Book reviews and more!

You are browsing the archive for February2013

SILHOUETTE, by Dave Swavely

February 8, 2013

FUTURISTIC THRILLER SET in a privatized San Francisco police state.  Some interesting ideas, poorly handled.

Grade: SOLID C

SILHOUETTE
St. Martin's Press/Thomas Dunne Books
2012

Tags: , , ,

MY FIRST COUP D’ETAT, by John Dramani Mahama

February 7, 2013

GHANA’S PRESIDENT DELIGHTS, educates with a charming, insightful memoir about his country and its changes.

Grade: B PLUS

MY FIRST COUP D'ETAT: AND OTHER TRUE STORIES FROM THE LOST DECADES OF AFRICA
Bloomsbury USA
2012

Tags: , , , , , , , ,

HOW TO LOVE WINE, by Eric Asimov

February 6, 2013

A WINE CRITIC’S CHATTY, engaging memoir advocates informed enjoyment of wine, not competitive connoisseurship.

Grade: SOLID B

HOW TO LOVE WINE: A MEMOIR AND MANIFESTO
HarperCollins
2012

Tags: , , ,

LUCKY BUNNY, by Jill Dawson

February 5, 2013

A SHARP, QUICK-WITTED THIEF tells her story, from impoverished childhood through the London Blitz to motherhood.

Grade: B PLUS

LUCKY BUNNY
Harper Perennial
2012

Tags: , ,

1356, by Bernard Cornwell

February 4, 2013

MARVELOUS MEDIEVAL BATTLE yarn stars a knight who’s sly, brave, and just as moral a rogue as Cornwell’s Sharpe.

Grade: B PLUS

1356
HarperCollins
2013

Tags: , , ,

HARMONY, by Keith Brooke

February 3, 2013

FUGITIVE HUMANS ON a planet under the tyrannical rule of other alien species = deftly handled space thriller.

Grade: SOLID B

HARMONY
Rebellion/Solaris
2012

Tags: , , ,

THE MIDDLESTEINS, by Jami Attenberg

February 2, 2013

RICH IN DETAIL and compassion, a gentle satire of surburban Jewish life revolves around a family in crisis.

Grade: SOLID B

THE MIDDLESTEINS
Grand Central
2012

Tags: ,

EVERYONE LEAVES, by Wendy Guerra (translated by Achy Obejas)

February 1, 2013

LIFE IN CUBA in the 70s and 80s, as captured in the diary of an intense young writer and artist. Fascinating.

Grade: B PLUS

EVERYONE LEAVES
Amazon Publishing
2012

Tags: , , , ,