Posted July 06, 2016in Book Review
By Anna Quindlen Random House April 5, 2016 $28 272 pages Mary Margaret (Mimi) Miller is a baby boomer growing up in a community where her family has lived and farmed for generations. Her father is also a “fix-it man,” and her mother is a nurse. The valley
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Posted June 29, 2016in Book Review
Garth Risk Hallberg’s first novel, “City on Fire,” is a behemoth, weighing in at more than 900 pages. Readers who might be intimidated by the size of this novel should know that it’s worth it. After reading this book, I was left wanting more. It takes place in New
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Posted June 22, 2016in Book Review
By Nathaniel Philbrick Viking May 10, 2016 Hardcover $30 448 Pages Nathaniel Philbrick presents a detailed examination of George Washington and Benedict Arnold during the Revolutionary War. While Washington is generally known as the Father of the Country, Philbrick is very clear that Washington was a rather incompetent general
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Posted June 15, 2016in Book Review
I love books as art — thick, heavy books with deckled pages, tons of glossy pictures and a cover that just screams, “Read Me.” The cultural phenomenon that is the Broadway hit play, “Hamilton: The Revolution,” seems tailor-made for just such a book. Lin-Manuel Miranda is brash, insightful, hilarious
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Posted June 08, 2016in Book Review
Months after a tentative recovery from a mental breakdown, Clara decides to dive back into life with gusto. She has a stable office job, her own small apartment, and she meets Jeff on a popular online dating site. She was sensitive and reclusive, fragile and afraid to venture out. Jeff
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Posted June 01, 2016in Book Review
Laura Barnett’s first novel is an entertaining, thoughtful story about destiny and chance, possibilities and consequences, and roads not taken. With a cohesive style, it spans decades, offering three possible narratives that seamlessly flow into one another. Her story begins with Eva and Jim, two students at Cambridge. Eva
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Posted May 25, 2016in Book Review
Pulitzer-Prize winning journalist Joby Warrick’s newest book, “Black Flags: The Rise of ISIS,” recently garnered him the Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction, and it’s easy to see why. The book is divided into three sections: The Rise of Zarqawi, Iraq and ISIS. The Rise of Zarqawi follows Abu Musab al-Zarqawi
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Posted May 18, 2016in Book Review
This book is the biography of Thomas Francis Meagher (pronounced Mah-ur), who grew up during the time of the Great Famine in Ireland. Born to a prominent merchant family, he became the voice of the Young Ireland movement, which called for the separation of Ireland from the oppressive rule of
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Posted May 11, 2016in Book Review
By Joe Hill 768pp William Morrow $28.99 05/17/16 There’s something magical about Joe Hill. Something deeply disturbed — as we’d expect from a child of horror demigod Stephen King — but magical in those shadows. Never one to go the obvious route, Hill has managed to take a
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Posted May 04, 2016in Book Review
Chris Bohjalian’s new novel, “The Guest Room,” tells the story of Richard and Kristin Chapman, a 40-year-old couple living a life to which others would aspire. Their lovely suburban New York home is well appointed and comfortable. She is a popular and respected teacher in the local high school, and
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