Elena Ferrante continues with themes of background, growth, and discovery. The story takes place again in Naples and explores the two worlds of the higher and lower classes. The protagonist, Giovanna, is torn between where she fits in and what is the truth.

Incredible book! It gives a context for why we are kept away from learning the truth about our nation's history.

This was an interesting book especially as I had no idea that the Jewish Race had ever been banned from England! It is set in the 1660s and in current time with the people in current time (Helen and Aaron) discovering the story of Ester who scribed for a Rabbi blinded in the Spanish Inquisition. Ester is actually an intellectual who uses her position to air her views in a time when a woman was not permitted to do such a thing. During the story we learn a lot about her tragic life whilst at the same time we discover that Helen and Aaron have secrets of their own. It is an emotional book with some sad parts and triumphal parts. I was hooked from beginning to end.

Set in a world where Slasher films really did happen, Lynnette is a member of what's known as the "The Final Girls Club." The club is made up of women who meet a very specific criteria - they all were the only survivors of two massacres, and they all killed the person responsible. They meet once a month to support each other and work towards moving on with their lives - until one day one of the members doesn't show up on time. Her monster has come back to kill her. Now, Lynnette is on a race to not only keep herself alive, but to keep the members of her club alive as well. This probably would have worked pretty well as a movie, honestly, but as a book it didn't quite work for me. First, Lynnette as a narrator was awful. She's unreliable from the start, so I found myself utterly distracted the entire book because I was always trying to figure out if I should believe what was happening. I know a lot of books use the unreliable narrator trope now, but it was a difficult sell in this book. I would have much preferred if a different narrator (Heather?) was responsible for telling us what was going on. Or if Lynette's character was tweaked a little. Second, the plot twists were not really plot twists. It was really easy to figure out who was going to be responsible for the killings happening, so that was disappointing. The twists didn't leave me going "oh wow!" so much as "ugh, finally, we got there." My third issue is that it seems like Grad Hendrix either didn't keep track of everything, didn't want to explain everything, or thought that no one would pay attention. For example, at one point a character is mentioned to have a cell phone that they are going to use to keep track of Amber Alerts and to check in with every five hours. Three sentences later, they say that they're going to keep the phone turned off and only have it on for the check in times. How...how are you checking for Amber Alerts? Why did you make a big deal about checking for Amber Alerts, only to then say you're turning the phone off and not getting them anyway? In another scene, Lynnette is dictating a message for someone to send. She claims that it was a difficult process, and that she had to spell out a lot of the words. The example given is using "p as in Paul which is fascinating, because the only words with "p" in her message are purchased, photos, people, and peace. Am I really supposed to believe that someone couldn't spell one of those words without help? Really? I could go on and on, but honestly? I had high hopes for this book. The summary sounded great, and I was really excited to read it. I'm glad I didn't spend money on it. The writing is just not good.

March (Book 1) is a great read for all ages. I recommend not rushing through this novel, but taking the time to thoroughly analyze the graphics drawn by Nate Powell in order to gain a deeper understanding of the Civil Rights struggle. I appreciated learning about John Lewis' childhood and experiences in the South, to better understand how they impacted his future activism. Especially interesting was the conflict WITHIN the movement between the older activists who were more willing to compromise, such as MLK Jr and Thurgood Marshall, and the younger activists who wanted full justice without negotiation, such as John Lewis and Diane Nash of SNCC. I highly recommend this book and look forward to reading the next books in the trilogy.

I've read many Lisa Jewell books and consider myself a fan. She does a great job of creating a realistic and vivid picture of her characters and their lives, and I usually enjoy following along as she tells their stories and gradually puts pieces together to solve a mystery or a puzzle of some kind. This book felt like Lisa Jewell "light," and read more like a romance novel. The book alternates between the lives of two young women making their way in London 70 years apart - Betty in the 1990s and Betty's step-grandmother Arlette in the 1920s. Both of them are extraordinarily beautiful, and other characters comment on this so often that it starts to seem ridiculous. I liked the story of Betty more than that of Arlette, but overall the characters in both time periods were flat, their problems were predictable and the book dragged on way too long. I had to force myself to finish it.

The Push is a quick and intense read. I gave it 5 stars because it's a unique and fantastically written novel. It's dark, and also very sad and depressing. But Ashley Audrain makes narrator Blythe so real that I felt completely immersed in her struggles with motherhood and her relationships. I found the flashback sections a little confusing at first, but as the book went on it became clear that there was a purpose for including the unusual and disturbing stories of Blythe's mother and grandmother.

not very in depth but still good, nice story line, book of the other main character from a different series.

Ten-tear-old Della has always had her older sister, Suki: When their mom went to prison, Della had Suki. When their mom's boyfriend took them in, Della had Suki. When that same boyfriend did something so awful they had to run fast, Della had Suki. Suki is Della's own protector. But who has been protecting Suki? Della might get told off for swearing at school, but she has always known how to keep quiet where it counts. Then Suki tries to kill herself, and Della's world turns so far upside down, it feels like it's shaking her by the ankles. Maybe she's been quiet about the wrong things. Maybe it's time to be loud. In Fighting Words, you truly feel for the characters and have your eyes opened to the untold stories of so many.

Leopards is a non-fiction book about Leopards. Leopards live in Africa's grasslands and forest. They're able to stay cool hanging out in the shade. They hunt for antelope, birds and small mammals. Leopards are very strong and use their legs to climb tall trees.