Forget Me Not by Ellie Terry

 Calliope loves astronomy, but hates starting at a new school.  She has done it a lot.  Since her father died in a car accident, her mother has had multiple boyfriends.  Each time her mother breaks up with a guy, they move to a new town.  What makes starting at a new school especially hard for Calliope is that she has Tourette syndrome, but her mother and her doctor has told her not to tell people she has it.  Instead, the kids in her new school just think she is a freak; all but one boy, Jinsong, who finds her fascinating.  The problem is that Jinsong is popular, and is embarrassed to be seen with Calli at school.  Outside of school they enjoy hanging out and he starts to really like her.  Eventually Jinsong has to decide between his loyalty to his friend, and his desire to be popular at school. 

This is a short book, written in free verse.  I have read a couple of books about Tourette syndrome and I think it might be one of the hardest disabilities to deal with socially.  This book is a good introduction to the challenges of Tourette for children, but I thought Momentous Events in the Life of a Cactus, maybe did a better job showing just how hard dealing with Tourette is. I also thought it was interesting how Ms Terry made the story as much about Jinsong as it was about Calliope.  The thing is, I think Ms Terry wrote a middle grade boy character that she wished was real, but that probably isn't.  Would a middle school boy really be that tolerant, sweet, and romantic?  I think not.  Still, this is a cute little romance about a girl with a disability that will probably charm the target audience, i.e. 10-12 year old girls, plus it has a bonus by being set in Utah. (2017, 334p)

Being Mortal by Atul Gawande

 Atul Gawande is a surgeon.  He feels like his medical training didn't prepare him to deal with all the emotional issues patrons go through as they face the end of their life.  This book is written to explore a variety of issues concerning end of life.  He goes over what happens physiologically when we age and what happens to cause death.  He gives examples of people who were able to face death on their own terms, and those who were pressured into care decisions that decreased the quality of their last days instead of improving it.  He talks about care facilities, and what they can do to make resident's experiences more meaningful.  At the end he talks about what kind of difficult discussions you can have with those that are dying to make sure that care they receive respect their most important goals for their last days on earth.  

One of my friends at work recommended this book to me.  Even though it is a sobering topic, Dr. Gawande does a great job identifying and discussing important issues that everyone should consider.  He shares stories from his practice and his own life as examples of what to do and what not to do. I feel like I want to share this book with all my friends that are caring for aging parents.  (304 p. 2014)

The World of Biblical Israel by Cynthia R Chapman

 This is a Great Courses series consisting of 24 lectures about Biblical Israel.  Ms Chapman does a good job of placing well known Bible stories into a historical and cultural context.  She examines stories and extracts from them details that give hints to how the people of that time period lived.  She also brings in archaeological findings and shows how they either corroborate, or refute Biblical accounts.  One of her main focuses is that much of what we know as the Old Testament was written during or shortly after the Babylonian captivity, and was written to help exiled people deal with their past and establish an identity of their own.  

If you follow my Exegesis blog you know that I have been studying the Old Testament this year.  I listen each week to a variety of podcasts about the Old Testament stories.  Ms Chapman says a lot of the same things that my favorite pod-casters have emphasized all year. As I have begun to see the Old Testament as a book written at a specific time for a specific reason, I have come to understand even the harder stories much better.  Ms Chapman presents her lectures in a religiously neutral way, and I wasn't able to figure out from what she said what her personal religious background is.  She uses an academic style that I appreciated.  I was sorry that I couldn't see her visuals while she talked, but a couple of times I stopped to look at something she referred to on my phone. I am glad Overdrive has added a pretty big collection of Great Course to their offerings.  I will probably choose and listen to others in the future. (2014, 24 30-minute lectures)

The Maid by Nita Prose

 Molly is an aspie young woman who is mourning the recent death of her only family relation, her beloved grandmother. Molly works as a maid at un upscale hotel and is very good at her job, but struggles to make enough to pay rent. She also struggles to relate with people and often misses visual cues that would help her understand the complexities of a social situation.  One day she discovers a man dead in one of the rooms she cleans.  She reports the incident but is soon one of the top suspects in the murder.  Luckily some friends step in, and together they help her unravel the tale of what she has seen and done to find clues to the real identity of the murderer.

This is a really hot title right now.  It has been on our top ten holds lists on Overdrive for a couple of months.  It is a very interesting and well written mystery. Molly is a great character. Like many people with Asperger's, she is super intelligent about some things, but oblivious to others. One thing the author does amazingly well is show a situation from Molly's point of view, but in a way that the reader can see what Molly doesn't.  The reader's heart aches for her when they see her being taken advantage of, and cheers with her when she figures things out. I was impressed with the plot as well.  I must admit I didn't figure out "who dun' it"  before the end.  I think I will be recommending this one to a lot of my mystery loving friends. (2022, 304 p)

To Whisper Her Name By Tamera Alexander

 Olivia Aberdeen has recently been freed from an abusive marriage by the untimely death of her husband.  She was left with no inheritance, and is thrown onto the mercy of a dear friend of her mother's, Elizabeth Harding.  The Hardings live on a purebread horse plantation in the post-bellum south, but Olivia has a deep fear of horses.  On the way to the plantation, she meets a ragged man, Adam Cooper ,who is also heading for the plantation.  He looks like a vagabond, but is actually a veteran recently freed from a prisoner of war camp who is looking for a job at the plantation.  He is hired, and the two newcomers strike up a friendship based on snappy patter and sassy flirtation. Olivia doesn't know that Adam fought on the North during the war, and Adam has to hide the fact to keep his employment.  Adam doesn't know of the abusive nature of Olivia's first marriage.  The two try to resist the deepening of their relationship because of the secrets they hold, but it is a losing battle.

I checked out this book because I noticed there were a lot of books by this author in our Religious Fiction section.  It was OK, maybe a B-level historical Christian romance.  The preachy-ness level was lower than some others I have read, and felt like a realistic portrayal of how someone in the time period might have approached their religious life.  The story was fairly slow paced, but there were enough funny scenes and clever dialog to keep me engaged.  The descriptions of their romantic interactions were pretty cliche.  I feel like an author, even a romance author, shouldn't use the word "frisson" more than once in a book. Also, the author pretty much ignored with the ugly realities  of slavery. She hinted that slavary was abhorant, and that the treatment of freemen was unfair, but those points were just plot devices to add conflict in the main character's relationship, not to really look at those issues as issues. I think a black person reading the book could have been offended by the treatment. (480 p.  2012)

The King's Shadow by Edmund Richardson

This is an engaging account of the life of James Lewis (alias Charles Masson) who was an 19th century British adventurer turned archaeologist. James Lewis joined the East India company as a soldier and was sent to India to help maintain British control.  After eight years, he decided to leave his post and headed out into the desert.  He ended up in Afghanisatan and there assumed the name of Charles Masson.  He was surprised to find there a vibrant and multi-cultural community that welcomed strangers.  Soon he got caught up in a search for one of the cities founded by Alexander the Great.  He found a site that fit Alexander's description, and which contained ancient artifacts.  The East India company did not forget about the deserter, James Lewis, and eventually figured out that Lewis and Masson were the same person.  They coerced Masson to spy for them, feeding them information about local political factions. Eventually the intelligence he provided lead to a disastrous British invasion of the country that Masson had grown to love. 

This is a very interesting book about a time period and place I had never studied before.  Richardson's descriptions of old Kabul and other Afghanistan cities are fascinating, and changed the way I think about a place I had always associated with poverty and religious extremists.  I was also interested in the bombastic American, Josiah Harlan, who thought he could waltz into Afghanistan and make himself a king.  The writing is engaging, and Richardson quotes a lot of primary sources, so the essentials of the story are well researched.  Richardson does extrapolate how Masson is thinking and feeling during his travels, which is maybe not rigorously historical, but makes the book much more readable. (2022, 352 p)

The Mystery Princess by Melanie Cellier

 As a teenager, Daria helped raise a group of orphans.  Later she became an attendant to Princess Snow. But when the deligation she is traveling is attacked from within, Daria flees and is taken in by a traveling merchant woman and her daughter. At first she stays with them to protect herself, but she eventually begins to see them as family.  Then, one day, young prince Percival joins their caravan, searching for the same group that had attacked Daria's retinue two years earlier.  Daria is amazed at his loyalty to his cause, but also at his attention to her.  When Daria has the chance to catch the man who is an enemy to both of them, she must decide if she will stay with her adopted family or risk everything for the man whe is beginning to love. 

This is the second in a spinoff series of the Four Kingdoms series I have already read.  I didn't realize it was the second, so there was some backstory I was definately missing as I read.  Still, this is an enjoyable fantasy romance, very much like the other Cellier books I have already read. Cellier is pretty good at making each of her princesses a little different.  Daria is sweet and insecure, the embodiment of the traditional Cinderella type.  It was fun to see the riffs that Cellier played on the orginial Cinderella trope, like how she worked in the pumpkin carriage, and the issue of shoes.  I will probably go and put the other books in the series on hold.  They are good, non-stressful fuff reads. (284 p. 2021)

p.s. I think it is interesting that the cover artist depicts Daria as black.  There is no indication in the text of any race, so there is no reason she couldn't be black.  Still, it is like someone complained that all their princesses were white and blond, so they just decided Daria was black.

Race to the Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse

 Nizhoni is Navajo and goes to a charter school for indigeonous kids. Recently she has begun sensing when there are monsters nearby, but doesn't understand why or know how to make anyone believe her.  One day, one of the monsters, disguised as a handsome man in a suit, comes to her basketball game, and then to her home.  Her father thinks he is there to offer him a job in his fracking company, but Nizhoni soon discovers that his intentions are much more sinister. As she flees for her life, taking her brother and best friend with her, ancient Navajo spirits help her and lead her to the sprit realm where she must complete a quest in order to save the mortal world from being overrun by monsters.

Here is yet another in the Rick Riordan Presents imprint.  I liked this one.  It was a good mix of action and culture. All three of the main kid characters have interesting and likeable personalities. I enjoyed the references to the geography of the Colorado and New Mexico reseration lands. I especially enjoyed hearing the reader on the recorded book pronouce the difficult Navajo words. Once again I wonder how much Riordan edits or moderates the texts.  This book reads a lot like a Rick Riordan book.  I wonder if he does a heavy edit when needed to make books from new authors fit into his imprint.  I also wonder if there will be a sequel.  This book is written to stand alone with a satisfying ending, but I could imagine sequels.  (2020, 320 p.)

The Magician's Ward by Patricia Wrede

 In this second adventure, Kim has become the ward of the young and handsome wizard, Richard Merrill. For the first time since she was orphaned as a four-year-old child, she feels safe and cared for. But her new life comes with a price.  Merrill's aunt is determined to turn the street rat into a proper lady. Kim has to go through hours of lessons on deportment and social visits when she would rather have magic lessons from Merrill. She is not disappointed, therefore, when she gets caught up in Merrill's investigation into some strange magical occurances in Kim's old neighborhood. Their enemy turns out to be more illusive and dangerous than even Merrill could have predicted, and it is up to Kim, with her street smarts, to save him and all of the Magicians in London.

This is a fun read, but I can tell that it is one of Ms Wrede's earlier books.  She got better at this genre and time period in the Sorcery and Cecilia series.  As I predicted in the review of the first book in the series, this book did turn out to be something of a My Fair Lady story. Althought Wrede made a good case for Kim's and Merrill's friendship, the sudden switch from friendship to romance was a bit abrupt and not super convincing.  The mystery elements of the book are little better, but I was a bit underwhelmed by the ending.  Still, I enjoyed the book well enough.  I do think, after doing a Wrede binge in June, I will take a break from her books for a while. (1997, 288)

A Portrait of Loyalty by Roseanna White

 In this third book in the Codebreakers series, we follow Lilian Blackwell, the talented photographer Arabella met in the previous book, and the Russian linguist, Zivon Marin, who has fled his homeland after Bolshevist activists murdered his fiancee. Lilian is torn because she loves her work printing and doctoring photos for the secret British intelligence agency, but hates having to hide what she does from her mother.  Zovon is mourning the loss of his betrothed, and his brother whom he believes died in a train accident. As the two grieving hearts come together they find in each other the joy and comfort that hadn't even hoped for.  But forces outside them seem determined to tear the two apart. 

I enjoyed this last book as well as I liked the other two books in this series.  They are sweet, clean romances with a little mystery and intrigue thrown in.  The characterizations are interesting and complex. The Christian elements in this one were, maybe, a little heavier handed than in the previous ones, but I am ok with that. The way Ms White describes spiritual promptings is similar to my experience with the Holy Spirit.  I am sad to have come to the end of this series, but I beleive she has one or two more I haven't read yet. (2020, 384 p.)