One night in 1850, Harriet Beecher Stowe was called upon to hide a fugitive, John Andrew Jackson, a runaway slave. Her interaction with that man would have a deep effect on her and bring about staggering nationwide fractures that resonate today. The inspiration for Uncle Tom's Cabin was a real man--a man who had incredible drive, courage and guts. From a start in bondage to international fame, his story arc is related astonishingly in this well-researched book. Not all ended up rosy for Jackson, but his story is fascinating.

In a small, midwestern town, families survive but struggle. There is sadness and loss. Biases exist, and people act on them at times. This is a story about regular folks with their successes and foibles, sometimes clashing but ultimately trying to do what's right. Good guys mess up, and people learn they can be more compassionate than they thought. A warm story.

When you grow up watching Star Trek with your dad and sister, then marry a guy who also loves the show (and all its sequels), you definitely romanticize the notion of space travel. High-tech combinations of five-star hotels staffed by nerds so brilliant they're cool--what's not to love? Well, in typical Mary Roach fashion, my preconceived ideas were dashed. She dispels the myth of the sleek astronaut life and boils it down in all sorts of ways . . . from how crews are selected to the decidedly unglamorous realities of living in space, all with her signature wit. Once upon a time I fantasized about going to space. Let's just say I don't anymore.

If you've wondered why the self-proclaimed "Christians" are the meanest people in the room, this book might shed some insight on why that is. Turns out that the wackadoodle "evangelicals" (sorry about my quotes all over the place) that are so loud and proud have an agenda, and it's not anything about "loving thy neighbor as thyself" or "turn[ing] the other cheek". Nope. It's very much geared toward patriarchy, racism, sexism, etc. What a list of attributes. It was a well-cited and interesting book that made me feel a lot of big feelings. None of them Christlike, I'm afraid.

Math is not my friend. I never studied finance. Barely got through statistics. So when we signed up with a financial advisor and I sat through our meetings listening to him speak in his unintelligible language, I thought it was time to take the bull by the horns, knuckle down, and educate myself. Hence my purchase of this fine book. Did I understand everything Paco was saying? No! Did the book have humor and whimsical illustrations? Yes! So to me it was a winner. Paco is amusing, and whip-smart, but not judgey. My kind of finance teacher. So while I'm still not qualified to hang out with our financial guy talking investment-speak, I'd read anything else by this author, truly.

This tome dives deep into the inner workings of the mom in a newly growing family, her push/pull feelings of profound devotion to her son while navigating brittle post partum (?) depression. The protagonist, Julia, meets someone who begins to fill the voids in her soul, and she spends more and more time alongside this older, seemingly wiser woman who appears to have it all together. When her connection to the family brings her opportunities she ends up regretting, there are consequences. This book felt very, very real, as if the author herself has grappled with some difficult topics. While the book kept me reading, it wasn't any kind of "feel-good" experience. Plenty of angst and good-old family-style miscommunication to really muddy the waters. Also, I take issue with the blurb on the back cover, as the "friend who almost ended her marriage" most decidedly did not do that. It was a choice that Julia made herself. I kept thinking of that line throughout the book, and have to say it rankled with me. The author is a really good writer, if this is your kind of story.

I love a courtroom drama, legal show, surprise testimony. Having seen that the series All Rise, which I liked a lot, was based on this book, it was an easy decision to nab the book. The book's always better than the movie/series, show, right? Um, maybe not this time. Although it felt deeply researched, I felt it was a slog, it was depressing, and felt heartless and hopeless. Maybe it was just me? Part of it was the writing style--I found the threads hard to follow. Sorry, Steve. I'm astounded (and impressed) that someone read this book and made an entertaining show out of it.

Laurie Zaleski lived a privileged life as a small child--in a nice town, on the best street, in the best house, with the prettiest parents. But as if often the case, all was not as it seemed. This engaging book tells the story of her childhood, her mom's (and her own) dedication to animals of all stripes and types, and her quest to create the ultimate refuge for these would-be castoffs. There is cruelty to both humans and animals referenced in this book, so be aware, although the overwhelming sentiment is rescue and kindness.

Wow. This fascinating book by Ryan P. Brown is small but oh, so informative. I've always wondeed what cultural snail trail led to certain characteristics of pockets of the country, from accents to customs, to social norms. Turns out, there are "honor countries", which led to "honor states", and on down the line. Scotland seems to be one of the heavy-hitting (no pun intended, but there you go) origins of this mindset. Having family roots in Scotland, this treasure trove of information was even more intriguing, as there were times I "tsk-tksed" superiorly, and others when I had to admit I would probably have behaved in a more "honor culture" manner. Ryan ranges from naming children, to domestic abuse, athletics and treatment of strangers. I'm keeping this one and will read it again.

This book, Virginia 1619, SLAVERY & FREEDOM in the Making of English America (their emphasis, not mine) sounds like it would tell one a lot about how that whole slavery thing got going. It's actually a series of essays on different topics regarding this time and place. To me, (and I sure don't claim to be a scholar, by any means, but still, I can read) it read more like a defense of how hard everyone tried to make a real go of things before they resulted to slavery. Bad luck, unscrupulous leadership, battles with native peoples all made the endeavor full of pitfalls and a money pit, that is, until tobacco made its appearance. And we all know what happened then. Perhaps I missed something? But there was really only one chapter that seemed to address this topic slapped across the front of the cover, and that one was more like what I'd expected. Well researched, but left me a little flat.

This sounded like an important piece of the American history of slavery, so I asked for this book as a gift. Holy mackerel. What a slog. Here's an actual excerpt, chosen (mostly) at random: 'The captives landed in Havana in 1628 on the San Pedro numbered 230 piezas de esclavos but were evaluated as 142 piessas de pago. Most were young boys and girls whose value was estimated to be two-thirds or one-half that of an adult; mothers and infants were assessed jointly as 1 pieza de pago. Likewise, when a slave ship disembarked 16 "young and old" West Central Africans in Santo Domingo in 1631, they were evaluated as 10.5 piezas. Another ship arriving in Cuba in 1639 similarly landed 310 captives, eval- uated as 175.5 piezas; amonth them were 80 captives described as bambos or nursing infants for whom no import fees were paid. Following the arrival of a different slave ship in Santo Domingo from Angola in 1633, the ship- master's legal representative argued that the voyage did not bring any more captives than his registration papers specified, if their numbers were "reduced to piezas de Indias, as is customary." ' Riveted yet? Honestly, not until the very last chapter (and that starts on page 253, mind you) did I even understand what perspective the author had on slavery at all. What came to mind as I strugged through this doctoral project (every dissertation does not a good book make, David) was a comparison between, say, wandering through a Target store, taking in all the colors, shapes, and displays, and reading the packing list from the warehouse. Good research, and really pretty cover. The last chapter recaps the book, so if you're interested, may I suggest saving your time and just reading that?

I guess I was looking for some kind of overview of the RNC story arc over the last few decades, and the eventual January 6 race riot? Insurrection? Invasion? No matter --this book was definitely not that. What was it, you ask? That's harder. A slog. A weirdly paced narrative of the Republican party's drama, with some portions agonizingly detailed (meaninglessly so, to me), and others oddly skipped over. I found myself paging back to see if I'd missed something, but no, in fact, I hadn't. The author just glosses over some things that to me seem important markers (like, for example, the fact that 45 won the election), while dwelling interminably on other aspects of the goings-on behind closed doors. I'd hoped there would be some kind of recommendation, hope, something. But no, it was just a giant downer. Ultimately, I was counting the pages until I was finished, and this will not be a book I keep.