Author: curlygeek04

Review: No Quiet Water by Shirley Miller Kamada

I had mixed feelings about this book, which I received as an advance review copy. Kamada’s novel provides a close look at what life was like for a family in the Japanese internment camps. I wish there were more stories about this, so we could have a better understanding of the terrible things that happened…

Review: Under a White Sky by Elizabeth Kolbert

I read this book for the Gaia Nature Reading challenge, and it was both fascinating and timely. Kolbert, the Pulitzer Prize winning author of The Sixth Extinction, writes about how science is being used to address some of our biggest environmental concerns, such as invasive species, carbon emissions, and global warming (at the same time, recognizing…

My Favorite Audiobooks in 2022

Wishing you all a very happy and safe holiday season! In 2022, at least half of my reading was by audiobook (occasionally I combined audio and print versions).  I generally listen to audiobooks while walking, doing household chores, and driving.  My dad lives an hour’s drive away, which lends itself to a good audiobook, provided…

Review: Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver rarely disappoints, but I was nervous about reading this adaptation of David Copperfield, a favorite classic.  Copperfield is considered to be most autobiographical of Dickens’ works, which explains why it feels much more “real” to me. I don’t always love adaptations, because they often hew so closely to names and details that the…

Review: Take My Hand by Dolen Perkins-Valdez

I picked up this book on the recommendation of Modern Mrs. Darcy, and I wasn’t disappointed. It’s a moving story of a young black nurse in the 1970s, about a real-life class action suit to address the coerced or forced sterilizations of young women of color in hospitals and institutions across the United States. Civil…

My November Reading Wrap-Up

Here we are in the last month of 2022 – and I’ll be okay seeing this year go by. November was a busy month, with two visits to see family, plus Thanksgiving. This is always a busy time at work because we have to prepare for people taking lots of time off in December, so…