The Whole World  By:  Emily Winslow

I did not like this book. I found it very difficult to read and disjointed. There were too many secondary characters that I didn’t care about and made the book confusing. I enjoyed the description of Cambridge and the surrounding areas. I found that very interesting. But as for the rest of the book; characters, and story line, I just couldn’t get myself to care one way or the other. I am bummed about this because when I read the description on LibraryThing and found out I was getting a copy, I was excitied. ( )

The Day The Falls Stood Still by Cathy Marie Buchanan

I don’t usually go for love stories, but this one set in the mist of Niagara Falls won me over.  I love the strong & independent Bess and her growing attachment to Tom the riverman.  I really like the way the story redefines what is a family by having Mrs. Andrews become a surrogate mother & grandmother.  The story also deals with the effects of war on soldiers & how the aftermath touches the whole family.  But what I liked most about the book is how Buchanan creates a sense of place around the falls.  This is a love ode to the beautiful & rugged waterfall & its valley.  Old photos of the area  & fictional newspaper articles open most chapters, adding a lot to the story.  I highly recommend the book.

Bait & Switch by Barbara Ehrenreich

Here Ehrenreich tries to land a middle class white collar job, much as she tried to live on minimum wage in Nickel and Dimed. The similar format has her creating a new identity to try to land that great job. I really like her writing style, but for some reason this book didn’t keep my interest. It’s a timely subject, but maybe it’s too depressing that so many highly educated people can’t find work. One fascinating part is about all the “networking” & “leadership” seminars that she attends. I kept thinking of snake oil salesman as I read these parts. If you’re out of work & your misery loves company, you should read this book

Goldengrove by Francine Prose

Here’s another coming of age story. This time the protagonist is Nico, a 13 year old girl who just lost her sister in an accident. How she deals with her own changes & the grief that surrounds her family is the basis for the story. I liked most of this book. Prose seems to understand grief & its power to bring together & also divide people. Nico’s friendship with her sister’s boyfriend is interesting & then creepy, yet plausible. But near the end of the book something goes astray. The last two chapters seem tacked on, much like the room additions of their house in the book. Nico never helps her father with his book in the way I felt she should. I don’t want to say too much & ruin it for future readers, but I was let down at the end.

What the Dead Know By: Laura Lipman

Quite a good read.  The story was written in a format I am very fond of;  jumping back and forth through different times.  You get to know the characters, or do you??  There are quite a few twists and turns that made me want to keep reading this book.  From the very first chapter, I was intrigued and interested in learning who the protagonist truly was.  I found all the characters to be intriguing even though I did not like them all, I still wanted to hear their stories.  I will definately read other books by this author.  ***  submitted by: bnbookgirl

Still Missing

I must say I was eager to read this book, but, I was soon disappointed. It just didn’t grab my attention or keep it. I found the characters likeable and I kept rooting for the boy, but this was not one of the greatest stories I’ve read. I thought it was going to be more suspenseful and haunting, but I just wasn’t wowed. It was like so many other books I have read, predictable. I will give Beth Gutcheon another try as I have heard great things about her, this one was just not a page-turner for me.  Submitted by artful4mysoul **1/2

The Missing by Tim Gautreaux

I just finished The Missing & I was actually sad when it was finished. I fell in love with the characters & story in the first pages. Gautreaux’s novel follows the life of Sam Simoneaux (aka Lucky,an ironic nickname) as he weaves his way through life after being orphaned as an infant. In the aftermath of WW1, Lucky has the unfortunate task of dismantling bombs & grenades on the old battlefields. His regiment accidentally bombs an orphaned young girl’s village & he takes it to heart, accepting responsibility.

Then on his return home, everyone (including himself) blames him when he is unable to prevent the abduction of a little girl from a New Orleans department store. He decides to work with the girl’s parents on a riverboat as it works it way up & down the Mississippi, while he searches for clues to her disappearance. The crew & performers on the dance boat provide a wealth of funny & tragic characters. Simon must also confront various backwoods clans along the river bottoms. These characters are scary Eventually he needs to face the death of his own family & deal with the idea of revenge.

About half way in the book, Lucky makes another bad decision. I thought come on, can he really make this many bad decisions? Then, as I digested parts of the book, I thought of people I know & love & some of the repeat mistakes that they make. Yes, some people really do continue to make bad decisions. I highly recommend this book & will be looking forward to more titles by Mr. Gautreaux.

Waiter Rant: Thanks For The Tip-Confessions Of A Cynical Waiter

I came late to this party & arrived through the back door by reading the book before the blog, http://waiterrant.net/. “The Waiter”, now outed, but previously anonymous, shows us all the fun, frightening, & hilarious aspects of waiting tables in the New York area. Anyone who has earned a living waiting tables or even toiled in the service industry will sympathize with him. Customers behaving badly seem to provide the most laughs. I like the way he straddles his duties on the front line with them & manages to keep his cool with the people in the kitchen when things so astray. His writing is good & if you start to follow his blog, you can see it evolve over time. He goes from just telling stories of restaurant drama to relating these stories to his world view. I hear he’s working on a new book about tipping & I look forward to it.

The Cure of Death by Lightning by Gail Anderson-Dargatz

A family drama taking place on a small Canadian Farm in the midst of WWII.  This book is told by fifteen-year old Beth who encounters many strange and quirky people from her own family members to friends and neighbors.  Filled with Indian legends she gets from a friend from the nearby reservation.  Beth also shares home remedies and recipes she gets from reading her mother’s scrapbook.  This book is a coming of age story filled with a plethora of quirky characters from Filthy Billy who suffers from having his soul taken over by a coyote, to Coyote Jack who sneaks around watching Beth and hiding in the bushes.  Beth’s father is a violent man who is a danger not only to his family, but also to his friends and neighbors.  This book intertwines legend, myth, and reality to make a truely engrossing read.  I look forward to reading other books by this author.   ***

Singing Boy By: Dennis McFarland

An interesting story about the different ways people deal with personal grief.  A boy and his mother deal with the death of his father and her husband.  Throw into the mix the best friend and it makes for an interesting story.  Sarah, the mom, retreats into her own world while leaving Harry, her son, to get by on his own.  Neither know how to deal with this overpowering feeling.  It is an intriguing look into the intricacies of grief and sorrow.  It is not the best book I have ever read, but, I found many similarities in my own grieving process.  I think it is a good book to let people know that everyone must deal with this in their own manner despite all the suggestions they are given by other family, friends, and others who cross our path.  I give this book ***.  Submitted by: Artful4mysoul