Monthly Archives: July 2017

Toibin is a wonderfully creative author and talented wordsmith.  This is certainly not my favorite kind of literature but in the hands of Toibin it comes alive. Continue reading →

I need some kind of highest praise word here,  “ remarkable and extraordinary aren’t quite enough. “Important” is in the ball park but “vital”  is better.  One reviewer said, “Reading this book is imperative. You may not get another chance.” … Continue reading →

This is a very good book but not quite as good as either of my Chabon favorites,  Kavalier and Clay or The Yiddish Policeman’s Union.   This may be third favorite – (lol)  – Overall the novel feels like two separate … Continue reading →

Other reviewers have called this book quiet,  but I would rather just call it boring. That said,  it’s an old Booker Prize short-lister (1977)  and I read and almost always enjoy Booker Prize material with the Booker Prize reading group. … Continue reading →

Lucy Barton, our first person protagonist, is having some medical complications from an appendectomy and is in the hospital for several weeks.  She misses her husband and daughters,  but during this time her mother travels from Amgash, Illinois to see her … Continue reading →

I’d been eye-balling this book and then voila – it was selected as the discussion read at All-nonfiction Group!   Okay – so I looked forward to it – I don’t usually read the group selections until a couple weeks prior … Continue reading →

I listened to this years ago – one of my first Audio books –  and I was amazed.  So I was more than willing to read it again when it came up as a selection in the Modern Fictionreading group. … Continue reading →