Dear Ijeawele, Or, A Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen Suggestions by Chimamanda Adichie

Yassss. This is how I would want to raise a kid. A lot of it I've heard before, but some suggestions gave me things to think about.

A quick feminist read by a great thinker.

63 pages

"Winter Blom" by DJ Jamison

This was a cute love story between a widower and a newspaper intern who is sent to interview him about his metal art.  Lane Cross works construction and does art to support himself and his six year old son who keeps running off his sitters.  He's immediately smitten when he meets Andy Blom, who's going to interview him for the local paper.  Lane tries his best to woo Andy while still dealing with his son's grief over his mother.  Andy is also mourning the death of his mother, so emotions are running high.  There are misunderstandings and lots of snow in this nice, little read.  156 pages (Kindle edition).

"Fish Stick Fridays" by Rhys Ford

Opposites attract in this romantic suspense novel about a biker dude trying to do right by his eight-year-old niece and a wealthy bookstore owner in small town California.  Deacon Reid is trying to raise his dead sister's foul mouthed daughter away from the chaos they were both born into.  He buys a garage in Half Moon Bay and rents a house from Lang Harris, who owns a bookstore just down the street.  They both feel attraction when they meet but are wary of getting too close to each other due to mistrust in past relationships.  Then things blow up, people get shot, and craziness ensues.  But who is the target?  Unusual characters and a whodunit make this an above average read, but the little girl cussed so much that it was a distraction for me.  204 pages (Kindle edition).

"Sleigh Ride" by Heidi Cullinan

Opposites attract in this second book in the Minnesota Christmas series.  Gabriel Higgins is the lone librarian in small Logan, MN, but he loves his job.  He excels at it but hasn't really made any friends outside of the library.  When one of the library volunteers decides to raise money with sleigh rides in a real sleigh, Gabriel balks at the idea because she wants him to play Santa's elf to her son's Santa.  Arthur Anderson does not want his mother to play matchmaker, especially when she tells him that he'll be Santa with the lanky librarian playing his elf.  However, the library desperately needs the money, so both men relent.  As they get to know each other, Gabriel introduces Arthur, who doesn't enjoy reading, to graphic novels.  The best part of the book, in my opinion, is when Arthur's young nephew wants a doll, but the boy's mother refuses because of what others will say.  When Gabriel hears this, he decides to do a children's story time about it.  He brings his own dolls that he had as a child and explains to the children and parents that boys who have dolls will grow up to be loving fathers.  The author does a fabulous job with this part of the book; so well that it brought tears to my eyes.  It was a wonderful portrayal of the way good librarians, especially in small, isolated towns, can change children's lives.  229 pages (Kindle edition).

"Alex" by S.M. Shade

There was a lot going on in this book.  Alex is an MMA fighter dealing the sudden death of his lover, the impending execution of his father for killing his mother, homophobic fight opponents, hovering older brothers and their wives, a Hawaiian vacation, unwanted attraction to his straight roommate, roommate's major health scare, and more.  The story was told in the alternating POV of Alex and his roommate, Ian.  The author gave readers lots of angst and partial side stories that could have been pared down a bit.  151 pages (Kindle edition).

"Dad is Fat" by Jim Gaffigan

This book is all about Gaffigan being a father to five children.  We learn their names, ages, how they were born (all home births), and how goofy they can be.  The comedian and his family live in a two bedroom, walk-up apartment in NYC and do not own a car, so you can imagine the craziness.  And he gives all the credit for making it work to his wife, whom he seems to worship.  Even though this book is completely about being a dad, his observational humor can still be appreciated by those of us without kids.  Gaffigan reads the audio version and has a great delivery technique.  I'd like to listen to more of his books.

Audio:  5.5 hours
Print:  288 pages

"On Solid Ground" by Melissa Collins

A vet with PTSD and a tattoo artist with a drug addicted sister try to find love in California.

I really wanted to like this book.  It had many good reviews, but it just did not live up to my expectations for several reasons.  One of the main characters jumped to conclusions and became mad very easily; he acted quite immature and did not seem to have the capability for a healthy relationship.  The story was told in the present tense, which I always find a bit odd to read.  One character had been raped, but the story did not deal with any lingering effects of the trauma.  There were also a number of inconsistencies, so it could have used better editing.  However, there was a service dog, a cute kid, and an upbeat ending, so there were some positives.  328 pages (Kindle edition).

Ghost by Peter Barsocchini

(Posted for Paul Mathews)

A story of search and self-discovery, a basketball player's father's death, and an orphan.

Audio:  11 hrs. 40 min.

Print:  358 pages

"Time and Tide" by E.M. Lindsey

This lovely story starts in 1897 when William Owens returns to Maryland after graduating from Oxford to find himself engaged to a woman he's never met.  His overbearing mother has arranged it, and he doesn't have the courage to say no.  However, he soon meets a blind, French writer, Theodore Renard, who changes Will's life in drastic ways.  But with a pregnant and miserable wife and a job he hates, Will must stand up to his mother and be his true self in order to be happy. 

This is the first book that I have read by this author and found it to flow very well with two very strong and empathetic main characters.  I can't explain more about the story without giving away major plot points, but I'll just say that I really liked the writing and the characters of Theo and Will.  203 pages (Kindle edition).

"Fish in a Barrel" by Grace Tower

The subtitle of this disturbing book is "A True Story of Sexual Abuse in Therapy" and is the first person account of a woman under the power of an abusive therapist for 3 1/2 years.  In October of 1992, the author's adopted sons began biofeedback sessions with a therapist named Rick because they were having behavior and psychological problems.  Three months later, she herself began psychotherapy with Rick, and soon they were in his office up to seven times a week.  Already dealing with low self esteem and the need for approval, Rick manipulated Grace and her boys in many unethical and disturbing ways all the while draining her of money.  His abuse of Grace eventually became sexual.

About half of the book covers her and the boys' experiences as Rick's patients - how he first won them over to gain their trust, then betrayed that trust and abused them.  The second half covers Grace's realization of the harm he's done and her decisions to file criminal charges and sue him in civil court.  The book is quite riveting and allows the reader to see how a smart woman could be so easily manipulated in so many ways.  The best part was seeing Grace evolve from a sad, depressed, almost hopeless person into standing up for herself and her boys against their abuser.  This book is in our collection here.  278 pages.

"When It's Right" by Aria Grace

This soap opera-esque story centers on Alex and Shane, who meet when Alex takes his injured dog to his vet.  Shane is the technician and he and Alex are drawn to each other, but Shane is deeply closeted because of his bigoted parents.  Luckily, he lives with his aunt (Alex's vet) and uncle in a different state.  Alex is out and befriends Shane, showing him what his life could be like if he came out.  Just as things are going well between them, Shane has to return to his hometown for someone named "Jacob."  He refuses to tell Alex what has happened and who Jacob is, and when Shane doesn't return when he says he will, Alex becomes frantic.  What will he do and who is Jacob?

As with the other stories that I have read by this author, it was enjoyable and well-paced.  I really liked the ending and especially Alex's dog.  152 pages (Kindle edition).

The Haunted by Bentley Little

(Posted for Paul Mathews)

Julian, Claire, and their children didn't know their new house was haunted by the shadow in the basement.

Audio:  11 hrs. 12 min.
Print:  389 pages

Yesterday by Fern Michaels

(Posted for Paul Mathews)

Callie Parker's wealthy father brought a foster son and two poor girls to play with four-year-old Callie.  They grew close, and their lives make a wonderful story.

Audio:  13 hrs. 15 min.
Print:  460 pages

"Are You My Mother?: A Comic Drama" by Alison Bechdel

In this follow up to "Fun Home," in which she wrote about growing up with her closeted father, Bechdel now explores her relationship with her mother.  Helen Bechdel was a teacher and amateur actress, a very smart woman unhappily married to a closeted gay man.  Although she has three children, she is not the maternal sort; in fact, she stopped touching or kissing her daughter when Alison was seven.  The author weaves back and forth through time landing on instances from her childhood, college years, post-college struggles, and recent events.  This made the story hard for me to follow, although I'm sure it wasn't supposed to be linear since each chapter has a theme rather than a chronology.  Bechdel refers to the theories of psychoanalyst Donald Winnicott and the words of writer Virginia Woolf throughout, and she also discusses insights she's had through many sessions in therapy.  I didn't like this book as much as I did "Fun Home," probably because this was nothing like I'd ever read and some of the concepts of Winnicott's were difficult to understand.  Although the author does come to understand and better accept her mother and their relationship, it's sad that she didn't receive more love from either parent.  286 pages.

"Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic" by Alison Bechdel

After hearing about this graphic novel memoir for years, I finally got around to reading it.  The author grew up with distant parents and two younger brothers in rural Pennsylvania.  Her father was an English teacher and part-time mortician at his family's business.  ("Fun home" is short for "funeral home".)  Alison candidly draws and discusses her relationship with her father, a cold, tyrannical, and exacting man with a huge secret . . . he is gay.  He dies soon after this is revealed to his college-aged daughter, who herself has just come out as a lesbian.  Because of this great revelation and his closely followed death, Alison goes back through her childhood and analyzes her father's behavior, obsessions, and interactions.  In my opinion, this book deserves all the of praise it has received because it conveys so much so smartly and so efficiently.  The drawings are economical with few colors yet convey everyone's emotions, particularly confusion, very well.  The book has been made into a musical that won 5 Tony Awards earlier this year.  232 pages.

"fawn" by Nash Summers

This novella (the first letter is not capitalized) is about two boys in the small town of Heaven.  Rust has dark red hair, is small for his age, and likes to make art out of found objects in nature, at least while he's not sitting under a large pine tree daydreaming and writing letters to people he doesn't know.  Ancel lives in a rented, dilapidated house near Rust's home with his abusive father and gentle German shepherd.  He's quiet and mysterious and the object of Rust's dreams.  He floats in and out of Rust's life, disappearing for years and reappearing unexpectedly.  Written from both boys' POVs, Nash conveys descriptions of their thoughts, feelings, and surroundings very well without resorting to constant similes, especially with Rust.  He's a special character in a lovely story whom I won't soon forget.  78 pages (Kindle edition).

"Bear, Otter, and the Kid" by TJ Klune

Book description:  "Three years ago, Bear McKenna’s mother took off for parts unknown with her new boyfriend, leaving Bear to raise his six-year-old brother Tyson, aka the Kid.  Somehow they’ve muddled through, but since he’s totally devoted to the Kid, Bear isn’t actually doing much living—with a few exceptions, he’s retreated from the world, and he’s mostly okay with that. Until Otter comes home.  Otter is Bear’s best friend’s older brother, and as they’ve done for their whole lives, Bear and Otter crash and collide in ways neither expect.  This time, though, there’s nowhere to run from the depth of emotion between them.  Bear still believes his place is as the Kid’s guardian, but he can’t help thinking there could be something more for him in the world... something or someone."

This is the first book that I've read by this author and found myself both liking and being annoyed with his writing.   Klune tells an interesting story of abandoned brothers trying to survive day to day with the help of their friends.  Told from Bear's point of view, the reader gets plenty of exposure to his neuroses and inner thoughts, especially his analogy of slowly drowning in the ocean when he gets anxious.  The first part of the story isn't linear, and the chapters are so long that I got a bit confused with the timeline.  It eventually straightened out, though.  My favorite character was the Kid, a smart, intuitive, and compassionate vegan who seemed to be able to deal with life better than Bear.  350 pages (Kindle edition).

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Posted for Andrea Dennis

#2 on the 100 books to read before you die. This was a fantastic book. I can’t believe I had never read this one before either. I love that the story is told from Scout’s point of view. Great read!  324 pages.

Redwood Bend by Robyn Carr

Posted for Diann Stark

Audio reading time: 9 hours, 26 minutes. 384 pages.

Meet Katie Malone (Danson Connor’s sister, from Hidden Summit) and her twin boys; they are on their way to Virgin River. However, before they can get there Katie has a flat tire, it starts to rain, the boys are complaining they are hungry and Katie has no clue how to change the tire. She cannot use her cellphone due to not having a signal when she suddenly hears a motorcycle approaching. 

Dylan Childress and his buddies are on the motorcycle trip of a lifetime. They see Katie and stop to help. Katie gets a good look at him and realizes he is a child film star! 

They both end up in Virgin River; Dylan is trying to drum up business for his failing charter business. Katie and the boys are reconnecting with Connor and Leslie. 

Dylan comes from a family history of broken relationships and knows that he is not good enough for Katie. However, Katie thinks otherwise!

The Light Between Oceans by M. L. Stedman

After four horrific years on the Western Front during World War II, Tom Sherbourne returns to Australia, and becomes a lighthouse keeper on the isolated island of Janus. When he marries a young, vibrant woman named Isabel, the two of them become the only inhabitants of  this small island, half a day's journey by boat from the shore. A supply boat comes every three months; the only link they have to civilization.

Even though they only have each other for human interaction, and must work very hard to maintain the island and the lighthouse, they are very happy. When Isabel becomes pregnant with their first child, she is ecstatic. But she miscarries, then becomes pregnant again and miscarries again. When her third pregnancy ends in the stillbirth of a son, Isabel sinks into a deep depression. Then one day, walking near the shore, she hears a baby's cry. And there, by the shoreline, is a boat with a dead man inside, and an infant wrapped in a woman's sweater.

Tom wants to summon help, but Isabel convinces him that the mother must be dead, for what mother would allow a baby to be taken from her and taken out to sea in a small boat? She manages to persuade Tom to let her keep the baby, against his better judgment. They pretend it is the child they were expecting, the one who was stillborn. For several years, they were all very happy, but a visit to the mainland changes everything.

This book is about the sometimes dire consequences of deception, even one that begins as a kindness.
Lives can be devastated, even those of the most innocent.

Highly recommended.

354 pages