After Annie by Anna Quindlen
Happy reading,
Dorothea 💜
Monday, September 18, 2023
DNF - Good Fortune
I will not be finishing Good Fortune by C.K. Chau. I am definitely NOT the correct demographic for this book due to my age. The correct target demographic would be someone in their 20s or 30s.
Happy reading,
Dorothea 💜
Sunday, September 17, 2023
Review - The Women
OVERVIEW
OMG!!! This book is unbelievable! I read it in about 24 hours and could not put it down. It is another 5.0-star book! Unbelievable!!
This story focuses on the unforgotten heroes in Vietnam - the female nurses! All throughout the book, the female Vietnam Veterans are told that "there were no women in Vietnam" and dismissed when their PSTD issues come to the surface. They are the unsung warriors who made a difference so that many young men could go home to their friends and families. Heroes!!
This novel focuses on in-country in Vietnam in 1967-1968 and primarily focuses on one specific nurse, Frances "Frankie/Frank". It starts with her enlisting through the dedication of the Vietnam War Memorial in Washington D.C.
The story is brutal, horrible, and ghastly. The Vietnam War was horrible for both sides and so much went wrong to create a totally FUBAR situation. There are so many layers to what happened in Vietnam that it will never be fully understood. The young men and women who sacrificed so much were simply pawns in an old, white-man game of power.
Definitely an outstanding novel, but what makes it so strong is that it tells the untold story of the women in Vietnam - the nurses!!
OVERALL REVIEW: 5.0 stars
Writing: 5.0 stars
Since this is the first book by Kristin Hannah that I have read, I was completely blown away by her amazing writing. It is like she is painting a picture for me with her writing, but it is so much more. I could not only see what she was writing about, but I could feel, hear, smell, and taste it!
Normally, I am hesitant to read popular books and authors, but Kristin Hannah proved me wrong. All of her readers are not wrong, she is a phenomenal writer!!
Interestingly, Kristin Hannah and I are very close in age and were born in California. What she talks about in her Author's Note was very real-life for me as well. It was a scary time for kids as we didn't fully understand what was going on!
Character development: 5.0 stars
This was a contemporary historical fiction book as it happened less than sixty years ago. But there were the normal large numbers of characters in a typical historical fiction novel! All of these characters added to the story and were necessary to fully understand the detailed storyline.
The main characters are Frances "Frankie/Frank", Ethel, and Barb who are in the Army Nursing Corps (ANC) and are immediate best friends while they serve in Vietnam and throughout the book.
The secondary characters are their patients, fellow medical personnel, and other service members in Vietnam. Back home, their parents, friends, and spouses are also big secondary characters.
Finally, the Vietnam War is the tertiary character. It negatively impacts the lives of everyone that it touches. There was no one who left Vietnam the same person that they were when they arrived. The war was a greedy and evil character.
Storyline: 5.0 stars
The storyline was about what happened before, during, and after the Vietnam War for the three best friends, but most focus was on Frankie. These three friends were "ride-or-die" friends who were there through the worst and best times for each other.
It was a painful, heartbreaking story that these three women experienced, but there are many, many more who went through the same traumas during the war in Vietnam. Everyone from the Soldiers to the Marines to the doctors to the helicopter pilots was negatively affected by their own private, personal experiences. Then they all came home and had people spitting on them. Horrific!
The main locations were Vietnam, Kauai, Virginia, California, and Washington D.C.
Memorable/Informative: 5.0 stars
This was extraordinarily memorable and informative. I knew that there were nurses in Vietnam because I watched a few episodes of China Beach. But, I never for a second thought about the horror - Hollywood glamorized their roles which was an insult to what they endured and accomplished. I need to do more reading on the topic - it is a powerful story that must be told before all of these heroes pass on.
Book cover: 5.0 stars
Perfection.
Book title: 5.0 stars
Very appropriate!
Gut feeling: 3.0 stars
I was very unsure about whether I would like this novel or not as I have never read any of Kristin Hannah's books.
Suggestions:
A map of the locations would have been a helpful addition.
Highly RECOMMEND
BOOK INFORMATION
The Women by Kristin Hannah
480 pages
St. Martin's Press
Release date of 02/06/2024
INFORMATIONAL LINKS
Happy reading,
Dorothea 💜
Saturday, September 16, 2023
REVIEW - Diva
I believe that this is the second book by this author that I have read. I knew, of course, who Maria Callas was, but I didn't know about her long-term affair with Aristotle Onassis!
The story focuses on the timeframe when Maria and Aristotle meet and have their torrid affair. Yes, I get that it was a VERY torrid affair. But, the book is a little R-rated for me and I just don't find it necessary to have love scenes so graphic - I get what happens!
The novel doesn't fully let the reader into WHY Maria would have been involved in such a long-term affair when she was LA DIVA!! I would have liked more on her life "pre-Aristotle" and "post-Aristotle".
OVERALL REVIEW: 3.5 stars
Writing: 3.5 stars
The writing was not that exceptional and needed some editing to me. But, it could be that I have been reading some very, very well-written books by very renowned authors.
Character development: 3.5 stars
This was more like contemporary historical fiction as it happened about sixty years ago. There weren't a large number of characters as in a normal historical fiction! But, there were a lot of people who passed in and out in the book for added color like royalty or movie stars.
The main characters are Maria Callas and Aristotle Onassis. The novel was primarily focused on the time frame while they had their relationship. There was a little about both of their lives before meeting, but it was not enough for me. I wanted to understand what drew these two strong personalities together other than that they were Greek!
The secondary characters were the left-behind spouses, Tina Onassis and Tita Menegheni, and Elsa Maxwell, gossip columnist/"friend". They are all involved in what happened and may have even helped move the affair along in Elsa's case.
The final and tertiary character is the opera. It was a part of Maria's every breathing moment.
Storyline: 3.5 stars
The storyline really was about Maria and Aristotle's intimate moments, her performing, and luxury living which was very extravagant.
A lot of the storyline did not have a historical record and the author had to create the storyline. But, I think that there could have been so much more "meat" to explain the affair and their relationship so much more fully!
The main locations were most of Europe, New York City, Greece, and a yacht in the Mediterranean.
Memorable/Informative: 3.5 stars
It was very interesting and now I want to know more about Maria and Aristotle.
Book cover: 3.0 stars
Meh.
Book title: 4.5 stars
Very appropriate!
Gut feeling: 3.0 stars
I was very unsure about whether I would like this novel or not.
Suggestions:
A glossary of the Greek words - unable to find them in the Kindle book translator.
RECOMMEND
BOOK INFORMATION
Diva by Daisy Goodwin
336 pages
St. Martin's Press
Release date of 01/23/2024
INFORMATIONAL LINKS
Happy reading,
Dorothea 💜
Thursday, September 14, 2023
DNF - Talking to My Angels AUDIOBOOK
I will not be finishing Talking to My Angels by Melissa Etheridge. This just wasn't the right audiobook for me at this time!
Happy reading,
Dorothea 💜
P.S. I started this audiobook last night and decided to DNF. So it is two quick posts to say that I am reading it and then another post explaining the DNF.
Wednesday, September 13, 2023
Review - Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone - Outlander #9
This is a big guess, but I think that this is about the twentieth book by Diana Gabaldon that I have read. All of the books by her that I have read have been in the Outlander universe.
This book took over seven years to be published from the eighth book, Written in My Own Heart's Blood - Outlander #8. I have had it on Kindle and my To-Be-Read list for almost two years as I wasn't sure how long it would take me to read it. Surprisingly, it only took me six days to read 960 pages! Yikes!!
Now the Outlander series (book and television show) has almost a cult following and Diana Gabaldon is highly revered. But, I have not read one of her books in almost nine years and think that the books have gotten much more religious with whole pages dedicated to religious services and texts. Additionally, the length of the book is a bit unwieldy, some editing would have made this book so much more enjoyable.
The story is about a time-traveling wife Claire and her husband Jamie who live in North Carolina during the Revolutionary War. The story unfolds with the issues, drama, and hardship during a war. Of course, the story is left on a cliffhanger!
This series is exceedingly good, but waiting such a long time between the novels is discouraging and loses the motion and flow of the books. In retrospect, I wish that I had waited to "binge" all of the novels once they were done.
OVERALL REVIEW: 4.0 stars
Writing: 4.0 stars
The writing, as always, was very well done. Also, the research was really good and detailed, but maybe a bit over the top at times. I also feel as if SAT words were used continually so I had to look up obscure 18th-century words to follow the train of the plot. Additionally, there were multiple languages used by the characters and there was no glossary or dictionary that was available to define some of these words or phrases. The German and French could be discovered via the translate function. But the Gaelic is not available for translation. So that was a bit frustrating. Finally, the biggest issue for me was that editing would have helped make this novel so much stronger.
Character development: 4.0 stars
This was totally normal historical fiction as there were a great deal of characters! But way too many characters! 0It included the people and book characters of Fraser's Ridge, Charles Town (Charleston), Savannah, multiple battlefields, and the Native American villages. There were a lot of people to try to remember and juggle. At times, I could not keep them all straight.
The main characters are Claire (wife/healer), Jamie (husband/warrior/landowner), Brianna (daughter/engineer), Roger (son-in-law/lay minister), and William (Jamie's natural son/British Army captain).
The secondary characters are all of their extended family all over the Americas. This includes landed British gentry and aristocracy, Native Americans, Quakers, Patriots, Loyalists, famous historical characters, and so many more. It was a lot of people to manage and remember.
The final and tertiary characters are all of the ordinary people who live in all these locations. The were many, many tertiary characters.
Storyline: 3.5 stars
At times, it felt like there was no real plot and the storyline just kept adding more and more characters to set up the next book. This book just had so many plot lines and sub-plot lines that it was confusing at times to try and understand what was actually happening.
The main locations were North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Virginia, New Jersey, and New York.
Memorable/Informative: 4.0 stars
It was an interesting novel, but I think that it could have been so much more. As a lover of history, I really wanted fewer characters and more detail on the characters included. At times, it felt like a history lesson and not a book to read for pleasure.
Book cover: 4.0 stars
The last few novels in this series don't have the best covers, in my opinion.
Book title: 5.0 stars
I loved the title - it was a perfect tie-in to the bee hives that Claire has. It seemed to be a metaphor for what was happening during the Revolutionary War.
Gut feeling: 4.0 stars
I assumed that I would LOVE this book as I have liked the other books by this author that I have read, but this was only a strong like.
Suggestions:
A glossary of non-English terminology and a cast of characters to keep everyone straight! Additionally, the genealogy tree should have dates - that would be really helpful also!
RECOMMEND
BOOK INFORMATION
Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone - Outlander #9 by Diana Gabaldon
960 pages
Dell
Release date of 11/23/2021
INFORMATIONAL LINKS
Happy reading,
Dorothea 💜
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