Search Results for: story of d-day

D-Day: Books for Children and Young Adults

D-Day: The Invasion of Normandy, 1944 by Rick Atkinson.
The Story of D-Day: June 6, 1944 by Bruce Bliven, Jr. (Landmark Book #62)

Mr. Atkinson’s story of the events of D-Day was “adapted for young readers from the #1 New York Timesâ€“bestselling The Guns at Last Light, D-Day.” Guns at Last Light is the third in a trilogy of books by Mr. Atkinson called the Liberation Trilogy. The three books in the trilogy chronicle the history of the liberation of North Africa, Italy, and Western Europe, respectively. This children’s version of a portion of the third book was published in 2014 by Henry Holt and Company. Rick Atkinson won Pulitzer prizes in both journalism and history, so he would seem to be well-qualified to write on the subject.

I found the book somewhat appealing, especially the photographs, but it was heavy on the details and statistics. I got lost in some sections of the book because of my lack of military expertise in general and my lack of knowledge about World War II and D-Day in particular. The book felt like what it was: a compilation/abridgement of details from a narrative that probably flowed much better and was more understandable in the original, adult version. Young readers (and I along with them) would need both more explanation and less detail in a narrative written just for them.

Mr. Bliven’s Story of D-Day is a part of the classic Landmark series of books on U.S. and World History. Bliven tells the story of D-Day as a story. He fills in background about the war, the troops, and their weapons as the narrative progresses, and the tension and force of the story are preserved in a way that includes plenty of statistics and details, but doesn’t become entangled in them.

Mr. Bliven’s narrative flow is just better than that of the newer book by Mr. Atkinson, probably because Mr. Bliven wrote his book as a whole book for young adults while Mr. Atkinson’s book is an abridgment of a longer work for adults. Also, Mr. Blivens had the advantage over Mr. Atkinson; Bliven was a part of the Allied force that landed in Normandy on D-Day.

“Mr. Bliven wrote briefly for a newspaper in Stroudsburg, Pa., and for The Manchester Guardian, the British paper, before graduating from Harvard in 1937. He then wrote editorials for The New York Post, leaving to serve in World War II.
‘I was a lieutenant in the field artillery and took part in the D-Day landings in Normandy and wrote a children’s book about it a dozen years later to find out what happened,’ he said. That book was ‘The Story of D-Day, June 6, 1944’ (Random House, 1956). ~From a NY Times obituary article about Bruce Bliven, January 14, 2002.“

Even though, as Blivens makes clear in his book, most of the men who were in the first wave of soldiers on the Normandy coast on D-Day had no idea about what was going on in the overall invasion, or even what the plan was for the entire operation, Bliven was able to reconstruct the story of D-Day and make it clear for young readers and for adults like me who need lots of “hand-holding’ background and explanation embedded in an absorbing narrative story.

I highly recommend the 1956 The Story of D-Day, or possibly (I haven’t read it) the updated version of Bliven’s classic account, Invasion: the Story of D-Day, which was published by Sterling Publishers in 2007.

World War II Novels and Nonfiction

Sep1

On September 1, 1939, Hitler invaded Poland, and World War II began. So I’ve gathered up for you and for me a list of as many of the reviews of novels and nonfiction set during World War II that I could find while looking through the back posts of the Saturday Review of Books.

Adult Novels:
The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah.
A Town Like Alice by Nevil Shute.
The Auschwitz Violin by Maria Angels Anglada. Reviewed at Bart’s Bookshelf.
War on the Margins by Libby Cone. Reviewed at Amy Reads.
The Gathering Storm by Bodie and Brock Thoene. Reviewed by Beth at Weavings.
Against the Wind by Brock and Bodie Thoene. Reviewed by Beth at Weavings.
A Thread of Grace by Mary Doria Russell.
The Madonnas of Leningrad by Debra Dean. Reviewed by Mindy Withrow.
My Enemyâ€™s Cradle by Sara Young.
Sarahâ€™s Key by Tatiana De Rosnay. Reviewed at Small World Reads.
Snow Falling on Cedars by David Guterson.
The Swiss Courier by Tricia Goyer and Mike Yorkey. Reviewed by Beth at Weavings. Reviewed at 5 Minutes for Books.
The Snow Goose by Paul Gallico.
Blackout and All Clear by Connie Willis.
The Postmistress by Sarah Blake. Reviewed at Small World Reads. Reviewed at Diary of an Eccentric. Reviewed at The Common Room. Set in New England and in London.
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows. Reviewed by Janet at Across the Page. Set on Guernsey Island.
While We Still Live by Helen MacInnes. Sheila Matthews, a young Englishwoman is visiting in Warsaw when the Nazis invade. She stays and joins the Polish underground to fight against the German occupation.
The Kommandant’s Girl by Pam Jenoff. Reviewed at Lucybird’s Book Blog.
The Winds of War by Herman Wouk.
Atonement by Ian McEwen.
Winter in Madrid by C.J. Sansom.
My Enemy’s Cradle by Sara Young.

Young Adult and Middle Grade Fiction:
Eyes of the Emperor by Graham Salibury.
Code Talker by Joseph Bruchac.
The Devil’s Arithmetic by Jane Yolen.
Meet Molly by Valerie Tripp. Reviewed at Diary of an Eccentric.
Twenty and Ten by Claire Huchet Bishop. Reviewed by Nicola at Back to Books. Set in France.
Someone Named Eva by Joan M. Wolf.
Don’t Talk To Me About the War by David A. Adler.
On Rough Seas by Nancy L. Hull. Young adult fiction. Fourteen year old Alex lives in Dover, England in 1939, and he is eventually a hero as he participates in the rescue of the British soldiers at Dunkirk.
Snow Treasure by Marie McSwigan. Reviewed by Nicola at Back to Books. Set in Norway.
Blue by Joyce Meyer Hostetter.
Yellow Star by Jennifer Roy.
Jimmyâ€™s Stars by Mary Ann Rodman
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak.
The Devilâ€™s Arithmetic by Jane Yolen.
Weedflower by Cynthia Kadohata
The Fences Between Us: The Diary of Piper Davis by Kirby Larson.
Flygirl by Sherri L. Smith.
Tamar by Mal Peet.
Tropical Secrets: Holocaust Refugees in Cuba by Margarita Engle.
Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys. Reviewed at Books and the Universe. Set in Lithuaina and Siberia. YA.
The Berlin Boxing Club by Robert Sharenow.
The Boy Who Dared: A Novel Based on the True Story of a Hitler Youth by Susan Campbell Bartoletti.
For Freedom: The Story of a French Spy by Kimberley Brubaker Bradley.
Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein.
Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein.
The Winged Watchman by Hilda van Stockum.
Children of the King by Sonya Hartnett.
The Winter Horses by Phillip Kerr.
The Green Glass Sea by Ellen Klages.
The Extra by Kathryn Lasky.
Up Periscope by Robb White.
My Family for the War by Anne C. Voorhoeve. Reviewed at Hope Is the Word.
Projekt 1065: A Novel of World War II by Alan Gratz.

Nonfiction:
A Boy’s War by David Michell.
The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom.
Anne Frank: The Book, the Life and the Afterlife by Francine Prose. Reviewed by Girl Detective.
Night by Elie Wiesel.
The Zookeeperâ€™s Wife by Diane Ackerman
Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand. Reviewed at Library Hospital. Reviewed by Alice at Supratentorial.
Lost in Shangri-La: The True Story of Survival, Adventure, and the Most Incredible Rescue Mission of World War II by Mitchell Zuckoff. Reviewed at Sarah Reads Too Much.
South to Bataan, North to Mukden by W. E. Brougher. Reviewed by Hope at Worthwhile Books. More about the same book.
Winstonâ€™s War: Churchill, 1940-1945 by Max Hastings.
The Mascot: Unraveling the Mystery of My Jewish Fatherâ€™s Nazi Boyhood by Mark Kurzem.
We Die Alone: A WWII Epic of Escape and Endurance by David Howarth. Reviewed by The Ink Slinger.
W.F. Matthews: Lost Battalion Survivor by Travis Monday
High Flight: A Story of World War II by Linda Granfield. Illustrated by Michael Martchenko. A children’s biography reviewed by Nicola at Back to Books.
Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Prophet, Martyr, Spy by Eric Metaxis. Reviewed at 5 Minutes for Books.
The Port Chicago 50 by Steve Sheinkin.
Home Front Girl by Joan Wehlen Morrison.
The Boy on the Wooden Box: How the impossible became possible . . . on Schindlerâ€™s list by Leon Leyson with Marilyn J. Harran and Elisabeth Leyson.
Helgaâ€™s Diary: A Young Girlâ€™s Account of Life in a Concentration Camp by Helga Weiss, translated by Neil Bermel.
D-Day: The Invasion of Normandy, 1944 by Rick Atkinson.
The Story of D-Day: June 6, 1944 by Bruce Bliven, Jr. (Landmark Book #62)
Mission at Nuremburg: An American Army Chaplain and the Trial of the Nazis by Tim Townsend.
Churchill and Orwell: The Fight for Freedom by Thomas E. Ricks.
Last Hope Island: Britain, Occupied Europe, and the Brotherhood That Helped Turn the Tide of War by Lynne Olson.
Irena’s Children: The Extraordinary Story of the Woman Who Saved 2,500 Children from the Warsaw Ghetto by Tilar Mazzeo.
For the Glory: Eric Liddell’s Journey from Olympic Champion to Modern Martyr by Duncan Hamilton.

More World War II reads and reviews at War Through the Generations.

What is your favorite World War II-related novel or work of nonfiction?

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Nonfiction November and Me

Nov7

OK, so Nonfiction November is a celebration of nonfiction during the month of November. Unfortunately, I’m busy during November reading pretty much the opposite of adult nonfiction: speculative fiction for middle grade readers. Well, not unfortunately, because I’m excited to be a judge for the Cybils, but unfortunately as far as nonfiction goes. I will be celebrating nonfiction with a post or two, and I really enjoyed adding more nonfiction to my totally unmanageable TBR list by visiting everyone else who is participating. However, I won’t be actually reading much nonfiction until January.

Anyway, the writing prompt for this week is:

Your Year in Nonfiction: Take a look back at your year of nonfiction and reflect on the following questions â€“ What was your favorite nonfiction read of the year? What nonfiction book have you recommended the most? What is one topic or type of nonfiction you havenâ€™t read enough of yet? What are you hoping to get out of participating in Nonfiction November?

According to my list at Goodreads, I have read 169 books in 2014. Of those the following 16 have been nonfiction:

Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus: A Devout Muslim Encounters Christianity by Nabeel Qureshi.
Wild Things! Acts of Mischief in Children’s Literature by Betsy Bird, Julie Danielson, and Peter Sieruta.
Everybody Paints! The Lives and Art of the Wyeth Family by Susan Goldman Rubin.
The Story of D-Day by Bruce Bliven, Jr.
Against All Odds by Jim Stier.
The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America by Erik Larson.
D-Day: The Invasion of Normandy, 1944 by Rick Atkinson.
Horrors of History: Ocean of Fire: The Burning of Columbia, 1865 by T. Neill Anderson.
Blue Marble by Don Nardo.
The Port Chicago 50: Disaster, Mutiny, and the Fight for Civil Rights by Steve Sheinkin.
The Book Whisperer: Awakening the Inner Reader in Every Child by Donalyn Miller.
The Monuments Men: Allied Heroes, Nazi Thieves, and the Greatest Treasure Hunt in History by Robert M. Edsel.
The Last Lion 2: Winston Spencer Churchill Alone, 1932-40 by William R. Manchester.
House Dreams by Hugh Howard.
The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics by Daniel James Brown.
Agent Zigzag: A True Story of Nazi Espionage, Love, and Betrayal by Ben MacIntyre.

By that listing, I’m reading about 10% nonfiction. My favorite book by far of those sixteen was the biographical book about Churchill, The Last Lion 2: Winston Spencer Churchill Alone, 1932-40 by William R. Manchester. There are a few historical people who fascinate me: Winston Churchill, Teddy Roosevelt, the apostle Paul, Corrie Ten Boom, Adoniram Judson, Charles Dickens, C.S. Lewis, G.K. Chesterton, Anne Morrow Lindbergh. Not all of these people are my heroes, but they are people who lived fascinating and colorful lives. I would love to read more about any of them.

My TBR list at Goodreads has over 200 nonfiction titles on it. (I told you it was unmanageable.) I’m seriously considering reading only nonfiction in 2015, or only nonfiction during the first six months of 2015. Why should I or why should I not try this experiment? I wonder what it would mean for my reading life to read only nonfiction. What is the best nonfiction book you can recommend?

Century of Books Project

I read about A Century of Books here at the blog Stuck in a Book (and here is Stuck in a Book’s 2012 Century of Books completed project). The idea is to read one book from each year of a century, whatever century you choose, to total 100 books. Simon at Stuck in a Book chose the century from 1914-2013.

I’m going to choose the century from 1851-1950. And for the purposes of my project, books can either be set in the particular year indicated or published in that year.

Project beginning date: January, 2014.

1851: The King of the Golden River or The Black Brothers: A Legend of Stiria by John Ruskin. I have a copy of this children’s classic, published in 1851.
1852: READ: Bleak House by Charles Dickens. Published 1852-1853 in installments. READ: The Blithedale Romance by Nathaniel Hawthorne.

1853: READ: Ruth by Mrs.(Elizabeth) Gaskell. Published in 1853.
1854: The Lamplighter by Maria Susanna Cummins. Hard Times by Charles Dickens. Published in 1854.
1855: The Warden by Anthony Trollope. Published in 1855.
1856: John Halifax, Gentleman by Dinah Maria Mulock Craik. Published in 1856. READ: Granny’s Wonderful Chair by Frances Browne. Published in 1856.
1857: Little Dorrit by Charles Dickens. Published in book form in 1857.
1858: Mrs. Robinson’s Disgrace: The Private Diary of a Victorian Lady by Kate Summerscale. Setting, 1858. Doctor Thorne by Anthony Trollope. Published in 1858. The Courtship of Miles Standish by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Published in 1858.
1859: Family Happiness by Leo Tolstoy. Published in 1859.
1860: The Professor at the Breakfast Table by Oliver Wendell Holmes. Published in 1860.

1861: READ March by Geraldine Brooks. Setting, 1861, published in 2006. Pulitzer Prize for Fiction (2006). Book of Nonsense by Edward Lear.
1862: Goblin Market and Other Poems by Christina Rossetti. Published in 1862. Fathers and Sons by Ivan Turgenev. Published in 1862.
1863: Tales of a Wayside Inn by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.
1864: Choke Creek by Lauren Small. Setting, 1864, published in 2009. Notes from Underground by Fyodor Dostoyevsky. Published in 1864.
1865: The March by E.L. Doctorow. Setting, 1864-65, published in 2005. Hans Brinker, or The Silver Skates by mary Makes Dodge. Published in 1865.
1866: Miss Marjoribanks (The Chronicles of Carlingford #5) by Margaret Oliphant. Jessica’s First Prayer by Hesba Stretton. Published in 1866.
1867: The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County (short story collection) by Mark Twain. Published in 1867.
1868: The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins. Published in 1868.
1869: Lorna Doone by R.D. Blackmore. Published in 1869.
1870: The Last Dickens by Matthew Pearl. Setting 1867-1870, published in 2009. The Story of a Bad Boy by Thomas Bailey Aldrich. Published in 1870.

1871: At the Back of the North Wind by George Macdonald. Published in 1871.
1872:
1873: A Flat Iron for a Farthing by Juliana Horatia Ewing. Published in 1873.
1874: The Mysterious Island by Jules Verne. Christie’s Old Organ by Mrs. O.F. Walton. Published in 1874: Christie’s Old Organ by Mrs.O.F. Walton
1875: The Way We Live Now by Anthony Trollope. READ: The Wise Woman, or The Lost Princess by George MacDonald. Published in 1875.
1876: READ: Rose in Bloom by Louisa May Alcott. Published in 1876.
1877: Under the Lilacs by Louisa May Alcott. Published in 1877.
1878: Daisy Miller by Henry James. Published in 1878.
1879: A Lady’s Life in the Rocky Mountains by Isabella Bird. Sir Gibbie by George MacDonald. Published in 1879.
1880: Aunt Charlotte’s Evenings at Home With the Poets. A collection of poems for the Young, with conversations, arranged in twenty five evenings, etc. by Charlotte Mary Yonge. Published in 1880. READ: Heidi by Johanna Spyri. Published in English in 1880.

1881: Silver Canyon by Louis L’Amour. Set in Utah Territory, 1881, published in 1957. Uncle Remus stories by Joel Chandler Harris. Published in 1881.
1882: Boy Knight (Winning His Spurs) by G.A. Henty. Published in 1882.
1883: The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood of Great Renown in Nottinghamshire by Howard Pyle. Published in 1883: Flatland by Edwin Abbot. Ramona by Helen Hunt Jackson. Published in 1885.
1884: With Fire and Sword by Henryk Sienkiewicz.
1885: READ: The Ox-bow Incident by Walter Van Tilberg Clark. Setting 1885, published in 1940. “The Lady or the Tiger?” (short story) by Frank R. Stockton.
1886: Idle Thoughts of an Idle Fellow by Jerome K. Jerome. Published in 1886.
1887: The Brownies, Their Book by Palmer Cox. Published in 1887.
1888: The Man Who Would Be King by Rudyard Kipling. Published in 1888.
1889: The Master of Ballantrae: A Winter’s Tale by Robert Louis Stevenson.
1890: Larkrise to Candleford by Flora Thompson. Set in the last decade of the nineteenth century, published in 1945. The Red Fairy Book by Andrew Lang. Published in 1890.

1891: The White Company by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
1892: Across the Plains by Robert Louis Stevenson. Published in 1892.
1893: Beric the Briton: A Story of the Roman Invasion by G.A. Henty. Beautiful Joe by Margaret Saunders. Published in 1893.
1894: Seven Little Australians by Ethel Turner. Published in 1894.
1895: Wulf The Saxon: A Story of the Norman Conquest by G.A. Henty. The Amateur Immigrant by Robert Louis Stevenson. Published in 1895.
1896: The Love Affairs of a Bibliomaniac by Eugene Field. Published in 1896.
1897: Travels in West Africa by Mary Henrietta Kingsley. Published in 1897.
1898: Elizabeth and Her German Garden by Elizabeth von Arnim. Published in 1898.
1899: Parables of the Christ-Life by Lilias Trotter. Published in 1899.
1900: Goops, and How To Be Them by Gelett Burgess. Published in 1900. Beautiful Dreamer by Joan Naper. Set in Chicago, 1900, published in 2010. Reviewed by Sarah Johnson at Reading the Past.

1901: The Octopus: A Story of California by Frank Norris.
1902: The Wings of the Dove by Henry James. Published in 1902.
1903: Robert Browning by G.K. Chesterton
1904: By What Authority? by Robert Hugh Benson. Published in 1904.
Dandelion Cottage by Carroll Watson Rankin. Published in 1904.
1905: The Club of Queer Trades by G.K. Chesterton. Published in 1905.
1906: Puck of Pook’s Hill by Rudyard Kipling. Published in 1906. The Railway Children by E. Nesbit
1907: Songs of a Sourdough by Robert W. Service. Published in 1907.
1908: The Autobiography of a Super-Tramp by W.H. Davies. Published in 1908. The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame.
1909: Gunnar’s Daughter by Sigrid Undset. The Children’s Own Longfellow, Poems by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Published in 1909.
1910: When a Man Marries by Mary Roberts Rinehart. Published in 1910.

1911: Flambards by K.M. Peyton. Set during the period 1910-1918, published in 1967. The Innocence of Father Brown by G.K. Chesterton. The Ballad of the White Horse by G.K. Chesterton. Published in 1911.
1912: The Four Men: A Farrago by Hilaire Belloc. Published in 1912.
1913: Trent’s Last Case by E.C. Bentley. Published in 1913.
Laddie by Gene Stratton-Porter. Published in 1913.
1914: The Three Sisters by May Sinclair. Published in 1914.
1915: The Star of Gettysburg by Joseph Altsheler. The Lost Prince by Frances Hodgson Burnett. Published in 1915.
READ: The Beekeeper’s Apprentice by Laurie R. King. Setting 1915, published in 2007.
1916: Uneasy Money by P.G. Wodehouse. Published in the U.S. in 1916. READ: Understood Betsy by Dorothy Canfield Fisher.

1917: The Haunted Bookshop by Christopher Morley. Published in 1917.
1918: READ: Risked (The Missing: Book 6) by Margaret Peterson Haddix. Setting 1918, published in 2013. (no review at Semicolon)
1919: Out of Africa by Isak Dinesen, Karen Blixen. Setting 1914-1931, published in 1937.
1920: The Great Impersonation by E. Phillips Oppenheim. Published in 1920.

1921: Penny Plain by Anna Buchan. Published in 1921.
1922: READ: Enchanted April by Elizabeth von Arnim Published in 1922.
1923: My Garden of Memory: An Autobiography by Kate Douglas Wiggin. Published in 1923.
1924: The Dream Coach by Anne Parrish. Published in 1924. Newbery Honor Book in 1925.
Theras and His Town by Caroline Snedeker. Published in 1924.
1925: READ: The Painted Veil by W. Somerset Maugham. Published in 1925.
1926: Smoky the Cowhorse by Will James. Newbery Medal in 1927, published in 1926.
1927: The Midnight Folk by John Masefield. Published in 1927.
READ: One Summer: America, 1927 by Bill Bryson. Published in 2013.
1928: The Footsteps at the Lock by Ronald A. Knox. Published in 1928.
The Bishop’s Wife by Robert Nathan. Published in 1928.
1929:
1930: Meggy Macintosh by Elizabeth Janet Gray. Published in 1930. Newbery Honor Book in 1931.
READ: Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome. Published in 1930.

1931: Endurance by Frank Arthur Worsley. Setting, 1914-1916, published in 1931. Waterless Mountain by Laura Armer. !932 Newbery Medalist, published in 1931.
1932: Cold Comfort Farm by StellaGibbons. Published in 1932.
1933: The House of Exile by Nora Waln. Published in 1933.
1934: READ: Miss Buncle’s Book by D.E. Stevenson. (no review at Semicolon) Dobry by Monica Shannon. 1935 Newbery Medalist, published in 1934.
1935: READ: The Last Lion: Winston Spencer Churchill, Alone 1932-1940 by William Manchester. Published in 1988.
1936: READ:The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics by Daniel James Brown. Setting, 1936, published in 2013.
1937: Diary of a Country Priest by Georges Bernanos. READ: The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien. Published in 1937.
1938: Death in a White Tie by Ngaio Marsh. Excellent Intentions by Richard Hull. Published in 1938.
1939: Mrs. Miniver by Jan Struther. The Priory by Dorothy Whipple. Published in 1939.
1940: Growing Pains: Diaries And Drawings From The Years 1908-17 by Wanda Gag. My Name Is Aram by William Saroyan. Published in 1940.

1941: Agent Zigzag: A True Story of Nazi Espionage, Love, and Betrayal by Ben MacIntyre. Setting, 1941-1945, published in 2007.
Mrs. Tim Carries On (Leaves from the Diary of an Officer’s Wife in the Year 1940) by D. E. (Dorothy Emily) Stevenson. Setting, 1940, published in 1941.
1942: READ: Pied Piper by Nevil Shute. Setting, 1940, published in 1942.
Tragedy at Law (Francis Pettigrew #1) by Cyril Hare. Published in 1942.
1943: READ: The Abolition of Man by C.S. Lewis.
1944: Double Cross: The True Story of the D-Day Spies by Ben Macintyre. Setting, 1944, published in 2012.
Fair Stood the Wind for France by H.E. Bates. Published in 1944.
1945: Captain from Castile by Samuel Shellabarger. Published in 1945.
Mr. Wilmer by Robert Lawson. Published in 1945.
1946: The Moving Toyshop (Gervase Fen #3) by Edmund Crispin. Setting, 1938, published in 1946.
The Little White Horse by Elizabeth Goudge. Published in 1946, winner of the Carnegie Medal. The Four Graces by D.E. Stevenson. Published in 1946.

1947: READ: The Chequer Board by Nevill Shute. Published in 1947.
1948: READ:The Lark in the Morn (The Haverard Family #1) by Elfrida Vipont. Published in 1948.
1949: Tree of Freedom by Rebecca Caudill. Published in 1949. Newbery Honor Book in 1950.
1950: READ: The Grand Sophy by Georgette Heyer. Published in 1950.
Out of the Easy by Ruta Sepetys. Set in 1950 New Orleans, published in 2013.

55 TV Series Worth Checking Out

Feb21

Maybe you don’t want to watch every episode of all of these. I certainly haven’t. But they are all worth an hour or a half hour of your time to check them out. You might end up laughing, or crying, your way through the entire series.

Agatha Christie’s Poirot. I love Dame Agatha’s novels and stories, and I love David Suchet as Poirot.

Alfred Hitchcock Presents. If you like The Twilight Zone or if you’ve been captivated by Rear Window or Vertigo, you’ll also enjoy Hitchcock’s TV series. Spooky and riveting.

Alias Smith and Jones. A Western comedy/drama about a couple of outlaws who want to earn their pardon by going straight. Unfortunately, the odds are not in their favor. I used to love this show when I was a young teenager.

The Andy Griffith Show. Andy Griffith stars as Sheriff Andy Taylor, and Don Knots plays his hapless deputy, Barney Fife. Good clean fun in Mayberry, North Carolina.

Anne of Green Gables. Megan Follows and Colleen Dewhurst and especially Richard Farnsworth as Matthew make this classic story come to life.

Band of Brothers. This Steven Spielberg-Tom Hanks production tells the true story of Easy Company (E Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division) from D-Day to the end of the war in Europe.

Baseball by Ken Burns. Mr Burns is just a good historian and filmmaker. I don’t even like basebal or sports in general, and yet I still found this series entertaining and educational.

Bleak House. BBC mini-series by Andrew Davies based on the novel by Charles Dickens.

Burn Notice. My most recent TV show. I watched all the way through five seasons. There are lots of explosions and shooting and general mayhem, but underneath all the fancy fireworks this spy show has heart as it depicts the relationships between old friends and between a mother and son. Nick Rynerson on the fairytale-esque moral universe of Burn Notice.

Brideshead Revisited. 1981 British TV serial based on Evelyn Waugh’s novel. This mini-series is much better than the 2008 movie in my opinion.

Cadfael. A medieval detective, monk, herbalist, and gardener played by Derek Jacobi. I like almost anything Mr. Jacobi plays in.

Christy. The book is better, but actress Kellie Martin made a beautiful Christy, and Tyne Daly was convincing as Miss Alice. Based on the book by Catherine Marshall.

The Civil War by Ken Burns. Absolutely mesmerizing documentary history of America’s defining war.

The Cosby Show. Bill Cosby is so funny, and the supporting cast of this justly popular comedy was the perfect TV family.

Cranford. Based on Mrs. Gaskell’s series of stories about the spinsters who live in the small town of Cranford, this series stars Dame Judy Dench and Eileen Atkins as the Smith sisters.

The Dick Van Dyke Show. Another funny guy, and another great TV family. My urchins have enjoyed this show a lot.

Doc Martin A British surgeon with impaired social skills develops a fear of blood and becomes a family practice doctor in a small town.

Downton Abbey. The first season of this British period drama began in 1912 with the sinking of the Titanic and ended with the outbreak of World War I, and it was a great ride. I laughed, I cried. The second season, which takes places during World War I, was just as good, if not better. I’m really ~~looking forward to~~ enjoying the third season this year. (Addendum 2/18/2013: The last episode of the third season was too, too much.)

Friday Night Lights. Here’s my final opinion about this series. Overall, I thought it was well worth the time.

Gillgan’s Island. Sitcom about “a fateful trip” in which five passengers, the first mate and the skipper of small boat are marooned on a desert island, featuring Bob Denver as Gilligan. Here’s the theme song intro that gives the basic premise.

Green Acres. A parody of a parody of a parody of country life, Green Acres is the place to be. Not to be taken seriously ever.

Hogan’s Heroes. A sitcom set in a Nazi prisoner of war camp? It sounds a little non-PC nowadays, but back in the late 60’s it was ridiculously farcical. American Colonel Hogan would routinely manipulate the incompetent Commander Klink and get Sergeant Schultz to look the other way while Hogan’s men conducted secret spy and underground missions. The signature line is from Sergeant Schultz, one of the camp guards who ignores the hijinks going on the prisoners’ barracks: “I see nothink. I hear nothink. I know nothink.”

How It’s Made. A documentary showing how common, everyday items are manufactured. Z-baby enjoys this show.

I, Claudius. 1976 British mini-series based on the novel by Robert Graves, starring Derek Jacobi as Claudius the accidental and seemingly mad emperor of Rome.

I Love Lucy. Classic television. Classic comedy.

The Jack Benny Show. Also classic. My grandmother and I used to watch Jack Benny together on Friday nights when I spent the night at her house. Good memories.

Jane Eyre. Based on the book by Charlotte Bronte, this 1983 BBC production starred Timothy Dalton as Mr. Rochester, and it was quite well done and true to the book.

John Adams. Based on the biography by David McCullough.

Larkrise to Candleford. Inhabitants of small English village in the late 1800’s are seen through the eyes of the postmistress and her assistant.

Little House on the Prairie. The earliest episodes and seasons of this long-running dramatic series based on the books by Laura Ingalls Wilder are the best, but it’s mostly worth watching.

LOST. The best TV drama series ever. Start at the beginning and go until you hit the ending. Be somewhat disappointed, either that it’s over or that it ends the way it does. Love it anyway.

Magic School Bus. Science and magical fun for kids.

M*A*S*H* Vietnam-era sensibilities hilariously transported to the Korean War.

Mission Impossible. This spies and gadgets series premiered on September 17, 1966, and it went through eight seasons. “Your mission, should you decide to accept it” and “this recording will self-destruct in five seconds” quickly became popular catch-phrases, and the movies with Tom Cruise are only more enjoyable after you’ve seen some of the original.

Monk. A detective with OCD. What will they think of next?

Mork and Mindy. Robin Williams plays alien space creature Mork from the planet Ork. This silly TV show about a girl who befriends a space alien was where Robin Williams got his start in acting. “Nanoo, nanoo!”

Mythbusters. Two Hollywood special effects experts attempt to debunk urban legends by directly testing them.

North and South. Based on the novel by Mrs. Gaskell, nothing to do with the American Civil War, and featuring the same actor who plays Mr. Bates on Downton Abbey, the talented Brendan Coyle.

Numb3ers. A detective with obsessive-compulsive, amazing genius math skills.

Once Upon a Time. This is a new show (two seasons so far) from the producers of LOST, and our family enjoyed the first season very much. Itâ€™s about fairytale characters trapped in our world by an evil curse. The characters have no memory of who they really are, and itâ€™s up to Snow Whiteâ€™s and Prince Charmingâ€™s daughter, Emma, to free them from the curse.

Perry Mason. Raymond Burr is the suave, intelligent defense lawyer who almost never loses a case.

Pride and Prejudice. Starring Jennifer Ehle and Colin Firth. Yes, I too love Colin Firth’s Mr. Darcy.

Psych. A detective who claims to to have psychic abilities, but actually has hyperactive intelligence and lots of boy-charm.

Reading Rainbow. LeVar Burton and books. This kids’ series is fun for adults, too, and it features books, book, and more books! Yeah for books!

The Red Skelton Hour. If you can’t watch the whole show, watch a little Red Skelton on youtube. Such a great clown.

The Rockford Files. James Garner as Jim Rockford, an ex-con, seedy detective with lots of heart and not much money. Lots of car chases, beautiful femmes fatales, and mob violence set on/near the beach in sunny California.

Rocky and Bullwinkle and Friends It’s the only animated series on this list because it’s the only one I would care to revisit. I mean who could resist “Fractured Fairy Tales” and “Peabody’s Improbable Adventures” and “Dudley Doright”, not mention the stars of the show, Bullwinkle Moose and Rocky the Flying Squirrel? Intelligent and hilarious cartoons.

Roots. Alex Haley researched his ancestry and what he couldn’t find out, he made up (and probably plagiarized.) It’s still good TV/historical fiction.

Route 66. Martin Milner and George Maharis drive their Corvette down Route 66, looking for adventure.

The Six Wives of Henry VIII. This series of six episodes about the infamous Henry and his serial wives was one of my favorites when I was a young, impressionable girl. I learned a lot about British history, and I learned never to marry a king.

Star Trek. The original series created by Gene Roddenberry with Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) and Mr. Spock (Leonard Nimoy) and all the other iconic characters. Free full-length Star Trek episodes at CBS.com. Also available for free with Amazon Prime.

The Twilight Zone. These episodes of quiet nightmare and horror are mostly memorable and iconic.

The Waltons. A 1970’s family drama set during the Great Depression. It features a large, country family who share the values of hard work and family support to get them through hard times. Richard Thomas stars as John-Boy Walton, narrator of the story and the oldest son of the Walton clan.

Winston Churchill: The Wilderness Years, 1929-1939. This series takes place before Churchill became Prime Minister of Britain during WW II, and it shows what made him the man he was. Actor Robert Hardy IS Winston Churchill in the realm of my imagination.

White Collar. I’m enjoying this series now. It’s about a con man and an FBI agent who become unlikely, sometimes uneasy, allies and friends.

Saturday Review of Books: November 7, 2009

Nov6

“A library is not a luxury but one of the necessities of life.”~Henry Ward Beecher

Welcome to this week’s Saturday Review of Books.

Hereâ€™s how it usually works. Find a review on your blog posted sometime this week of a book youâ€™re reading or a book youâ€™ve read. The review doesnâ€™t have to be a formal sort of thing. You can just write your thoughts on a particular book, a few ideas inspired by reading the book, your evaluation, quotations, whatever.

Now post a link here to the specific post where youâ€™ve written your book review. Donâ€™t link to your main blog page because this kind of link makes it hard to find the book review, especially when people drop in later after youâ€™ve added new content to your blog. In parentheses after your name, add the title of the book youâ€™re reviewing. This addition will help people to find the reviews theyâ€™re most interested in reading.

Thanks to everyone for participating.

1. Reading to Know (Word Pictures)
2. Reading to Know (An Old Fashioned Thanksgiving)
3. 5M4B (Children’s Book of Art)
4. 5M4B (A Separate Country)
5. 5M4B (The Palace of Strange Girls)
6. 5M4B (The Hidden Life of Deer)
7. 5M4B (The Secret of the Sacred Scarab)
8. 5M4B (Transforming for a Purpose)
9. Reading My Library (Jennifer Armstrong)
10. SmallWorld Reads (Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress)
11. Janet @ Across the Page (The Practice of the Presence of God)
12. SuziQoregon (The Ruins)
13. Across the Page (The Knowledge of the Holy)
14. Across the Page (Sarah, Plain and Tall)
15. Page Turner (Tess of the D’Urbervilles)
16. Page Turner (The Trumpet of the Swan)
17. Framed (The Chronicles of Narnia)
18. 5M4B (Delivering Hope)
19. Seth H. (Traffic: Why We Drive the Way We Do)
20. pussreboots (Read Me)
21. pussreboots (Wolf Willow)
22. pussreboots (So of the Great River)
23. pussreboots (The Blues of Flats Brown)
24. pussreboots (Enemies and Allies)
25. pussreboots (Duck in a Truck)
26. pussreboots (Monsters)
27. FleurFisher (We have Always Lived in the Castle)
28. FleurFisher (Kisses on a Postcard)
29. FleurFisher (The Rapture)
30. gautami tripathy (Elephants Can Remember)
31. gautami tripathy (Meggie’s Remains)
32. DeputyHeadmistress, Through the Tough Times
33. DeputyHeadmistress, science books
34. Alice@Supratentorial(The Man Who Loved Books Too Much)
35. ChristineMM (books on right brained learners)

36. ChristineMM (The Way of Boys)
37. Nicola (The Hunchback Assignments)
38. Nicola (Fables: Arabian Nights (and Days))
39. Nicola (Babymouse The Musical)
40. Nicola (Jason and the Golden Fleece)
41. Nicola (Babymouse (Dragonslayer)
42. Deanna/ibeeeg (Sacred Hearts)
43. Deanna/ibeeeg (Into the Wilderness)
44. ChristineMM (Libation a Bitter Alchemy)
45. Hope (Food for Life)
46. ChristineMM (Lio’s Astonishing Tales)
47. Benjie (City Signals)
48. Terry Doherty (Ivy and Bean)
49. melydia (Breaking Dawn)
50. melydia (When You are Engulfed in Flames)
51. melydia (Driving Mr. Albert)
52. S. Mehrens, Library Hospital (MHL Reading Challenge Wrap Up)
53. MFS @ Mental multivitamin (On the nightstand)
54. Florinda/The 3 R’s (Love the One You’re With)
55. Jolanthe {Blue Like Playdough}
56. Jennifer (How Oliver Olson changed the world)
57. Mindy Withrow (Last Night in Montreal)
58. WordLily (In a Perfect World)
59. WordLily (Leaving Carolina)
60. Brandon (A Short History of Myth)
61. WordLily (What Matters Most, Diary of a Teenage Girl)
62. WordLily (Limelight)
63. Brandon (Rethinking Human Nature)
64. Cara @ The Picky Apple (The White Queen by Philippa Gregory)
65. Brandon (The Discarded Image)
66. Girl Detective (Hell is Other Parents)
67. gautami tripathy (Selected Poems of Carl Sandburg)
68. Lightheaded (I Had Brain Surgery, What’s Your Excuse?)
69. Thoughts of Joy (Gossamer)
70. S. Krishna (Child of Fire)

71. Michael (Earth Abides)
72. Lisa (The Unnatural History of Cypress Parish: A Novel”
73. S. Krishna (The Lace Reader)
74. S. Krishna (After)
75. S. Krishna (The Girl on Legare Street)
76. S. Krishna (The Tricking of Freya)
77. S. Krishna (The Last Will of Moira Leahy)
78. S. Krishna (Pride & Prejudice & Zombies)
79. Melanie (Lost Art of Gratitude)
80. Melanie (Corduroy Mansions)
81. Diversions (Empire Falls)
82. Mark (Through the Looking Glass)
83. Mark (A Date You Can’t Refuse)
84. Abiding (Fieldwork & The Adoration of Jenna Fox)
85. Books & Other Thoughts (Once Dead, Twice Shy)
86. Books & Other Thoughts (Rebecca)
87. Jen Robinson’s Book Page (After Ever After)
88. Mel (The Christmas Cookie Club)
89. Melan’es Musings (Breathing)
90. Melanie (Your Personal Renaissance)
91. Jen @ Happy LIttle Homemaker (Letters to Darcy)
92. Memory (Secrets of the Model Dorm)
93. Memory (Canticle)
94. Memory (The Day Watch)
95. Memory (Leviathan)
96. Memory (Metatropolis)
97. Savvy Verse & Wit (Living Dead in Dallas)
98. Savvy Verse & Wit (Willoughby’s Return)
99. Kathryn (The War Romance of the Salvation Army)
100. Vasilly – 1330v (Graphic novels)
101. Sarah (The Brontes: Charlotte Bronte and Her Family
102. Beth (The Lost Art of Gratitude)
103. Katy (The Face of a Stranger by Anne Perry)
104. Diary of an Eccentric (Fire in the Hills)
105. Mrs. H (The Place of H) – Fire, by Kristin Cashore

Saturday Review of Books: August 22, 2009

Aug21

“A good book is the purest essence of the human soul.”~Thomas Carlyle

Welcome to this week’s Saturday Review of Books.

Thanks to everyone for participating.

1. Reading to Know (Kitty, My Rib)
2. Semicolon (Graceling)
3. Reading to Know (Pirate picture books)
4. 5M4B (Sweet Waters)
5. 5M4B (Sleepless Nights)
6. 5M4B (Boy Alone)
7. Semicolon (Main Street)
8. 5M4B (The Sweetgum Ladies Knit for Love)
9. Amy @ Hope Is the Word (Tracks in the Snow & The Golden Locket)
10. 5M4B (3-D Explorer)
11. Florinda – The 3 R’s (Admission)
12. Papua Girl@ Mixed Media (A Fine Balance)
13. Seth H. (Charlotte’s Web)
14. S. Mehrens, A Library is a Hospital for the Mind (New Moon)
15. S. Mehrens, A Library is a Hospital for the Mind (Three Act Tragedy)
16. S. Mehrens, A Library is a Hospital for the Mind (Betsy in Spite of Herself)
17. Beth (Good Day!:The Paul Harvey Story)
18. Beth (Jane Austen Ruined My Life)
19. Beth (Hattie Big Sky [Audio])
20. Framed (Harvest)
21. Framed (Life Support)
22. Framed (Can You Keep a Secret)
23. Carrie K. (Sacred Hearts)
24. Carrie K. (The Penderwicks on Gardam Street)
25. Pussreboots (Cat Skidoo)
26. Pussreboots (No Never)
27. Pussreboots (The Loved One)
28. Pussreboots (Skim)
29. Pussreboots (Grimm’s Grimmest)
30. FleurFisher (The Captain’s Wife)
31. FleurFisher (The Clothes on Their Backs)
32. Lazygal (The End Is Now)
33. Lazygal (Luv Ya Bunches)
34. Lazygal (Viola in Reel Life)

35. Lazygal (By the Time You Read This)
36. Lazygal (Little Black Lies)
37. Lazygal (The Secret of the Dread Forest)
38. Lazygal (The Child Thief)
39. Lazygal (Bystander)
40. Lazygal (Black is for Beginnings)
41. Lazygal (The Miles Between)
42. Lazygal (Everything for a Dog)
43. Lazygal (Lying with the Dead)
44. Lazygal (Wish You Were Here)
45. Janet @ Across the Page (The Abolition of Man)
46. Janet @ Across the Page (Great Possessions: An Amish Farmer’s Journal)
47. Janet @ Across the Page (The Fabulous Feud of Gilbert and Sullivan)
48. gautami tripathy (A La Carte)
49. melydia (Redbeard)
50. melydia (The Wild Alien Tamer)
51. melydia (The Three-Legged Hootch Dancer)
52. Jen @ Happy Little Homemaker (the Rosary)
53. Belinda (The Prodigal God)
54. Hope (An Experiment in Criticism by C.S. Lewis)
55. Joy (Sworn to Silence)
56. Word Lily (The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie)
57. Word Lily (The Associate)
58. Mindy Withrow (Shirley Hazzard’s THE GREAT FIRE)
59. SuziQoregon (The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane)
60. Sage (Write With Fire)
61. ChristineMM (The Survival Book)
62. ChristineMM (Crows & Cards)
63. Jennifer (Change of Heart)
64. Nymeth (Their Eyes Were Watching God)
65. Nymeth (Twilight of Avalon)
66. Nymeth (Miracle’s Boys)
67. Nymeth (Who Killed Amanda Palmer)
68. Nymeth (Alias Grace)

69. Nicola (The Last Dickens)
70. Nicola (A Ghost Named Fred)
71. (Nicola) Catholicism for Dummies
72. Nicola (Mercy Watson to the Rescue)
73. S. Krishna (Willow)
74. S. Krishna (Turn Coat)
75. S. Krishna (The White Queen)
76. S. Krishna (Table Manners)
77. S. Krishna (Sacred Hearts)
78. S. Krishna (Calligrapher’s Daughter)
79. S. Krishna (The Sacred Well)
80. Serena (Rooftops of Tehran)
81. Kevin S (Hudson Taylor’s Spiritual Secret)
82. Serena (8th Confession-Mom’s Review)
83. Serena (Dead Until Dark)
84. Heather J (Golden Boy)
85. Josette (The Woman Who Rides Like a Man)
86. Diary of an Eccentric (The Madonnas of Leningrad)
87. Diary of an Eccentric (Stones in Water)
88. PollyCastor (The Abstinence Teacher)
89. blacklin (Fool)
90. Memory (The Facts in the Case of the Departure of Miss Finch)
91. Memory (Libyrinth)
92. Memory (Midnight Never Comes)
93. Jew Wishes
94. Jew Wishes (Last Days of Summer)
95. Jew Wishes (You or Someone Like You)
96. Petunia (Prayers for Sale)
97. Petunia (Sacred Hearts)
98. Jennifer, Snapshot (Time Traveler’s Wife)
99. Shonda (Red Hot Lies)
100. Deanna/ibeeeg (The Eternity Code – Artemis Fowl)

Saturday Review of Books: July 18, 2009

Jul17

“A book in the hand is worth two on the shelf.”~Henry T. Coutts

Welcome to this week’s Saturday Review of Books.

Thanks to everyone for participating.

1. Carrie K. (WIngs by Aprilynne Pike)
2. Carrie (Raising Baby Green)
3. Carrie (Pinocchio)
4. Bookie Woogie (Flip Flap Fly)
5. Carol MagistraMater (Garlic & Sapphires, Eating My Words)
6. Carol MagistraMater (The Art of Civilized Conversation)
7. SuziQoregon (Dead Until Dark)
8. Carol MagistraMater (The Panama hat Trail)
9. Carol MagistraMater (D-Day)
10. Seth (Logan’s Run)
11. S. Mehrens, A Library is a Hospital for the Mind (Bidding for Love)
12. S. Mehrens, A Library is a Hospital for the Mind (Tarquin of Cheapside)
13. Seth (Ladies and Gentlemen: The Bible!)
14. S. Mehrens, A Library is a Hospital for the Mind (The Amaranth Enchantment)
15. Belinda (The Lathe of Heaven)
16. Pussreboots (Land of Black Gold)
17. Margaret (Down the Long Hills)
18. Belinda (Any Place I Hang My Hat – Audio0
19. Pussreboots (The Girls)
20. Pussreboots (Mysterious Magical Family Circus Kids)
21. Pussreboots (Bronte’s Book Club)
22. Pussreboots (The Postman Always RIngs Twice)
23. Gautami Tripathy (The Texicans)
24. Gautami Tripathy (One Scream Away)
25. Jolanthe (A Bride in the Bargain)
26. Inquirer (The Unlikely Disciple)
27. Deanna (The Magician’s Nephew)
28. Deanna (Chronicles of Narnia: Guides, Companions, and Resources)
29. Deanna (Lunar Landing 40th Anniversary)
30. Nicola (Amazing You: Getting Smart About Your Private Parts)
31. Nicola (Die For You)
32. Nicola (The Story Sisters)

33. Nicola (A Head Full of Notions: A Story About Robert Fulton)
34. Nicola (The Fire Cat)
35. Amy (Narnia read-alouds)
36. Amy @ Hope Is the Word (Chronicles of Narnia Pop-up)
37. Amy @ Hope Is the Word (The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe)
38. Amy (The Magician’s Nephew)
39. Amy (Roar: A Christian Family Guide to the Chronicles of Narnia)
40. Page Turner (The Once and Future King)
41. Florinda (All We Ever Wanted Was Everything)
42. Emily at Homespun Light (The Message, The Burning Within)
43. Anna (East Garrison)
44. Anna (Annie’s Ghosts)
45. Anna (Dirty Little Angels))
46. Word Lily (Holy Roller)
47. Word Lily (Coral Moon)
48. Ti (Netherland)
49. Ti (Art of Racing in the Rain)
50. Ti (Blue Notebook)
51. Nymeth (Lavinia)
52. Nymeth (The Forgotten Garden)
53. Amber (Dead Witch Walking)
54. Amber (Annie’s Ghosts)
55. FleurFisher (The Little Stranger)
56. FleurFisher (Leaving The World)
57. Brandy Afterthoughts (Norms & Nobility, etc.)
58. Becky (Junie B’s Essential Survival Guide for School)
59. Becky (Jack Russell: Dog Detective: Mugged Pug)
60. Becky (Jack Russell: Dog Detective: Lying Postman
61. Becky (Jack Russell: Dog Detective: Awful Pawful)
62. Becky (Jack Russell: Dog Detective: Sausage Situation)
63. Becky (To Say Nothing of the Dog)
64. Becky (The Ghost Brigades)

65. Becky (The Grand Sophy)
66. Becky (Three Men on the Bummel
67. Becky (House of Many Ways)
68. Becky (The Art of Reading)
69. Sandra (The Jewel Trader of Pegu)
70. Sandra (No Such Creature)
71. Sandra (A Mercy)
72. teachergirl (Unwind)
73. Bonnie (Prince Caspian)
74. Bonnie (The Voyage of the Dawn Treader)
75. Memory (Kushiel’s Scion)
76. Memory (Kushiel’s Justice)
77. Hope (Return of the Native)
78. Lynne (BLOOD LIES)
79. Lynne (SWIMSUIT)
80. Lynne (THE YEAR THAT FOLLOWS)
81. Savvy Verse & Wit (Mom’s Review–Run for your Life)
82. Savvy Verse & Wit (Becoming the Villainess)
83. Savvy Verse & Wit (Rubies in the Orchard)
84. Framed (The Mysterious Benedict Society)
85. Framed (Lemon Tart)
86. Framed (The Widow of the South)
87. 5M4B (The Pluto Files)
88. 5M4B (I Capture the Castle)
89. 5M4B (Violet Raines Almost Got
90. 5M4B (Violet Raines Almost Got
91. 5M4B (Tuesday Night at the Blue Moon)
92. Jennifer, Snapshot (HP & Half-Blood Prince)
93. 5M4B (Hook & Tsunami Picture books)
94. Phil (Crossing the Lines)
95. Beth (The 101 Dalmations by Dodie Smith )
96. That’s Two For The Books (Mercy)

Saturday Review of Books: March 15, 2008

Mar15

Books must be read as deliberately and as reservedly as they were written.”
Henry David Thoreau

Welcome to this week’s Saturday Review of Books. Hereâ€™s how it works. Find a review on your blog posted sometime this week of a book youâ€™re reading or a book youâ€™ve read. The review doesnâ€™t have to be a formal sort of thing. You can just write your thoughts on a particular book, a few ideas inspired by reading the book, your evaluation, quotations, whatever.

1. Laura (A Charmed Life: Growing Up in Macbeth\’s Castle)
2. Carrie (Don\’t Let the Goats Eat the Loquat Trees)
3. Carrie K. (Heart of Darkness)
4. Maw Books (Because of Winn-Dixie)
5. Maw Books (Left to Tell: Discovering God Amidst the Rwandan Holocaust)
6. Maw Books (The Boy in the Striped Pajamas)
7. Maw Books (Kira-Kira)
8. Bonnie (The Murder of Roger Ackroyd)
9. Barbara H. (Northanger Abbey)
10. DeputyHeadmistress (How to Find Morels)
11. gautami tripathy (The Last Single Woman in America)
12. Valentina (The Book Thief)
13. Valentina (Letters to a Young Gymnast
14. Valentina (The Odd Egg)
15. Krakovianka (Lady Audley\’s Secret)
16. Jane-Much Ado (The Ultra Marathon Man)
17. writer2b (The Candle In the Wind)
18. Hope (Heart of Darkness)
19. The Book Smugglers (The Witching Hour Theatre)
20. The Book Smugglers (The Pretender)
21. The Book Smugglers (King\’s Property)
22. The Book Smugglers (Beauty)
23. Lynne (The Miracle)
24. Lynne (Earthly Pleasures)
25. Staci at Writing and Living (The Truth War)
26. Staci at Writing and Living (Winter Haven)
27. Ted (The Gathering)
28. Just One More Book! (Rosie: A Visiting Dog\’s Story)
29. Ruth (The Wednesday Wars)
30. Joy (The Arrival)
31. MFS (Booknotes)
32. Shelf Elf (Cicada Summer)
33. Framed (Mark Twain, a Life)

34. Framed (Book of a Thousand Days)
35. Framed (One Thousand White Women)
36. Barb (D.A. by Connie Willis)
37. Mo ( The Probable Future)
38. Sandy D. (The Giver)
39. SuziQoregon (Smonk)
40. SuziQoregon (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory)
41. SuziQoregon (Rueful Death)
42. Mindy Withrow (Rilke\’s Letters to a Young Poet)
43. Nicola (The Ironwood Tree)
44. Nicola (Black Ships)
45. Nicola (Beyond Reach)
46. Becky (Courting Emma)
47. Callie (Truffles by the Sea)
48. Callie (A Daughter\’s Quest)
49. Becky (The Sleep Book)
50. Becky (Butter Battle Book)
51. Becky (Kristy\’s Great Idea)
52. Becky (Saga)
53. Becky (Lock and Key)
54. Becky (The Cage)
55. Becky (The Dragons of Blueland)
56. Becky (Elmer and the Dragon)
57. 5 Min for Books (Talk of the Town)
58. Girl Detective (On Chesil Beach)
59. Girl Detective (Let the Northern Lights Erase Your Name)
60. Girl Detective (What the Dead Know)
61. Becky (Rules of Gentility)
62. Noel (Sword in the Stone)
63. Miss Erin (Zel)
64. Melanie (Sunlight on a Broken Column)
65. Sarah (Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle)
66. Becky (Duke and I)

67. Looking for Salvation at the Dairy Queen (Bookgal)
68. pussreboots (Immortal)
69. pussreboots (Forgive Me)
70. Brandywine Books (The Thin Man)
71. pussreboots (Hotel Cat)
72. SmallWorld (The Knitting Circle)
73. Booklogged (Cross Bones)
74. Darla D (Artemis Fowl: The Arctic Incident)
75. Darla D (Undead and Unemployed)
76. Darla D (The Faerie Path)
77. Darla D (Sabriel)
78. Darla D (A Hat Full of Sky)
79. Jennifer (The Well of Lost Plots)
80. Shauna (Daring Book for Girls/Dangerous Book for Boys)
81. Wendy (The Gathering)
82. Wendy (The Story of Forgetting)
83. Justin (Penguins and Golden Calves)
84. Mrs. B (Tale of Hill Top Farm)
85. MrsPages (Lassie Come-Home)
86. Chocolatez (Passion and Purity)
87. Turin (Martin the Warrior)
88. Glenn (Crazy for God)
89. Mark Roberts (The Faith)
90. Jinker (The Case of the Constant Suicides)
91. TeddyRose (A Foreign Affair)
92. Cath (Close Kin)
93. Jeane (A Leg to Stand On)
94. Stephanie (Austenland)
95. Kristin (A Golden Age)
96. Robbie F. (Measle and the Wrathmonk)
97. Suzanne (Raising Childfren Who Think For Themselves)

Saturday Review of Books: March 8, 2008

Mar8

My home is where my books are.”
Ellen Thompson

!– beginning of export. owner: semicolon, postid: 08mar2008 –>

1. Maw Books (Book of a Thousand Days)
2. Maw Books (The Kite Runner)
3. Maw Books (Cheap Psychological Tricks for Parents)
4. Miss Erin (Out of the Wild)
5. Maw Books (The Tenth Circle)
6. violet (Danny Gospel)
7. Why Homeschool (Your Child\’s Strengths by Jenifer Fox)
8. Carrie (The Last Sin Eater)
9. Bookfest (The Bookseller of Kabul)
10. Marg (Human Traces)
11. Marg (On Chesil Beach)
12. Marg (Brief Gaudy Hour)
13. The Book Smugglers (Fire Study)
14. The Book Smugglers (The Good, the Bad, and the Undead)
15. Marg (The Crystal Skull)
16. The Book Smugglers (A Summer to Remember)
17. The Book Smugglers (Lady of Light and Shadows)
18. Marg (Two Harper Connelly reviews)
19. Marg (Sleeping Beauty Proposal)
20. Carrie K. (Songs of Innocence & Experience)
21. pussreboots (Frogs)
22. pussreboots (Number the Stars)
23. pussreboots (Number the Stars)
24. pussreboots (Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman)
25. Stephen (Essays in Love)
26. Hope(Vicar of Wakefield)
27. writer2b (The Ill-Made Knight)
28. CoversGirl (The Daughter of Time)
29. Just One More Book! (Mattland)
30. KarenDV (winter roundup)
31. Nithin (Voyage To the End of the Room)
32. Shelf Elf (My A to Z Recipe Box)
33. gautami tripathy(Half of a Yellow Sun)

34. gautami tripathy (Hearts and Minds)
35. Mindy Withrow (Eat, Pray, Love)
36. Breeni Books (Happy For No Reason)
37. Breeni Books (Deadly Errors and Dead Head)
38. Breeni Books (Sell Your Book on Amazon)
39. Ted (A Private Affair)
40. Ted (Life Class)
41. Sage (Water for Elephants)
42. Trish (All The Pretty Horses)
43. ChristineMM (7 Keys to Comprehension)
44. Ruth (Books read recently)
45. Darla D (First Test)
46. Darla D (Cowboy Aunt of Harriet Bean)
47. Darla D (A Hidden Magic)
48. SmallWorld (We Wish To Inform You That Tomorrow We Will Be Killed With Our Families: Stories from Rw
49. The Reading Zone(Uprising)
50. Heather (The Know-It-All)
51. SuziQoregon (Undercurrents)
52. SuziQoregon (City Boy)
53. Amanda (The Rules of Survival)
54. Becca (The Princess and Curdie)
55. Sandy D. (Roller Skates)
56. Matt (The Sermon Maker)
57. Wendy (Song of Solomon)
58. Wendy (Cat\’s Eye)
59. Wendy (Resistance)
60. Phyllis (Fieldwork)
61. Laura (Stolen Lives)
62. Laura (Breath, Eyes, Memory)
63. Becky (Fablehaven: Grip of the Shadow Plague)
64. Becky (Rash)
65. Becky (Twelve Rounds to Glory)
66. Becky (Dan\’s Angel)

67. Becky (Leftovers)
68. Girl Detective (The Eyre Affair)
69. Girl Detective (Y the Last Man v. 4: Safeword)
70. Becky (Monkey and Me)
71. Becky (Sneetches and Other Stories)
72. Becky (Cat in the Hat and Cat in the Hat Comes Back)
73. Carol (Letters of Samuel Rutherford)
74. MrsPages (Mixed Up Files of Mrs Frankweiler)
75. MrsPages (Light at Tern Rock)
76. Joy (If I Am Missing or Dead)
77. Nicola (Naked in Death)
78. Nicola (The Flying Flea, Callie, and Me)
79. Nicola (Birdman)
80. Cathy (Swallows and Amazons)
81. Cathy (Linnets and Valerians)
82. Julie D. (Infinite Space, Infinite God)
83. Julie D. (A Twist of Faith for Your Science Fiction – links to lists of sci-fi books that highlight
84. Suzanne (StopLight Poetry)
85. Stephanie(Chosen)
86. Jennifer (Making the Cat Laugh)
87. Miss Erin (Remembering Raquel)
88. Kathryn (Alvin\’s Secret Code)
89. Avid Reader (Leftovers)
90. Ana O. (The Other Boleyn Girl)
91. Carrie (A Passion Most Pure)
92. Daphne (The WInd from Hastings)
93. Daphne (Witch Queen)
94. BookGal (My Sister\’s Keeper)
95. Maureen E (Rowan Farm)
96. Kristina(Dangerous Book For Boys)
97. Tasses (The Sister by Poppy Adams)
98. Daemonwolf Books (Silent In The Grave by Deanna Raybourn)