Nisei by J.J. White

January 24, 2018

FTC: I received a free copy of this book from PJ Nunn in exchange for my honest review. I received no other compensation and the opinions expressed in this review are one hundred percent true and my own.

Nisei by J.J. White was a fantastic book. I read this book in a few hours because once I started reading the book, I didn’t want to put it down until it was done. I loved this book because it gave me another look into some of the things that happened during WWII. I did know that we put Japanese people into internment camps during WWII because as I have said before I love WWII so I know so much about it, and this is the first book I have read that talks about something that not many people know happened.

Anyway, let’s get back to my thoughts and feelings about this book. Like I said once I started reading this book I didn’t want to put it down because I was so interested in what was going to happen and how things were going to end up. I can’t say enough good things about this book because it is one that I will be keeping in my personal collection of books because I am sure I will want to reread it in the future. I also loved this book because it gave me insight into something that I didn’t know much about before I read this book. If you are looking for a new book to read I would for sure recommend this one to you especially if you love books that take place during WWII.

What books that take place during WWII do you love?

About The Book

After the attack on Pearl Harbor, the United States Government encouraged all eligible young men to enlist immediately in the fight against its enemies overseas—all eligible young men, except Japanese-Americans. Nisei is the story of Hideo “Bobby” Takahashi, a Hawaiian-born Japanese-American who must overcome prejudice, internment, and the policies of his own government to prove his loyalty to his country. Narrated by Bobby Takahashi and read by his son, Robert, forty-six years after Bobby’s death, the story details the young Nisei’s determination to fight honorably for his country and return to the young love he was forced to leave—a girl he cannot have because she is White.

About The Author

J. J. WHITE has had articles and stories published in several anthologies and magazines including, Wordsmith, The Homestead Review, The Seven Hills Review, Bacopa Review, and The Grey Sparrow Journal. His story, “The Adventure of the Nine Hole League,” was published in the Sherlock Holmes Mystery Magazine, Volume 13, and his story, “Lucky Bastard Club,” was published in the Saturday Evening Post, 2016 anthology. His debut novel, Prodigious Savant, was published in 2014 by Black Opal Books. His next novel, Deviant Acts, came out November 14, 2015, and was also by Black Opal Books. His latest novel is, Nisei, released June 30, 2016. He was nominated for the Pushcart Prize for his short piece “Tour Bus.” He lives in Merritt Island, Florida with his understanding wife and editor, Pamela.

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The Melody of the Soul by Liz Tolsma

January 17, 2018

FTC: I received a free copy of this book from Litfuse in exchange for my honest review. I received no other compensation and the opinions expressed in this review are one hundred percent true and my own.

The Melody of the Soul by Liz Tolsma was a book that I love right from the start. I knew going into this book that I was probably going to like it and I am so glad that I did. I am a huge fan of any books that take place during WWII, so I always get worried that I will find a book that I don’t like. I love that the characters in this book aren’t Americans because it gives you a different view of the horrible things that happened during WWII. I am so glad that there are more books in this series because I fell in love with all of the characters in this book and the setting of the book. I have read few other books by this author, and I think I loved them just as much as I did this book. If you are a lover of books that take place during WWII than I would pick up a copy of this book because I am sure you will love it like I do.

What is your favorite genre of book to read?

About The Book

By 1943, Anna Zadok, a Jewish Christian living in Prague, has lost everything, including her career as a concert violinist and almost her entire family. The only person she has left is her beloved grandmother, and she’s determined to keep her safe. But protecting Grandmother won’t be easy–not with a Nazi officer billeted below them.

Anna must keep a low profile. There’s one thing she refuses to give up, though. Despite instruments being declared illegal, Anna defiantly continues to practice her violin. She has to believe that the war will end someday and her career will be waiting. Fortunately for Anna, the officer, Horst Engel, enjoys her soothing music. It distracts him from his dissatisfaction with Nazi ideology and reminds him that beauty still exists in an increasingly ugly world.

When his neighbors face deportation, Horst is moved to risk everything to hide them. Anna finds herself falling in love with the handsome officer and his brave heart. But what he reveals to her might break her trust and stop the music forever. . . .

About The Author

New York Times best-selling author Liz Tolsma is the author of Daisies are Forever, Snow on the Tulips, and the contributing author of A Log Cabin Christmas. When not busy putting words to paper, Liz enjoys reading, walking, working in her large perennial garden, kayaking, and camping. She lives in Wisconsin with her husband and children, all adopted internationally.

Connect with Liz: website, Facebook, Twitter

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My Sister’s Mother by Donna Solecka Urbikas

August 22, 2017

FTC: I received a free copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest review. I received no other compensation and the opinions expressed in this review are one hundred percent true and my own.

My Sister’s Mother by Donna Solecka Urbikas was a fantastic book. From the first page of this book right through the end, I was in love with this book and this author. I love that is about real people and what they went through during WWII and the aftermath of it all. I also liked how she went back and forth between when the author was growing up and when her mother and sister were going through during the war.

There was one sentence that stuck out to me and still sticks out me now. I am going to share that right here because I think it is something that most people could relate to. “Just as the last weeks of pregnancy make life so unbearable that a woman rushes joyfully into the pain of labor and delivery, so do the last weeks of life in old age prepare one for death.” What do you think of this statement?

I love most books that have something to do with WWII, but this book was so different from others that I have read over the years. I have to say that this book might be my favorite because I felt like I really connected with the characters. The authors writing all spoke to me and I was sad when the book was over because I missed the characters. If you love WWII books and also like real stories, then I think you will enjoy this book as much as I do.

About The Book

Donna Solecka Urbikas grew up in the Midwest during the golden years of the American century. But her Polish-born mother and half sister had endured dehumanizing conditions during World War II, as slave laborers in Siberia. War and exile created a profound bond between mother and older daughter, one that Donna would struggle to find with either of them.
In 1940, Janina Slarzynska and her five-year-old daughter Mira were taken by Soviet secret police (NKVD) from their small family farm in eastern Poland and sent to Siberia with hundreds of thousands of others. So began their odyssey of hunger, disease, cunning survival, desperate escape across a continent, and new love amidst terrible circumstances.
But in the 1950s, baby boomer Donna yearns for a “normal” American family while Janina and Mira are haunted by the past. In this unforgettable memoir, Donna recounts her family history and her own survivor’s story, finally understanding the damaged mother who had saved her sister.

Finalist, Best Traditional Non-Fiction Book, Chicago Writers Association

About The Author

Donna Solecka Urbikas was born in Coventry, England, and immigrated with her parents and sister to Chicago in 1952. After careers as a high school science teacher and environmental engineer, she is now a writer, realtor, and community volunteer. She lives in Chicago with her husband.

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More Than A Soldier by D.M. Annechino

June 16, 2017

FTC: I received a free copy of this book from Italy Book Reviews in exchange for my honest review. I received no other compensation and the opinions expressed in this review are one hundred percent true and my own.

More Than A Soldier by D.M. Annechino was a fantastic book. Anyone who has followed my reviews for just about any length of time knows that I love any book that has to do with WWII and this book was no different. This book is based on a true story, and I loved it because I love knowing that a real person had lived through the things that happened in this book. I have read other books by this author, and I really do enjoy his writing. I can’t say enough good things about this book because I am such a love of books like this one. I loved that as I was reading this book, I felt like I was there with Angelo and I felt like I was there with him. I was able to understand how he was feeling because the author did such a great job making you feel like you are with the character. If you are looking for a new WWII book to read this summer, I think that you will love this book just as much as I do.

About The Book

Feeling a patriotic duty to defend his country after Japan bombed Pearl Harbor, seventeen-year-old, Angelo J. DiMarco, enlists in the U.S. Army. Severely short of frontline fighters, the Army rushes Angelo through Ranger training and sends him to Italy as part of the 1st Ranger Battalion. Their objective: stop the German invasion.

Fighting on the front lines in Italy, the German’s teach Angelo a sobering lesson on life when they capture him during the bloody Battle of Cisterna. Against insurmountable odds, Angelo miraculously escapes in a way that stretches the imagination. He survives behind enemy lines for over five months, hiding from the Germans and trying to outmaneuver them. He begs for food, sleeps in barns and suffers from many ailments, including dehydration, malnutrition, malaria, and exposure to the elements.

More Than a Soldier is Angelo DiMarco’s powerful story of survival, resilience, and courage.

About The Author

Daniel M. Annechino, a former book editor, wrote his first book, How to Buy the Most Car for the Least Money, while working as a General Manager in the automobile business. But his passion had always been fiction, particularly thrillers. He spent two years researching serial killers before finally penning his gripping and memorable debut novel They Never Die Quietly. He has written and published five novels—all thrillers. But his latest work, More Than a Soldier, is a Historical Biography set in Italy during WWII.

A native of New York, Annechino now lives in San Diego with his wife, Jennifer. He loves to cook, enjoys a glass of vintage wine, and spends lots of leisure time on the warm beaches of Southern California.

Connect with the Author: Website ~ Twitter ~ Facebook

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The German Girl by Armando Lucas Correa

April 20, 2017

FTC: I received a free copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review. I received no other compensation and the opinions expressed in this review are one hundred percent true and my own.

The German Girl by Armando Lucas Correa was a great book. I am a huge fan of books like this because WWII is so interesting to me and this book was one of the better ones that I have read lately. I love that this book goes between Hannah’s time and also modern times as you follow along with Anna. I also love that this book talked about things I didn’t know had happened during WWII. I have read tons of books about WWII, and I loved that I was able to learn about some of the other things that people dealt with during WWII. I was sad when this book came to an end because I loved all of the characters in this book. This book is also the first book that I have read by this author, and after this book, I have added him to my list of authors that I want to read more books by in the future. If you love WWII books and are looking something different I would recommend this book to you.

About The Book

A stunningly ambitious and beautiful debut novel, perfect for fans of Sarah’s Key and All the Light We Cannot See, the story of a twelve-year-old girl’s harrowing experience fleeing Nazi-occupied Germany with her family and best friend, only to discover that the overseas asylum they had been promised is an illusion.

In 1939 before everything changed, Hannah Rosenthal lived a charmed life. Her family moved in Berlin’s highest social circles, admired by friends and neighbors. Eleven-year-old Hannah was often taken by her mother for an afternoon treat at the tea room of the beautiful Adlon Hotel, both dressed in their finest clothes. She spent her afternoons at the park with her best friend Leo Martin. But, in an instant, that sunlit world vanished. Now the streets of Berlin are draped with red, white, and black flags; their fine possessions are hauled away, and they are no longer welcome in the places that once felt like home. The two friends make a pact: come what may, they promise to have a future together.

As Hannah and Leo’s families desperately begin to search for a means of escape, a glimmer of hope appears when they discover the Saint Louis, a transatlantic liner that can give Jews safe passage to Cuba. After a frantic search to obtain visas, the Rosenthals and the Martins depart from Hamburg on the luxurious passenger liner bound for Havana. Life aboard the ship is a welcome respite from the gloom of Berlin—filled with masquerade balls, dancing, and exquisite meals every night.

As the passengers gain renewed hope for a bright future ahead, love between Hannah and Leo blossoms. But soon reports from the outside world began to filter in, and dark news overshadows the celebratory atmosphere on the ship; the governments of Cuba, the United States, and Canada are denying the passengers of the St. Louis admittance to their countries, forcing them to return to Europe as it descends into the Second World War. The ship that had seemed their salvation seems likely to become their death sentence.

After four days anchored at bay, only a handful of passengers are allowed to disembark onto Cuban soil, and Hannah and Leo must face the grim reality that they could be torn apart. Their future is unknown, and their only choice will have an impact in generations to come.

Decades later in New York City on her eleventh birthday, Anna Rosen receives a mysterious envelope from Hannah, a great-aunt she has never met but who raised her deceased father. In an attempt to piece together her father’s mysterious past, Anna and her mother travel to Havana to meet Hannah, who is turning eighty-seven years old. Hannah reveals old family ties, recounts her journey aboard the Saint Louis and, for the first time, reveals what happened to her father and Leo. Bringing together the pain of the past with the mysteries of the present, Hannah gives young Anna a sense of their shared histories, forever intertwining their lives, honoring those they loved and cruelly lost.

About The Author

ith 20 years of experience in Hispanic media, award-winning journalist and author Armando Lucas Correa is the Editor in Chief of PEOPLE EN ESPAÑOL, the top selling Hispanic magazine in the U.S. with more than 7 million readers every month. In his role, he oversees the editorial content of the magazine, PeopleEnEspanol.com and its digital editions for tablets and mobile.

He also oversees the brand’s social media strategy and events like 50 Most Beautiful (New York), the 25 Most Powerful Women (Miami), as well as Festival
People en Español (New York).

In Cuba, he entered the world of print journalism in 1988 when he was appointed the editor of Tablas, a national theater and dance magazine based out of Havana, Cuba.

Correa is the recipient of various outstanding achievement awards from the National Association of Hispanic Publications and the Society of Professional Journalism. He is the magazine’s primary spokesperson and regularly appears on national Spanish-language television programs discussing celebrity news and scoops.

His book En busca de Emma (In Search of Emma: Two Fathers, One Daughter and the Dream of a Family) was published by Rayo, Harper Collins in 2007 and for Aguilar, Santillana (Mexico) in 2009. His first novel The German Girl will be published in October in Enlgish and Spanish by Atria Books, a division of Simon and Schuster.

He currently resides in Manhattan with his partner and their three children.

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Like A River From Its Course by Kelli Stuart

July 7, 2016

FTC: I received a free copy of this book from Litfuse in exchange for my honest review. I received no other compensation and the opinions expressed in this review are one hundred percent true and my own.

Like A River From Its Course by Kelli Stuart was heartbreaking and yet beautiful all at the same time. I love books like this one because they teach you things, and you get a glimpse into what people went through and experienced during World War II. This book broke my heart and yet I didn’t want to stop reading it because I had to know what happened to everyone. I did have to read this book in smaller amounts because it got overwhelming because of everything that was going on. I love this period that I had a hard time imagining how hard and scary things must have been for them. This is the first book I have read by this author and I liked it. I love books about World War II and most of the times all the books blend but this, book will always stick out because it showed more of a reality of what World War II was like. If you love historical fiction books than I know you will love this book just as much as I do.

About The Book

Like a River from Its Course (Kregel, June 2016)

An epic novel exposing the ugliness of war and the beauty of hope.

The city of Kiev was bombed in Hitler’s blitzkrieg across the Soviet Union, but the constant siege was only the beginning for her citizens. In this sweeping historical saga, Kelli Stuart takes the reader on a captivating journey into the little-known history of Ukraine’s tragedies through the eyes of four compelling characters who experience the same story from different perspectives.

Maria Ivanovna is only fourteen when the bombing begins and not much older when she is forced into work at a German labor camp. She must fight to survive and to make her way back to her beloved Ukraine.

Ivan Kyrilovich is falsely mistaken for a Jew and lined up with 34,000 other men, women, and children who are to be shot at the edge of Babi Yar, the “killing ditch.” He survives, but not without devastating consequences.

Luda is sixteen when German soldiers rape her. Now pregnant with the child of the enemy, she is abandoned by her father, alone, and in pain. She must learn to trust family and friends again and find her own strength in order to discover the redemption that awaits.

Frederick Hermann is sure in his knowledge that the Führer’s plans for domination
are right and just. He is driven to succeed by a desire to please a demanding father and by his own blind faith in the ideals of Nazism.

Based on true stories gathered from fifteen years of research and interviews with Ukrainian World War II survivors, Like a River from Its Course is a story of love, war, heartache, forgiveness, and redemption.

About The Author

Kelli Stuart is the coauthor of Dare 2B Wise and has written for several brands including Disney, American Girl, and Short Fiction Break. She has served as editor-in-chief for the St. Louis Bloggers Guild and as a board member for the St. Louis Women in Media. In addition to her writing, Kelli has spent twenty years studying Ukranian culture. Kelli lives in Florida.

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