Svetlana's Reads and Views

    Name of Book: Author: ISBN: Publisher: Type of book: 2010s? Thanksgiving, theater, relationships, power, #MeToo, New York, wandering, quirky characters, drugs  Year it was published: Summary: Characters: Main characters would definitely be Mona and Milton. Mona is an extremely talented theater actress who is dealing with a lot in her life such as getting the role of Cleopatra, her family and her decisions throughout the years, especially as it relates to her beloved mentor Milton Katz. Mona is one of the characters that is either liked or hated and is very prickly towards other characters, or else doesn't see the nuances. She also does drugs casually and feels incapable of facing up to stressful situations. Milton is Monas mentor and a theater director who is capable of working magic and pulling it out using old fashioned ways that will involve a lot of #MeToo. It feels as if there really wasn't a redemption arc built into his story, while I feel as if there should ha...

 Name of Book: Author: ISBN: Publisher: Part of a Series: Type of book: 2014, India, Indian male/American female relationship, identity, purpose, movies, media, celebrations, Indian life, caste, unspoken things, brutality, stereotypes, philosophy, friendships, chances  Year it was published: Summary: Characters: There are a lot of characters, but main ones I will focus on are Naren, Rohit and Amanda. I would say that Amanda and Rohit literally stole the novel. Naren is a smart man who often questioned his role and race while living in USA.  Seriously, there is very little of him in the book. Rohit is Narens younger brother who wants to discover the identity and himself, even at the cost of his friendships. He is best described as impulsive, talented, creative, and at times trying his best, especially towards Amanda. Amanda is slightly older than Rohit and I hate saying this, but she is a very typical and naive American woman, often applying American thoughts and ideas to ...

 Name of Book: Author: ISBN: Publisher: Part of a Series: Type of book: Germany, 1917-1918, trench warfare, meaning of war, reality of war, death, contrast, friendship, military, soldier life  Year it was published: Summary: Characters: While there are plenty of characters, two of the ones that really struck me are Paul and Kat show were in the same unit. Paul used to have passion for literature and had hoped to become a teacher before getting caught up in the Great War. Still he philosophies and often asks incredibly difficult questions that cannot be easily answered. Kat is Paul's mentor who is resourceful and has a soft spot for Paul. Quite often it's because of Kat that Paul and his unit are capable of surviving the downs of war.  Theme: What is the point of war?  Plot: The story is told in first person narrative from Paul's point of view, from the time they got an unexpected bounty of food up until a calm day at the end of the novel. The story focuses a great de...

  Title of the book: Author: Publisher: Publishing Date: ISBN: Summary: Author Info: Personal Opinion: Few years ago my son became friends with a boy whose family is from Iran,and I grew fascinated with Persian culture and when I learned about Shahnameh, I quickly jumped to read and review this epic. I think what I thought was that the story would make a brief mention of my ancestors who have lost their land to Persians thousands of years ago, and I also hoped to see historical figures that frightened the Ptolemaic rulers of Egypt. While I was disappointed neither of my hopes were realized, I was not disappointed to be introduced to the stories of valiant kings, both fictional and historical who have left such amazing tales in their wake, long after the beauty of Persian culture has succumbed to Islam. The story reads more as a prose than poetry, although one does get poetry too.  The story is also divided into two parts: the longest focusing on ancient mythology, and shortest...

 Name of Book: Author: ISBN: Publisher: Part of a Series: Kingdom of Oak and Steel Type of book: Fantasy, secrets, detective, hierarchy, Intelligence, guesswork, royalty, the mysterious disease, magic, fantasy religion  Year it was published: Summary: Characters: Main characters are Sargent Holt Hawley, often called Hawley; Enelda Drake and Lady Iveta Snowsill. Hawley is an orphan who is principled and often does right things that could lead him to trouble. He is also disgraced and isn't of the Blood, which implies he is on the lower end of hierarchy. He is determined and does the best he can with what he has. Enelda Drake is the Last Vigilant and is often ten steps ahead of Hawley. She is intelligent, a willing recluse yet something of the past is left in her. She and Hawley don't get along, especially in terms of her excusing the religion from bad qualities. Iveta is a ward and companion to Kings true daughter. She is generous, questioning and is capable of putting others ah...

   Title of the book: Author: Publisher: Publishing Date: ISBN: Summary: Author Info: Personal Opinion: There was plenty to love and enjoy about THESE TRUTHS: the philosophical arrays into the meaning of citizenry and personhood, the writing style that is designed for a layperson, and the ending point of 2016 as well as focus on political parties. While I enjoyed these parts a lot, I found myself being unsatisfied with certain elements such as the constant focus on slavery, treating other races as mere tokens instead of people with their own stories, the lack of glossary or mention of presidential list which made it harder to identify the time the events took place. The author also glazed over some events while on others she dug very deeply, and for readers who are seeking a generalized or beginner history, then this will be a poor fit. I understand that this is the authors right to include and exclude as she feels, and she mentions it as well, but I feel in certain parts a st...

  Name of Book: Red Water  Author: Jurica Pavicic (trans Matt Robinson)  ISBN:  9781916725157 Publisher: Bitter Lemon Press Type of book: Croatia, Dalmatian Coast, 1989-2017, mystery, disappearance, secret, small life, the war, breaking communism, siblings, determination, affects of disappearance  Year it was published: 2017 (2025) Summary: A woman disappears after a beach party, and the search for her reveals Croatia's complex history well beyond the fall of Communism. Silva is beautiful and cheeky, she has many admirers; but the police investigation reveals a more complex young woman than her family knew—a  high school student who dabbles in drugs and deals in heroin. But Silva’s brother loves her and stubbornly continues the search for her amid the upheavals of Croatian society. The following years will see the fall of communism and five long years of war. It will be almost 30 years till Silva’s fate is revealed.  "This finely engineered, ...

 Name of Book: Author: ISBN: Publisher: Type of book: 2000s-2060s, travel, siblings, Buenos Aires, music, art, Paris, speed of light, Europe, Asia, South America, talent, destruction, survival  Year it was published: Summary: Characters: The main characters characters would be Nina and Jeremias Goldstein. Both are best described as creative and adrenaline type junkies, Nina when it comes to romance, and Jeremias towards music. Nina often loves to show the figurative middle finger to the world. Jeremias is lost to the world and seems to be more of follower than leader. There are a few secondary characters like the "editor" Angelica Oshiro as well as Matthias who has decided to travel to gaza and the siblings extremely uncaring and absentminded mother.   Theme: Be ready for the future  Plot: The story is in first person narrative from Ninas and Jeremias points of view, although most of the story is of Nina. The tale begins in Buenos Aires in early 2000s as we get ...