Anne Hart

Do you name your cars/bikes/modes of transportation?  I named mine the White Knight.  In The Valley and the Flood, the main character Rose names her car Stanley.  I picked this book up purely because of the cover.  I didn’t realize it was YA fantasy.   Rose gets stranded in the desert thanks to Stanley breaking down.  She walks to a little town Lotus Valley.  It’s a year since Rose’s best friend Gaby died and all of a sudden Rose starts rehearing the last voicemail her friend left her.  The part of the story which takes place in Lotus Valley is weird thanks to several “prophets”.  One of them named Cassie has predicted Rose is going to cause their Valley to flood.  Rose starts seeing things within the landscape. Thanks to counseling, Rose has some methods to deal with her fears and the things she sees.  The book is weird and some things are so beautifully written that you appreciate the weirdness.  I enjoyed this odd lit...

Did you stop and smell the roses today?  According to Gigi/Celeste, you should “always remember to stop and smell the roses”, p. 45.  Hello, Goodbye is a multi-generational story about loss, first love, family, and friendship.  15-year-old Hailey befriends her grandmother, Gigi in the summer she will never forget.  This read is for teens and adults alike who appreciate the lessons adults can learn from teens and the wisdom adults can impart to teens. Gigi and Hailey try to solve their family secrets that have caused trauma for three generations.  The wit and witticisms of Gigi are imparted in a way Hailey can appreciate.  This isn’t the type of young adult book written by an adult through rose-tinted glasses to tell teens to appreciate their family.  This is an emotional story written in retrospect by an adult who remembers exactly what it’s like to be a teenager.  Lovers of Twilight by Stephenie Meyer and The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzg...

I loved Maggie O’Farrell’s book Hamnet so I was eager to read her newest THE MARRIAGE PORTRAIT.  I was ready to be swept away to 1550s Renaissance Italy with Maggie’s melodic writing.  When I first started the book I was frustrated because we learn right away the main character, Lucrezia dies within a year of when the story starts.  But I couldn’t help wanting to know what happened that year.  At the age of 13 she is betrothed to the Duke of Ferrara, but her nursemaid Sophia delays the marriage until she is 15 years old.  Within a year of her marriage, she dies under suspicious circumstances.  She loves to paint and has been able to pursue oil painting since she is the daughter of a duke.  Hearing the interior thoughts and fears of Lucrezia trying to figure out how to avoid being killed by her husband was so disturbing.  Maggie’s lyrical writing made it even more creepy because of the juxtaposition of sweet words with impending doom.  ...

How do you make sure someone knows even if you get angry you’ll always still love them?  The audiobook of Whisper Man which is narrated by British actor Christopher Eccleston does this perfectly.  I loved the sweet enduring relationship between the father and son in The Whisper Man by Alex North.  The Dad, Tom always told his son, Jake, even if he was angry he still loved him.  As sweet as the father/son duo were, the story still freaked me out.  There’s a serial killer on the loose who kidnaps young boys and then later they wind up dead.  Pete is a detective working on current cases which they are worried relate back to a serial killer Pete captured 20-so years ago.  Pete feels personally responsible to figure out the connection between the cases which includes the “Whisper Man” who sneaks outside kids’ windows taunting them.  This story will freak you out as a parent or teacher.  The twist in the story which involved Tom’s wife/Jake’...

 Welcome, I'm Anne Hart.  I read books.  I collect books.  I receive books in the mail everyday!  Literally! I post about books almost every day on Instagram , Facebook , TikTok , Amazon , and other social media outlets as @annegoodreads .  This blog is to organize, categorize, and share combined information on books.  I am asked for Book Recommendations constantly.  So I will provide those recommendations here.  Here are Some Posts you will see: Best Historical Fiction Books Set in America Best WWII Historical Fiction Books Best Around the World Historical Fiction Books by Time Periods Best Historical Fiction Books by Country Best Memoirs Best Sex Scenes in Literary History Best Horror Books Best Sci-Fi Books So basically lists of the best books I've read in a certain category and why.  Then there will be some more specific books.  And some that are just plain fun. Best Grandmas in Literary History Worst Grandmas in Literary Histor...