Amanda's bookshelf: all en-US Mon, 14 Apr 2025 11:53:00 -0700 60 Amanda's bookshelf: all 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg <![CDATA[Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything]]> 1202
These may not sound like typical questions for an economist to ask. But Steven D. Levitt is not a typical economist. He is a much heralded scholar who studies the stuff and riddles of everyday life -- from cheating and crime to sports and child rearing -- and whose conclusions regularly turn the conventional wisdom on its head. He usually begins with a mountain of data and a simple, unasked question. Some of these questions concern life-and-death issues; others have an admittedly freakish quality. Thus the new field of study contained in this book: freakonomics.

Through forceful storytelling and wry insight, Levitt and co-author Stephen J. Dubner show that economics is, at root, the study of incentives -- how people get what they want, or need, especially when other people want or need the same thing. In Freakonomics, they set out to explore the hidden side of ... well, everything. The inner workings of a crack gang. The truth about real-estate agents. The myths of campaign finance. The telltale marks of a cheating schoolteacher. The secrets of the Ku Klux Klan.

What unites all these stories is a belief that the modern world, despite a surfeit of obfuscation, complication, and downright deceit, is not impenetrable, is not unknowable, and -- if the right questions are asked -- is even more intriguing than we think. All it takes is a new way of looking. Steven Levitt, through devilishly clever and clear-eyed thinking, shows how to see through all the clutter.

Freakonomics establishes this unconventional premise: If morality represents how we would like the world to work, then economics represents how it actually does work. It is true that readers of this book will be armed with enough riddles and stories to last a thousand cocktail parties. But Freakonomics can provide more than that. It will literally redefine the way we view the modern world.
(front flap)]]> 268 Steven D. Levitt 0061234001 Amanda 0 currently-reading 4.01 2005 Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything
author: Steven D. Levitt
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2005
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/14
shelves: currently-reading
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Christmas Tree Farm (Dream Harbor, #3)]]> 206318178 From the author of the viral TikTok sensation, The Pumpkin Spice Café, comes the only spicy grumpy x sunshine Christmas romcom you need this year!

Kira North hates Christmas. Which is unfortunate since she just bought a Christmas tree farm in a town that’s too cute for its own good.

Bennett Ellis is on vacation in Dream Harbor taking a break from his life in California. And most importantly, taking a break from his latest run of disastrous dates.

After a run in with Kira in her fields, Ben has no intention of offering to help the grumpy owner set up her tree farm, despite the fact she’s clearly got no idea what she’s doing.

Kira knows she should stop being so stubborn, but her farm is not all cute and cozy like people always show on social media, it’s borderline dangerous with no heating, and she’d rather no one saw it.

But somehow fate finds Ben at Kira’s farm once more, and as Kira watches him swing an ax at the first tree, she finds herself appreciating his strength and questionning why she refused help in the first place..

The Christmas Tree Farm is a spicy romantic mystery for fans of Gilmore Girls with a HEA guaranteed!

Tropes:

� grumpy x sunshine
� small town
� forced proximity
� one bed]]> 369 Laurie Gilmore 0008610738 Amanda 0 currently-reading 3.66 2024 The Christmas Tree Farm (Dream Harbor, #3)
author: Laurie Gilmore
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.66
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/13
shelves: currently-reading
review:

]]> Sea of Tranquility 58446227 NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLER - The award-winning, best-selling author of Station Eleven and The Glass Hotel returns with a novel of art, time travel, love, and plague that takes the reader from Vancouver Island in 1912 to a dark colony on the moon five hundred years later, unfurling a story of humanity across centuries and space.

One of the Best Books of the Year: The New York Times, NPR, GoodReads

"One of [Mandel's] finest novels and one of her most satisfying forays into the arena of speculative fiction yet." --The New York Times

Edwin St. Andrew is eighteen years old when he crosses the Atlantic by steamship, exiled from polite society following an ill-conceived diatribe at a dinner party. He enters the forest, spellbound by the beauty of the Canadian wilderness, and suddenly hears the notes of a violin echoing in an airship terminal--an experience that shocks him to his core.

Two centuries later a famous writer named Olive Llewellyn is on a book tour. She's traveling all over Earth, but her home is the second moon colony, a place of white stone, spired towers, and artificial beauty. Within the text of Olive's best-selling pandemic novel lies a strange passage: a man plays his violin for change in the echoing corridor of an airship terminal as the trees of a forest rise around him.

When Gaspery-Jacques Roberts, a detective in the black-skied Night City, is hired to investigate an anomaly in the North American wilderness, he uncovers a series of lives upended: The exiled son of an earl driven to madness, a writer trapped far from home as a pandemic ravages Earth, and a childhood friend from the Night City who, like Gaspery himself, has glimpsed the chance to do something extraordinary that will disrupt the timeline of the universe.

A virtuoso performance that is as human and tender as it is intellectually playful, Sea of Tranquility is a novel of time travel and metaphysics that precisely captures the reality of our current moment.]]> 259 Emily St. John Mandel 0593321448 Amanda 5 4.04 2022 Sea of Tranquility
author: Emily St. John Mandel
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.04
book published: 2022
rating: 5
read at: 2025/04/13
date added: 2025/04/13
shelves:
review:
What in the Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, Lost (tv show), and Darker Shades of Magic mashup did I just read? Haha
]]> <![CDATA[How Can I Help?: Saving Nature with Your Yard]]> 217182417 In How Can I Help, Doug Tallamy—a New York Times bestselling author and the cofounder of the nonprofit Homegrown National Park—gives his expert answers to questions commonly asked over the course of his career as an environmental advocate. This must-read book provides readers with the next step in their ecological journey.

With the publication of Bringing Nature Home in 2009,Ěý Douglas Tallamy ushered in what is now considered one of the most important movements in gardening—the important role native plants play in attracting beneficial pollinators. With Nature’s Best Hope, Tallamy expanded his audience from gardeners to homeowners with a passionate advocacy that detailed how everyone with a yard can make a positive environmental impact.

In How Can I Help, Tallamy explores the questions commonly asked at his popular lectures, sharing compelling and actionable answers that will help readers take the next step in their ecological journey. Topics range from ecology, evolution, biodiversity and conservation to restoration, native plants, invasive species, pest control, and supporting wildlife at home. Tallamy keenly understands that most people want to take part in conservation efforts but feel powerless to do so as an individual. But one person can make a difference and How Can I Help details exactly how. Whether by reducing your lawn, planting a few native species, or allowing leaves to sit untouched, you will be empowered to take the next step and join millions of other like-minded people to become the future of conservation.
Ěý±Ő±Ő> 376 Douglas W. Tallamy 1643264710 Amanda 0 to-read 4.45 How Can I Help?: Saving Nature with Your Yard
author: Douglas W. Tallamy
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.45
book published:
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/04/11
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster]]> 1898
Into Thin Air is the definitive account of the deadliest season in the history of Everest by the acclaimed journalist and author of the bestseller Into the Wild. On assignment for Outside Magazine to report on the growing commercialization of the mountain, Krakauer, an accomplished climber, went to the Himalayas as a client of Rob Hall, the most respected high-altitude guide in the world. A rangy, thirty-five-year-old New Zealander, Hall had summited Everest four times between 1990 and 1995 and had led thirty-nine climbers to the top. Ascending the mountain in close proximity to Hall's team was a guided expedition led by Scott Fischer, a forty-year-old American with legendary strength and drive who had climbed the peak without supplemental oxygen in 1994. But neither Hall nor Fischer survived the rogue storm that struck in May 1996.

Krakauer examines what it is about Everest that has compelled so many people -- including himself -- to throw caution to the wind, ignore the concerns of loved ones, and willingly subject themselves to such risk, hardship, and expense. Written with emotional clarity and supported by his unimpeachable reporting, Krakauer's eyewitness account of what happened on the roof of the world is a singular achievement.]]> 368 Jon Krakauer Amanda 3 4.24 1997 Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster
author: Jon Krakauer
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.24
book published: 1997
rating: 3
read at: 2025/04/10
date added: 2025/04/10
shelves:
review:
This grueling memoir of a Mt. Everest climb gone wrong was intriguing, harrowing, and informative. However, I get the sense that this book was (kind of in the same way that Pamela Anderson’s memoir was) rather self-serving. I understand that Krakauer probably has tons of guilt about the events of the climb, and writing about it and putting the pieces together likely helped him heal, but I was turned off by the defensiveness that seemed to seep through the pages.
]]> Barefoot 712313 Visiting Nantucket for the summer, three women seek peace and comfort as they cope with the challenges in their lives--from marriage, infidelity, and the mayhem of motherhood to scandal, tragedy, and illness.
Three women--burdened with small children, unwieldy straw hats, and some obvious emotional issues--tumble onto the Nantucket airport tarmac one hot June day. Vicki is trying to sort through the news that she has a serious illness. Her sister, Brenda, has just left her job after being caught in an affair with a student. And their friend Melanie, after seven failed in vitro attempts, is pregnant at last--but only after learning that her husband is having an affair. They have come to escape, enjoy the sun, and relax in Nantucket's calming air. But into the house, into their world, steps twenty-two-year-old Josh Flynn.
Barefoot weaves these four lives together in a story with enthralling sweep and scope--a novel that is as fun and memorable and bittersweet as that one perfect day of summer.
]]> 416 Elin Hilderbrand 0316018589 Amanda 0 to-read 3.74 2007 Barefoot
author: Elin Hilderbrand
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.74
book published: 2007
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/10
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 28 Summers 52588078
When Mallory Blessing's son, Link, receives deathbed instructions from his mother to call a number on a slip of paper in her desk drawer, he's not sure what to expect. But he certainly does not expect Jake McCloud to answer. It's the late spring of 2020 and Jake's wife, Ursula DeGournsey, is the frontrunner in the upcoming Presidential election.

There must be a mistake, Link thinks. How do Mallory and Jake know each other?

Flash back to the sweet summer of 1993: Mallory has just inherited a beachfront cottage on Nantucket from her aunt, and she agrees to host her brother's bachelor party. Cooper's friend from college, Jake McCloud, attends, and Jake and Mallory form a bond that will persevere -- through marriage, children, and Ursula's stratospheric political rise -- until Mallory learns she's dying.

Based on the classic film Same Time Next Year (which Mallory and Jake watch every summer), 28 Summers explores the agony and romance of a one-weekend-per-year affair and the dramatic ways this relationship complicates and enriches their lives, and the lives of the people they love.]]> 432 Elin Hilderbrand 0316420042 Amanda 5
Hilderbrand’s writing is magical. She truly makes you see the good and the flawed in everyone, which makes her characters very realistic.]]> 4.12 2020 28 Summers
author: Elin Hilderbrand
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.12
book published: 2020
rating: 5
read at: 2024/10/02
date added: 2025/04/10
shelves: all-time-faves, currently-reading
review:
A week after finishing, I finally feel like I can say something about this book. 28 Summers completely tore me in pieces. The reality of this book is that adult relationships are often messy and convoluted. As humans we typically only get a small glimpse of others� lives, and we really have no idea the intimate details that keep them going day to day. It’s easy to pass judgment without understanding a situation fully.

Hilderbrand’s writing is magical. She truly makes you see the good and the flawed in everyone, which makes her characters very realistic.
]]> Like Family 226747123 After a near-stranger dies in their small town, a tightknit group of friends can no longer ignore their long-dormant desires and unfulfilled dreams—a moving debut about the complicated joys of chosen family.

“Like Family is so warm, joyful, smart, and nuanced. Its depictions of friendship and middle age and marriage and the beautiful messiness of life feel familiar in the best ways, but also fresh in the best ways. I absolutely love this novel and can’t wait to share it with everyone I know.”—Curtis Sittenfeld, bestselling author of Show Don’t Tell

It was too much to ask. But sometimes too much is what we ask of the people we love most.

Radclyffe, New York, is an idyllic upstate town, nestled in the hills and complete with artisanal bakeries, pottery studios, and hidden swimming holes. Ruth and her wife, Wyn, are living the dream (or Wyn’s dream, at least) with their four children on their small farm, which is also the bucolic gathering place for their circle of friends. It’s a sweet life, but there’s a secret at its center, one that not even Ruth’s best friend, Caroline, knows.

What Caroline does know is that she loves and depends on Ruth, and on the bond between their families. More than anything, she wants her tender-hearted son not to grow up lonely the way she did. Unfortunately, no one can assure her of that, especially not her husband. He just wants things to be easy, drama-free—which is impossible, as he has donated his sperm to his cousin Tobi and her wife so that they could have kids of their own. Now those children are asking unanswerable questions.

After an unexpected death in their community, all three couples are forced to confront the tensions that have long been buried beneath the surfaces of their lives. Richly textured and big-hearted, this exhilarating debut is an unforgettable story of the alchemy of love and loyalty that makes friends Like Family.]]> 320 Erin O. White 0593978552 Amanda 0 to-read 0.0 Like Family
author: Erin O. White
name: Amanda
average rating: 0.0
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/10
shelves: to-read
review:
Lowkey think this is going to be really good
]]> <![CDATA[Church Camp: Bad Skits, Cry Night, and How White Evangelicalism Betrayed a Generation]]> 215119205 Excavating a sometimes wacky, and equally harmful, part of white Evangelical culture

Roasted marshmallows, campfire stories, shaving cream battles--for some of us, Christian summer camp is where we felt most at home, where we could be the most authentic versions of ourselves. But for white Evangelical campers in particular, camp was also often the place to inherit a toxic image of God and of each other. From purity-motivated admonitions not to "make purple," to the emotional manipulation of "Cry Night," to the utter lack of diversity among campers and staff, the culture of white Evangelical camps has too often betrayed a generation.

In Church Camp, longtime camp speaker Cara Meredith exposes the ways in which white Evangelical camps sold individualized versions of Jesus to impressionable youth. Campers were forced to "sit with their sin" so they could fully understand God's conditional love. Camp life emotionally coaxed campers into making a formative commitment to Christ (and therefore to white Evangelical subculture). Further, camps commodified the faith of these young people to bolster their own funding and power.

Along the way, Meredith weaves in notable history of the camping movement, revivalism, and white Evangelicalism. She asks profound questions about who God is and what it means to be human. Following the progression of a typical week at camp, Church Camp weaves together Meredith's own story and the powerful stories of dozens of other former campers and camp staff members. Along the way, she invites us into the tension of accounting for our past while moving toward a better future.

Whether you went to church camp or not, whether you loved camp or hated it, Church Camp will peel back the layers, hold the powerful accountable, and help you envision a more vibrant, loving, and inclusive faith.]]> 226 Cara Meredith Amanda 0 to-read 3.93 2025 Church Camp: Bad Skits, Cry Night, and How White Evangelicalism Betrayed a Generation
author: Cara Meredith
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.93
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/10
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Library of Lost Dollhouses]]> 216269038 When a young librarian discovers historic dollhouses in a hidden room, she embarks on an unexpected journey that reveals surprising secrets about the lost miniatures.

Tildy Barrows, Head Curator of a beautiful archival library in San Francisco, is meticulously dedicated to the century’s worth of inventory housed in her beloved Beaux Art building. She loves the calm and order in the shelves of books and walls of art. But Tildy’s uneventful life takes an unexpected turn when she, first, learns the library is on the verge of bankruptcy and, second, discovers two exquisite never-before-seen dollhouses. After finding clues hidden within these remarkable miniatures, Tildy starts to believe that Belva Curtis LeFarge, the influential heiress who established the library a century ago, is conveying a significant final message.

With a newfound sense of spontaneity, Tildy sets out to decipher the secret history of the dollhouses, aiming to salvage her cherished library in the process. Her journey to understand introduces her to a world of ambitious and gifted women in Belle ÉpoqueĚýParis, a group of scarred World War I veterans in the English countryside, and Walt Disney’s bustling Burbank studio in the 1950s. As Tildy unravels the mystery, she finds not only inspiring, overlooked history, but also a future for herself, filled with exciting possibilities—and an astonishing familial revelation.

Spanning the course of a century, The Library of Lost Dollhouses is a warm, bright, and captivating story of secrets and love that embraces the importance of illuminating overlooked women of the past.]]> 320 Elise Hooper 0063382148 Amanda 0 to-read 4.09 2025 The Library of Lost Dollhouses
author: Elise Hooper
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.09
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/08
shelves: to-read
review:
Umm, it’s giving Time Windows by Kathryn Reiss!
]]> The Thorn Birds 3412
The central figures in this enthralling story are the indomitable Meggie, the only Cleary daughter, and the one man she truly loves, the stunningly handsome and ambitious priest Ralph de Bricassart. Ralph's course moves him a long way indeed, from a remote Outback parish to the halls of the Vatican; and Meggie's except for a brief and miserable marriage elsewhere, is fixed to the Drogheda that is part of her bones - but distance does not dim their feelings though it shapes their lives.

Wonderful characters people this book; strong and gentle, Paddy, hiding a private memory; dutiful Fiona, holding back love because it once betrayed her, violent, tormented Frank, and the other hardworking Cleary sons who give the boundless lands of Drogheda the energy and devotion most men save for women; Meggie; Ralph; and Meggie's children, Justine and Dane. And the land itself; stark, relentless in its demands, brilliant in its flowering, prey to gigantic cycles of drought and flood, rich when nature is bountiful, surreal like no other place on earth.

Alternate Cover Edition ISBN 0380018179 (ISBN13: 9780380018178)]]> 692 Colleen McCullough Amanda 3
Though a long book, I never got a good feel for who Meggie is to her core. (Well, except for the fact that she plays the long game exceptionally well lols.) Actually, I didn’t feel like I knew any of the characters in depth by the end, so even when tragedies occurred, I wasn’t moved emotionally (exception: Dane.)]]> 4.24 1977 The Thorn Birds
author: Colleen McCullough
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.24
book published: 1977
rating: 3
read at: 2025/04/08
date added: 2025/04/08
shelves:
review:
I found this book to be an interesting juxtaposition between humanity and religious vows, while also being as dramatic and far-fetched as any soap opera (and not in a good way). I enjoyed the themes of Catholicism, but was frustrated and weirded out by Ralph’s special attention towards Meggie. I can see how this book would be offensive to devout Catholics, but I do suppose that is the entire point - Ralph was just a man, after all. Even though he was convinced his intentions towards Meggie were good and innocent, they clearly weren’t, and he did make attempts to hide his attentions to Meggie from others. That’s not truly a man of God, IMO, especially one who aspires to be Cardinal Ralph one day.

Though a long book, I never got a good feel for who Meggie is to her core. (Well, except for the fact that she plays the long game exceptionally well lols.) Actually, I didn’t feel like I knew any of the characters in depth by the end, so even when tragedies occurred, I wasn’t moved emotionally (exception: Dane.)
]]> This Is Your Mother: A Memoir 220160116 From “a writer who’s absolutely going places� (Roxane Gay), a remarkable, inventive debut memoir about a mother-daughter relationship across cycles of poverty, separation, and illness, exploring how we forge identity in the face of imminent loss.

Growing up, Erika Simpson’s mother loomed large, almost biblical in her life. A daughter of sharecroppers, middle child of ten, her origin story served as a kind of Genesis. Her departure from home and a cheating husband, pursuing higher education along the way a kind of Exodus. Her rules for survival, often repeated like the Ten Commandments, guided Erika’s own journey into adulthood. And the most important rule? Throughout her life, Sallie Carol preached the power of a testimony—which often proved useful in talking her way out of a bind with bill collectors.

But where does a mother’s story end and a daughter’s begin? In this brave, illuminating memoir, Erika offers a joint recollection of their lives as they navigate times of poverty and stability, separation and togetherness, illness and remission. Her mother’s uncanny ability to endure Job-like trials and manifest New Testament–style miracles made her seem invincible. But while those who raise us may start out as gods in our lives, through her mother’s final months and fifth battle with cancer, Erika captures the moment you realize that parents are just people.

Weaving together a dual timeline and elements from both scripture and pop culture, Erika explores how the lessons, dreams, and patterns we inherit influence our future, for better and worse. Powerful, moving, and unforgettable, This Is Your Mother is a gorgeously rendered story of a mother’s life through a daughter’s eyes as she navigates through grief to a place of clarity where she can see who she is without her mom—and because of her.]]> 224 Erika J. Simpson 1668024039 Amanda 0 to-read 4.65 This Is Your Mother: A Memoir
author: Erika J. Simpson
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.65
book published:
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/04/08
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Say You'll Remember Me 216437557 From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Just for the Summer comes a new playful yet deeply emotional contemporary romance.

There might be no such a thing as a perfect guy, but Xavier Rush comes disastrously close. A gorgeous veterinarian giving Greek god vibes—all while cuddling a tiny kitten? Immediately yes. That is until Xavier opens his mouth and proves that even sculpted gods can say the absolute wrong thing. Like, really wrong. Of course, there’s nothing Samantha loves more than proving an asshole wrong�

. . . unless, of course, he can admit he made a mistake. But after one incredible and seemingly endless date—possibly the best in living history—Samantha is forced to admit the truth, that her family is in crisis and any kind of relationship would be impossible. Samantha begs Xavier to forget her. To remember their night together as a perfect moment, as crushing as that may be.

Only no amount of distance or time is nearly enough to forget that something between them. And the only thing better than one single perfect memory is to make a life—and even a love—worth remembering.]]> 416 Abby Jimenez 0349442827 Amanda 5 4.22 2025 Say You'll Remember Me
author: Abby Jimenez
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.22
book published: 2025
rating: 5
read at: 2025/04/05
date added: 2025/04/08
shelves:
review:
Easiest 5 stars so far this year. From the first chapter, I was hooked. This is a very feel good romcom with many realistic elements. No 9th hour break up here. No missed communications leading to one of the couple fleeing. Great supporting characters as always. Read it, and you won’t regret it.
]]> The Fall Risk 223199392 Two good neighbors make the best of a bad Valentine’s Day in a funny and improbably romantic short story by the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Just for the Summer.

It’s Valentine’s Day weekend, and Charlotte and Seth are not looking for romance. Armed with emotional-support bear spray, Charlotte is in self-imposed isolation and on guard from men. Having a stalker can do that to a person’s nerves. Just across the hall and giving off woodsy vibes is Seth, a recently divorced arborist. As in today recently. Heights, he’s fine with. Trust? Not so much. But when disaster traps them one flight up and no way down, an outrageously precarious predicament forces a tree-loving guy and a rattled girl next door to embrace their captivity. Soon their defenses are breaking away. Considering how close they both are to the edge, Charlotte and Seth could be in danger of falling—in love.]]> 82 Abby Jimenez 1662529082 Amanda 2 4.12 2025 The Fall Risk
author: Abby Jimenez
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.12
book published: 2025
rating: 2
read at: 2025/04/05
date added: 2025/04/05
shelves:
review:

]]> The Last Bookstore on Earth 214490415 This searing YA debut follows two teen girls as they fall in love and fight for survival in an abandoned bookstore, just weeks before another cataclysmic storm threatens to bring about the end of the world. Perfect for fans of Station Eleven and The Last of Us!

The world is about to end. Again.

Ever since the first Storm wreaked havoc on civilization as we know it, seventeen-year-old Liz Flannery has been holed up in an abandoned bookstore in suburban New Jersey where she used to work, trading books for supplies with the few remaining survivors. It’s the one place left that feels safe to her.

Until she learns that another earth-shattering Storm is coming . . . and everything changes.

Enter Maeve, a prickly and potentially dangerous out-of-towner who breaks into the bookstore looking for shelter one night. Though the two girls are immediately at odds, Maeve has what Liz needs—the skills to repair the dilapidated store before the next climate disaster strikes—and Liz reluctantly agrees to let her stay.

As the girls grow closer and undeniable feelings spring up between them, they realize that they face greater threats than the impending Storm. And when Maeve’s secrets and Liz’s inner demons come back to haunt them both, they find themselves fighting for their lives as their world crumbles around them.]]> 320 Lily Braun-Arnold 0593899482 Amanda 0 to-read 3.44 2025 The Last Bookstore on Earth
author: Lily Braun-Arnold
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.44
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/01
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Every Precious and Fragile Thing]]> 213567976 A mother and daughter try desperately to reconcile just as a decades-old secret threatens to shatter their relationship forever in this powerful story from the bestselling author of The Echo of Old Books.

For social worker Mallory Ward, working with at-risk youth is a calling. But when one of her clients is tragically killed, she finds herself at a crossroads. Despite long-held resentments toward her distant mother, Mallory retreats to her childhood home on the Rhode Island coast to contemplate her future. Instead, she’s confronted by her past, not only in the renewed tensions with her mother but in the unexpected appearance of a familiar face―and the wrenching losses that drove her away a decade ago.

Helen Ward’s home is filled with precious keepsakes from her patients, a testament to decades spent caring for the terminally ill. Her work has always come first, though, leaving little time to connect with her daughter. Over the years, the rift between them has become a chasm, so when Mallory appears unannounced, Helen sees it as an opportunity to repair their broken relationship.

But hidden among Helen’s mementos are the keys to her past…and a terrible secret that threatens to destroy the fragile new trust between them forever.]]> 431 Barbara Davis 1662514476 Amanda 0 to-read 4.35 2025 Every Precious and Fragile Thing
author: Barbara Davis
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.35
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/01
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Talons of Power (Wings of Fire, #9)]]> 29550388
And a young NightWing may have had the first true prophecy in generations . . .

Something is coming to shake the earth
Something is coming to scorch the ground
Jade Mountain will fall beneath thunder and ice
Unless the lost city of night can be found.

Don't miss the next chapter in the epic, bestselling Wings of Fire series!
]]> 336 Tui T. Sutherland Amanda 2 4.48 2016 Talons of Power (Wings of Fire, #9)
author: Tui T. Sutherland
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.48
book published: 2016
rating: 2
read at: 2025/04/01
date added: 2025/04/01
shelves:
review:
I really enjoyed this series but got bored with it last year. I decided to pick it back up because my stepson is reading the series now. Well I was definitely reminded of why I stopped to begin with. It seems there are no rules with the magic and that bothers me. Not sure if I’ll continue after this.
]]> The Killing Plains 205213876 Two victims. Twenty years apart. One elusive killer.

Crescent Bluff, West Texas. Everybody knows everybody. And everybody has a secret.

When a boy is found dead with the skin of a hare’s head in his hand, everyone knows who killed him—Willis Newland, just released from prison after serving twenty years for an identical murder.

But what if everyone’s wrong?

Detective Colly Newland reluctantly agrees to investigate a case that seems to involve the whole town, including her dead husband’s extended family. But the deeper she digs, the more secrets she unearths. And as threats against her escalate, Colly realizes someone is willing to kill to keep theirs…]]> 365 Sherry Rankin 1662521162 Amanda 1
Also, I’m going to address the elephant in the room: there are sooo many ethical lines crossed in regard to these people’s livelihoods. It all became too much like a soap opera.

You mean to tell me:
� Avery is allowed to investigate this crime even though her brother was a victim of a similar crime years ago and the cases are linked.
� Colly is allowed to investigate this crime even though it involves her in laws.
� Brenda is allowed to be Satchel’s therapist even though it’s her nephew.
� Colly and Avery alone have the authority to drop all of Jace’s charges even though Colly is retired and Avery has no seniority.

Also, the family keeps a giant boa constrictor on their property because it’s all that’s left of their son??? Come on.

LOLOL

This is really only the start. The author can write just fine, but the story is completely lacking in plausibility. I truly have no idea how I finished this. ]]> 4.08 2025 The Killing Plains
author: Sherry Rankin
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.08
book published: 2025
rating: 1
read at: 2025/03/31
date added: 2025/03/31
shelves:
review:
This was just really bad! So much drama and very little depth. Of course the killer confesses everything at the end of the book - so stereotypical.

Also, I’m going to address the elephant in the room: there are sooo many ethical lines crossed in regard to these people’s livelihoods. It all became too much like a soap opera.

You mean to tell me:
� Avery is allowed to investigate this crime even though her brother was a victim of a similar crime years ago and the cases are linked.
� Colly is allowed to investigate this crime even though it involves her in laws.
� Brenda is allowed to be Satchel’s therapist even though it’s her nephew.
� Colly and Avery alone have the authority to drop all of Jace’s charges even though Colly is retired and Avery has no seniority.

Also, the family keeps a giant boa constrictor on their property because it’s all that’s left of their son??? Come on.

LOLOL

This is really only the start. The author can write just fine, but the story is completely lacking in plausibility. I truly have no idea how I finished this.
]]> <![CDATA[The Cinnamon Bun Book Store (Dream Harbor, #2)]]> 196241667 From the author of the Sunday Times bestseller and viral TikTok phenomenon, The Pumpkin Spice Café, comes a brand new spicy romance set in Dream Harbor!

When a secret message turns up hidden in a book in the Cinnamon Bun Bookstore, Hazel can't understand it. As more secret codes appear between the pages, she decides to follow the trail of clues� she just need someone to help her out.

Gorgeous and outgoing fisherman, Noah, is always up for an adventure. And a scavenger hunt sounds like a lot of fun. Even better that the cute bookseller he's been crushing on for months is the one who wants his help!

Hazel didn’t go looking for romance, but as the treasure hunt leads her and Noah around Dream Harbor, their undeniable chemistry might be just as hot as the fresh-out-of-the-oven cinnamon buns the bookstore sells�

The Cinnamon Bun Book Store is a cozy romantic mystery with a HEA guaranteed!

Tropes:
� opposites attract
� small town
� forced proximity
� he falls first]]> 384 Laurie Gilmore Amanda 4 3.67 2024 The Cinnamon Bun Book Store (Dream Harbor, #2)
author: Laurie Gilmore
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.67
book published: 2024
rating: 4
read at: 2025/03/29
date added: 2025/03/29
shelves:
review:
Sweet, wholesome love story with a little spice and a little mystery. I am enjoying this series. 3.5 rounded up.
]]> Yellow Wife 54304031 Wench and Twelve Years a Slave, this harrowing story follows an enslaved woman forced to barter love and freedom while living in the most infamous slave jail in Virginia.

Born on a plantation in Charles City, Virginia, Pheby Brown was promised her freedom on her eighteenth birthday. But when her birthday finally comes around, instead of the idyllic life she was hoping for with her true love, she finds herself thrust into the bowels of slavery at the infamous Devil’s Half-Acre, a jail where slaves are broken, tortured, and sold every day. Forced to become the mistress of the brutal man who owns the jail, Pheby faces the ultimate sacrifice to protect her heart in this powerful, thrilling story of one slave’s fight for freedom.]]> 278 Sadeqa Johnson 1982149108 Amanda 2 4.41 2021 Yellow Wife
author: Sadeqa Johnson
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.41
book published: 2021
rating: 2
read at: 2025/03/28
date added: 2025/03/28
shelves:
review:
This book felt very detached. I never got a good feel for Pheby or felt like I knew her or how she’d behave. Sometimes she was pushy with the jailer but other times she seemed to sit back and watched things happen. I was also very turned off by her sexual interlude in the jail with Essex while he was shackled and there were descriptions of fecal matter in the cell in which it occurred. It was just kind of…strange. Usually books with accurate historical context and gut wrenching scenes bring me to tears, but I never liked any of these characters except Monroe.
]]> <![CDATA[Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Harry Potter, #5)]]> 2
Harry has had enough. He is beginning to think he must do something, anything, to change his situation, when the summer holidays come to an end in a very dramatic fashion. What Harry is about to discover in his new year at Hogwarts will turn his world upside down...]]> 912 J.K. Rowling Amanda 5 4.50 2003 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Harry Potter, #5)
author: J.K. Rowling
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.50
book published: 2003
rating: 5
read at: 2025/03/26
date added: 2025/03/26
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Harry Potter, #7)]]> 136251
In this final, seventh installment of the Harry Potter series, J.K. Rowling unveils in spectacular fashion the answers to the many questions that have been so eagerly awaited.]]> 759 J.K. Rowling Amanda 5 4.61 2007 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Harry Potter, #7)
author: J.K. Rowling
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.61
book published: 2007
rating: 5
read at: 2025/03/26
date added: 2025/03/26
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Harry Potter, #6)]]> 1 652 J.K. Rowling Amanda 5 4.57 2005 Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Harry Potter, #6)
author: J.K. Rowling
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.57
book published: 2005
rating: 5
read at: 2025/03/26
date added: 2025/03/26
shelves:
review:

]]> The Frozen River 112975658 A gripping historical mystery inspired by the life and diary of Martha Ballard, a renowned 18th-century midwife who defied the legal system and wrote herself into American history.

Maine, 1789: When the Kennebec River freezes, entombing a man in the ice, Martha Ballard is summoned to examine the body and determine cause of death. As a midwife and healer, she is privy to much of what goes on behind closed doors in Hallowell. Her diary is a record of every birth and death, crime and debacle that unfolds in the close-knit community. Months earlier, Martha documented the details of an alleged rape committed by two of the town’s most respected gentlemen—one of whom has now been found dead in the ice. But when a local physician undermines her conclusion, declaring the death to be an accident, Martha is forced to investigate the shocking murder on her own.

Over the course of one winter, as the trial nears, and whispers and prejudices mount, Martha doggedly pursues the truth. Her diary soon lands at the center of the scandal, implicating those she loves, and compelling Martha to decide where her own loyalties lie.

Clever, layered, and subversive, Ariel Lawhon’s newest offering introduces an unsung heroine who refused to accept anything less than justice at a time when women were considered best seen and not heard. The Frozen River is a thrilling, tense, and tender story about a remarkable woman who left an unparalleled legacy yet remains nearly forgotten to this day.]]> 432 Ariel Lawhon 0385546874 Amanda 2
Here are my issues with this book:
1) It was slow, as I already stated
2) Hard to keep the characters straight
3) The book tried to do too much. At some points it was a feminist novel which seemed not true to the time period. At other points it tried to be a racy romance (not too detailed, but still, a lot of emphasis on Martha and her husband’s sex life). Then, at other times it was a man hating novel.
4) The language, other than an occasional “aye� felt too modern.

Didn’t like it.]]> 4.38 2023 The Frozen River
author: Ariel Lawhon
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.38
book published: 2023
rating: 2
read at: 2025/03/26
date added: 2025/03/26
shelves:
review:
This took me forever to get through bc it was so freaking slow. I finally picked it back up but this time on audio from the library.

Here are my issues with this book:
1) It was slow, as I already stated
2) Hard to keep the characters straight
3) The book tried to do too much. At some points it was a feminist novel which seemed not true to the time period. At other points it tried to be a racy romance (not too detailed, but still, a lot of emphasis on Martha and her husband’s sex life). Then, at other times it was a man hating novel.
4) The language, other than an occasional “aye� felt too modern.

Didn’t like it.
]]> Cloistered: My Years as a Nun 126917977
Cloistered takes the reader deep into the hidden world of a traditional Carmelite monastery as it approaches the third Millennium and tells the story of an intense personal journey into and out of an enclosed life of poverty, chastity, and obedience. Finding an apparently perfect world at Akenside Priory, in Northumberland, Catherine trusts herself to a group of twenty silent women, believing she is trusting herself to God. As the beauty and mystery of an ancient way of life enfold her, she surrenders herself wholly to its power, quite unaware of the complexity and dangers that lie ahead.

Cut off from the wider world for decades, the community has managed to evade accountability to any authority beyond itself. When Sister Catherine realises that a mesmerising cult of the personality, with the distortions it entails, has replaced the ancient ideal of religious obedience, she is faced with a dilemma. Will she submit to this, or will she be forced to speak out?

An exploration of the limits of trust, Cloistered shows us how far youthful idealism can take us along the road of self-surrender, and of how much harm is done when institutional flaws go unacknowledged. Catherine’s honest account of her time in the monastery � and her dramatic flight from it � is both a love song to a lost community and an exploration of what is most compelling, yet most potentially destructive when closed human groups become laws unto themselves.]]> 342 Catherine Coldstream Amanda 3 3.84 2024 Cloistered: My Years as a Nun
author: Catherine Coldstream
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.84
book published: 2024
rating: 3
read at: 2025/03/26
date added: 2025/03/26
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Unfollow: A Journey from Hatred to Hope]]> 43314707 'The Most Hated Family in America' it was an upbringing in many ways normal. A loving home, shared with squabbling siblings, overseen by devoted parents. Yet in other ways it was the precise opposite: a revolving door of TV camera crews and documentary makers, a world of extreme discipline, of siblings vanishing in the night.

Megan Phelps-Roper was raised in the Westboro Baptist Church - the fire-and-brimstone religious sect at once aggressively homophobic and anti-Semitic, rejoiceful for AIDS and natural disasters, and notorious for its picketing the funerals of American soldiers. From her first public protest, aged five, to her instrumental role in spreading the church's invective via social media, her formative years brought their difficulties. But being reviled was not one of them. She was preaching God's truth. She was, in her words, 'all in'.

In November 2012, at the age of twenty-six, she left the church, her family, and her life behind. Unfollow is a story about the rarest thing of all: a person changing their mind. It is a fascinating insight into a closed world of extreme belief, a biography of a complex family, and a hope-inspiring memoir of a young woman finding the courage to find compassion for others, as well as herself.]]> 306 Megan Phelps-Roper Amanda 0 to-read 4.14 2019 Unfollow: A Journey from Hatred to Hope
author: Megan Phelps-Roper
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.14
book published: 2019
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/25
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Great Big Beautiful Life 218559595 Two writers compete for the chance to tell the larger-than-life story of a woman with more than a couple of plot twists up her sleeve in this dazzling and sweeping new novel from Emily Henry.

Alice Scott is an eternal optimist still dreaming of her big writing break. Hayden Anderson is a Pulitzer-prize winning human thundercloud. And they’re both on balmy Little Crescent Island for the same reason: To write the biography of a woman no one has seen in years--or at least to meet with the octogenarian who claims to be the Margaret Ives. Tragic heiress, former tabloid princess, and daughter of one of the most storied (and scandalous) families of the 20th Century.

When Margaret invites them both for a one-month trial period, after which she’ll choose the person who’ll tell her story, there are three things keeping Alice’s head in the game.

One: Alice genuinely likes people, which means people usually like Alice—and she has a whole month to win the legendary woman over.

Two: She’s ready for this job and the chance to impress her perennially unimpressed family with a Serious Publication

Three: Hayden Anderson, who should have no reason to be concerned about losing this book, is glowering at her in a shaken-to-the core way that suggests he sees her as competition.

But the problem is, Margaret is only giving each of them pieces of her story. Pieces they can’t swap to put together because of an ironclad NDA and an inconvenient yearning pulsing between them every time they’re in the same room.

And it’s becoming abundantly clear that their story—just like the tale Margaret’s spinning—could be a mystery, tragedy, or love ballad…depending on who’s telling it.]]> 384 Emily Henry 059344129X Amanda 0 to-read 4.23 2025 Great Big Beautiful Life
author: Emily Henry
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.23
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/24
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Ultra-Processed People: The Science Behind Food That Isn't Food]]> 62586003 A manifesto to change how you eat and how you think about the human body.

It’s not you, it’s the food.

We have entered a new age of eating. For the first time in human history, most of our calories come from an entirely novel set of substances called Ultra-Processed Food. There’s a long, formal scientific definition, but it can be boiled down to this: if it’s wrapped in plastic and has at least one ingredient that you wouldn’t find in your kitchen, it’s UPF.

These products are specifically engineered to behave as addictive substances, driving excess consumption. They are now linked to the leading cause of early death globally and the number one cause of environmental destruction. Yet almost all our staple foods are ultra-processed. UPF is our food culture and for many people it is the only available and affordable food.

In this book, Chris van Tulleken, father, scientist, doctor, and award-winning BBC broadcaster, marshals the latest evidence to show how governments, scientists, and doctors have allowed transnational food companies to create a pandemic of diet-related disease. The solutions don’t lie in willpower, personal responsibility, or exercise. You’ll find no diet plan in this book―but join Chris as he undertakes a powerful self-experiment that made headlines around the world: under the supervision of colleagues at University College London he spent a month eating a diet of 80 percent UPF, typical for many children and adults in the United States. While his body became the subject of scientific scrutiny, he spoke to the world’s leading experts from academia, agriculture, and―most important―the food industry itself. But more than teaching him about the experience of the food, the diet switched off Chris’s own addiction to UPF.

In a fast-paced and eye-opening narrative he explores the origins, science, and economics of UPF to reveal its catastrophic impact on our bodies and the planet. And he proposes real solutions for doctors, for policy makers, and for all of us who have to eat. A book that won’t only upend the way you shop and eat, Ultra-Processed People will open your eyes to the need for action on a global scale.]]> 384 Chris van Tulleken 1324036729 Amanda 0 to-read 4.40 2023 Ultra-Processed People: The Science Behind Food That Isn't Food
author: Chris van Tulleken
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.40
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/17
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Darkness of Dragons (Wings of Fire, #10)]]> 33198183 336 Tui T. Sutherland 0545685478 Amanda 0 to-read 4.51 2017 Darkness of Dragons (Wings of Fire, #10)
author: Tui T. Sutherland
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.51
book published: 2017
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/14
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Hunt, Gather, Parent: What Ancient Cultures Can Teach Us About the Lost Art of Raising Happy, Helpful Little Humans]]> 54304028
In Hunt, Gather, Parent, Doucleff sets out with her three-year-old daughter in tow to learn and practice parenting strategies from families in three of the world’s most venerable communities: Maya families in Mexico, Inuit families above the Arctic Circle, and Hadzabe families in Tanzania. She sees that these cultures don’t have the same problems with children that Western parents do. Most strikingly, parents build a relationship with young children that is vastly different from the one many Western parents develop—it’s built on cooperation instead of control, trust instead of fear, and personalized needs instead of standardized development milestones.

Maya parents are masters at raising cooperative children. Without resorting to bribes, threats, or chore charts, Maya parents rear loyal helpers by including kids in household tasks from the time they can walk. Inuit parents have developed a remarkably effective approach for teaching children emotional intelligence. When kids cry, hit, or act out, Inuit parents respond with a calm, gentle demeanor that teaches children how to settle themselves down and think before acting. Hadzabe parents are world experts on raising confident, self-driven kids with a simple tool that protects children from stress and anxiety, so common now among American kids.

Not only does Doucleff live with families and observe their techniques firsthand, she also applies them with her own daughter, with striking results. She learns to discipline without yelling. She talks to psychologists, neuroscientists, anthropologists, and sociologists and explains how these strategies can impact children’s mental health and development. Filled with practical takeaways that parents can implement immediately, Hunt, Gather, Parent helps us rethink the ways we relate to our children, and reveals a universal parenting paradigm adapted for American families.]]> 352 Michaeleen Doucleff 1982149671 Amanda 0 to-read 4.11 2021 Hunt, Gather, Parent: What Ancient Cultures Can Teach Us About the Lost Art of Raising Happy, Helpful Little Humans
author: Michaeleen Doucleff
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.11
book published: 2021
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Lost Man's Lane 176443476
For a sixteen-year-old, a summer internship working for a private investigator seems like a dream come true—particularly since the PI is investigating the most shocking crime to hit Bloomington, Indiana, in decades. A local woman has vanished, and the last time anyone saw her, she was in the backseat of a police car driven by a man impersonating an officer.

Marshall Miller’s internship puts him at the center of the action, a position he relishes until a terrifying moment that turns public praise for his sharp observations and uncanny memory into accusations of lying and imperiling the case. His detective mentor withdraws, friends and family worry and whisper, and Marshall alone understands that the darkness visiting his town this summer goes far beyond a single crime. Now his task is to explain it—and himself.

Lost Man's Lane is a coming-of-age tale of terror.]]> 516 Scott Carson 1982191457 Amanda 0 to-read 4.15 2024 Lost Man's Lane
author: Scott Carson
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.15
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[No-Drama Discipline: The Whole-Brain Way to Calm the Chaos and Nurture Your Child's Developing Mind]]> 40873423 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER •ĚýThe pioneering experts behindĚýThe Whole-Brain Child—Tina Payne Bryson and Daniel J. Siegel, theĚýauthor of Brainstorm—now explore the ultimate child-raising discipline.

Highlighting the fascinating link between a child’s neurological development and the way a parent reacts to misbehavior, No-Drama Discipline provides an effective, compassionate road map for dealing with tantrums, tensions, and tears—without causing a scene.
Ěý
Defining the true meaning of the “d� word (to instruct, not to shout or reprimand), the authors explain how to reach your child, redirect emotions, and turn a meltdown into an opportunity for growth. By doing so, the cycle of negative behavior (and punishment) is essentially brought to a halt, as problem solving becomes a win/win situation. Inside this sanity-saving guide you’ll discover
Ěý
� strategies that help parents identify their own discipline philosophy—and master the best methods to communicate the lessons they are trying to impart
� facts on child brain development—and what kind of discipline is most appropriate and constructive at all ages and stages
� the way to calmly and lovingly connect with a child—no matter how extreme the behavior—while still setting clear and consistent limits
� tips for navigating your child through a tantrum to achieve insight, empathy, and repair
� twenty discipline mistakes even the best parents make—and how to stay focused on the principles of whole-brain parenting and discipline techniques
Ěý
Complete with candid stories and playful illustrations that bring the authors� suggestions to life, No-Drama Discipline shows you how to work with your child’s developing mind, peacefully resolve conflicts, and inspire happiness and strengthen resilience in everyone in the family.

Praise for No-Drama Discipline
Ěý
“With lucid, engaging prose accompanied by cartoon illustrations, Siegel and Bryson help parents teach and communicate more effectively.��Publishers Weekly
Ěý
“A lot of fascinating insights . . . an eye-opener worth reading.��Parents
Ěý
“Insightful . . . The ideas presented in this latest book can actually be applied to all of our relationships, as it will help us in many circumstances to be able to calm down, have empathy for another person, and then communicate in a constructive way about our concerns and proposed solutions. What works to help children learn and behave better might also help our world’s leaders and large groups of people get along better, as many of us adults failed to develop these mindsight skills as we were growing up and we tend to sabotage our relationships with others as a result. Whether you are a parent, a teacher, or just a person who wishes to learn to get along better with others, you may find some valuable insights in No-Drama Discipline.��Examiner.com

“Wow! This book grabbed me from the very first page and did not let go. Daniel Siegel and Tina Payne Bryson explain extremely well why punishment is a dead-end strategy. Then they describe what to do instead. By making the latest breakthroughs in brain science accessible to any parent, they show why empathy and connection are the royal road to cooperation, discipline, and family harmony.�—Lawrence J. Cohen, Ph.D., author of The Opposite of Worry


From the Hardcover edition.]]> 290 Daniel J. Siegel 0345548051 Amanda 0 to-read 4.26 2014 No-Drama Discipline: The Whole-Brain Way to Calm the Chaos and Nurture Your Child's Developing Mind
author: Daniel J. Siegel
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.26
book published: 2014
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/11
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[A Parent's Guide to Self-Regulation: A Practical Framework for Breaking the Cycle of Dysregulation and Mastering Emotions for Parents and Children]]> 199798290
As the millennial generation moves into their parenting years, posting on social media about milestones, memories, and good times is almost second nature. Families can seem “perfect,� and some parenting methods are heralded as “the best.� However, behind closed doors, many parents and caregivers struggle greatly no matter what method or combination of parenting methods they use. There are points where it seems like you’ve tried everything. Maybe it even feels hopeless. That’s where A Parent’s Guide to Self-Regulation comes in.

This book will demystify the concepts of dysregulation and parental self-regulation, and will normalize prioritizing these skills for parents, before bringing the concepts into parenting children. With this book’s step-by-step framework, you will learn how to mitigate tough parenting moments, develop self-regulatory skills, and read real accounts from other parents. From addressing societal myths about dysregulated parenthood to tips on re-parenting yourself for better regulation and everything in-between, this book will serve as both a friendly companion and a source of solid, evidence-based advice.

A Parent’s Guide to Self-Regulation is written by Dr. Amber Thornton, a clinical psychologist and mother of two, who knows what it feels like to struggle with dysregulation and self-regulation as a parent.]]> 176 Amber Thornton 1646046684 Amanda 5 4.09 A Parent's Guide to Self-Regulation: A Practical Framework for Breaking the Cycle of Dysregulation and Mastering Emotions for Parents and Children
author: Amber Thornton
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.09
book published:
rating: 5
read at: 2025/03/11
date added: 2025/03/11
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Harry Potter, #4)]]> 6 734 J.K. Rowling 0439139597 Amanda 5 4.56 2000 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Harry Potter, #4)
author: J.K. Rowling
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.56
book published: 2000
rating: 5
read at: 2025/03/11
date added: 2025/03/11
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Harry Potter, #3)]]> 5 435 J.K. Rowling 043965548X Amanda 5 4.57 1999 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Harry Potter, #3)
author: J.K. Rowling
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.57
book published: 1999
rating: 5
read at: 2025/03/08
date added: 2025/03/08
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Last to Eat, Last to Learn: My Life in Afghanistan Fighting to Educate Women]]> 62192921 “Pashtana’s story highlights the resourcefulness and bravery of young women in Afghanistan. I hope readers will be inspired by her mission to give every girl the education she deserves and the opportunity to pursue her dreams.”—Malala Yousafzai

In the spirit of Our House is On Fire by Greta Thunberg, the astonishing and deeply inspiring memoir from a young Afghani activist, Amnesty International Global Youth Ambassador, founder of the NGO LEARN, and women’s education activist whose advocacy for the disappearing girls of rural Afghanistan has led to her being ruthlessly targeted by the Taliban.

A Ms. Magazine Pick for Most Anticipated Feminist Books of 2023

“Sparkles with humor and grit. A lovingly narrated, sharply nuanced memoir from a talented activist.”� Kirkus Reviews STARRED REVIEW

Inspired by generations of her family’s unwavering belief in the power of education, Pashtana Durrani recognized her calling early in life: to educate Afghanistan’s girls and young women, raised in a society where learning is forbidden. In a country devastated by war and violence, where girls are often married off before reaching their teenage years and prohibited from leaving their homes, heeding that call seemed both impossible and dangerous.

Pashtana was raised in an Afghan refugee camp in Pakistan where her father, a tribal leader, founded a community school for girls within their home. Fueled by his insistence that despite being a girl, she mattered and deserved an education, Pashtana was sixteen when, against impossible odds, she was granted a path out of the refugee camp: admittance to a preparatory program at Oxford. Unthinkably and to her parents� horror, she chose a different path. She chose Afghanistan.
Pashtana founded the nonprofit LEARN and developed a program for getting educational materials directly into the hands of girls in remote areas of the country, training teachers in digital literacy. Her commitment to education has made her a target of the Taliban. Still, she continues to fight for women’s education and autonomy in Afghanistan and beyond.

Courageous and inspiring, Last to Eat, Last to Learn is the story of how just one person can transform a family, a tribe, a country. It reminds us of the emancipatory power of learning and the transformational potential that lies within each of us.

“An inspiring portrait of a change-maker in action.”� Publishers Weekly

A portion of proceeds from Last to Eat, Last to Learn will be donated to LEARN, the NGO dedicated to providing quality education and healthcare to communities in conflict zones.]]> 224 Pashtana Durrani 0806542446 Amanda 0 to-read 4.34 2023 Last to Eat, Last to Learn: My Life in Afghanistan Fighting to Educate Women
author: Pashtana Durrani
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.34
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/06
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[It's Not Hysteria: Everything You Need to Know About Your Reproductive Health (But Were Never Told)]]> 195790756 An inclusive and essential guide to reproductive health—including period problems, pelvic pain, menopause, fertility, sexual health, vaginal and urinary conditions, and overall wellbeing―from leading expert Dr. Karen Tang

Reproductive healthcare, from abortion to gender-affirming care, is under siege. The onus continues to fall on patients to find and advocate for the care they need. Dr. Karen Tang is on a mission to transform how women engage with their bodies and their healthcare.

Did you know that one in three women experiences menstrual abnormalities or pelvic issues, yet these conditions are overwhelmingly misunderstood, misdiagnosed, or dismissed? The root causes for these issues, such as polycystic ovary syndrome, endometriosis, fibroids, ovarian cysts, premenstrual dysphoric disorder, and pelvic-floor muscle dysfunction, don’t receive the stream of funding for research and new treatments that other conditions do, despite the potential to affect up to half the population.

It’s Not Hysteria is a comprehensive guide to common conditions and potential treatment options, with practical tools such as symptom prompts and sample questions to ask one's provider. In the face of uncertainty and misinformation, It’s Not Hysteria is destined to become a new classic that educates and empowers.]]> 384 Karen Tang 1250894158 Amanda 0 to-read 4.21 2024 It's Not Hysteria: Everything You Need to Know About Your Reproductive Health (But Were Never Told)
author: Karen Tang
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.21
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/06
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Harry Potter, #2)]]> 15881
And strike it does. For in Harry’s second year at Hogwarts, fresh torments and horrors arise, including an outrageously stuck-up new professor and a spirit who haunts the girls� bathroom. But then the real trouble begins � someone is turning Hogwarts students to stone. Could it be Draco Malfoy, a more poisonous rival than ever? Could it possibly be Hagrid, whose mysterious past is finally told? Or could it be the one everyone at Hogwarts most suspects� Harry Potter himself!]]> 352 J.K. Rowling Amanda 5 4.42 1998 Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Harry Potter, #2)
author: J.K. Rowling
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.42
book published: 1998
rating: 5
read at: 2025/03/06
date added: 2025/03/06
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (Harry Potter, #1)]]> 3 309 J.K. Rowling 0439554934 Amanda 5 4.47 1997 Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (Harry Potter, #1)
author: J.K. Rowling
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.47
book published: 1997
rating: 5
read at: 2025/03/05
date added: 2025/03/05
shelves:
review:

]]> The Lion Women of Tehran 199898012 A heartfelt novel of friendship, betrayal, and redemption set against three transformative decades in Tehran, Iran.

In 1950s Tehran, seven-year-old Ellie lives in grand comfort until the untimely death of her father, forcing Ellie and her mother to move to a tiny home downtown. Lonely and bearing the brunt of her mother’s endless grievances, Ellie dreams of a friend to alleviate her isolation.

Luckily, on the first day of school, she meets Homa, a kind, passionate girl with a brave and irrepressible spirit. Together, the two girls play games, learn to cook in the stone kitchen of Homa’s warm home, wander through the colorful stalls of the Grand Bazaar, and share their ambitions for becoming “lion women.�

But their happiness is disrupted when Ellie and her mother are afforded the opportunity to return to their previous bourgeois life. Now a popular student at the best girls� high school in Iran, Ellie’s memories of Homa begin to fade. Years later, however, her sudden reappearance in Ellie’s privileged world alters the course of both of their lives.

Together, the two young women come of age and pursue their own goals for meaningful futures. But as the political turmoil in Iran builds to a breaking point, one earth-shattering betrayal will have enormous consequences.]]> 336 Marjan Kamali Amanda 4 Plenty of things I really enjoyed, but a few things that irked me.

More to come. ]]> 4.60 2024 The Lion Women of Tehran
author: Marjan Kamali
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.60
book published: 2024
rating: 4
read at: 2025/03/04
date added: 2025/03/04
shelves:
review:
4.25
Plenty of things I really enjoyed, but a few things that irked me.

More to come.
]]> Falls to Pieces 199236972 A mother and daughter in hiding are threatened by more than secrets and lies in a twisting novel of paranoia, revenge, and psychological suspense by bestselling author Douglas Corleone.

For two years, Kati Dawes and her teenage daughter, Zoe, have lived off the grid in Hawaiâ€i, hiding from a past Kati must forget as if her life depends on it. New names. Anonymous online presence. So far, safe. Until Kati’s fiancĂ©, attorney Eddie Akana, disappears along a popular hiking trail in a Maui national park. Now all eyes are on Kati. Exposure can make a woman with so many secrets very paranoid.

Eddie’s law partner, Noah Walker, is doing everything he can to protect his new client from the press that’s hovering like a vulture and the authorities whose suspicions about Kati—and the disappearance—are rising. Then suddenly, Zoe goes missing as well. Kati will risk anything to find her. But the worst is still to come. Because Kati’s not the only one with secrets. And buried among them is a twist she never saw coming.]]> Douglas Corleone Amanda 0 to-read 3.34 Falls to Pieces
author: Douglas Corleone
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.34
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/02
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Broken Country 214151202 “The farmer is dead. He is dead, and all anyone wants to know is who killed him.�

Beth and her gentle, kind husband Frank are happily married, but their relationship relies on the past staying buried. But when Beth’s brother-in-law shoots a dog going after their sheep, Beth doesn’t realize that the gunshot will alter the course of their lives. For the dog belonged to none other than Gabriel Wolfe, the man Beth loved as a teenager—the man who broke her heart years ago. Gabriel has returned to the village with his young son Leo, a boy who reminds Beth very much of her own son, who died in a tragic accident.

As Beth is pulled back into Gabriel’s life, tensions around the village rise and dangerous secrets and jealousies from the past resurface, this time with deadly consequences. Beth is forced to make a choice between the woman she once was, and the woman she has become.

A sweeping love story with the pace and twists of a thriller, Broken Country is a novel of simmering passion, impossible choices, and explosive consequences that toggles between the past and present to explore the far-reaching legacy of first love.]]> 320 Clare Leslie Hall 166807818X Amanda 0 to-read 4.44 2025 Broken Country
author: Clare Leslie Hall
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.44
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/02/27
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City]]> 25852784 Evicted, Princeton sociologist Matthew Desmond follows eight families in Milwaukee as they struggle to keep a roof over their heads. Evicted transforms our understanding of poverty and economic exploitation while providing fresh ideas for solving one of 21st-century America's most devastating problems. Its unforgettable scenes of hope and loss remind us of the centrality of home, without which nothing else is possible.]]> 418 Matthew Desmond 0553447432 Amanda 5

“Tenants able to pay their rent in full each month could take advantage of legal protections designed to keep their housing safe and decent. Not only could they summon a building inspector without fear of eviction, but they also had the right to withhold rent until certain repairs were made.12 But when tenants fell behind, these protections dissolved. Tenants in arrears were barred from withholding or escrowing rent; and they tempted eviction if they filed a report with a building inspector. It was not that low-income renters didn’t know their rights. They just knew those rights would cost them.�

“The time and emotional energy they spent making rent, delaying eviction, or finding another place to live when homeless could instead be spent on things that enriched their lives: community college classes, exercise, finding a good job, maybe a good man too. But our current state of affairs reduces to poverty people born for better things.�

“Residential stability begets a kind of psychological stability, which allows people to invest in their home and social relationships. It begets school stability, which increases the chances that children will excel and graduate. And, it begets community stability, which encourages neighbors to form strong bonds, and take care of their block. But poor people enjoy little of that, because they’re evicted at such high rates.� ]]> 4.47 2016 Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City
author: Matthew Desmond
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.47
book published: 2016
rating: 5
read at: 2025/02/27
date added: 2025/02/27
shelves:
review:
Part memoir and part traditional nonfiction, Evicted was an insightful and frankly depressing look at the housing crisis in the inner city of Milwaukee. I went into this book with very little knowledge of the housing crisis and found the book to be engaging and straightforward. Most poor people who get evicted aren’t just bums who want handouts, they just want better for their families like everyone else does, yet they’re stuck in a cycle where there is no end in sight. The author told stories of people that he spent years getting to know, and I found myself rooting for their success. I have zero solutions to this problem, but if you want a greater understanding of what poor Americans go through in regard to housing, you should read this.


“Tenants able to pay their rent in full each month could take advantage of legal protections designed to keep their housing safe and decent. Not only could they summon a building inspector without fear of eviction, but they also had the right to withhold rent until certain repairs were made.12 But when tenants fell behind, these protections dissolved. Tenants in arrears were barred from withholding or escrowing rent; and they tempted eviction if they filed a report with a building inspector. It was not that low-income renters didn’t know their rights. They just knew those rights would cost them.�

“The time and emotional energy they spent making rent, delaying eviction, or finding another place to live when homeless could instead be spent on things that enriched their lives: community college classes, exercise, finding a good job, maybe a good man too. But our current state of affairs reduces to poverty people born for better things.�

“Residential stability begets a kind of psychological stability, which allows people to invest in their home and social relationships. It begets school stability, which increases the chances that children will excel and graduate. And, it begets community stability, which encourages neighbors to form strong bonds, and take care of their block. But poor people enjoy little of that, because they’re evicted at such high rates.�
]]> <![CDATA[The End of the World Is Just the Beginning: Mapping the Collapse of Globalization]]> 58782897 2019 was the last great year for the world economy.

For generations, everything has been getting faster, better, and cheaper. Finally, we reached the point that almost anything you could ever want could be sent to your home within days - even hours - of when you decided you wanted it.

America made that happen, but now America has lost interest in keeping it going.

Globe-spanning supply chains are only possible with the protection of the U.S. Navy. The American dollar underpins internationalized energy and financial markets. Complex, innovative industries were created to satisfy American consumers. American security policy forced warring nations to lay down their arms. Billions of people have been fed and educated as the American-led trade system spread across the globe.

All of this was artificial. All this was temporary. All this is ending.

In The End of the World is Just the Beginning, author and geopolitical strategist Peter Zeihan maps out the next world: a world where countries or regions will have no choice but to make their own goods, grow their own food, secure their own energy, fight their own battles, and do it all with populations that are both shrinking and aging.

The list of countries that make it all work is smaller than you think. Which means everything about our interconnected world - from how we manufacture products, to how we grow food, to how we keep the lights on, to how we shuttle stuff about, to how we pay for it all - is about to change.

A world ending. A world beginning. Zeihan brings readers along for an illuminating (and a bit terrifying) ride packed with foresight, wit, and his trademark irreverence.]]> 512 Peter Zeihan 006323047X Amanda 0 to-read 4.13 2022 The End of the World Is Just the Beginning: Mapping the Collapse of Globalization
author: Peter Zeihan
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.13
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/02/27
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Paris Wife 8683812
Though deeply in love, the Hemingways are ill prepared for the hard-drinking and fast-living life of Jazz Age Paris, which hardly values traditional notions of family and monogamy. Surrounded by beautiful women and competing egos, Ernest struggles to find the voice that will earn him a place in history, pouring all the richness and intensity of his life with Hadley and their circle of friends into the novel that will become The Sun Also Rises. Hadley, meanwhile, strives to hold on to her sense of self as the demands of life with Ernest grow costly and her roles as wife, friend, and muse become more challenging. Despite their extraordinary bond, they eventually find themselves facing the ultimate crisis of their marriage—a deception that will lead to the unraveling of everything they’ve fought so hard for.

A heartbreaking portrayal of love and torn loyalty, The Paris Wife is all the more poignant because we know that, in the end, Hemingway wrote that he would rather have died than fallen in love with anyone but Hadley.]]> 314 Paula McLain 0345521307 Amanda 2 I went into this blindly and didn’t realize it was a fictional account of Ernest Hemingway’s life from his first wife’s POV. Well, it was boring. Thank goodness this was an audio book that I listened to while I was working, because I wouldn’t have stuck with it if it was a physical book.

Hadley and Ernest meet. They move to Paris and meet friends. Ernest becomes a jerk. Hadley accidentally loses (or it got stolen) a valise containing all of Ernest’s work. She gets pregnant. He begins to resent her. He finds someone else and marries her instead. The end.

Really, I’d have been better off reading the Wikipedia page on EH’s life. ]]> 3.81 2011 The Paris Wife
author: Paula McLain
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.81
book published: 2011
rating: 2
read at: 2025/02/25
date added: 2025/02/25
shelves:
review:
No rising action, climax, or falling action.
I went into this blindly and didn’t realize it was a fictional account of Ernest Hemingway’s life from his first wife’s POV. Well, it was boring. Thank goodness this was an audio book that I listened to while I was working, because I wouldn’t have stuck with it if it was a physical book.

Hadley and Ernest meet. They move to Paris and meet friends. Ernest becomes a jerk. Hadley accidentally loses (or it got stolen) a valise containing all of Ernest’s work. She gets pregnant. He begins to resent her. He finds someone else and marries her instead. The end.

Really, I’d have been better off reading the Wikipedia page on EH’s life.
]]> Our Wives Under the Sea 58659343
Moving through something that only resembles normal life, Miri comes to realize that the life that they had before might be gone. Though Leah is still there, Miri can feel the woman she loves slipping from her grasp.

Our Wives Under The Sea is the debut novel from Julia Armfield, the critically acclaimed author of Salt Slow. It’s a story of falling in love, loss, grief, and what life there is in the deep deep sea.]]> 240 Julia Armfield 152901722X Amanda 4 3.75 2022 Our Wives Under the Sea
author: Julia Armfield
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.75
book published: 2022
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/23
date added: 2025/02/23
shelves:
review:

]]> The Love Haters 217387810 It’s a thin line between love and love-hating.

Katie Vaughn has been burned by love in the past—now she may be lighting her career on fire. She has two choices: wait to get laid off from her job as a video producer or, at her coworker Cole’s request, take a career-making gig profiling Tom “Hutch� Hutcheson, a Coast Guard rescue swimmer in Key West.

The catch? Katie’s not exactly qualified. She can’t swim—but fakes it that she can.

Plus: Cole is Hutch’s brother. And they don’t get along. Next stop paradise!

But paradise is messier than it seems. As Katie gets entangled with Hutch (the most scientifically good looking man she has ever seen . . . but also a bit of a love hater), along with his colorful Aunt Rue and his rescue Great Dane, she gets trapped in a lie. Or two.

Swim lessons, helicopter flights, conga lines, drinking contests, hurricanes, and stolen kisses ensue—along with chances to tell the truth, to face old fears, and to be truly brave at last.]]> 320 Katherine Center 1250283825 Amanda 0 to-read 4.02 2025 The Love Haters
author: Katherine Center
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.02
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/02/23
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Hidden Life of Trees: What They Feel, How They Communicate: Discoveries from a Secret World]]> 28256439 The Hidden Life of Trees, Peter Wohlleben shares his deep love of woods and forests and explains the amazing processes of life, death, and regeneration he has observed in the woodland and the amazing scientific processes behind the wonders of which we are blissfully unaware. Much like human families, tree parents live together with their children, communicate with them, and support them as they grow, sharing nutrients with those who are sick or struggling and creating an ecosystem that mitigates the impact of extremes of heat and cold for the whole group. As a result of such interactions, trees in a family or community are protected and can live to be very old. In contrast, solitary trees, like street kids, have a tough time of it and in most cases die much earlier than those in a group.

Drawing on groundbreaking new discoveries, Wohlleben presents the science behind the secret and previously unknown life of trees and their communication abilities; he describes how these discoveries have informed his own practices in the forest around him. As he says, a happy forest is a healthy forest, and he believes that eco-friendly practices not only are economically sustainable but also benefit the health of our planet and the mental and physical health of all who live on Earth.]]> 272 Peter Wohlleben 1771642483 Amanda 0 to-read 4.06 2015 The Hidden Life of Trees: What They Feel, How They Communicate: Discoveries from a Secret World
author: Peter Wohlleben
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.06
book published: 2015
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/02/20
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Worst Hard Time: The Untold Story of Those Who Survived the Great American Dust Bowl]]> 40961608 In a tour de force of historical reportage, Timothy Egan’s National Book Award–winning story rescues an iconic chapter of American history from the shadows. Ěý The dust storms that terrorized the High Plains in the darkest years of the Depression were like nothing ever seen before or since. Following a dozen families and their communities through the rise and fall of the region, Timothy Egan tells of their desperate attempts to carry on through blinding black dust blizzards, crop failure, and the death of loved ones. Brilliantly capturing the terrifying drama of catastrophe, he does equal justice to the human characters who become his heroes, “the stoic, long-suffering men and women whose lives he opens up with urgency and respectâ€� (New York Times). In an era that promises ever-greater natural disasters, The Worst Hard Time is “arguably the best nonfiction book yetâ€� (Austin Statesman Journal) on the greatest environmental disaster ever to be visited upon our land and a powerful reminder about the dangers of trifling with nature.]]> 352 Timothy Egan 0547347774 Amanda 4
What more can I say? This is an interesting book about people who survived and died during the Dust Bowl era as well as research and programs that aimed to end the dust storms.

This would be a good companion book to read alongside Kristin Hannah’s fictional work about this era, The Four Winds. ]]> 4.09 2005 The Worst Hard Time: The Untold Story of Those Who Survived the Great American Dust Bowl
author: Timothy Egan
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.09
book published: 2005
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/18
date added: 2025/02/18
shelves:
review:
There’s a lesson here: when humans mess with nature too much, it backfires.

What more can I say? This is an interesting book about people who survived and died during the Dust Bowl era as well as research and programs that aimed to end the dust storms.

This would be a good companion book to read alongside Kristin Hannah’s fictional work about this era, The Four Winds.
]]> A Thousand Splendid Suns 4906099 Propelled by the same superb instinct for storytelling that made The Kite Runner a beloved classic, the #1 New York Times bestseller A Thousand Splendid Suns is at once an incredible chronicle of thirty years of Afghan history and a deeply moving story of family, friendship, faith, and the salvation to be found in love.Ěý“Just as good, if not better, than Khaled Hosseini’s best-selling first book, The Kite Runner.”—Newsweek Khaled Hosseini returns with a beautiful, riveting, and haunting novel that confirms his place as one of the most important literary writers today.Born a generation apart and with very different ideas about love and family, Mariam and Laila are two women brought jarringly together by war, by loss and by fate. As they endure the ever escalating dangers around them-in their home as well as in the streets of Kabul-they come to form a bond that makes them both sisters and mother-daughter to each other, and that will ultimately alter the course not just of their own lives but of the next generation. With heart-wrenching power and suspense, Hosseini shows how a woman's love for her family can move her to shocking and heroic acts of self-sacrifice, and that in the end it is love, or even the memory of love, that is often the key to survival.A stunning accomplishment, A Thousand Splendid Suns is a haunting, heartbreaking, compelling story of an unforgiving time, an unlikely friendship, and an indestructible love.]]> 379 Khaled Hosseini 1101010908 Amanda 5 4.60 2007 A Thousand Splendid Suns
author: Khaled Hosseini
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.60
book published: 2007
rating: 5
read at: 2025/02/16
date added: 2025/02/16
shelves:
review:

]]> Extras (Uglies, #4) 493456
Fifteen-year-old Aya Fuse is no exception. But Aya’s face rank is so low, she’s a total nobody. An extra. Her only chance at stardom is to kick a wild and unexpected story.

Then she stumbles upon a big secret. Aya knows she is on the cusp of celebrity. But the information she is about to disclose will change both her fate…and that of the brave new world]]> 417 Scott Westerfeld 1416951172 Amanda 2 3.60 2006 Extras (Uglies, #4)
author: Scott Westerfeld
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.60
book published: 2006
rating: 2
read at: 2025/02/13
date added: 2025/02/13
shelves:
review:

]]> Specials (Uglies, #3) 24765
And now she's been turned into one of them: a superamped fighting machine, engineered to keep the uglies down and the pretties stupid.

The strength, the speed, and the clarity and focus of her thinking feel better than anything Tally can remember. Most of the time. One tiny corner of her heart still remembers something more.

Still, it's easy to tune that out -- until Tally's offered a chance to stamp out the rebels of the New Smoke permanently. It all comes down to one last choice: listen to that tiny, faint heartbeat, or carry out the mission she's programmed to complete. Either way, Tally's world will never be the same.]]> 384 Scott Westerfeld 0689865406 Amanda 3 3.76 2006 Specials (Uglies, #3)
author: Scott Westerfeld
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.76
book published: 2006
rating: 3
read at: 2025/02/13
date added: 2025/02/13
shelves:
review:

]]> All the Colors of the Dark 203019740 From the New York Times bestselling author of We Begin at the End comes a soaring thriller and an epic love story that spans decades.

1975 is a time of change in America. The Vietnam War is ending. Mohammed Ali is fighting Joe Frazier. And in the small town of Monta Clare, Missouri, girls are disappearing.

When the daughter of a wealthy family is targeted, the most unlikely hero emerges—Patch, a local boy with one eye, who saves the girl, and, in doing so, leaves heartache in his wake.

Patch and those who love him soon discover that the line between triumph and tragedy has never been finer. And that their search for answers will lead them to truths that could mean losing one another.

A missing person mystery, a serial killer thriller, a love story, a unique twist on each, Chris Whitaker has written a novel about what lurks in the shadows of obsession, and the blinding light of hope.]]> 608 Chris Whitaker 0593798872 Amanda 0 to-read 4.24 2024 All the Colors of the Dark
author: Chris Whitaker
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.24
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/02/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Devil Behind the Badge: The Horrifying Twelve Days of the Border Patrol Serial Killer]]> 199531752 320 Rick Jervis 0062962965 Amanda 0 to-read 3.83 2024 The Devil Behind the Badge: The Horrifying Twelve Days of the Border Patrol Serial Killer
author: Rick Jervis
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.83
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/02/09
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Pretties (Uglies, #2) 24768 Gorgeous. Popular. Perfect.

Perfectly wrong.

Tally has finally become pretty. Now her looks are beyond perfect, her clothes are awesome, her boyfriend is totally hot, and she's completely popular. It's everything she's ever wanted.

But beneath all the fun -- the nonstop parties, the high-tech luxury, the total freedom -- is a nagging sense that something's wrong. Something important. Then a message from Tally's ugly past arrives. Reading it, Tally remembers what's wrong with pretty life, and the fun stops cold.

Now she has to choose between fighting to forget what she knows and fighting for her life -- because the authorities don't intend to let anyone with this information survive.]]> 370 Scott Westerfeld 0689865392 Amanda 4 3.84 2005 Pretties (Uglies, #2)
author: Scott Westerfeld
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.84
book published: 2005
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/06
date added: 2025/02/06
shelves:
review:

]]> Isola 212806636 A young woman and her lover are marooned on an island in this epic saga of love, faith, and defiance from the bestselling author of Sam.

Heir to a fortune, Marguerite is destined for a life of prosperity and gentility. Then she is orphaned, and her guardian—an enigmatic and volatile man—spends her inheritance and insists she accompany him on an expedition to New France. Isolated and afraid, Marguerite befriends her guardian’s servant and the two develop an intense attraction. But when their relationship is discovered, they are brutally punished and abandoned on a small island with no hope for rescue.

Once a child of privilege who dressed in gowns and laced pearls in her hair, Marguerite finds herself at the mercy of nature. As the weather turns, blanketing the island in ice, she discovers a faith she’d never before needed.

Inspired by the real life of a sixteenth-century heroine, Isola is the timeless story of a woman fighting for survival.]]> 368 Allegra Goodman 0593730089 Amanda 0 to-read 4.01 2025 Isola
author: Allegra Goodman
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/02/04
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Favorites 211399784 To the world, they were a scandal. To each other, an obsession.

NATIONAL BESTSELLER � An epic love story set in the sparkling, savage sphere of elite figure skating, starring a woman determined to carve her own path on and off the ice

“P˛ą°ůłŮ Wuthering Heights and part Daisy Jones & The Six, this novel is as brilliantly choreographed as a gold medal performance and will keep you guessing until its last page.”—Jodi Picoult, New York Times bestselling author of By Any Other Name

She might not have a famous name, funding, or her family’s support, but Katarina Shaw has always known that she was destined to become an Olympic skater. When she meets Heath Rocha, a lonely kid stuck in the foster care system, their instant connection makes them a formidable duo on the ice. Clinging to skating—and each other—to escape their turbulent lives, Kat and Heath go from childhood sweethearts to champion ice dancers, captivating the world with their scorching chemistry, rebellious style, and roller-coaster relationship.

Until a shocking incident at the Olympic Games brings their partnership to a sudden end.

As the ten-year anniversary of their final skate approaches, an unauthorized documentary reignites the public obsession with Shaw and Rocha, claiming to uncover the “real story� through interviews with their closest friends and fiercest rivals. Kat wants nothing to do with the documentary, but she can’t stand the thought of someone else defining her legacy. So, after a decade of silence, she’s telling her story: from the childhood tragedies that created her all-consuming bond with Heath to the clash of desires that tore them apart. Sensational rumors have haunted their every step for years, but the truth may be even more shocking than the headlines.]]> 448 Layne Fargo 0593732049 Amanda 0 currently-reading 4.19 2025 The Favorites
author: Layne Fargo
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.19
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/02/04
shelves: currently-reading
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Wild Robot Protects (The Wild Robot, #3)]]> 75593520
Roz calms and organizes the animals, but the poison tide takes a terrible toll on the island. And when the robot discovers that her new body is waterproof, she marches into the waves and sets out across the ocean, determined to stop the poison tide.

During her undersea journey, Roz encounters amazing geological formations and incredible creatures, and she sees the devastation caused by the toxic waters. Creatures she meets along the way direct her to a mysterious character known as the Ancient Shark, who explains that the poison tide is caused by a huge station that floats on the waves; a station operated by humans and by robots. To stop them, the Ancient Shark is prepared to attack with an army of sea creatures. However, Roz hopes to find a peaceful solution, instead. Can the wild robot save the ocean and her island and everything she loves?]]> 288 Peter Brown Amanda 4 4.11 2023 The Wild Robot Protects (The Wild Robot, #3)
author: Peter Brown
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.11
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/04
date added: 2025/02/04
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Wild Robot Escapes (The Wild Robot, #2)]]> 34219841 279 Peter Brown 0316382043 Amanda 4 4.36 2018 The Wild Robot Escapes (The Wild Robot, #2)
author: Peter Brown
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.36
book published: 2018
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/04
date added: 2025/02/04
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Wizard of Oz 15 Book Collection: The Wonderful Wizard of Oz Box Set, The Marvellous Land of Oz, Ozma of Oz, Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz, The Road ... by L. Frank Baum (2014) Paperback]]> 39095167
Collected here is the ultimate Kindle edition of the beloved series starring such timeless characters as Dorothy, the Tin Man, the Scarecrow, the Cowardly Lion, and the Wicked Witch of the West.

Included in 'The Wonderful Wizard of OZ: The Complete Collection of the Oz Series (Illustrated)' are:

� All fourteen Oz books written by L. Frank Baum.
� An individual, active Table of Contents for each book accessible from the Kindle "go to" feature.
� Perfect formatting in rich text compatible with Kindle's Text-to-Speech features.
� A low, can't-say-no price!

All fourteen of L. Frank Baum's Oz books, in order and unabridged. Books included:

1. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900)
2. The Marvelous Land of Oz (1904)
3. Ozma of Oz (1907)
4. Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz (1908)
5. The Road to Oz (1909)
6. The Emerald City of Oz (1910)
7. The Patchwork Girl of Oz (1913)
8. Tik-Tok of Oz (1914)
9. The Scarecrow of Oz (1915)
10. Rinkitink in Oz (1916)
11. The Lost Princess of Oz (1917)
12. The Tin Woodman of Oz (1918)
13. The Magic of Oz (1919)
14. Glinda of Oz (1920)]]> 2103 L. Frank Baum 2377876927 Amanda 0 currently-reading 4.75 The Wizard of Oz 15 Book Collection: The Wonderful Wizard of Oz Box Set, The Marvellous Land of Oz, Ozma of Oz, Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz, The Road ... by L. Frank Baum (2014) Paperback
author: L. Frank Baum
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.75
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/02/03
shelves: currently-reading
review:

]]> Onyx Storm (The Empyrean, #3) 209439446
Now Violet must journey beyond the failing Aretian wards to seek allies from unfamiliar lands to stand with Navarre. The trip will test every bit of her wit, luck, and strength, but she will do anything to save what she loves—her dragons, her family, her home, and him.

Even if it means keeping a secret so big, it could destroy everything. They need an army. They need power. They need magic. And they need the one thing only Violet can find—the truth. But a storm is coming...and not everyone can survive its wrath.]]> 527 Rebecca Yarros 1649374186 Amanda 4 4.18 2025 Onyx Storm (The Empyrean, #3)
author: Rebecca Yarros
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.18
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/03
date added: 2025/02/03
shelves:
review:

]]> Hello Beautiful 61771675
But then darkness from William’s past surfaces, jeopardizing not only Julia’s carefully orchestrated plans for their future, but the sisters� unshakeable devotion to one another. The result is a catastrophic family rift that changes their lives for generations. Will the loyalty that once rooted them be strong enough to draw them back together when it matters most?]]> 416 Ann Napolitano Amanda 3 4.14 2023 Hello Beautiful
author: Ann Napolitano
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.14
book published: 2023
rating: 3
read at: 2025/02/03
date added: 2025/02/03
shelves:
review:

]]> A Little Life 39100683
In rich and resplendent prose, Yanagihara has fashioned a tragic and transcendent hymn to brotherly love, a masterful depiction of heartbreak, and a dark examination of the tyranny of memory and the limits of human endurance.

Source: penguinrandomhouse.com]]> 951 Hanya Yanagihara 0385539266 Amanda 5
What an undertaking! This was really, really good. The author has a way of building tension in such a way that you can feel the character’s inner turmoil. I felt like I was right there, experiencing things with Jude in his lowest moments. Not a lot of authors can leave you feeling raw in this way. She’s very clever, bringing details back from previous moments and looping them into the present.

My one complaint: The author had no issue describing - in great detail - Jude’s many horrific experiences in the omniscient third person POV, but then when it comes time for his death, we just get one sentence about it and it’s from Harold’s first person POV of all things. I would have felt more of a gut kick from Jude’s death if it had been described in say, the same way as his kick down the stairs, or his purposeful starvation, or his burning himself, or being run over by a car. I actually had to go back and re-read the last chapter this morning because the death was dropped SO casually that I missed it last night. His death felt - anticlimactic. I could have done without Harold’s POV at all though; the omniscient POV is where it’s at in this book!

4.75 stars rounded up to 5 stars though, because wow, I rarely read anything that gets me so immersed in a book for 800+ pages. At least not since Harry Potter # 5-7.]]> 4.29 2015 A Little Life
author: Hanya Yanagihara
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.29
book published: 2015
rating: 5
read at: 2025/02/03
date added: 2025/02/03
shelves:
review:
4.75 stars rounded up

What an undertaking! This was really, really good. The author has a way of building tension in such a way that you can feel the character’s inner turmoil. I felt like I was right there, experiencing things with Jude in his lowest moments. Not a lot of authors can leave you feeling raw in this way. She’s very clever, bringing details back from previous moments and looping them into the present.

My one complaint: The author had no issue describing - in great detail - Jude’s many horrific experiences in the omniscient third person POV, but then when it comes time for his death, we just get one sentence about it and it’s from Harold’s first person POV of all things. I would have felt more of a gut kick from Jude’s death if it had been described in say, the same way as his kick down the stairs, or his purposeful starvation, or his burning himself, or being run over by a car. I actually had to go back and re-read the last chapter this morning because the death was dropped SO casually that I missed it last night. His death felt - anticlimactic. I could have done without Harold’s POV at all though; the omniscient POV is where it’s at in this book!

4.75 stars rounded up to 5 stars though, because wow, I rarely read anything that gets me so immersed in a book for 800+ pages. At least not since Harry Potter # 5-7.
]]> <![CDATA[Turbulence: A True Story of Survival]]> 21061336 324 Annette Herfkens 0991317904 Amanda 0 to-read 3.83 Turbulence: A True Story of Survival
author: Annette Herfkens
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.83
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/31
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Love in Winter Wonderland 123210381
Charming, handsome Trey Anderson balances the pressures of school popularity with a job at his family’s beloved local bookshop, Wonderland.

Quirky, creative Ariel Spencer needs tuition for the prestigious art program of her dreams, and an opening at Wonderland is the answer. When Trey and Ariel learn that Wonderland is on the brink of being shut down by a neighborhood gentrifier, they team up to stop the doors from closing before the Christmas Eve deadline—and embark on a hate-to-love journey that will change them forever.

Heartwarming and romantic, this read is the gift that keeps on giving, no matter the season.]]> 312 Abiola Bello 1641295074 Amanda 0 to-read 3.69 2023 Love in Winter Wonderland
author: Abiola Bello
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.69
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/31
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> To Paradise 57739876 From the author of the classic A Little Life, a bold, brilliant novel spanning three centuries and three different versions of the American experiment, about lovers, family, loss and the elusive promise of utopia.

In an alternate version of 1893 America, New York is part of the Free States, where people may live and love whomever they please (or so it seems). The fragile young scion of a distinguished family resists betrothal to a worthy suitor, drawn to a charming music teacher of no means. In a 1993 Manhattan besieged by the AIDS epidemic, a young Hawaiian man lives with his much older, wealthier partner, hiding his troubled childhood and the fate of his father. And in 2093, in a world riven by plagues and governed by totalitarian rule, a powerful scientist’s damaged granddaughter tries to navigate life without him—and solve the mystery of her husband’s disappearances.

These three sections are joined in an enthralling and ingenious symphony, as recurring notes and themes deepen and enrich one another: A townhouse in Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village; illness, and treatments that come at a terrible cost; wealth and squalor; the weak and the strong; race; the definition of family, and of nationhood; the dangerous righteousness of the powerful, and of revolutionaries; the longing to find a place in an earthly paradise, and the gradual realization that it can’t exist. What unites not just the characters, but these Americas, are their reckonings with the qualities that make us human: Fear. Love. Shame. Need. Loneliness.

To Paradise is a fin de siècle novel of marvellous literary effect, but above all it is a work of emotional genius. The great power of this remarkable novel is driven by Yanagihara’s understanding of the aching desire to protect those we love � partners, lovers, children, friends, family and even our fellow citizens � and the pain that ensues when we cannot.]]> 720 Hanya Yanagihara 0385547935 Amanda 0 to-read 3.74 2022 To Paradise
author: Hanya Yanagihara
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.74
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/30
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous]]> 41880609 On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous is a letter from a son to a mother who cannot read. Written when the speaker, Little Dog, is in his late twenties, the letter unearths a family's history that began before he was born � a history whose epicenter is rooted in Vietnam � and serves as a doorway into parts of his life his mother has never known, all of it leading to an unforgettable revelation. At once a witness to the fraught yet undeniable love between a single mother and her son, it is also a brutally honest exploration of race, class, and masculinity. Asking questions central to our American moment, immersed as we are in addiction, violence, and trauma, but undergirded by compassion and tenderness, On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous is as much about the power of telling one's own story as it is about the obliterating silence of not being heard.

With stunning urgency and grace, Ocean Vuong writes of people caught between disparate worlds, and asks how we heal and rescue one another without forsaking who we are. The question of how to survive, and how to make of it a kind of joy, powers the most important debut novel of many years.]]> 246 Ocean Vuong 0525562028 Amanda 0 to-read 4.05 2019 On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous
author: Ocean Vuong
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.05
book published: 2019
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/30
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[A Fever in the Heartland: The Ku Klux Klan's Plot to Take Over America, and the Woman Who Stopped Them]]> 61423989
The Roaring Twenties--the Jazz Age--has been characterized as a time of Gatsby frivolity. But it was also the height of the uniquely American hate group, the Ku Klux Klan. Their domain was not the old Confederacy, but the Heartland and the West. They hated Blacks, Jews, Catholics and immigrants in equal measure, and took radical steps to keep these people from the American promise. And the man who set in motion their takeover of great swaths of America was a charismatic charlatan named D.C. Stephenson.

Stephenson was a magnetic presence whose life story changed with every telling. Within two years of his arrival in Indiana, he’d become the Grand Dragon of the state and the architect of the strategy that brought the group out of the shadows � their message endorsed from the pulpits of local churches, spread at family picnics and town celebrations. Judges, prosecutors, ministers, governors and senators across the country all proudly proclaimed their membership. But at the peak of his influence, it was a seemingly powerless woman � Madge Oberholtzer � who would reveal his secret cruelties, and whose deathbed testimony finally brought the Klan to their knees.

A FEVER IN THE HEARTLAND marries a propulsive drama to a powerful and page-turning reckoning with one of the darkest threads in American history.]]> 432 Timothy Egan 0735225265 Amanda 5 4.33 2023 A Fever in the Heartland: The Ku Klux Klan's Plot to Take Over America, and the Woman Who Stopped Them
author: Timothy Egan
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.33
book published: 2023
rating: 5
read at: 2025/01/30
date added: 2025/01/30
shelves:
review:
A really solid, well-researched account of the rise of the KKK, with focus on Indiana’s role as “Northern Dixie.� This book brings to light the corrupt politicians and religious leaders who allowed and encouraged the growth of a white supremacy group whose goals were “merely to maintain the purity of the white race.� Of course, as the book unfolds, we hear of the lies, scandals, smear campaigns, lynchings, and various other mistreatments against any KKK opponents, including Jews, Catholics, and of course, Black people. Egan then tells the story of Madge Oberholtzer, whose deathbed confession led to the murder conviction of DC Stephenson and the subsequent dismantling of the KKK as it was once known.
]]> <![CDATA[Chip War: The Fight for the World's Most Critical Technology]]> 60321447
You may be surprised to learn that microchips are the new oil—the scarce resource on which the modern world depends. Today, military, economic, and geopolitical power are built on a foundation of computer chips. Virtually everythingâ€� from missiles to microwaves, smartphones to the stock market â€� runs on chips. Until recently, America designed and built the fastest chips and maintained its lead as the #1 superpower. Now, America's edge isĚýslipping, undermined by competitors in Taiwan, Korea,ĚýEurope, and, above all, China. Today, as Chip War reveals, China, which spends more money each year importing chips than it spends importing oil,Ěýis pouring billions into a chip-building initiative to catch up to the US. At stake is America's military superiority and economic prosperity.

Economic historian Chris Miller explains how the semiconductor came to play a critical role in modern life and how the U.S. become dominant in chip design and manufacturing and applied this technology to military systems. America's victory in the Cold War and its global military dominance stems from its ability to harness computing power more effectively than any other power. But here, too, China is catching up, with its chip-building ambitions and military modernization going hand in hand.ĚýAmerica has let key components of the chip-building process slip out of its grasp, contributing not only to a worldwide chip shortage but also a new Cold War with a superpower adversary that is desperate to bridge the gap.

Illuminating, timely, and fascinating, Chip War shows that, to make sense of the current state of politics, economics, and technology, we must first understand the vital role played by chips.]]> 464 Chris Miller 1982172002 Amanda 0 to-read 4.39 2022 Chip War: The Fight for the World's Most Critical Technology
author: Chris Miller
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.39
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/30
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Pumpkin Spice Café (Dream Harbor, #1)]]> 139391940 A spicy small-town romance and TikTok phenomenon, perfect for fans of Hannah Grace and Stephanie Archer.

When Jeanie's aunt gifts her the beloved Pumpkin Spice Café in the small town of Dream Harbor, Jeanie jumps at the chance for a fresh start away from her very dull desk job.

Logan is a local farmer who avoids Dream Harbor's gossip at all costs. But Jeanie's arrival disrupts Logan's routine and he wants nothing to do with the irritatingly upbeat new girl, except that he finds himself inexplicably drawn to her.

Will Jeanie's happy-go-lucky attitude win over the grumpy-but-gorgeous Logan, or has this city girl found the one person in town who won't fall for her charm, or her pumpkin spice lattes�

The Pumpkin Spice Café is a cozy romantic mystery for fans of Gilmore Girls, with a grumpy x sunshine dynamic, a small-town setting and a HEA guaranteed!

Tropes:

� grumpy x sunshine
� small town
� found family
� spicy]]> 373 Laurie Gilmore 0008610665 Amanda 3 3.36 2023 The Pumpkin Spice Café (Dream Harbor, #1)
author: Laurie Gilmore
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.36
book published: 2023
rating: 3
read at: 2025/01/29
date added: 2025/01/29
shelves:
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]]> Beautiful Ugly 211004123 The million-copy bestselling Queen of Twists Alice Feeney returns with a gripping and deliciously dark thriller about marriage. . .
. . . and revenge.

Author Grady Green is having the worst best day of his life.

Grady calls his wife to share some exciting news as she is driving home. He hears Abby slam on the brakes, get out of the car, then nothing. When he eventually finds her car by the cliff edge the headlights are on, the driver door is open, her phone is still there. . . but his wife has disappeared.

A year later, Grady is still overcome with grief and desperate to know what happened to Abby. He can’t sleep, and he can’t write, so he travels to a tiny Scottish island to try to get his life back on track. Then he sees the impossible � a woman who looks exactly like his missing wife.

Wives think their husbands will change but they don’t.
Husbands think their wives won’t change but they do.]]> 306 Alice Feeney 125033778X Amanda 0 3.64 2025 Beautiful Ugly
author: Alice Feeney
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.64
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at: 2025/01/27
date added: 2025/01/27
shelves:
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]]> <![CDATA[The Boys of Riverside: A Deaf Football Team and a Quest for Glory]]> 201751384 New York Times reporter and San Francisco Bureau Chief, Thomas Fuller.

In November 2021, an obscure email from the California Department of Education landed in New York Times reporter Thomas Fuller’s inbox. The football team at the California School for the Deaf in Riverside, a state-run school with only 168 high school students, was having an undefeated season. After years of covering wildfires, war, pandemic, and mass shootings, Fuller was captivated by the story about this deaf football team. It was uplifting. During the pandemic’s gloom, it was a happy story. It was a sports story but not an ordinary one, built on the chemistry between a group of underestimated boys and their superhero advocate coach, Keith Adams, a deaf former athlete himself. The team, and Adams, tackled the many stereotypes and seemed to be succeeding. Fuller packed his bags and drove seven hours to the Riverside campus just in time to see them trounce their opponent in the second game of the playoffs.

The Boys of Riverside looks back at the historic 2021 and 2022 seasons in which the California School for the Deaf chased history, following the personal journeys of Keith Adams (their dynamic deaf head coach), a student who spent the majority of the season sleeping in his father’s car parked in the Target lot, a fiercely committed player who literally played through a broken leg in order not to miss a crucial game, and myriad heart-wrenching and uplifting stories of the players who had found common purpose. Through their eyes, Fuller reveals a portrait of high school athletics, and deafness in America.]]> 256 Thomas Fuller 0385549873 Amanda 0 to-read 3.91 2024 The Boys of Riverside: A Deaf Football Team and a Quest for Glory
author: Thomas Fuller
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.91
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/26
shelves: to-read
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]]> <![CDATA[Blind Spots: When Medicine Gets It Wrong, and What It Means for Our Health]]> 210083661 Blind Spots written and read by Dr Marty Makary

From Johns Hopkins medical expert Dr. Marty Makary, the New York Times- bestselling author of The Price We Pay —an eye-opening look at the medical groupthink that has led to public harm, and what you need to know about your health.

More Americans have peanut allergies today than at any point in history. Why? In 2000, the American Academy of Pediatrics issued a strict recommendation that parents avoid giving their children peanut products until they’re three years old. Getting the science perfectly backward, triggering intolerance with lack of early exposure, the US now leads the world in peanut allergies—and this misinformation is still rearing its head today.

How could the experts have gotten it so wrong? Dr. Marty Makary asks, Could it be that many modern-day health crises have been caused by the hubris of the medical establishment? Experts said for decades that opioids were not addictive, igniting the opioid crisis. They refused menopausal women hormone replacement therapy, causing unnecessary suffering. They demonized natural fat in foods, driving Americans to processed carbohydrates as obesity rates soared. They told citizens that there are no downsides to antibiotics and prescribed them liberally, causing a drug-resistant bacteria crisis.

When modern medicine issues recommendations based on good scientific studies, it shines. Conversely, when modern medicine is interpreted through the harsh lens of opinion and edict, it can mold beliefs that harm patients and stunt research for decades. In Blind Spots, Dr. Makary explores the latest research on critical topics ranging from the microbiome to childbirth to nutrition and longevity and more, revealing the biggest blind spots of modern medicine and tackling the most urgent yet unsung issues in our $4.5 trillion health care ecosystem. The path to medical mishaps can be absurd, entertaining, and jaw-dropping—but the truth is essential to our health.]]> 288 Marty Makary 1639735313 Amanda 0 to-read 4.39 2024 Blind Spots: When Medicine Gets It Wrong, and What It Means for Our Health
author: Marty Makary
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.39
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/26
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Blind Spots 60784543
A riveting crime novel with a speculative edge about the ways our perceptions of reality can be manipulated.

Seven years ago, everyone in the world went blind in a matter of months. Technology helped people adjust to the new normal, creating a device that approximates vision, downloading visual data directly to people’s brains. But what happens when someone finds a way to hack it and change what people see?

Homicide detective Mark Owens has been on the force since before The Blinding. When a scientist is murdered, and the only witness insists the killer was blacked out of her vision, Owens doesn’t believe her―until a similar murder happens in front of him. With suspects ranging from tech billionaires to anti-modernity cultists―and with the bodies piling up―Owens must conduct an investigation in which he can’t even trust his own eyes.

Thomas Mullen, the acclaimed author of Darktown and The Last Town on Earth , delivers an unputdownable crime novel about one man's search for truth in a world of surveillance and disinformation that’s all too recognizable.]]> 320 Thomas Mullen 1250842743 Amanda 0 to-read 3.55 2023 Blind Spots
author: Thomas Mullen
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.55
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/26
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Forest 161063935 764 Edward Rutherfurd Amanda 0 to-read 3.80 2000 The Forest
author: Edward Rutherfurd
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.80
book published: 2000
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/25
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Summer I Turned Pretty (Summer, #1)]]> 5821978 276 Jenny Han 1416968237 Amanda 0 to-read 3.77 2009 The Summer I Turned Pretty (Summer, #1)
author: Jenny Han
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.77
book published: 2009
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/24
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Beating The System: My Life In Foster Care]]> 35873228 110 Marquis Williams 1626768625 Amanda 0 to-read 4.43 Beating The System: My Life In Foster Care
author: Marquis Williams
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.43
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/23
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Thirteenth Tale 40440
The enigmatic Winter has spent six decades creating various outlandish life histories for herself -- all of them inventions that have brought her fame and fortune but have kept her violent and tragic past a secret. Now old and ailing, she at last wants to tell the truth about her extraordinary life. She summons biographer Margaret Lea, a young woman for whom the secret of her own birth, hidden by those who loved her most, remains an ever-present pain. Struck by a curious parallel between Miss Winter's story and her own, Margaret takes on the commission.

As Vida disinters the life she meant to bury for good, Margaret is mesmerized. It is a tale of gothic strangeness featuring the Angelfield family, including the beautiful and willful Isabelle, the feral twins Adeline and Emmeline, a ghost, a governess, a topiary garden and a devastating fire.

Margaret succumbs to the power of Vida's storytelling but remains suspicious of the author's sincerity. She demands the truth from Vida, and together they confront the ghosts that have haunted them while becoming, finally, transformed by the truth themselves.

The Thirteenth Tale is a love letter to reading, a book for the feral reader in all of us, a return to that rich vein of storytelling that our parents loved and that we loved as children. Diane Setterfield will keep you guessing, make you wonder, move you to tears and laughter and, in the end, deposit you breathless yet satisfied back upon the shore of your everyday life.]]> 406 Diane Setterfield 0743298020 Amanda 3 3.96 2006 The Thirteenth Tale
author: Diane Setterfield
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.96
book published: 2006
rating: 3
read at: 2025/01/23
date added: 2025/01/23
shelves:
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]]> Summer Romance 198563734
There aren’t enough labeled glass containers to contain the mess that is Ali Morris’s life. Her mom died two years ago, then her husband left, and she hasn’t worn pants with a zipper in longer than she cares to remember. She’s a professional organizer whose pantry is a disgrace.

No one is more surprised than Ali when the first time she takes off her wedding ring and puts on pants with hardware—overalls count, right?—she meets someone. Or rather, her dog claims a man for her in the same way he claimed his favorite of her three children: by peeing on him. Ethan smiles at Ali like her pants are just right—like he likes what he sees. The last thing Ali needs is to make her life messier, but there’s no harm in a little Summer Romance. Is there?]]> 321 Annabel Monaghan 0593714083 Amanda 4

]]> 4.02 2024 Summer Romance
author: Annabel Monaghan
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.02
book published: 2024
rating: 4
read at: 2025/01/23
date added: 2025/01/23
shelves:
review:
Super sweet, PG(-13?) rated romcom! No F bombs, no sex. Very wholesome story about found family, a meet cute via dogs, and of course, love. It’s very refreshing when an author can tell a contemporary love story that doesn’t: 1) make any references to the characters� appearances (huge pet peeve of mine) or 2) have graphic sex scenes (this has its place but not every romance novel has to have it!).



]]> Cat Fight 220160850 Big Little Lies meets Tiger King in this fun and propulsive debut novel about three suburban women who, over the course of one summer, each use the growing hysteria around a big cat sighting to achieve their own agendas—some more sinister than others.

Former zoologist Coralie King now reigns over a different sort of animal kingdom as Queen Bee of Sevenoaks, a wealthy suburb of London. When her husband Adam spots a panther on the hood of his car at one of her exclusive dinner parties, Coralie is quick to reassure her guests that they’re in no real danger. She sees the sighting as the perfect opportunity to revive her career and promote her own ecological endeavors.

New neighbor Emma Brooks doesn’t believe for a second that there’s a big cat in their midst but is all too willing to use the concern as a distraction from her home remodel application that’s been facing scrutiny. Meanwhile, former punk musician Twig Dorsett doesn’t know what to believe. She never thought she’d return to Sevenoaks and be living in her childhood home, but after her daughter became sick, she and her wife traded their Bohemian life in Bali for the security of London suburbia.

As the summer heats up, the frenzy around the big cat sighting reaches a fever pitch when gnawed bones, pawprints, and scratches are discovered. But is the real predator a big cat on the prowl or is the true threat more of the domestic variety? Filled with gasp-worthy twists and turns, Cat Fight is a wickedly entertaining novel of suspense that examines the lengths to which some women will go when they feel caged.]]> 352 Kit Conway 1668066343 Amanda 0 to-read 3.79 2025 Cat Fight
author: Kit Conway
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.79
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/22
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Bee Sting 62039166 From the author of Skippy Dies comes Paul Murray's The Bee Sting, an irresistibly funny, wise, and thought-provoking tour de force about family, fortune, and the struggle to be a good person when the world is falling apart.

The Barnes family is in trouble. Dickie’s once-lucrative car business is going under―but rather than face the music, he’s spending his days in the woods, building an apocalypse-proof bunker with a renegade handyman. His wife Imelda is selling off her jewelry on eBay, while their teenage daughter Cass, formerly top of her class, seems determined to binge-drink her way through her final exams. And twelve-year-old PJ is putting the final touches to his grand plan to run away from home.

Where did it all go wrong? A patch of ice on the tarmac, a casual favor to a charming stranger, a bee caught beneath a bridal veil―can a single moment of bad luck change the direction of a life? And if the story has already been written―is there still time to find a happy ending?]]> 645 Paul Murray 0374600309 Amanda 0 to-read 3.92 2023 The Bee Sting
author: Paul Murray
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.92
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/21
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Before We Were Yours 32148570 Memphis, 1939. Twelve-year-old Rill Foss and her four younger siblings live a magical life aboard their family’s Mississippi River shantyboat. But when their father must rush their mother to the hospital one stormy night, Rill is left in charge—until strangers arrive in force. Wrenched from all that is familiar and thrown into a Tennessee Children’s Home Society orphanage, the Foss children are assured that they will soon be returned to their parents—but they quickly realize the dark truth. At the mercy of the facility’s cruel director, Rill fights to keep her sisters and brother together in a world of danger and uncertainty.

Aiken, South Carolina, present day. Born into wealth and privilege, Avery Stafford seems to have it all: a successful career as a federal prosecutor, a handsome fiancé, and a lavish wedding on the horizon. But when Avery returns home to help her father weather a health crisis, a chance encounter leaves her with uncomfortable questions and compels her to take a journey through her family’s long-hidden history, on a path that will ultimately lead either to devastation or to redemption.

Based on one of America’s most notorious real-life scandals—in which Georgia Tann, director of a Memphis-based adoption organization, kidnapped and sold poor children to wealthy families all over the country—Lisa Wingate’s riveting, wrenching, and ultimately uplifting tale reminds us how, even though the paths we take can lead to many places, the heart never forgets where we belong.]]> 342 Lisa Wingate 0425284689 Amanda 0 4.38 2017 Before We Were Yours
author: Lisa Wingate
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.38
book published: 2017
rating: 0
read at: 2025/01/21
date added: 2025/01/21
shelves:
review:
Absolutely loved this one. There were some heartbreaking scenes but all in all Wingate really brought her characters to life and I couldn’t stop until I was finished. Like any good historical fiction, this book has piqued my interest in a pocket of history I never knew about, and I plan to buy The Baby Thief soon to learn more about Georgia Tann. I’d definitely read more of Wingate’s work.
]]> Andromeda 61487462
En ung kvinna kommer till förlaget som praktikant men blir kvar under många år och får ett allt större ansvar för författarna och förlagets utgivning. Allt under överinseende Gunnar, den litteräre chefen som står bakom förlagets finaste utgivning, den som publiceras under namnet Andromeda.

Med åren växer deras arbetsrelation till något som de båda har svårt att definiera. Kanske handlar det om ömsesidigt förtroende? Eller handlar det i själva verket om något annat?

Therese Bohmans roman utspelas i Stockholm och vecklar ut sig till en berättelse om tradition och modernitet, förhoppningar och besvikelser, idealism och krass verklighet.]]> 196 Therese Bohman 9113121758 Amanda 0 to-read 3.55 2022 Andromeda
author: Therese Bohman
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.55
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/19
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Boxcar Librarian 214325867 🎧Run Time = 13 hours and 20 minutes

A brand-new 2025 release from an author whose writing “historical fiction fans will adore� (New York Times bestselling author Madeline Martin): The stories of three women converge in 1936 Montana when editor Millie Lang arrives from DC to work on a series of travel books � only to find a town riddled with mystery, corruption, and secrets.


Inspired by true events, a thrilling Depression-era novel from the author of The Librarian of Burned Books about a woman’s quest to uncover a mystery surrounding a local librarian and the Boxcar Library—a converted mining train that brought books to isolated rural towns in Montana.

When Works Progress Administration (WPA) editor Millie Lang finds herself on the wrong end of a potential political scandal, she’s shipped off to Montana to work on the state’s American Guide Series—travel books intended to put the nation’s destitute writers to work.

Millie arrives to an eclectic staff claiming their missed deadlines are due to sabotage, possibly from the state’s powerful Copper Kings who don’t want their long and bloody history with union organizers aired for the rest of the country to read. But Millie begins to suspect that the answer might instead lie with the town’s mysterious librarian, Alice Monroe.

More than a decade earlier, Alice Monroe created the Boxcar Library in order to deliver books to isolated mining towns where men longed for entertainment and connection. Alice thought she found the perfect librarian to staff the train car in Colette Durand, a miner’s daughter with a shotgun and too many secrets behind her eyes.

Now, no one in Missoula will tell Millie why both Alice and Colette went out on the inaugural journey of the Boxcar Library, but only Alice returned.

The three women’s stories dramatically converge in the search to uncover what someone is so desperately trying to what happened to Colette Durand.

Inspired by the fascinating, true history of Missoula’s Boxcar Library, the novel blends the story of the strong, courageous women who survived and thrived in the rough and rowdy West with that of the power of standing together to fight for workers� lives. And through it all shines the capacity of books to provide connection and light to those who need it most.]]> 464 Brianna Labuskes 006337630X Amanda 0 to-read 4.12 2025 The Boxcar Librarian
author: Brianna Labuskes
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.12
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/17
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Dinner for Vampires: Life on a Cult TV Show (While Also in an Actual Cult!)]]> 208840265 A deliciously witty and inspiring memoir by One Tree Hill star Bethany Joy Lenz about her decade in a cult and her quest to break free.

In the early 2000s, after years of hard work and determination to breakthrough as an actor, Bethany Joy Lenz was finally cast as one of the leads on the hit drama One Tree Hill. Her career was about to take off, but her personal life was slowly beginning to unravel. What none of the show’s millions of fans knew, hidden even from her costars, was her secret double life in a cult.

An only child who often had to fend for herself and always wanted a place to belong, Lenz found the safe haven she’d been searching for in a Bible study group with other Hollywood creatives. However, the group soon morphed into something more sinister—a slowly woven web of manipulation, abuse, and fear under the guise of a church covenant called The Big House Family. Piece by piece, Lenz began to give away her autonomy, ultimately relocating to the Family’s Pacific Northwest compound, overseen by a domineering minister who would convince Lenz to marry one of his sons and steadily drained millions of her TV income without her knowledge. Family “minders� assigned to her on set, “Maoist struggle session”–inspired meetings in the basement of a filthy house, and regular counseling with “Leadership� were just part of the tactics used to keep her loyal.

Only when she became a mother did Lenz find the courage to leave and spare her child from a similar fate. After nearly a decade (and with the unlikely help of a One Tree Hill superfan), she finally managed to escape the family’s grip and begin to heal from the deep trauma that forever altered her relationship with God and her understanding of faith. Written with powerful honesty and dark humor, Dinner for Vampires is an inspiring story about the importance of identity and understanding what you believe.]]> 303 Bethany Joy Lenz 1668067307 Amanda 3
All in all, a solid account. We all can sit here and say, “Oh, I’d NEVER join a cult,� but the reality is that everyone wants to belong, and Les had all the answers. ]]> 4.28 2024 Dinner for Vampires: Life on a Cult TV Show (While Also in an Actual Cult!)
author: Bethany Joy Lenz
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.28
book published: 2024
rating: 3
read at: 2025/01/16
date added: 2025/01/16
shelves:
review:
3.5 stars rounded up. A really interesting account of a small cult and how Bethany Joy Lenz got wrapped into it and was swindled out of her earnings. I would have appreciated more insightful moments; I felt detached at times - I was just getting fed the details but without a lot of her emotion alongside it.

All in all, a solid account. We all can sit here and say, “Oh, I’d NEVER join a cult,� but the reality is that everyone wants to belong, and Les had all the answers.
]]> My Friends 217163697 #1ĚýNew York TimesĚýbestselling author Fredrik Backman returns with an unforgettably funny, deeply moving tale of four teenagers whose friendship creates a bond so powerful that it changes a stranger’s life twenty-five years later.

Most people don’t even notice them—three tiny figures sitting at the end of a long pier in the corner of one of the most famous paintings in the world. Most people think it’s just a depiction of the sea. But Louisa, an artist herself, knows otherwise and she is determined to find out the story of these three enigmatic figures.

Twenty-five years earlier, in a distant town, a group of teenagers find refuge from their difficult home lives by spending their days laughing and telling stories out on a pier. There’s Joar, who never backs down from a fight; quiet and bookish Ted who is mourning his father; Ali, the daughter of a man who never stays in one place for long; and finally, there’s the artist, a boy who hoards sleeping pills and shuns attention, but who possesses an extraordinary gift that might be his ticket to a better life. These four lost souls find in each other a reason to get up each morning, a reason to dream.

Out of that summer emerges a transcendent work of art, a painting that will unexpectedly be put into eighteen-year-old Louisa’s care. As she struggles to decide what to do with this bequest, she embarks on a surprise-filled cross-country journey to learn the story of how the painting came to be. The closer she gets to the painting’s birthplace, the more she feels compelled to unleash her own artistic spirit, but happy endings don’t always take the form we expect in this fresh testament to the transformative power of friendship and art.]]> 448 Fredrik Backman 1982112824 Amanda 0 to-read 4.59 2025 My Friends
author: Fredrik Backman
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.59
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/15
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones]]> 40121378 Atomic Habits offers a proven framework for improving—every day. James Clear, one of the world's leading experts on habit formation, reveals practical strategies that will teach you exactly how to form good habits, break bad ones, and master the tiny behaviors that lead to remarkable results.

If you're having trouble changing your habits, the problem isn't you. The problem is your system. Bad habits repeat themselves again and again not because you don't want to change, but because you have the wrong system for change. You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems. Here, you'll get a proven system that can take you to new heights.

Clear is known for his ability to distill complex topics into simple behaviors that can be easily applied to daily life and work. Here, he draws on the most proven ideas from biology, psychology, and neuroscience to create an easy-to-understand guide for making good habits inevitable and bad habits impossible. Along the way, readers will be inspired and entertained with true stories from Olympic gold medalists, award-winning artists, business leaders, life-saving physicians, and star comedians who have used the science of small habits to master their craft and vault to the top of their field.

Learn how to:
-ĚýMake time for new habits (even when life gets crazy);
-ĚýOvercome a lack of motivation and willpower;
- Design your environment to make success easier;
- Get back on track when you fall off course;
...and much more.

Atomic Habits will reshape the way you think about progress and success, and give you the tools and strategies you need to transform your habits--whether you are a team looking to win a championship, an organization hoping to redefine an industry, or simply an individual who wishes to quit smoking, lose weight, reduce stress, or achieve any other goal.]]> 319 James Clear Amanda 0 to-read 4.34 2018 Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones
author: James Clear
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.34
book published: 2018
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/15
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Sing Sing Files: One Journalist, Six Innocent Men, and a Twenty-Year Fight for Justice]]> 203579030 An NBC Dateline producer's cinematic account of two decades navigating a broken criminal justice system to help free six innocent men.

In 2002, Dan Slepian, a veteran producer for NBC’s Dateline, received a tip from a Bronx homicide detective that would change his life. Two men were serving twenty-five years to life in prison for a murder in 1990, the cop said, and he knew for a fact that they did not commit that crime.

Haunted by what he had heard, Slepian began an investigation that eventually led to freedom for those two men, and launched him on a two-decade personal and professional journey through a system fiercely resistant to rectifying—or even acknowledging—its mistakes and their consequences.

The Sing Sing: One Journalist, Six Innocent Men, and a Twenty-Year Fight for Justice is an investigative journalist’s account of how he took on that system and of the years of prison visits, court hearings and powerful Dateline reporting it took to bring justice to those two men and four others imprisoned for crimes they did not commit. It is also the story of the deep and lasting friendships Slepian formed with the men whose cases he pursued, and how one of them—Jon-Adrian “JJ� Velazquez—provided aid and counsel to him from his cell in Sing Sing prison until his own release in 2021 after decades behind bars.

Like Bryan Stevenson’s Just Mercy, The Sing Sing Files is a deeply personal account of wrongful imprisonment and the enormous effort required to redress it, and a powerful argument for reckoning and accountability. This extraordinary book, at once painful and full of hope, shines a light on a kind of injustice whose consequences we have only begun to confront.]]> 224 Dan Slepian 125089770X Amanda 4 4.50 2024 The Sing Sing Files: One Journalist, Six Innocent Men, and a Twenty-Year Fight for Justice
author: Dan Slepian
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.50
book published: 2024
rating: 4
read at: 2025/01/14
date added: 2025/01/15
shelves:
review:
Incredible (and sad) stories about the wrongly convicted. The book brought me to tears a couple of times.
]]> <![CDATA[Mother, Nature: A 5,000-Mile Journey to Discover if a Mother and Son Can Survive Their Differences]]> 112974854
They land on an idea: to retrace the thousands of miles Barbara trekked with Jedidiah’s father, travel writer Peter Jenkins, as part of the Walk Across America book trilogy that became a sensation in the 1970s. Beginning in New Orleans, they set off for the Oregon coast, listening to podcasts about outlaws and cult leaders—the only media they can agree on—while reliving the journey that changed Barbara’s life. Jedidiah discovers who Barbara was as a thirty-year-old writer walking across America and who she is now, as a parent who loves her son yet holds on to a version of faith that sees his sexuality as a sin.Ěý

Along the way, he peels back the layers of questions millions are asking: How do we stay in relationship when it hurts? When do boundaries turn into separation? When do we stand up for ourselves, and when do we let it go?Ěý

Tender, smart, and profound, Mother, Nature is a story of a remarkable mother-son bond and a moving meditation on the complexities of love.]]> 221 Jedidiah Jenkins 0593137264 Amanda 4 4.02 2023 Mother, Nature: A 5,000-Mile Journey to Discover if a Mother and Son Can Survive Their Differences
author: Jedidiah Jenkins
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.02
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2025/01/15
date added: 2025/01/15
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Crossing (The Border Trilogy, #2)]]> 365990
Having trapped a she-wolf he would restore to the mountains of Mexico, he is long gone and returns to find everything he left behind transformed utterly in his absence. Except his kid brother, Boyd, with whom he strikes out yet again to reclaim what is theirs - thus crossing into "that antique gaze from whence there could be no way back forever."

What they find instead, is an extraordinary panoply of fiestas and circuses, dogs, horses and hawks, pilgrims and revolutionaries, grand haciendas and forlorn cantinas, bandits, gypsies and roving tribes, a young girl alone on the road, a mystery in the mountain wilds, and a myth in the making.

And in this wider world they fight a war as rageful as the one neither, in the end, will join up for back home. One brother finds his destiny, while the other arrives only at his fate.

An essential novel by any measure, and the transfixing middle passage of Cormac McCarthy's ongoing trilogy, The Crossing is luminous and appalling, a book that touches, stops,and starts the heart and mind at once.]]> 426 Cormac McCarthy Amanda 0 to-read 4.16 1994 The Crossing (The Border Trilogy, #2)
author: Cormac McCarthy
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.16
book published: 1994
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/14
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> It's a Love Story 218153839 USA Today bestselling author of Nora Goes Off Script, a novel about a former adolescent TV punchline who has left her awkwardness in the rearview mirror thanks to a fake-it-till-you-make-it mantra that has her on the cusp of success, until she tells a lie that sets her on a crash-course with her past, spending a week in Long Island with the last man she thinks might make her believe in love.

Rules for a love story: There are none. It’s all a lie.

Jane Jackson knows that true love is a lie. Laughter is the only truth—you can’t fake a belly laugh. Jane should know, she spent her adolescence as "Poor Janey Jakes," the barbecue-sauce-in-her-braces punchline on America's fifth-favorite sitcom. Now she’s a Creative Executive at Clearwater Studios and she’s living by a new mantra: Fake it till you make it.

Except, she might have faked it too far. Desperate to get her first project greenlit and riled up by pompous cinematographer and one-time crush Dan Finnegan, she opened her mouth and a big fat fib fell out. She claimed that Jack Quinlan, hottest popstar of the moment, has promised to write an original song for the soundtrack. Jack may have been her first kiss—and greatest source of shame—but she hasn’t spoken to him in twenty years.

Now, Jane must turn to the last man she’d ever want to owe: Dan Finnegan. Because Jack is playing a festival in Dan’s hometown on Long Island, and Dan has an in. A week in close quarters with Dan while facing down her past is Jane's idea of hell, but Dan just might surprise her. While covering up her lie, can they find something true?]]> 368 Annabel Monaghan 0593714105 Amanda 0 to-read 4.31 2025 It's a Love Story
author: Annabel Monaghan
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.31
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/13
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Forgotten Desires (Whitlock Family, #4)]]> 207703241 He’s a billionaire in need of a wife �
And I’m his ex who can’t say no to him.

Ten years ago Carson Knight was my one great love, but he abandoned me without a trace.
Now he’s a billionaire single-dad in need of a temporary wife.
And he’s at my house on one knee with a proposal �
Marry him, so he’s more likely to win full custody of his daughter, keeping her safe from her unstable mother. In return, he’ll take care of the medical expenses for a surgery my father needs to survive.

Reluctantly, I agree to tie the knot, on one condition. Once those custody papers are signed, we go our separate ways. Because he’s even more gorgeous, charming, and sweeter than he was back then, and I don’t trust myself not to fall for my fake husband.

Especially when I hear him say “my wife.�

Or feel his hands on my skin. Taste his kiss or see the way he looks at me with those blue eyes and know that our carefully crafted rules will shatter.

Right alongside my heart.]]> 396 Corinne Michaels Amanda 2 4.26 2024 Forgotten Desires (Whitlock Family, #4)
author: Corinne Michaels
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.26
book published: 2024
rating: 2
read at: 2025/01/08
date added: 2025/01/13
shelves:
review:
This whole series was dumb, but I’m not a quitter.
]]> <![CDATA[The Girl from Greenwich Street]]> 214210952 Based on the true story of a famous trial, this novel is Law and 1800, as Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr investigate the shocking murder of a young woman who everyone—and no one—seemed to know.

At the start of a new century, a shocking murder transfixes Manhattan, forcing bitter rivals Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr to work together to save a man from the gallows.Ěý

Just before Christmas 1799, Elma Sands slips out of her Quaker cousin’s boarding house—and doesn’t come home.ĚýHas she eloped?ĚýRun away? No one knows—until her body appears in the Manhattan Well.

Her family insists they know who killed her.ĚýHandbills circulate around the city accusing a carpenter named Levi Weeks of seducing and murdering Elma.Ěý

But privately, quietly, Levi’s wealthy brother calls in a special favor�.

Aaron Burr’s legal practice can’t finance both his expensive tastes and his ambition to win the 1800 New York elections.ĚýTo defend Levi Weeks is a double a hefty fee plus a chance to grab headlines.

Alexander Hamilton has his own political aspirations; he isn’t going to let Burr monopolize the public’s attention. If Burr is defending Levi Weeks, then Hamilton will too. As the trial and the election draw near, Burr and Hamilton race against time to save a man’s life—and destroy each other.

Part murder mystery, part thriller, part true crime, The Girl From Greenwich Street revisits a dark corner of history—with a surprising twist ending that reveals the true story of the woman at the center of the tale.]]> 341 Lauren Willig 0063306115 Amanda 0 to-read 3.74 2025 The Girl from Greenwich Street
author: Lauren Willig
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.74
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Cartoonists Club 215198021 #1 New York Times bestselling cartoonists Raina Telgemeier and Scott McCloud team up for a one-of-a-kind friendship story about creativity and self-expression that blends how-to and comics magic. Welcome to the club!

Makayla is bursting with ideas but doesn't know how to make them into a story. Howard loves to draw, but he struggles to come up with ideas and his dad thinks comics are a waste of time. Lynda constantly draws in her sketchbook but keeps focusing on what she feels are mistakes, and Art simply loves being creative and is excited to try something new. They come together to form The Cartoonists Club, where kids can learn about making comics and use their creativity and imagination for their own storytelling adventures!]]> 280 Raina Telgemeier 1338777211 Amanda 0 to-read 4.23 2025 The Cartoonists Club
author: Raina Telgemeier
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.23
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Harder I Fight the More I Love You: A Memoir]]> 214175247 An unforgettable portrait of an extraordinary life—one forged through a poverty-stricken childhood in “slummy, one-horse townsâ€�; obsessive desire; bursts of comedy; and indispensable friendships, reflecting on the way art, music, and a deep connection to nature helped her on a singular journeyĚýto become a beloved, Grammy-nominated artist.

Neko Case has long been revered as one of music’s most influential artists, whose authenticity, lyrical storytelling, and sly wit have endeared her to a legion of critics, musicians, and lifelong fans.ĚýInĚýThe Harder I Fight, the More I Love You,ĚýCaseĚýbrings her trademarkĚýcandor andĚýprecisionĚýto a memoir that traces her evolution from an invisibleĚýgirl “raised by two dogs and a space heaterâ€� in rural Washington state toĚýher improbable emergence as an internationally-acclaimed talent. In luminous, sharp-edged prose, CaseĚýshows readers what it’s like to be left alone for hours and hours as a child, to take refuge in the woods around her home, and to channel theĚýmonotony and loneliness and joy that comes from music, camaraderie, and shared experience into art.

The Harder I Fight, the More I Love YouĚýis a rebellious meditation on identity and corruption, and a manifesto on how to make space for ourselves in this world, despite the obstacles we face.


Ěý±Ő±Ő> 288 Neko Case 1538710501 Amanda 0 to-read 4.09 2025 The Harder I Fight the More I Love You: A Memoir
author: Neko Case
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.09
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Death on the Island 216594940 Trapped on a remote island by a howling storm, nine people sit down to dinner.

One of them is about to die.

A group of international players has gathered in a tiny village off the coast of Iceland for a diplomatic dinner. There's Kristján, the mayor reeling from a personal tragedy. Graeme, the ambassador with an agenda to push. Jane, his wife, along for the ride on another one of her husband's many business trips. And several others, from Iceland and from abroad, each with their own reason for being there, their own loyalties and grievances. By the end of the night, one of them will be dead. And it will be up to the ambassador's wife, Jane, to figure out how—and why.

What Jane soon comes to realize is that small communities can be the most dangerous of them all� and no one in their group is safe. With secrets around every corner and violent weather trapping the finite list of suspects together on the island, this locked-room mystery by internationally bestselling author Eliza Reid brings Agatha Christie and Nordic noir together in a brand-new twist.]]> 336 Eliza Reid 1728292417 Amanda 0 to-read 3.42 2025 Death on the Island
author: Eliza Reid
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.42
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Tell Me What You Did 209823382
Poe Webb, host of a popular true crime podcast, invites people to anonymously confess crimes they've committed to her audience. She can't guarantee the police won't come after her "guests," but her show grants simultaneous anonymity and instant fame—a potent combination that's proven difficult to resist. After an episode recording, Poe usually erases both criminal and crime from her mind.

But when a strange and oddly familiar man appears on her show, Poe is forced to take a second look. Not only because he claims to be her mother's murderer from years ago, but because Poe knows something no one else does. Her mother's murderer is dead.

Poe killed him.

From the USA Today bestselling author of The Dead Girl in 2A and The New Neighbor comes a chilling new thriller that forces the question: are murderers always the bad guys?]]> 420 Carter Wilson 1464226229 Amanda 0 to-read 3.79 2025 Tell Me What You Did
author: Carter Wilson
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.79
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Lake Escape 217387729 The next riveting summer suspense by the author of THE BLOCK PARTY and ONE BIG HAPPY FAMILY, Jamie Day.

They've been coming to Lake Timmeny in Vermont since they were babies. Now, Julia Crawford, David Dunne, and Erika Miller are returning for their annual summer getaway, a family tradition they've continued into adulthood. But for all its beauty, Lake Timmeny harbors a dark past. Two young women with no known connection to each other, aside from their shared vacation spot, vanished without a trace exactly thirty years apart.

Lacking evidence, the vanishings gave rise to a foreboding lore that the lakes take them, a legend that continues to this day. But it's not only the lake that's hiding something. All three friends harbor secrets and deceptions that lurk just beneath the surface.

But, when David's new girlfriend mysteriously vanishes after a night of drinking and tension, the lore of the lake resurfaces. As the group searches for the missing woman, long-buried secrets emerge, and an intricate web of lies, deceit, and betrayals stemming back generations is gradually revealed, putting all of them in grave danger. Can the friends keep their heads above water, or will they, too, succumb to the lake's dark history?]]> 368 Jamie Day 1250358191 Amanda 0 to-read 3.69 2025 The Lake Escape
author: Jamie Day
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.69
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> I'll Tell You Everything 213004625 When her estranged daughter asks to hear the one story she doesn’t want to tell, a woman spins lie after lie to protect her perfect life in this gripping novel.

Amy Linden has a loving husband, an adorable son, and a glamorous career as the hotelier of a grand mountain lodge. Then Ramona Crawford, the daughter she gave up for adoption twenty years earlier, pays her a surprise visit. Ramona wants to know the identity of her biological father—and Amy completely understands. There’s just one the truth would destroy Amy’s carefully curated life.

Amy shares a sad tale about a teenage romance with a boy named Freddy and the painful decision to give Ramona a better future than they could provide. At first, the pieces fit together and give Ramona both closure and a chance to get to know her odd but charming mother. But then Ramona gets a different story from Freddy, and Amy’s memories seem to change…and change again.

Will Amy ever reveal the full story of that fateful summer at the lodge? And if so, can Ramona live with the truth?]]> 265 Rebecca Kelley 1662517963 Amanda 0 to-read 3.44 I'll Tell You Everything
author: Rebecca Kelley
name: Amanda
average rating: 3.44
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> More or Less Maddy 214151333 A breathless, riveting novel about a young woman diagnosed with bipolar disorder who rejects the stability and approval found in a traditionally “normal� life for a career in stand-up comedy.

Maddy Banks is just like any other stressed-out freshman at NYU. Between schoolwork, exams, navigating life in the city, and a recent breakup, it’s normal to be feeling overwhelmed. It doesn’t help that she’s always felt like the odd one out in her picture-perfect Connecticut family. But Maddy’s latest low is devastatingly low, and she goes on an antidepressant. She begins to feel good, dazzling in fact, and she soon spirals high into a wild and terrifying mania that culminates in a diagnosis of bipolar disorder.

As she struggles to find her way in this new reality, navigating the complex effects bipolar has on her identity, her relationships, and her life dreams, Maddy will have to figure out how to manage being both too much and not enough.

With her signature “deep empathy and insight� (Booklist), Harvard-trained neuroscientist and New York Times bestselling author Lisa Genova has crafted another profoundly moving novel that makes complicated mental health issues accessible and human. More or Less Maddy is destined to become another classic like Still Alice.]]> 368 Lisa Genova 1668026163 Amanda 0 to-read 4.22 2025 More or Less Maddy
author: Lisa Genova
name: Amanda
average rating: 4.22
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]>