Cate of the Lost Colony: Lisa Klein

A cute historical work of fiction for young girls. The right amount of adventure, drama, and passion to keep teens reading.

The Sheltering Sky: Paul Bowles

An interesting unpredictable book about a couple who travel to North Africa hoping to work on their marriage, but come to a devastating end. The husband dies from disease and the wife is kidnapped and married into an abusive Muslim family. Had a very slow beginning, but made the reader think about human relationships when finished reading.

The Two Girls of Gettysburg: Lisa Klein

A cute book for teens about the Civil War and how families were torn apart fighting on different sides.

Anthony and Cleopatra: William Shakespeare

Not one of the most exciting Shakespeare plays I have read, but now I can say I read it, mark it off my list.

Jonathon Livingston Seagull: Richard Bach

A co-worker asked if I had read this book, so I was surprised that it was not only geared for children, but religious and very oddly put together.

The Sojouner: Carson McCullers

A very short story about how quickly life passes and about lost time and lost life. A great example of a "mood" piece, very sad story.

The Ballad of Sad Cafe: Carson McCullers

An interesting short story centering around the idea of a lover and a beloved, and the power of love to both redeem and destroy.

Love's Labor's Lost: Shakespeare

This story mentions Cuckold's so many times I got to the point where I was thinking...is there anything more to this story? About a king to decides to become chaste to devote himself to his studies, however a princess and her escorts arrive at the castle and the king and his court all fall in love. When the women leave they vow that if they are still loved in one year they will marry the men. A very short play, with very little happening.

Kiss Me Deadly: Mickey Spillane

A good book to read to compare how far mysteries have evolved since the 1950's, still an interesting read. I like how it ended without knowing if the protagonist made it out alive.

Out of the Dark: Sharon Sala

A good book with unbelievable events - like that a four year old missing child in the 70's would have had fingerprints on file that would link the identity of the woman 20 years later. This story went from bad to pointless, but I didn't know it was a romance when I picked it up, so the constant reminders by the author that the woman was weak and a damsel in distress was annoying to me. No one is that weak and manipulative. Wasn't able to finish it.

As You Like It: William Shakespeare

A cute and clever story about love. Of course there are disguises and evil family members, but it was enjoyable since there were so many characters with their own stories. I liked the development of Orlando and his foils Silvius and Touchstone.

The Tempest: William Shakespeare

An amusing classic, not sure why I didn't enjoy Shakespeare in high school, this is not one of my favorite of his works, but it is still entertaining.

Lady Macbeth's Daughter: Lisa Klein

A clever book for young readers to get them interested in Shakespeare. I enjoyed the book and actually picked it up while getting some Shakespeare works. A quick read and appropriate for the targeted age group.

The Keepers of The House: Shirley Ann Grau

A story about growing up in the south with racial tension. I didn't like the protagonist and had a hard time feeling sorry for her when her barn was burned since she was treating her step relatives with the same arrogant attitude. I was annoyed and angry at the end.

Lost Girls: George d. Shuman

Interesting book about the trafficking of women and well researched. The part where the book turns to be a mystery with suspense was sort of short, seemed like 75% of the book was introduction. It was still a fast read and entertaining. I would read his other books.

A Prayer for Katerina Horovitzova

A book about the horror of the holocaust. The story focuses on a young woman and several other American prisoners who were given hope and a ride to the sea in a hoax that they would return to the States if they paid enough. There was never any chance of them leaving and the story shows the strength of those in the camps and cruelty and idea of sport of the Nazis. Throughout the whole story you hope for a happy ending, but know it isn't going to happen.

King Arthur and His Knights: Howard Pyle

Interesting, if not a dry read. I had though King Arthur was just a child when he pulled the sword from the stone, but he was 18, and died at 25? The story of how he tricked Guinevere into marring him sort of foreshadowed how she would fall in love with someone else. Glad I read it simply for the fact that it refreshed my mind on the stories.

Locked Doors: Blake Crouch

An even more disturbing sequel to Desert Places. I hate how people are killed without adding to the plot, it takes away from the story and basically forces me to tune out sections of the book. This will be the last book of his that I read, I don't even like the characters.

Desert Places: Blake Crouch

disturbing disturbing disturbing! I knew the ending wouldn't be pretty or go as planned and was scared about the outcome the entire time- A very creepy book. The repeated reference to the ugly painting confused me, unless it was simply to contrast the main characters.