Tag Archive: contemporary



Fierce Invalids Home from Hot Climates
Fierce Invalids Home from Hot Climates by Tom Robbins

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

As most of the Tom Robbins novels I have read, this gave me many smiles and chuckles. I love Mr. Robbins’s sense of humor, depth of research, and verbal diarhea. No, not as a steady diet. I have to be in the mood for his ways and stories. The fact that I have owned the hardback for decades is proof of how I must pace my intake of his work.

I waited too long. The last time I tried to read this book I realized the font was too small to enjoy. So I waited until I could afford the Audible version. Even then I wasn’t ready. But this was on my virtual and physical shelves the longest and I wanted to set it free of those binds.

Aubible is such a wonderful system for those of us who need the help. Not only is the story easier to read with the assistance of the narrator, but, I felt, deeply enhanced. Keith Szarabajka seemed to have the innate ability to channel Tom Robbins. He had characterizations for for the population in this book. His sexy deep voice gives the main character, Switters, a bit of a 007 quality.

Looking at all the reviews of this book I see that the ratings range from the one star to five. I really think this is due to moods and lack of audio version to enjoy. For those that couldn’t stand the book, please do as I did and put it off until you are ready to enjoy the nuances Tom throws into all his book. Yes, a little crazy helps the read.

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Cracks in the Sidewalk Cracks in the Sidewalk by Bette Lee Crosby
My rating: 0 of 5 stars

Okay, maybe 3.5 stars. I know everyone is going to be upset with me about my rating since most of the ratings I see are four and five stars. I suppose if you were healthy enough to read in a paper or hardback book you would see the breaks. But those of us who must use text-to-speech those breaks are not so obvious. I spent most of the early chapters rereading to figure out whose viewpoint I was reading from. And it went from first person to third person at the drop of a hat. A simple *** between these might help a person know what’s coming. Even chapter numbers along with a name would help. Then at about 51% into the book it goes from an inspirational, bittersweet story to Christian fiction. I almost decided not to finish. Luckily the author regains the strength of story she had before and rarely uses the crutch of God to show how human lives affect each other. Not that I have given up on Christian fiction. If I know what it is ahead of time I can adjust. But in this case, the theme is of LOVE and life. It isn’t that God is foreign to this theme. God is Love, ya know. But with all the other problems I had staying with the story, this one jangled the nerves the most. Now for the good news. Even with the daughter dying of a brain tumor, whose husband had become the enemy of the family, the emotions of those two problems didn’t overtake me and leave me feeling depressed or angry. The author managed to keep the story about life and love and gave us hope. Not irrational hope of snake-oil, that the daughter would be magically healed. And please, don’t misunderstand me. I do believe that miracles happen. And I believe that people can change, but I didn’t believe the son-in-law would change. The story gave enough to the reader to know these two factors would remain the same and the story is how everyone dealt with the facts. In the end, I found the inspirational message of how our lives affect those around us and the help we give could just be the help we need.

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Review: Sunspots


Sunspots
Sunspots by Karen S. Bell
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

I’m sorry. I just couldn’t get into this book. The first chapter was okay. I felt sorry for the main character as she lived through her losses. But mostly the rest was memories of her falling in love with the cowboy-lawyer or whatever he was. I just didn’t like the characters and the writing was so boring that I was looking for other things to read. So thanks. But no thanks. Not for me. I see that others loved it so it must be the kind you love or hate. There are books for everyone and all moods.

By the way, I picked this up for free from BookRooster for honest review.

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Morning in the Burned House
Morning in the Burned House by Margaret Atwood
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I borrowed this book from my daughter ages ago. She and I both forgot I had it. I remember visiting her and finding it and sitting and reading with fascination during some boring quiet time. She had many poems dogeared and I could say those were my favorites also. I like Margaret Atwood’s writing style, her descriptions were wonderful.

Though the font was small the format of poetry left plenty of empty page to rest my eyes. Even so I needed to take my time with it to fully absorb the depth of the poems before me. I haven’t read poetry for a long time so I had to remember how to think in that abstract way.

Still, I think it’s about time I read The Handmaid’s Tale that was recommended to me decades ago by my friend.

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Grannies, Guns and Ghosts
Grannies, Guns and Ghosts by Madison Johns
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Though I am giving this book a separate review, I am actually reading the boxed set with books one through three. I want the credit toward my reading goal of individual books while having the convenience…

That went nowhere. On to the actual review.

Ghosts. Really? Sigh. I don’t want to give any spoilers so I won’t get into it. This was a shorter book than the first one, maybe a novella rather than a novel. I was glad. This book felt less put together than the first. Editing is badly needed.

What did I like? I like Agnes and Eleanor. Those crazy ladies are fun even though they get into more trouble than they solve. There is a lot of humor in spite of the story being about murders. I am so glad someone has taken the time to write stories about senior womyn. For that reason alone I plan to read all these Senior Snoopers.

In fact… I’m off to read the next book.

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Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore
Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Libraries, bookstores and friends (family) the true gold of this world. At least for me. Family fits in there, too, but to me, they are friends with common DNA. Just like books in the bookstore or library, a friend/family member is there to lend their uniqueness to your life. Gold.

I borrowed this book from the library. I was lucky that they had it in Kindle form and that text-to-speech was enabled. I think I will have to buy this book in Kindle form and see if there is an Audible version. That would make the book even more golden.

Thank you, my good friends, for recommending this book so highly. Though it fits none of my criteria for my reading goals of ‘books by women with strong female protagonist’, it still has a couple women that are smart and goal oriented. Still, it wouldn’t pass the Bechdel Test http://bechdeltest.com/.

Look, for many of you the title will dissuade you from reading the book. It, frankly, sounds dreary! But as I was telling my husband, it feels as intriguing as Da Vinci Code (sorry, I never read that one–not my kind of book). There are codes to solve and mysteries to unravel all against the background of San Francisco and New York. For me, the best part is that there is no blood and guts to worry about. Yet the story keeps you engaged, wondering what is going to happen next.

I would like to read it again. I look forward to the second book.

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Review: Undrawn


Undrawn
Undrawn by Conchie Fernandez
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Disclosure: I received this Kindle version book on an author giveaway day.

Honestly, have you every let something sit on the shelf too long? That is what happened here. I wish I would have read it right away. I usually have an email back up to let me know how I received a book. This time, I only had the tags (shelves on GoodReads) that I set up when I got it. So this review isn’t timely. Sorry.

I have a problem reading contemporary books. They are too real. I like to read to escape everyday situations like family dysfunction and death and how those two problems play out in real life. And though this book is well-written, this is what jumped out at me: dysfunctional, rich family with high expectations. Throw into that a gay son, another son who would rather pursue his art, who won’t be following into law school, who has diabetes (type 1)… bossy oldest brother… Real life. I suppose if you are living in an enchanted land this would be the story for you. For me? Depressing.

The author, Conchie Fernandez, has made the kind of book you don’t want to put down. You want to see what will happen. You want to see if there are any redeemable moments for any of the characters. So I would guess that it is hope that drives the book. Ms. Fernandez’s characters are realistic. Her research seems strong yet subdued. It is a quick read and inspires me want to paint.

As I said before if you are escaping reality, death, cussing, etc. this isn’t for you. If you want to read good writing, great characters, enjoy!

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Review: Submerged


Submerged
Submerged by Cheryl Kaye Tardif
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

What a ride! Submerged was like the scariest roller-coaster ride. You swear as you stand in line, that you might not even get on. You might turn around and watch everyone else ride. You read the warning signs about bad backs and weak hearts. But you like the author. You like her writing. Kind of like watching your friends get on the ride for the umpteenth time and egging you on. So you get on the ride and make sure the safety bar is down tight. You take a deep breath and hope you don’t barf, or get barfed on.

As usual, with a Cheryl Kaye Tardif novel, you know that there will be realistic situations with a cloud of mystery and macabre. There are lessons to be learned, like how to use the ResQme tool. I was fortunate to win one in a Submerged contest. I hope I never have to use it, but I feel a little safer by having it.

There are so many layers of story in this book. There is romance and terror, divorce and humor and in the middle of that there is family love and addictions. And even though it has some scary moments, I found that the author kept it from bogging down in the terrors. I doubt it will give me nightmares. But I will remember this book for a long, long time. I may even reread it someday. I highly recommend any of Ms. Tardif’s novels, but this may be her best yet.

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Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal
Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ’s Childhood Pal by Christopher Moore
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book started out so funny that I couldn’t read it as my quiet-down-to-sleep-book. But that didn’t last long. I can’t remember why I felt bored but I did. Finally the book started moving and the humor was back. Of course, the ending was bittersweet.

For someone raised in church, a Christian who read the whole Bible, I found this book very well done, very well, researched, and though it is based on serious issues, Christopher Moore was able to lighten it up and insert one possibility in the life of Christ. Hey, he could’ve had a friend. That friend could’ve been named Levi or Biff. We don’t really know about the years from infancy to 30, do we? Sure there is the occasional story. But there is a huge gap.

At one time I read The Lost Books of the Bible and the Forgotten Books of Eden, but not the whole book. I do remember a part where Jesus went to the riverside to make bird of clay and then blew life into the creatures and they would fly away. So the bit about the lizard in Lamb cracked me up.

Because of the boring parts I nearly rated this book four stars. But I know I will remember this book for quite a while with fondness. So five stars it is. I believe that Moore did the impossible. He took sacred writings and lightened them up and yet never got too far from the actual messages of love and redemption.

Registered my paperback copy with BookCrossing.com BCID: 927-12455390

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