As much as I have enjoyed working on this blog, it is time for me to shut it down. It was my ‘pandemic project.’ And you were such great followers! I know we shall all keep reading and sharing our thoughts about books with others. If you are ever wondering what to do, you can always read a book.
The Calamity Club, Katherine Stockett–Remember The Help? How could one forget it? Now Katherine Stockett has another book–this time set in Oxford, Mississippi, during the Great Depression. Three unique and strong-willed female characters form a club so that mutual support can steer them through hard times and societal pressures. Reviewers praise Stockett’s writing and character development; but, more than that, they stress the entertainment value
A friend recently sent me an article from Inc. in hopes that my blog readers would find it interesting. The article states what we already know– the act of reading a book for pleasure is interesting fewer and fewer people. Or perhaps I should say that fewer and fewer people are reading books for pleasure. Some people may really want to read more but don’t
Fiction–Angel Down, by Daniel Kraus, is set during World War I in France. The novel combines historical fiction, horror and magical realism. History–We the People: A History of the U.S. Constitution, by Jill Lepore, traces the history of the Constitution and the importance of the amendment process. Biography–Pride and Pleasure: The Schuyler Sisters in an Age of Revolution, by Amanda Vaill, focuses on the lives
If I have heard of the National Book Critics Circle Awards, I certainly don’t remember. This award is very prestigious, however, and worth taking a look at. Each year, a panel of 24 book review editors and critics choose one book in several categories to win the award. Winners for books pubished in 2025 were announced in March. Here they are: Fiction— We do not
Those of you who have read my blog know that I admire and respect Dolly Parton. I certainly know that she isn’t a fool. I used to think she was a bit fake, and some of her IS fake, but underneath her show biz persona is a brilliant and talented mind with a knack for business and music, and a tender heart with a love
Some really good books don’t appeal to large numbers of readers. These books are either too specific or too detailed or even about an obscure subject that few people are interested enough to read about. Many of the books still deserve notice, however, so I am going to list a few that sound incredibly good. I’m not saying that I’ll read them all, but I
I really love it when one of our readers comments on a blog entry or another book that s/he has read. Such is the case with Linda Dove, a Sandcastle Book Club member and avid reader. See below to read what she has to say about a new biography! There’s a new biography out on one of my, and most of my family’s, favorite authors
I am happy to introduce you to another author who resides on Kiawah Island. His name is Herb Jansen. He is retired from a career working first with Ernst and Young and later with Arthur Anderson. When Herb was 19 years old, he served as an Infantry Sergeant in the U.S. Army and was assigned to Vietnam for a year. Several years ago, Jansen came
The weather warmed up before I could get this post out to readers. Maybe we should rename it “Books to Read on a Sunny Porch.” Anyway, the books below are ‘so-called’ cozy books people are beginning to talk about. Too much real stuff to handle means we don’t want to read more real or even pretend stuff that we don’t want to think about. So,
