Books High and Low

Monday, April 29, 2024

The spy who came for Christmas, by David Morrell

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  This is a short (233 pages) spy novel about a man who's on the run from his Russian-mafia kidnapping partners. It turns out he is deep...
Wednesday, April 24, 2024

Garden of lamentations, by Deborah Crombie

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  This mystery is the 18th in a series written by Deborah Crombie that stars Detectives Duncan Kincaid and Gemma James and which is set in L...
Tuesday, April 16, 2024

The Templar legacy, by Steve Berry

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This is an enjoyable and entertaining thriller about the search for the lost Templar wealth and the discovery of the descendants of the 700 ...
Monday, April 15, 2024

The Wager: a tale of shipwreck, mutiny, and murder, by David Grann

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  This was my State College book club's April pick, but not something that I would normally have chosen. For some reason, I'm not dr...
Tuesday, April 2, 2024

How to relax, by Thich Nhat Hanh

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  This is a great little book (116 pages) that serves as a primer on how to relax focusing on short meditations using the breath and mantras...
Monday, April 1, 2024

The dictionary of lost words, by Pip Williams

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This is one of my favorite books of the past year. Set in Oxford, England at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries, it is ...
Sunday, March 24, 2024

Unclutter your space with feng shui, by Antonia Beattie and Rosemary Stevens

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  I enjoy reading books and articles about both decluttering and feng shui, but this book is light on the principles of both concepts. It...
Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Narcas: the secret rise of women in Latin America's cartels, by Deborah Bonello

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With Narcas, VICE News reporter Deborah Bonello has provided readers with a short (160 pages) but fascinating look at some of the women who ...

Birnam Wood, by Eleanor Catton

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  I really liked this novel set in New Zealand. It's about a group of environmentalists who work together to farm and garden on unclaime...
Friday, March 15, 2024

Water on fire: A memoir of war, by Tarek El-Ariss

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  This is a deeply moving memoir by Dartmouth University professor of Middle Eastern studies Tarek El-Ariss. Growing up in war-torn Lebano...
Sunday, March 3, 2024

The year 1000, by Robert Lacey and Danny Danziger

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  This is an enjoyable overview of life in England in the year 1000. Framed around the Julius Work Calendar, chapters follow the months and ...
Thursday, February 29, 2024

Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow, by Gabrielle Zevin

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I couldn't put this novel down. It's about a group of friends who meet as children and at college and who form a company to develop ...
Wednesday, February 21, 2024

Alfred the Great, by F.H. Hayward

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  This brief (140 pages) 1935 biography of Alfred the Great touches on the key points in his life including the myths surrounding him along ...
Monday, February 12, 2024

Seen yet unseen: A Black woman crashes the tech fraternity, by Bärí A. Williams

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  In this insightful account of attorney/startup advisor Williams’s experiences in the technology industry, she discusses the challenges t...
Sunday, February 11, 2024

Lucy by the sea, by Elizabeth Strout

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  This was the February pick for my State College book club. I'm new to the club this year, so I don't know if they've read earl...
Thursday, February 1, 2024

Trust, by Hernan Diaz

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  I really liked this story told from four different perspectives. I had read several reviews of the book before I started it, so I had a go...
Thursday, January 25, 2024

Life on other planets: a memoir of finding my place in the universe, by Aomawa Shields

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This is an inspiring memoir by a Black woman who, after graduating from MIT, struggled with her next steps. Initially attending graduate sch...
Friday, January 19, 2024

Blackouts, by Justin Torres

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I liked this second novel by Justin Torres, author of the 2012 novella We the animals , which I reviewed on this blog back in 2018 . Blackou...
Tuesday, January 9, 2024

Home fire, by Kamila Shamsie

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  I have mixed feelings about this novel by Pakistani-British author Kamila Shamsie. While shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize, I feel that...
Thursday, January 4, 2024

A nearby country called love, by Salar Abdoh

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  I really loved this latest novel by Iranian novelist Salar Abdoh, who doubles as a Professor and Director of Undergraduate Creative Writin...
Tuesday, January 2, 2024

Dyscalculia: A love story of epic miscalculation, by Camonghne Felix

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  Author Camonghne Felix was sexually assaulted at the age of 8, resulting in many years of declining mental health and unhealthy behaviors....
Monday, January 1, 2024

Lesbian love story: A memoir in archives, by Amelia Possanza

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  Author Amelia Possanza has written a deeply researched narrative about historical lesbian relationships in an effort to find role models...
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