My Reads of 2016

1. The Alderson Story: My Life as a Political Prisoner by Elizabeth Gurley Flynn
2. Loving Eleanor by Susan Wittig Albert
3. South: The story of Shackleton's last expedition 1914 - 1917 by Ernest Shackleton
4. Just Another Southern Town: Mary Church Terrell and the Struggle for Racial Justice in the Nation's Capital by Joan Quigley
5. Home to Cedar Branch (Quaker Café #2) by Brenda Bevan Remmes
6. Barack Obama: The Story by David Maraniss
7. Listening with My Heart by Angela Elwell Hunt and Heather Whitestone
8. A Wilder Rose: A Novel by Susan Wittig Albert
9. And Then All Hell Broke Loose by Richard Engel
10. Girl in the Dark by Anna Lyndsey
11. Colossus: Hoover Dam and the Making of the American Century by Michael A. Hiltzik
12. Under the Apple Tree: A Novel by Dan Wakefield
13. Directed Verdict by Randy Singer
14. Love Without End (Kings Meadow Romance, #1) by Robin Lee Hatcher
15. Blind Descent: Surviving Alone and Blind on Mount Everest by Brian Dickinson
16. A Deeper Darkness (Samantha Owens #1) by J. T. Ellison
17. Baby Girl (Memory House Series Book Four) by Bette Lee Crosby
18. The Silk Brief (The Silk Tales Book 1) by John Burton
19. Miracles on the Water by Tom Nagorski
20. 81 Days Below Zero by Brian Murphy
21. Untraceable (Tracers, #1) by Laura Griffin
22. Unspeakable (Tracers, #2) by Laura Griffin
23. The Alternate-Day Diet by James D. Johnson
24. Unforgivable (Tracers, #3) by Laura Griffin
25. He Killed Them All: Robert Durst and My Quest For Justice by Jeanine Pirro
26. Chasing the Devil: My Twenty-Year Quest to Capture the Green River Killer by Sheriff David Reichert
27. Stolen in the Night by Patricia Macdonald
28. Disappearing in Plain Sight (Crater Lake Series Book 1) by Francis Guenette
29. The Cost: My Life on a Terrorist Hit List by Ali Husnain with J Chester
30. Daughter of Australia by Harmony Verna
31. Titanic, First Accounts by Nicholas Wade and Tim Maltin
32. Blood Defense (Samantha Brinkman Book 1) by Marcia Clark
33. Exposed (Tough Justice #1) by Carla Cassidy
34. The San Francisco Earthquake by Gordon Thomas and Max Morgan-Witts
35. Watched (Tough Justice #2) by Tyler Anne Snell
36. A Mother's Reckoning: Living in the Aftermath of Tragedy by Sue Klebold
37. The Good Girl by Mary Kubica
38. Burned (Tough Justice #3) by Carol Ericson
39. Trapped (Tough Justice #4)by Gail Barrett
40. Twisted (Tough Justice #5) by Gail Barrett
41. Ambushed (Tough Justice #6) by Carol Ericson
42. Betrayed (Tough Justice #7) by Tyler Anne Snell
43. Hunted (Tough Justice #8) by Carla Cassidy
44. Oklahoma City by Andrew Gumbel and Roger G. Charles
45. Into the Wilderness (Wilderness, Book 1) by Sara Donati
46. Executing the Rosenbergs: Death and Diplomacy in a Cold War World by Lori Clune
47. The Obsession by Nora Roberts
48. The Gilded Hour by Sara Donati
49. The Fortune by Michael Korda
50. Deadly Hunt (Strong Women, Extraordinary Situations #1) by Margaret Daley
51. Medical Judgment by Richard L. Mabry
52. The Punishments by JB Winsor
53. The Other Side of Suffering by John Ramsey and Marie Chapian
54. The New York City Triangle Factory Fire by Joel Sosinsky, Adrienne Sosin, Rob Linné, and Leigh Benin
55. Guns, Democracy, and the Insurrectionist Idea by Joshua Horwitz and Casey Anderson
56. The Red Tent by Anita Diamant
57. The Last Time She Saw Him (Julia Gooden Mystery #1) by Jane Haseldine
58. The Girls: A Novel by Emma Cline
59. The Lions of Little Rock by Kristin Levine
60. The Last Stand: Custer, Sitting Bull, and the Battle of the Little Bighorn by Nathaniel Philbrick
61. Seven Tears for Apollo by Phyllis A. Whitney
62. Murder In The Family by Burl Barer
63. America's First Daughter by Stephanie Dray and Laura Kamoie
64. The Personal History of Rachel DuPree by Ann Weisgarber
65. The Woman in the Photo A Novel by Mary Hogan
66. The Legacy of Ruth Bader Ginsburg by Scott Dodson
67. The Run of His Life: The People v. O. J. Simpson by Jeffrey Toobin
68. Magnificent Desolation: The Long Journey Home from the Moon by Buzz Aldrin and Ken Abraham
69. Scapegoat: A Flight Crew’s Journey from Heroes to Villains to Redemption by Emilio Corsetti III
70. A Sniper in the Tower: The Charles Whitman Murders by Gary M. Lavergne
71. The Vigil by Marian P. Merritt
72. Be Afraid (Morgans of Nashville, #2) by Mary Burton
73. The Winds of War by Herman Wouk
74. American Heiress: The Wild Saga of the Kidnapping, Crimes and Trial of Patty Hearst by Jeffrey Toobin
75. The Yanks Are Starving: A Novel of the Bonus Army by Glen Craney
76. Rushing Waters: A Novel by Danielle Steel
77. Bishop Street by Rene D. Schultz
78. Inside the Clinton White House by Russell L. Riley
79. The Silent Sister (Riley MacPherson, #1) by Diane Chamberlain
80. The Poisoned Well: Empire and Its Legacy in the Middle East by Roger Hardy
81. Irena's Children: The Extraordinary Story of the Woman Who Saved 2,500 Children from the Warsaw Ghetto by Tilar J. Mazzeo
82. The Apartment: A Novel by Danielle Steel
83. The Amityville Horor by Jay Anson
84. The Carpenter's Lady by Barbara Delinsky
85. Behind Closed Doors by B. A. Paris
86. This Is Where It Ends by Marieke Nijkamp
87. In the Woods (Dublin Murder Squad #1) by Tana French
88. TrumpNation: The Art of Being The Donald by Timothy L. O'Brien
89. Cold Ridge (Cold Ridge U.S. Marshals, #1) by Carla Neggers
90. Night's Landing (Cold Ridge U.S. Marshals, #2) by Carla Neggers
91. The Martian: A Novel by Andy Weir
92. The Perfect Girl: A Novel by Gilly MacMillan
93. Ordeal by Hunger: The Story of the Donner Party by George R. Stewart
94. Give Us the Ballot: The Modern Struggle for Voting Rights in America by Ari Berman
95. Sleep No More by Susan Crandall
96. Hitler's Cross: How the Cross Was Used to Promote the Nazi Agenda by Erwin W. Lutzer
97. Sisters in Law: Sandra Day O'Connor, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and the Friendship That Changed Everything by Linda Hirshman
98. A Light in the Dark by Marla K. Benjamin
99. The Mistletoe Secret: A Novel by Richard Paul Evans
100. Countdown to Pearl Harbor: The Twelve Days to the Attack by Steve Twomey
101. The Hostage's Daughter: A Story of Family, Madness, and the Middle East by Sulome Anderson
102. Split Second (Sean King and Michelle Maxwell #1) by David Baldacci
103. They Flew into Oblivion by Gian J. Quasar
104. The Christmas Cottage (The Christmas Cottage #1) by Samantha Chase
105. Honor Bound: My Journey to Hell and Back with Amanda Knox by Raffaele Sollecito and Andrew Gumbel
106. Bev: A Novel by Andrea Williams and Matty Rich
107. The Good Goodbye by Carla Buckley

Lynn's List (December 30, 2016)

Each Friday I publish a list of titles I have come across, during the past week, that I find interesting. Happy reading! Wishing each of you a happy, healthy and blessed 2017!

• Poisoned Dreams: A True Story of Murder, Money, and Family Secrets by Jim Manchester and A. W. Gray
• National Velvet by Enid Bagnold
• All the Gallant Men: An American Sailor's Firsthand Account of Pearl Harbor by Donald Stratton and Ken Gire
• If She Only Knew by Lisa Jackson
• Unfinished Business by Nora Roberts
• Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption by Bryan Stevenson
• Dreamland: The True Tale Of America's Opiate Epidemic by Sam Quinones
• Meant to Be by Jenna Harte
• Damaged by Jody Holford
• Death in the Mines: Disasters and Rescues in the Anthracite Coal Fields of Pennsylvania by J. Stuart Richards
• Nine for Nine: The Pennsylvania Mine Rescue Miracle by Andrew Morton
• Evidence of Love: A True Story of Passion and Death in the Suburbs by John Bloom and Jim Atkinson
• Sky Walking: An Astronaut's Memoir by Tom Jones
• John Glenn: A Memoir by Nick Taylor and John Glenn
• Where's Stanley? by Donna Fasano
• Deep in the Heart by Sharon Sala
• Touch the Face of God by Robert Vaughan
• Close to the Broken Hearted by Michael Hiebert
• Take Two by Jim Cangany
• Woman in the Mists: The Story of Dian Fossey and the Mountain Gorillas of Africa by Farley Mowat
• Land of a Thousand Hills: My Life in Rwanda by Ann Howard Halsey and Rosamond Halsey Carr
• In the Kingdom of Gorillas: The Quest to Save Rwanda's Mountain Gorillas by Bill Weber and Amy Vedder
• House of Silence by Sarah Barthel
• Titus Returns by Amy Lillard
• Field of Fire by Marc Cameron
• The Twilight Wife by A. J. Banner
• The Ice Beneath Her: A Novel by Elizabeth Clark Wessel and Camilla Grebe
• Watership Down: A Novel by Richard Adams
• American Amnesia: How the War on Government Led Us to Forget What Made America Prosper by Jacob S. Hacker and Paul Pierson
• The Ginger Tree by Oswald Wynd
• Blinded By The Trees by Kira Chase
• BEV: A Novel by Andrea Williams and Matty Rich
• When Bad Christians Happen to Good People by Dave Burchett
• Murder Is Binding (Booktown Mystery #1) by Lorna Barrett
• A Year at the Star and Sixpence by Holly Hepburn
• The Good Goodbye by Carla Buckley

Review: BEV: A Novel by Andrea Williams and Matty Rich

Title: BEV: A Novel
Authors: Andrea Williams and Matty Rich
Publisher: Gallery Books/Karen Hunter Publishing
Publication Date: June 14, 2016
Edition: Kindle (272 pages)
Categories: Literature and Fiction, Historical Fiction, Civil Rights

BEV: A Novel by Andrea Williams

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


BEV: A Novel is based on the true life example of Beverly Luther. Comfortable with her life in New York as an activist in the civil rights movement in 1965, Bev decides to go to Selma, Alabama to participate in the march to Montgomery. She leaves behind her ordered life and experiences life in the south, as lived by African Americans, as she works to make a difference in the fight for equality and civil rights there. She is confronted by the KKK, violent opposition to change, racism and desperation, but also hope for a better future.

This book was especially poignant for me because of the election results of 2016, and the very real possibility of the impending backslide in the area of civil and human rights in our country. The authors did a magnificent job of weaving together events of the time and the speeches of various public figures and personalities such as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and President Johnson's address to a joint session of Congress as he spoke about the Voting Rights Act he was submitting for their consideration.

I am so pleased to have had the opportunity to read and benefit from this book in enumerable ways. Advocacy for civil rights and social justice are two continuing efforts I am passionate about. I urge anyone who is interested in the subject to read this book. If everyone would do so, perhaps it may go far to defeat the grip of racism that seems to once again be dogging our politics and inhumane treatment of one another.

Review: Honor Bound: My Journey to Hell and Back with Amanda Knox by Raffaele Sollecito and Andrew Gumbel

Title: Honor Bound: My Journey to Hell and Back with Amanda Knox
Authors: Raffaele Sollecito and Andrew Gumbel
Publisher: Gallery Books
Publication Date: September 18, 2012
Edition: ebook (288 pages)
Categories: Nonfiction, Autobiography, True Crime

Honor Bound: My Journey to Hell and Back with Amanda Knox by Raffaele Sollecito

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Honor Bound is a true crime story that reads like fiction. Amanda Knox, an American college student studying in Italy, and Raffaele Sollecito, her Italian boyfriend, found themselves wrongly accused of murdering Meredith Kercher, one of Amanda's housemates. As a result of their conviction, each spent four years in an Italian prison.

This book details their unbelievable journey through the Italian justice system, the prosecutorial indiscretions and fabrication of evidence, and the Knox and Sollecito families fight for the release of Amanda and Raffaele.

I followed this case and the media sensation it generated, and have read a few other related books. What sets this book apart, for me, is its candor, forthrightness and detail.

Review: The Christmas Cottage (The Christmas Cottage #1) by Samantha Chase

Title: The Christmas Cottage (The Christmas Cottage #1)
Author: Samantha Chase
Publisher: Sourcebooks
Publication Date: November 26, 2012
Edition: ebook
Categories: Literature, Fiction and Romance

The Christmas Cottage by Samantha Chase

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Lacey Quinn has loved her best friend's brother ever since she was fourteen years old. But she isn't the one getting married now. She is called upon to decorate what her best friend believes to be a magical cottage, even though Lacey believes none of that. And yet ...

This is a delightful Christmas romance. An easy read that makes you believe in a little magic and happily ever after, just this once.

Lynn's List (December 23, 2016) Christmas Edition

Each Friday I publish a list of titles I have come across, during the past week, that I find interesting. Happy reading! Wishing each of you a Merry Christmas. Happy holidays to one and all.

• The Christmas Train by David Baldacci
• The Christmas Train by Rexanne Becnel
• The Midnight Before Christmas by William Bernhardt
• A Quaker Christmas: Four-in-One Collection by Lauralee Bliss, Rachael Phillips, Ramona K. Cecil, Joann Robisheaux, and Claire Sanders
• The Christmas Cottage by Samantha Chase
• Christmas Bells: A Novel by Jennifer Chiaverini
• Amish Christmas at North Star by Mindy Starns Clark, Cindy Woodsmall, Katie Ganshert, Amanda Flower, and Emily Clark
• A Colleen Coble Christmas Collection by Colleen Coble
• Christmas Connections: Miracles, One Good Deed At A Time by Halene Dahlstrom
• Moonlight and Mistletoe by Maggie Davis
• The Mistletoe Promise by Richard Paul Evans
• The Mistletoe Secret: A Novel by Richard Paul Evans
• Coming Home for Christmas by Marie Ferrarella
• The Christmas Murders by Jonathan Goodman
• His Christmas Bride-to-Be by Abigail Gordon
• Christmas at Promise Lodge by Charlotte Hubbard
• The Christmas Cradle by Charlotte Hubbard
• An Amish Christmas Quilt by Charlotte Hubbard Jennifer Beckstrand and Kelly Long
• A Big Sky Christmas by William W. Johnstone and J. A. Johnstone
• Christmas Eve at Friday Harbor by Lisa Kleypas
• The Christmas Candle by Max Lucado
• Twelve Days of Christmas: A Christmas Novel by Debbie Macomber
• Mistletoe Cottage by Debbie Mason
• The McKettricks Christmas Box Set by Linda Lael Miller
• A Christmas Killing by Richard Montanari
• Naomi's Christmas by Marta Perry
• Silver Bells by Luanne Rice
• Holiday Wishes by Nora Roberts
• An Amish Christmas and Family Blessings by Anna Schmidt and Patricia Davids
• Susan Wiggs Lakeshore Chronicles Christmas Collection by Susan Wiggs
• The Angel of Forest Hill: An Amish Christmas Romance by Cindy Woodsmall

Comfort Books

This time of year I often reread some of my favorite books, or, as I refer to them, "comfort" books. I have many of them and they are varied in subject matter and content.

Some are special to me because I read them at times in my life that I look back on fondly. Others are special because my mom and I shared them and read them together. And, still others are books that helped me cope with stressful events in life.

Reading is such a comfort to me. It is the one thing in my life that has not changed over the years. Books have served me well as good companions, ones I can learn from and enjoy. Relaxing with a book I've read previously is the same as getting together with an old friend--one I am totally comfortable with--and one I know will not change.

Lynn's List (December 16, 2016)

Each Friday I publish a list of titles I have come across, during the past week, that I find interesting. Happy reading!

• Dear Sarah: Letters Home from a Soldier of the Iron Brigade by Coralou Peel Lassen
• A Covenant with Death by Stephen Becker
• Trump Revealed: An American Journey of Ambition, Ego, Money, and Power by Marc Fisher and Michael Kranish
• A Generation on Trial by Alistair Cooke
• Ten Tiny Breaths by K. A. Tucker
• One Tiny Lie by K. A. Tucker
• Stranger in Paradise by Eileen Goudge
• The Second Silence by Eileen Goudge
• One Last Dance by Eileen Goudge
• Blessing in Disguise by Eileen Goudge
• Garden of Lies by Eileen Goudge
• The Diary by Eileen Goudge
• Wish Come True by Eileen Goudge
• A Death in California by Joan Barthel
• Pearl Harbor: Final Judgement by Henry C. Clausen and Bruce Lee
• No Resting Place by William Humphrey
• Farther Off from Heaven by William Humphrey
• Bitter Remains: A Custody Battle, A Gruesome Crime, and the Mother Who Paid the Ultimate Price by Diane Fanning
• Her Majesty by Robert Hardman
• Our Revolution: A Future to Believe In by Bernie Sanders
• Passing by Nella Larsen
• The Story of the Amistad by Emma Gelders Sterne
• A Girl of the Limberlost by Gene Stratton-Porter
• Time Out by Jim Cangany
• Term Limits by Vince Flynn
• The Tenth Justice by Brad Meltzer
• By Order of the President (Presidential Agent #1) by W.E.B. Griffin
• Project Quick Find: Memoirs of a U.S. Navy SEAL Training Sea Lions by Michael P. Wood
• Cries in the Night by Debra Webb
• Breakwater by Carla Neggers
• Four Corners of Night by Craig Holden
• The Water Is Wide by Pat Conroy
• MLK: An American Legacy: Bearing the Cross, Protest at Selma, and The FBI and Martin Luther King. Jr. by David J. Garrow
• The Last Viking: The Life of Roald Amundsen by Stephen R. Bown
• The Crisis Years: Kennedy and Khrushchev, 1960–1963 by Michael Beschloss
• Mayday: Eisenhower, Khrushchev, and the U-2 Affair by Michael Beschloss
• Kennedy and Roosevelt: The Uneasy Alliance by Michael Beschloss and James Macgregor Burns
• At the Highest Levels: The Inside Story of the End of the Cold War by Michael Beschloss and Strobe Talbott
• They Called Him Stonewall by Burke Davis
• To Appomattox by Burke Davis
• Sherman's March by Burke Davis
• The Long Surrender by Burke Davis
• Marine! by Burke Davis
• Faithful Are the Wounds by May Sarton
• The Birth of a Grandfather by May Sarton
• Endgame by May Sarton
• Encore by May Sarton
• The Small Room by May Sarton
• Hannah's Half-Breed by Heidi Betts
• Quantico (Quantico #1) by Greg Bear
• Custody by Manju Kapur
• The Immigrant by Manju Kapur
• Home by Manju Kapur
• To Sir With Love by E. R. Braithwaite
• Paid Servant by E. R. Braithwaite
• Reluctant Neighbors by E. R. Braithwaite
• Honorary White by E. R. Braithwaite
• Twice Blessed by Jo Ann Ferguson
• Holiday Wishes by Nora Roberts
• Best Friends by Martha Moody
• The Innocents by Margery Sharp
• Touched by Fire by Greg Dinallo
• Spectrum by Alan Jacobson
• Dark Rage by Lowell Cauffiel
• Honor Bound: My Journey to Hell and Back with Amanda Knox by Raffaele Sollecito and Andrew Gumbel
• A Love Made New by Kathleen Fuller

Review: They Flew into Oblivion by Gian J. Quasar

Title: They Flew into Oblivion
Author: Gian J. Quasar
Publisher: Brodwyn, Moor & Doane
Publication Date: November 3rd 2013
Edition: Kindle
Category: nonfiction

They Flew into Oblivion by Gian Quasar

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


World War II was over. In December, 1945, many military personnel were awaiting their discharge orders. But on the afternoon of December 5, 1945, 14 men took off on a routine training mission off the coast of Florida, never to be seen again.

The author examines this flight, radio transmissions, actions of military personnel and the subsequent search for the missing men and planes, as well as the findings of the Board of Inquiry established to find an explanation for the disappearance of flight 19.

This was a most interesting read, and worth the purchase of the Kindle copy.

Review: Split Second (Sean King and Michelle Maxwell #1) by David Baldacci

Title: Split Second (Sean King and Michelle Maxwell #1)
Author: David Baldacci
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Publication Date: May 1, 2007
Edition: ebook
Category: nonfiction

Split Second by David Baldacci

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Michelle Maxwell and Sean King have the Secret Service in common. Each has distinguished themselves through scandal, and yet they team up to solve a mystery that brings them and their relationship with the Secret Service together in a complex set of circumstances.

David Baldacci has woven together a great mystery filled with suspense. Each time I thought I had some of the puzzle pieces figured out, I'd be back to square one again. I wanted to keep reading and figure it all out. I will definitely be reading the other books in the Series.

Lynn's List (December 9, 2016)

Each Friday I publish a list of titles I have come across, during the past week, that I find interesting. Happy reading!

• Freedom 7 by Colin Burgess
• A Beautiful Place to Die: Martha’s Vineyard Mystery #1 by Philip Craig
• All the Missing Girls: A Novel by Megan Miranda
• The New Neighbor by Leah Stewart
• The Means by Douglas Brunt
• Seven Deadly Sins: My Pursuit of Lance Armstrong by David Walsh
• Out of the Darkness by Tina Nash
• Cover Her Face by P. D. James
• Wildflower Hill by Kimberley Freeman
• Sophia's War: A Tale of the Revolution by Avi
• Rise the Dark by Michael Koryta
• Lethal Action by Rachel Dylan
• Falling For Home by Jody Holford
• The Victim by Saul Bellow and Norman Rush
• Informed Consent by Sandra Glahn
• O Little Town by Don Reid
• The Real Enemy by Kathy Herman
• Jaded by Varina Denman
• A Beautiful Fall by Chris Coppernoll
• Mansfield Park by Jane Austen
• The Evil Shepherd by E. Phillips Oppenheim
• The Sacrifice by Adele Wiseman
• River of Time: My Descent into Depression and How I Emerged with Hope by Naomi Judd and Marcia Wilkie
• Fighting to Be Free by Kirsty Moseley
• Worth Fighting For by Kirsty Moseley
• How Will I Know You?: A Novel by Jessica Treadway
• Love, Alice by Barbara Davis
• Stand Tall: Fighting for My Life, Inside and Outside the Ring by Dewey Bozella
• The Kill Box: A Jamie Sinclair Novel by Nichole Christoff
• The Kill Sign: A Jamie Sinclair Novel by Nichole Christoff
• Ocean of Insight: A Sailor's Voyage from Despair to Hope by Heather Lyn Mann
• Bella Luna by Sharon Struth
• Everywhere That Mary Went (Rosado and Associates #1) by Lisa Scottoline
• His Final Battle: The Last Months of Franklin Roosevelt by Joseph Lelyveld
• A Matter of Honor: Pearl Harbor: Betrayal, Blame, and a Family's Quest for Justice by Anthony Summers and Robbyn Swan
• The Edge of Madness by Michael Dobbs
• Split Second (Sean King and Michelle Maxwell #1) by David Baldacci
• Zero Day (John Puller #1) by David Baldacci
• Dear Amy: A Novel by Helen Callaghan
• The Christmas Cottage by Samantha Chase
• Run by Kody Keplinger

Review: The Hostage's Daughter: A Story of Family, Madness, and the Middle East by Sulome Anderson

Title: The Hostage's Daughter: A Story of Family, Madness, and the Middle East
Author: Sulome Anderson
Publisher: Dey Street Books
Publication Date: October 4, 2016
Edition: ebook (288 pages)
Category: nonfiction

The Hostage's Daughter: A Story of Family, Madness, and the Middle East by Sulome Anderson

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Terry Anderson was taken hostage in Lebanon before his daughter, Sulome Anderson, was born. She was a seven-year-old little girl before she met him, when he was released by his captors, in 1991. The Hostage's Daughter tells the story of her childhood, her reunion with her father, her search to learn who kidnapped him and why, and finally of her making peace with him and herself. This book also gives the reader a better understanding of the conflicts and the complex political climate in the Middle East.

The honesty in this book brought me to tears many times. It is a story of real courage in so many ways. A great read.

Review: Countdown to Pearl Harbor: The Twelve Days to the Attack by Steve Twomey

Title: Countdown to Pearl Harbor: The Twelve Days to the Attack
Author:Steve Twomey
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Publication Date: November 1, 2016
Edition: ebook (384 pages)
Category: nonfiction

Countdown to Pearl Harbor: The Twelve Days to the Attack by Steve Twomey

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Countdown to Pearl Harbor: The Twelve Days to the Attack by Steve Twomey is the most interesting book, to date, I have read about the attack on Pearl Harbor. The reason for this is that Mr. Twomey writes in great detail about the personalities of the people most closely concerned with the attack--what they knew, how they learned about events leading up to December 7, 1941, and what they did or did not act on when information came to them. I found the account fascinating.

My parents were both adults at the time of the Pearl Harbor attack, so I grew up on stories they and others in my family told about where they were and what they were doing when they learned of it. All those years later, the feelings still ran deep and the emotion came to the surface. I think that is one of the reasons I have such an interest in World War II. In December of 1988, I had the privilege of visiting the Arizona Memorial. It is an experience I will never forget. The smell of oil is still there, and the atmosphere is one of reverence.

I highly recommend this book if you are interested in the events and happenings in the days leading up to the attack, and the personalities of some intimately involved with it as well as some in the armed services of the United States and Japan.

Lynn's List (December 2, 2016)

Each Friday I publish a list of titles I have come across, during the past week, that I find interesting. Happy reading!

• The Soul of the Indian by Charles Alexander Eastman
• Moses: A Human Life by Avivah Gottlieb Zornberg
• War Diaries, 1939-1945 by Sarah Death and Astrid Lindgren
• One Perfect Summer by Paige Toon
• Lizzie of Langley Street by Carol Rivers
• The Fight for Lizzie Flowers by Carol Rivers
• The Lady in the Veil by Leah Fleming
• Cold: Extreme Adventures at the Lowest Temperatures on Earth by Ranulph Fiennes
• Open Season by Linda Howard
• Billie Holiday: The Musician and the Myth by John Szwed
• The Awakening by Kate Chopin
• Black Beauty by Anna Sewell
• How to Be Secular: A Call to Arms for Religious Freedom by Jacques Berlinerblau
• Liberty Bell 7 by Colin Burgess
• Scenes of Passion by Suzanne Brockmann
• Eleanor Roosevelt, Volume 1: The Early Years, 1884-1933 by Blanche Wiesen Cook
• Eleanor Roosevelt, Volume 2: The Defining Years, 1933-1938 by Blanche Wiesen Cook
• Eleanor Roosevelt, Volume 3: The War Years and After, 1939-1962 by Blanche Wiesen Cook
• Lone Wolf by Sara Driscoll
• More Than A Promise by Amy Lillard
• Death in Eden by Paul Heald
• Saving CeeCee Honeycutt by Beth Hoffman
• The Stonecutter's Daughter by Janet Woods
• Herbert Hoover: A Life by Glen Jeansonne
• When All The Girls Have Gone by Jayne Ann Krentz
• Out of Passau by Anna Elisabeth Rosmus
• Wintergreen by Anna Elisabeth Rosmus
• In the Heat of the Night: The Original Virgil Tibbs Novel by John Ball and John Ridley
• Extraordinary, Ordinary People by Condoleezza Rice
• No Higher Honour by Condoleezza Rice
• The Mistletoe Secret: A Novel by Richard Paul Evans
• The Strength of a People by Richard D. Brown
• A Life Apart: An Autobiography by Prabha Khaitan. Translatedby Ira Pande
• The Family by Mario Puzo
• The Christmas Murders by Jonathan Goodman
• The Forgotten Girls by Sara Blaedel
• The Killing Forest hby Sara Blaedel
• Call Me Princess by Sara Blaedel
• Sunday Kind of Love by Dorothy Garlock
• Mayday by Nelson Demille and Thomas Block

Review: The Mistletoe Secret: A Novel by Richard Paul Evans

Title: The Mistletoe Secret: A Novel
Author: Richard Paul Evans
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Publication Date: November 15, 2016
Edition: ebook (320 pages"
Series: Mistletoe Collection
Category: fiction

The Mistletoe Secret by Richard Paul Evans

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


The holidays can be such a lonely time for so many, and Richard Paul Evans lays before the reader two people who are lonely and looking for love. Both Alex and Aria are searching--one through a blog--and the other by reading it. This is a heartwarming story of two people and their search for love, made especially poignant because of the time of year.