Rabbi Aviva Cohen is Solving Murders Again!

Book Review of "Unleavened Dead" (Rabbi Akiva Cohen Mystery #2) by Rabbi Ilene Schneider. Those of you who have read Ilene Schneider’s first book – Chanukah Guilt – will remember our beloved Rabbi Aviva Cohen. She’s the unruly-haired, rotund rabbi of the small, Walford New Jersey synagogue 'Mishkan Or,' who has been divorced twice, and … Continue reading Rabbi Aviva Cohen is Solving Murders Again! →

Name, Rank and 8200

Book Review of "Spies, Inc.: Business Innovation from Israel's Masters of Espionage" by Stacy Perman. Whatever you may think about Israel, you have to admit that from its inception, the odds were against it. You also must give it credit for surviving while being outnumbered by over 100 to 1 from the onset. Under those … Continue reading Name, Rank and 8200 →

The REAL Chocolate Wars

Book Review of "The Emperors of Chocolate: Inside the Secret World of Hershey and Mars" by Joël Glenn Brenner A friend gave me this book to read because she knows my deep devotion to chocolate. She was reading it for its marketing and business information. Well, anything about chocolate must be interesting, but business and … Continue reading The REAL Chocolate Wars →

Women who Orbited Fame

Book Review of "Almost Famous Women: Stories" by Megan Mayhew Bergman. In the notes at the end of this book, author Megan Mayhew Bergman informs us that, "The stories in this collection are born of fascination with real women whose remarkable lives were reduced to footnotes." She also says that she's "fascinated by risk taking … Continue reading Women who Orbited Fame →

The Science of Love

Book Review for "The Rosie Project" by Graeme Simsion. Don Tillman may be a genius when it comes to science and genetics, or anything else he decides to study, but he's clueless about two things: women and his Asperger's Syndrome. Despite this, he's determined to find himself a wife in the only way he knows … Continue reading The Science of Love →

Empty Nest and/or Wishful Thinking

Book Review of "Second Honeymoon" by Joanna Trollope. Edie is an actor, but raising her three children Matthew, Rosa and Ben, made her put most of her career on hold. After the last of her children finally moved out, that nest seemed suddenly very, very empty. This doesn't bother her husband Russell; he's thrilled he'll … Continue reading Empty Nest and/or Wishful Thinking →

A Fry-ed Life

Book Review of "The Fry Chronicles: an Autobiography" by Stephen Fry This is Stephen Fry's second installment of his autobiography. The meat of this book takes place during his most formative years – those being while he was at Cambridge and the years afterwards as he was making his name in print, radio, television and … Continue reading A Fry-ed Life →

The Scent for Infatuation

Book Review of "Nectar: A Novel of Temptation" by Lily Prior This novel is almost pure fantasy, as opposed to this author's first work, which was mostly reality-based. While the story and people and events in "La Cucina" could actually have existed (despite some of the unusual bits), unless there's some amazingly missed documentation out … Continue reading The Scent for Infatuation →

The Army for Enlightenment

Book Review for "The Brotherhood of Book Hunters" by Raphaël Jerusalmy. Author Jerusalmy introduces this book as follows: "Born at the end of the Middle Ages, François Villon is the first modern poet. He is the author of the famous Ballad of the Hanged and Ballad of Dead Ladies. But Villon was also a notorious … Continue reading The Army for Enlightenment →

A novel that will stick with you

Book review of "We are all made of Glue" by Marina Lewycka. Georgina is in a bit of a mess. Her husband has left her for another woman, her daughter hardly speaks to her, her son is going through a mid-teen crisis, she can’t seem to get anywhere with her steamy romance novel, and she’s … Continue reading A novel that will stick with you →