📚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 FlowRaisin Wine
  16. Bartley, Allan; The Klu Klux Klan in Canada
  17. Blachman and Stracher; The Curve
  18. Blanche, Kathryn; Infiltrated by Demons
  19. My Reading Pile!

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

1 comment:

Faye said...

Maron, Nevada Barr, and C. J. Box are three of my favorite authors. Barr and Box have long series going. Each one is a thriller. Maron has a great series too, not as intense as the other two.