Arias for Hope.

Book Review for “The Opera Sisters” by Marianne Monson. Summary: "British sisters Ida and Louise Cook enjoy their quiet, unassuming lives in south London. Ida writes romance novels, and Louise works as a secretary. In the evenings, the sisters indulge in their shared love for opera, saving their money to buy records and attend performances … Continue reading Arias for Hope. →

#CCSpin #30 Review – Know Thy Self.

Book Review for “Demian” by Hermann Hess. Summary: “In ‘Demian’, Hermann Hesse dramatizes the dilemma of the marked man, the outcast, the quasi-criminal hero who rejects society and strives to find a higher meaning in a strange world of his own making.” This edition is translated by Michael Roloff and Michael Lebeck, which also includes … Continue reading #CCSpin #30 Review – Know Thy Self. →

Veils of Sorrow.

Book Review for “The School for German Brides” by Aimie K. Runyan. Summary: "Germany, 1939 - As the war begins, Hanna Rombauer, a young German woman, is sent to live with her aunt and uncle after her mother’s death. Thrown into a life of luxury she never expected, Hanna soon finds herself unwillingly matched with … Continue reading Veils of Sorrow. →

#ShortStorySunday – Epistolary Chills from 1938.

Book Review for “Address Unknown” by Kathrine Kressmann Taylor. Summary: “A rediscovered classic and international bestseller that recounts the gripping tale of a friendship destroyed at the hands of Nazi Germany. In this searing novel, Kathrine Kressmann Taylor brings vividly to life the insidious spread of Nazism through a series of letters between Max, a … Continue reading #ShortStorySunday – Epistolary Chills from 1938. →

Postcards from the Precipice.

Book Review for “The Berlin Girl” by Mandy Robotham. Summary: “Berlin, 1938: It’s the height of summer, and Germany is on the brink of war. When fledgling reporter Georgie Young is posted to Berlin, alongside fellow Londoner Max Spender, she knows they are entering the eye of the storm. Arriving to a city swathed in … Continue reading Postcards from the Precipice. →

Young American Male Overseas.

Book Review for “The Boys Next Door: A Novel of the Beatles” by Dan Greenberger. Summary: “Alan Levy is a college student who, in the fall of 1960, spends a semester abroad in Hamburg, Germany. There, he has the misfortune to rent a room next door to an up-and-coming rock and roll band from the … Continue reading Young American Male Overseas. →

The Diamond and the Rough.

The thing that people will immediately realize about this book is that this isn’t one story, but its actually two stories. On the one hand, we have Werner’s story – the orphaned boy, living with his sister in a mining town in Germany.

Nine Times November 11, 1918

Book Review of "Fall of Poppies: Stories of Love and the Great War" by various authors. It isn't often that a group of authors come together to make a collection of short stories. From what I can see, most collections with various authors are ones that a publisher collected, often from a slew of single-author … Continue reading Nine Times November 11, 1918 →

Titanic Flight

Book Review of "Flight of Dreams" by Ariel Lawhon The Hindenburg was the famous Nazi zeppelin that blew up just as it was about to land in New Jersey in 1937. Built to be a modern aviation miracle, and the last word in luxury travel, this incident was not only tragic, but like the 1936 … Continue reading Titanic Flight →

A Plot on a Plot of Land

Book Review of "Visitation" by Jenny Erpenbeck. When it comes to historical fiction, the years before, during and after World War II have become some of the most popular to write about, mostly because of the opportunity they give the writer to evoke strong emotions in their readers. Yet, with all the drama that this … Continue reading A Plot on a Plot of Land →