I'm sorry, I probably could have come up with a more positive summary than that. I actually thought the James Hunter's ideas about being a servant leader where spot on. In an introduction Hunter explains how happy and amazed he is that his parable has been so successful and well recognized in the business world. If that is true, he has done a good work in the world. It is a good leadership handbook, but, alas, it is terrible literature. It was super painful to listen to. The conversations between the characters are totally unnatural and stilted. Different characters spontaneously spout quotes from a huge variety of sources, complete with accurate reference, and make wise and witty comments. The characters, themselves, are paper cutouts: the hardnosed sergeant, the compassionate nurse, the world weary school principal, the cheery priest and the jaded businessman. I would have enjoyed the book so much more if Hunter had just talked, straight out, about Servant Leadership, rather than trying to couch it in a totally fake story. Sigh. Still, I am not sorry I listened to it. It gave me food for thought and some ideas about what I want to accomplish as the Management Round Table Vice Chair next year. (1998, 178 p.)
Thursday, April 18, 2024
The Servant by James Hunter
The Lost Letter by Mimi Matthews
I chose this as a filler book while I was waiting for some books I have on hold to come in. This is the first book I have read by Mimi Matthews, and I was pretty happy with it. It is a very standard Victorian romance, but it is clean and decently written. I appreciated the fact that neither main character acted stupidly, though there was some frustrating miscommunications. The story isn't very complex, a pretty standard Beauty and the Beast motif, but it is short and enjoyable enough that I put Ms. Matthews on my Clean Romance Writer's list and will probably try reading something else by her sometime in the future. (2017, 242 p.)
Tuesday, April 16, 2024
Great Courses: Charlemagne by Philip Daileader
Charlemagne is one of the historical figures that looms larger than life. His father was a successful ruler, Pepin, King of the Franks, but Charlemagne was able to expand his inherited kingdom to include almost all of the continental Europe. After his brilliant military victories, he instituted educational and civil reforms that have positively impacted Europe ever since. In this 12 lecture series, Dr. Daileader looks at Charlemagne's life and impact in several different categories, including his military successes, his leadership in the Carolingian Renaissance, his religious reforms and others. He finishes with a lecture about how Charlemagne's legacy has lived on into the modern day.
I have listened to several different Great Courses lecture series lately about the middle ages in Europe. This is partly in preparation for my planned trip to Europe in the fall. I have enjoyed all the Great Courses classes I have listened to, but I must admit that is one wasn't my favorite. It may be that I wasn't really in the mood for it, but it seemed a little more dry than the one I listened to about Italy or the one I listened to about the history of the Levant. I did learn a lot of new facts about Charlemagne and Europe in the Middle Ages. For instance, I am embarrassed to admit I had always thought of Charlemagne as French since his name sounds French, but he was actually more German than French. I was also interested in the section about how he managed his family and his dynasty. When I listened to the history of Italy, one of the big problems with Italian medieval leaders was that they had a hard time establishing heirs. Charlemagne seemed to manage his own dynasty better than most. I also found it interesting that one of the reasons Charlemagne was so successful is that Europe just happened to have several years of really good weather during his reign, increasing crop output and decreasing plague. This isn't a bad introduction to an impressive historical figure, but, as I said, a little bit boring in its presentation. (12 hr., 2023)Monday, April 15, 2024
City Spies by James Ponti
This is a new book on the Battle of the Books list this year. There have been a lot of "spy school" stories in the past. It is interesting that Stuart Gibbs gives one of the "blibs" on the cover, since his Spy School series is one of the most well known and one that I liked the most. This one is OK. The kids are likeable, and the plot has some good twists to it. Everything is a bit over the top. I don't think anyone, let alone a 13-year-old girl without any computer education, could do the kind of hacking she is supposed to be able to do. There are some plot problems, too, but I don't know if kids would pick up on them. The story is fast paced and fun, so I am not that disappointed that it is on the Battle of the Books list this year. I may even read the next in the series some day. (2020, 384 p)
Friday, April 12, 2024
The Many Assassinations of Samir, Seller of Dreams by Daniel Nayeri
This is one of the Newbery Honor books this year. I must give the committee credit for choosing something original and unique. The setting is interesting; the Silk Road trading route in the middle ages. The author includes a note in the end explaining what the Silk Road was and how much of the setting and the ethnic groups represented were based on history. The thing that makes the story really work, though, are the characters of Samir and Monkey. Samir is a trickster character, but a loveable one. He always has a good story to tell, and sometimes shows surprising willingness to forgo an advantageous trade to help someone out. It is fun to watch Monkey slowly switch from being a self-righteous monk's apprentice to learning the art of the bargain, and, when needed, the hasty escape. I can't say I was as impressed with this book as I was with the other Newbery Honor I read recently, Simon Sort of Says, but I do appreciate that it wasn't just another social issues book. (2023, 224 p.)
Friday, April 5, 2024
The Girl in His Shadow by Audrey Blake
This is not your Hallmark style historical romance. The author seems to enjoy describing the most gruesome Victorian medical practices she can include with vivid detail. Definitely not for the medically squeamish. If you can stomach descriptions of amputations, and mothers hemorrhaging in child birth than the rest of the book is really quite good. The characters are fully drawn and the historical setting is fascinating. I was especially interested when the doctor is first introduced to ether as an anesthetic. He gets very excited about the new substance, but doesn't know what to do with it, so he ends up using himself and Nora as test subjects. I also liked the fierce rivalry between opposing factions in the large teaching hospital. I enjoyed the book, but I must admit all the bloody medical scenes did disrupt my sleep this week. Nevertheless I am not opposed to reading more from this author. (384, 2021)
Sleeping Murder by Agatha Christie
I was delighted to find a Miss Marple book that I hadn't read before. Miss Marple is my favorite of the Christie sleuths. The plot is nicely constructed, and the ending decently surprising. Christie is the master of red herrings, and is so good at dropping minor details that end up being major clues. The characters are not very dimensional, but the cleverness of the plot, and Miss Marple's charming personality makes up for it. There are reasons why Christie's books have never gone out of print. (1976, 256 p.)
Tuesday, April 2, 2024
Simon Sort of Says by Erin Bow
This was one of the Newbery Honor books this year, and the award was well earned. The books is a hearty mix of both humor and tenderness. Bow does a great job of portraying two vulnerable kids who are trying to get through life, and find it is better to do it together. She also writes some really funny scenes that break up the heaviness of the topic of dealing with trauma. I also liked that fact that both Agate and Simon has two supportive parents. That is so rare in middle grade fiction. She also shows how Simon's near death experience traumatized his parents as well as him. I will be recommending this to kids who like stories like Wonder and Fish in a Tree. (2023, 320 p)
Tuesday, March 26, 2024
A Simple Wedding by Leigh Duncan
After finishing the Great Courses series, I decided to try something much lighter, and went with a contemporary clean romance. I hadn't read anything from this author before and I didn't realize when I started that this book is published by Hallmark, and is very much like a Hallmark movie. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but in this case, I didn't end up liking the book very much. The main thing that drove me crazy is that, with all Jenny's problems there was such a simple solution, but she wouldn't take it. In my mind I kept shouting, "Just tell the guy the truth, that you are arranging someone else's wedding." But no, even though her bratty cousin was being totally manipulative and inconsiderate, Jenny stuck to her promise to impersonate a bride and keep her cousin's secret. Not only was it frustrating, it didn't really fit her personality. It felt like the author was making her character do something out of character in order to make the plot work. I am afraid Ms Duncan is not making it on my Favorite Clean Romance Writer's list. (2020, 300 p)
Tiger Honor by Yoon Ha Lee
This is the second in the series that began with Dragon Pearl. I liked that one when I read it clear back in 2022 and had decided to put the next on hold right away, but I guess I didn't. When I finally listened to this one I must admit I had forgotten much of the story and characters of the first one and was a little lost starting out. B
y the end I had figured everything out and enjoyed the book, if not as much as Dragon Pearl, at least decently well. The world building is interesting as is the magic structure, which is based on Korean mythology. Sebin is a believable and sympathetic 13-year-old trying to live up to his family's expectations. That said, I thought the fact that Lee made Sebin non-binary and always referred to them as "them/they" was a little distracting. Really, their sexual orientation had no bearing in the plot at all. It seemed like it was only included in the book to pander to a publisher's pressure to create more LGBTQ literature. (256 p. 2022)
Saturday, March 23, 2024
Great Courses: Great Minds of the Medieval World by Dorsey Armstrong
Sunday, March 17, 2024
A Lady's Guide to Etiquette and Murder by Dianne Freeman
After reading a couple of teen and tween fantasies it was fun to get back to my most frequently visited genre, clean historical romance. This is a new author I haven't read before, and I ended up liking it pretty well. The pacing is a little slow, and there are not the trilling instances of peril we found in Brentwood's Ward , but it suited the mood I was in. Frances is clever and doesn't make the stupid mistakes some women characters in historical romances make. The love interest, George Hazelton, is supportive and protective, but doesn't really play the role of "knight in shining armor." They are more like a team and he allows Frances to take reasonable risks. This is the first of a series, so they are just starting their relationship. I also thought Freeman did a decent job with portraying the complex social structure of the Ton. I will certainly be reading the second in the series at some point in the future. (2018, 272 p.)
Monday, March 11, 2024
Amari and the Great Game by B.B. Alston
I enjoyed the first book in this series, but was a little disappointed that this one was so much like that one. The plot was almost the same. She is still trying to save her brother. She is still fighting against prejudice from above and below, and she still has to try to pass a series of magical tests in order to get what she wants. It is an interesting magic system and the characters are drawn well enough that I finished the book. Now I am trying to decide if I will read the next in the series when it comes out. I am in the same place with this series as with the Spoken Mage series by Melanie Cellier. Actually, they are very similar books, both about a girl with unusual powers overcoming prejudice to save the world. I don't feel super compelled to finish either series, but I probably will. (432 p. 2022)
Saturday, March 9, 2024
Tress of the Emerald Sea by Brandon Sanderson
Brandon Sanderson is hugely popular and successful as an author, and I am a little embarrassed to admit that up until this week I had only read his Alcatraz series. When this book came out with his four secret books that he wrote during the pandemic, I decided it would be a good first to try of his books written for teens-adults. It was a lot of fun, and had a little of the same flavor as the Alcatraz series. There was a big dose of silliness, and quite a bit of philosophizing, but that just made it more entertaining. The characters were diverse and interesting and the world and magic system were totally original. There were some characters in the book that were clearly from other books he had written in the same literary universe, and I felt a little adrift because I didn't know their backstory. He did include enough information that it didn't ruin the story not to know where they came from. My daughter assures me that some of his books from the Cosmere are more serious and gritty than this one. Maybe some day I will read them. As for now I am well pleased with this first taste of the Sanderson legacy. (384 p. 2023)
Tuesday, March 5, 2024
Chalice by Robin McKinley
After reading What the River Knows, this book was a breath of fresh air. The characters are interesting and sympathetic, and they grow and develop over the course of the story. The magic system is also interesting, original, and stays (mostly) consistent through the story. The characters succeed because they are trying their hardest to do what is right, even when their tasks seem hopeless. There is nobility, friendship, and sacrifice for the greater good. My only complaint is that I think she tied the end up a little too fast. She maybe needed one more chapter to show that the happy ending we were all hoping for made sense in the world she had built. Still, I really enjoyed this book and affirm my belief that Robin McKinley is one of the great clean fantasy writers. (2009, 272 p.)
Saturday, March 2, 2024
What the River Knows by Isabel Ibanez
I can't remember why I put this book on hold. I think a patron recommended it to me because she knew I read historical romances. On Good Reads people either hate this book or love this book. I must admit I am on the "hate" side of the scale. I didn't hate it, but I thought it was a bit of a slog. For one thing, it is ridiculously long. It would have been a better book if it had about 1/3 edited out. Secondly, there was absolutely no character development. The author was clearly caught up in the setting and plot, and forgot to make the characters interesting. Third, the magic system was a bit shaky. Ibanez seems to be making it up as she goes along, and it isn't internally consistent. Lastly, the ending, after 17 hours of meandering narrative, was a totally unsatisfying cliffhanger. I considered giving up on the book 4 hours in, but I didn't have anything else in my cue that was available. I kind of wish I had. (416 p. 2023)
Wednesday, February 28, 2024
Brentwood's Ward by Michelle Griep
Here is a new clean romance writer one of my patrons recommended. Actually this is the second book I have read by Griep, but the other was a Christmas one so it will show up on my blog next November. Griep takes a slightly different approach to the genre of Victorian romance. Instead of focusing on the ladies and gentlemen of the ton, her protagonists are from the middle class. There is much more in her books about the underbelly of Victorian England, a kind of Dickensian view. I liked the book, but it is a little more gritty than some I have read. For example, at one point Emily is accosted by a villain and the description of the attack, though not "R" rated, is PG-13. Also, I didn't think the writing in this book was a good as the Christmas one I read earlier. This is a Christian romance, and the religious element is a little heavy handed. Still, I enjoyed it and will be willing to try Ms Griep again. (320 p, 2015)
Sunday, February 25, 2024
The Last Devil to Die by Richard Osman
I waited in hold for a long time for this book but it was worth it. Although Osman is pretty good at his mystery plots, it is the interactions between the characters that are so engaging. Even the villains are three dimensional. He does an amazing job balancing funny and touching. I don't know for sure if the over 70 crowd really think like he portrays, but I bet a lot of them wish they could be like Elizabeth, Ibrahim, Ron and Joyce. I was excited to hear that they are making a movie of the first book. I hope they do a good job. (368 p. 2023)
Tuesday, February 20, 2024
Wrecker by Carl Hiaasen
Hiaasen does a good job with his middle grade environmental novels. I have enjoyed his earlier ones like "Hoot" and "Scat" and I enjoyed this one. All the main characters of this story are complex and interesting. Valdez is smart, but also acts like a real teenager and both he and Willi have authentic teen voices. Hiaasen adds interesting messages about history and environmentalism, but they are not so heavy handed that they overpower the plot and characters. This is a good choice for kids who like action and adventure, but enjoy realistic fiction instead of fantasy. (2023, 336 p.)
Thursday, February 15, 2024
A Most Agreeable Murder by Julia Seales
One of my patrons recommended this one to me, and it was a delight. It pokes fun at all the proper regency romances and their emphasis on etiquette. I saw the play, "Clue" this week at the Hale Center Theater in Sandy, and this book has a similar vibe--silly, fun, but also suspenseful. Even the character's names are funny. The murder victim is called, "Mr. Croaksworth" and the unwanted suitor is "Mr. Grub" and his coat of arms features a cockroach. There are a lot of good one-liners, and funny physical humor. There are some really random elements, like the glowing frogs, the very "emo" young sister that is alarmingly hairy, and the mud holes that swallow people. It kept me chucking all the way through. I need to make sure my library has a physical copy of this because I am going to be recommending it to a bunch of people I know. (2023, 352 p)
Sunday, February 11, 2024
Mixed Up by Gordon Korman
Gordon Korman is a good writer and has really figured out an authentic tween voice. He also recognizes that 12-year-olds can have deep, poignant and complex emotions. As a result, I enjoyed listening to this book. That said, the premise and plot are kind of weak. It was just too improbable for me. It felt like a realistic fiction that wasn't at all realistic. It made me wonder if the author, who is 60, is starting to have occasional memory loss, and that prompted the premise. Or maybe his parents are struggling with dementia and he is dealing with that. Kids that are Korman fans will probably like the book, but I thought ReStart, which is also by Korman and deals with memory loss, had a much stronger plot and premise. (256, 2023)
Saturday, February 10, 2024
The Stranger in the Lifeboat by Mitch Albom
This is by the same author as Tuesdays with Morrie and The Five People You Meet in Heaven. It is a new-age Christian parable. It is a little heavy handed in its theological agenda, but I liked it anyway. Albom is a good writer and his primary characters are fully formed and sympathetic. He is also pretty good a describing the physical experience of having 13 people crammed on a rubber life boat. Even though some horrendous things happen in the narrative, it is, over all, a "feel good" story that fed my soul. It would be a good book club title because it is short, well written, and suggests a lot of philosophical questions. (249 p. 2021)
Thursday, February 8, 2024
Portrait of Lies by Clair M Poulson
This is my second or third Clair Poulson novel. It isn't great writing, and it draggs at places, but in the end had a decent mystery plot. It is interesting to me how not PC the book is. The love interest, Ariah, and her mother primarily exist in the story to give moral support to the main character, and cook him good meals. They also play the role of damsel in distress several times. Poulson is a Latter-Day Saint author and there is a very unsubtle subplot of him sharing his religion with Ariah and their other friend, Hans. The characters are two dimensional, the writing is stilted, the pacing is less than perfect, and I still enjoyed it. Clair Poulson is not a bad go-to author while I am waiting for other holds to come in. (2015, 272 p)
Saturday, February 3, 2024
Great Courses: The Italians before Italy by Kenneth Bartlett
I checked out this series because I hope to travel to Italy this year. I had studied a lot about Rome and Italy in college because I was a Humanities major with a classics emphasis. In my humanities classes I got a pretty thorough introduction to the Italian Renaissance, focusing on the great masters and their patrons. I gained some new insights into this period by listening to this series. I hadn't ever connected the reign of the Medici Popes with Martin Luther and the beginning of the Protestant Reformation before, but they were contemporary. I also hadn't realized that all the city states were allied with either the Pope or the Holy Roman Emperor and the two factions were the main cause of strife in the regions. I also hadn't realized how long the Medici dynasty ruled in Florence. I was interested to see that the lecturer had a distinct measurement of the success or greatness of a particular ruler: If they patronized the arts, Dr Bartlett thought they were great. If they didn't, he was much less complimentary. He only mentioned tangentially whether any leader helped their subjects in humanitarian ways. It reminded me of an observation I had as a student...it is usually decadent and corrupt rulers that create great monuments of art or architecture. Even though I enjoyed the series, I must admit it was pretty dry and I don't think that it would have a wide popular appeal. (12 hrs, 2007)
Saturday, January 27, 2024
Amari and the Night Brothers by B.B. Alston
The temptation to write about a magic school is just too good to pass up for many middle grade authors. That being said, this was a better than average magic school book. The magic system is interesting, and the author does a good job with both plot and characterization. I admit I wasn't sure who the bad guy was until the very end. I put the second book on hold right away. (2021, 416 p)
P.S. I was amused that the author used his initials. Usually, a woman author uses her initials instead of her given name for a middle grade novel when the main character of her book is male. The assumption is that some boys won't read a book with a female author. The opposite happened here. The author is male but has a female main character. It is less common, and it made me smile.
Sunday, January 21, 2024
The Opera Sisters by Marianne Monson
This is a great fictionalized account based on a true story. In the end the two women end up helping 29 families and individuals escape from occupied territories. The story is interesting and the woman are portrayed very sympathetically. They grow in confidence in their efforts, while at the same time being worn down emotionally by all they cannot save. The writing is good and their are some really lovely descriptions of both the beauty of Germany and Austria, and the horrors of war. The only fault is that the book is paced a little bit slowly and could have used some editing. There are chapters that recount important events of the war without reference to Ida and Louise. I think the author should have assumed the reader knew what happened, for example, at Dunkirk. If the author had left out those historical chapters,(there were maybe eight or ten of them) the book would have been better paced and easier to get through. Still, it is a really good book that I recommend to people who like WWII fiction and nonfiction. (2022, 352 p.)
Thursday, January 18, 2024
Beauty by Robin McKinley
This is probably my favorite retelling of the Beauty and the Beast story. It is actually very similar to the original story, just fleshed out and gentled. It was written written in 1993 and would never have been published if it was written today. It is too straight forward and devoid of controversy or social commentary. There is no attempt to be PC or inclusive. I know it is very entitled of me, but I really enjoyed it. The writing is good and the relationship between Beauty and the Beast is sweet. I always thought the Disney company drew on it heavily when they made their animated version. This is a good choice if you want to curl up on a cold night with a classic fairytale. (256, 1993)
Tuesday, January 16, 2024
Untamed by Glennon Doyle
This book was very popular when it was released in 2020. It is a collection of short anecdotes and reflections on life. Doyle writes honestly and passionately, and is willing to show her own vulnerabilities and weakness. I agreed with some of the things she said, but a lot of it went very counter to my view of life. As I read I kept thinking to myself, I wonder what kind of book she will be writing in five years. Will her new life style and philosophy still hold of will something else have happened to make her do another drastic turn around in her beliefs? The philosophy she advocates sounds really appealing and even seductive and I can see how a lot of women could feel temporarily gratified by the kind of life style this book advocates, but is what she saying really true? I don't think so. I don't agree with about 70% of the ideas she promotes and about 10% even offensive to me. It was hard to keep reading the book for that reason, but I decided it was a good exercise of trying to see another's point of view. It did give me some new perspectives and caused me to do some introspection. I don't think, however, I will be recommending it to anyone else. (352 p. 2020)
Saturday, January 13, 2024
Northwind By Gary Paulsen
Leif was orphaned very young in a small Viking port town. He was raised by various townspeople until he was old enough to work on a ship and then went to sea. His ship is stranded in a
northern village where the crew got along alright catching and smoking salmon and eating local berries and plants. Then one day a ghost ship comes, bringing death and plague. Leif and another boy escape the village in a canoe but fall ill as well. Finally, Leif finds himself alone in the northern wilds and has to figure out how to feed himself and avoid being killed by the fierce nature around him. As he does, he discovers unspeakable beauty and peace, and the strength that lives within himself.I am a huge Gary Paulsen fan and with this short survival story he did not disappoint. The writing is so good! Is it narrative or free verse poetry? I would say poetry. The descriptions of nature are transcendent and I just know, having met Gary Paulsen and knowing a little about him, that he personally experienced all the things that Leif experienced. That is why he can write them so well. I know a couple of years ago he was doing a long stint living on a boat and traveling around the world. I am guessing this story arose out of experiences he had on that trip. I think that Leif's description of writing on the piece of bark also explains why Paulsen, himself, writes. I am just glad he has an agent that keeps bugging him to turn in his writing so that he can get it published so the rest of us can see the world through the author's eyes. I am eager to give this book to teen boys who like Hatchet but also the Ranger's Apprentice series. (256, 2022)
Thursday, January 11, 2024
Grace by Beverly Watts
I don't remember why I put this one on hold. I think my idea was to try a new historical romance writer. I ended up enjoying 98% of the book. The plot is not super original, but the characters fine and there are some truly amusing scenes with Grace's father who acts in the book as a kind of comic relief. So what of the other 2%? (spoiler alert) About half way through the book the couple decide to consummate their marriage and the author goes into way too much detail about that event. Why? I ask myself. The scene only lasts a few pages, which I skipped over, buy why add it in at all? Why not just have him carry her into the room, and then skip to the morning when they wake up smiling in each other's arms? I guess Ms Watts is not going on my clean romance writer's list. I need to start a new list. An "uhhh, no" list of historical romance writers. (184 p, 2020)
Wednesday, January 10, 2024
The Passion of Dolssa by Julie Berry
I put this book on hold because it was a Printz award winner. It was very different and I didn't love it. I had a couple of problems with it. One is that the book is set in France, but the narrators are British and I am pretty sure they were slaughtering all the French words in the book. The second is that the book was so serious the whole time I wasn't sure if it would have a happy ending or not. It certainly wasn't one of my fluffy historical romances. With a title containing the word, "passion" which, in this context, means "suffering death," I suspected it wouldn't end well for poor Dolssa. The fact that I was concerned, shows that the writing was very good, and the characters were well drawn and sympathetic. It was also interesting to get of taste of what life was like under the shadow of the Inquisition. At the end of the book is an author's note that explains which parts of the book are based on real events and which are fiction. Sometimes I am put off when someone calls the middle ages, the Dark Ages, but this book rather confirms that title. It is amazing the atrocities humanity has committed in the name of Christianity. (512 p. 2017)
Sunday, January 7, 2024
Voice of Dominion by Melanie Cellier
I started a book this week that I have been waiting for on hold for a couple of months, but by a 1/4 of the way through it I realized it had more adult content than I wanted to deal with. So I returned it and turned back to Melanie Cellier once more, for a book I knew would be clean and entertaining. It was, until right near the end when (spoiler alert) Elena makes a hasty and, I believe, stupid decision. There was literally 15 minutes left in the book, and I almost turned it off right there, determined to be finished with the book and the series. I hate it when otherwise smart characters make stupid decisions. I did listen on, and Cellier recovered a little. Still, I am not sure I will finish the series.... Who am I kidding, I probably will, but I will probably wait a while before I do. (316 p. 2019)