Blog Category: Book Sketches
Posted by JGranatino on Tue, Apr 10
In this Glass Castle-esque memoir, Tara Westover delivers a compelling read that takes readers through her childhood growing up in rural Idaho with a survivalist family through her everyday struggles with her father and brother's mental illness and eventually her journey in obtaining her PhD from Cambridge University. While she received no formal education growing up, at age 17 Westover first set foot in a classroom at Brigham Young University. She details the balance she must find between the...
Posted by JGranatino on Mon, Apr 09
On the eve of her wedding to successful, handsome but possessive Zach, Clare unexpectedly changes her mind. A chance encounter with a kind, elderly visitor named Edith helps Clare put things into perspective, giving her the courage to walk away much to the relief of her friends and family. As she takes stock of her options, now wide open, she is contacted by Edith’s lawyer with news that she is the heir to Edith’s home in a lovely Delaware shore town once used as a boarding house, called Blue...
Posted by JGranatino on Fri, Apr 06
Cassie Bowden, a flight attendant currently on a layover in Dubai, wakes up with a horrific hangover from a long night of partying. As she turns to regard the sleeping man beside her, she realizes he’s been murdered and she’s covered with his blood. Did she do this during a blackout, and if not, who did and why had she been spared? And so the lies begin, for if she’s discovered, don’t they hang women in Dubai without due process? Cassie must find out why Alex was targeted, who knows about her...
Posted by JGranatino on Mon, Apr 02
Richard seems like the perfect man - handsome, smart, sophisticated and charming. Nellie, a pre-school teacher, comes from a different world but finds herself swept up into a whirlwind romance and marriage. But things have changed; Nellie and Richard have been unable to conceive a child, the once-perfect couple has divorced and Nellie is obsessed with her replacement, Richard's new fiancee. Is this simply a portrait of a jealous ex-wife, or something more sinister? Assume nothing. Hendricks...
Posted by JGranatino on Thu, Mar 22
Ernt Allbright, a former Vietnam POW, has moved his family from place to place, unable to find peace in the turbulent 70s. A former buddy didn’t make it back home and has willed his home in Alaska to Ernt, so they pack up their few belongings in an old VW van and head north. Alaska is a wild and unforgiving place, so the Allbrights need to learn quickly how to survive the long harsh winter. But the long dark days take a toll on Ernt, and his drinking and violent behavior escalate. His anger and...
Posted by JGranatino on Wed, Mar 14
Nora Brown, a high school English teacher, begins to have hallucinations and blackouts during which she becomes Margaret, a terrified six year old child. Her husband, Paul, and young daughter, Fiona, try to cope as Nora is seen by doctors and eventually, a psychiatrist. While under his care, Margaret begins to take over Nora’s consciousness more and more. Eventually, Nora’s mental state deteriorates so much that she is committed to a psychiatric ward as the dual personalities clash. This debut...
Posted by JGranatino on Tue, Feb 20
Josie Buhrman has reinvented herself after a traumatic childhood in which her beloved father was murdered and her mother left her and her twin sister to join a cult. Now, an aggressive blogger/journalist has reopened the case, suggesting the boy who was incarcerated could be innocent and Josie's sister's testimony that put him there a fabrication. Josie hasn't spoken with Lanie in years, remembering her erratic behavior and substance abuse in high school, but now their mother has been found...
Posted by JGranatino on Fri, Feb 16
Cora, a third generation slave on a plantation in pre-Civil War Georgia, is an outcast even among the other slaves. Her mother ran away without her when she was 10 and her father died before she was born. Consequently, when she finally resolves to run away with Caesar to the north and out of slavery, Cora’s life changes forever. There have been numerous books written about the Underground Railroad and the horrors of slavery over the years. While many of these titles are an integral part of our...
Posted by JGranatino on Tue, Feb 13
It’s 1969, and the world is full of possibilities for the young Gold children. Almost on a dare, they seek out a local recluse reported to not only predict the future, but tell you the day you will die. Somewhat shaken after the experience, the four siblings vow to keep the information to themselves. Nonetheless, this experience shapes their lives as Simon and Klara run off to San Francisco to seek their fortune, Daniel becomes a post 9/11 army doctor and Varya is consumed by her research into...
Posted by JGranatino on Fri, Feb 09
Dale Mulfinger, a noted “cabinologist” with over 20 year of cabin-building experience, has created a book of projects, floor-plans, and photos that will inspire and delight anyone looking to build or renovate a family get-away site. The structures featured in this book range from traditional knotty pine lodges and log cabins to prefabs and contemporary designs making creative use of concrete, steel, and panoramic glass walls to take full advantage of impressive views. There are many ideas for...
