read ..."

You're welcome, madrano!

Hailey wrote:

Clunkers, studs, or somewhere in-between. Whatever they are, every book has something to teach me.
."

I like your attitude !