I Got a Monster by Baynard Woods

 

I Got a Monster: The Rise and Fall of America's Most Corrupt Police Squad by Baynard Woods
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book was fascinating to me. I live in suburban Baltimore and remember hearing about the Gun Trace Task Force and subsequent shake up in the Baltimore Police Department, but I didn't follow it closely. In all honesty, it seemed as though the BPD was always in the midst of a shake up of some sorts.

Reading the details of the corruption among the GTTF and throughout the police department was frightening. It truly seemed as though the "inmates were running the asylum." I had no idea how rampant the corruption was or how high it went. It's a wonder the city of Baltimore didn't explode sooner or more violently.  It certainly makes one wonder who is policing the police.

The book was well researched and documented. As I read each chapter I also read the accompanying research notes - something I never do. The writing wasn't as polished as it could have been. At some points I felt I wasn't being told the story of this corrupt group, but rather was having a list of their crimes reported to me.  Michelle McNamara's beautiful prose and the way she captured the narrative thread while telling the story of the Golden State Killer has definitely raised the bar as far as true crime reporting.  Now that I know what it can be, my expectations are much higher than they would have been a few years ago.

I hope this book will catch the eye of the public and not only be of interest to those of us in Baltimore.

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The Devil's Bed by William Kent Krueger

 

The Devil's Bed by William Kent Krueger
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I love William Kent Krueger's books - especially his Cork O'Connor mysteries.  This one of his earlier books. I went back to read it because the main character, Bo Thorsen, is also a character in his latest Cork O'Connor mystery.

Bo Thorsen is a secret service agent posted in Minnesota.  He's tasked with keeping the First Lady safe while visiting her father in Minnesota.  

I didn't like this book as much as his current books. His characters weren't as formed as is usual for this author.  His story had more graphic violence and less of the Ojibwe philosophy that are hallmarks of the O'Connor stories.  I see potential in the Thorsen character and could envision an additional series here - maybe an urban counterpart to the O'Connor stories.  I could tell the author hadn't quite hit his stride as  yet. It was easy to tell he was on his way, but wasn't as polished as he is today.  

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Camp Grandkids

 

Last week just about broke me!!  My local grandkids' daycare was closed for the week, and my daughter asked if I'd fill in.  Of course, I was delighted to host "Camp Mimi" for a 1 and 3 year old.  I armed myself with new toys, games, and snacks.  

What I ran out of was energy!!  We were on the go the entire time with

the exception of the daily nap-time hour for the 1 year old.  This "Camp Mimi" falling in the midst of an upsurge of Covid cases in my state, I didn't feel confident taking the grandkids on outings.  We played outside and inside, we played with Playdoh and made cookies, we build with Zoobs and made Brio train routes, we played with water and chalk.

I was happy to see them arrive each morning, but I was also happy to see them head home each evening.  Time to rest for a while and then begin training for the next daycare closure.

Review: The Vanishing Half

The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Imagine identical twin sisters living very different lives.  

It all comes down to choices.  How and where you choose to live, and the consequences those choices bring.  Stella and Desiree were shadows of each other and seemed to be inseparable until one particular choice was made and that choice informed their lives forever.  

This book is also about secrets and lies, and the commitment to keeping those secrets and lies.   We see how that can damage relationships and change paths...sometimes for the better, but not always.

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The Lost Man by Jane Harper

The Lost Man by Jane Harper
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book takes place in the Australian outback, and the author paints the setting with such vivid strokes that it becomes a character in the story. It takes place on a cattle station, isolated and alone in a very harsh and deadly landscape. It's the story of a family and their secrets.

I thought the book started slow and took a while to really capture my attention. I'm not sure why. I think it took me a while to appreciate the setting and while the book is written in English, there are some cultural differences that I needed to adjust to.

I gave it a three star rating, because I'm still thinking about the ending. It heads into some murky territory that I'm not too sure what to make of.

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Untamed by Glennon Doyle

Untamed by Glennon Doyle
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Glennon Doyle talks about her family, life, and philosophies. I haven't read her other books and didn't know of her ministry prior to reading her book.

I really enjoyed reading this memoir(?) at first, but as I continued with it I found many sections to be repetitive. Often, I could predict what her response to the situation described in the chapter would be.

She is very verbose and could tend toward preachy. She would make her point and then hammer it home. It got old. Her writing came across with a certain smugness that really put me off. I got a "look at me" vibe from her writing. She mentions difficult times throughout her story, but doesn't really give us a look into them. I understand these are very private moments, but she's writing about her life and she broached the topics.

I'm still deciding what I think about her self-describing as a Christian writer. She refers to God as the Knowing, and refers to Christ as the "Jesus story". It sounded as though she was not willing to offend, and was tiptoeing around the language associated with being Christian.

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Dear Edward by Ann Napolitano

Dear Edward by Ann Napolitano
My rating: 5 of 5 stars 

This is a beautiful, beautiful book.  The seminal event of the book is a plane crash that leaves one survivor - a 12 year old boy.  We meet the passengers on that flight, and discover with Edward what it takes for him to recover.

The author tells the story in two timelines, one before the crash and one after.  As the reader gets closer to the end of the book, she also gets closer to the crash.  It's gut wrenching.

All of the people in the boy's life want the best for him, but there is no playbook written for this kind of situation.  I love the way all of the characters were drawn; Edward, his aunt and uncle, neighbor girl, and principal being my favorite.  We even got to know several of the passengers and that made the description of the crash even more gut wrenching.

Learning that the author modeled the plane crash on a real crash lent authenticity and authority to the thread of narrative that takes place on the plane.

This book is well worth the time spent reading it.       



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