Helga without the H

Five star review, originally published here on August 22nd, 2025. It’s been a long time since I last read an academic book for fun. But I’m glad that I jumped back in, because this book was fantastic. I read a LOT of academic books about transnational crime, mafias, global justice systems, etc. back in my … More Goodreads Review: Terror in Transition : Leadership in Terrorist Organizations by Tricia Bacon and Elizabeth Grimm

Three star review, originally posted here on July 27th, 2025: I went into this book with exactly zero expectations. I stumbled upon it in a similar fashion that I hope people might stumble upon my books (the Hope the Little Fox series; please check them out! They’re great!): I was perusing Amazon’s list of 100 … More Goodreads Review: Discerning Grace by Emma Lombard

Four star review, originally posted here on July 23rd, 2025. How did I get here? Many many years ago, maybe in high school, after devouring and loving all of the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy books, I stumbled upon a volume entitled “Good Omens.” I loved Good Omens. It was written by some guy called … More Goodreads Review: Guards! Guards! by Terry Pratchett

Three star review, originally posted here on July 18th, 2025. I can’t remember how this book came across my radar, as I am outside my genre here. I’ve barely read any YA books as an adult, and so I’m not the target audience. But it looked like a fun time, and sometimes you need something … More Goodreads Review: Chomp by Carl Hiassen

Four star review, originally posted here on July 4th, 2025. This book’s subject matter was interesting, and the author did a decent job explaining it. I certainly learned a lot. It definitely wasn’t perfect, though. Whenever we were talking about the books themselves and staying on track, this book shined. We learned about who did … More Goodreads Review: Dark Archives: A Librarian’s Investigation into the Science and History of Books Bound in Human Skin by Megan Rosenbloom

Four star review, originally posted here on June 27th, 2025: This was an interesting memoir, to be sure. I had never heard of Nancy French or her husband before, but the idea of a ghost writer telling their own story was compelling to me. Before reading the book, I was under the impression that it … More Goodreads Review: Ghosted: An American Story by Nancy French

Three star review, originally posted here on June 19th, 2025. My review is pretty much the same as every other 3 star review. There’s nothing new or surprising in this book. Surely nobody is surprised to read that Facebook is a pretty shitty evil profit-driven company run by greedy rich people, right? We would have … More Goodreads Review: Careless People: A Cautionary Tale of Power, Greed, and Lost Idealism by Sarah Wynn-Williams

Four star review, originally posted here on June 9th 2025. Hey look! I read the buzziest book of the year and actually liked it! Achievement unlocked! I don’t have much to say about this book that hasn’t already been stated by every other review out there. This was a creative retelling, and I appreciated hearing … More Goodreads Review: James by Percival Everett

Four star review, originally posted here on June 9th, 2025. This book started out fantastic, and I love the idea. I appreciated the author’s note at the end, where Lawhon explains that this book is basically inspired by a true person, but in no way based on a true story. In fact, the story here … More Goodreads Review: The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon

Four star review, originally posted here on May 21st, 2025: I read this book in preparation for a recent vacation to Shropshire. Not much to say here- the book is exactly what it advertised itself to be: a nice little introduction to and reference material for all things Shropshire. I admit there were entire sections … More Goodreads Review: The Little Book of Shropshire by John Shipley