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Down at the End of the River: Stories
Down at the End of the River: Stories
8
8.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
[Down at the End of the River] by [Angus Woodward] is a compilation of short stories, which usually are not the type of thing I like to read. I did enjoy these and if I did not know they were the same author I would have thought they were penned by many different people.

[Woodward] does an excellent job in creating characters and using those characters to drive the story. More than a few even caused me to feel the nervousness or anxiety of the characters.

I was disappointed that the setting of Louisiana was not highlighted more that it was just a passing reference. I believe the south has a character all it's own and could have added even more to the stories.
  
Another Day in the Death of America
Another Day in the Death of America
Gary Younge | 2016 | Philosophy, Psychology & Social Sciences
10
10.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
Honest, authentic and eye opening (0 more)
How many more days before things change?
This book is incredibly valuable. Whilst focusing on the lives of ten young individuals whose lives were tragically cut short Younge also focuses on the history of gun violence in those communities as well as research on this dilemma. Together, these elements create a compelling novel which open the eyes of the reader to the injustices that occur due to gun violence, whilst also ensuring that common assumptions and misconceptions are brought into the limelight. Due to the nature of this novel it is my belief that it should be read a chapter at a time to allow for contemplation and reflection on the disastrous events contained within its pages.
  
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ClareR (5911 KP) rated Love Bites in Books

Apr 6, 2018  
Love Bites
Love Bites
Elena Kaufman | 2018 | Fiction & Poetry
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
This is a collection of short stories that follow various people who are not where they started out. They are immigrants, eccentrics and those who really don't want to be where they are. Themes include loss, isolation/ loneliness and difference.
Stories that particularly stood out for me, were the story about a girl who loses her leg, the elderly woman trying to escaper her old people's home if only she could remember what she's supposed to be doing, and the woman who goes to see a 'Sheikh' for family relationship advice.
All of the stories made me stop and think - mainly about what I would have done in their circumstances. Very thought provoking.
This was another book read on 'The Pigeonhole' social reading platform.
  
The Lost Sisters
The Lost Sisters
Holly Black | 2019 | Young Adult (YA)
6
8.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
This is a short story that shows Taryn's POV of the events that took place during The Cruel Prince. This should be read after The Cruel Prince, but before The Wicked King.
I didn't like Taryn during the first book and honestly I hate her character even more after reading this. I was also disappointed that no new information was included. Instead the story just gives the reader a few more details about things that had already been established. It still a good story, but at $3 its a little pricey for what you get. Something like this should really only be $1. I like Holly Black so I don't want to call this a cash grab, but I was definitely left a little disappointed.
  
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ClareR (5911 KP) Mar 11, 2019

I’m reluctant to buy it now! I’ve read Cruel Prince, really liked it, and I have Wicked King waiting on my tbr shelf. I might check how much it is on the U.K. Amazon site. Thanks for the review!!

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Cumberland (1142 KP) Mar 13, 2019

@ClareR most of the people who reviewed it on Amazon liked it more than I did, so you might get some enjoyment out of it.

TA
Time and Again (Time, #1)
6
6.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
I love time travel stories, and this one falls incredibly short for me. This was written for a 1970's audience with a 1960's mindset. It doesn't do much for 2010's sensibilities. The themes are very lacking in their strength. The ideas seem a little haphazardly put together. I didn't like the main character, the plot getting up to the time travel was quite boring, the time travel itself was a bit intriguing. The whole motivations for the entire book were a bit suspect at best.

It was enjoyable which is why I gave it 3 stars. It, by far, is not the worst time travel novel I've ever read, but it certainly isn't the best. It's clearly middle of the road.
  
Meet Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle. All the kids love hanging out at her house since she serves tea and cookies and is lots of fun. And the parents love her, too, because she has cures that will get kids to take baths or stop being selfish or fighting or not putting toys away….

This book is filled with fun short stories as the kids quickly realize why they wouldn't want to have their own way all the time. These cures are a bit more realistic than some in later books, so I love the later books better. Still, this is a fun introduction to a charming character.

Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2013/09/book-review-mrs-piggle-wiggle-by-betty.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
  
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Roxanne (13 KP) rated Nyctophobia in Books

Nov 14, 2018  
N
Nyctophobia
4
4.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
<b>2 Star Rating</b> __

This ended up being quite a difficult read for me as I found it very slow paced, there was so much build up to pretty much nothing in my opinion.
I found each character quite annoying and fairly dim to be honest as who really buys a property without seeing half of it? Not a lot of the storyline made a lot of sense and there were quite a few errors in the writing which was pretty distracting.
It wasn't all bad as there were a couple of chilling scenes but unfortunately they were very short lived, I wanted more scenes like that.
The idea for the story is indeed very original but in my opinion isn't very well executed.
Nevermind...
  
Uncommon Type: Some Stories
Uncommon Type: Some Stories
Tom Hanks | 2017 | Fiction & Poetry
8
7.6 (7 Ratings)
Book Rating
This is a collection of short stories that have been crafted by the Oscar winning Mr Hanks over the past twenty years. Each story has a connection to one of those nostalgic machines, a typewriter. The style of prose is very Hanks, you can hear his voice in the expression of his characters. There is warmth, gentleness and an essence of reality that leads you to believe that, despite all his worldly success, Hanks remains grounded and likeable. Whilst this isn’t the best example of prose, it has a lot to offer, if you are a fan of Hanks then this is an insightful, pleasant read. I listened to some of the stories on audio and thoroughly enjoyed hearing them told by the man himself.
  
not enough for me
Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this book

Ten maids to Master Marius tell their story, identified only by the job and the colour of their underwear.

This was an easy read, erotic flash fiction, 49 pages. It didn't do very much for me, though, and I found 9 stories almost identical. The tenth is different in the the Maid is in control, rather than Marius but there was still the reference to her colour underwear, and what she felt about the other maids.

It was reasonably well written, and delivers what it claims to be: short erotic fiction.

It just wasn't ENOUGH for me, but I did finish it.

3 stars

**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
  
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