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Deborah H. (deb1999) - Reviews

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Affirmed: The Last Triple Crown Winner
Affirmed: The Last Triple Crown Winner
Author: Lou Sahadi
Book Type: Hardcover
  • Currently 1/5 Stars.
 1
Review Date: 4/24/2012


I looked forward to this book, but I was disappointed. The style is repetitive. There are blatant factual errors (such as, just to name one, saying Affirmed was Horse of the Year as a 2-year-old, an error repeated in the table of statistics at the back). I spotted enough wrong that I was afraid to believe any of the things I didn't know. Very much a letdown.


All the Presidents' Children: Triumph and Tragedy in the Lives of America's First Families
Review Date: 5/29/2012


Very thorough, a history buff's delight. The book could be organized a little better, as the nonchronological style is a little restless, but I'm sure every reader will wind up hearing at least one new story along the way through.


Backstairs at the White House
Backstairs at the White House
Author: Gwen Bagni, Paul Dubov
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 4.5/5 Stars.
 9
Review Date: 4/23/2012


A fascinating inside look at several different administrations. Really captures the different personalities of the White House under each First Family.


The Case of Abraham Lincoln: A Story of Adultery, Murder, and the Making of a Great President
Review Date: 4/24/2012


Great insight into an important but not-as-written-about period in Lincoln's life. The writing is a bit heavy footed at times but never totally bogs down.


Cat Psalms: Prayers My Cats Have Taught Me (Cat Collection)
Cat Psalms: Prayers My Cats Have Taught Me (Cat Collection)
Author: Herbert Brokering
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 4.4/5 Stars.
 4
Review Date: 2/23/2016


This book is very well done. The cat points of view are not overly anthropomorphized but are delightfully catly, and the human responses to God after observing the cat are quite deep and beautifully written. There is a lot of meat on this slender, elegant book.


Catmas Carols
Catmas Carols
Author: Laurie Loughlin
Book Type: Hardcover
  • Currently 3.3/5 Stars.
 11
Review Date: 3/26/2016


Really cute book, very true to the cat mindset.


Cleo The Cat Who Mended a Family
Cleo The Cat Who Mended a Family
Author: Helen Brown
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 4.5/5 Stars.
 2
Review Date: 7/11/2018


It's an excellent, well-written, and touching book, and I'm glad I read it. Be aware, however, that this is not by any means a children's book.


Cleo: The Cat Who Mended a Family
Cleo: The Cat Who Mended a Family
Author: Helen Brown
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 4.2/5 Stars.
 48
Review Date: 11/10/2019


This is a very well-written and heartfelt memoir of how a cat helped the author's family heal following the death of one of her sons. Warning: It is not a children's book by any means. This is a story for adults, told by an adult. But cat lovers will appreciate it.


Crazy Good: The True Story of Dan Patch, the Most Famous Horse in America
Review Date: 4/24/2012


Fascinating details, really gets into personalities, including the biggest star, the horse, who is appropriately always at the center of the writing, although he had quite an assorted cast of people around him through life, some genuine, some less so. I thoroughly enjoyed this.


Dancer's Image: The Forgotten Story of the 1968 Kentucky Derby
Dancer's Image: The Forgotten Story of the 1968 Kentucky Derby
Author: Milton C. Toby
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 3.5/5 Stars.
 2
Review Date: 7/11/2012


Very thorough look at all aspects of this case, getting into great detail. It's impossible to conclude now what actually happened, but all the circus is examined, with errors on both sides. The author has a smooth writing style that keeps you going even through advanced chemistry, and the pictures throughout the book are excellent, some of them quite rare, I'm sure (such as the poor panel of Kentucky officials studying advanced chemistry).


Evidence Not Seen: A Woman's Miraculous Faith in the Jungles of World War II
Review Date: 10/16/2014
Helpful Score: 1


A remarkable book. This will challenge you to increase your faith.


Fatal North : Adventure and Survival Aboard USS Polaris, The First U.S. Expedition to the North Pole
Review Date: 10/19/2012
Helpful Score: 2


Well-written and compelling, takes you straight into the personalities of the crew. This almost reads like fiction. Intriguing new insights at the end shed new light on the captain's death which was never before certain whether it was a case of murder.


The Father of Forensics: The Groundbreaking Cases of Sir Bernard Spilsbury, and the Beginnings of ModernCSI
Review Date: 12/21/2011
Helpful Score: 1


Fascinating look at an interesting man with a wealth of details on several famous cases. I recommend it for any true crime fan.


Gray Matter: A Neurosurgeon Discovers the Power of Prayer . . . One Patient at a Time
Review Date: 4/24/2014


Wonderful. Dr. Levy chronicles the amazing things God can do when people surrender their jobs to Him and how God remains the Great Physician. Some of the office encounters are just as impressive as the surgeries as he starts to explore the effects of bitterness and unresolved issues on his patients' physical health. Well-written, including enough technical details on surgeries to set the stage on the cases but not so many that you need medical knowledge to read it. This book will challenge you.


Her Little Majesty: The Life of Queen Victoria
Her Little Majesty: The Life of Queen Victoria
Author: Carolly Erickson
Book Type: Hardcover
  • Currently 3.9/5 Stars.
 18
Review Date: 4/23/2012


Very well written, reads like a novel but well researched, and if it seems slightly long occasionally, I'm sure Victoria's reign itself did to those living it. Shows all sides of the Queen's complex character.


I Never Walk the Halls Alone: A Nurse's Private Collection of God's Critical Care
Review Date: 12/21/2011


I expected more medical hospital anecdotes, but the book I got, always focusing most on the life and spiritual lessons learned and not as much on recounting patient tales, though there are some, was quite an inspirational read and will challenge any Christian.


In a Far Country: The True Story of a Mission, a Marriage, a Murder, and the Remarkable Reindeer Rescue of 1898
Review Date: 4/23/2012
Helpful Score: 3


The mission and the marriage are the true focal points of this book, which chronicles the experiences of two late 1800s missionaries setting up early schools among the natives in Alaska. The reindeer rescue itself was somewhat anticlimactic, but you care so much about the people by the time you get there that it doesn't matter. Very interesting look at native life, including how their justice system works when the murder comes into play. Highly recommended. I thoroughly enjoyed it.


Laura : The Life of Laura Ingalls Wilder
Laura : The Life of Laura Ingalls Wilder
Author: Donald Zochert
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 3.7/5 Stars.
 43
Review Date: 12/21/2011
Helpful Score: 1


Interesting biography, seeing how life and the Little House books dovetail and where they differ slightly. Also lots of rare photos plus a list of all documented sites associated with Laura, how to visit, and how they were identified, which was quite interesting with some, such as the site of the Little House on the Prairie.


Melania: A Memoir
Melania: A Memoir
Author: Melania Trump
Book Type: Hardcover
  • Currently 2.5/5 Stars.
 2
Review Date: 10/17/2024


Lots of details, though it isn't a tell-every-last-thing type memoir, which I think is fitting with Melania's private personality. There are plenty of details about her life, her meeting and relationship with DJT, and her work and causes in the White House. There are many more of those latter accomplishments than I had realized. She comes across as yes, reserved, which we all knew anyway, but also very intelligent and passionate about the things near to her heart. If you want all the dirt on everything, you'll be disappointed. If you want to know Melania much better than you did, the book is well worth reading.


Mostly Murder
Mostly Murder
Author: Sir Sydney Smith
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 3.8/5 Stars.
 2
Review Date: 5/29/2012
Helpful Score: 1


This is a fascinating chronicle of some famous cases and also is very well written. Good period details on early crime investigation when forensics was just becoming a science. You hate to use the word funny when dealing with this subject matter, and the text and pictures are graphic at times, but this author also has a pleasant style and a way of relating anecdotes that had me laughing more than once. A very good read. Also has some interesting tales of the prototype for Sherlock Holmes, the doctor Conan Doyle admitted had inspired the fictional detective. This book's author was from the same university where that doctor was a legend, famous for his insights and deductive style, and he knew him.


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