January 2022 Book Reviews

Avid reader, bibliophile, book collector (and book accessories, too) that discusses her thoughts on the books she reads from her shelves.

January 2022 Book Reviews

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- February 17, 2022

I read so many good books in January 2022!

Here is a list of the books that I recommend from January, check out individual posts for the specific reviews.

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Heartbreaking Historical Thriller: The Last House on the Street by Diane Chamberlain

- February 17, 2022

This is a story about civil rights, discrimination, voter right suppression, young 'forbidden' love, and dark family secrets. Kayla is a young widowed mother that moves into a home built and designed by her and her late spouse. In her time line, this is a dual time line story, she learns of the dark secrets buried on her land that relate to Ellie's storyline. Ellie, a young white woman living in North Caroline in the 1960's, joins the work of SCOPE project in memory of her late aunt. SCOPE is a civil rights group working to educate and encourage voter registration in North Carolina. Ellie was a wonderful character full of strength and courage. I enjoyed reading about Ellie's blossoming relationship with Win and was deeply saddened by it's outcome. I was also deeply saddened by Ellie's family and friends, I won't say more (spoilers). My criticism, the dual stories were not equal in measure or development, Kayla's story was more of a vehicle to Ellie...

A Review: The Sentence by Louise Erdrich

- February 27, 2022

"The world was filled with ghosts. We were a haunted country in a haunted world." "You can't get over things you did to other people as easily as the things they did to you." This is (so far) my favorite book by Louise Erdrich. The story centers around Tookie, a bookstore clerk, that is being haunted by a former customer, Flora. Throughout the story, Tookie tries to solve the mystery of the haunting (which is a fascinating and intricate story) while dealing with the horrible events of 2020. The Sentence is a poignant title as it refers to the sentence that Tookie serves in prison, sentences that we place upon ourselves, and the sentences imprinted in the books, which were a saving grace for Tookie. I loved the character building, the relationships between the characters, and the insight into indigenous history. This is one of those novels that one should revisit as a reference to the 2020s and how the period impacted society, especially the indigenous people ...

- February 17, 2022

I lived in Florida quite close to USF, when the discovery of the horrors at Dozier were unearthed. So, I was quite interested in reading Colson Whitehead's fictionalized account of Dozier. I must agree that most of what I read in the papers about Dozier were accounts from the white survivors. I had not read a great deal about young black males that were incarcerated at Dozier. The story follows a young man, Elwood Curtis, who always did the right thing and believed in the Civil Rights Movement and the words of MLK Jr., but made a poor decision and ended up at Dozier. While at Dozier, we learn of the brutality and the downright depravity of these so-called educators. I had such a difficult time stomaching what I was reading, it is not for the faint of heart, but I do believe that if we do not know this history and learn from it, we can and do repeat such atrocities. Since this is a fictionalized account, I will at some point read a few non fiction accounts of Dozier and other 's...