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Review: From the Corner of the Oval by Beck Dorey-Stein
This is not your grandma’s White House biography. Non fiction is not a genre that I read a whole lot of. Non fiction—especially biographies etc—aren’t not my thing, but ever once in a while a non fiction book comes up that captures my eye and this was one of those books. The summary promised the most random story—a woman lands a job at the White House via Craig’s List. Yes you read that right. Craig’s List. The White House. Stenographer for the President. Yes—THE POTUS. What the actual *&%????? Sold. I was absolutely onboard with this book! In 2012, Beck Dorey-Stein was just scraping by in DC when a posting…
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Special Feature: Conan Doyle for the Defense: The True Story of a Sensational British Murder, a Quest for Justice, and the World’s Most Famous Detective Writer by Margalit Fox
I think it’s safe to say that most of us have heard of Sherlock Holmes and his famous creator, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. So what do we know about Conan Doyle beyond his famous detective? For me—nothing. Conan Doyle was clearly a crime buff and had a unique mind for solving mysteries but I didn’t know that he actually helped solve a real life murder! When this book came up for review, I was so bummed that I couldn’t fit it into my summer reading—fortunately I am going to review it in October for my mystery month so be watching for that. I couldn’t let the summer go by and…
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Review: Mumpreneur on Fire Vol 2 by Estelle Keeber
Earlier this year I was fortunate enough to read and review Mumpreneur on Fire by Estelle Keeber. I first met the Mums In Business Association on Instagram and I love all the things they do to help support working mothers. The first book was an Amazon best seller which is pretty incredible! I was thrilled when they asked if I wanted to read the upcoming installment of Mumpreneur on Fire Vol 2. I was happy to review it because each of the stories are so powerful and inspiring. This book is similar in format to the first volume–a number of women each telling their story about how they got into business…
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Review: Our Lady of Guadalupe: Mother of the Civilization of Love by Carl A. Anderson, Eduardo Chávez
I don’t often read a lot of nonfiction but ever once in a while a book catches my eye that I simply must read and that’s what happened with this book. Our Lady of Guadalupe’s feast day is Dec 12 and even though I am a Catholic myself (albeit a new one), I wasn’t very familiar with anything to do with her. I first started becoming interested in Our Lady back when I was living in Arizona over ten years ago. In Arizona she is huge as there is a large Hispanic population there. It was amazing to see the devotional level to Our Lady yet as a non-Hispanic person,…
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Review: Mumpreneur on Fire by Estelle Keeber
Like many mom’s the decision to stay home or return to work was agonizing. It was a topic of discussion in our house for months after my little boy was born. Like many mom’s I returned to work after 3 months maternity leave but it was awful. So much so, that my husband and I made some sacrifices so I could eventually stay home full time. It’s hard only having one income and I often find myself wondering how other mom’s do it. I am personally not crafty so cottage industries are out for me, and I am terrible at selling things so direct sales are also out. I am…
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Special Feature and Q&A: Coming of Age: The Sexual Awakening of Margaret Mead by Deborah Beatriz Blum
Though I have a Master’s in American History, I rarely read biographies. I don’t know if that’s because I’ve spent so much of my academic career reading history books and researching topics….but when I sit down to read I like reading fiction….preferably with history. Now that said, I do on occasion read biographies or nonfiction if the subject sounds interesting etc. I was so sad that I couldn’t fit this book into my review schedule this summer because it sounds like one of those books that would be right up my alley! So instead I decided to do a special feature complete with a Q & A from the author…
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Review: The Borden Murders: Lizzie Borden and the Trial of the Century by Sarah Miller
On August 4, 1892, Andrew and Abby Borden were murdered in their home in Fall River, Massachusetts in a most gruesome way…..someone took a hatchet to their skulls. And the prime suspect, their daughter Lizzie Borden. The story quickly became the ‘story of the century’. There was no concrete evidence, but rather a lot of circumstantial evidence against Lizzie…..but enough that she was arrested for the crimes. The trial that took place was front page news and was labeled ‘sensational’ by the press. But what was even more sensational was that Lizzie was found not guilty. This book follows the murder, trial, and aftermath of one of histories most shocking…
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Review: Home Fires: The Story of the Women’s Institute in the Second World War by Julie Summers
I am a sucker for anything about WWI or WWII and women! This book totally caught my eye from the title alone and I knew instantly that I had to read it! Julie Summers has written a lot on the subject of women and WWII especially (I have my eye on one of her other books, Fashion on the Ration, as well!) and her book Jambusters (AKA Home Fires) was the inspiration for the new PBS series Home Fires. This book focuses on what was happening at home while the boys were away a war. In towns and villages across Great Britain, ordinary women were playing a vital role in their country s…
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Review: Wilkie Collins: A Brief Life by Peter Ackroyd
Biographies and non fiction are always such an interesting genre for me. It must be such a challenge trying to research a person or subject so famous or well known and still be able to bring something ‘new’ to the table. Not to mention write a book that doesn’t read like a boring history timeline with a bunch of dates and milestones in a person’s life. So I am always intrigued when non fiction and/or biographies come across my nightstand for review, if the person or subject interests me I usually give it a go. Wilkie Collins has been a very interesting literary figure for me since I read Drood by…
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Announcement: Winner BLACK DIAMONDS by Catherine Bailey
And the winner of BLACK DIAMONDS by Catherine Bailey is….. Anne (commented on blog post) The winner will be notified via email. Thank you to everyone who entered and a huge thank you to the publisher for making this giveaway possible!