I devoured this audiobook, staying up way too late and postponing other things I had to do in order to finish it. This is my favorite of all the MichaI devoured this audiobook, staying up way too late and postponing other things I had to do in order to finish it. This is my favorite of all the Michael Connelly books I've read to date. ...more
Another debut of short interconnected short stories about the experience of the Palestinian-American community living in and around Baltimore, MarylanAnother debut of short interconnected short stories about the experience of the Palestinian-American community living in and around Baltimore, Maryland. From well-to-do families to those who clean for the well-to-do, from fervently religious to barely religious, each is a unique person, each group much more complex than how we generally see most immigrant groups. ...more
Brilliant. Just brilliant. This short story says more about race in its 96 pages than other books could say in volumes. Twyla and Roberta are little gBrilliant. Just brilliant. This short story says more about race in its 96 pages than other books could say in volumes. Twyla and Roberta are little girls living at a shelter and rooming together. One is white and one is black. They are friends, glued at the hip but as they grow older they separate and go on to lead very different lives. After many years they find each other again and although the two could not be more different, they still have a deep connection. Throughout the book, Morrison has removed all indications of which is these girls/women is white and which one is black. She has left it up to the reader to come to a conclusion – or not, and in doing so, I felt like she demonstrated just how much we wanted to know who was who. Not just two girls, or two women or their two mothers – all different, but which girl was white, which woman was black, which mother was which. Again, brilliant....more
Every time I'm parked at a red light, I look to my right, someone is smiling at me in the next car. I look to my left, the other driver is staring at Every time I'm parked at a red light, I look to my right, someone is smiling at me in the next car. I look to my left, the other driver is staring at me in disbelief...One guy said, 'For God's sake, don't drive like a girl!' My tips are fantastic."
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What a treat to read this gem of a collection of non-fiction short stories. Nancy was a cab driver in the early 70s in New York City. Petite and young, she had to be strong and resilient to deal not only with the guys at her taxi garage, but with customers and other drivers. These stories are an honest slice of her life, unfiltered, revealing her youth, her vulnerability and determination to succeed in the city. I did not want the stories to end – so please, Nancy – write some more stories.
On a side note – I loved going to the Horn & Hardart when I was a kid in Manhattan; we went to the one either on East 86th St. or on 33rd St. close to B.Altman where my mother used to work!...more
A mother is a mother is a mother – whether in Peru or in New York City, whether native, or immigrant – and this is the story of a mother doing everythA mother is a mother is a mother – whether in Peru or in New York City, whether native, or immigrant – and this is the story of a mother doing everything in her power to keep her family afloat, to avoid going back to Peru even though she and her family are in the US illegally. The lack of documents makes life twice as hard; assimilating, learning the language, customs, navigating the system ... Anna Falcon keeps it together; she’s strong, she’s determined and she loves her family.
At this time in America, it’s a book that goes beyond the “illegal immigrants all need to be rounded up and deported” jargon. It gets to the heart of what they go through to survive, and to provide a better future for themselves and their children....more
The core of this book takes place in Kenya, England, Sudan, Germany, Italy and Canada. There are British diplomats, scientists, aid workers, Africans,The core of this book takes place in Kenya, England, Sudan, Germany, Italy and Canada. There are British diplomats, scientists, aid workers, Africans, Scotland Yard, pharmaceutical companies, murders, intrigue, relationships and business deals involved. And all of this is loosely based on events that actually happened.
I wish I had written a review immediately instead of weeks later, but the story itself still resonates with me and at the time I read it I could not put it down. 5 stars for me. ...more
This book is at times an exposé of the Amish, a sorrowful, haunting account of child abuse and neglect, and a call to those who witness the abuse to dThis book is at times an exposé of the Amish, a sorrowful, haunting account of child abuse and neglect, and a call to those who witness the abuse to do something about it. Growing up in a world that many of us cannot even begin to imagine - our minds simply can't go there - sisters Misty and Samantha endured such incredibly harsh abuse that it's a wonder they weren't "accidentally" killed by their parents. Sent to live with the Amish to diversify the bloodline of the cult, Misty once again became the victim of abuse. With a 2nd- or 3rd-grade education and the brainwashing she was brought up with, it took years for her to figure out that this religion was not all it seemed to be to the outside world, that her abuse as a child and as a young adult was wrong and finally find her way out of it and into a new life. Along the way she realized that law enforcement and agencies treat the Amish with kid gloves, that victims of sexual abuse or any abuse really, need evidence for them to be believed and that good people sometimes turn a blind eye to what they perceive to be none of their business. I read this in two sittings and have great respect for the woman Misty became and wish her peace. ...more
Fue un relato sumamente difícil de leer. El libro lo compré en el mismo campo de concentración de Sachsenhausen, después de haber hecho un tour del caFue un relato sumamente difícil de leer. El libro lo compré en el mismo campo de concentración de Sachsenhausen, después de haber hecho un tour del campo que fue emocionante y penoso. Le pedí al guía nuestro que me recomendara algun libro que profundizase la experiencia que habíamos tenido y me recomendó este libro que pude adquirir en la librería de Sachsenhausen.
Esta no es ni novela, ni autobiografía. Es más bien una entrevista hecha por dos periodistas que llevaron a Pedro Martín a contar su historia con mucho detalle y con explicaciones a través de numerosos notas al pie de la página que sirvieron mucho para aclarar conceptos desconocidos.
Pedro a los 17 años fue atrapado en Francia y llevado al campo de concentración donde pasó mas de dos años y de hecho, por poco muere. Cuenta su historia claramente y con mucha profundidad.
Thanks to Meredith at Currently Reading podcast for recommending this book. I found it on Libby, the library app, and downloaded the audio version. WiThanks to Meredith at Currently Reading podcast for recommending this book. I found it on Libby, the library app, and downloaded the audio version. With excellent narration, the book was propulsive, believable and very well done.
The premise: A small-town patent lawyer gets roped into defending an unpleasant out-of-towner accused of murdering a federal judge. As a patent lawyer he has no experience in criminal law but finds himself working the trial anyway.
Ever since I served on the jury of a murder trial, I've been fascinated with legal thrillers and this one not only didn't disappoint - the details were well explained but not overlong, there were no red herrings, just a list of possibilities that had to be explored and a very satisfying ending. ...more
“Kinsella takes my hand in his. As soon as he takes it, I realize my father has never once held my hand, and some part of me wants Kinsella to let me “Kinsella takes my hand in his. As soon as he takes it, I realize my father has never once held my hand, and some part of me wants Kinsella to let me go so I won’t have to feel this.”
This absolute gem of a novel. Sparse, beautifully written and deeply emotional in 80 short pages. The story is told by a little girl, dropped off at a neighbor's house as a foster, as her mother is dealing with yet another pregnancy to add to the crop of other children. At this new home, she learns a totally different way of life, a new way of loving. One of my favorite books of 2022. ...more
Set in Ireland in 1985, Bill delivers heating coal to the local residents and businesses. He is married with four daughters and during one of his deliSet in Ireland in 1985, Bill delivers heating coal to the local residents and businesses. He is married with four daughters and during one of his deliveries he witnesses a young lady - about the age of one of his daughters - in distress. It makes him reevaluate his wife, his homelife, what's important and what he's willing to do about the situation which might go against what authorities have told him to do. Social mores, authority and the opinions of others play huge roles in the Irish society in which he lives. It's a gem of a book which, while short, packs a huge emotional and character punch. ...more
What a way to end the year with several 5-star reads, and this one just added to the list! It's the story of a woman who entered the army after marryinWhat a way to end the year with several 5-star reads, and this one just added to the list! It's the story of a woman who entered the army after marrying and graduating college with honors. How she got to rise among the ranks, what happened along the way, and why she left the military. Told with clarity and feeling, it makes you wonder if any of the male officers would ever read this and forge change....more
Gilded Mountain takes place a couple of hours away from where I live in Colorado. The book is rich with the history of mining towns, and the operationGilded Mountain takes place a couple of hours away from where I live in Colorado. The book is rich with the history of mining towns, and the operations of these towns at the turn of the 20th Century. It goes deep into women’s rights, worker’s conditions and made me think, ‘we’ve come a long way” with so much more to go.
Marble Colorado, where the story takes place is a real mining town, still existent. Sylvia, who was slated to become a Catholic nun, is there with her family as a young girl and sees her father, worked to the bone, her mother and siblings living in squalor, animals mistreated. And on the other hand, she is employed by the wife of the owner of the mine as her secretary and enjoys the lifestyle of relative opulence in which they live. She is pulled in both directions – as someone who would like to fight for social justice and someone who enjoys the comforts of her boss's home. She is also employed in the winter by a female editor of the Moonstone register, a paper that reports the truth. As she begins her job there, she is timid, afraid to speak her mind, "silence is a woman's best garment" was her mother's refrain. and slowly, with the help of different female mentors, she grows up and finds her voice. Smiling was a disguise of appeasement.
Last year I visited the cemetery in Leadville after attending a talk about the history of the Irish miners living there in the late 19th century. Leadville is the highest city in the United States at 10,158ft. It is cool and breezy in the summer, and snowy and frigid in the winter. There are over 1,000 Irish miners buried in sunken graves, many with no headstone, in the pauper's area at Evergreen Cemetery, and that doesn’t count the endless graves of their wives and babies. They were given tents to live in over the winter. Who could survive? I suspect that Marble was no different, nor were all the other mining towns that abound the mountain towns of Colorado.
I asked a man in prison once how he happened to be there and he Sid he had stolen a pair of shoes. I told him if he had stolen a railroad he would be a United States Senator. Mary Harris "Mother" Jones
The book is a work of fiction, with many of the stories based on real events that happened in the mining towns here. What surprised me in the book was the account of the Pinkerton patrols, the fact that in 1908 there was so much vigilante justice, that women were openly treated as second class citizens and that this part of the west was still so wild. A terrific read. 5 stars. ...more
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