Book Reviews
In addition to this archive of all of my book reviews, my Reading List is searchable by title, author, and tag of all of the books that I have reviewed as well as books I’d like to read. There will you find book details, book cover, a short synopsis, and links to my book reviews.
FICTION
Adult
- Standing Still by Kelly Simmons
- The Next Thing On My List by Jill Smolinksi (Come Share Your Life List!)
- Haunting Bombay by Shilpa Agarwal
- Prayers for Sale by Sandra Dallas
- A Disobedient Girl by Ru Freeman
- Wife of the Gods, An Inspector Darko Dawson Mystery by Kwei Quartey
- The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows - Review and Giveaway
- Pope Joan by Donna Woolfolk Cross Review (And How You Can Be Flown Out to the Movie Premiere!)
- The Actor and the Housewife by Shannon Hale (and Shannon Singing . . . Karaoke?!)
- The Blue Notebook by James A. Levine
- Losing Kei by Suzanne Kamata
- The Secret Keeper by Paul Harris
- The Little Giant of Aberdeen County by Tiffany Baker
- Down to a Sunless Sea by Mathias B. Freese
- The Mechanics of Falling and Other Stories by Catherine Brady
- Everyone is Beautiful by Katherine Center (and a Giveaway!)
- Matrimony by Joshua Henkin (And a Giveaway!)
- The Only True Genius in the Family by Jennie Nash (And a Giveaway!)
- Plain Truth by Jodi Picoult
- Ruby Among Us by Tina Ann Forkner
- Mermaids in the Basement by Michael Lee West
- The Handmaid and the Carpenter by Elizabeth Berg
- Holidays on Ice by David Sedaris
- Angela and the Baby Jesus by Frank McCourt
- The Romantics by Galt Niederhoffer
- The Lucky One by Nicholas Sparks
- Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay
- The Last Beach Bungalow by Jennie Nash
- Capote in Kansas, A Ghost Story by Kim Powers
- The 19th Wife by David Ebershoff
- Janeology by Karen Harrington
- The Best Place to Be by Lesley Dormen
- A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
- Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
- Saturday by Ian McEwan
- The First Hurt, Stories by Rachel Sherman
- The Leper Compound by Paula Nangle
- Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress by Dai Sijie
- Quotes from To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
- When the Emperor Was Divine by Julie Otsuka
- Quotes from The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
- The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho and a Confession
- The Smart One by Ellen Meister
- The Cellist of Sarajevo by Steven Galloway
- Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
- Love Walked In by Marisa de los Santos
- The Bright Side of Disaster by Katherine Center
- The Host by Stephenie Meyer
- Briar Rose by Jane Yolen
- Keeper and Kid by Edward Hardy and a Giveaway
- Sky Burial by Xinran
- The True Story of Hansel and Gretel by Louise Murphy
- Change of Heart by Jodi Picoult
- The Fiction Class by Susan Breen
- Bee Season by Myla Goldberg
- The Tenth Circle by Jodi Picoult
- The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
- The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith
- Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult
- The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards and a GIVEWAY
- Austenland by Shannon Hale
- Jasmine by Bharati Mukherjee
- If You Read Only One Book This Year, Let it Be This One
- Slow Man by J.M. Coetzee
- A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini
- How Come Good Literature Has to be Ruined by Bad Sex?
- Christmas Books by Richard Paul Evans
- The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield
Young Adult
- Everything is Fine by Ann Dee Ellis
- Climbing the Stairs by Padma Venkatraman
- Girl in the Arena by Lise Haines
- Once Was Lost by Sara Zarr (Including Video from Launch Party)
- Hush by Jacqueline Woodson
- Purple Heart by Patricia McCormick
- I Hadn't Mean to Tell You This by Jacqueline Woodson
- Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins (Again Not Really a Review - But Rather Me Geeking Out On Release Day!) & Where You Can Win a Copy with Much Swag
- Because I Am Furniture by Thalia Chaltas
- Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher
- Miracle's Boys by Jacqueline Woodson
- Feathered by Laura Kasischke
- I Know It's Over by C.K Kelly Martin
- Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins (a preview of sorts)
- The Chosen One by Carol Lynch Williams: A Review, a Reading, and a Signed ARC Giveaway!
- The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
- Emiko Superstar by Mariko Tamaki, Illustrated by Steve Rolston
- Chiggers by Hope Larson
- Fade by Lisa McMann
- Something, Maybe by Elizabeth Scott
- Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson
- Letters from a Slave Girl, The Story of Harriet Jacobs by Mary E. Lyons
- The Way He Lived by Emily Wing Smith
- The Slave Dancer by Paula Fox
- Nightjohn by Gary Paulsen
- The Lightning Thief, Book One of Percy Jackson & The Olympians by Rick Riordan
- Sister Wife by Shelley Hrdlitschka
- Wake by Lisa McMann
- Kiki Strike: Inside the Shadow City by Kirsten Miller
- Little Brother by Cory Doctorow
- The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart
- The Patron Saint of Butterflies by Cecilia Galante
- Identical by Ellen Hopkins
- Lessons From a Dead Girl by Jo Knowles
- The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E. Pearson
- I Heart You, You Haunt Me by Lisa Schroeder
- The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare
- Living Dead Girl by Elizabeth Scott
- Abandoned Book, X-Indian Chronicles by Thomas Yeahpau
- A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle
- Julie of the Wolves by Jean Craighead George
- Rapunzel's Revenge by Shannon and Dean Hale
- Go Ask Alice by Anonymous (But Not Really Anonymous)
- Messenger by Lois Lowry
- Hope Was Here by Joan Bauer
- Gathering Blue by Lois Lowry
- This is What I Did by Ann Dee Ellis
- The Debs by Susan McBride
- Katarina by Kathryn Winter
- Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
- Story of a Girl by Sara Zarr
- Sweethearts by Sara Zarr
- Behind You by Jacqueline Woodson
- Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer
- If You Come Softly by Jacqueline Woodson
- The Midwife's Apprentice by Karen Cushman
- Madapple by Christina Meldrum
- The Giver by Lois Lowry
- Princess Academy by Shannon Hale
- The Boy Who Dared by Susan Campbell Bartoletti
- Zel by Donna Jo Napoli
- I Am The Messenger by Marcus Zusak
- Weedflower by Cynthia Kadohata
- The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne
- Book of a Thousand Days by Shannon Hale
- The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
- The Devil's Arithmetic by Jane Yolen
- Hattie Big Sky by Kirby Larson
- The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
- Cut & My Brother's Keeper by Patricia McCormick
- The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
- Sold by Patricia McCormick
Middle Readers
- When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead
- The Magician's Elephant by Kate DiCamillo
- Someone Named Eva by Joan M. Wolf
- Ghost in the Machine by Patrick Carman (Skeleton Creek Series)
- Anything but Typical by Nora Raleigh Baskin
- Chess Rumble by G. Neri, Illustrated by Jesse Joshua Watson
- Call It Courage by Armstrong Sperry
- Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl
- The Great Gilly Hopkins by Katherine Paterson
- Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume
- Alvin Ho: Allergic to Camping, Hiking and Other Natural Disasters by Lenore Look
- Dork Diaries: Tales from a NOT-SO-Fabulous Life by Rachel Renee Russell
- Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse
- Frankie Pickle and the Closet of Doom by Eric Wight
- Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff
- On the Wings of Heroes by Richard Peck
- The Tales of Beedle the Bard by J.K. Rowling
- The Sisters Grimm, The Fairy Tale Detectives by Michael Buckley
- Locomotion by Jacqueline Woodson
- Lunch with Lenin and Other Stories by Deborah Ellis
- Jellaby by Kean Soo
- Peace, Locomotion by Jacqueline Woodson
- Longhorns and Outlaws by Linda Aksomitis
- Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Last Straw by Jeff Kinney
- The 13th Reality: The Hunt for Dark Infinity by James Dashner
- Holbrook: A Lizards Tale by Bonny Becker
- My Brother, The Robot by Bonny Becker
- The Year the Swallows Came Early by Kathryn Fitzmaurice
- The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
- The Well by Mildred D. Taylor
- Fantastic Mr. Fox by Roald Dahl
- The Whipping Boy by Sid Fleischman
- Lily's Crossing by Patricia Reilly Giff
- On My Honor by Marion Dane Bauer
- Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan
- The Courage of Sarah Noble by Alice Dalgliesh
- Alvin Ho: Allergic to Girls, School, and Other Scary Things by Lenore Look
- Shooting the Moon by Frances O'Roark Dowell
- Savvy by Ingrid Law
- Skeleton Creek by Patrick Carman
- The Underneath by Kathi Appelt
- Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson
- A Midnight Clear, Selected Family Christmas Stories by Katherine Paterson
- The Heaven Shop by Deborah Ellis
- Quake by Joe Cottonwood
- The Adventurous Deeds of Deadwood Jones by Helen Hemphill (and a giveaway!)
- Journey to Topaz by Yoshicko Uchida
- Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, Collected from Folklore and Retold by Alvin Schwartz (and a Scary Story of My Own!)
- The Witches by Roald Dahl
- The Halloween Tree by Ray Bradbury
- As If Being 12 3/4 Isn't Bad Enough, My Mother is Running for President by Donna Gephart
- A Thousand Never Evers by Shana Burg
- T4 by Ann Clare LeZotte
- How to Eat Fried Worms by Thomas Rockwell
- Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson
- The 13th Reality, A Journal of Curious Letters by James Dashner
- James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl
- Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret by Judy Blume
- Second-Grade Pig Pals by Kirby Larson
- Yankee Girl by Mary Ann Rodman
- A Year Down Yonder by Richard Peck
- A Long Way from Chicago by Richard Peck
- Clementine Series by Sara Pennypacker
- Did You Know My Husband Published a Book?
- Where I Live by Eileen Spinelli
- What Jamie Saw by Carolyn Coman
- Far World, Water Keep by J. Scott Savage and a Giveaway
- Jimmy's Stars by Mary Ann Rodman
- Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules by Jeff Kinney
- The Willoughbys by Lois Lowry
- Missing May by Cynthia Rylant
- Libertad by Alma Fullerton
- Diary of a Wimpy Kid: A Novel in Cartoons by Jeff Kinney
- The Tiger Rising by Kate DiCamillo
- The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery
- Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine
- The Wednesday Wars by Gary Schmidt
- Horns & Wrinkles by Joseph Helgerson
- Torn Thread by Anne Isaacs
- Sirens and Spies by Janet Taylor Lisle
- The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo
- Number the Stars by Lois Lowry
- Criss Cross by Lynne Rae Perkins
- Good Masters! Sweet Ladies by Laura Amy Schlitz
- The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane
- Mud City by Deborah Ellis
- Fablehaven by Brandon Mull
- Elijah of Buxton by Christopher Paul Curtis
- Yellow Star by Jennifer Roy
- Parvana's Journey by Deborah Ellis
- Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo
- Kira-Kira by Cynthia Kadohata
- Mr. Popper's Penguins by Richard and Florence Atwater
- The Devil's Arithmetic by Jane Yolen
- The Breadwinner by Deborah Ellis
- Feathers by Jacqueline Woodson
- Penny from Heaven by Jennifer Holm
- Rules by Cynthia Lord
- Cut & My Brother's Keeper by Patricia McCormick
- The Higher Power of Lucky by Susan Patron
Picture Books
- Duck! Rabbit! by Amy Krouse Rosenthal and Tom Lichtenheld
- The Book That Eats People by John Perry, Illustrated by Mark Fearing
- A Penguin Story by Antoinette Portis
- Always My Brother by Jean Reagan and Illustrated by Phyllis Pollema-Cahill (with a giveaway)
- The Curious Garden by Peter Brown
- All the World by Liz Garton Scanlon, Illustrated by Marla Frazee
- Jeremy Draws a Monster by Peter McCarty
- Goodnight Goon, A Petrifying Parody by Michael Rex
- Leonardo the Terrible Monster by Mo Willems
- Where's My Mummy by Carolyn Crimi, Illustrated by John Manders
- A Very Hairy Scary Story by Rick Walton and Illustrated by David Clark
- Dear Vampa by Ross Collins
- Benny the Baffled Behemoth by Melissa Leembruggen, Illustrated by Trish McKinney
- Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak
- Heroes by Ken Mochizuki, Illustrated by Dom Lee
- Freckleface Strawberry and the Dodgeball Bully by Julianne Moore, Illustrated by LeUyen Pham (And a GIVEAWAY!)
- Crocodaddy by Kim Norman, Illustrated by David Walker
- Chicken Butt! by Erica S. Perl, Illustrated by Henry Cole
- All in a Day by Cynthia Rylant, Illustrated by Nikki McClure
- Always by Ann Stott, Illustrated by Matt Phelan
- There's a Wolf at the Door: Five Classic Tales Retold by Zoe B. Alley, Illustrated by R.W. Alley
- Mary Veronica's Egg by Mary Nethery, Illustrated by Paul Yalowtiz
- A Visitor for Bear by Bonny Becker, Illustrated by Kady MacDonald Denton
- An Ant's Day Off by Bonny Becker, Illustrated by Nina Laden
- The Christmas Crocodile by Bonny Becker, Illustrated by David Small
- Ella the Elegant Elephant, Ella Sets the Stage, Ella Takes the Cake and Ella Sets Sail by Carmelia and Steven D'Amico
- Baseball Saved Us by Ken Mochizuki, Illustrated by Dom Lee
- Henry's Freedom Box: A True Story from the Underground Railroad by Ellen Levine, Illustrations by Kadir Nelson
- Consider Love, It's Moods and Many Ways by Sandra Boynton
- Show Way by Jacqueline Woodson, Illustrated by Hudson Talbott
- Snow by Cynthia Rylant, Illustrated by Lauren Stringer
- A Wish to Be a Christmas Tree by Colleen Monroe
- The Lump of Coal by Lemony Snicket
- Room for a Little One, A Christmas Tale by Martin Waddell
- The Light of Christmas by Richard Paul Evans
- Great Joy by Kate DiCamillo
- Angela and the Baby Jesus by Frank McCourt
- A Very Marley Christmas by John Grogan
- Santa Claus the World's Number One Toy Expert by Marla Frazee
- Mrs. Claus Explains It All: (At Last) Answers to the Questions Real Kids Ask! by Elsbeth Claus
- Amadi's Snowman by Katia Novet Saint-Lot
- There's No Such Thing as Ghosts by Emmanuelle Eeckhout
- My Favorite Baby Board Books by Leslie Patricelli
- The Two Bobbies: A True Story of Hurricane Katrina, Friendship, and Survival by Kirby Larson and Mary Nethery
- The Magic Kerchief by Kirby Larson
- Walk On! A Guide for Babies of All Ages
NON-FICTION
Memoir/Biography
- I Am a Star, Child of the Holocaust by Inge Auerbacher
- First Comes Loves, Then Comes Malaria by Eve Brown-Waite
- That Went Well, Adventures in Caring for My Sister by Terrell Harris Dougan
- Desert Flower: The Extraordinary Journey of a Desert Nomad by Waris Dirie and Cathleen Miller
- Kabul Beauty School: An American Woman Goes Behind the Veil by Deborah Rodriguez
- An Exact Replica of a Figment of My Imagination by Elizabeth McCracken
- Surviving Ben's Suicide, A Woman's Journey of Self-Discovery by C. Comfort Shields
- Stolen Innocence: My Story of Growing Up in a Polygamous Sect, Becoming a Teenage Bride, and Breaking Free of Warren Jeffs by Elissa Wall with Lisa Pulitzer
- Apples and Oranges, My Brother and Me, Lost and Found by Marie Brenner
- The Road of Lost Innocence, The True Story of a Cambodian Heroine by Somaly Mam
- Tears of the Desert, A Memoir of Survival in Darfur by Halima Bashir with Damien Lewis
- Of Beetles & Angels, A Boy's Remarkable Journey From a Refugee Camp to Harvard by Mawi Asgedom
- Escape by Carolyn Jessop
- Shattered Dreams, My Life as a Polygamist's Wife by Irene Spencer
- The Complete Maus by Art Spiegelman
- Monique and the Mango Rains by Kris Holloway
- Admit One: A Journey into Film by Emmett James
- We Are On Our Own: A Memoir by Miriam Katin
- I Have Lived a Thousand Years by Livia Bitton-Jackson
- Slave: My True Story by Mende Nazer & Damien Lewis
- The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom
- The Translator, A Tribesman's Memoir of Darfur by Daoud Hari
- Tasting the Sky: A Palestinian Childhood by Ibtisam Barakat
- Left to Tell: Discovering God Amidst the Rwandan Holocaust by Immaculee Ilibagiza
- Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
History/World Events
- Zlata's Diary, A Child's Life in Sarajevo by Zlata Filipovic
- Moses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom by Carole Boston Weatherford, Illustrated by Kadir Nelson
- The Voice That Challenged A Nation: Marian Anderson and the Struggle for Equal Rights by Russell Freedman
- The Story of Ruby Bridges by Robert Coles, Illustrated by George Ford
- Barack Obama: Son of Promise, Child of Hope by Nikki Grime, Illustrated by Bryan Collier
- Freedom Walkers, The Story of the Montgomery Bus Boycott by Russell Freedman
- Through My Eyes by Ruby Bridges
- Genocide in Darfur by Janey Levy
- Darfur Diaries: Stories of Survival by Jen Marlowe
- The Devil Came on Horseback: Bearing Witness to the Genocide in Darfur by Brian Steidle and Gretchen Steidle Wallace
- We Wish to Inform You That Tomorrow We Will Be Killed With Our Families: Stories from Rwanda by Philip Gourevitch
- Hana's Suitcase by Karen Levine
- Not On Our Watch by Don Cheadle & John Prendergast, What You Can Do to Help End the Genocide in Darfur
- The Sudan Project by Melissa Leembruggen and an Interview with the Author
- Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow by Susan Campbell Bartoletti
Picture Books
- The Black Book of Colors by Menena Cottin and Rosana Faria
- Let's Talk Elephants Today! Travels with Tarra and Just for Elephants by Carol Buckley
- Zlata's Diary, A Child's Life in Sarajevo by Zlata Filipovic
- Giveaway - 14 Cows For America and Thomas Gonzalez Shares the Illustration Process for this Beautiful Picture Book
- 14 Cows for America by Carmen Agra Deedy in Collaboration with Wilson Kimeli Naiyomah, Illustrated by Thomas Gonzalez
- Unite or Die, How Thirteen States Became a Nation by Jacqueline Jules, Illustrated by Jef Czekaj
- Passage to Freedom, The Sugihara Story by Ken Mochizuki, Illustrated by Dom Lee
- Moses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom by Carole Boston Weatherford, Illustrated by Kadir Nelson
- The Story of Ruby Bridges by Robert Coles, Illustrated by George Ford
- Frogs by Nic Bishop
- Barack Obama: Son of Promise, Child of Hope by Nikki Grime, Illustrated by Bryan Collier
- The Raucous Royals by Carlyn Beccia
- This is the Feast by Diane Z. Shore
Parenting
- The Baby Owner's Manual - A Must Have for Any Dad!
- I Am a Mother by Jane Clayson Johnson
- Cheap Psychological Tricks for Parents
- Today We Colored the Snow Thanks to the Toddler's Busy Book
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