Book Review - The Daughters of Erietown; Connie Schultz

 

Daughters of Erietown; Connie Schultz 

Random House Audio - 2020 (read by Cassandra Campbell)

Beginning in 1957 in a small town in Ohio and continuing for the better part of the century (1950s - 1990s), The Daughters of Erietown is a multi-generational story about women and their families.  Most of the residents are ordinary everyday people. The women are stay at home mothers and the men hold blue collar jobs to support their families.  There's a neighborhood bar and some friendly neighbors.

Brick McGinty and Ellie and young and in love. Brick grew up with an abusive father but, he is a basketball star and looking forward to promising future with a full scholarship to college. Ellie, raise by her grandparents, thinks about becoming a nurse but, it's an unplanned pregnancy that chases this young couple's dreams away.

This debut novel quickly drew me in to the lives of these of these characters. The writing was quite good with strong female characters and dialogue that felt genuine. I liked the way the author depicted small-town life. Seeing how the lives of the women had changed over the years was a highlight of this novel.  I did think this book was unnecessarily long (almost 500 pages in print and over 14 hours on audio); IMO it could have benefitted by some additional editing.  Overall, I was happy that I read/listened to this one. Cassandra Campbell narrated the audio which was very well done.

RATING - 4/5 stars

Thinking About Books for 2021 Yet? Tracking What I Read - Reading Logs

As an avid reader I've been tracking the books I've read for almost 20 years.  I only starting reviewing books about 12 years ago and, I must admit that although I start each new year out with a new journal, usually a Moleskine (expensive but a quality product) if you compared one year to the next, I'm never consistent. Quite frankly by mid-year my journals are pretty messy.  Most times I've reviewed chronologically and then have sections for fiction and non fiction, eBooks, print books, audio books, library books and books read off my shelves but, that's usually been a pain to keep up. 

This coming year my goal is simplicity and consistency and, I just found a new, inexpensive reading log on Amazon that has everything I really need. I like the idea of turning the pages and seeing the same format for my reviews.  This one that I purchased has room for 120 books to review and it's 8x10" which I love as well.  It's a soft cover but it was only $4.99 as well. I'm not sure what the bleed through factor will be but, I'm planning on using a fine point pen or pencil. Take a look.

Here's one that is more expensive but I like the wire rings, hardcover and format for 200 books.

LINK

There are also several reading logs with cute covers to get younger children interested in book journaling as well.

Kids Reading Logs Link

Do you have a favorite hand written system or journal that you enjoy using for tracking your books  and writing reviews? If so, please share.

First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros - Good Morning, Monster; Catherine Gildiner

Welcome to First Chapter/Intros, now hosted by Yvonne @ Socrates Book Reviews. Each week readers post the first paragraph (or 2) of a book they are reading or that they plan to read soon.

Good Morning, Monster; Catherine Gildiner

St. Martin's Press - 2020

The day I opened my private practice as a psychologist, I sat smugly in my office. Fortified with the knowledge I'd acquired, taking comfort in the rules I'd learned, I looked forward to having patients I could "cure."

I was deluded.

What do you think? I generally like reading about case studies such as these; hope to start this one later this week.

Book Review - The Yellow Bird Sings; Jennifer Rosner

 

The Yellow Bird Sings; Jennifer Rosner

Macmillan Audio - 2020

World War II, Poland -- Roza is a young mother who is forced to hide along with her gifted, 5 year old daughter Shira, a musical prodigy. Mother and daughter are given shelter by a farm family where they are hidden away in a hayloft as Nazis round up Jews in the area.  The beautiful child is forbidden from making a sound and Roza expected to pay for their safety with sexual favors. Never giving up, Roza creates games for Shira with images of a little girl. There is a secret magic garden and a yellow bird with a beautiful voice, beautiful flowers and other imagery to help distract Shira from the fear and commotion all around.

When things become too dangerous, mother and child are forced to separate and the story takes a darker turn but, the two never give up their dream of reconnecting. Will they ever see each other again?

I loved how Roza, even faced with guilt and shame, never fails to protect her young child. There is a lot of imagery and symbolism, some is painful but, the beautiful images are the ones that stand out.  Although the beginning seemed a little repetitive, once the story got going, I was pleased. I needed something a bit different from my normal reads and, this wartime story was very satisfying. The bond between the two characters was so well portrayed. The audio was read by Anna Koval who did a nice job.

Rating - 4/5 stars

Sunday Update - Week in Review

   

Deb Nance at Readerbuzz  hosts The Sunday Salon. 

Weather-wise this was a great a great mix of cooler temps, where we had to turn the heat on briefly to get the 63 degree chill out of the house (2) mornings. That was short-lived though as the last 3 days temps have ranged from 72-80 degrees and, the whole week has been sunny.

We went for a few drives to a couple of apple orchards and with my sore knee and the hubs sore back we opted to just buy (not pick) the apples. It's no longer fun to step in smooshed apples and risk falling LOL I've been baking apples and making crisps and boy the house sure smells delightful.

This week our book group met Wednesday outdoors in the park on a lovely, breezy 75 degree day to discuss Unsheltered, Barbara Kingsolver. I read it in 2018, you can find my review HERE. Everyone liked it to some degree except 1 person. Next month is our last meeting for 2020 and we want to try to meet in the park again even if it means heavy sweaters/jackets. Our book is Two-Family House which I loved and have also read when it first came out in 2016 LOL

School is going well for the (3) granddaughters (1) in person classes and the sisters at home remote. The 6 year old was sad as there was no classes on Sat and Sunday (LOL) , although, I'm sure mom had a different feeling about the weekend.

I didn't do a Sunday post last week but, we took a trip to the Berkshire Botanical Gardens on another glorious sunny fall day the week before.  I'd like to return again in summer when other types of plants are in bloom.  Here are some pics, some of which have been posted on Instagram. The topiaries are part of The Martha Stewart Cottage Gardens on the grounds.

NOTE: Blogger was not cooperating as I tired to post these pictures. A most frustrating experience -- sorry for the randomness here.

My reading has been up and down but I did manage to read/finish (2) books this week and start (2) more.

Finished: Ghosts of Harvard (so so) and The Yellow Bird Sings; Jenifer Rosner (review coming soon - I liked it). I started: Hieroglyphics; Jill McCorkle (print) and The Death of Vivek Oji A. Emezi (audio). I am enjoying both a lot.

Lastly, I didn't have it in me to write about about anything sad today but, I just wanted to post something about Ruth Bader Ginsburg. I find it heartbreaking to think about all that she has done for equal rights for all can so easily be reversed.  (Do we really want to go back 50 years?)

RIP

(and thank you)

Book Review - The Ghosts of Harvard; Francesca Serritella

 

The Ghosts of Harvard; Francesca Serritella

Random House - 2020

As a student at Harvard, Eric Archer was a brilliant young man destined to do great things in the sciences.  He was also paranoid schizophrenic and was known to sometimes go off his meds.  When Eric ends up committing suicide as a student, there is a huge void. behind  What drove Eric to commit suicide?

Now Candace (Cady), Eric's younger sister, is a freshman at Harvard despite the fact her mother did not want her to return to the place of her brother's death.  On campus Cady is determined to find out more about her brother's final weeks at Harvard.  Yet, almost immediately she begins hearing voices from the past. It's not her brother's voice so, who are these people she hears? Or, is mental illness something she is experiencing as well resulting from the loss of her brother? 

I love a campus setting and, the old buildings of Harvard, steeped in history of those who walked the halls in days gone by, made for a terrific, creepy setting.  The dark winding corners, unexplored grounds added to chilling effect as I read.  I liked that Cady used old notebooks of her brother to try and decipher clues that lead to his death. The author did a good job showing how different members of the same family deal with suicide and the grief which results. 

I had some issues with the Cady character and the way she reacted in a few situations; it did not feel genuine. I also thought some of the dialogue, by college-aged students, seemed weird and not the way a college student would talk. There was a ghost/paranormal element to the story that didn't work well IMO. There were far too many conversations with ghosts that served very little purpose.  This novel might been more effective had it been written as a shorter psychological thriller without the paranormal bend. The Ghosts of Harvard is nearly 500 pages and, I admit to glossing over many of the ghostly conversations.

Rating - 3.5/5 stars

First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros - Hieroglyphics; Jill McCorkle

Welcome to First Chapter/Intros, now hosted by Yvonne @ Socrates Book Reviews. Each week readers post the first paragraph (or 2) of a book they are reading or that they plan to read soon.

Hieroglyphics; Jill McCorkle

Algonquin - 2020

Shelley

"Lately, Shelley hears things in the middle night, hinges creaking and papers rustling, but it could be anything-- the dog, her son, a mouse, the wind --and she forces her mind to stop right there so she doesn't imagine possibilities that would terrify her, like a killer or a ghost. It doesn't help that old man rides by so often now, his green Toyota slowing in front of the house and then circling the block."

What do you think, read more or pass?