★★★★★ — I have either read it more than once, or it shaped and influenced my thinking, or I find myself thinking about it long after I finished reading it.

★★★★ — Well-worth the time spent reading, may read it again, but haven’t yet.

★★★ — Passed the time satisfactorily, but would not read again nor urge you to read.

★★ — Had a few redeeming moments, but for the most part, a poor use of time.

— Deeply regret that I read this. The time would have been better spent staring vacantly out the window.


BBC’s Radio Dramatization of Les Mis
★★★★★ Suzanne Chandler ★★★★★ Suzanne Chandler

BBC’s Radio Dramatization of Les Mis

We listened to this on a road trip and it is so so good. All the roles are cast and the readers “act” their roles. We arrived at Disneyland before we finished and after a few days there our son asked when we were leaving ‘cause he wanted to get back to the story. It’s that good.

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“Behind the Scenes at the Museum” by Kate Atkinson
fiction, ★★★★★ Suzanne Chandler fiction, ★★★★★ Suzanne Chandler

“Behind the Scenes at the Museum” by Kate Atkinson

Behind the Scenes at the Museum opens in 1951 with the conception of the Ruby Lennox, narrated by Ruby herself (from an insider's perspective, of course). The wee little one-celled, oopps, two-celled person, oopps, four-celled now, has all the vocabulary and literary references of a grown-up. It is a quirky and highly engaging narrative voice and I loved it.

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“To a Mouse On Turning Her Up in Her Nest with the Plough, November, 1785” by Robert Burns
fiction, ★★★★★ Suzanne Chandler fiction, ★★★★★ Suzanne Chandler

“To a Mouse On Turning Her Up in Her Nest with the Plough, November, 1785” by Robert Burns

Steinbeck took his title for Of Mice and Men from Robert Burn’s poem, To a Mouse: On Turning Her Up in Her Nest with the Plough, November, 1785. I love this poem and long to share it with others, but the original language is a bit off-putting to some. Here is my solution. Burns on the left; Chandler on the right.

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“Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience and Redemption” by Laura Hillenbrand
non-fiction, ★★★★★ Suzanne Chandler non-fiction, ★★★★★ Suzanne Chandler

“Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience and Redemption” by Laura Hillenbrand

Louis Zamperini is a WWII Army Airforce bomber whose plane crashes into the Pacific. He endures many days on the raft only to be rescued by the enemy and put into a P.O.W. camp. Well-written and engaging story which I could not put it down. And it certainly put my hardships and troubles into perspective.

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“Life at the Bottom: The Worldview That Makes the Underclass” by Theodore Dalrymple
non-fiction, ★★★★★ Suzanne Chandler non-fiction, ★★★★★ Suzanne Chandler

“Life at the Bottom: The Worldview That Makes the Underclass” by Theodore Dalrymple

Life in the underclass and why it persists as it does.

“Dalrymple's key insight in Life at the Bottom is that long-term poverty is caused not by economics but by a dysfunctional set of values, one that is continually reinforced by an elite culture searching for victims. This culture persuades those at the bottom that they have no responsibility for their actions and are not the molders of their own lives. “ GoodReads

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