@hereami, as I understand it, we made an agreement with the U.K. at some point to bring the POWs here because the U.K. had no more space for them. They were generally well treated while here, and many applied to stay in the U.S. after the war.
Sisters and Spies by Susan Ottaway - 5/5 From the back cover “Working undercover in Nazi-occupied France, Eileen and her sister Jacqueline were agents for the Special Operations Executive during the Second World War. Jacqueline narrowly evaded capture several times but Eileen was arrested and tortured by the Gestapo before being incarcerated in Ravensbruck concentration camp.” This was a compelling book and I’m appalled each time at the disgusting depths to which humanity can descend as exhibited by those who carried out the torture at these camps. I guess we will hear the same about what is happening in Ukraine in days to come.
@hereami These were all audio. My eyes won’t tolerate more than a few minutes at a time of reading. It seems like we are often able to find the same books on our library website and mine had the audio I mentioned.
I already own The Hobbit and all if the Lord of the Rings books on audio read by a wonderful narrator named Rob Inglis. I listen to them every now and then as they are favorites. But I recently discovered that they have released a version with the amazing Andy Serkis reading The Hobbit and Lord of The Rings books so I decided to listen to his version. It’s incredible. The man is seriously gifted. He was the voice of Gollum in the movies along with many other things.
Let Them Eat Dirt: Saving Your Child from an Oversanitized World by B. Finlay and M. Arrieta 5/5 Excellent book written in 2016 before Covid and probably even more important now after two years of hyper-sanitizing. Touches on unnecessary antibiotic use in humans and animals (although recognizing their importance in cases of real need) convenience C-sections, and lack of emphasis on breastfeeding, all of which lead to compromised immune systems.
Thank you @KnitsWithHorses . The info you gave is very helpful and I am going to try to find those narrators.
God’s Hostage by Andrew Brunson 5/5 Andrew Brunson, Christian missionary, gives an account of his ordeal of being falsely imprisoned for 735 days in Turkey and kept there by Turkey’s oppressive president Erdogan. He details his traumatic persecution and the beating his faith took, but he persevered and came out with a stronger faith. He details the actions the US and President Trump took to finally secure his release.
Taking my Life Back by Rebekah Gregory - Inspiring story by a survivor of the Boston Marathon bombing; a truly humbling story of courage and determination in the face of horrendous consequences of the bomb. Interesting to note that she never mentions the bomber’s name - I think that is on purpose, to give him no more exposure and to leave him in anonymity.
My grandma always said that you needed to eat your peck of dirt. Grandmas used to know these things. 
Our first son was just under a year when he was sitting on the front porch and put something into his mouth - unfortunately we weren’t fast enough to retrieve that fly. He’s now 45 so I guess it didn’t hurt him!
47: The Detective Wore Silk Drawers by Peter Lovesey. Victorian detective story set around bareknuckle boxing. Violent but very entertaining. 4/5
48: The Silmarillion by JRR Tolkien. Fantasy tales. A bit hard going here and there, with great strings of names to keep sorted out, but I think worth it. 3/5
49: Murder Underground by Mavis Hay. Cozy mystery from the British Library Crime Classics series. 3/5
I am really enjoying the books from this collection that are available on my library app. I wish there were more available!
I’ve been lucky enugh to find some of them in a bargain book shop near me, and more in charity shops; they also pop up on Kindle. I’ve enjoyed most of them, but especially the short story collections. I also love their Tales of the Weird series - I bought myself some, and my kids gave me some more for Mother’s Day (UK Mother’s Day, that is, back in March) and my birthday.
50: Death in the Clouds by Agatha Christie. Classic Poirot mystery. 4/5
I really like the short story collections too. I’m curious about the Tales of the Weird now. I’ll have to see what I can find.
51: Summer of Blood by Dan Jones. History of the Peasants’ Revolt of 1381, and a fascinating read. 4/5
52: The Summer of the Danes by Ellis Peters. This is a Brother Cadfael story, but to be honest the mystery aspect is a bit lacking. Instead you get a very well written tale about a Viking attack on Wales and various people caught up in it. It’s good, but not what I was looking for. 3/5
53: The China Governess by Margery Allingham. This is an Albert Campion mystery, but one of her later ones and you can tell. Not only is Campion himself less of the ‘silly ass’ type, the material is really dark and unsettling. It’s a very good read but not light-hearted in any way. 4/5
-
Pressing Pause by Karen Ehman (Audio) This is a daily devotional…that I did not use as the author intended. Instead, I hit play and listened until I was done listening. Which meant some days I listened to one devotion, other days I listened to too many to count.
-
AfterMath by Terri Blackstock 5/5
One of my favorite Christian fiction authors. -
D-Day Girls by Sarah Rose 5/5 Loved the way she wove actual verifiable history into a story.
-
The Christmas Card Crime and other stories by Martin Edwards Great short mystery stories. (cosy mystery)
-
Highest Duty by Captain Sullenberger 5/5 Written by the man himself about landing the airplane in the Hudson river.
-
Lineage of Corruption - by Robin Patchen (releases July 19)
Robin writes romantic suspense and I’ve enjoyed all her books, but this one is really special. The tension is high throughout, the banter between characters is engaging and often humorous, and there is an unlikely love triangle that adds even more interest. But most of all - it’s so timely! She wrote the book before the Supreme Court’s leaked decision on Roe vs Wade, but the book addresses a similar issue with a major vote in Congress regarding abortion rights. It’s not a political book in that it’s not about any political party, but it’s political in that the tensions all center on the fight for political power and what some people will do to obtain or retain it. Very hard to put down! -
Carved in Stone - by Elizabeth Camden
I loved Elizabeth Camden’s early novels, but then I read a few that didn’t interest me much. This book was a choice I picked from a reading challenge on Goodreads. I’m so glad I did! It’s a well-written story about a woman from a rich New York family in 1900 and an Irish immigrant lawyer who falls in love with her. If you know your history at all, you’ll know that the Irish were treated very poorly in New York around 1900. The chasm between her world and his was vast. How they manage to walk between the two is a beautiful story with its share of intrigue. I’m looking forward to reading the rest of this series.