A lone pilot crashes his plane in the Sahara Desert and is stranded with barely enough drinking water for a week. After an attempt at the repairs, he A lone pilot crashes his plane in the Sahara Desert and is stranded with barely enough drinking water for a week. After an attempt at the repairs, he falls asleep in the sand and awakens at sunrise to the voice of a young boy who asks the pilot to draw him a sheep...
The Little Prince holds its allure in the magic of reading or listening to it for the first time. This was my first venture inside the covers of this delightful book, which is written as an allegory, using symbolism with every object and character. It's the type of story you'll think about and discover more and more within as you do. It's classified as a children's story, but there's enough for adults to ponder, too.
I read a Kindle copy while listening to the audiobook narrated by Stephanie Richardson, whose voicing and recounting give an animated feel to the story.
The Little Prince explores themes of curiosity and wonder, searching for meaning and purpose, the value of relationships, and much more. Right off the bat, you'll find a contrast between adulthood and childhood, and that's just the beginning. I love books that linger with you long after the story ends, don't you?
Broken Country is set in a small farming village in the Dorset countryside in Southwestern EnglanBeautiful. Addictive. Heartbreaking. Hopeful...
Broken Country is set in a small farming village in the Dorset countryside in Southwestern England, where Gabriel Wolfe and Beth fell in love during the summer of 1955. He was her first love, and he broke her heart.
Beth marries Frank, a local sheep farmer. Gabriel marries an American.
In 1968, after divorcing his wife, Gabriel returns to the village with his son, Leo, who reminds Beth of her son Bobby, who died not long ago. Beth is drawn into Gabriel and Leo's lives, not realizing it will trigger events that will change their lives and families, and impact the entire village community...
Broken Country is as much a family story as a love story, and it quickly piqued my interest and stole my heart. Although it is told from the perspective of Beth, the protagonist, it uses a third-person limited point of view. The story is told through her eyes but not directly in her voice. It has a quiet yet distant and reflective feel, with simple writing and short chapters that make the pages flip as quickly as a thriller. The characters were fully fleshed out, making investing in their journey and engaging with the story simple.
This evocative and heartbreaking story is layered with two timelines and themes of love, loss, and the consequences of choices made. Long-held secrets will unfold, tragic events will take place, and the less you know going in, the better your experience will be.
Broken Country is the best book I've read this year. This is Clare Leslie Hall's U.S. debut novel, and I look forward to reading more from her. I love Literary Fiction, and this book is an example of why. I highly recommend it!
5⭐
Thank you to Simon & Schuster and Clare Leslie Hall for the DRC through NetGalley. This is my honest and voluntary review....more
"What happens to ordinary families into whose midst a child serial killer is born?"
That is the question at the center of this Classic Thriller... "What happens to ordinary families into whose midst a child serial killer is born?"
That is the question at the center of this Classic Thriller...
Charming little Rhoda Penmark, with her hangman braids, is the original creepy kid. The author uses interesting words to describe her hairdo, but as the story progresses and the plot thickens, you begin to understand its significance.
The Bad Seed was originally published in 1954 and became a bestselling novel, a successful Broadway play, and was made into a movie in 1956. I remember watching this black and white movie on TV years ago. The child actress who played Rhoda was scarily perfect for the part.
There is a 2018 color remake of the movie that is loosely based on the book. The black and white version is the real deal. Trust me on this!
I listened to the audiobook, expertly narrated by Elizabeth Wiley, and of course, it follows the book word for word.
The Bad Seed, written by William March, is an intense, chilling, and suspenseful in-depth character study. The title infers that nature prevails over nurture, suggesting that some individuals are born evil.
This is how you write a Thriller, ladies and gentlemen!
Joyce Maynard's first book was published in 1973 when she was nineteen—a personal account of growing up in tTruthful. Bold. Articulate. Soulful...
Joyce Maynard's first book was published in 1973 when she was nineteen—a personal account of growing up in the turbulent 1960s in the United States. Reading and listening to her words and voice was like reliving my youth. I was born the same year as this author, so yeah, it felt familiar. This is my generation, too.
This book became a significant piece of cultural commentary for the Baby Boomer generation, capturing the intricacies of being a teenager during a time of massive social and political change: The Vietnam War The Cuban Missile Crisis The Civil Rights Movement Women's Liberation The Drug Culture
One of my favorite memories she shares is of The Beatles' first appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show. Die hard Fab Four fan here!
Looking Back: A Chronicle of Growing Old in the Sixties is a candid and fearless memoir by a brilliant and gifted author who was just beginning her writing career!
Black Boy by Richard Wright is a Memoir and Semi-Autobiographical Novel!
“I would hurl words into this darkness and wait for an echo, and if an echo soBlack Boy by Richard Wright is a Memoir and Semi-Autobiographical Novel!
“I would hurl words into this darkness and wait for an echo, and if an echo sounded, no matter how faintly, I would send other words to tell, to march, to fight, to create a sense of the hunger for life that gnaws in us all.” ~ Richard Wright, Black Boy
Richard Wright's frank and raw depiction of racism is seen through his eyes as a young and infinitely curious negro boy growing up in the Jim Crow South. He experiences severe poverty and hunger, and the ever-present threat of violence and abuse from whites, as well as from members of his own family. Discovering a passion for reading in his youth was his salvation.
With dreams of becoming a writer, Wright is convinced his future points North and eventually migrates to Chicago. He is attracted to the ideologies of the Communist Party but becomes disillusioned by its internal challenges. He continues to find solace in his dream of becoming a writer...
Black Boy is a heart-wrenching account of Wright's early life in the South yet the payoff was experiencing how his distinctive writing style held my attention and left me wanting more. Just look at the beautifully poetic quote above as an example. I found this to be an authentic reflection of how he transformed from his youth to adulthood while remaining curious and hungry for answers. Despite leaving public school with a junior high school education to support his mother and brother, his eyes remained on his dream by being relentlessly autodidactic through his love of reading.
This was an immersion read of this Classic using the 15H 28M audiobook, superbly narrated by Peter Francis James, and the Kindle version of the 75th-anniversary edition which also contains a foreword by John Edgar Wideman and an afterword by Malcolm Wright, the author's grandson. There is also an in-depth timeline of Richard Wright's life.
I highly recommend Black Boy as an immersion read to get the full experience of this remarkable Classic!
The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christi is Hercule Poirot Mysteries, Book #4!
This is, by far, the best Agatha Christie Mystery I've read to dThe Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christi is Hercule Poirot Mysteries, Book #4!
This is, by far, the best Agatha Christie Mystery I've read to date...
This murder mystery takes place in the village of King's Abbot where a wealthy widow, Mrs. Ferras, had taken her own life. The following day wealthy widower, Roger Ackroyd, is found in his study stabbed to death by his own dagger. There is a series of events before and after both deaths to be discovered as you read...
Dr. James Sheppard, the local physician is our narrator and a neighbor of the recently retired Hercule Poirot, whom Sheppard mistakes for a retired hairdresser based on his mustache. There's a fun and interesting exchange between these two men over the wall separating their adjacent vegetable gardens, where they first meet.
Roger Ackroyd's niece, Flora, requests Poirot to investigate her uncle's murder, and Dr. Sheppard agrees to be Poirot's assistant in place of Arthur Hastings, who is now married and residing in the Argentine.
There is a tangle of interesting characters and paying attention to who is related to or engaged to whom, is key to avoid missing anything crucial. There are plenty of suspects, one rising to the top fairly quickly, a series of clues, and lots of red herrings. Poirot continues diligently with his search until he, at last, states that he "knows everything".
The 7H 30M audiobook is expertly narrated by Richard Armitage whose narration and voicing are an experience. I could listen to this man's voice all day, every day. Seriously!
Now I know why this is one of Agatha Christie's most famous novels, and of course, it is Hercule Poirot who delivers The Queen of Mystery's most surprising twist. If you only read ONE Agatha Christie Mystery, I recommend you make this the ONE. Voilà!