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Touched By Fire cover

Review: Touched By Fire

By Jan
 on November 16, 2013

Touched By Fire by Irene N. Watts

Touched By Fire coverHistorical fiction
Published September, 2013 by Tundra Books
Hardcover, 206 pages

This is the story of a young woman named Miriam Markovitz, whose family lived in Russia in the early part of the last century. Wanting to escape the horrible conditions under which they lived and the persecutions of the Jews, they moved to Germany and then to America.

I enjoyed the story and especially the fact that it told the tale of so many immigrants. It didn’t go into any details of the pogroms or anti-Semitism in Europe, but there are plenty of other places to find that. What it did tell was about the waiting, working, and separation of families for years in order to live a better life elsewhere. That is the basis of so many of our lives now, and a large part of the history of our country.

The book is written for young people and the writing is simple and clear. I would have liked a little more depth from Miriam’s character, but otherwise the book includes interesting and authentic people.

Although the cover and the back blurb make it seem as if the story is based on the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire, that is only a single incident in this story and occurs at the end. The real story is the emigration of Miriam and her family, and specifically her adjustment to her new places and friends.

Recommended for fans of historical fiction, especial YA.

The publisher sent a free copy of this book for a fair review. I will now be passing it on to other readers through my book club.
In categories Book Review, Historical Novel Tagged with anti-Semitism, Goodreads, historical fiction, LibraryThing, Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire, YA
List of books

List of Book Lists and a fun post

By Jan
 on September 2, 2013

Today I’m pointing to a fun post from Half Price Books that will bring back some memories and hopefully make some new ones. 50 Greatest Love Stories Ever Told (in a book) by Meredith celebrated “Kiss and Make Up” Day on August 25.

I like book lists. It’s fun to look through them and pick the ones you’ve read and want to read, or to wonder how in the world the author came up with that one to add to the list. Although they are usually somewhat subjective, sometimes I wonder, “What were they thinking?” It’s interesting to read the comments, too, and either chuckle, growl, or nod my virtual head at ‘omissions’ and ‘additions.’

  • I love the “Have You Read?” section in Bookmarks Magazine, which includes themed lists sent in by readers.
  • I adore Flashlight Worthy Books, a web site full of handpicked book recommendations by readers; it’s a terrific resource.
  • The Listmania feature on Amazon.com is touch and go, but contains some real gems.
  • I don’t use the Library Thing Zeigeist feature as much as I used to, but it can be extremely handy for finding books, authors, genres, and users in several different ways.
  • Goodreads has its own version of Listopia that is a very effective tool for finding old favorites and new possibilities.

Have fun with the lists, and please let me know if you have more to add.

From “50 Greatest Love Stories Ever Told (in a book)” on the HPB blog

© Jan McClintock of We Need More Shelves

In categories List Tagged with amazon.com, Goodreads, LibraryThing
Conqueror cover

Review: Conqueror

By Jan
 on November 13, 2012

Conqueror cover
Conqueror by Conn Iggulden

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This is part of a series (5 of 5 so far) that describes what happened to the Mongols of central Asia during and after Genghis Khan’s rule. I hadn’t read the previous books, and I’m sure that made a big difference in how much I enjoyed this one. However, Conn Iggulden’s writing style is wonderful; he’s a master storyteller. That being said, this is fiction, not history. The characters may be based upon historical figures, but their actions and personalities are, apparently, entirely the author’s own. He’s taken a lot of liberty with history, and if that doesn’t matter to you, then you will surely enjoy the action and intrigue in this novel. I didn’t like the quick changes of POV between chapters, especially, but the story was fascinating.

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© Jan McClintock of We Need More Shelves

In categories Book Review, Historical Novel Tagged with Goodreads
Spring House cover

Review: Spring House (Westward Sagas, Book 1)

By Jan
 on November 13, 2012


Spring House (Westward Sagas, Book 1) by David Bowles

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Based on historical facts and real people, this well-written, fictional account of the Mitchell family during the American Revolutionary War is both heartwarming and heartbreaking. Through good times and bad, they stick together, and along with their neighbors, fight for independence. Lots of interesting history about early settlers in North Carolina and the important battle of Guilford Courthouse.

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© Jan McClintock of We Need More Shelves

In categories Book Review, Historical Novel Tagged with Goodreads, historical fiction
Hollywood Unknowns cover

Review: Hollywood Unknowns

By Jan
 on July 24, 2012
Hollywood Unknowns by Anthony Slide

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Hollywood Unknowns coverThis is an incredible piece of research by the author on the role of extra players in American film history, beginning in the early years of the 20th century and concentrating on the 1920’s and 30’s. The author, Anthony Slide, is a preeminent film historian and author of many books on American cinema.

Slide reveals the diverse backgrounds, sometimes surprising goals, and successes and/or failures of the many thousands who came to Hollywood to make it in pictures. He shows lots of examples and goes into a large amount of detail about casting, pay, living conditions, ethnicity and gender differences, and the coming of sound to the film industry.

Scattered throughout the book are wonderful photos of the era showing extras at work and leisure, industry staff, and studio shots. The book is exquisitely referenced and includes an eleven-page bibliography.

I would highly recommend this book for serious film buffs and fans of early Hollywood.

Note: The galley Kindle version of the book had some serious formatting issues that caused words to disappear at the ends of some paragraphs. However, the Adobe Digital Editions version was perfectly formatted.

I received this book from NetGalley and am happy to provide a review, although I was under no obligation to do so.

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© Jan McClintock of We Need More Shelves

In categories Book Review, Non-fiction Tagged with Goodreads, NetGalley
The Inquisitor's Apprentice cover

Review: The Inquisitor’s Apprentice

By Jan
 on July 5, 2012

The Inquisitor's Apprentice
The Inquisitor’s Apprentice by Chris Moriarty;

My rating: 3 of 5 stars;

The Inquisitor’s Apprentice by Chris Moriarty is a colorful YA fantasy set in an alternate New York City circa turn-of-the-20th-century. Magic abounds, although it’s illegal, and when a young Jewish boy, Sacha Kessler, discovers he can see it happening, he is immediately recruited by the police department’s head inquisitor, Maximilian Wolf. Their job is to find and stop others using magic, even though Sacha’s has a personal conflict of interest. His fellow apprentice, Lily Astral, is from one of the wealthiest and most influential families in New York.

I’m not sure children will appreciate the clever word-play and references to history, but the story itself is straightforward, and the characters are well-drawn even if some are stereotypical. The author describes the city wonderfully, with its immigrants and robber barons, tenements and mansions, back alleys and wide avenues.

I did not like the inclusion of the supernatural creature, the “dybbuk,” as a plot device and the ending of the book was very vague. I was definitely looking for something more concrete. That would be confusing to children, in my opinion.

Overall, I enjoyed the story and the writing was first-rate. However, the solution to the mystery was disappointing.

This ebook was provided free of charge for review by NetGalley

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© Jan McClintock of We Need More Shelves

In categories Book Review, Fantasy Tagged with Goodreads, NetGalley

Review: The Deserter

By Jan
 on July 4, 2012

The Deserter cover
The Deserter by Paul Almond;

My rating: 4 of 5 stars;

“The Deserter” by Paul Almond is a very enjoyable historical novel about a young man who jumps overboard from a British Navy ship while it lies just off the coast of Canada in the early 1800’s. He’d been waiting a long time for his chance to start over in the New World, and he had only one chance as a deserter. Now running from the British Navy and facing a completely unknown future, Thomas Manning had only the clothes on his back and a few tools to try to stay alive and start his life over.

The opening of the book drew me in, as I immediately wanted to see if Thomas was able to make it off the ship. The settings were very vivid, and I felt the writing was quite authentic to time and place. The story moves along at a good pace and I didn’t feel that it bogged down at any spot. The chapters were fine reading lengths and ended at suitable break points — few cliffhangers that I remember. I liked the story and will definitely consider the next book in the trilogy.

NOTE: I was impressed by the editing and the layout of the Kindle-version formatting. Unlike many e-books, this one was exemplary. Congratulations to the editor!

This ebook was provided free of charge for review by NetGalley

© Jan McClintock of We Need More Shelves

In categories Book Review, Historical Novel Tagged with Goodreads, NetGalley
The Opal Deception cover

Review: The Opal Deception

By Jan
 on May 30, 2012

The Opal Deception (Artemis Fowl #4) by Eoin Colfer;

The Opal Deception coverMy rating: 3 of 5 stars;

Pixie Opal Koboi is a nasty bad guy in this fourth volume on the Artemis Fowl series. She’s out for revenge and will stop at nothing to get it. Everyone seems destined for trouble, as Holly Short (Fairy cop) is about to lose her career, Artemis has no memory of The People, and one of the main characters is not going to make it through this book alive.

Although this book also included action and surprises (some good, some bad), I thought it went way overboard with some aspects of the story. By the end, I had had enough of the chase scenes (not wanting to give away anything). I felt that Opal’s potential was wasted, too.

I love the humor in these books, which almost always comes from the interaction among the characters. These are really quirky individuals with specific traits and dispositions to go along with their…well, species.

I do wonder about the moral message of the books, and who the target audience is. There is a lot of murder, large-scale crime, and magic that supposedly can raise the dead. Although the stories imply that Artemis isn’t *all* bad, is this the example parents want for their middle-grade readers?

This ebook was provided free of charge for review by NetGalley

© Jan McClintock of We Need More Shelves

In categories Book Review, Fantasy Tagged with Goodreads, NetGalley, YA
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