Category: Book review

Book Review: The Family Tree Cemetery Field Guide

The Family Tree Cemetery Field Guide by Joy Neighbors

First line: Cemeteries are usually viewed with reservation.

Summary: Filled with helpful tips on how to plan, research and preserve information that can be found at cemeteries. This book describes different symbols, types and information about gravestones and their meanings. It also walks the reader through websites and online tools that can help a novice or experienced genealogist on their journey of discovering their family history.

Highlights: I loved seeing the different types of stones and the symbols with their meanings. I never considered that the type could tell you about the finances or social status of my ancestor. All the hints and tips about ways to search for information were helpful. As I was reading, I would open a browser and try them out on my tree. I have a few illusive ancestors and I tried using the tips to discover more about them. I still have not found their death dates but I have learned other little tidbits about their lives. I hope to continue to find more with time.

Lowlights: There was a lot of information that I was familiar with so it was a little slow going through that but at no fault of the author. I like that they walk the reader through the process of signing up and searching.

FYI: Perfect for any genealogist.

Book Review: The Latehomecomer

The Latehomecomer by Kao Kalia Yang

First line: From the day that she was born, she was taught that she was Hmong by the adults around her.

Summary: A memoir by Kao Kalia Yang, an author, activist, and public speaker. She was born in a refugee camp in Thailand. Her family are Hmong. They spent many years running and hiding from Vietnamese soldiers who were hunting the Hmong people. She spent her first years in the camp. When the chance to travel to America became available, her family took it. The first years in Minnesota were hard. They had to learn English, live off welfare checks, and try to feed their expanding family. Over years, her parents got jobs, learned to drive and encouraged their children to better themselves. As a young woman, she now looks back at her life and the strength of her family.

Highlights: I had never heard of the Hmong people. While reading this I was earning a history lesson as well as a social one. Refugees have to be strong to leave their homes and try to start over in a new country. Yang has a great way with words. I was scared for her family. I was happy when they were happy. It surprises me that something this terrible was happening in such modern times. Most of the events happened during my lifetime. This book can open the reader’s eyes to troubles of refugees. It is easy to overlook these people. But many of us are here because of “refugees” even though we call them immigrants. We need to have more sympathy and help for people who have lost everything and are trying to begin again.

Lowlights: I have no complaints about the book. I am just sad I could not go see Yang speak when she was in Wichita.

FYI: Big Read Wichita 2017 book.

Book Review: Warbringer

Wonder Woman: Warbringer by Leigh Bardugo

First line: You do not enter a race to lose.

Summary: Diana was born on an island of immortal women called the Amazons. Her mother is the queen of the Amazons. She has never been off the island or even met a man. When Diana sees a shipwreck off the coast of the island, she breaks the laws of her people and rescues a young girl from the wreckage. However, once Alia, a young student, is brought onto the island mysterious things begin to happen. In order to save her home and her fellow Amazons Diana has to take Alia off the island and break the curse associated to her lineage and blood.

Highlights: I loved the Wonder Woman movie so I had to read this! I have never read anything by Leigh Bardugo but I will have to now. I liked the adventure and action. It was fast paced and fun. This was a good reimagining of one of the best female superheroes. Diana is strong willed and brave. She is a role model for young girls.

Lowlights: I was thrown off at the beginning because the story takes place in modern times. Diana is a teenager that is still training to be an Amazon. This is a different spin and completely different from the movie. It took me a while to get used to the idea but it worked well.

FYI: This is the first in the DC Icons series. Next is Batman by Marie Lu, Catwoman by Sarah J. Maas and Superman by Matt de la Pena.

Book Review: The Most Beautiful Woman in Florence

First line: It was a large canvas, big enough that it had taken two men to carry it into Il Magnifico’s chambers.

Summary: Simonetta, a new bride to Marco Vespucci, is considered the most beautiful woman in Florence. When she meets the rising star, Sandro Botticelli at the home of Lorenzo de Medici, she becomes the muse for the artist. He uses her as the model for one of his most famous works, The Birth of Venus.

Simonetta in The Birth of Venus by Sandro Botticelli

Highlights: I really enjoyed the story. I love the time and the history of the Medici family. They were leaders of the Republic of Florence as well as supporters of the Renaissance in Italy. I had never heard of Simonetta Vespucci before reading this but since I have Googled her to see the paintings done by Botticelli. The writing was well done and flowed nicely. This is a good example of historical fiction. It has just enough history to learn from but is not filled with facts. I plan to read the author’s debut novel soon.

Lowlights: I got tired of the repetition of her being the most beautiful woman and being used to having people stare at her. It is the title of the book. It was too much. I did not need to be reminded.

FYI: Check out the artwork of Botticelli. It is amazing!

Book Review: Miss Kopp’s Midnight Confessions

Miss Kopp’s Midnight Confessions by Amy Stewart

First line: On the morning of her arrest, Edna Heustis awoke early and put her room in order.

Summary: In the third book of the Kopp Sisters series, Constance, the first lady deputy, strives to find justice for the women that are brought to the jailhouse. These women were arrested on morality charges but Constance is out to prove that these women are just trying to provide for themselves and have a little freedom. At the same time she has to find her sister, Fleurette, who runs away to join the stage show of May Ward and her Dresden Dolls.

Highlights: I love that this is based on true stories. As I was skimming through the historical notes at the end of the book, I saw that the news articles about Constance Kopp appeared in the Wichita Beacon. As the first woman deputy, she had to fight the constant backlash from the people that believed a woman should not and could not be a deputy. She proves them wrong. Norma makes me laugh with her straightforward speech and tough demeanor.

Lowlights: I feel that the story is slow moving with multiple storylines intertwined. The story could have been condensed and made a little shorter.

FYI: Check out the libraries database, Newspapers.com, and search for Constance Kopp. It is very interesting to see the real life woman and her stories. 

Book Review: The Visitors

The Visitors by Catherine Burns

First line: Like a white bird, the scream flew up from the depths of the cellar, then became trapped inside Marion’s head.

Summary: Marion, a spinster, living with her brother in their cluttered childhood home, is scared of the secret that is hidden in the cellar. When her brother has a heart attack, she has to face the reality of what he has been hiding. Told through flashbacks and snippets of their past lead you to believe that people are not always what they seem.

Highlights: A slow burning thriller. Little pieces of information are scattered throughout the book leading to theories. I kept thinking I had figured out who and what was happening but then I would second guess myself. Marion and John’s relationship and lifestyle oddly transfixed me. Who are these people? How have they lived this long like this and no one has ever discovered their secret? The end leaves you with a sense of “what happened?” Very unsettling but in a good and spooky way. I had a very tough time putting this down.

Lowlights (or what could have been better): The only problem I found was I kept waiting for some big reveal at the end but it didn’t come. But I wasn’t really disappointed because I still am thinking about the story and the ending and wondering. Who is to blame? Who was the scarier of the siblings?

FYI: Not fast paced but worth every page.

Book Review: The Good People

The Good People by Hannah Kent

First Line: Nora’s first thought when they brought her the body was that it could not be her husband’s.

Summary: In a small village in Ireland in the early 1800s lived three women. Nora a recent widow, her maid, Mary and the local healer, Nance.  When bad luck starts to befall the village, the people look for someone to blame.  Is the healer responsible for the cows not giving milk?  Did the mysterious child living with the widow cause the death of his grandfather?  Or is it the fairies?  During a cold winter, suspicion and fear cause the people to turn on these women.

Highlights: Beautifully written!  I felt like I was living in the world.  I could feel the dirt, hear the screams, and smell the pipe smoke.  It is fascinating to read stories based on true events.  This one is filled with the folklore of the poor in rural Ireland.  The fact that people believed that a child who was sick or disabled was actually a changeling (a fairy) is astounding.  This book has to be read considering the context.  To modern day standards it seems ridiculous but to the people of the time it made complete sense.  Science was not as far advanced.  People were not taught to read.  Many never left their villages.  The whole time I was hoping for a happy ending even though knowing it will never happen.

Lowlights: The story started out slow as it was building to the main theme.  I kept wondering when the plot described in the summary was going to begin but when it did, I was pulled into this world.  I was very sad about the ending but also pleased with the outcome.

FYI: Read with an idea that these were not modern times.  This is a great lesson in how not that long ago we were burning witches and believing in fairies rather than science and facts.

Book Review: My Grandfather Would Have Shot Me

My Grandfather Would Have Shot Me by Jennifer Teege, Nicola Sellmair, and Carolin Sommer (translator)

First line: It is the look on the woman’s face that seems familiar.

Summary: Jennifer Teege was shocked when she learned about her family history while browsing her local library. When she picked up a book and scanned the pictures inside, she was shocked to see her biological mother. As she continued to read, the book followed her mother’s struggle to love her father, Amon Goeth, who was the commandant of the concentration camp depicted in the movie Schindler’s List. Jennifer was adopted at a young age but she had had contact with her biological mother and grandmother as a child. She was never told her family’s past and now she has to come to terms with what they did and did not know.

Dachau (near Munich, Germany)

Highlights: Fascinating story! I have visited Dachau in Germany and felt the heaviness that still surrounds the place. I read this in two days because I had to know more about her and what she learned. The story is interspersed with information and interviews done by one of the coauthors. The pictures were a great addition so I could see what the people looked like.

Lowlights: Some places were a little repetitive. She kept reiterating several key points. I think that it was a strategy to remind the reader but since I read it very quickly they were redundant.

FYI: Originally written in German.

Looking at the rows that once were the barracks.

This book was something I came across when checking in returns and was immediately struck by the title.  I saw the movie Schindler’s List many years ago but I remembered the basics of the story.  I was extremely interested in anything to do with World War II and the Holocaust.  I have read The Diary of Anne Frank, Numbering the Stars by Lois Lowry, The Summer of My German Soldier by Bette Greene and so many more. I have been able to visit Germany four times and see historical sites but nothing can prepare you for visiting one of the concentration camps.

Crematorium

My first visit to Dachau, the first concentration camp in Germany, was when I was about 10 years old.  It was a scary and disturbing time.  I remember asking to go sit outside because I was getting physically sick. I was able to visit a second time when I was in college and could understand the significance of the place and its history.

I re-watched Schindler’s List recently and was once again shocked by the brutality.  Spielberg and his film convey the heaviness that these places still carry decades later.

It is important to remember these events and learn from them.  As the monument at Dachau says, “Never Again.”

Book Review: The Breakdown

The Break Down by B.A. Paris

First line: The thunder starts as we’re saying goodbye, leaving each other for the summer holidays ahead.

Summary: Cass is driving down a back road during a storm when she sees a car along the side of the road. She is scared to stop fearing that it could be dangerous. But when she finds out that the woman in the car she saw was her new friend, Jane, and that she was murdered the guilt begins to eat at her. And she cannot seem to remember little pieces of her day. With the recent loss of her mother, who suffered from Alzheimer’s, this is another fear to add on top of the guilt. Are the mysterious phone calls and suspicious man outside her house Jane’s killer? All this is leading Cass to a break down or is it?

Highlights: I was constantly wanting to listen/read this book. Whenever I had free time I would pick it up. I kept having to look back whenever Cass had a memory lapse to check and make sure that I was not forgetting something as well. Alzheimer’s is a scary disease, which I have personally seen with my grandmother so this hit close to home. The ending was perfect for the book. Once all the pieces fall into place and the way that Cass deals with it was exactly how I wanted it to happen.

Lowlights: Even though I loved the ending I felt like it was a little obvious. About ¾ of the way through I had a good idea what was happening but it was still rewarding to read it.

FYI: Quick and fun thriller. Definitely looking forward to reading B.A. Paris’ other book soon.

Book Review: Coming Home

Coming Home by Jack McDevitt

First line: When Alex Benedict graduated high school, his uncle Gabe, the only parent he’d ever known, provided the ultimate gift: a flight to Earth, the home world, the place where everything had started.

Summary: The year is 11,256 C.E. Earth is no longer the only inhabited planet in our galaxy. Thousands of years have passed and new worlds have been discovered but the artifacts from the Golden Age (early space travel) are rare and valuable. Many items have been destroyed or lost as Earth has dealt with flooding and other disasters. When an artifact is brought to Alex and his assistant, Chase, they begin to search how the item was just discovered and where it may have come from.
At the same time, a ship has been missing for 11 years. The passengers are believed to be dead. However, when the ship appears it is only available for a few short hours. For the passengers aboard they believe it has only been 3 days. How are all the people off the ship in such a short time?

Highlights: A very imaginative science fiction novel with a very intriguing plot. This was recommended to me and I was immediately interested. The idea of space travel and that items from our lives are considered ancient artifacts is fascinating. The science is not overwhelming which is perfect for me who has very little scientific knowledge. I liked the mysteries intertwining. I kept trying to think what I would do in the situation if I were stuck on a ship not realizing that 11 years had passed by in the blink of an eye. What would I be willing to do to get back to my family who have moved on? Highly enjoyable novel.

Lowlights: The book is part of the Alex Benedict series but he was in the story very little. It mainly followed the assistant, Chase. We never found out too much about him but those details may have been included in other books in the series.

FYI: Part of a series but can be read as a standalone. It has references to other books in the series but not enough to hinder the reading of this one.