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{Audiobook Review} The Book Club for Troublesome Women by Marie Bostwick, Narrated by Lisa Flanagan
Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins Focus for providing me with a free copy of this book for review. As an undergraduate, I had a wonderful English professor who introduced me to vintage chick lit. Though the term “chick lit” can be used derisively, I use it to refer to literature written by, for, and about women. In this course, I read The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan, so a book about a women’s book club centered around Friedan’s work naturally grabbed my interest. I’m happy that I was selected as a reviewer, as this novel is everything I hoped it’d be. BOOK DETAILS Title: The Book Club for Troublesome…
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{Book Review} Happy Land by Dolen Perkins-Valdez
Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a free electronic copy of this book for review. This book cover is absolutely stunning. The vibrant flower crown and the model’s lovely brown complexion beautifully capture the essence of the story within, which centers around Black women and the integral role of flowers and herbs. The model’s serene expression is so tranquil, it’s as if I can almost hear her gentle exhale. The cover provides a nice introduction to the stories of Queen Luella, Mother Rita, and Nikki. BOOK DETAILS Title: Happy Land Author: Dolen Perkins-Valdez Publisher: Berkley Publication Date: 8 April 2025 Genre: Historical Fiction, Popular Fiction Format: Paperback Pages:…
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{Audiobook Review} Untethered by Angela Jackson-Brown
As the blogger and photographer behind Living Outside the Stacks, I independently select and write about stuff I love and things I think you’ll enjoy too. Living Outside the Stacks has affiliate and advertising partnerships so I get revenue from sharing this content and from your purchase. Thank you for your support. Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins Focus | Harper Muse for providing me with a free audio version of this book for review. BOOK DETAILS Title: Untethered Author: Angela Jackson-Brown Narrator: Karen Murray Publisher: HarperCollins Focus | Harper Muse Publication Date: 3 December 2024 Genre: Historical Fiction, Multicultural Focus, Family Drama Format: Audiobook Listening Time: 10 hours, 51…
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{Book Review} The Paris Apartment by Kelly Bowen
As the blogger and photographer behind Living Outside the Stacks, I independently select and write about stuff I love and things I think you’ll enjoy too. Living Outside the Stacks has affiliate and advertising partnerships so I get revenue from sharing this content and from your purchase. Thank you for your support. So it seems the past few months have had a World War II theme to them, I’m not sure why. Maybe it’s because of the hellscape that America is turning into right now, with a wanna be dictator running for president, the Middle East going up in flames {again}, and women losing all of their bodily autonomy {and…
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Book Review: The Vanishing Half: a novel by Brit Bennett
As the blogger and photographer behind Living Outside the Stacks, I independently select and write about stuff I love and things I think you’ll enjoy too. Living Outside the Stacks has affiliate and advertising partnerships so I get revenue from sharing this content and from your purchase. Thank you for your support. Happy New Year! Y’all, when I say 2023 is already off to a bumpy start, I’m not kidding. I spent part of New Year’s Eve in the ER because my oxygen levels dipped courtesy of Covid. If I’ve ever wondered how my family would fare should I take seriously ill, I know they’ll be OK. The Hubs rushed…
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Book Review: The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray
As the blogger and photographer behind Living Outside the Stacks, I independently select and write about stuff I love and things I think you’ll enjoy too. Living Outside the Stacks has affiliate and advertising partnerships so I get revenue from sharing this content and from your purchase. Thank you for your support. Earlier this month I made a goal to try to read at least one book per month. Actually, I made the decision as a result of this post because, as I was going through my reading list, I realized a lot of my book choices were dated. Not that literature ever goes out of style, but that I…
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The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray
As the blogger and photographer behind Living Outside the Stacks, I independently select and write about stuff I love and things I think you’ll enjoy too. Living Outside the Stacks has affiliate and advertising partnerships so I get revenue from sharing this content and from your purchase. Thank you for your support. Earlier this month I made a goal to try to read at least one book per month. Actually, I made the decision as a result of this post because, as I was going through my reading list, I realized a lot of my book choices were dated. Not that literature ever goes out of style, but that I…
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Book Review: Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline
THIS POST CONTAINS AFFILIATE LINKS, IF YOU PURCHASE SOMETHING USING THE LINK I WILL RECEIVE A COMMISSION. THAT COMMISSION GOES TOWARDS MAINTAINING MY BLOG. THANK YOU IN ADVANCE FOR YOUR SUPPORT. BOOK DESCRIPTION {FROM THE BACK OF THE BOOK} Orphan Train is a gripping story of friendship and second chances from Christina Baker Kline, author of Bird in Hand and The Way Life Should Be. Penobscot Indian Molly Ayer is close to “aging out” out of the foster care system. A community service position helping an elderly woman clean out her home is the only thing keeping Molly out of juvie and worse… As she helps Vivian sort through…
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Book Review: War Brides by Helen Bryan
BOOK DESCRIPTION {FROM THE BACK OF THE BOOK} With war threatening to spread from Europe to England, the sleepy village of Crowmarsh Priors settles into a new sort of normal: Evacuees from London are billeted in local homes. Nightly air raids become grimly mundane. The tightening vice of rationing curtails every comfort. Men leave to fight and die. And five women forge an unlikely bond of friendship that will change their lives forever. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Helen Bryan was born in Virginia, grew up in Tennessee, and is a longtime resident of London. A former barrister, she is the author of an award-winning biography of Martha Washington. She was inspired…
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Book Tour: Before Versailles: A Novel of Louis XIV by Karleen Koen
BOOK DESCRIPTION (FROM THE BACK OF THE BOOK) Louis XIV is one of the best~known monarchs ever to grace the French throne. But what was he like as a young man ~ the man before Versailles? After the death of his prime minister, Cardinal Mazarin, twenty-two-year-old Louis steps into governing France. He’s still a young man, but one who, as king, willfully takes everything he can get—including his brother’s wife. As the love affair between Louis and Princess Henriette burns, it sets the kingdom on the road toward unmistakable scandal and conflict with the Vatican. Every woman wants him. He must face what he is willing to sacrifice for love.…
