Blogcritics Section: Books

Book Review: Knitting For Good! A Guide to Creating Personal, Social, and Political Change Stitch by Stitch by Betsy Greer

Alyse Wax — Fri, 9 Jan 2009 02:29:05 EST

A guide to creating personal, social, and political change, stitch by stitch.
Betsy Greer believes that positive change can take place via the smallest gesture – including crafting. She has written Knitting for Good! to be “a guide to creating personal, social, and political change, stitch by stitch.” Her book is divided into three sections: knitting for yourself, knitting for your community, and knitting...

Book Review: The Judging Eye (Book One Of The Aspect Emperor) R. Scott Bakker

Richard Marcus — Thu, 8 Jan 2009 21:56:19 EST

This is fantasy literature like you've never read before.
History is the record of what came before us and reminds us of who we once were and how we became who we are now. However, there is often a marked difference between what is recorded as history and what actually happened. Whether it's the mists of time that cloud people's memories or a deliberate colouring of the truth that distorts reality...

Talking Books with Children's Book Author Linda Thieman

Dorothy Thompson — Thu, 8 Jan 2009 19:22:27 EST

"I am just so tired of children�s stories where the child is independent because the parents are gone."
Linda Thieman is represented by the interviewer's Pump Up Your Book Promotion.Linda Thieman writes the Katie & Kimble chapter book series and runs the Katie & Kimble blog. She is a former English language teacher who has created a set of reading skills worksheets and classroom materials that teachers and homeschoolers can download from...

Book Review: The Nation Guide to the Nation

Barbara Barnett — Thu, 8 Jan 2009 19:06:54 EST

The Editors of The Nation have compiled this guide to the 21st-century American Left.
The past eight years seemed an eternity. And now with Barack Obama about to become President of the United States, liberal is no longer a label to be uttered in hushed tones. It’s OK to be a card-carrying liberal again! As it has been since it first began publication in 1865, The Nation is the about as close as you can get to being the...

Book Review: Summer Secret (Sonshine Girls #1) by René Morris

Jennifer Bogart — Thu, 8 Jan 2009 06:34:52 EST

Girls, friendship, makeup and boys - 'tween-lit meets Jesus, providing strong moral guidance through the rocky years of adolescence.
When 13-year-old Kristin moves from Georgia to Texas she is thankful to quickly find a new group of friends. Charli, Jessica and Anna eagerly open the doors of their life-long friendship to include her as a fourth member. Life in Rimsfield sparkles with new promise as the girls plan for the summer youth group church camp and the upcoming school...

Book Review: Dies The Fire - A Novel of the Change by S.M. Stirling

Mel Odom — Thu, 8 Jan 2009 06:16:24 EST

S. M. Stirling spins a fascinating and adventure-filled tale of people who have survived the end of the world.
I’ve only lately come to S. M. Stirling’s novels about The Change. I don’t know how I missed them, but I’m glad I found them. The good thing about starting late is that there already five books in the series, so I don’t have to wait from year to year to dive into those the way most of the fans have had to.Stirling...

Book Review: The Flat Belly Diet by Liz Vaccariello and Cynthia Sass

Robin Kavanagh — Wed, 7 Jan 2009 09:22:33 EST

This skeptic is swayed by a diet that makes sense and is flexible enough for even the most time-crunched life.
Diets are not my thing. I'm a picky eater with some dietary restrictions, and most diets out there are heavy with foods that I either can't stomach or don't like. This makes sticking to these diets hard. Add to that my own concerns about the healthfulness of restricting certain foods and eating more of others, and you've got a recipe for a Grade-A...

Book Review: The Vampire Tapestry by Suzy McKee Charnas

Vyrdolak — Wed, 7 Jan 2009 07:42:31 EST

One of the most innovative and unusual vampire novels, this cult classic has been revived in an attractive new edition.
The Vampire Tapestry was first published in 1980, at the end of the Carter recession and the cusp of the Reagan era. Americans were bored with vampires. Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire (1976) and Stephen King's Dracula Americana, Salem's Lot (1975), had both been best-sellers. But Rice wouldn’t publish her second book,...

Book Review: The Yellow Rain by Julio Llamazares

Philip Spires — Wed, 7 Jan 2009 07:04:34 EST

The Yellow Rain describes the decay and death of a Pyrenean village and its last inhabitant. Life and death tragically intertwine.
The Yellow Rain by Julio Llamazares is thankfully a short novel that describes life, or rather the end of it, in a Pyrenean village called Ainielle. Andres, the book’s narrator, has lived there all his life in a house he calls Casa Sosas. By the time we meet him, he is reaching the end of his life, as is his village, since it is now almost...

Book Review: French Girl Knits by Kristeen Griffin-Grimes

Alyse Wax — Wed, 7 Jan 2009 06:49:33 EST

A beautiful collection of delicate, feminine knitting patterns.
French Girl Knits by Kristeen Griffin-Grimes is the latest knitting book loaded with gorgeous patterns from the people at Interweave Press. The nearly 20 patterns within were all inspired by different aspects of French life and history. “Satine” is an airy fan-lace tunic with scalloped edges. “Sophia” is a dense lace...