Several months ago I put a bunch of books on my Overdrive online library holds.  One of the books was American Daughter by Stepanie Thornton Plymal.

As I said I have the book on my list.  I was notified that the book was available.  I went to get the book immediately and it somehow disappeared.  I was disappointed.  I opted to put the book on the list again…and wait again.  Finally, I got a notification that it was available and I was able to get it.

So…was it worth the wait??
YES.  It was worth the wait.

I have come to really enjoy memoirs.  I love hearing what made a person become who they are.  Sometimes they are really sad.  Sometimes I get angry.  Sometimes I want to scoop the person up and tell them, wait…you are going to overcome all of this.  I especially appreciate the ones where children come of age and put adult meaning to their lives.

This book was exactly that.  The story is engaging.  It’s a perfect mix of present-day and flashbacks.  I listened to the book over the course of a 24 hour period.  That’s a real sign that I loved the book.

I think I can safely say, that I think it was my favorite memoir to date.  That’s saying a lot!!

Here is what Amazon had to say: Continue reading →

I’ve been listening to a lot of audiobooks lately.  I had several recommendations for me.  I put them on the waitlist and they all came at once so I went on a listening spree.  The first of the bunch I listened to is Eight Hundred Grapes by Laura Dave.

The book was okay.  Nothing fabulous…just okay.  The book was a lot about bad relationships.  I don’t think I was in the mood to read about that.  I’m so much more of a cut-and-dry person.  In the book, one of the couples was about to get married.  Something happens and the gal waffles back and forth.  First, she is going to get married…then isn’t…then is…then isn’t.  I’m just not that kind of girl.  I make decisions and stick with them.  Several other couples in the book had the same kind of stuff going on.  I just found I couldn’t relate to the characters like I wish I could.

Here’s what Amazon had to say:
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I listened to a lot of audiobooks while I quilted all of the quilts on the longarm while I was off due to a Covid exposure in August.  I’m finally catching up on getting all the reviews of the books done.  Today I’m here to tell you about Radar Girls by Sara Ackerman.

When I knew I was going to be off from childcare and at the quilting machine a lot, I went to my online library and downloaded four books.  I didn’t read a bunch of reviews, I just picked anything that looked good…as in the cover looked good.

When I opened this one up and started listening I was pleasantly surprised to know my favorite narrator was reading it.  Her name is Cassandra Campbell.  She has read so many of my favorite books.  I think narrators, performers actually, have a bit of a pull and star power all on their own.  She is so often reading the books that I love to listen to and many of them are best sellers.

Now about the book.  I liked it.  There was a little more of a “romance” take on it than I prefer.  No big sex scenes or anything like that but it was a lot of “boy meets girl” type of story.  There was a plot beyond that but there was more of that element than I typically read.

The story takes place just as the Pearl Harbor bombing happens.  I’ll let Amazon tell you rest…
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I was watching floss tube the other day and the gal from Hands Across the Sea recommended this book, American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins.  She said she was only three chapters in but was totally hooked. I thought I’d check and see if it was available.  Happily, Hoopla had it.  The thing great about Hoopla is there is no waitlist so…I snatched it up right away and started listening.

I was hooked after the third chapter too!  I found myself doing anything I could to listen to the book.  I sewed longer.  I took Rosie on a longer walk.  I listened while I stitched and didn’t turn the television on.  I wanted to know what was happening.

The front cover of the book says, “A Grapes of Wrath for our times”.  I think that is a perfect analogy.

For me, it was so good to be reading something that caught my attention that wasn’t historical WWII fiction and wasn’t a crime-related book.  This book takes place in Mexico and that’s somewhere that I have read very little about.

Here’s what Amazon has to say:
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