One of my favorite authors--and the only one of her non-fiction books that I hadn't yet read.
Wish that the stories were a bit more linear (there was a bit of bouncing around), but it is laugh out loud funny and a great perspective on the Great Depression.
Everyone should read Betty.

Listening to this in the wake of the Alabama storms--and then the Joplin storm made this have some extra resonance. Simple, but layered story of a family falling apart and a teen picking up the pieces. Loved Harper as a person--and her issues were legitimate--and the resolution wasn't too tidy.

This was an audio book, and at times, the reader's attempt at southern accents was a little annoying, but that's not the fault of Reinhardt.

Enjoyed this much more than I expected to. Lots of wonderful characters, gentle humor, and a day in the life that had plenty going on, but none of it forced or too coincidental. Will have to check out more of Miss Read's stuff.

Really, really enjoyed this. Merian Cooper lived many lives--fighter pilot, POW, filmmaker, visionary. . . Engagingly written, fascinating subject, and exhaustive research that doesn't get bogged down in the details. Gave me new respect for King Kong (a movie I already admired for its technologocial breakthroughs), but that's such a small part of his life.
Well worth the read.

If you had asked my my rating at the halfway mark, it would have been a solid 4 stars. But somewhere around the middle, Byatt just lost all control.
Yes, it's supposed to be a sprawling narrative, sweeping epic. But at a certain point, it became a little ridiculous. She would drop threads and never pick them up. "Something happened in 1907 that changed everything." Never quite figured out what that was, or maybe I just stopped caring.

But I did love the setting--arts, the threads of children's literature, the politics. It just needed to be a bit less. . .

Possession is one of my all-time favorite novels. This doesn't even come close.

Completely torn on this one and will have to give it some further thought.

Pluses:
--A story that's not often told. There are plenty of books about slavery, but not slavery in the North. Or during the Revolution.
--Very well written.
--Some truly bad things happen (some books about slavery just aren't horrible enough, if that makes sense)

Minuses:
--I know Isabel was an educated slave. But the book was written in her voice--and it was just too well written. The historian in me couldn't stop thinking "there's no way a enslaved girl of that age could write anything like this." It wasn't an authentic voice for me.
--The ending was just weird. Again, can't get over that they managed to escape. Honestly, can't get over how much she got away with.

Perhaps my love for Octavian Nothing is preventing me from seeing more of the qualities of this book, but it just didn't satisfy me and at times, I was slightly bothered. But I still can't completely put my finger on what felt wrong about this book.

Still thinking about this book, but loved, loved, loved. I was a good girl and checked it out from the library, but there were many, many times I wanted to underline key sentences. There are moments in this that just sing.

And it didn't hurt that I visited two of the main sites in the last couple of years. So I understood exactly her mixed emotions at seeing it and being there but it being not quite right.

One of those books you want to read again as soon as you finish it.

Alas, it is due back at the library. . .