Started off strong and then just kind of fell apart. But a fun, light book about England and the 1950s. Plus, a gigantic aging historic house. Perfect summer reading.

Though I could have slapped Penelope's mother on multiple occasions. Grow a spine, lady! The conclusion would have been much more interesting if mom had been the one to finally end the House issue.

One of these days, I will go on the pilgrimage to Archer City. . .

Abandoning this on p. 60. Should have been right up my ally--Texas icon talking about his other obsession--book buying and selling.

And yet, most chapters were only a few pages. No narrative flow developed. He kept jumping back and forth. And really and truly, it reads like a "I got this cool book and then this one and oh, I forgot about this other cool book."

too many things on my own to-read list to continue this one. Back to the library it goes!

Somehow, this book just fell flat. Strong beginning, intriguing characters and then it just became Too Much. My interest definitely slowed down for the last half.

I always begin a book that "everyone" is reading with caution. . . Does that make me a book snob?
But this is one best seller that definitely lives up to the hype. There were so many ways this could have gone so horribly wrong and yet it never did. Stockett told the story with all of its shades of gray and complexities and limited happy endings. Everyone didn't magically become a better person. Deeply satisfying and a book I'm still thinking about, almost 24 hours after I finished it.

If this tells you anything: I've never spent more than $40 for a purse and yet I stayed up until after midnight reaading this. On multiple occasions.

Breezy, fun and with a sense of wonder--Tonello kinda fell into this particular (and odd) career path. There's also a lot of heart in it in addition to the number-ogling that occurs. On one of his buying trips, he went $30,000 over budget. Ummm, I don't think I've ever had that problem. . .

A fascinating, layered book about villages. Stayed up too late reading this more than once.

Enjoyed much more than I thought I would. Another in the big genre of "coming of age" tales, this one is a year in the life of a young Ojibwa girl in 1847.

The characters felt real and natural, and nothing about this story felt forced (a frequent problem with historical fiction). Will definitely be checking out the rest in the series.

It's official--I'm a big, big fan of Jane McCallum.
She was one of those women that did it all--five kids, active clubwoman, fought for suffrage, did war work and eventually became Secretary of State under Gov. Moody in the late 1920s.
This book is mainly composed of her diaries from 1916-1919--pretty important years for suffrage. She writes with great passion--lots of italics and dashes.
Two favorite quotes (one serious and one not so):
"We asked for hte vote as a right denied. We never said that women would improve the world, though in our hearts we believed it."
"I thought I had eaten and seen others eat things 'whut tasted good;'--but I never had--until last night for supper. We had some all white wheat hot biscuit with butter!! How Mr. M. & Brown & Henry are alive to tell the tale is because of the limitations of the baking pan!" (1918--after rationing!)
I'm eager to learn more about her--she deserves a complete biography (and it looks like enough of her papers exist to make that possible).

A very slight, but fascinating criminal memoir. Lee Israel was a writer that hit hard times. She knew her way around an archive and then took advantage. Loved the mechanics of how she wrote the fake letters--and the fun she had.
Quick read and worth checking out.

It has been far too long since I've read any Beverly Cleary--something I have a feeling I'll be rectifying this summer.

I love, love, love Henry. I adore Ribsy. His parents crack me up (especially their willingness to hunt for nightcrawlers). It's a charming, delightful book and I'm eager to read all of Cleary's work again soon.