📚BOOK REVIEWS

Here are the books I have reviewed for fun. Some have been sent by publicists, others I have bought or borrowed. I've read all of them. 

Readers may be divided into four classes: 

A. Sponges, who absorb all that they read and return it in nearly the same state, only a little dirtied. 
B. Sand-glasses, who retain nothing and are content to get through a book for the sake of getting through the time. 
C. Strain-bags, who retain merely the dregs of what they read. 
D. Mogul diamonds, equally rare and valuable, who profit by what they read, and enable others to profit by it also. 

      ~ Samuel Taylor Coleridge, poet, critic (1772-1834) 

 denotes a Canadian book!

1. Aaron, Glen; The Curse of Sacerdozio
2. Aaron, Richard; Gauntlet 
3. Alexander, Devin: You Can Have It (recipe book)
4. Alexander, Eva M.; Condos and Condoms (short stories)
5. Almond, Paul; The Gunner 
6. Alt, Jeff; The Adventures of Bubba Jones
7. Alton and Craan; My handy little health journal
8. Andersen; Fantasyland
9. Arden, John: The Brain Bible
10. Arneson,  Rick; Plotting the Course; Life lessons from the sport of sailing
11. Ashby, Kathy; Carol, A Woman's Way 
12. August, Y.; Coaching For Caregivers
13. Barager, R.; The Atheist and the Parrotfish
14. Barr, Nevada; 13½, Blood Lure
15. Bartleman, James; As Long as the Rivers Flow, Raisin Wine
16. Bartley, Allan; The Klu Klux Klan in Canada
17. Blachman and Stracher; The Curve
18. Blanche, Kathryn; Infiltrated by Demons



My Reading Pile!





19. Blatchford, Christie; Fifteen Days
20. Bradbury and Karney; Love Me Slender
21. Bradley, Eric; Harry Potter Collectibles
22. Brennan, Peter; Iceapelago
23. Brown, Ron; Vanished Villages Part 1, Post 2  (Non-fiction)
24. Brown, Ron; Backroads of Ontario (Non-fiction) 
25. Carey, Pamela: Elderly Parents With All Their Marbles
26. Carlon, Michael; Uncorking a Murder
27. Carpenter, J.: No Place to Pray
28. Carucci, M.; Sobrietease
29. Chapman, Brenda; Hunter and Tate, Stonechild and Rouleau, Shallow End, Tumbled Graves
30. Charters, Cloudia; Aloha: Where You Like Go?
31. Cho & Gifford; The Anxious Lawyer (self-help)
32. Christofora, Kevin; Amira Can Catch
33. Clevenger, S; Greek Mythic History
34. Clinton, Hilary; something lost, something gained
35. Clinton & Penny; State of Terror
36. Cobelo, Carolyn E.; Bridge to Beyond
37. Consell, R.A.; Stealing From Wizards Excellent trilogy for teens. 
38. Conway, Martha; Sugarland
39. Cook books: gluten-free, paleo,  from Robert Rose, Inc. 
40. Cotton, Larry D; Whiskey and Wickedness
41. Crilly, Karin: The Blue Satin Nightgown
42. Cuellar, David; Plastic Island (picture book)
43. Currie, T. Ottawa Valley's Great Fire of 1870
44. Cusumano, J.; Balance
45. Davidson, Dr. Elizabeth; Cheery: the Chiricahua leopard frog (Children's picture book)
46. Daywalt, Drew; The Day the Crayons Quit
47. De Avila, Ed., Spread Thin and Moving Fast: An unlikely story (memoir)
48. De Hart, Scott D.; Shelley Unbound: Uncovering Frankenstein's True Creator
49. De Santis, Cinazi; The Sense of Darkness
50. Delaney, V; Under Cold Stone, (Constable Molly Smith Series) 
51. DeLapa, Gina; stuff you already know
52. Dennis; Anita Katherine; Beyond Myself
53. Dickinson, Emily: the Illustrated Emily Dickinson Nature Sketchbook
54. Doering, Ron; The Battle of Crysler's Farm
55. Dougherty, M.J.; Life Lessons From a Total Failure
56. Donovan, Kelly; Police Line – Do Not Cross
57. Dr. Seuss; You're Only Old Once
58. Dunn, David A.; Get Life Right
59. Epp, Alvin; Through The Eyes of Guilt
60. Erwin, Travis; Waiting on the River
61. Espy, W.R.; Words to Rhyme With (Non-fiction)
62. Estes, Kelli; The Girl Who Wrote in Silk
63. Even, Aaron; He Comes in Fire
64. Eyre, Linda; Grandmothering
65. Fallis, Terry; The Best Laid Plans -comedy
66. Feder, S; Bitter and Sweet
67. Fields, Mara; Weaver's Light
68. FitzSimmons, David; Curious Critters, Salamander Dance
69. Flynn, Gillian; Gone Girl
70. Follett, Ken; Pillars of the Earth
71. Forrest, Deborah: Touch the Spirit: Connecting to the world of dementia (non-fiction)
72. Freed, Dennis; Love, Loss and Awakening
73. Freeman and Parks; All-Electric America
74. Gabaldon, D.; Go Tell The Bees That I Am Gone
75. Gaber, Stanley; Jex Malone
76. Garner, L.G.; The Golden Princess
77. Gawande, Atul: Being Mortal 
78. Airton, Dr. Lee; Gender: Your Guide 
79. Genova, Lisa; Left Neglected, Still Alice
80. George, Elizabeth; In the Presence of the Enemy, Deception On His Mind
81. Gebreyohannes, B. T.; Fire Walkers (memoir) 
82. Graham, Heather; Death Dealer, Unhallowed Ground, On Isabella Street
83. Gray, John; Beyond Venus and Mars
84. Gray & Ardagh; Conscious Men
85. Green, Lyndsay; A Perfect Home for a Long Life
86. Greenblatt, Mark Lee; Valor: Unsung heroes from Iraq, Afghanistan, and the home front
87. Griffin, Lynne; Sea Escape
88. Griffith, Victoria; Amazon Burning
89. Griffiths, Doug; 13 Ways to Kill Your Community
90. Grippando, James; The Penny Jumper
91. Haberman & Swann; Regime Change
92. Habib, N. & M.N.; History of the Muslims of Regina, Saskatchewan, and Their Organizations
93. Haibach, Michael; Amazing Gracie
94. Hardee, J.L., Justice or Injustice: What really happens in a jury room (Memoire)
95. Harris, et al, Journey to Invisibility to Visibility
96. Hayden, John; Godfit
97. Helm & Smith: Talking Back to the Indian Act
98. Hemphill, R.F.; dust tea, dingoes, dragons (Memoire)
99. Heston, F.C., & McAdams, H. J.; Desolation Sound 
100. Hiebert, Michael; Close to the Broken-Hearted
101. Hill-Lehr, Andrea; A Mother's Road to Kandahar
102. Hillier, Jennifer; Wonderland 
103. Hoogstraten: The Debaters
104. Horeck, Brian; Frozen Beneath 
105. Hospital for Sick Children: The A to Z of Children's Health  
106. Ivey, Donna; Clinic of Hope: The story of Rene M. Caisse and Essiac
107. Izso, Jay; got social mediology?
108. Jackson, Joshilyn; The Almost Sisters
109. Jauvin, Chantal; The Boy with a Bamboo Heart: The story of a street orphan who built a children's charity
110. Jenner, Reid: Diagnose Yourself
111. Johnson, George: The Cancer Chronicles
112. Johnson, Spencer; Who Moved My Cheese? (Non-fiction)
113. Jonathan, Kath; The Resistance Painter
114. Jones, Marjorie G.; The Life and Times of Mary Vaux Walcott
115. Jones, Robin and Robert; The Refugee Crisis: Through the Eyes of the Children
116. Jucha, S. H.; The Silver Ships
117. Kading (Ed.); No Straight Lines
118. Kamm, Kurt; Tunnel Visions
119. Kellerman, Faye; Bon Box
120. Kendell, Laura J.; A Simple Case of Suicide
121. Kennedy, Dr. John; The Heart Health Bible
122. Kelsey, E.; You Are Stardust, Not Your Typical Book
123. Kerr, Leslie; Harriet Quimby
124. Keyser, Judith Redwing; Last Acts of Kindness (Non-fiction)
125. Kalla, Daniel; We All Fall Down 
126. Kinew, Wab; The Reason You Walk 
127. King, Samantha; Pink Ribbon, Inc. (Non-fiction)
128. Knight and Sweeney; You Should Be Writing
129. Krich, Rochelle; Dead Air
130. Kumar, Sameet M.; The Mindfulness of Grief (Also Medicalisation of Grief: DSM-IV)
131. Kuritz, Marc; Man With Child
132. Kushner, Harold; When Bad Things Happen to Good People, Conquering Fear
133. Lackberg, Camilla; The Gallows Bird
134. Lafaye, Vanessa; Under a Dark Summer Sky
135. Laferrière, Dany, The World is Moving Around Me: A Memoire of the Haiti Earthquake (Memoir) 
136. Lalonde, Julie S.; Resistance is Futile: The life and death of Julie S. Lalonde (memoir)
137. Lawhon, A. (2024) The Frozen River
138. Leinvebers, V; No TIme To Cry
139. Lemmon, G. T.; The Dressmaker of Khair Khan
140. Levin, Joel M.; Our Beguine (Memoir)
141. Lieberman & Neubert; Max and Charlie
142. Lindsay, B.R.: Old Bones
143. Louden, Paul; Behind the Locked Door (memoir; autism)
144. Lundin, S.C. et al; FISH!
145. Lynch, Wayne; Owls of the US and Canada
146. Mackie & Taylor; The Cottage Bible 
147. Mankell, Jenning; Faceless Killers
148. Manning, Diane Daniels; Almost Perfect
149. Maron, Margaret; The Bootlegger's Daughter
150. Mcallister, Gillian; Caller Unknown
151. McGee, Robin; The Cancer Olympics
152. McGinty, Stephen, The Dive
153. McKee, David M; Bala Boy
154. McKee, Thomas. W; The Top Seven Reasons Volunteers Quit, The New Breed (Non-fiction)
155. McNally, B.; Unbridled
156. Martin, Mish Mockovic; Insights of a Yogi (autobiography)
157. Mancuso, S; The Incredible Journey of Plants
158. Mebane, Donna; Tomorrow Comes
159. mhic Aonghais, Clinton; The Baker Boys -700 pages, haven't gotten to it!
160. Miller, Dorcs S.; Scat Finder
161. Miralia, Mindy; The Hero in Heroin (autobiography)
162. Morelli, Laura; The Gondola Maker
163. Morgan & Smith; Advanced Genealogy (self-help
164. Moroney, Shannon; Through The Glass (Autobiography)
165. Mowery, J. Nichols; The Parallel Lives of Elizabeth Ann
166. Mukbil, Huda; Agent of Change 
167. Musleh, Mitri I.; The Making of a Palestinian Suicide Bomber 
168. Nash, Nicholas: The Girl at The Bar
169. Neice, Rick, The Band Plays On: Going home for a music man's encore (memoire)
170. Nelson, Craig; The Age of Radiance
171. Nichols, N.; Broken Promises (autobiography)
172. Nickerson, Cash; BOOMERangs; Engaging the Aging Workforce in America
173. Noah, Jim; Country Store
174. Obama, Barack; The Audacity of Hope
175. Orloff, Judith; The Ecstacy of Surrender
176. Paetkau, Jean; Blood on the Breakwater, The Sinking of Souls. 🇨🇦
177. Parker, David; The More You Do The Better You Feel (self-help)
178. Parker, Morgan; 1986
179. Pastor, Marc; Barcelona Shadows
180. Payne, Scott; Codename: Dark Horse
181. Penny, Louise; A Trick of the Light - Gamache series
182. Penny, Louise; A World of Curiosities
183. Pesaturo, Janet; Camera Trapping Guide
184. Picoult, Jodi; House Rules, The Tenth Circle, Plain Truth, Picture Perfect
185. Piggott, Mark; The Dark Tides
186. Pinzone, J.J.: Fireballs in my Eucharist: Fight Cancer Smarter 
187. Polster, E; Beyond Therapy
188. Potter, Cheryl: The Broken Circle, Secrets of the Lost Caves
189. Power, G. A.; Dementia Beyond Disease
190. Prattis; Trailing Sky Six Feathers , also New Planet, New World 
191. Pronko, M.; The Last Train: A Tokyo Adventure
192. Putzel, Michael; The Price They Paid
193. Regan, Paulette; Unsettling the Settler Within
194. Revere, Glenn; All About Carpets
195. Richards, Jass; Turblojetslams
196. Rice, Waub; Moon of the Crusted Snow,  Moon of the Turning Leaves 
197. Riley, Laura; Tell Me of Brave Women
198. Roe, Carolyn or Sale, Medora; Murder in a Good Cause
199. Rue, Nancy; Tristan's Gap
200. Roland, Bridget; the Doula
201. Rosen, Lynn; A Man of Genius
202. Rutherford, Edward; The Forest
203. Saturday Even Post Magazine 1963 Kennedy Edition
204. Schiller, E.; Watermark
205. Schopick, J.: Honest Medicine
206. Scholz & Church; The Masterpiece Within (Non-fiction)
207. Schwägerl, Christian; The Anthropocene  (Non-fiction)
208. Schwartz, Leslie; Angels Crest
209. Seuss, Dr.; You're only old once!
210. Shelly, Derek; Dying to Live
211. Shem, Samuel; The Spirit of the Place
212. Siegel, Alex; First Circle Club
213. Signorile, M. A.; The Wartime Chronicles 
214. Slatton, Traci L; Fallen,   Cold Light
215. Smiley, Cat; the planet friendly diet 
216. Sperazza, Diana; My Townie Heart
217. Stephanopoulis, G., (2024) The Situation Room
218. Stewart, Roderick; The Mind of Norman Bethune 
219. Sutton; The Power of Legacy (Non-fiction)
220. Tapper, J. (2025) Original Sin About Joe Biden.
221. Tartt, Donna; The Goldfinch
222. Thayer, R.S.; Kobee Manatee
223. Traill, Catherine Parr; Lost in the Backwoods
224. Transgender Lee; Woman Incognito
225. Treitler; My Dad is an Alcoholic: What About Me? (autobiography)
226. Tran; American Dreamer (autobiography)
227. Trollope-Kumar, Karen; Cloud Messenger
228. Trudeau, Kris; TimeShift 
229. Vallée, Brian; The War On Women 
230. Vinter, M.; Collette
231. Voss, Donna Carol; One of Everything
232. Wallach, Dr. J.D. ; Epigenetics; The death of the genetic theory of disease transmission (Non-fiction)
233. Ware, Ruth; The IT Girl, The Woman in Cabin 10/ The Woman in Suite 11
234. Warrington, Freda; Midsummer Night
235. Wathanavongs and Jauvin; The Boy With the Bamboo Heart
236. Weber, Joseph; Last Call
237. Welch, D.Y.; The Life and Times of Lilian J. Rice
238. White, Kate; If Looks Could Kill 
239. Williams and White:  Act III (Non-fiction)
240. Wilson, Daniel H.; Robopocalypse
241. Wilson, P.D.; The Caregiving Trap (Non-fiction)
242. Wold, Richard; Stan
243. Wolitzer, Meg: The Wife
244. Wright, Robert; Our Man in Tehran (Non-fiction)
245. Wyler, Allen;  Deadly Errors
246. Young, David; Channelling Harrison (biography)
247. Yow, David; Copycat

Book Reviews, Restaurant Reviews, DVD & iPad App Reviews (scroll down!) 

1. Band of Brothers
2. Borgen - Denmark Politics. Excellent!
3. Broadchurch – amazing! 
4. CIVIL WAR: THE UNTOLD STORY
5. DCI Banks
6. Endeavour (TV Series 2012)
7. Foyle's War
8. Grantchester
9. George Gently (TV Series 2007)
10. Inspector Lewis (2006–2015)
11. Inspector Lynley
12. Inspector Morse (1987–2000)
13. Jack Irish
14. Janet King
15. Midsomer Murders (TV Series 1997)
16. Mystery Road (ABC)
17. My Life is Murder (ABC)
18.  People of a Feather, Belcher Isl., Hudson Bay
19. Shetland
20. The Newsroom - fabulous!
21. Vera - wonderful UK mystery

Restaurant Reviews

1. Almonte Barley Mow – May 9, 2015
2. Bistro 54 Italiano Perth – Jan. 2011
3. Café Postino Almonte – 2011
4. East Meets West – Perth - 2015 to present!
5. Fratelli – April 17, 2017
6. Georgian House – Alexandria, June 18th, 2016
7. Heirloom Restaurant Almonte – Jan. 2015
8. Mexicali Rosa –July 29, 2015 Also, Oct. 2010
9. Rocky River Cafe – October 17, 2017; also Dec. 6 & 26, 2013.
10. The Cove - Westport – many visits!
11. The Hot Wok – April 10, 2017.
12. The Shipwreck - Rideau Ferry – Oct. 2010
13. The Waterfront - Napanee – May 2015
14. Waterfront Gastropub – Carleton Place, May 23/18
15. Wildfire BBQ and Smokehouse – Perth, 2015
16. Zolas – Ottawa - May 13, 2015; Zola's Oct. 2016

iPad Apps

1. Never Alone –Inuit game PC, so far
2. Brushstroke –drawing
3. ToonCamera –photoshop idea
4. Doodle Buddy –drawing
5. PhotoBooth –photoshop idea
6. Dragon Naturally Speaking –speech-to-text, text-to-speech
7. Spirits of Spring –Josie and I like it!