I really struggled with the lack of patron privacy in the first book. In this follow up at least it's a little more honest in terms of patient privacy. Likely a dumb thing to get hung up on but something that goes against the grain of this library staff member. I also liked the correlations between salvation and feeling the need to 'pay back/pay it forward' mentality that comes with the guilt of being healed.

Middle Grade Novels in Verse are quickly moving up my list of genres I never turn down. The emotions match the pace and thought process of the characters. This one has history, climate issues, some suspense, and sense of belonging and/or being left out all tied into the story arc.

November 2025
Host of Maggie's Book Bites Podcast
Goodreads.com/MaggieCarr
#2025SpineStack
#MaggiesSpineStacks

I stumbled on someone's unhidden spoiler for this book giving me information that kept me from being as objective as I would have normally BUT I do also know that I can't always rely on my initial character analysis coming from the minds of L.C.

Greedy people are awful, greedy people with zero recourse are worse, give them power or access to people with power and they believe themselves untouchable.

In general I tend to avoid WW2 storylines because there are just so many of them and I feel like all the stories have already been told in one capacity or another. But I was gifted this title and it ended up being amazing and one that I can add to my unknown American histories podcast episode in 2026. These women were amazing!

The title gives it away, but I definitely didn't have it all figured out- which I guess is the point.

What an incredible life she lived. To God be the glory.

A very cute novella set in Iceland, centering around the very first Jólabókaflóð during the occupation in 1944 in WW2.

Bawling. What a wonderful, wonderful book. I wish there weren't so many parallels to our current events dealing with ICE. These friends will live in my head and heart for a very long time.

Podcasting from the Nappanee Public Library, Sarah & Maggie are in discussion about time slip dual narrative books on "Maggie's Book Bites" listen all all major platforms!

https://open.spotify.com/episode/7zwsUll3XDMvjxUr78L3b4?si=dhxVs3j5RLeuuXAW7kiD3...

For an inspirational fiction romance, I was a bit surprised by the quick and passionate kissing scenes. Don't get me wrong I know it's fine to kiss just not used to it (and neck, and earlobe kissing) in this genre. 🙃

Anyway, very cute but hard hitting self confidence theme that had me recommending it to additional readers that can relate.

Multiple perspectives with some memories from decades before made this a very enjoyable read. With the opening of the largest Egyptian Museum opening and being in the current events I brought this story full circle despite it being fictionalized it is still based on lots of known facts.

Wow. What a fabulous way to experience life in the shoes of a profoundly neurodiverse main character. May I always be associated with the most patient side characters that June shares interactions with rather than the quickly dismissive or those that take advantage.

Fantastic epilogue that answers questions I feared I missed, and a wonderful author's note explaining "why this story'

October 2025
Host of Maggie's Book Bites Podcast
Goodreads.com/MaggieCarr
#2025SpineStack
#MaggiesSpineStacks
#StorygraphStats

True crime.

The spellbinding tale of an epic international manhunt for a psychopathic con artist who exploited the dreams of creators to steal dozens of identities and millions of dollars.

I read and highly recommend the original middle grade chapter book Refugee by Alan Gratz frequently. This graphic novel version still brings a lot of the emotion but with using panels & speech bubbles paired with illustrations instead of descriptive paragraphs of text.

I'm my own worst critic when it comes to parenting, but Dr. Becky is reaffirming in reminding readers that it's never too late to course correct. I learned lots of new ways to approach different emotions, outbursts, or moments when my kids are deflecting or full of anxiety.

With so many flavors mentioned it was hard to decide which to make for our book club gathering but I had never heard of pear gelato before so that won out.

I felt like the ending, where the big character development is, was too rushed and then over. I would have liked to get to know the characters more. I did feel like I was there traveling with Grace & Claire though as the setting and sensory descriptions are very thorough.

A wonderful reimagining from the perspective of a little known Aunt Em, Dorothy of Frank L. Baum/Wizard of Oz fame.

Now I need to hunt down others from this author.

I considered myself well versed but golly this author gave me so much more to think about! Should be required reading for all humans.

So many parallels to what the media wants you to know and what they choose not to report. I feel like I'm going to have an inside joke with a book- chuckling when someone mentions bacon will make me think of Art for a long time to come.

Perfection in a standalone book with a tangent to another series (Riverbend Gap) that I adore. I don't always root for second chance romance but in this case it was well written and I was so invested I started to feel like the internal voice of Grandma rooting them on and to fight for one another.

Continuing where 'Home: A Memoir of My Early Years' left off this book follows the next three decades of motherhood, marriage to Blake, work career and I lost count of how many plain rides and moves as the family grows and criss-crosses the globe with a dual citizenship and active work life. I hope they are already working on another with some of her later work.

September 2025
Host of Maggie's Book Bites Podcast
Goodreads.com/MaggieCarr
#2025SpineStack
#MaggiesSpineStacks

Jason Reynolds doesn't know how to write a bad story. Add in a full cast, sound effects, riffs & beats and NYC comes to life through the eyes of these kids. August Rush vibes, but with a storyline all its own.

Bailing just shy of half way. Not the book I need right now.

Only two problems, in my head a multimillionaire isn't going to use a cleaning service but would have someone on staff clean his house. Secondly surely he would have security cameras to know if the hired cleaner was sleeping over.

Otherwise cute!

Extremely good insight from the lens we opt to raise our family through. Mental health is just as important to care for as physical health and leaning into friendships and mentorships with those who have parented and supported younger generations is extremely valuable. We can learn techniques and habits as a family with a biblical foundation.

I usually stay clear of WW2 storylines, simply because they are hard to read emotionally and I felt like every prospective had already been shared in the thousands of similar storylines published every year BUT this one came highly recommended to me by a library patron and was fantastic. Shifting between the siblings of a wonderful Polish family you feel the significance of the war before it's declared until after peace is reestablished....

This book is light suspense × The Scent Keeper (Erica Bauermeister)

I liked it, nothing is what it seems.

Leaving unrated, I don't remember now why or what intrigued me to add it to my TBR list to begin with. I wasn't and remain not a fan of Kari/Michelle throughout the entire book. Owell. On to the next book.

Time-slip in the more recent past, the early 1980s and today, with the prospects belonging to parents and their child in the midst of the gay rights movement or blockage when it came to the judicial system deciding if it would interfere with the way they raise their children. The truth often does come out when one of the secret keepers is giving a health timeline and sets into motion the acts and conversations that begin to lead to healing.

I think I would have enjoyed this one more if I cared about political and technology oops, but I don't so I slogged through snafu after snafu anticipating ones that I found more enjoyable like how TY Beanie Babies came to fame.

4 years ago my daughter brought Madame CJ Walker to life in a living wax museum of famous Hoosiers (Indiana, USA). I had never heard of her but my daughter's research, and memorization intrigued me and obviously stuck because I recognized A'Lelia's name in the subtitle immediately. What a fascinating life they lived while both dying young. It was also interesting to learn of the culture and history around this time period.

The content wasn't new to me but just as heartbreaking as the first time I became aware. The author's mother survived but it impacted her for a lifetime and set off ripple affects within her relationships with family and friends. Told through stories and collected, well researched, data Medicine River is a journey towards finding answers, seeking redemption for those unable to fight for justice, and grasping for healing all at the same time.

August 2025
Host of Maggie's Book Bites Podcast
Goodreads.com/MaggieCarr
#2025SpineStack
#MaggiesSpineStacks
#StorygraphStats

I live in the Amish belt and know the stance on war is clear but I hadn't ever considered the draft playing into it. There was a section of a character who conscientiously objected the war/draft and was then stoned & attacked for doing so by complete strangers further emphasizes the hate to those not willing to serve. That was eye opening but even more so was that they never called the police or took him to a hospital but rather,...

What in the world? I've seen the Disney movie once, when I was a child but thought I should read the classic as an adult. So weird. Wonder if the manuscript was submitted today if it would even make it out of the publisher slush pile.

While I didn't read the first 22 books in the series, it was easy to tell this wasn't the first. A lot of it read as if ways to remind a reader of a previous storyline when bringing characters in and out of the Elm Creek Compound. This was told as a dual timeline between 1933 and 2004 reminiscing about the largest quilt contest ever recorded for the Chicago World's Fair and two sisters who worked together on their entry.

This book could be triggering to those that struggle to read medical content, including sickness & birth. The entire story takes place over the course of 3 days and reads a lot like Call The Midwife but in a hospital setting. Societal norms not so distant in our history.

This one took me a bit to get through, but digesting it in sections left time to process and make connections multiple times with each of my kids, even the one who is 10 (not quite a teen). I definitely earmarked some sections to re-read in the next few years. While not all the research is their own, between the stories shared and how they correlate to each model the format of this book reminded me a lot of Brene Brown.

sigh. perfection. again. circle stories aren't as prevalent in adult titles as they are in children's stories and this one was done beautifully. I also felt some ties to The Princess Bride (found family, other words for love, etc) and I appreciated it even more having just read The Art Thief because owning art, and appreciating art in a shared space is expressed at length and it gave me a great readers perspective while enjoying this book as well.

A bit slow towards the last third with an abrupt end around where my knowledge of her starts, so I guess I need book #2 Home Work next.

I dislike her mother. Not as much as Judy Garland's mother or Jennette McCurdy's mother, but I do dislike her.

Picked it up because it had a mermaid on the cover, but kept reading and then listening when all the French was slowing my pace, because it was the Little Mermaid meets Cinderella mash-up that I didn't know I needed. Filled with fae, war, wealthy ship family dynamics, and a love triangle it was everything I didn't know I'd enjoy wrapped up in a historical fantasy. Sigh. I'm sad it's over but so thankful for the epilogue.

Annabel Monaghan is quickly becoming a favorite author, I love that she writes rom-coms that I can so easily visualize in my head with great characters and side characters, easy banter, and new tropes while also keeping classy with what is left unsaid in the bedroom.

Netgally ARC
publishes January 2026

I could relate to so much of this and saw many parallels to my daughters friend groups growing up as well. When my best friend moved away in late elementary school I never did find another best friend outside of my sister (in adulthood) and my husband but rather had wonderful friend groups that I still enjoy today.

In the 1960s girls whose families couldn't afford them, felt they were making bad decisions, were pregnant, etc were sometimes sent to the Good Shepherd School in New York under the care of nuns who abused their power in some of the worst possible ways. Based on very real history in America and the evidence of 1.5-4 million women who lost their children to unauthorized, irregular, or forced adoption between 1946-1969, according to NY Times.

Netgally ARC
Expected publication September 9, 2025

This middle grade graphic novel took me way back to the middle school note sharing days of trying to fit in. I can only imagine how much more complex it is now with technology. Anyway, a diverse group of friends/frenemies navigating societal expectations at home and at school, including leaving admiration notes to yourself in effort to be more liked. Not a far fetched idea, but it backfires.

Netgally ARC
Expected publication September 2, 2025

I enjoyed the original as a young reader, and again as an adult, along with the movie, so getting a glimpse of yet another artistic medium as a graphic novel was a treat! The pen and watercolors add so much to the living water narrative of the story. Graphic novels do condense the original work, but adapters, who also love the original, take care to incorporate details into the art. Well done!

July 2025
Host of Maggie's Book Bites Podcast
Goodreads.com/MaggieCarr
#2025SpineStack
#MaggiesSpineStacks
#StorygraphStats