Christine

I read this book in a night – skimming here and there, but getting the narrative and his voice. I found his story fascinating, and a bit heartbreaking. It may sound silly, but what he describes tracks well with much of the vibe one gets from watching “The Crown.” The royal family has agency over their own lives, and so many more opportunities that most of the world, but I also see the significant restraints. I especially appreciated the stories of his boyhood and then the play-by-play of his courtship with, and early marriage with, M.M. (The racism in the press that she endured is well detailed and documented here for anyone who thinks that the couple exaggerated that.) I suppose that reading this is a bit voyeuristic – or maybe a lot, actually – but it was an easy & enjoyable read, and informative too. I'd recommend for a light, easy, fun-but-sometimes sad read.

This is an outstanding accomplishment... excellent history, Herculean research, and juicy storytelling. I have to admit that I had to skim the last half, as I simply don't have the mental bandwidth to absorb it all right now, in the midst of work. I highly recommend the book to anyone with the patience and time to work through the many subjects, who's who, and interpersonal twists and turns terms of her subjects. This book gives you a front row seat to Europe, and other parts of the world, in the 1920s and 1930s, thanks to these intrepid, and mostly forgotten, journalists.

I learned a great deal in this book, and I appreciated that I felt like I had Angela next to me for days. One of my colleagues has suggested that the book dramatically minimizes her responsibility for Putin's recent aggression in Ukraine. I agree that the book is quite positive about her overall. (And it concludes with 2019.). I'll be looking at some of the reviews next. But I thoroughly enjoyed it, and understand this leader and her worldview much better now. I already knew that I liked her, but now that respect and affection is deeper still.

Love LP and Three Pines. This was long (& i agree with some critics who said there was much talking), but I wanted it to last, so it was fine. Relevant themes in our Covid and post-Covid world.

I decided that I can't give this book a certain number of stars. It's quite long, amazingly detailed, tragic and comedic, moving, and gut wrenching. I didn't realize what I was getting into, and found the audiobook to be too difficult for getting through the difficult first half. Being able to skim pages of hard material was helpful. Kingsolver depicts humanity in all its forms. Nothing is simple. The book kind of reminded me of The Goldfinch, but bleaker. She loves her homeland and it's people.

Funny and real. I gifted this to another tunic wearer.
There were a couple of parts that dragged a bit for me, but mostly spot on, wise, and encouraging.

Powerful and poignant. Difficult and important. A gift book from a dear friend who cares and thinks deeply.

I'm reluctant to decide on stars for this... Maybe because it is a short story collection. Halfway through, I was captivated, and wondering why I don't read short stories more often. I didn't want to go on to the next one without savoring what I had just read. But about 2/3 of the way through, some of them started to drag me down a bit.

Beautiful and poignant. His command of language and human nature and relationships — sublime. It is a slow story, though, and I was listening in small sips This is a salve for the weary. And if you enjoy the Irish brogue, it's a fun listen.

I read this, partly to use in a class. She argues for understanding the link between (white, western) feminism and capitalism, and this made for interesting in-class discussions. This reads like a philosophy or philosphical text. I appreciated this contribution to recent scholarship.

Smart and clever. Maybe too Northern Europe for me? Kind of dark and severe.

This was a fun, light, easy read. It might be nice for a beach trip or a long trip where you want to take your mind off of what you're doing ... or not have to think very hard. You do have to have the willing suspension of disbelief because there are ghosts in the story who have “speaking” sections, but the characters are lovable & sympathetic – all damaged in one way or another as children — . They come together in a lovely coastal setting with magical birds & yummy food. There was one element of the ending which I did not like; it didn't seem fair to one (or 2) of the characters, but otherwise, a satisfying ending too.

This was a fun listen. I like time travel stories, and this added a compelling father-daughter story. Some people were bothered by the cat who lives a LONG time, but that added to the magic for me. I also enjoyed the bond between the two school girls and then adult women.

Edna O'Brien is so gifted, and I admired how she could conjure place & time so beautifully. The story is pretty sad overall, but that is her point about women in mid- to late- century Ireland. The patriarchy was (is?) powerful and relentless. I read this for my book club, and I am grateful to have read another women-author classic. It did take some effort to read. I think I liked her “Red Chairs” book a bit better.

I always enjoy her books. This was not my favorite, as I felt that the twists and turns were too forced, but always a good escape. One thing that bothered me was the way she kept having the male characters imagine bad things happening to their daughters or wives. The female characters did not do that, so it felt a bit dated; when men are supposed to care about women's issues only when, or especially when, it affects their daughters or wives.

Easy and light. Not my usual kind of book, but a nice change of pace in that it was entertaining, steamy, and fun. Kind of a cross between Virgin River and Gilmore girls. I agree with another reviewer that Libby was not adequately developed, but I think the main event was supposed to be Nora and Charlie all along. The sister bond was a good idea, but not how real sisters behave, I'd say. But some willing suspension of disbelief made the book a good escape.

This is an impressive accomplishment. It is readable, accessible, touching, and informative. I enjoyed the travel log aspect, as well as the memoir about losing her parents. It is an unusual book, however, so I didn't finish it with a lot of material I could use easily for my classes. It's kind of a blend of history, a lot of detail, travel stories, and grief memoir. I ended up skimming a lot, because I knew I just couldn't retain the detail, but I enjoyed following her lines of inquiry, her sense of humor, and her candor.

I read this on Kindle, and I wish I had a hardcopy to flip back to occasionally. She had good ideas, especially for someone like me. I feel inspired, and don't want to lose that.

I'm giving this 5 stars because it is lovely, quiet, thoughtful and thought-provoking, and tender. It isn't trying to be something else, so it seems unfair to give it less because I'm comparing it to books with more action or cleverness. It transported me to a new world of canals and locks and narrowboats, along with endearing characters and pleasant scenery. I appreciated the women at mid-life, reassessing their choices, and the subculture community on the canals. Readers have to suspend disbelief at the premise bringing these characters together, but if you do, it's a cozy trip, which is just what I needed.

I enjoyed this a lot. The personalities were funny and easy to imagine. I was sad about the ending, but anyone who has been through this sort of thing can see it happening easily. I want to recommend to friends, but feel I should warn them, which would spoil it.

This was a very satisfying listen. I agree that it was quite slow, especially for the first half, but the descriptions and character development were compelling. I will be thinking about some of the characters in the months ahead. I wish that there had been more justice, but perhaps it was more realistic (?) this way.

Complex. Smart. Beautiful setting again. Good characters. Maybe her best in a while. She knows what she's going!

Ugh. I loved this book, but by the time I got 2/3 of the way through, I couldn't stand the thought of an unhappy ending, so I started looking up spoilers. Alas, that was a good choice because otherwise I would have been kind of devastated. So, I really wish that the author had ended the story around Chapter 48 and allowed the two women and baby to escape to another island. WHY NOT? Otherwise, I enjoyed the characters and the twisty plot, the adventures in the rain forest, the quirky people along the way. (I did not really get the POW guy story line, as other reviewers have noted. If he had been offered some redemption by the end, sure ...., but that was not to be. See again last two chapters.)

This was to be my summer of Georgia O'Keeffe, and now I feel that I'm pretty much finished with this one book – along with a few art books with her paintings. This was so comprehensive – sometimes too much so – but fascinating, well-written, easy to read, and helpful. I'm glad I read it! I deducted one star just because the detail, often about people around Georgia and her husband, was distracting at times. (But I did just skim.)

I listened to this, and found it compelling, beautiful, haunting, tragic, and a bit too violent for me. If I were reading (which I did to with a library copy for the last 1/3), I could skip over the difficult parts. I agree with other reviewers that it didn't make sense that the murdered sons would be outing someone from their community, but overall – a great story that was well constructed.