So many genres, so little time
Poland, 1944 The train slowed and halted with a squeal of the brakes. It felt like we waited in the carriage for an eternity, but eventually, the heavy doors opened, directly into the chaos outside. Sara Leibovitz, a 16-year-old Jewish girl, was a passenger on the train with her family. They spent their final moments together… Continue reading The Girl Who Survived Auschwitz by Eti Elboim and Sara Leibovits
It's hard enough to escape human trafficking, but how does someone survive the aftermath of continually being hunted for years to come? I was young when the abuse started. It came from every angle. Struggling for many years, I wasn't sure I'd ever have a chance at a normal life with real love and true… Continue reading Custom Justice by Amanda Blackwood
I started my book review blog in 2009 and I have read so many outstanding books that I wanted to share them again with my followers on #SegueSaturday. I first posted this review in July 2010. It is an unforgettable memoir. Enjoy! Ms. Kersh shares her memories, including those of the historical figures who inspired… Continue reading Suitcase Full of Dreams by Hoy Kersh
I started my book review blog in 2009 and I have read so many outstanding books that I wanted to share them again with my followers on #SegueSaturday. I first posted this review in April 2009. It is an inspiring memoir of the late Byron Nease, who originated the role of Raoul in the Canadian production of… Continue reading Behind the Mask…No More by Byron Nease
"I will not become my mother." These were famous last words from Domenica (Nikki) Ruta. It was touch and go for a while. Nikki's mom, Kathi, was a drug addict who wanted her daughter to have more than she did. This book is not only about Nikki's fight to try and find a "normal" life,… Continue reading With or Without You by Domenica Ruta
"I guess sometimes the search for freedom is enough to keep one alive." Melitta and her family's experience in Nazi Germany in WWII was something that no one wants to contemplate, but it happened and she has written a short, but stirring memoir about it. In Weimar, Germany, Melitta was born on September 3, 1944… Continue reading Hey Kids, Want Some Chocolates?: My Family’s Journey to Freedom by Melitta Strandberg
Adrienne Barbeau is not only a gifted actress and singer but a gifted writer as well. There is early proof in the excerpts from her journals starting in fifth grade and her ninth-grade term paper., "To Be Or Not To Be: Acting as a Vocation". She writes with honesty, strength, humility, and humor. This book… Continue reading There Are Worse Things I Could Do by Adrienne Barbeau
Thom Bierdz is an actor, artist, author, and loving brother who reaches into his own psyche to tell a heart wrenching and raw account of his life that will leave you breathless. Not only does Thom write about his struggle to understand why his brother murdered his mother, but he writes about his struggles with… Continue reading Forgiving Troy: A True Story of Murder, Mental Illness, and Recovery by Thom Bierdz
“Without really trying, I have become a collector of other families’ secrets.” –Steve Luxenberg. Steve Luxenberg’s memoir reads like a mystery. In the Spring of 1995, Steve finds out that his mother, Beth, had a sister, Annie, who was mentally and physically disabled. This and other family secrets unfold in a number of shocking revelations… Continue reading Annie’s Ghosts: A Journey into a Family Secret by Steve Luxenberg
H. Peter Nennhaus grew up in Berlin during WWII; a volatile time in German and world history. The book is different in that he tells the story from a German boy’s point of view who saw things differently at that time in history. You can see Mr. Nennhaus’s interest in history by reading the historical… Continue reading The Shipwreck of a Nation: Germany: An Inside View by H. Peter Nennhaus
Alyse Myers’s memoir is very personal, brave and honest. This memoir was mainly about Alyse Myers’ rocky relationship with her mother. The eldest of three girls, Alyse adored her father, but hated her mother. Alyse was her father’s favorite, but her mother’s jealousy and anger at the attention he paid to Alyse was something that… Continue reading Who Do You Think You Are? by Alyse Myers