Born to Run is a refreshing memoir written by Bruce Springsteen. The storytelling is forthright, down-to-earth, and earnest. He focuses on the influences in his early years growing up in New Jersey. His father was a bus driver who had recurring mental illness problems. His mother was a legal secretary and the person who provided stability and support. He went … Continue reading →
The House at Pooh Corner is a 1928 collection of Winnie the Pooh stories, some of which are now embedded in modern culture by reading to our children and by watching adaptations on TV. But they are a delightful read for all ages at any time. The title story is about Winnie the Pooh and Piglet building a house for … Continue reading →
The Dead Zone is a psychological thriller, a crime story, and a science fiction story in a slow-burning mystery format. Stephen King’s protagonist, Johnny Smith, awakens from a coma after 5 years and finds that he has some psychic powers. He can read some people and see the future, but he also has had some brain damage so he has … Continue reading →
Shadow and Bone is a fantasy series about the Grisha, humans who practice the “small science”, specialized magic. Most of the Grisha are one of three orders – Materialki, Corperalki, or Atherealki, but there are sub-order of each type too, all defined within a guild-like hierarchy. The Grisha are an elite group enlisted as soldiers in the nation of … Continue reading →
Squeeze Me is a satirical novel set in South Florida. It is also a murder mystery with bouts of action and and it is full of humor and edgy dialogue. At times it is raucous and absurd. At other times it has scathing political satire. The characters are interesting and the story moves along well. There are a series of … Continue reading →
The Midnight Library is speculative fiction which uses the metaphor of a library of books that provide opportunities to live different versions of a life. Nora Seed arrives at the library at a point between life and death and is offered the chance to examine her choices, her regrets, and the possible paths from various points in her life’s journey. … Continue reading →
The Midnight Library is speculative fiction which uses the metaphor of a library of books that provide opportunities to live different versions of a life. Nora Seed arrives at the library at a point between life and death and is offered the chance to examine her choices, her regrets, and the possible paths from various points in her life’s journey. … Continue reading →
Catcher in the Rye was published in 1951 and became famous, but also notorious. With swearing and references to sexuality there was some outrage. The literary world, though, admired the writing and it has stayed on many best books lists for 70 years. The story is told by Holden Caulfield, a 17 year old New York teenager with lots … Continue reading →
Eight Perfect Murders is a murder-mystery set in the world of the historical mystery literature genre. The main character is Malcolm Kershaw, a bookstore owner and a blogger who writes about murder mysteries. One of his articles is called “Eight Perfect Murders”, a meta-analysis of the the most perfect murder methods found in famous mystery novels. Each murder is different … Continue reading →
The House on the Cerulean Sea is a fantasy about an orphanage of very unusual magical children. Each of the children are interesting and unique characters and this could have been the central part of the story, but it is a tale of redemption, compassion, and humanity as seen through the lead character, Linus Baker. As a worn-out case worker … Continue reading →
The Tatooist of Auschwitz is a fictional account of a story told to the author by a survivor of the death camps. Lale Sokolov (born as Ludwig Eisenberg) was a Slovakian Jew who endured the horrors of the death camp and lived partly through chance, partly through his own cleverness, and some unlikely good fortune in becoming the prisoner responsible … Continue reading →
The Mist is a novella first published in 1980 and also included in the short story collection Skeleton Crew. It is a horror story complete with horrific creatures, exciting encounters, savage killings, and a desperate attempt to escape. Characters are well-developed (though most don’t survive). Stephen King is adept at setting up the “What if” scenario in which he inserts … Continue reading →
The Mist is a novella first published in 1980 and also included in the short story collection Skeleton Crew. It is a horror story complete with horrific creatures, exciting encounters, savage killings, and a desperate attempt to escape. Characters are well-developed (though most don’t survive). Stephen King is adept at setting up the “What if” scenario in which he inserts … Continue reading →
The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (The Spy) was a breakthrough novel for John le Carre, but also for the general spy fiction class, adding a level of clever craftsmanship, setting it above others when it was published in 1962, but it is still a good read today. It is set in a time of international espionage on … Continue reading →
The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (The Spy) was a breakthrough novel for John le Carre, but also for the general spy fiction class, adding a level of clever craftsmanship, setting it above others when it was published in 1962, but it is still a good read today. It is set in a time of international espionage on … Continue reading →
Two Girls Down is a mystery-crime-thriller novel about an investigation into two girls who went missing from a car when their mother was in shopping. With no leads the mother hires a bounty hunter – detective, Alice Vega. With a police department unwilling to work with her, Alice hires ex-cop Max Caplan, who has lots of contacts. They work together, … Continue reading →
