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Tara Westover Educated Me

I just finished the book, Educated: A Memoir, by Tara Westover. I was completely blown away by this story. As a child, Westover was not permitted to go to school by her father, who would prefer her to work in his junkyard instead. Her parents did not believe in education or in modern medicine, but… Read more »

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The Ghost

My daughter brought this book home from the fourth grade book swap.  The fourth grade book swap just isn’t what it used to be, is it? They grow up so fast. Sigh.  Inside the back cover, we read that this book is about a newly divorced Londoner who goes to Vermont and stumbles upon a… Read more »

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Mythical Suspence

I read and reread the past four Tufa books very carefully, looking for things that would create beautiful scenes in a coloring book. (I drew The Tufa Coloring Book.) So, I was relieved recently to crack open Alex Bledsoe’s latest book, Gather Her Round, and just, you know. Read it.  Having read the previous four… Read more »

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Improvements

I have some ideas I’d like to run by you, about improving War and Peace:  The Prince should be a vampire. We should add Jonathan Strange, this book needs a magician!  All of the men should be women.  All of the women should still be women.  All of the swords should be cats.  This way,… Read more »

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“The Historian” Is a Beautifully Written Quest for Nosferatu

I just finished, The Historian, by Elizabeth Kostova. It’s a historical fiction/horror novel about Dracula— but calling it that really doesn’t do it justice. Here are seven reasons I loved The Historian: 1. Immediately, I was drawn into this book. Kostova is a master of language. “My dear and unfortunate successor,” begins the letter that changes… Read more »