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Wednesday, June 17, 2020

The Guardians by John Grisham

<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/51327607-the-guardians" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img border="0" alt="The Guardians" src="https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1562267135l/51327607._SX98_SY160_.jpg" /></a><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/51327607-the-guardians">The Guardians</a> by <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/721.John_Grisham">John Grisham</a><br/>
My rating: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2989111275">5 of 5 stars</a><br /><br />
Grisham is back.<br />In his best work since A Time to Kill. John Grisham introduces us to Cullen Post, Episcopal minister and attorney for Guardian Ministries, and Quincy Miller who is 22 years into a life sentence. The masterful narration by Michael Beck [sounding a lot like Tom Hanks' Forest Gump] moves us through a story of legal twists and turns, breathless waiting on the judicial system and mind-bending structural racism.<br /><br />In an author's note at the end of the book, Mr. Grisham cites two sources of inspiration: Centurian Ministries (Google it and send a check) and Texas inmate Joe Bryan whose case was chronicled in a two-part series by Pamela Colloff of ProPublica in the New York Times Magazine, May 23 and 31, 2018. "...finest example of investigative reporting...." -John Grisham
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Monday, June 1, 2020

Alone with the Stars by David R. Gillham, narrated by Hillary Huber and Emily Bauer


Alone with the Stars audiobook cover art

"In Tampa, Florida, 15-year-old Lizzie Friedlander spends her afternoons glued to her father’s radio, tapping into the enormity of a world she longs to travel. Lizzie can hardly believe her ears when she picks up a radio signal from a faraway source that sets her heart racing: 'Amelia Earhart calling SOS!' " -Audible

Exciting and endearing, this original by Audible seemed a good choice for middle school until the language deteriorated.

I loved the story, the portrayal of attitudes toward women, and the message in support of women. The encounter at the Coast Guard station might have been been just as effective without the profanity.  I am not prudish, but that scene ruined the story for me.