MyBookBlog

 I just finished a good book. It’s called The Happiest Man on Earth - The Beautiful Life of an Auschwitz Survivor. Written by Eddie Jaku. (c. 2021) I knew this book would be difficult to read due to its subject matter. The title though? How could he be the happiest man on earth after the atrocities he saw and suffered? It is actually because of that that he’s labeled himself as such. Jaku was born Abraham Jakubowicz in Germany in 1920.  He’s Jewish. Beginning in the late 1930’s and over the next several years, through no fault of his own, he was beaten, starved, frozen and hated to within an inch of his life. His survival depended on his wits, his intelligence, and his sincere hope that he couldn’t give up no matter what. Giving up would mean that his Nazi captors would win, and he would lose the only thing they couldn’t take from him - his spirit. He was determined to get through it all.  Obviously, since he wrote this book (at 100 years old) survive he did. With everyth...

 That’s the question to be answered through The Names by Florence Knapp. This book begins with the official naming of a baby by its mother, Cora. She heads on down to the registrar’s office thinking about it. She has her nine year old daughter, Maia, with her. The baby’s name is supposed to be Gordon, after his father, in the family tradition. But does Cora want to continue that tradition? She’s not sure. What she is sure of is that she doesn’t want her baby boy to grow up to be like his father - a manipulative and abusive man. Maia, the baby’s older sister suggests they name him Bear, strong and solid but also soft and cuddly. Cora likes the name Julian, it means sky father. Since Maia means mother, maybe Cora naming the baby Julian (father?) won’t be so bad. Those are the three ‘names’ which formulate the story of this family and their lives over some thirty years.  Different paths are formulated for the family (Cora, Maia and dad Gordon) with differing outcomes depending on...

Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy - the only thing that ruined this book for me was the buzz. I don’t like to follow the crowd but I previously read Migrations and Once There Were Wolves by this author and could barely wait for her new one. To say I liked them is an understatement. They upped my reading game. They were hard to follow. (Thank goodness for Jane Kirkpatrick’s latest.) I feel like I only want to read books as good as these now.  Wow. She did it again. I think this book was even better than the other two, and that’s saying a lot. It mostly takes place on fictional Shearwater Island where the global seed vault is located. For various reasons and at various times everyone except the Salt family leave. We meet dad Dominic and his children Raff, Fen, and Orly. They are left on the island as the sole caretakers of the world’s replenishment of food and plant seeds should everything else perish.  One day Fen sees a lump in the water and retrieves it only to find it i...

 Cold As Hell by Kelley Armstrong is a mystery book. I read these types of books almost exclusively for a period of time before they all seemed to blend together. Usually someone is missing, someone gets killed or is kidnapped. I guess the difference between them is the writing and the originality of the story. With so many out there, it’s important to have one or the other, or better yet both, going for it. I’m talking about the book-a-year types. All great writers but honestly, after ten or fifteen books, how original can they be? I’ve read most of these authors books. It’s taken me until now to come around to this way of thinking. Oh sure, the plot can take place in a different state or country, the crime can be new or old, as can be the killer or victim, intentional or accidental. You have your lone investigators, small town or international police departments, male or female sluths, etc.  This is the first and only book I’ve read by this author and it seems like it might ...

To DNF or not to DNF I’m not a book author. It’s too hard. I give huge props to anyone who can write a book. Not all books are loved by all readers. Reading is a choice, something we do for pleasure. If a book isn’t bringing you the joy, action, suspense, sci-fi, romance, knowledge you’re looking for,  put it down. Pick up another. By my saying it’s okay to put down a book you’re not into, I’m not saying that it’s not written well, (or is it well written? See?) it’s just that it’s not working (for whatever reason) for you at that particular space in time. It’s okay. I used to think not finishing a book was weak. Now I see it as a strength. It’s a tough decision to put down a book you had high hopes for. If a book doesn’t work for us, it’s a disappointment; we want to like what we’re reading. But, honestly, why waste the time you could spend reading something you enjoy on one you are not. First of all, we are never going to run out of books to read. If this one isn’t holding your in...