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A tale of redemption
This is a book worth reading that has been too long overlooked. Reviewed by Linda C. Brinson I ONCE WAS LOST: A TRUE STORY. Paperback. By Fred Moore. 265 pages. Price varies. Fred Moore knew he was a golden boy. He grew up in East Winston, the predominantly black side of Winston-Salem, in a middle-class […]
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On the brink, as seen by one who’s been there
Wondering why there’s a war in Ukraine? This book might shed some light – on that, and on what else might be over “the edge.” Reviewed by Paul T. O’Connor LESSONS FROM THE EDGE: A MEMOIR. By Marie Jovanovitch. Harper Audio. 17 hours, 11 minutes. $37. Also available in hardback. Mariner Books. 416 pages. $30. […]
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A frightening, enlightening look at the world of El Chapo
Paul O’Connor, my esteemed colleague from our years with the Winston-Salem Journal’s editorial pages, occasionally still writes a book review for this blog. I’m always happy and enlightened when that happens. Reviewed by Paul T. O’Connor EL CHAPO: THE UNTOLD STORY OF THE WORLD’S MOST INFAMOUS DRUG LORD. By Noah Hurowitz. Atria Books. 333 pages. […]
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Pieces of a life
Bob Moyer takes a look at a biography that gives new life to a 15-year-old Jewish girl in Norway who was killed in the Holocaust. Reviewed By Robert P. Moyer KATHE — Always Been in Norway. By Espen Sobye. Krakiel Publishing. 208 pages. $24.95. Early in his career, writer Espen Sobye was a statistician. He […]
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Unraveling the girl she was
Reviewed by Robert P. Moyer A GIRL’S STORY. By Annie Ernaux. Seven Stories Press. 160 pages. $18.95 Shame and humiliation. She spent two nights with a man, then fixated on him, in 1958, earning the name “whore around the edges” from her colleagues. She carried that shame with her for 58 years, until she decided to […]
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A memoir, and much more
Bob Moyer loves New Orleans and visits often. Here he reviews a book about a side of New Orleans most tourists don’t visit, a book about “people that people don’t write books about.” Reviewed by Robert P. Moyer THE YELLOW HOUSE. By Sarah M. Broom. Grove Press. 304 pages. $26. New Orleans has certain phrases […]
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A lot about a lot
Bob’s back! Actually, Bob Moyer wrote this review before he took off on his recent travels, but it got buried in my email. Check back soon for reviews Bob has written since his return. Reviewed by Robert P. Moyer WORDS AND WORLDS. By Alison Lurie. Delphinium. 225 pages. $25. Alison Lurie has written a lot […]
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“In my life…”
Paul O’Connor returns to Briar Patch Books with a review of a book published in the spring of 2016. Reviewed by Paul T. O’Connor PAUL MCCARTNEY: THE LIFE. By Philip Norman. Little, Brown and Company. 816 pages. $32. For those Americans of a certain age, The Beatles represent more than music. Although John, Paul and […]
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History and mystery
Reviewed by Linda C. Brinson JEFFERSON’S DAUGHTERS: Three Sisters, White and Black, in a Young America. By Catherine Kerrison. Books on Tape (Penguin Random House Audio). Read by Tavia Gilbert. 17 hours; 14 CDs. Also available in print from Ballantine Books. This ambitious book by Catherine Kerrison, who teaches history at Villanova University, is, in […]
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Franklin Roosevelt, meeting the challenges
Reviewed by Linda C. Brinson FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT: A Political Life. By Robert Dallek. Penguin Audio. Read by Rick Adamson. 30 hours; 24 CDs. $79. Also available in print from Viking. 704 pages, $40. Robert Dallek’s new book about Franklin Roosevelt, published in November, has earned well-deserved spots on more than one “best book of […]