I enjoy historical fiction, particularly when it is more historical and less fiction. I think The Alice Network does an excellent job of portraying these real WWI spy heroes. Enough said.

I seem to have an ongoing conflict with a lot of Pulitzer Prize winners, and it includes this one. Patrice is such a compelling character- she is the one I followed - and yet her story was untold as the book came to a close. To have such a pivotal character delegated to a few sentences- it just left the book unbalanced.

As much as I want to give this a thumbs up, this Pulitzer Prize winner fell flat for me. I appreciated the weariness portrayed on both sides of the conflict, but the “characters” never really came to life for me. Often the author seemed to have major generals forgetting why they were really fighting, which I found puzzling. I was searching for something more.

Well my foray into Hemingway was so so. I thoroughly enjoyed The Old Man and The Sea years ago and hoped I would continue my admiration into The Sun Also Rises. Unfortunately I found a work full of broken people written evidently by a broken man who didn‘t want to fix himself or anyone around him. Pitying Hemingway is not what I was looking for, so I‘ll have to pass on this classic.

Having just toured Auschwitz- Birkenau this book was clearly relevant to me, but everyone should read about this time, this place - and then take a good look at what is going on today. People are the same then as now. Where there is evil there is kindness, which should empower us to get out of our own problems and fight for the rights of all people.

This latest from the author of the incomparable Station Eleven is a sketchy try at time travel that left me with a case of vertigo. I have decided to read it again but this time with a flow chart to aid in recognizing some of the characters that initially seem superfluous but are later found to be key to unlocking the tumbling plot! Should I have to stay so organized when the author did not? Maybe this was her intent. Stay tuned ….

Such a good read, an encapsulation of the various moral shades of humanity that always surround us. Towles lets us into each of their lives, their thoughts - and helps us to understand each other more clearly. Such a treasure of a book.

Great WWII quick thriller. I need to read more spy novels!

Wanted to hear Mrs.Schindler‘s side of the story. She was a rock if a woman, taking abuse and giving kindness to many. While no author, her short story does offer a valuable lesson: don‘t expect accolades if you do great deeds for others. Do whatever you can when you can because it is just the right thing to do.

Usually don‘t read nonfiction history books, but an upcoming trip made this a wise choice. Now, with Russia invading Ukraine this is more important than ever. We all hear that history repeats itself if lessons are not learned. I think that people who want to re-live parts of history where countries are toppled and many are killed are the worst kind. They know history and choose to ignore its lessons. Let‘s all get wiser.

My second reading, though decades have separated the time I last picked up this book. In these chaotic times it was somehow comforting to read about my father‘s generation, raised during the Great Depression. That time was no less chaotic and uncertain, but the ties of family kept the world a smaller place where things could be tackled together. We could all learn by talking, in person, more and TikToking less.

A Christmas present. A quick read with a good message, though it may not strike a cord for all, including myself at times. We do need to get over our disappointments and get down to the business of living - really living - our lives, not just breathing through them. Appreciate the New Year we have been given and MAKE it a good one….!

After sitting on my bookshelf for decades I just finished this. We‘re visiting Krakow in July so I thought I should give it a try. I knew the tale behind the man, but never watched the movie either, thinking it was too depressing - but the current state of the world makes the horror of this part of history important to never forget. Schindler was a man with many flaws but he used every one of them to save lives.

Another treasure from Backman. So witty and sensitive when the world is full of anxious people these days. It is nice to take time for some humanity.

I can‘t decide if I enjoyed reading The Other Einstein or not … because I am SO angry that the history books have glorified Albert Einstein while he abused his wife and the mother of his children. Marie Benedict has done a great job at illuminating the wrongs of history in her works. I‘m officially a fan.

An easy read, but it left me wanting to know more about Belle da Costa Greene, which may have been the intent. Greene‘s life-lived-on-the-edge is something that could never be pulled off in today‘s world of never ending social media scandals and I hope no one would need to hide who they are in order to be successful in their lives, but unfortunately plenty still do. Thanks Belle, but there is still work to be done.

A freebie from Amazon when they sent me the wrong book and I decided to check it out. Quick read with some solid writing but few real surprises - yet enjoyable!

Fun romp through the crazy history of the British royals.

Great true story of a daughter‘s quest to find out who her father truly was. Part detective, part historian …Ariana Neumann does a superb job shedding light on painful pasts that must never be forgotten.

Compelling true story of how greed destroyed an entire community and how those who write the history books for this country never paint the correct picture of how this nation was built. We have much to make right in this world.

A bit of a task getting through some of this, but well worth it in the end. I felt more connected to Strike and Robin this time around, but some of the side plots (other cases) were yawners. Maybe that was why this one just felt a bit more realistic than some of the past books - life is just not so glamorous a lot of the time.

So I haven‘t been to Cuba. If I had (or was planning on it) I would recommend reading this. But since my reality is what it is, this book just falls short for me. I do understand that Cuba is a country that has seen too many struggles and misses at freedom, but when the characters continue to have the same conversations throughout the book on these struggles, over and over again - they lose me. I skimmed over pages of text and didn‘t miss a thing.

A hard book to finish and to put down. So conflicting, so raw. The things people do to each other.....

For the most part predictable. Book club read.

Great fling back to a Regency Romance! Just a fun book to relax with after reading so many serious books.

Just what I needed - a quick spy novel fix.

My sons are runners. We live in San Diego and have rubbed elbows with some of the people mentioned in this book. Despite or because of that - this is such a well written book about the passion of running and working through pain, physical and emotional, to reach for a connection with your body. For those who want to improve their times I‘m sure you will find great training tips here; for those who simply want to be inspired- it‘s in here too.

A view of Upper Michigan country justice in the 1950s. Full of “aw shucks” moments from a good ole country lawyer, but a good attorney nonetheless. The working of the case is superb and a good read. The perceived value of women (or lack of)is quite eye opening as well. Thank goodness we no longer all have to be like June Cleaver!!

Usually read fiction to get away from life for a while, but after seeing the author being interviewed I felt compelled to read this brilliant piece of nonfiction. So educational, eye opening and painful to see the gaping holes in the fabric on this country. A must read for anyone willing to change their lives and make this country live up to the words of the Constitution under which it was founded.

Enjoyable while reading about her personal life, but lackluster when discussing her professional life. I found myself wandering while she is discussing her successes and struggles on 30 Rock. This is where she lost her comedic flare and just sounded like the rest of us - overworked and on edge. The very thing I wanted to escape from!

The last of the series that can‘t end - there is so much more yet to feel. Elena Ferrante, whoever she may be, does an amazing job of highlighting the push and pull of friendship in complex characters that I expect to walk right up to my door.

Book #3 shows so much growth in Lenu, yet such trepidation of success. Meanwhile Lila‘s life is a giant chess piece being moved by exactly whom? “As usual it seemed to her that she could enter and leave my life without any worries, as if we were still a single thing and there was no need to ask how are you, how are things, am I disturbing you.”

Book #2 does not disappoint. Two lives going in different directions but bound together inextricably.

A wonderful introspective beginning to the life of a friendship- but keeping reading the entire series! A must read for anyone who wants to see how friendships endure.

A quirky book - probably not recommended pandemic reading (what was I thinking?!?) - unless you like going down sarcastic apocalyptic roads! Just flippant enough to keep me reading, but the ending was at the beginning so no surprises, including how humanity can be so fickle in the middle of crises - sound familiar?!?!?

So glad I picked this dusty old paperback (inherited from the in-laws) off my bookshelf and finally read it. This one reminded me of why I love the classics so much! Dickens is SO good at showing us the follies of humanity, while ultimately leaving us happier and wiser. I was only sad to see that humans haven‘t changed much in all these years, which means we probably never will....

I enjoyed the book, but wanted to like it more. Kya‘s character was believable until it wasn‘t. Still, a good read from a first time novelist.

A warm remembrance. A little too light on the details concerning connecting with her husband‘s family and overcoming the racial and cultural divide, but the love shines through.

Borrowed from a friend, I was glad to have read Comey‘s perspective on troubling events.

Each character in and of themselves is compelling, but the story was just too disjointed for me to follow. Maybe this isn‘t a before-bed kind of read, but I almost needed a character map to keep everyone straight. zzzzz.....

I am somewhat torn.
Having just gotten back from Budapest I recognized some of the street names, the bridges and pictured the boulevards destroyed by the war.
On the other hand, did I really need 389 pages of Parisian primer before reading about the true conflict of the story?
But did I finish the book? Yes I did. Was I glad I did? Yes I am.

A fairly strong book (for a dog) with a weak ending. If only life could be wrapped up so nicely in a big beautiful bone. If you want an unrealistic feel good story this is it. Maybe if I could actually find a dog like Enzo I wouldn‘t be so flip.

A solid fast read with a few questions remaining. That may be what the author wanted. Trying to empathize with a situation that seemed a bit contrived? Still, a strong statement that is strongly made about our country and its imperfections.

I think I have your Station Eleven book if you still want it :)

Quick read - in just one sitting - of poems-as-a-story. The ending was point on.

Book Club pick. So hard to read. Do people who live like this really read Greek mythology? Life is so precious, and this book really shows how it just becomes existence to too many.

I think I was impatient to find out what happened, so I skipped over some of the more eloquent writing and descriptions. This probably means the story was compelling but didn‘t move at pace needed to keep me reading every word?

So my husband gave this to me last year for my birthday and I was turned off by the title (I know, don‘t judge a book by its cover) but I have finally read it - and I love it! What a treasure trove of new books to read with a lovely story about an amazing woman/mother at the end of her life as told by her son. A lasting memoir of a life well lived.

A so-so thumbs up. I didn‘t appreciate the three character back-and-forth format, and Caroline was portrayed as a superficial yet charitable socialite that I could not care about. The story is fascinating; the way that it is told is less than it could have been.

Insightful woman‘s view of life in CA prison system, but if you are looking for a feel good read this is not it. The choices we make do define us - that is the take away....