Author Archives: beckylindroos

I just chose this book because it was the type of book I read for fun,  it was on sale and it seemed to have a lot of good reviews.   Oh well –  you can’t win them all.   … Continue reading →

Opening with a great Prologue –  it’s 1912 and two young boys,  the sons of the American council,  are  snatched in a move distinctly out of  Fagan’s bag of tricks,  off a street in Chungqing,  China never to see their … Continue reading →

Alexandra Boyd, a young American woman,  arrives in Sofia, Bulgaria to work as a teacher.   On her first day, after a brief friendly encounter with a family outside the wrong hotel,  she finds that the satchel belonging to the … Continue reading →

So I go from a fairly heavy and angst-filled satire (St. Germain’s Horseman) to a medium-weight family saga (Pachinko)  to now,  a really light-hearted book.   Or is it? –  there seems to be a dark side there with Eleanor’s … Continue reading →

Oh good –  I needed something lighter weight and this is turning out to be that.  Plus it concerns Korean cultural with a bit of history thrown in-   I’ve long been interested in Korea, both North and South,   … Continue reading →

I didn’t think I’d be all that interested in this book but once I started it I was fascinated – at least in parts.     It’s not the science of  The Hidden Life of Trees (Peter Wohlleben – 2016), … Continue reading →

Oh I was ready for a good juicy page-turning crime novel and it looks like the choice of the 4-Mystery Addicts group is just the thing.   I read one book by Lehane,  Mystic River,   years ago and enjoyed it, … Continue reading →

In the very northern reaches of Idaho,  a hundred miles or so from the Canadian border,  Ann and Wade  Mitchell are married even with his ex-wife  Jenny who is in prison for the murder of one of the daughters she … Continue reading →

I had to reread this for some reason –  (so call my a martyr).   I actually enjoyed it quite a lot more the second time having got over my disgust and annoyance with Eileen-the-younger.   It’s really not necessary … Continue reading →

This is a remarkable interweaving of the stories underlying My Name is Lucy Barton  –  What all went on in that hometown of Lucy’s  – to the people Lucy and her mother gossip about? –  These are those stories, each almost … Continue reading →

I read Breakfast with Buddha a few months ago and was kind of enchanted so when Dinner with Buddha (3rd volume) was on sale I had to get Lunch with Buddha, too. Lunch with Buddha doesn’t have quite the same … Continue reading →

I’ve had this book sitting around for a few months and now that maybe I’ll give it a try although I’ve read other material quite similar –  White Trash by Nancy Isenberg  and Hillbilly Elegy by J.D. Vance, Hillbilly Elegy … Continue reading →

I rated this an A- as a crime novel but only a 6.5  as a literary endeavor.  I like to think I understand what Silvis was trying to do but that it just didn’t quite cut it although it was … Continue reading →

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 →