Author: joycesmysteryandfictionbookreviews

This is a perfect book for your little farmer. The illustrations are bright and lively while the text is in small sections that are fact filled. Some of the topics included in these colorful two page spreads are The Food on Your Plate, Growing Crops, Farm Animals and Tractors and Machines. The amount of information packed into this book is impressive. And then…for more fun, there is a farm set that you and your child can build together.

This is an entertaining book that teaches a lot. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this e galley in exchange for an honest review.

#BusyBuildersFarm #NetGalley

This is a wonderful entry in a wonderful series. With its lovely and appealing illustrations, along with a simple (yet profound) story line, this book gives young readers a chance to learn more about a most impressive man. Even as an adult, I learned things about Gandhi that I had not known while reading this book. Gandhi was a man who stood up (and sat down) for his beliefs in equality and self-government, always invoking peaceful protest. He is a man to be admired.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for another entry in a most favorite series. All opinions are my own.

I have been reading the Peter Diamond series ever since The Last Detective, was published. The protagonist, Peter Diamond, is irascible and capable. The setting of the series is Bath, England; as this is a city that I love, the setting adds to the joys of the novels for me.

Killing with Confetti is the latest in this long running series. In this one, the son of a high ranking police officer is set to marry the daughter of a former prisoner and crime king. Diamond is enlisted to ensure the security of all, especially the former prisoner, over the course of the wedding in the Abbey and the reception at the Roman Baths. Can this be done? What will happen? Where is the twist? Read this entertaining and, at times, funny book to find out.

I enjoyed spending time with Diamond and his team yet again and think that you will too!

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this e galley in exchange for an honest review.

#KillingWithConfetti #NetGalley

This guide provided me with both nostalgic returns to places that I have visited and excitement about so many art venues that I have yet to see. I think that it is a great resource for travelers both real and armchair.

The author starts with a brief history of art in Paris. She begins with Charlemagne and moves on through the centuries. This provides a good orientation for the reader.

The book is then helpfully organized by categories. These include Museums, Foundations & Institutions; Galleries; Photography; Architecture and so on. There are additional chapters on topics including How to Attend an Art Auction, Arty cafes, restaurants and hotels and Arty Day Trips. Throughout there are many photographs and tips. There is truly something to be found for every art lover here.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this e-galley. I plan to buy the print book before my next trip!

Have you ever stopped to consider the role of cats in art? They can be subject and/or inspiration; public art or private art sent in letters; pets of loving owners and more.

This book has chosen cats as its focus, something that I have not seen in any of my art history classes. Sketches, art work and photos of artists with their cats come to this book from the Archives of American Art. The book is divided into sections including Strike A Pose, Cats in the Studio and Cats and the Creative Process. You will see artists some of whom I knew and others whom I did not, including Louise Nevelson, Robert Indiana and Romare Bearden.

This book is work a look if cats and art are among your passions.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this look at cats in the art world.

When I was a child, watching The Wizard of Oz was a yearly family tradition. Armed with snacks, thanks to my father, we settled in to watch, be scared by those flying monkeys, see the world go from black and white to technicolor and hear Somewhere Over the Rainbow. But wait! Did L. Frank Baum write that song? No spoiler, he did not. So…how was this movie made? Who were the actors behind it and who were Mr. and Mrs. (Maud) Baum? You can find answers while reading this delightful historical novel.

There is familiarity as favorite characters are met on the set of the movie. Maud worked hard to have a presence there and to be true to the author’s intentions for the work. She also gets to know Judy Garland and comes to understand her history, emotions and pressures.

Behind and around this, the novel tells the story of Maud and Frank. I learned so much! For example, Maud’s mother was a committed suffragette and Aunt Susan (B. Anthony) was well known to the family. I also read about Maud’s experience as one of the early female students at Cornell. Meeting Frank, getting married, Franks’ biography, struggling…all of this is present in this book.

Finding Dorothy is an excellent historical novel. Follow the road to it!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this e galley in exchange for an honest review.

#FindingDorothy #NetGalley

In this book, young children will spend time with Eddie and Leah as they search for the things that don’t belong in each scene.  There are five two page spreads including Flying High, On the Waves, In a Spin and On the Farm.  The illustrations in each are bright, lively and engaging.  At the back of the book are answers and some fun facts.  A cute book to entertain your little one.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this advance read in exchange for my honest review.

#WhatsWrongOnTheMove #NetGalley

Last year, Ruth was in Italy (The Dark Angel).  This year she is back in Norfolk in a superb entry in a most favorite series of mine.

The first Ruth Galloway mystery, The Crossing Places, is referenced in this book.  The murder and its solution are thought by the characters to have links to the current crime.  I love this series so much that I urge you to start at the beginning.  However, you can read this as a standalone.

There are mysteries here including a cold case and a current baby abduction.  Both story lines are suspenseful and the pieces all come together with the clues there for the reader.

I think though that true lovers of this series read it for the characters and the updates in their personal stories.  If that is part of what you enjoy in the Ruth books, you will not be disappointed.  Every favorite character and relationship is here.

The only bad thing about having read this book is that now I have to begin the long wait for the next in the series.

Enormous thanks to NetGalley and the publisher.  All opinions are my own.

As soon as I saw this title on NetGalley, I desperately wanted to read it. Many thanks to Bloomsbury and NetGalley for granting my request. The opinions below are my own.

I read the first Sidney Chambers novel, Sidney Chambers and the Shadow of Death, when it was first published. I was captivated by the character of Sidney and wanted to know more about him. I have continued to read the stories and have adored the Grantchester series on TV. For me, James Norton has personified Sidney in a most satisfactory way.

The Road to Grantchester tells the story of Sidney before he was the TV character or the man in SC and the Shadow of Death. I was so pleased at the prospect of learning how he became himself.

The beginning of the book was not easy. After a brief prelude, Sidney is immersed in the horrors (and I mean horrors) of WWII in Italy where he serves with Robert Kendall. Robert is the brother of Amanda, a key character in the series.

What Sidney and his fellow soldiers witness and participate in is truly unspeakable. James Runcie has written about war in a way that will make the reader long for peace. Survival in his circumstances is kind of a miracle for Sidney. However, not everyone important to him makes it home safely.

As a reader, because of how awful it was, I was relieved to move to the part of the novel that was post war. Sidney comes home to a world that has changed and yet he has changed even more. He tries to understand what he is meant to do with the gift of his life. After much reflection, he decides to join the church. The reader follows Sidney on his on-going faith journey.

This book is about those important to Sidney. There is Robert his best friend and war compatriot…no spoilers here so I will not say more. As in the TV series, there is prickly Amanda whose relationship with Chambers (as she calls him) is complex but important.

I left this book wanting to reread all of James Runcie’s books. This is an excellent read if you are a fan of Sidney, want to remember why war is a mess or if you want to understand a protagonist’s wish to live a meaningful life.

This novel may not be for everyone but for me it was a five star read.

Stress is a popular topic these days. Stress comes at us from many directions at, what sometimes feels like, an ever increasing velocity. There may be family issues, work problems, school struggles, etc. or you may just have a personality that is vulnerable to stress. For any of these, this book may be helpful.

This book is organized into sections and subsections. A few examples:

Morning (section) has subsections including Waking Well, Starting the Day and Breakfast

The Peaceful Home (section) includes Light, Shade and Colour, Managing Your Spaces, Positive Energies, The Feel Good Home, Outside and Your Neighborhood

and one last example

Evenings (section) which includes Winding Down, Looking Back-Looking Forward and Off to Bed

Within each of these areas there are short, simple things to ponder such as Forget Yesterday’s Mistakes, Create a Personal Affirmation and Call Yourself from Home (leaving a positive message that you will listen to when you arrive at work).

This book may be read in order or dipped into at random. It provides some good suggestions for living comfortably.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher.