Category Archives: Books Read in 2014

Peace, Love, and Baby Ducks, by Lauren Myracle (2009)

Posted on October 23, 2014 by tom

This one just didn’t work for me. The narrator–elder sister, Carly–starts off deep, then becomes incredibly shallow; she’s kind and loving and protective of her younger sister, Anna, then she’s suddenly spiteful, all because Anna is the prettier of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Books Read in 2014, Young Adult | Leave a comment

Ariel, by Sylvia Plath (rev. version 2014)

Posted on October 23, 2014 by tom

As it says in the Goodreads summation, this is a restructuring of the “Ariel” originally released, as edited by Sylvia Plath’s husband, Ted Hughes. Hughes included other poems for release in England and the USA, and deleted others. This version … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Books Read in 2014, Poetry | 2 Comments

Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil (novel), by John Berendt (1994)

Posted on June 22, 2014 by tom

There’s something unique about the South. My mom and her ancestors grew up in the shadow of Lookout Mountain, where Georgia, Tennessee, and Alabama intersect, where one of the bloodiest campaigns of the Civil War was fought. I remember feeling … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Books Read in 2014, History, Memoir or Biography, Mysteries/Thrillers, Non Fiction and/or Commentary | Leave a comment

American Tabloid, by James Ellroy

Posted on June 9, 2014 by tom

Kemper Boyd—suave FBI Agent infiltrating car theft rings. His best friend, Ward Littel, also an FBI agent, but a bored one stuck in Chicago. Pete Bondurant: a six-foot-five fixer for various underworld figures, including getting drugs for Howard Hughes. Howard … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Books Read in 2014, General Fiction, Literary or Genre Fiction, Mysteries/Thrillers, series | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Why Are You Atheists So ANGRY? 99 Things That Piss-Off the Godless, by Greta Christina

Posted on June 6, 2014 by tom

Why Are You Atheists So ANGRY? 99 Things That Piss Off the Godless By Greta Christina Again, let me disclaim that I am neither atheist nor agnostic. I’m hardly a zealot either. I’ve found my own belief structure, and that … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Books Read in 2014, Non Fiction and/or Commentary, Religion/Spirituality | Leave a comment

The Ghosts of Nagasaki, by Daniel Clausen (2012)

Posted on June 5, 2014 by tom

So, so, so many books have exactly the same plots, just with different characters. There are brave, heroic men to smite bad guys; there are brainy women, doctors who use their brains to solve crimes. There are usually multiple killings, … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Books Read in 2014, Literary or Genre Fiction, Paranormal | Leave a comment

God is NOT Good: How Religion Poisons Everything, by Christopher Hitchens (2009)

Posted on June 2, 2014 by tom

This is the part where I tell you that I’m neither an atheist nor an agnostic. I was raised Protestant, dipped a toe in Catholicism, and came out with my own system of beliefs. They are just that: my own … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Books Read in 2014, Non Fiction and/or Commentary, Religion/Spirituality, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

We Are The Goldens, by Dana Reinhardt (2014)

Posted on May 10, 2014 by tom

We Are the Goldens (2014) By Dana Reinhardt Nellayla That’s what a young Nell used to call herself, because she was so close to her older sister. Layla would laugh: “I am Layla,” and [Layla] tapped [her] chest, then you … Continue reading →

Posted in Best Books of the Year, Books, Books Read in 2014, General Fiction, Young Adult | Leave a comment

The Tycoon’s Daughter (Treadwell Academy Novels), by Caitlyn Duffy (2014)

Posted on April 12, 2014 by tom

Before the first word of this story, there are voluminous resources as to how and when and where to get help for eating disorders. There’s encouragement. There’s potentially life-saving information. This is one thing that I love about Caitlyn Duffy’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Books Read in 2014, General Fiction, Memoir or Biography, Short Stories/Novella, Young Adult | Leave a comment

The Summer of Letting Go, by Gae Polisner (2014)

Posted on March 25, 2014 by tom

This book killed me. Not only is it unputdownable, I received a review copy from the publisher last November. It was one of my favorite books of the year, and yet I COULDN’T PUT IT IN MY TOP TEN! FINALLY, … Continue reading →

Posted in Best Books of the Year, Books, Books Read in 2014, Young Adult | Tagged , | 7 Comments