If you normally do not read westerns, you might want to start with S. Craig Zahler’s A Congregation of Jackals. It’s a story of four bad guys gone good and the moment when their past catches up with them. No-one close to the men knows of their past as a gang of bank robbers and [...]
The Traitor in the Tunnel by Y.S. Lee. Mysteries hold a special place in my fourth grade Nancy Drew-loving heart. Which is about the age you start to realize how much life isn’t particularly fair. At least with mysteries, you can count on a little justice at the end. Book 3 of The Agency series [...]
If you think you read everything/don’t want to hear any more about the tragic life of Sylvia Path and her husband/fellow poet, Ted Hughes, think again! Her Husband: Hughes and Plath—a Marriage by Diane Middlebrook tells a profoundly human and frequently joyful story of talented people passionate about their art and their life. It made [...]
The City of Ember was a Young Hoosier Book Award Nominee from 2005-2006. It is the first of four children’s fantasy books called The Books of Ember from the author Jeanne DuPrau. The story follows two twelve year olds, Lina and Doon, as they challenge the only way of life that they have ever known, [...]
Craig Johnson once again hits a home run with Hell is Empty. If you are unfamiliar with his mystery series starring Sheriff Walt Longmire, I highly recommend it and you do not have to read the series in order. Although similar to C.J. Box’s Joe Pickett series, I am beginning to prefer Johnson (Box’s recent [...]
It’s always a pleasure to read ‘close to home’ and Kyle T. Kramer’s A Time to Plant, is just that…an Indiana story. A Time to Plant follows Kramer’s evolution from a theologian rooted in academia to an organic farmer in southern Indiana. His book comes highly touted by Phyllis Tickle, Luke Timothy Johnson, and Scott [...]
I’ve always wanted to visit Iceland. I haven’t got there yet, but I do vicariously visit by reading fiction set in the land of fire and ice. A new series by Quentin Bates, a UK journalist who lived in Iceland for 10 plus years, recently caught my attention. Cold Comfort is the second Officer Gunnhildur [...]
Have you ever known someone who is afraid of big cities because they think there is so much crime and violence? Well, I have and I might just present that person with a book to read called Crimes in Southern Indiana: Stories by Frank Bill. These short stories are chock full of violence, alcohol, methamphetamines, [...]
Dead End in Norvelt by Jack Gantos. I wasn’t surprised to hear Jack Gantos had won the Newbery Medal. He has a quirky writing style that meshes hysterical comedy with gut-wrenching, quiet drama. How could the committee resist this main character, aptly named Jack Gantos? Is this winner a memoir or fiction? Even if the [...]