Book reviewed by Bev Scott I purchased this book Reliance Illinois at a reading by the author Mary Volmer. Reliance, Illinois tells a fascinating story, set in 1874 on the Mississippi River. The protagonist, a teenage girl of thirteen, Madelyn Branch (Maddy) pretends to be the younger sister of her beautiful mother, Rebecca. The story […]
Book Reviews
Book Review: “Sweden” by Matthew Turner
Reviewed by Bev Scott This book, written as historical fiction, offers a mostly unknown story about deserters from the Vietnam War. Japanese peace activist guides worked with great diligence to help the deserters escape Japan to a safe haven, Sweden. I found the story of their perilous efforts to escape both the Japanese police and […]
Book Review: “Before We Were Yours” by Lisa Wingate
Book reviewed by Bev Scott Child abuse is a difficult topic for a book. Lisa Wingate states that she formed the book “from the dust of imagination and the muddy waters of the Mississippi.” She writes about experiences similar to those of real children taken from their families during the 1920’s through the 1950’s. Sadly, […]
Book Review: “The Search for My Abandoned Grandmother” by Mary Ames Mitchell
Reviewed by Bev Scott Mary Ames Mitchell describes in detail her search for her English grandmother’s grave or burial site. The author’s mother, Betty May, last saw her mother, Eileen Maude, when she was seven. In 1932 Betty May boarded a train in London with her brother to spend the summer holidays with her father in […]
Book Review: “Essential Retirement Planning for Solo Agers” by Sara Zeff Geber
Reviewed by Bev Scott Essential Retirement Planning for Solo Agers: Gerontologist Harry “Rick” Moody introduces this book. He reminds us all that we are all “solo agers” if we live long enough. Further, he notes that “Successful Solo Agers have learned how to age alone and they have lessons we all need to learn.” Sara Zeff […]
Book Review: “Prairie Fires – The American Dreams of Laura Ingalls Wilder” by Caroline Fraser
Reviewed by Bev Scott Reading and preparing this review of Prairie Fires has been a long-term endeavor. Caroline Fraser has done a brilliant work describing the life of Laura Ingalls Wilder in the historical context of the time. She won both a Pulitzer and the National Book Critics Award. She begins the historical detail before Laura Ingalls was born in 1867 […]
Book Review: “The Black Rose” by Tananarive Due
Reviewed by Bev Scott The Black Rose is based on the truly inspirational story of Sarah Breedlove Walker, Madam C. J. Walker. She was born in 1867 on a plantation to slave parents who died from yellow fever, “Yellow Jack,” when she was about eight years old. From abject poverty, unable to read but with drive […]
Book Review: “The Boleyn King” by Laura Andersen
Reviewed by Bev Scott The Boleyn King, by Laura Andersen is one of those historical novels I typically love to read. I needed a distraction during a cross country flight. The book offers creative alternative history by imagining that Anne Boleyn actually gave Henry VIII a son who became king. The historical context is a threatened […]
Book Review: “The Sympathizer” by Viet Thanh Nguyen
Book reviewed by Bev Scott The Sympathizer tells the first-person story of a communist spy embedded in South Vietnam during the “American War.” He serves as a loyal aide to “the General” of the South Vietnamese army. But, at the same time he shares information with his communist handlers loyal to North Vietnam. This spy evacuates […]
Book Review: “Clancy’s Song” by Ken Hultman and Natalie Hultman
Reviewed by Bev Scott This delightful parable takes place on the Freedom Cattle Ranch. Here, the soil is fertile. The all-grass diet, supplemented by hay when necessary, supports an organic or natural experimental operation. Our story features four Herefords, Clancy, Beamer, Tank and Gordo, who grow up on the ranch. Each is born on the […]
