"Aragorn sped on up the hill." -- The Two Towers by J.R.R. Tolkien. This is Part II of The Lord of the Rings trilogy. I r...

The long rumbling noise of crumbling walls, the tinkle of broken glass. Mother, the room, everything disappeared in a cloud of dust . . ...

Two book came into my mailbox last week, in time for Mailbox Monday. Chick Loves Lit is the host this month. The first book is one I had...

"When the cat was sick and slowly dying, Hannah canceled vacation plans, dinner parties, hair appointments, a manicure." Savin...

In Small Island , Andrea Levy examines what happened when volunteers from Jamaica came to England to fight for the British military durin...

"There are these two young fish swimming along and they happen to meet an older fish swimming the other way, who nods at them and sa...

"I have lived in New York City all my life, and I am convinced that it is the most vibrant, fascinating, creative, diverse, and, some...

Valley of the Dolls may be the most famous of all "trashy" novels, which is why I've always wanted to read it. I have n...

"The trailer was old, probably thirty, which is about three hundred in trailer years. It canted to the right on cinder-block legs....

I enjoyed Peaceful Places, Los Angeles so much that I got my hands on a copy of Peaceful Places, New York City . There are plans afoo...

"In front of the house, under the big chestnut tree, Mother sat on a wooden bench talking to Uncle." -- The Mermaid and the Me...

But there is always time to HOP! It has been a while since I participated in the Book Blogger Hop. Jennifer has added a new "questio...

"Love is companionship, having friends in common, the same interests.  Sex is the connotation you are placing on love, and let me t...

I have to cheat a little on Mailbox Monday this week because no books came into my house last week -- at least not to stay. But this is th...

David Lodge ’s fourteenth novel, Deaf Sentence , takes up similar themes from his earlier campus novels, this time from the perspective o...

"Tranquility isn't the first word that comes to mind when most of us think of life in Los Angeles, especially these days." ...

  In Peaceful Places, Los Angeles , Laura Randall explores “110 Tranquil Sites in the City of Angles and Neighboring Communities,” provid...

"A black man was running from four whites while several more black men chased them.  The ground tremored under their big boots....

It was a busy book week for me. A couple even came in my mailbox, in time for Mailbox Monday . Even more exciting for my book-consuming wa...

Up in the Old Hotel is a compilation of essays and short stories that Joseph Mitchell wrote for The New Yorker from the 1930s to the 1960...

First: the July issue of the Internet Review of Books is up now in time to impart some summer reading inspiration.  There are ten non-fict...

"The temperature hit ninety degrees the day she arrived." -- Valley of the Dolls by Jacqueline Susann. I've always half...

This week's Booking Through Thursday question asks about "hot reading."  Specifically: Well, folks, I don’t know about wh...

Fer-de-Lance is Rex Stout's first Nero Wolfe mystery and everything it is cracked up to be. I am torn between being appalled at myse...

"Suddenly the power came on, the dim lights in the hall and my couchette revealing a world of dirt.  My mattress was so stained it l...

There is only one book on my Mailbox Monday list, but I really like it. I spent a big hunk of Saturday afternoon flipping through it. On...

"He carried his girl tied to his front, the trapsack on his back, the rifle balanced like a yoke along his shoulders." -- A Su...

Here is a guest review from a lady lawyer friend of mine who is also busy raising three young boys. Thanks Heather! I just finished read...

"Outside of Pul-I-Khumri, the bus shuddered to a halt on the dusty roadside and couldn't be restarted." -- Lunatic Expre...