Literary Realism and Gustave Flaubert's Madame Bovary

by Donna Huber

Madame Bovary is the first translated book I remember reading. It was part of my summer reading list in high school and I really enjoyed it. Whenever I think of Madame Bovary, I remember the wedding bouquet. Perhaps in Emma, I saw my own ideas of romance being overly influenced by the novels I read.

Today, I thought I would share some background information on Flaubert and Literary Realism as well as digging a bit deeper into some of the literary themes and devices used in Madame Bovary.

5 New Novels for Fans of WWII Stories

by Susan Roberts

Now that the holidays are over, there are lots of new books being published.  There are some fantastic new historical fiction books set during the WWII era.  Here are reviews of five of them.

How Did I Get Here? by Jane Marlow ~ A Review

by MK French

(1st Chapter, 1st Paragraph)

Medical student Andrey Rozhdestvensky volunteers as a surgeon for the Russian army during the Crimean War in 1854, and learns the hard way what war is really like. He tries to keep death and disease from decimating the troops and is worn down by the heartlessness and cruelty of war. Even after it ends, Andrey is left trying to piece his shattered soul back together.

Review: The Dream Keeper's Daughter by Emily Colin

by MK French

Isabel was crushed when her boyfriend Max abruptly disappeared after finding out she was pregnant. Six years prior to that, her mother had disappeared abruptly, too. Determined not to let it prevent her from being a good mother to her daughter Finn, she worked hard at graduate school to become an archaeologist. That peace is shattered when Max calls her while she's on a dig.

Amazon affiliate links are used on this site. A free book was provided for an honest review.

July 2017; Ballantine Books; 978-1101884317
ebook, audio, print (480 pages)
world literarute, fantasy, romance

The points of view vary between Max and Isabel, and the story moves between present day South Carolina and 19th century Barbados prior to a slave rebellion. Some of the switches are clunky, and some of the very highly emotionally charged moments seem to come too easily.

I would have loved to see more of Finn and what she experienced; too many of her statements and visions really aren't explained or followed up on. It could be a function of Isabel's desire to avoid it, but even the therapist didn't really seem to dig too hard for it.

I would have expected a bit more of Isabel's work life as the book went on, but we didn't see any of it.
These inconsistencies were relatively minor, because I really did like Isabel and Max's stories. It didn't end the way I expected it to, but it was a fitting resolution for everyone involved.

Buy The Dream Keeper's Daughter at Amazon

Born and raised in New York City, M.K. French started writing stories when very young, dreaming of different worlds and places to visit. She always had an interest in folklore, fairy tales, and the macabre, which has definitely influenced her work. She currently lives in the Midwest with her husband, three young children, and golden retriever. 

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A Paris All Your Own: Bestselling Women Writers on the City of Light

by Susan Roberts

English: Eiffel Tower as seen from rue de Monttessuy in the 7th arrondissement of Paris. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

A Paris All Your Own is edited by Eleanor Brown and includes contributions from Michelle Gable, Jennifer Coburn, Cathy Kelly, Julie Powell, Lauren Willig, Therese Anne Fowler, Maggie Shipstead, Meg Waite Clayton, J. Courtney Sullivan, Ellen Sussman, Susan Vreeland, Megan Crane, Paula McLain, Jennifer L. Scott, Cara Black, and M.J. Rose.

Amazon affiliate links are used on this site.

July 2017; G.P. Putnam's Sons; 978-0399574474
ebook, audio, print (288 pages); world literature

When my husband and I retired, we decided that we would travel as much as we could afford.  We have been lucky enough to have traveled all over Europe plus places like Budapest and Prague.  Every new city we go to gets compared to our favorite city to visit - Paris.  We have seen all of the major sites there and now our favorite things to do in Paris are to walk (and often get lost) and people watch.  I must admit that we've found some of the most amazing things when we were lost - little parks and out of the way museums.  Because of my love of Paris, I have really been looking forward to the new book edited by Eleanor Brown called A PARIS ALL YOUR OWN.

This book is a compilation of essays by 18 female authors who have written books about Paris.  It details their love or lack of love of this great city.  As with any anthology, some of the essays were fantastic and some were so-so but together they made this a fantastic book to read.  So whether you've been to Paris and want to have your memories re-kindled, it's on your bucket list of places that you must visit or you just enjoy reading books about Paris, this is the book for you to read.

I loved Michelle Gable's essay "Too Much Paris" about a trip she took with her husband, mother and father, and two daughters ages 8 and 10 during one of Paris's heat waves. I laughed out loud at her descriptions of climbing stairs and trying to keep her daughters engaged in what they were seeing. I mean how thrilled is an 8-year-old going to be to see Monet's water lilies.

I also enjoyed Susan Vreeland's essay "A Myth, a Museum and a Man" about getting behind the scenes at the Louvre and the man at the museum who helped her gather information for her novel in places where the public doesn't usually even get to see.

"We'll Never Have Paris" by Jennifer Coburn tells about her taking her mom to Paris so that they can spend more time together and how much her mom disliked Paris. This was another laugh out loud essay.

And the last essay in the book was one of my favorites "Thirty Four Things You Should Know About Paris" by Meg Waite Clayton talked about rainy days in Paris with lots of information about food and wine.  At the end of each essay, each author gave more information about themselves and their Paris travel - favorite book about Paris, best things to see in Paris, what you can skip and songs you like about Paris.

Overall, this is a fun book to read while you are dreaming about having your picture made at the Eiffel Tower and seeing the Mona Lisa at the Louvre.

Buy A Paris all Your Own at Amazon

Susan Roberts lives in North Carolina when she isn't traveling.  She and her husband enjoy traveling, gardening and spending time with their family and friends.  She reads almost anything (and the piles of books in her house prove that) but her favorite genres are Southern fiction, women's fiction, and thrillers. Susan is a top 1% Goodreads Reviewer. You can connect with her on Facebook.

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