Category Archives: 2017

Wine Isn’t Rocket Science, by Ophelie Neiman

Posted on May 15, 2017 by Thistle

Illustrated by: Yannis Varoutsikos Translated by: Nysa Kline Subtitled: A Quick and Easy Guide to Understanding, Buying, Tasting, and Pairing Every Type of Wine This book is, quite simply (and explained by the subtitle), a guide to wine. The world … Continue reading →

Posted in 2017, Adult, Visual | Tagged , | 3 Comments

Big Little Lies, by Liane Moriarty

Posted on May 5, 2017 by Thistle

Someone has been killed at a themed, costumed, school trivia night. There should be multiple witnesses, yet all claim to have not seen. Speculation abounds. Perhaps it was the alcohol in the punch that night, much more potent than it … Continue reading →

Posted in 2017, Adult, Prose | Tagged , | 4 Comments

Strange the Dreamer, by Laini Taylor

Posted on April 27, 2017 by Thistle

From Goodreads: The dream chooses the dreamer, not the other way around—and Lazlo Strange, war orphan and junior librarian, has always feared that his dream chose poorly. Since he was five years old he’s been obsessed with the mythic lost … Continue reading →

Posted in 2017, 2020, Prose, Young Adult | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Between the World and Me, by Ta-Nehisi Coates (audio)

Posted on April 21, 2017 by Thistle

There is very little I can say about this book. It’s a letter from father to son, an unfolding of personal experience regarding discrimination and the arbitrary line of racial division. This personal narrative grows into something more, an enclosed … Continue reading →

Posted in 2017, Adult, Prose | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Callback: the Daughter of Smoke and Bone series

Posted on April 14, 2017 by Thistle

Back in 2012, I first read Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor. I fell in love with the book and gobbled both it and the sequel up over the next couple months. I didn’t get to read the … Continue reading →

Posted in 2017, Prose, Young Adult | Tagged , , , , , | 7 Comments

In Twenty Years, by Allison Winn Scotch

Posted on April 3, 2017 by Thistle

Six friends live together in a townhouse off campus. Friends forever, they think, not expecting the end of college to change that. On their last night of school, Bea asks them to write a letter to their 40-year-old selves. Only … Continue reading →

Posted in 2017, Adult, Prose | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Gilded Cage, by Vic James (audio)

Posted on March 27, 2017 by Thistle

The world is divided into two: those with Skill – the Equals – and those without – the commoners. In England, the Equal aristocrats rule, and the commoners by law must give up a decade of their life to what’s … Continue reading →

Posted in 2017, Adult, Prose | Tagged , | 6 Comments

Real Food, Fake Food, by Larry Olmsted (audio)

Posted on March 24, 2017 by Thistle

Subtitled: Why You Don’t Know What You’re Eating and What You Can Do About It Let me start by saying what this book isn’t. This is not about so-called Frankenfoods. It’s not about Lucky Charms or Velveeta or Pepsi. When … Continue reading →

Posted in 2017, Adult, Prose | Tagged , , , , | 6 Comments

Red Queen, by Victoria Aveyard

Posted on March 22, 2017 by Thistle

The world is divided along lines of color: Silver and Red. Those with silver blood (literally) have supernatural powers and are the ruling class. Those with red blood are ordinary, and thus essentially slave labor. Of course, divisions like this … Continue reading →

Posted in 2017, Prose, Young Adult | Tagged , | 7 Comments

The Elusive Elixir, by Gigi Pandian (audio)

Posted on March 20, 2017 by Thistle

Given that this is the third book in a series, I’m not going to put a synopsis here. It might spoil earlier books, and I’ve enjoyed this quirky fantasy-mystery series too much to possibly spoil it for others. In general, … Continue reading →

Posted in 2017, Adult, Prose | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments