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Renee B. (renb) - Reviews

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Bee Season
Bee Season
Author: Myla Goldberg
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 3.5/5 Stars.
 340
Review Date: 3/4/2006
Helpful Score: 1


I just finished this book. It was unreal. The story started out relatively mundane... and then the family went into a tailspin. You are left wondering if there was a total crash and burn or if, perhaps, there were some survivors. The story was just recently released on DVD with Richard Gere... some minor differences in the film.


Before Women Had Wings
Before Women Had Wings
Author: Connie May Fowler
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 3.8/5 Stars.
 22
Review Date: 5/31/2006
Helpful Score: 2


I was struggling through another book and picked this one up because I believed, true to form, that the book would a be a quick, though very heart-felt read. While I want to believe that the intensity of this kind of physical and psychological maltreatment of children does not occur, I know it does. Bird, the eight-year-old voice in this fictious story, uses her imagination and, ultimately, Miss Zola to get her through the unimaginable.


The City of Ember (Ember, Bk 1)
The City of Ember (Ember, Bk 1)
Author: Jeanne Duprau
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 4/5 Stars.
 315
Review Date: 6/14/2006
Helpful Score: 2


"Freakin' sweet!" - Kate (my daughter)


Complications: A Surgeon's Notes on an Imperfect Science
Complications: A Surgeon's Notes on an Imperfect Science
Author: Atul Gawande
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 4.1/5 Stars.
 165
Review Date: 5/19/2006


A technical book that provides the reader with the perspective of those that provide medical treatment. Not a book you would likely read prior to going into the hospital for surgery, but interesting nonetheless.


A Girl Named Zippy : Growing Up Small in Mooreland Indiana
A Girl Named Zippy : Growing Up Small in Mooreland Indiana
Author: Haven Kimmel
Book Type: Hardcover
  • Currently 3.8/5 Stars.
 29
Review Date: 5/21/2006


Wonderful recollections told in a both witty and poignant manner.... the last chapter, "The Letter," was a perfect way to end the memoir.


The Hemingway Book Club of Kosovo
The Hemingway Book Club of Kosovo
Author: Paula Huntley
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 3.9/5 Stars.
 9
Review Date: 3/18/2007


We read this book as a book group selection. Some thought it similar to Reading Lolita in Tehran. Either way, it was compelling and provided a perspective on life as it could be...


Ice Bound : A Doctor's Incredible Battle for Survival at the  South Pole
Review Date: 10/15/2006


after all fo the groundwork was laid for the story, it went much quicker...


The Memory Keeper's Daughter
The Memory Keeper's Daughter
Author: Kim Edwards
Book Type: Hardcover
  • Currently 3.6/5 Stars.
 209
Review Date: 2/6/2007


a quick read...


A Million Little Pieces
A Million Little Pieces
Author: James Frey
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 3.4/5 Stars.
 164
Review Date: 1/24/2006


and now, of course, some are saying parts of the book may have been fabricated... however, fabricated or not, the content is telling and one can only imagine that getting out of an addiction so severe could be no less than the descriptions included here.


Name All the Animals: A Memoir
Name All the Animals: A Memoir
Author: Alison Smith
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 3.5/5 Stars.
 99
Review Date: 6/29/2006
Helpful Score: 1


very quick read.... from the perspective of someone who has lost a sibling..an insider's view of her thought process when dealing with the loss.


Night
Night
Author: Elie Wiesel, Stella Rodway (Translator)
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 4.4/5 Stars.
 70
Review Date: 1/19/2006


Oprah's latest pick...


Once upon the River Love
Once upon the River Love
Author: Andrei Makine, Geoffrey Strachan
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 3.3/5 Stars.
 2
Review Date: 10/24/2006


Andrei Makine


Plain Truth
Plain Truth
Author: Jodi Picoult
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 4.1/5 Stars.
 1114
Review Date: 10/1/2006


This Picoult book will keep you guessing right until the end. Apparently it has been made into a Lifetime Original Movie, I would like to see how they interpreted the story.


Singing Bird
Singing Bird
Author: Roisin McAuley
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 3.5/5 Stars.
 12
Review Date: 6/3/2008


WHOA! Talk about twists and turns... she waits 'til the end to get you good!


Skellig
Skellig
Author: David Almond
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 3.9/5 Stars.
 10
Review Date: 1/28/2006


from the back of the book: "Told in lyrical prose, Skeelig is a mystery, an adventure, and a family story, in which Michael learns about nature, poetry, and the healing power of love."


Slaughterhouse-Five
Slaughterhouse-Five
Author: Kurt Vonnegut
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 4/5 Stars.
 848
Review Date: 7/8/2006


I remember a friend telling me that this book was one of his favorites. I am quite sure I missed the point. So it goes.


Snow Flower and the Secret Fan
Snow Flower and the Secret Fan
Author: Lisa See
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 4/5 Stars.
 2132
Review Date: 3/18/2007
Helpful Score: 1


I read this book as a book group selection. I am trying to think what other book it reminds me of... maybe one by Amy Tan. It was very painful reading the sections relating to footbinding, but no where NEAR how painful it must haven been to endure.


The Tenth Circle
The Tenth Circle
Author: Jodi Picoult
Book Type: Hardcover
  • Currently 3.6/5 Stars.
 669
Review Date: 7/17/2006


look for the special message as you read... as per Picoult-style.. there are always twists and turns that keep you guessing..


Twilight Children : Three Voices No One Heard Until a Therapist Listened
Review Date: 7/24/2006


I love every single one of her books. This time, I think I was able to see and feel more of the frustration and sadness that one would likely feel those situations, along with the joy.


Without a Net : Middle Class and Homeless (with Kids) in America
Without a Net : Middle Class and Homeless (with Kids) in America
Author: Michelle Kennedy
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 3.5/5 Stars.
 37
Review Date: 7/26/2006
Helpful Score: 4


It reminds me in some ways of Nickel and Dimed.. except she was not doing it for research purposes.. she was in the situation for real. I think things like this happen more often than we know.. because we are afraid of what other people will think... or don't really know what to do. It was a very quick read.


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