Book Review: Bluebird, by Genevieve Graham

Books about World War I are much less common than WWII, so Bluebird caught my interest.

In the present day, Cassie is interested in the history of her little Canadian town, where during prohibition, the rumrunners ferried illegal whiskey across the Detroit River into the United States. When bottles of Bailey Brothers' Best are found in an old home, she is eager to help the recent owner of the home. The home also happens to be her family home, the one in which Cassie grew up. I must admit, I lost interest during these parts of the book. Fortunately, this part took way fewer pages than the historical part.

In 1918, Adele, a "Bluebird" Canadian nurse is stationed in Belgium at a field hospital.  Jerry, a tunneler also from Canada, is brought in after a cave-in at the tunnel that he and his brother are helping to dig under enemy lines. He's badly wounded, and during his recovery, Adele and Jerry form a very close relationship. Turns out they live very close to each other back in Canada, near the Detroit River.

From that, you can probably figure out the storyline. They both return home and eventually meet up. Jerry becomes involved in whiskey production and rumrunning. The story is fascinating. We think we have it hard now, but when they came home from the war, the Spanish Flu was running rampant. And there was also prohibition.

Bluebird really kept my interest, and I love the historical aspect of both the horrible atrocities of war and the interesting manifestations of prohibition. Like I said, I didn't think the present-day story was really needed, but it was okay.

If you are interested in WWI, and/or prohibition, Bluebird is well worth your time.

Published by Simon & Schuster, April 5, 2022

eARC obtained from NetGalley
352 pages

Rating: 4/5

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Audiobook Review: The Four WInds, by Kristin Hannah

The Four Winds was a mesmerizing book about the Dust Bowl, once it got going.

The characters were amazing, the setting -- well -- unbelievable. The Four Winds puts you in the middle of the dust bowl, but also in California, where thousands of people went to find work during The Depression. As you can imagine, it didn't work out well for them.

It's one of those "I can't believe this happened in the USA" stories. And they keep bringing up that point as they are living through the horrors. You get an interesting take on Communism and the Red Scare, as these "Communists" tried to unionize the workers to help them get a living wage. I mean, they literally could not survive on what they were paid, even when the men, women, and children were all picking. The huge growers would cut wages on a whim. They had their own company stores where people could get credit, and of course, they could never get out from under the debt.

Elsa was an amazingly strong woman and no one could not become attached to her and her family. My only complaint is that the beginning was slow. There was too much time spent on Elsa's childhood and life with her parents. I get that her background makes her who she is, but I still thought it went on too long. So the message is:  don't give up. This is a minor complaint, and it is well worth the effort to get through that part. I also would have rather had a different outcome for Elsa. That's all I'll say.

I would recommend The Fours Winds to anyone. The audio version is excellent, although my listening kept getting interrupted by audiobooks that I had on hold at the library. (You only get them for three weeks.) So when another one became available, I borrowed The Four Winds book from my sister and read the last 60 pages.

Published by St. Martin's, 2021. Audio by Macmillan
Audiobook purchased from libro.fm
464 pages

Rating: 4.5/5

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Book Review: The Christie Affair, by Nina de Gramont

In 1925, before Agatha Christie was famous, she disappeared for eleven days. Her whereabouts are a mystery to this day. The Christie Affair is de Gramont's reimagining of what might have happened to Christie those eleven days, and why.

The reason is that Agatha's husband was having an affair, and when he told Agatha he wanted a divorce, she left. The mistress, Nan, has an entire back story that is integral. A police officer is asked to come out of retirement to help with the nationwide search for Agatha, and he becomes an important character.

The answers are imaginative and entertaining. And surprising, at times. There is romance, murder, and lots of secrets. I really don't want to give away many details. It is fun to see how the past and the future come together without any clue ahead of time. The story is interesting, the writing is good, and the pace is brisk.

It is interesting that this event has spurred more than one author to create a tale about what happened during these eleven days. de Gramont has done a great job. I want to believe that her version is the truth...

Published by St. Martin's, February 1, 2022
eARC obtained from Edelweiss
320 pages

Rating: 4.5/5

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Book Review: The Paris Bookseller by Kerri Maher

I enjoyed The Paris Bookseller very much. It's not my usual read, and I'm not sure where I got the recommendation. But I'm glad I read it.

The Paris Bookseller is Sylvia Beach, an actual historical figure. Sylvia moves to Paris in the 1910s, mostly because it is a more tolerant environment for a lesbian. She ends up opening a bookstore, Shakespeare and Company, which is the first in Paris to sell English books. She gains quite a clientele of ex-pats, including famous names such as Gertrude Stein and Ernest Hemingway.

James Joyce becomes one of Sylvia's best friends and when his book, Ulysses, is banned in the United States, Sylvia decides Shakespeare and Company should publish it. Sylvia works very hard and sacrifices much to see this book published.

The story moves slowly but is written well, so I enjoyed getting to know Sylvia intimately. She also develops a romance that gets her through many trials.  I enjoyed getting to experience Paris during the twenties and into the thirties, with the difficulties of the Depression. I wanted to know about Ulysses and even read the first three (of eighteen) sections. It is very "stream of conscious" and contains so many allegories that I didn't understand that I quit. I get the idea, although didn't read enough to understand why it was banned.

It helped me to know that The Paris Bookseller is basically a true story. Only a few characters are fictional. Everything that happens really happened, although the timeline was altered slightly in a few spots. Beach is a fascinating character, flaws and all. Honestly, I'm not sure I would have been very interested in this book if it weren't based in truth.

If you are at all interested in Sylvia Beach or the Paris literary scene during the 20s, pick up The Paris Bookseller.

Published by Berkley, January 11, 2022
eARC obtained from NetGalley
336 pages

Rating: 3.5/5

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Book Review: The Girls in the Stilt House by Kelly Mustain

The Girls in the Stilt House has been compared to Where the Crawdads Sing, and I agree. It's the reason I chose to read this.

In the 1920s, deep in the swamps of Mississippi, Ada returns home to the Trace, where she lives in a stilt house with her drunken, abusive father after a misguided adventure with a boy in Baton Rouge. Her father, as is common, is away for weeks before coming home and relegating Ada to live in the shed.

Matilda lives on the other side of the Trace, with her family who sharecrops. Both she and her father are working hard to raise money to get out of Mississippi and build a better life.

These two girls cross paths in a most violent way and end up living in the stilt house together. But Matilda has many secrets that she is unwilling to share, and Ada cannot seem to get the security she so desires.

I don't want to give too many details of the story, but they are doled out slowly, as we realize what a seemingly hopeless situation these girls are trying to muddle through. There are surprises and many secrets to discover. Any feelings of hopefulness seem to disappear on a whim.

I found The Girls in the Stilt House more exciting and fast-paced than Where the Crawdads Sing. I also would compare this to The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek.  So, if you enjoyed either of those books, I would definitely recommend The Girls in the Stilt House.

Published by Sourcebooks Landmark, April 6, 2021
eBook purchased 
384 pages

Rating: 4.5/5

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AudioBook Review: The Widows by Jess Montgomery

I liked The Widows. I didn't really love it.  I'm not sure why.

It is 1924, in Ohio mining country, when the sheriff of Kinship, Daniel Ross, is murdered. His wife, Lily, who can handle herself is appointed sheriff until an interim election can be held. No one expects Lily to do anything as sheriff. But they underestimate her.

Lily is determined to find out how Daniel died. She doesn't believe the story that she was told - that a prisoner escaped from Daniel's control, stole his gun, and shot Daniel. She begins investigating.

She is visited by a very good friend of Daniel's, Marvena, from the miner's settlement. Lily doesn't know what to make of Marvena. Daniel has never talked about her. Was she a mistress? Marvena lost her husband in a mining accident -- the same accident that killed Lily's father.

Marvena is part of the movement to unionize the miners to get safer working conditions and better pay. This movement is strictly illegal, so she doesn't trust anyone -- especially Lily. But Marvena's teenage daughter has gone missing, and Daniel had vowed to help Marvena find her, so Marvena has to seek out Lily's help to find out what Daniel knew before he died.

These two women establish an unlikely bond as they help each other to investigate what happened to Daniel and Marvena's daughter. Not only do they want justice for Daniel's killer, but they both also want to help the miners live a safer and more profitable existence.

I enjoyed The Widows, but I'm not sure why I wasn't totally drawn into the story. It's historical, and I love that. The characters are richly developed. These women are strong and brave. The story is told from both Marvena's and Lily's points-of-views, and that was very effective. The plight of the miners was heartbreaking. I was surprised by some of the twists and turns. Maybe it was the setting. And I did feel the story's pacing was a little slow at times.

Susan Bennett, the reader, did a wonderful job, and I really forgot I was listening.  That's a good thing.

With such a non-specific reason for not falling in love with The Widows, I feel I should still recommend it to historical fiction fans. It is very popular, and there was a long waiting list for the audio version. So if the description sounds appealing, go for it! And, if you want another great book about coal mining, try John Grisham's Gray Mountain.

Published by Minotaur, January 8, 2019 (Macmillan Audio)
Audio obtained from the library
 336 pages

Rating: 4/5

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Book Review: American Princess: A Novel of First Daughter Alice Roosevelt, by Stephanie Marie Thornton @BerkleyPub

What a character Alice Roosevelt was, and American Princess: A Novel of First Daughter Alice Roosevelt did such a good job of telling her story. I was captivated.

I love historical novels.  American Princess: A Novel of First Daughter Alice Roosevelt starts out when the Roosevelts find out that Theodore is president because of the assassination of President McKinley. They really had fun in The White House. Alice was the oldest, the only child of Theodore's first wife, who died two days after Alice was born. Because of this, she and her father weren't very close, because she reminded him too much of his first wife. Alice was a rebel and very outspoken, without much thought of the consequences. Alice was also extremely intelligent and politically savvy.

She fell in love with a congressman, Nicholas Longworth, who eventually became Speaker of the House. I could go on and on and tell you all sorts of juicy stories about her life. She lived to be 96, so there was a lot to tell. Lots of cheating husbands (and wives), backstabbing, political maneuvering, and secrets to keep you entertained. It reads like a soap opera, and it's pretty much true. Another tidbit to whet your appetite -- she had an illegitimate child!

At the end of the book, Thornton explains the parts that were not precisely true. She messed with the timelines a bit, some quotes were credited to the wrong people, a few minor characters were combinations of people, etc. But mostly, it is all true. You will learn so much about the Roosevelts and the general politics of the time. Alice attended the Bicentennial State Dinner at The White House in 1976! Just think of everything she lived through, like two world wars and the depression, to name a few.

It was a coincidence that my husband wanted to start watching the Ken Burns documentary, The Roosevelts: An Intimate History while I was reading this. We have only watched the first episode, but I am excited to watch the rest and compare. If you are at all interested in this historical time period, don't miss this one.

Published by Berkley, March 12, 2019
eARC obtained from NetGalley
448 pages

Rating: 5/5

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Book Review: Nothing But Sky, by Amy Trueblood

Nothing But Sky has a unique historical setting in the sky.  I didn't realize how popular (and death-defying) these daredevils were.

Grace is an orphan who lives with her Uncle who is also her pilot.  Grace wants nothing more than to make a career as a barnstormer, but she will need to prove she's the best since the skies are becoming crowded.  Her unwavering goal is to win the World Aviation Expo in 65 days in Chicago.  This victory will lead to a Hollywood contract with a movie studio.

Grace and her team are working feverishly to raise enough money for the entrance fee.  Grace is being recruited by one of their stiffest competition, and it seems they will stop at nothing to get Grace to join their team.

However, Grace's team is like her family.  And when they hire a new mechanic, she finds herself in an unwanted romance.  She has no time for romance when she's working on perfecting more dangerous and spectacular stunts in the air.

Nothing But Sky is a quick read that is paced well.  There is always another challenge facing Grace and she refuses to be thwarted.  In fact, she's so determined that maybe she needs to do a little soul-searching. Awful things happen, and it seems all hope of competing is lost. And with a surprising twist, the romance may be over too.

The ending is sweet and satisfying, even if it relies on a bit of luck. Teens who enjoy historical settings with one of the most determined women I've read about will enjoy Nothing But Sky.

Published by Flux, March 27, 2018
ARC obtained from School Library Connection Magazine
284 pages

Rating: 4/5

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