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lifstrand's reviews
478 reviews
Grandma Gatewood's Walk: The Inspiring Story of the Woman Who Saved the Appalachian Trail by Ben Montgomery
5.0
OMG I wanted to get on my hiking boots and hit the Appalachian Trail the moment I closed the book! But no, probably not a good idea to hike it in the winter. And I'm not into sleeping on beds of leaves with just a blanket for cover. And hmmm... I'm not into humidity, blackflies, mosquitoes...
You know what? When a book is that good it should get the reader all carried away just like this one did me. I vaguely knew about Emma Gatewood, but Ben Montgomery really brought her alive. What an incredible woman. What an inspiration for all.
This is a book that anyone could read, not just those into hiking, or the outdoors. This is a book recommended for anyone who still doubts that women can do whatever they set their minds to. This is a book for anyone who is looking for a hero.
You know what? When a book is that good it should get the reader all carried away just like this one did me. I vaguely knew about Emma Gatewood, but Ben Montgomery really brought her alive. What an incredible woman. What an inspiration for all.
This is a book that anyone could read, not just those into hiking, or the outdoors. This is a book recommended for anyone who still doubts that women can do whatever they set their minds to. This is a book for anyone who is looking for a hero.
Blood Price by Tanya Huff
5.0
Written in 1991 this book holds up well. If it's been a while since you've read it, I recommend reading it again. If you've never read this series -- get to it!
The Midnight Line: A Jack Reacher Novel by Lee Child
4.0
Lee Child's style of writing has been getting on my nerves. The whole business of detailing every single action, of pre-thinking every fight and having it turn out exactly that way, expecting us to believe that a giant stinky man (generally with bruises) can actually get rides when he sticks his thumb out, and that Reacher could wear the same clothes day after day but not use deodorant (I don't care how many bars of soap a man uses, if he gets into a fight there's going to be perspiration and the clothes will absorb it) has worn thin.
The choppy sentences, the surface description of cardboard characters, and the basic sameness of every single plot in every book in which Reacher does what nobody else can and then moves on (except for 61 Hours) with barely a concern for who he left behind... I'm so tired of it.
And yet I keep reading them. Reacher books are like potato chips. I can't stop.
The choppy sentences, the surface description of cardboard characters, and the basic sameness of every single plot in every book in which Reacher does what nobody else can and then moves on (except for 61 Hours) with barely a concern for who he left behind... I'm so tired of it.
And yet I keep reading them. Reacher books are like potato chips. I can't stop.
Wylding Hall by Elizabeth Hand
5.0
I loved this book! I loved the way the fantasy fit seamlessly into "real" life. I am a Led Zeppelin fan and so particularly loved the references to them. At first I found the interview style of presentation off-putting but I soon got into it, though I sometimes had to go back and see who was talking. I loved how well the author captured the feel of the 1970s, and the workings of making an album. Darn, I want to buy that album, too!
Petty: The Biography by Warren Zanes
5.0
A bittersweet read, as this book was published two years before Tom Petty's death in 2017. An excellent biography providing well-researched detail and a balanced look at Petty's life. A good view of Petty and the Heartbreakers' place in the history of popular music. Plus it's a good read.