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A Song to Drown Rivers

October 10, 2024

drown rivers

  There is a Chinese folk tale about four sisters so beautiful they could be denied nothing.  One of those sisters is Xishi and in Ann Liang’s novel, A Song to Drown Rivers, she is called upon to use her beauty for vengeance and destruction. For Xishi, growing up in a tiny village in the Yue kingdom, her beauty is auspicious for her parents as it means she may be ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: China, mythology

The Lion Women of Tehran

July 12, 2024

lion women

When Ellie’s father unexpectedly dies, she and her mother find their circumstances dramatically changed for the worse. There is so little money left they have to sell their beautiful home and move to a tiny apartment in downtown Tehran. It is her mother’s worst nightmare, but for 7-year-old Ellie it means meeting Homa, the girl who will be her best friend throughout their ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: cultural, friendship, historical, Iran, women

The Sicilian Inheritance by Jo Piazza

April 18, 2024

sicilian

Sara is at a low point when her favorite aunt dies. Her well-reviewed restaurant has closed, she’s bankrupt, and her husband is leaving her and wants custody of their daughter. It’s a mixed blessing when she’s given a letter left to her by the aunt containing a final request, a deed for a piece of land in Sicily, and a plane ticket there. This is the intriguing groundwork laid ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: historical, vacation reading, women

A Great Country

April 9, 2024

great country

In every way but culture the Shahs consider themselves to be an embodiment of the American Dream. They’ve lived in California for over 20 years, their three children were all born here, and Ashok has gone from freelance work to owning his own company. In the latest example of their achievement, they’ve just purchased a beautiful new home in an Orange County gated community. ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: book clubs, contemporary, cultural

River East, River West

April 4, 2024

river east

In the search for fiction that takes me out of my own experiences Aube Rey Lescure’s River East, River West was just what I wanted. Alva and her mother Sloan have always been partners, the two of them against the world. A daunting task made even more so by the fact that they live in Shanghai. Sloan is white and Alva is bi-racial from a long-gone Chinese father. While her mother ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: book clubs, China, coming-of-age, cultural, debut

The Things We Didn’t Know

March 13, 2024

things we didn't

When Andrea is 9-years-old she finds herself and her little brother Pablo uprooted from their home in Woronoco, Massachusetts and left in a small Puerto Rican village with an aunt they’ve never met. All because their mother hates living in their small 1950s factory town in America and is lonely. This unsettling turn of events is just the beginning of Andrea’s voyage from ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: 1960s, book clubs, coming-of-age, historical, New England

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