The Clutter Free Home by Kathi Lipp ~ a Review

by Donna Huber

It is almost time for Spring Cleaning! Though I prefer to do my big clean out in the fall and over the winter months when I'm stuck in the house, I usually do a bit of cleaning to welcome the new season. After reading The Clutter Free Home, I realize what I'm doing is more decluttering than cleaning (though I do wash the windows so that the sunshine can sparkle into my house). If you find that you have stuff everywhere and not sure how to tackle the dreaded "junk drawer", then Kathi Lipp's new book is for you.

American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins ~ a Review

by Susan Roberts 

"One of the very first bullets comes in through the open window above the toilet where Luca is standing.  He doesn't immediately understand that it's a bullet at all, and its only luck that it doesn't strike him between the eyes.  Luca hardly registers the mild noise it makes as it flies past and lodges into the tiled wall behind him.  But the wash of bullets that follows is loud, booming, and thudding, clack-clacking with helicopter speed  There is a raft of screams, too, but that noise is short lived, soon exterminated by the gunfire.  Before Luca can zip his pants, lower the lid climb up and look out, before he has time to verify the source of the terrible clamor, the bathroom door swings open and Mami is there." (p 1)

Shadow of the Batgirl by Sarah Kuhn and Nicole Goux ~ a Review

by MK French

Cassandra Cain is a teenage assassin, so she is certain she can never be a hero. She does have mentors in noodle shop owner Jackie Fujikawa Yoneyama and a librarian named Barbara Gordon, and both are just as certain that she can be more than she thinks. When Cassie's father is determined to destroy the world she's come to love, it's time to figure out if she can take on the mantle of Batgirl.

New Season of Bookish TV on PBS

by Donna Huber

One of the highlights of my television viewing week is Sunday night. I have long been a fan of Masterpiece Theater on PBS. It has brought us great shows like Downton Abbey and Victoria. It is also the place for great bookish television (Poldark and The Durrells in Corfu - both of which have sadly ended). I was worried about the new lineup for winter and spring, but I have totally enjoyed the two new shows. And Masterpiece isn't the only spot on PBS's schedule with shows based on books.

Things in Jars by Jess Kidd ~ a Review

by MK French

The raven levels off into a glide, flight feathers fanned. Slick on the rolling level of rising currents and downdrafts, she turns her head, this way and that. To her black eye, as black as pooled tar. London is laid out - there is no veil of fog or mist or smoke-haze her gaze cannot pierce! (p. 9)

Home Truths by Susan Lewis ~ a Review

by Susan Roberts

"'Our five year old son had a syringe in his hand', he raged, almost choking on the words.
'I need to find Liam, and when I do I'm turning him in to the police along with every other one of those lowlife bastards.'" (p1)

The Light After the War by Anita Abriel ~ a Review

by Donna Huber

I read a lot of WWII fiction as a teen and young adult. A lot of the stories were about Jews in concentration camps but the story always ended with the liberation of the camps, which disappointed me greatly. I wanted to know what happened after the survived the atrocities. How do you return to a life where practically everyone you knew is dead? The Light After the War focuses completely on life after the war for two teenagers who escaped the train to Auschwitz.