Davida Chazan
74 Flips | 1 Magazine | 9 Likes | @DavidaChazan | I'm known as The Chocolate Lady and aside from being a chocolate gourmet, I love reading and writing book reviews.
Diving in together
<i>The Lido</i> by Libby Page<p>On Goodreads, the blurb for this novel says “<i>Kate is a twenty-six-year-old riddled with anxiety and panic attacks who works for</i> …
Continuing to be
<i>I am, I am, I am: Seventeen Brushes with Death</i> by Maggie O’Farrell<p>Goodreads calls this book a “<i>memoire with a difference - the unputdownable story of</i> …
Bottling their History
<i>The Lost Vintage</i> by Ann Mah<p>Kate knows that if she’s ever going to pass the Masters of Wine test, she’ll have to learn much more about French wines, …
Theatrical Turbulence
<i>Hag-Seed</i> by Margaret Atwood.<p>It was Felix’s dream to mount his own version of Shakespeare’s play “The Tempest” at the (Canadian) Makeshiweg Theater …
Finding her Time
<i>Clock Dance</i> by Anne Tyler<p>Willa’s life hasn’t been extraordinary, but it also hasn’t been uneventful either. When she was 11, her mother’s sudden, but …
An Eve or a Lilith?
Ecstasy by Mary Sharratt<p>Part of the blurb for this book on Goodreads says “<i>Coming of age in the midst of a creative and cultural whirlwind, young,</i> …
Between Two Sisters
<i>A Fist Around the Heart</i> by Heather Chisvin<p>Goodreads says that “<i>The story of Anna Grieve and her fragile older sister, Esther, begins in Russia in the</i> …
Q&A with Eric Houston, author of The Lost Artist: Love Passion War (Part 1)
I recently heard about Eric Houston's memoir "The Lost Artist: Love Passion War (Part 1)" and was immediately intrigued. While I couldn't fit this …
Opening Lines
<i>The Lost for Words Bookshop</i> by Stephanie Butland<p>Loveday Cardew hasn’t had an easy time of it. When she was only 10 her life fell apart, but 15 years …
Leaping Late in Life
<i>The Little Breton Bistro</i> by Nina George<p>When 60-year-old Marianne Messmann is visiting Paris on vacation with her husband, she decides to commit …
Storms and Longings
<i>Us Against You</i> by Fredrik Backman<p>Goodreads summarizes Backman’s sequel to his 2017 novel <i>Beartown</i>, saying <i>“After everything that the citizens of</i> …
Tasty Reading
<i>Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Café</i> by Fannie Flagg<p>For those of you who aren't familiar with either the movie or the book, this is the …
The Lost and the Findings
<i>My Name is Venus Black</i> by Heather Lloyd<p>From Goodreads: <i>“Venus Black is a straitlaced, straight-A student obsessed with the phenomena of</i> …
Stories with Spurs
<i>Close Range: Wyoming Stories</i> by Annie Proulx<p>In this collection of 11 stories, including “Brokeback Mountain,” Proulx looks at the many sides of the …
Consequences of Peace
<i>Warlight</i> by Michael Ondaatje<p>From Goodreads: “<i>It is 1945, and London is still reeling from the Blitz and years of war. 14-year-old Nathaniel and his</i> …
These Books May Fare Well
<i>Murder in Belgravia</i> by Lynn Brittany<p>This novel is the first in an upcoming series of “Mayfair 100” murder mysteries, which takes place amid the Great …
The Difficulties of Devotions
<i>Sadness is a White Bird</i> by Moriel Rothman-Zecher<p>According to Goodreads, Jonathan (or Yonatan) is “preparing to serve in the Israeli army while also …
A Majestic Clash
<i>I was Anastasia</i> by Ariel Lawhon<p>For over five decades there were unending, international court battles, rumors and intrigue surrounding a woman called …
My 300th Post - Review of a Modern Classic
<i>Catch-22</i> by Joseph Heller<p>Joseph Heller published this best-selling novel in 1961, and it is the only book I’ve ever read more than once. It is also …
Owning Your Team Colors
<i>Green: A Novel</i> by Sam Graham-Felsen<p>Everyone knows that middle school is the worst. Not only are these kids thrown into a new environment with new …
Cinderella or Pygmalion?
<i>Carnegie’s Maid</i> by Marie Benedict<p>Clara Kelly was not who everyone thought she was, and this accident of mistaken identity lands her the position of …
Border Life
<i>All the Rivers</i> by Dorit Rabinyan<p>Liat is spending time in the New York apartment of friends, while she studies for her translation degree. Hilmi is …
A Calculating Woman
<i>Enchantress of Numbers</i> by Jennifer Chiaverini<p>This is the fictionalized story of Augusta Ada King-Noel, Countess of Lovelace. In real life, not only …
My Top Five (or more) Books of 2017
Those of my readers who have been following this blog for a while, know that I had to stuff seven novels into my favorites of 2016 list, and eight …
Mysterious Models
<i>The Miniaturist</i> by Jessie Burton<p><i>“On an autumn day in 1686, eighteen-year-old Nella Oortman arrives at a grand house in Amsterdam to begin her new</i> …
Unraveling the Complexes
<i>The Alice Network</i> by Kate Quinn<p>During the first World War, the British government employed many people as spies in German-occupied Europe, and many …