Lucy Hart knows all too well what it’s like to grow up without loving parents. In a childhood marked by neglect and loneliness, Lucy found solace in books, especially the Clock Island series by reclusive author Jack Masterson. Now a twenty-six-year-old teacher’s aide, she shares her love of reading with her young students, particularly seven-year-old Christopher Lamb, who tragically lost his parents and became an orphan. Lucy dreams of adopting Christopher, but she lacks the funds and stability to make it happen. Jack Masterson, the mega-bestselling author of the Clock Island series, quit writing under mysterious circumstances and for the past six years has been drinking himself into an early […]
Read more...Tag Archives: magical realism
A Journey Through Mongolia: Our Take on I Rode a Horse of Milk White Jade
I read I Rode a Horse of Milk White Jade with my 10-year-old granddaughter as a buddy read. While I appreciated the historical depth, my granddaughter’s feedback strongly shaped my rating—3 stars. As she put it, “It’s hard to compete with Harry Potter!” The story begins with Oyuna, a girl born on the Mongolian steppes during the reign of Kublai Khan, cursed with bad luck after a horse crushes her foot. Determined to prove her worth, she disguises herself as a boy and embarks on an incredible journey with her old mare. Along the way, Oyuna faces trials that lead her to the Khan’s palace, where she plays a key […]
Read more...A Timeless Tale of Art and Family
Tracy Chevalier’s The Glassmaker feels like stepping into a kaleidoscope—colorful, intricate, and timeless. Set on Murano, the island of Venetian glassmakers, this novel captures the lives of the Rosso family, particularly the indomitable Orsola Rosso, whose spirit and skill defy societal expectations. The story opens in 1486, where Orsola longs to craft delicate glass goblets, but as a woman, she’s deemed fit only to make “inconsequential” beads. Those very beads save her family repeatedly as the novel skips through centuries of triumph, loss, and survival. From the Renaissance to plagues, Napoleon’s conquests, and even COVID-19, Chevalier vividly portrays Murano’s changing fortunes and the resilience of the Rosso women. The glassmaking details are […]
Read more...A Magical Journey of Love, Loss, and Connection
The Lost Bookshop is a heartwarming blend of mystery, historical fiction, and contemporary storytelling, woven together through a magical bookshop brimming with secrets. The novel follows three storylines: In 1921, Opaline defies societal norms by escaping a forced marriage and finding refuge at a bookstore in Paris. In the present, Martha rebuilds her life after fleeing an abusive marriage, and Henry searches for a missing manuscript tied to the enigmatic bookshop. At its heart, the story centers on a hidden bookshop that transcends time and space, offering solace and second chances. Woods’ vivid descriptions bring the settings to life, from Dublin to Paris, and the bookshop itself, with its dusty […]
Read more...A Sweet, Hallmark-Style Tale with a Dash of Magic
Midnight at the Blackbird Café offers a gentle blend of magical realism, romance, and Southern small-town charm. Set in the shadowy mountains of Wicklow, Alabama, the story follows Anna Kate Callow as she returns to bury her Granny Zee and close the beloved Blackbird Café. What was to be a quick visit turns into a deeper connection to the town her mother fled years ago. The café is famous for its blackbird pie, rumored to allow the dead to send messages to the living. However, Granny Zee took the secret ingredient to her grave, leaving Anna Kate to serve delicious but non-magical pies. Along the way, Anna Kate encounters Natalie […]
Read more...A Multigenerational Tapestry with Mixed Results
The Grandmother Begins the Story is a rich multigenerational novel that explores the lives and heritage of a Métis family. This unusual and almost weird novel is told by a chorus of funny, wise, confused, and struggling characters, including five generations of women in an indigenous Canadian family. Even bison, grasslands, dogs, and a car chime in to tell their stories. The characters include Mamé, who’s having trouble settling in the afterlife; her daughter Geneviève, who checks into rehab at age 81 after decades of alcoholism; Gen’s daughter Lucie, who is dying of cancer; and Carter, Geneviève’s great-granddaughter, who’s just discovering her Métis heritage after escaping an abusive adoptive mother. […]
Read more...Remarkably Bright Creatures
“Humans. For the most part, you are dull and blundering. But occasionally, you can be remarkably bright creatures.”― Shelby Van Pelt, Remarkably Bright Creatures. So, picture this: a novel about a talking octopus who’s also an escape artist. Sounds pretty out there, right? Well, that’s what I thought too until I read Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt. This book has been making waves (pun intended) as a 2022 Goodreads Choice Award nominee for Best Fiction and Best Debut Novel, and let me tell you, it’s now firmly planted among my all-time favorites. Here’s why: The story follows Tova Sullivan, who’s been working the night shift at the Sowell Bay Aquarium […]
Read more...