#bookreader – Page 7 – Rosepoint Publishing

The Arrangement by Kiersten Modglin #AudiobookReview #ThrowbackThursday

Arrangement Novels Book 1

Book Blurb:

Ainsley Greenburg is a fixer. It’s what she prides herself on.

So when Ainsley realizes her marriage is at its breaking point, she makes a decision to repair it, no matter the cost. Approaching her husband to propose the arrangement is supposed to be the hard part, but Peter agrees to the salacious plan almost immediately.

The rules are simple:

They will each date someone new once a week.
They will never discuss what happens on the dates.

Soon, though, the rules are broken, turning terrible mistakes into unspeakable consequences.

When the only person they can count on to keep their darkest secret is each other, new questions and deceits surface. Can they truly trust the person they share a life with, or will the vicious lies that have mounted over the years destroy everything they’ve built?

Once, Peter and Ainsley vowed to stand together forever, but as they push boundaries of deception, suspicion, and temptation, each begins to wonder if ’til death do us part may come sooner than they’d intended.

My Review:

Maybe I don’t get out that much and apparently not in the loop, didn’t realize “open marriages” were still a thing (just plain old affairs now?). Back in the Navy, they called them “key clubs,” something the CE and I never would have subscribed to. We’ve been married much longer than Peter and Ainsley and wouldn’t have given a key club any consideration even then.

In this case, it’s an online dating service, proposed by Ainsley (which also surprised me). She explained “the rules” she created to Peter and he agreed. She thought the whole thing would work to light a fire under their sadly fading excitement with each other. They have three children, for heaven’s sake, and they couldn’t work out a date night for the two of them? You’ve no doubt read something about this in the blurb. But aren’t rules meant to be broken?

My first experience with this author, so I wasn’t prepared for the lengths she’d go to for twists.

This book is short and fairly fast paced, so after an introduction to the main characters and the reason for their perceived predictament, the plot pace ramped up pretty quick. I must admit that I was caught off-guard more than once, hitting a new level of surprise.

How could this simple idea go so far off the rails? I did appreciate the character of Peter, not so much Ainsley. But then Peter gets caught up in Ainsley’s drama and things go a little nuts. Or a lot nuts. Just suspend belief. I was left with questions, no answers, and now I realize it was Book 1. Duh.

Definitely not a plot I’ve read very often and certainly not quite this wild. You can’t say the characters aren’t engaging, the idea entertaining, until it gets to the creepy point. Maybe I’m easily entertained, but it did keep me listening to two talented narrators. It’s one you might enjoy as well, although I’m vacillating on reading Book 2.

Rosepoint Publishing: Four Stars

Book Details:

Genre: Psychological Thrillers, Suspense Thrillers
Publisher: Dreamscape Media, LLC
ASIN: B091BDFT57
Listening Length: 5 hrs 42 mins
Narrators: George Newbern, Sarah Mollo-Christensen
Publication Date: June 29, 2021
Source: Local Library (Audiobook Selections)
Title Links: Amazon-US
Amazon-UK

The Author: KIERSTEN MODGLIN is a #1 bestselling author of psychological thrillers. Her books have sold over two million copies and been translated into multiple languages. Kiersten is a member of International Thriller Writers, Novelists, Inc., and the Alliance of Independent Authors. She is a KDP Select All-Star and a recipient of ThrillerFix’s Best Psychological Thriller Award, Suspense Magazine’s Best Book of 2021 Award, a 2022 Silver Falchion for Best Suspense, and a 2022 Silver Falchion for Best Overall Book of 2021. Kiersten grew up in rural western Kentucky and later relocated to Nashville, Tennessee, where she now lives with her family. Kiersten’s readers across the world lovingly refer to her as “KMod.” A binge-watching expert, psychology fanatic, and indoor enthusiast, Kiersten enjoys rainy days spent with her favorite people and evenings with her nose in a book.

#ThrowbackThursday

Great Big Beautiful Life: Reese’s Book Club by Emily Henry #BookReview #TuesdayBookBlog

Amazon Charts #9 this week

Book Blurb:

A REESE’S BOOK CLUB PICK ∙ AN INSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER ∙ Two writers compete for the chance to tell the larger-than-life story of a woman with more than a couple of plot twists up her sleeve in this dazzling and sweeping novel from Emily Henry.

As featured in The New York Times ∙ Rolling Stone ∙ People ∙ Good Morning America ∙ NPR ∙ Vogue ∙ The Cut ∙ USA Today ∙ Cosmopolitan ∙ Harper’s Bazaar ∙ Marie Claire ∙ Glamour ∙ ELLE ∙ E! Online ∙ The New York Post ∙ Bustle ∙ Reader’s Digest ∙ BBC ∙ PopSugar ∙ SheReads ∙ Paste ∙ and more!

Alice Scott is an eternal optimist still dreaming of her big writing break. Hayden Anderson is a Pulitzer-prize winning human thundercloud. And they’re both on balmy Little Crescent Island for the same reason: to write the biography of a woman no one has seen in years—or at least to meet with the octogenarian who claims to be the Margaret Ives. Tragic heiress, former tabloid princess, and daughter of one of the most storied (and scandalous) families of the twentieth century.

When Margaret invites them both for a one-month trial period, after which she’ll choose the person who’ll tell her story, there are three things keeping Alice’s head in the game.

One: Alice genuinely likes people, which means people usually like Alice—and she has a whole month to win the legendary woman over.

Two: She’s ready for this job and the chance to impress her perennially unimpressed family with a Serious Publication.

Three: Hayden Anderson, who should have no reason to be concerned about losing this book, is glowering at her in a shaken-to-the core way that suggests he sees her as competition.

But the problem is, Margaret is only giving each of them pieces of her story. Pieces they can’t swap to put together because of an ironclad NDA and an inconvenient yearning pulsing between them every time they’re in the same room.

And it’s becoming abundantly clear that their story—just like the tale Margaret’s spinning—could be a mystery, tragedy, or love ballad . . . depending on who’s telling it.

My Review:

Why, oh why, do I get sucked in on what looks promising and a Reese’s Book Club pick to boot? I really need to research more before borrowing a book on a waiting list from the library.

So, did I learn nothing from Funny Story? Or in a hurry, remembered the author’s name and hopped on the list. And what happened with Funny Story? A Goodreads Choice Award winner for Readers’ Favorite Romance (2024). Yeah, I don’t do RomComs, but didn’t consider Great Big Beautiful Life one either. Surely, this one won’t follow the Funny Story path…please.

Great Big Beautiful Life by Emily Henry — Great Big Beautiful Life-US cover

It’s an old trope, predictable. And slow burn? Oh, honey, the first part almost had me giving up waiting for something to spark. The second part went swiftly from hate to love and between the sheets before I could even check for bed bugs. As each got more graphic, I was forced to skip read.

The FMC is all sunshine, optimism, and a chronically happy girl while hiding an unhappy childhood and a critical mother. She’s a journalist. She coulda been a contender—or something–somewhere else.

The MMC is a grump (sound familiar?). I don’t care how gorgeous he is; I wouldn’t have gotten past the first crotchety word. If he’s a world-famous author, what is she doing there anyway?

The plot with the reclusive Margaret pitting them against each other is okay, except it starts back when her ancestors emerged from a communal cave. I guess you have to have something to throw in some interest, and I can’t fault the author for her prose, sense of humor, or clichés that run rampant.

“Because even the doorknobs here are buttered,”…

The description of the locale is interesting, always gives me pangs I no longer have access to a coast, left or right. The mansion, castle, grounds where Margaret lives are amazing and I wonder if her residuals really paid for all of that. Also I learned a new word:

Unicursal. One beginning, one end. Used in this context as a meandering pathway.

It doesn’t make sense that Hayden and Alice could have any chemistry between them. Is she really that desperate? As they continue their interviews, they manage an ah ha moment or two but still swear Margaret is hiding something. Does anyone care?

Lots of pillow talk heart-to-hearts with both divulging big secrets. There’s a kind of anti-climax that eventually turns into the last twist. (Thank heaven.) But still doesn’t make sense to me. It leaves me wanting to knock their heads together.

I did enjoy some of the writing style, but nix on the biographer study or romcom. Many thanks to my library for providing me with the opportunity to read and review this book. The thoughts expressed here are my own.

Rosepoint Rating: Three Stars

Book Details:

Genre: Contemporary Women’s Fiction, Romantic Comedy
Publisher: Berkley
ISBN: 978-0593441244
ASIN: B0DGCLB3X3
Print Length: 427 pages
Publication Date: April 22, 2025
Source: Local Library

Title Link(s):

Amazon-US | Amazon-UK | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

The Author: Emily Henry is the #1 New York Times and #1 Sunday Times bestselling author of Happy Place, Book Lovers, People We Meet on Vacation, and Beach Read. She studied creative writing at Hope College, and now spends most of her time in Cincinnati, Ohio, and the part of Kentucky just beneath it. Find her on Instagram @EmilyHenryWrites.

4 Bestseller Pubs — *Wall Street Journal stopped publishing bestseller lists in Nov 2023.

Lowdown Road by Scott Von Doviak #BookReview #HeistCrime

Book Blurb:

Join a heart-racing road trip across 1970s America as two cousins make the heist of their lives and must avoid the cops and criminals hot on their tails.

It’s the summer of ’74…Richard Nixon has resigned from office, CB radios are the hot new thing, and in the great state of Texas two cousins hatch a plan to drive $1 million worth of stolen weed to Idaho, where some lunatic is gearing up to jump Snake River Canyon on a rocket-powered motorcycle. But with a vengeful sheriff on their tail and the revered and feared marijuana kingpin of Central Texas out to get his stash back, Chuck and Dean are in for the ride of their lives – if they can make it out alive…

Scott Von Doviak, longtime pop-culture journalist for The A.V. Club, Film Threat, The Hollywood Reporter, and the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, made a splash with his debut novel, CHARLESGATE CONFIDENTIAL, which Stephen King called “terrific” and “a fun machine…the white-knuckle kind.” With LOWDOWN ROAD, he cements his reputation for pedal-to-the-metal storytelling that also makes you think about just who we are and where our darker roads might lead us.

His Review:

The Snake River Canyon is about 450 feet from rim to river and straight down. Evel Knievel is going to jump it with his motorcycle. Bets are made around the country on how many pieces will be left after he falls. Bikers from around the country are converging on Twin Falls to watch the event. Three never-do-wells are speeding across country being tracked by a sheriff who wants to kill rather than apprehend them. They have a delivery to make to drug dealers who are working the event.

The sheriff is always a step behind the three as they speed towards Twin Falls. He will kill anyone who gets in his way and he particularly likes killing bikers. This story moves and has a number of interesting twists. Read and enjoy! 4.5 stars – CE Williams

Many thanks to our local library for providing me with the opportunity to read and review this book. Any opinion expressed here is my own.

Rosepoint Publishing: Four point Five Stars

Book Details:

Genre: Heist Crime, Southern United States Fiction
Publisher: Hard Case Crime
ISBN-13: ‎ 978-1803364124
ASIN: B0BHY252BD
Print Length: 296 pages
Publication Date: July 11, 2023
Source: Library

Title Link(s):

Amazon-US | Amazon-UK | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

The Author: Scott Von Doviak’s twenty-year pop culture writing career includes three books, a stint as a film critic for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, and a decade as television reviewer for The Onion’s AV Club. His debut novel “Charlesgate Confidential” was called “terrific” by Stephen King and named one of the top ten crime novels of 2018 by Tom Nolan of the Wall Street Journal. His 70s-set thriller “Lowdown Road” will be released in July 2023 by Hard Case Crime. He lives in Austin, Texas.

The Other Side of Now: A Novel by Paige Harbison #AudiobookReview #FriendshipFiction

Rosepoint Publishing: Five Stars

Book Blurb:

Read by the author, this hilarious and heartfelt audiobook about how loves and lives are never truly lost, is perfect for fans of Rebecca Serle and Taylor Jenkins Reid.

With a leading role on a hit TV show and a relationship with Hollywood’s latest heartthrob, Meg Bryan appears to have everything she ever wanted. But underneath, her happiness is as fake as her stage name, Lana Lord. Following a tiny nervous breakdown at her thirtieth birthday party, she books an impromptu trip to Ireland. Specifically, to the village where she and her best friend Aimee always dreamt of moving.

When Meg arrives, the people in town don’t just recognize her, they seem to know her. She quickly—reluctantly—realizes she has somehow slipped into an alternate reality. One where she did move to Ireland as a teenager, one where she never got famous, and—most shocking of all—one where Aimee is alive and well.

She just wants nothing to do with Meg.

Despite her bewilderment, Meg is clear-eyed about one thing: this is a once-in-two-lifetimes chance to reconnect with her friend and repair what she broke . . . or else risk losing Aimee all over again.

A Macmillan Audio production from St. Martin’s Press.

My Review:

Oh good grief! Is this a YA? And a fantasy? And I read it? And loved it?!

It is and I did!

Meg and Aimee are high school besties, who, out for a fun night, decide to see a fortune teller. But while Meg has a dual life line, Aimee’s reading is curt, cut short, and reveals nothing. Kind of a downer ending a thirtieth birthday party, but then she is already feeling a bit let down.

Meg has found success as Lana Lord, a hit TV show. Aimee was killed in a traffic accident not long after the birthday party. Meg shuts down. She is beyond consolable and on impulse books a trip to Ireland where she and Aimee had dreamed of going to college.

With the way our family moved throughout my school years, I never had a chance to experience a “bestie.” So, no, I couldn’t identify with how closely connected Meg was to Aimee, but it wasn’t too difficult to understand how she could find herself at a traumatic crossroads in her life at age thirty.

The experience in Ireland, however, is not at all what she expected but it’s obvious something major is going on when everyone appears to know her.

POV switches back and forth from Ireland to her life in Hollywood. The hot bartender in Ireland may be an “ex” for one thing, the boyfriend at home may have been cheating on her. But is it really possible Aimee is living in Ireland—with her family? Why is she mad at her?

I loved the characters; the prose the author delivers is lovingly and emotionally delivered, believable. The atmosphere of Ireland fleshes out the scenes and leaves you yearning for her decision to stay. Must she return?

The author, once again, has a couple twists in store for the reader. Oh, the delicious fun!

How do you pull a satisfying conclusion to this conundrum?

Stay.

Go.

Stay.

Go.

Themes of friendship, family, loss and grief, dogs (yes, dogs!), happiness. Wait, did Meg remember that fateful night differently than Aimee?

My heart fell at one point. Not the ending I was hoping for. Then—NOT the ending—and my goodness, that writer can pull another one out of the hat. Amazing. So satisfying.

If you missed this one, I’d recommend you check it out. Have I ever steered you wrong?

This audiobook is narrated by the author and she certainly does a credible job. Thank you to my local library for the borrowed copy.

Book Details:

Genre: Friendship Fiction
Publisher: Macmillan Audio
ASIN: B0DK7NHJ93
Listening Length: 10 hrs 22 mins
Narrator: Paige Harbison
Publication Date: June 3, 2025
Source: Local Library (Audiobook Selections)
Title Links: Amazon-US
Amazon-UK
Barnes & Noble
Kobo

Paige Harbison - author — Paige Harbison – author

A little bit about me…

I grew up in the Washington D.C. area, raised by a musician and a writer. I graduated high school early, and went to college in St. Augustine, FL. Then, between Freshman and Sophomore year, I wrote my first novel. Everything in my life changed when, the following semester, I signed my first contract at age nineteen.

I transferred schools three times for fun, and changed my major from Theatre to Painting in order to accommodate my new career. I graduated early from Towson University and continued to work on my first three published novels, all YA: Here Lies Bridget, New Girl, and Anything to Have You.

Throughout the next decade I worked as a bartender and ghostwriter, traveling as much as I could, living it up in the name of book inspo.

At the start of the pandemic, I moved with my family to Palm Springs, CA and finally slowed down enough to start thinking about my own next chapter, which led me to leave the service industry, take some opportunities in film and TV, and start work on my next book.

I am now based in Los Angeles, California, where I live with my dog, Tarot, my partner, Richie, and the 12-9000 uninvited spiders that live in and around our home.

find me on instagram and TikTok, where I do comedy videos! @pharbeaux

False Witness: A Novel by Phillip Margolin #BookReview #TuesdayBookBlob

Book Blurb:

A lawyer who was set-up, imprisoned, and disbarred, only to be vindicated and reinstated, is determined to find out who set her up and cover their tracks with a trail of dead bodies

Defense Attorney Karen Wyatt exposed corruption in the police force and the District Attorney’s office while getting her client exonerated in court. But in doing so, she put a target on her back and she was set-up on fake drug charge, imprisoned and disbarred until the conspiracy unraveled and her innocence was proven. Now reinstated to the bar, Wyatt is still interested in finding out who ordered her to be set-up – but the key figures were either killed or are in Witness Protection.

In the meantime, Wyatt is a practicing defense attorney, whose current client is either guilty of a heinous murder, or is a too-trusting patsy for an acquaintance set-up for a crime he didn’t commit. It will take all of Wyatt’s genius to defend her client successfully but that’s just one piece of an increasingly complex puzzle.

With a deadly criminal drug gang, a powerful, corrupt figure hiding in the D.A.’s office, and a Congressman who turned up with an unbelievable story after disappearing for days, False Witness is twisty, breathtaking, and unpredictable thriller.

My Review:

I do enjoy a good legal thriller from time to time. The last I read by this author, An Insignificant Case was a good standalone case in point. Unique main character and one I hoped would signal the beginning of a new series. Maybe not.

Defense Attorney Karen Wyatt definitely got herself in a pickle when she exposed corruption, not only in the police force, but the District Attorney’s office as well. She set herself up to take the fall, and fall she did, deep into prison. When she was finally exonerated, she came out with a bit of a chip on her shoulder and a burning desire to get some well-earned retribution.

The author keeps the tension ratcheted up as she goes about the business of practicing law and three years later taking pro bono cases. In the meantime, she continues to filter through her list of suspects, working to find the mole in the DA’s office. So much going on, the plot can get complex and there is a real mixed bag of characters from every spectrum.

All the twists and turns are there, moving the storyline along fairly briskly.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with the opportunity to read and review this book. The thoughts expressed here are my own.

Rosepoint Rating: Four Stars

Book Details:

Genre: Legal Thrillers, Murder Thrillers, Crime Thrillers
Publisher: Minotaur Books
ISBN: 978-1250356901
ASIN: B0DPTVQM58
Print Length: 304 pages
Publication Date: November 11, 2025
Source: Local Library

Title Link(s):

Amazon-US | Amazon-UK | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

The Author: PHILLIP MARGOLIN has written over twenty-five novels, most of them New York Times bestsellers, including Gone But Not Forgotten, Lost Lake, and Violent Crimes. In addition to being a novelist, he was a long time criminal defense attorney with decades of trial experience, including a large number of capital cases. Margolin lives in Portland, Oregon.

Website:

http://www.phillipmargolin.com/

#TuesdayBookBlog

Wild Instinct: A Novel by T Jefferson Parker #BookReview #MurderThrillers

Book Blurb:

The hunt for the truth is the deadliest game.

Former Marine sniper Lew Gale, now a detective with the Orange County California Sheriff’s Department, is assigned to track and shoot a mountain lion that has killed a man in the rugged country east of Laguna Beach, California. The victim is Bennet Tarlow, a rich developer and man-about-town in upscale coastal Orange County.

The investigation takes a chilling turn when Lew and his new partner, Daniela Mendez, discover that Bennet was dead long before the lion got to him. And while he might have been the first to die, he certainly will not be the last.

At the Publisher’s request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

His Review:

Bennet Tarlow III is shot dead and the most influential person in Texas must be avenged! His grieving sons are fighting over his substantial fortune and must never turn their backs on another family member.

This story focuses on the greed and corruption that come when spoiled offspring scramble for the position of heir. The father has written a will and it defines the child he wants to become his heir. His sons and daughters care about their father’s riches but particularly where they stand in the heir position. A story about family greed and discord.

I found the tale a bit of a ring road with danger to each sibling at every turn! Can their father mean so little to the heirs? Read and experience the calamity! 3 stars – CE Williams

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with the opportunity to read and review this book. Any opinion expressed here is my own.

Rosepoint Publishing: Three Stars

Book Details:

Genre: Murder Thrillers, Crime Thrillers, Suspense
Publisher: Minotaur Books
ISBN-13: ‎978-1250907929
ASIN: B0DPV1B3LP
Print Length: 336 pages
Publication Date: November 11, 2025
Source: Publisher and NetGalley

Title Link(s):

Amazon-US | Amazon-UK | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

The Author: T. Jefferson Parker is the bestselling author of 28 crime novels, including Edgar Award-winners “Silent Joe” and “California Girl.” Parker’s latest work, “The Rescue”, explores the strength of the human-animal bond and how far we will go to protect what we love.

Parker was born in L.A. and grew up in Southern California. He studied English at UC Irvine and worked as a newspaper reporter for five years while writing his first book, “Laguna Heat” on evenings and weekends. HBO made “Laguna Heat” into one of its first original television movies in 1987.

Although the “T” is part of his legal name it does not stand for a name. It is a decorative initial put there by his parents, who once told him they thought T. Jefferson Parker would look good on the White House door.

Parker lives in north San Diego County, and enjoys fishing, hiking and just about anything outdoors.

http://www.tjeffersonparker.com

Twitter: TJParkerauthor

https://www.goodreads.com/tjeffersonparker

Summertime reading — Gemini-generated AI graphic

Rosepoint Reviews – July Recap – #Audiobooks #Biographies #LiteraryFiction #HistoricalFiction

Rosepoint Reviews - July Recap

July was indeed a record-setting month for temps around here and apparently for most of you as well. You can always tell a dip in temperatures by the number of people scampering outside to catch up on yard work. No exception here, with mowing, weeding, and harvesting ripening veggies. Apparently a banner year for cucumbers; they’ve overgrown the melons. A decent year for tomatoes though, they do like it hot.

My experiment with the lotus seeds pretty much got taken over with the other invasive water plant I put in the tub and the other one won. My best crop may still end up being mosquitoes. Still with the number of cucumbers ripening, there is no shortage of the stuff for making juice, which is actually quite tasty. And with the number of cherry tomatoes, perhaps we can try drying them again—little nuggets of tomato candy.

Still doing our Y classes three times a week. Those giant blue exercise balls are the new drums, and we are beating those drums to some great 50s-60s music. Fun classes and a great way to get out and move!

We reviewed fifteen books in July—still trying to catch up with audiobooks I’ve listened to. The source of our books is our library, NetGalley, author and publisher requests. As always, the links on titles are to our reviews that include purchase information.

Don’t Open the Door by Allison Brennan (audiobook)
Silent Creek by Tony Wirt (CE review)
Random Run: The Boston Clairvoyants by Annabelle Lewis
Red Shadows at Saugatuck by Randy Overbeck (CE review)
Beartown by Fredrik Backman (audiobook for book club)

Audiobooks Mini-Reviews
Lloyd McNeil’s Last Ride by Will Leitch
Our Last Wild Days by Anna Bailey
Hell is Empty and Return to Sender by Craig Johnson

The Promise of Unbroken Straw by Ken Steele (CE review)
Good Days Bad Days by Emily Bleeker
A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson (audiobook)
Only Way Out by Tod Goldberg (CE review)
The River’s Daughter by Bridget Crocker
Bits and Pieces: My Mother, My Brother, and Me by Whoopi Goldberg (audiobook)

Favorite Book of the Month

Maybe it’s not fair, maybe she had help with writing, I don’t know. But it’s an emotional, heartfelt tribute to her mother. I enjoyed the whole thing.

Favorite for July – Bits and Pieces by Whoopi Goldberg

My Reading Challenges page…behind again. I need a day—one whole day just to work on the blog. Uninterrupted.

The Goodreads landing page shows 114 of a goal of 150 or 76%, but the book count widget is still way off. Any way to get that corrected?

I do appreciate your visits and I love your comments! Enjoy the last month of summer—soon the kiddies will be returning to school! (Yeah, already.)

A little light summer reading.

Bits and Pieces: My Mother, My Brother, and Me by Whoopi Goldberg #AudiobookReview #ThrowbackThursday

Award nominee

Rosepoint Publishing: Five Stars

Book Blurb:

From multi-award winner Whoopi Goldberg comes a new and unique memoir of her family and their influence on her early life.

If it weren’t for Emma Johnson, Caryn Johnson would have never become Whoopi Goldberg. Emma gave her children the loving care and wisdom they needed to succeed in life, always encouraging them to be true to themselves. When Whoopi lost her mother in 2010—and then her older brother, Clyde, five years later—she felt deeply alone; the only people who truly knew her were gone.

Emma raised her children not just to survive, but to thrive. In this intimate and heartfelt memoir, Whoopi shares many of the deeply personal stories of their lives together for the first time. Growing up in the projects in New York City, there were trips to Coney Island, the Ice Capades, and museums, and every Christmas was a magical experience. To this day, she doesn’t know how her mother was able to give them such an enriching childhood, despite the struggles they faced—and it wasn’t until she was well into adulthood that Whoopi learned just how traumatic some of those struggles were.

Fans of personal memoirs such as Finding Me by Viola Davis and In Pieces by Sally Field will be touched by Bits and Pieces: a moving tribute from a daughter to her mother, and a beautiful portrait of three people who loved each other deeply. Whoopi writes, “Not everybody gets to walk this earth with folks who let you be exactly who you are and who give you the confidence to become exactly who you want to be. So, I thought I’d share mine with you.”

My Review:

Above anything else, this might be a slightly long eulogy and love letter to her mother first and then her brother, Clyde. (I had to chuckle though, as that is the CE’s first name as well.)

But it’s no wonder she fills the book with praise, remembering so many stories in which her mother shines brilliantly with wisdom in raising, teaching, nurturing, and yes, strict discipline, her two children under the worst of circumstances.

Time and again, I marveled at how, when push comes to shove, her mother, Emma, manages to mold her daughter and son into strong, independent thinking, kind, and thoughtful people. Who taught her those qualities? She bestowed everything she had at grievous cost to herself, a great philosophical education that might have made Gandhi blush.

“You’ve got two choices. You can waste a lot of time complaining, or you can get up and figure out how to fix it.”

Besides the stories of her childhood and the beginning of her amazing career, she lays bare the loves she’s shared, including the birth of her daughter (her only child), the foray into drugs, and attempted reconciliation with her father. So many anecdotes regarding her experiences.

Whether or not you’ve been a fan of Whoopi (nee Caryn Johnson), reading this book may enhance your respect or create a new fan.

This audiobook is narrated by herself, complete with that distinctive voice, sense of humor, emotion. It’s a celebration of life.

Book Details:

Genre: Grief & Loss, Black & African American Biographies, Grief & Bereavement
Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
ASIN: B0CMFC8M37
Listening Length: 6 hrs 43 mins
Narrator: Whoopi Goldberg
Publication Date: May 7, 2024
Source: Local Library (Audiobook Selections)
Title Links: Amazon-US
Amazon-UK
Barnes & Noble
Kobo

The Author: Whoopi Goldberg is the the author of the Sugar Plum Ballerinas books, as well as Whoopi’s Big Book of Manners, illustrated by Olo. She has won a Tony, an Emmy, an Oscar, and a Grammy, as well as two Golden Globes. In 2001, she was awarded the prestigious Mark Twain Prize for American Humor. Whoopi Goldberg has appeared in scores of films and is a host of ABC’s The View. She lives in New York and Vermont.

#ThrowbackThursday

Banner picture credits:
Oda May Brown- Ghost – Images Press, Getty Images
The Color Purple – Bruce Gilkas, Film Magic Celie Harris
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