The Wandering Season by Aimie K. Runyan (eBOOK)
Happy reading,
Dorothea 💜
Thursday, April 3, 2025
REVIEW - The Language of the Birds (eArc, eBook)
The Language of the Birds by K.A. Merson (eArc/eBook)
OVERVIEW
This book is difficult to explain and categorize. It is like the Cotton Malone Series by Steve Berry meets the Robert Langdon Series by Dan Brown on steroids. It is full of clues, ciphers, and puzzles - OH MY!
The premise was fantastic, but the execution was lacking in the puzzle-solving sections. The puzzle-solving and use of different methods including a cipher disk made my head spin and were difficult to follow. This may be the author's method to make us understand what Arizona must endure day after day. Food for thought!
I ultimately enjoyed the book without fully understanding the specifics of puzzle-solving. But, I did figure out a few clues before the protagonist did which was fun!
I especially loved the main character of Arizona. The character is so interesting and unique that I would love to read a series about her.
OVERALL REVIEW: 4.5 stars.
Writing: 4.5 stars
The writing is strong with many creative references to other famous pieces of literature and poetry. That was beautifully done.
Character development: 5.0 stars
The character development was strong. The main characters are: Arizona (a bright and quirky neurodivergent seventeen-year-old), Lily (Arizona's new friend), and Mojo (Arizona's boxer).
The secondary characters are: Arizona's mom and dad, the bad guys, and the good guys. (Being vague to avoid spoilers). Italian soldiers, the other Jewish captives, and the local villagers.
The tertiary character is the confluence of Death Valley, the greater Las Vegas area, and the Sierra Nevada Mountains.
There were only a handful of throw-away characters.
Storyline: 3.0 stars
The story is about Arizona whose father dies in a motorcycle accident. Arizona and her mother travel to his favorite places to spread part of his ashes. When they visit the ghost town of Bodie, California, Arizona's mother is kidnapped. Arizona is forced to solve a series of complicated ciphers for the kidnappers in exchange for her mother.
The puzzles take Arizona all over California and part of Nevada. She must visit historic sites and remote locations to find clues. Arizona uses the clues from the visits and detailed research to solve the puzzles.
The puzzles were way above my knowledge base so the storyline was sometimes difficult to follow. This was the only part of the book I had issues with. I probably need it explained so simply that a preschooler would understand!
The locations were: California and Nevada
Memorable/Informative: 4.0 stars
I enjoyed how this book of puzzles, ciphers, and clues was wrapped up so beautifully.
I want to visit the California locations mentioned in the book, especially Lone Pine and Bodie. Unfortunately, the locations are somewhat remote, but would be worth a nice road trip. I'm inspired!
Book cover: 4.5 stars
Nicely done!
Book title: 5.0 stars
Perfect!
STRONG recommend
NetGalley eARC/eBOOK
The Language of the Birds by K.A. Merson
392 pages
Ballantine Books
FUTURE release date: 5/13/2025
INFORMATIONAL LINKS
TRIGGER WARNING: Death of a parent, violence, gun violence, kidnapping, incarceration, cursing
Happy reading,
Dorothea 💜
Wednesday, April 2, 2025
REVIEW - Animal, Vegetable, Miracle (audiobook)
Animal, Vegetable, Mineral by Barbara Kingsolver (audiobook)
OVERVIEW
This is a really hard audiobook to review. I really wanted to love it, but I liked it instead.
Barbara's writing was fantastic, but a bit overbearing and preachy. The asides from her husband, Steven, and daughter, Camille, were even more preachy.
I expected more of a how-to book on how to be a better locavore. It had some of that but also included gardening, canning, animal raising, freezing, and farmer's market forays for a year. They live on a farm in a rural area in SW Virginia - we cannot do the same type of locavore eating. But there were limited suggestions for city dwellers.
OVERALL REVIEW: 4.0 stars
Writing: 4.0 stars
The writing by Barbara was strong, as always, because she is a fantastic author! She was very aware of her wording when discussing animal reproduction or harvesting. I appreciated that!
Her husband and daughter's asides were not written as well as Barbara's and broke up the book's rhythm. Plus, do I really want to know what they ate for dinner with sample menus?
Narration: 4.0 stars
The narration by Barbara was good - I didn't realize what a lovely Kentucky accent she has.
But, the other narrators and chicken noises throughout the book grated on me.
Another issue for me is that the audiobook had no chapters or breaks in the book audio stream. There was no table of contents like other audiobooks. It was hard to find appropriate places to stop; however, the author did highlight the chapter title when narrating. Weird.
Character Arc: 4.0 stars
The audiobook is chronological and aligns with their journey to only eat locally. The book starts in April and ends the following April.
There are no real characters and the book is more of a memoir, per se.
This book is also about eighteen years old so it is a bit dated.
Memorable: 3.5 stars
The book was rather preachy overall. If an individual, who didn't believe in global warming, read this book, they may be put off. It is like anything, you win more bees with honey than vinegar. I wanted suggestions and help to navigate eating more locally rather than telling me how awful it is to buy bananas.
I totally support eating in-season produce to avoid the increased carbon footprint. But what do city folks do? We cannot only buy from expensive farmer's markets even though Barbara's were not costly. We also have limited space to garden as most urban dwellers do.
Since so much produce is grown in the San Joaquin Valley or Oxnard Plain about 100 miles from me, we attempt to buy local produce.
So what is the solution? What else can we do?
Entertaining: 4.0 stars
The book was funny at times, but it was more educational.
Book cover: 5.0 stars
Perfect.
Book title: 5.0 stars
On point!
DEFINITE recommend
STATISTICS
Los Angeles Public Library (LAPL) borrow: audiobook
Animal, Vegetable, Mineral by Barbara Kingsolver
Harper Audio
14 hours, 35 minutes
Release date of 5/1/2007
INFORMATIONAL LINKS
TRIGGER WARNINGS
Animal mating, animal death
Happy reading,
Dorothea 💜
The Storygraph March 2025 Monthly Recap
Hi, booksbydorothea friends!
If I didn't LOVE The Storygraph enough, look at this beautiful graphic! It was automatically generated for me and is easy to download. The analysis closely mirrors my personal Excel spreadsheet tracking, unlike other sites. Love, love, love!💜
Here is the link to my March 2025 Wrap-up HERE.
Please check out The Storygraph! You can even upload your data from Goodreads! What's not to love?💜
Happy reading,
Dorothea💜
Tuesday, April 1, 2025
booksbydorothea - March 2025 - Monthly Wrap-up
Hi, booksbydorothea friends!
March was wet here in Southern California! We needed the rain and hope for more in April! My car is dirty, but my books are safe and dry.
I continue to read and
listen to books to avoid the news and social media. This was another good
reading month with TWELVE books (audiobooks, ebooks, and physical books).
In March 2025, there were four five-star books: three eBOOKS, zero audiobooks, and one physical book.
BEST BOOKS FOR MARCH 2025
ebooks
JANUARY
The Love Elixir of Augusta
Stern by Lynda Cohen
Loigman
The Stolen Queen by Fiona Davis
What Happened to the
McCrays? by Tracey Lange
More or Less Maddy by Lisa Genova
Paris Undercover by Matthew Goodman
The Bookstore Keepers by Alice Hoffman
Come Fly with Me by Camille Di Maio
The Memory of Cotton by Ann K. Howley
The Secret History of
Audrey Jones by Heather Marshall
Looking for Jane by Heather Marshall
FEBRUARY
The Sirens by Emilia Hart
Swimming to Lundy by Amanda Prowse
The Fall Risk by Abby Jimenez
The Dressmakers of London by Julia Kelly
MARCH
Austen at Sea by Natalie Jenner
Isola by Allegra
Goodman
The Book Club for Troublesome Women by Marie Bostwick
Audiobooks
JANUARY
Me by Elton John
Let’s Call Her Barbie by Renée Rosen
FEBRUARY
Never by Rick Astley
Unlovable by Darren Hayes
Sorry I'm Late, I Didn't
Want to Come by Jessica Pan
MARCH
-NONE-
Physical books
JANUARY
-NONE-
FEBRUARY
-NONE-
MARCH
This One Life by Amanda Prowse
2025 READING GOAL
My goal is to read 101
books in 2025. As of March 31st, I have read 43 books, or 43.0% of
my goal.
MARCH 2025 STATISTICS
12 total books
5 ebooks; 5 audiobooks; 2
physical books
5 books - ARC (Advance
Reader Copy)
6 books - Library
0 book – Purchased
0 book - Amazon First
Reads
0 books - Book Club Girl
1 book – author gifted
1 book – friend gifted
Audio listening time in March
2025: 65 hours, 11 minutes
Pages read in March 2025: 2,319
pages
Average review rating: 4.25
stars
MARCH 2025 BOOK RATINGS with BOOK COVERS
ebooks
5.0-star ebooks
Austen at Sea by Natalie Jenner REVIEW LINK
Isola by Allegra Goodman REVIEW LINK
The Book Club for Troublesome Women by Marie Bostwick REVIEW LINK
3.5-star ebook
My Name is Emilia del Valle by Isabel Allende REVIEW LINK
3.0-star ebook
The Red House by Mary
Morris REVIEW LINK
NOTE: There were no 4.5-star or 4.0-star ebooks this month.
Audiobooks
4.5-star audiobooks
A Kid from Marlboro Road
by Edward Burns REVIEW LINK
4.0-star audiobooks
Fearless and Free by Josephine Baker REVIEW LINK
Open by Andre Agassi REVIEW LINK
Say Everything by Ione
Skye REVIEW LINK
Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne
Collins REVIEW LINK
NOTE: There were no 5.0-star, 3.5-star, or 3.0-star audiobooks this month
Physical books 2025
5.0-star physical books
This One Life by Amanda Prowse REVIEW LINK
4.0-star physical books
A Woman of Firsts by Kimberly Heckler REVIEW LINK
NOTE: There were no 4.5-star, 4.0-star, 3.5-star, or 3.0-star physical books this month
If you want to read my full review of any of these books, there are individual review links for each ebook or audiobook next to the book title and author (under MARCH 2025 BOOK RATINGS with BOOK COVERS just above). Click on the specific book link to get to that book review.
I hope you read lots of great books in March! Please share your highly recommended reads as I looking for great books!
Happy reading!
Dorothea 💜
P.S. For additional book-related helpful tools on booksbydorothea, check out:
BOOK RATING LEGEND HERE
GLOSSARY HERE
Friday, March 28, 2025
DNF - Between the World and Me (eBOOK)
Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi (eBOOK)
I will not be finishing the book now. I purchased it during the Covid pandemic and it was not the right time to read it. Again, we are living in difficult times with the second Trump administration and it is not the right time to read it.
This book needs to be read when I am in the right headspace and not anxious or worried. I want to fully understand this important book, digest it, and be the change. This is not the right time for me.
Since I own it, I will get back to it! I promise!
Happy reading,
Dorothea 💜
REVIEW - The Red House (eARC/eBOOK)
The Red House by Mary Morris (eARC/eBOOK)
OVERVIEW
This book didn't work for me as it was really sad and depressing. It was described as an unsolved family mystery and coming of age with blah, blah, and then a passing mention of WWII. Actually, it was more about WWII and the aftermath than anything else. I would not have read this eARC if I knew it was WWII-heavy. It felt like I was duped with the description.
This really should have been a historical fiction book that focused on Italy's erratic and inhumane handling of the Jewish population during WWII. The unsolved mystery doesn't really add, but muddled it, IMHO.
OVERALL REVIEW: 3.0 stars.
Writing: 3.0 stars
Mary's writing is very inconsistent to me. The book was either well-written at times or repetitive and boring in sections.
The writing was easy to read and the book was a fast read at times, but it wasn't written beautifully when places in the book were crying out for descriptions.
Character development: 3.5 stars
The main characters are: Viola (daughter in 1942, mother in 1972/2002) and Laura (Viola's daughter in 1972 and seeker of her mother in 2002).
The secondary characters are: Josef (Viola's father in 1942), Anna (Viola's mother in 1942), Rudy (Viola's brother in 1942/1972/2002), and Tommaso (an Italian soldier in 1942/1972/2002).
The tertiary characters are Viola/Laura's family, WWII, The Red House, the Italian soldiers, the other Jewish captives, and the local villagers.
Many other throw-away characters move the story along but not necessary to develop them.
Storyline: 3.0 stars
The story is about Viola who disappears without a clue in 1972. The disappearance has been emotionally difficult for her husband and her two daughters. In 2002, Laura receives a call from the detective on her mother's case and she suddenly disappears to Italy without a clue. History repeats itself again.
The book is divided into four stories including all three timelines of 1942, 1972, and 2002. The four stories don't follow a specific rhyme or reason so I didn't understand why they were stories included.
Additionally, the writing jumps from time to time without headings for the chapters which is jarring and hard to follow.
Finally, there are a few subplots (filled with gratuitous sexual content) that seem unnecessary to me. I will not elaborate more to avoid spoilers.
The locations were: Italy; New Jersey and New York, USA.
Memorable/Informative: 5.0 stars
As this was a WWII novel, there were new things for me to learn. I did not realize that the Italian Jews in Southern Italy were relatively safe albeit not housed, fed, or clothed well by the Italian army. When these prisons were disbanded, some Jewish people stayed in the relative safety of the south and some traveled to the German-controlled north to face almost certain death.
Book cover: 3.0 stars
Where's The Red House?
Book title: 5.0 stars
Perfect
LUKEWARM recommend
NetGalley eARC/eBOOK
The Red House by Mary Morris
304 pages
Doubleday
FUTURE release date: 5/13/2025
INFORMATIONAL LINKS
TRIGGER WARNING: Death of a parent, death of a child, war, suicide, pregnancy, sexual situations, sexual abuse, alcohol, incarceration, violence
Happy reading,
Dorothea 💜
Wednesday, March 26, 2025
REVIEW - The Book Club for Troublesome Women (eARC/eBOOK)
The Book Club for Troublesome Women by Marie Bostwick (eARC/eBOOK)
OVERVIEW
What a unique and incredible historical fiction novel NOT about WWII!!! But about 1963, The Feminine Mystique, and the Bettys book club. I absolutely LOVED this book!
Although this book was fictional, it took place primarily from March through November 1963 with a final wrap-up chapter set in 2006. The historical characters sprinkled throughout the novel add depth and realism.
I must confess that I have not read The Feminine Mystique or any other books mentioned in this novel. I have a lot of books to add to my TBR list!
OVERALL REVIEW: 5.0 stars
Writing: 5.0 stars
Marie writes beautifully and brilliantly captures what I remember of the 1960s. I was a toddler during the book timeframe. Marie really brought the subjugation of women to life with believable stories for each of the four main characters. The 1960's were not groovy underneath it all.
The author was able to delve into the thoughts and psyches of the women and write about them realistically, yet powerfully. The writing was so well done with some funny and serious moments!
Character development: 5.0 stars
The four main characters and members of the Bettys book club are: Margaret (wife, mom, and want-to-be writer), Charlotte (wife, mom, and aspiring painter), Bitsy (wife and equine lover), and Viv (wife, mom, and former Army nurse). Margaret starts the book club and a lot of life happens in the nine months highlighted in these women's lives!
The secondary characters are the husbands: Walter (Margaret's husband), Howard (Charlotte's husband), King (Bitsy's husband), and Tony (Viv's husband). The women's children are integral to many subplots and stories in this book.
The tertiary characters are Babcock's Books and Concordia (the planned fictional community outside Washington DC).
Many other characters help the story but are really throw-aways that add depth and interest.
Storyline: 5.0 stars
The story is about the four women in the Bettys book club who become friends over food, alcohol, life stories, ups and downs, and reading/not reading books!
The women experience so many difficulties: Margaret cannot open a savings account without her husband's signature; Charlotte wants a divorce, but will lose her children; Bitsy cannot get a letter of recommendation to apply to veterinary school; Viv wants to go on the birth control pill, but needs her husband at the appointment. These stories only occurred about sixty years ago. We still have a long way to go to equality for women!
The locations were: Virginia, Washington, DC, Philadelphia, and New York City.
Memorable/Informative: 5.0 stars
Each of the women has stories that made my blood boil. It was a ridiculous and silly time with rules that made no sense. Even when the characters tried to reason with the person turning them down, they wouldn't listen or indicate that it was how things were!
Book cover: 5.0 stars
Beautiful!
Book title: 5.0 stars
Perfect
HIGHLY recommend
NetGalley eARC/eBOOK
The Book Club for Troublesome Women by Marie Bostwick
384 pages
Harper Muse
FUTURE release date: 4/22/2025
INFORMATIONAL LINKS
TRIGGER WARNING: Death of a parent, suicide, pregnancy, infertility, infidelity, divorce, sexual situations, alcohol, drug use
Happy reading,
Dorothea 💜
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