Gingerbread Cookie Murder (novella collection)

This is a collection of three short mystery novellas, each set at Christmas time and each involving cookies.  The first is a Hannah Swensen story by Joanna Fluke.  The others are by Leslie Meier and Laura Levine respectively.  I must admit I liked the Joanna Fluke one best, but the others were pretty good, too.  All three fit into what I am coming to understand as the Cozy Mystery formula.  The detective is a woman who is not a beauty, maybe a bit frumpy, but very comfortable.  In the third story the main character is married and has grandchildren, but in the other two the main characters are single and past prime marriage age. All three women are compassionate, caring people who just want to help others, and the people who end up dying are pretty nasty and probably made the world better by leaving it. All three stories include recipes either in the middle or at the end.  If you want something fluffy and fun to read over the holidays, this isn't a bad choice. (2010, 304 p.)

The Hired Girl by Laura Amy Schlitz

14-year-old Joan lives on a farm in 1911 with a cruel father and several brothers.  Her mother has died, and Joan is expected to do all the cooking and cleaning for the men.  Her only solace is a few books that a beloved teacher gave her before her father forced her to leave school.  When, one day, her father burns her books and tells her she is worthless and never likely to marry, Joan plots her escape.  Being large and strong for her age, she is able to pass as an 18-year-old and is hired by a wealthy Jewish family , the Rosenbachs, as a "hired girl"--a cook and maid. They are good to her and for the first time she has a little spending money to buy books and small luxuries. Things get complicated when she finds herself falling in love with the youngest son of her employer. Could things every work out between a poor catholic girl and a rich Jewish boy who, against his father's will, would love to be an artist?

This title got a lot of positive reviews and won several awards when it came out in 2015 and it deserved every one.  Joan is funny, intelligent, and very much an authentic 14-year-old. All the members of the Rosenbach family are well drawn and interestingly complex.  Schlitz weaves both rye humor and serious issues into a delightful and meaningful tapestry.  This is one of my favorite books I have listened to lately.  The reader of the audiobook is wonderful.  (400 p. 2015)

A Noble Masquerade by Kristi Ann Hunter

Lady Miranda has spent her whole life learning "Lady Lessons" from her mother,  "A lady never shows her discomfort in company","a lady always wears gloves in public."  But all those lessons didn't help her find the man of her dreams her first three seasons.  Now her stunningly beautiful younger sister is having her first season, and Miranda struggles not to be jealous.  To vent her frustrations she writes letters to a man she has never met, a friend of her brother, never intending to send them. When the man, Ryland, Duke Marshington, accidentally receives one, he is intrigued to get the rare unguarded glimpse into a woman's mind.  Their ensuing friendship and then courtship is complicated by espionage, death threats, and Miranda's own worries about becoming an old maid.

This is the first in the Hawthorn House series (that I managed to read in reverse order.)  It may be my favorite.  There are several true "laugh out loud" scenes as well moments of suspense.  Miranda is charming and Ryland, dreamy. Or it may be that after being shell-shocked by "Where the Crawdads Sing" I was just in the right mood for this king of literary fluff.  (2015, 265 p)

Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens

Kya lives with a large family in the mashes of North Carolina.  Even though she has a loving mother and siblings, her father is abusive.  In the face of his violence, the members of her family leave, one by one, until only Kya and her father are left.  Then he leaves and Kya, at age 10, is left to fend for herself.   She learns to survive on her own, but is leery of establishing relationships because of fear of further abandonment.  Then Tate enters her life, teaches her to read, and opens for her the world of science and love.  Years later the body of a local hotshot is found on the ground below a fire watch tower.  Kya becomes the prime suspect.  Can Tate, and the others who have come to know Kya, overcome the town's prejudice against the "Marsh Girl?"


Here is another book that has been on the top of the reading charts for months.  Even more than a year after its publication it is ranked #5 on the Amazon best sellers.  I was super excited to read it, but ended up pretty disappointed.  I found it slow moving and a bit more sexually explicit than I am comfortable with.  The descriptions of the setting are lovely, but I didn't find Kya, herself, as very endearing.  I almost gave up on the audio book with 5 hours to go, but I turned up the playback speed and powered through it. The ending was a little more impactful than most of the book, and raises some interesting ethical questions, but I still probably won't be recommending this to anyone. (2018, 370 p.)

Becoming by Michelle Obama

This is a candid and engaging memoir of America's first African American first lady. Michelle Robinson grew up in an apartment above her aunt's house in the south side of Chicago.  Her parents were working class, but sacrificed to give her and her brother the best education they could manage.  Michelle worked hard at school, and got good enough grades to be accepted at Princeton and then at Harvard Law School. Soon after she started her career as a corporate lawyer, she was assigned to mentor a young law student with an unusual name, Barack Obama.  The rest is, as they say, is history.

This book sold more copies in 2018 than any other book, even though it wasn't released until November.  It has since sold more than 10 million copies and has been translated into 24 languages.  Ms Obama's story is engaging, inspiring and well written.  Her candor, attention to details and good humor come through in every chapter.  I loved how she described what life as a resident of the White House was really like, both good parts--like the world class chef cooking all their meals--and the challenging parts--like total loss of all privacy. But most interesting is her personal journey from someone who was always feeling that she was "not enough" to someone who was confident in front of thousands.

Not only has this book been a huge hit nationally, but also locally.  It has been one of the top five most read e-books/audio-books ever since it came out.  This is a great choice for anyone, but especially for any woman who has ever juggled a job and family, worried about raising kids in a challenging environment, or had a husband with pie-in-the-sky ambitions. (2018, 448 p.)

The Bridge Home by Padma Venkatraman

Viji has always taken care of Rukku, especially when they have to hide from their father in his drunken fury.  When finally their father strike sweet, autistic Rukku, and their mother does nothing to stop him, Viji knows it is time to leave. Viji takes her birthday money and buys a bus ticket for her and Rukku to a bustling city in India.  At first Viji struggles to figure out where they will sleep and what they will eat, but then they meet Muthi and Arul.  The two street boys take them into their pack and show them how they can find glass and metal in the junk yard to sell for a few rupees. Life is hard, but they rejoice in their freedom and the pride of making it on their own.  Then tragedy hits, and Viji has to decide whether to risk her new freedom, and her new friendships with the boys to get help for her sister.

When I saw the cover to this book I assumed it was a fantasy.  It isn't a fantasy but a story of a hard reality many children live every day.  The author grew up in the town that is the setting of the book and the descriptions of the stench and filth of the mounds of garbage are completely vivid and authentic.  Even though the book deals with difficult situations, Venkatraman dwells on the resiliency of the children, not their trials.  With the hope and energy of youth they get through tough spots by using their imaginations and relying on each other.  It is no wonder this book has received starred reviews in almost every major review journal.(2019, 194 p.)