"I saw a brand-new copy of this book reduced to $9. I checked it out on Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ on my iphone and saw that it had an aggregated score of almost 4. So I grabbed a copy. I've paid a lot more for books that have been completely underwhelming. Tom Reiss's narrative of General Dumas's life is very well written and doesn't miss a beat. It's an excellent example of biographical writing. My only quibble as a non-American reader is his use of the word 'gotten' every now and then."

"Having never read anything by Wallace Stegner, I was not sure what to expect of this novel. It is his Pulitzer-winning novel, and I learned that Stegner was an exquisite writer. His descriptions of places where his grandparents lived are so detailed that I'm not sure a photograph could better show these places. Stegner is known as a "western writer," and that is evident from his description of western lands and the lives of its occupants.

Retired historian Lyman Ward is writing his grandparents stories, and in the end it seems his research into his grandparents shows that their lives---particularly their own relationship---mirrors his life with his former spouse.

After this book, I will be reading more of Stegner"

Iona Stewart is on page 224 of 323 of A Most Wanted Man