Welcome to the Thirty First Edition of the Book Review Blog Carnival. I would like to thank all of those who took the time to send in these wonderful posts. And without further ado, onto the reviews.

Book Reviews

Graphic Novels

• TZT read The Arrival, by Shaun Tan and reviewed it at Children’s Books: What, When & How to Read Them, saying, “Shaun Tan’s gorgeous, magical graphic novel is the story of an immigrant coming to a new land. But, this book without words has so much more to say.”
• Stephanie read The Preacher: Gone to Texas and reviewed it at Stephanie’s Confessions of a Book-a-holic, saying, “First of all, as much as I LOVED this book, I’m going to be the first to admit, it is NOT FOR EVERYONE. It reads like a Quintin Tarantino movie.”

Poetry

• Jim Murdoch read The Wrong Miracle, by Liz Gallagher and reviewed it at  The Truth About Lies, saying, “This is book about ordinary things, getting you hair done, having breakfast, going to church and eating gobstoppers. It’s about childhood, the strain of being part of a family, the joy of sex, the question of love, the problems surrounding married life and life’s little and not-so-little losses. It is about art and music and what was on TV last night. It is about all those daily miracles and disasters that make up an ordinary life.”

Fiction

• Siddharth Garud read 3 Mistakes of My Life and reviewed it at Indian Eagle’s Diary, saying, “While the book keeps giving hints on how the characters will pan out and mostly there are no surprises, the story is engrossing and makes you wonder what is coming on the next page.”
• emancave read His Majesty’s Dragon, by Naomi Novik reviewed it at e-ManCave.com, saying ”She brought a whole new idea and style of fantasy dragon warfare and creatively wove it into the not too distant wars Napoleon raged on Europe giving the readers a sense that they knew the place and people but also an interesting twist on history if dragons were real and had made up a draconian air force during this time.”

Mystery

• Kerrie S. read Living With Your Kids is Murder, Mike Befeler and reviewed it at Mysteries in Paradise, saying, “The second in a series of geezer-lit crime fiction. Worth checking it out. Give a copy to a grandparent!”
• Kerrie S. read The Complaints, by Ian Rankin and reviewed it at Mysteries in Paradise, saying, “Crime fiction from a master story teller. Ian Rankin begins a new series.”
• Kerrie S. read The Barred Window, Andrew Taylor and reviewed it at Mysteries in Paradise, saying, “Crime fiction with a Gothic twist, by this year’s winner of the CWA Cartier Diamond Dagger.”
• Marg read A Guide to the Birds of East Africa, by Nicholas Drayson and reviewed it at Reading Adventures, “If you enjoy reading the Ladies Detective Agency novels then give this one a go. If you haven’t read them, then I would still recommend this book for those times when you just want a short, enjoyable and fun read!”
• Jaime read A Quiet Belief in Angels and reviewed it at Confessions of a Bibliophile, saying, “This was a really sneaky mystery.  Ellory drops little breadcrumbs every so often, and just when you think you know what’s going on, things take a turn. I was wrong about who the killer was, yet it all made sense in the end.”

• Scheng read Falls the Shadow, by William Lashner and reviewed it at Rich in Every Sense, saying, “Falls the Shadow is an interesting thriller, in fact, an interesting legal thriller. However, the part I love best is to see Victor Carl sitting in the dentist chair, and suffering the various procedures done to his teeth and gums.”
• Clark Bjorke read The Lost Symbol and reviewed it at I’ll Never Forget the Day I Read a Book!, saying, “Everybody that’s going to has already read The Lost Symbol, but here’s my review anyhow.”
• Stas Voras presents The Murder of King Tut, by James Patterson and Martin Dugard posted at Best Book, saying, “Most people know the basics about King Tut and the discovery and following display of the items from his tomb. His golden mask is instantly recognizable. The exact circumstances surrounding his death are more misty. What is clear is that he died at a very young age. The authors of The Murder of King Tut present a probably answer to the young pharaoh’s early death.”
• Marg read The Lost Symbol, by Dan Brown and reviewed it at Reading Adventures,saying “I haven’t mentioned anything about the plot really which makes this more of a reaction than a review, but never mind. If you have read either of the previous two Robert Langdon novels, then you have a fair idea of what to expect.”
• Nosy presents Dan Brown’s “Digital Fortress” posted at Nosy Rat’s Blog – Nosy Rat’s Blog, saying, “fun to read”

Literary

• Stephanie read I Captured the Castle, Dodie Smith and reviewed it at Stephanie’s Confessions of a Bppk-a-holic saying, “I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith. Wonderful book…Literary Fiction.”
• Serena Trowbridge read The Little Stranger reviewed it at Culture and Anarchy, saying “Sarah Waters’ latest novel, The Little Stranger, is a considerable departure from her earlier novels, and in its simplified structure (compared to The Night Watch, for example) and its fast-moving but considered prose, it feels like a more mature work.”
• Jim Murdoch read The Search, by Maureen Myant and reviewed it ay The Truth About Lies, saying, “During WW2 the Czech village of Lidice was completely destroyed per orders directly from Heinrich Himmler, the men were executed on the spot, the women sent to Nazi concentration camps and the younger children conditioned to think and act like Germans and then sent to German families looking to adopt. In the midst of this ten year-old Jan escapes and determines to find his family. But how? A fascinating insight into an aspect of the war many will know nothing about.”
• Surbhi Bhatia read A Million Little Pieces, by James Frey and reviewed it at The Viewspaper, saying “The in-your-face attitude of the author is rather amusing and novel, the liberal use of profanity is scandalous at first but looks extremely apt for the situation.”
• Stas Voras read  Last Night in Twisted River, by John Irving and reviewed it at Best Book, saying, “John Irving’s, who is author of “The World According to Garp” and “The Cider House Rules”, recent novel Last Night in Twisted River is frequently as turbulent as the river that supplies its name. It involves dog fights, drowning, shotgun blasts, lethal car accidents, severed limbs, babies in danger, and the risk of bear attacks.

Non-Fiction

Environment

• Ama Lee read Mass Destruction: The Men and Giant Mines that Wired America and Scarred the Planet posted at Feminist Review, saying, “In Mass Destruction, Timothy J. LeCain carefully examines the industrial open-pit mining industry in America, and its technological, social, and environmental impact on our modern world.”
• Your Best Library read Toxic Guilt and reviewed it at Your Best Library, saying, “In Escaping Toxic Guilt, Susanne Carrell explains how to spot and overcome toxic guilt.”

• Albie read The End of Poverty, by Jeffrey D. Sachs and reviewed it at iDevelopWorld, saying “Sachs introduces his idea of clinical economics. Very interesting. He mixes ideas of medical treatment to that of treatment for whole economies. I think his wife (a doctor) may have influenced him in this creative perspective.”
• Scott Mills did a Malcolm Gladwell Review and posted it  at Wisdom Lion, saying, “This is a general review over 3 writings by Malcolm Gladwell, The Tipping Point, Outliers, and Blink.”
• Susan Gaissert read Why I?m a Democrat and reviewed it at My Political Side, saying “Why I’m a Democrat is easy to read, and you can open it to any page if you care to read just an essay at a time.’

• DeputyHeadmistress read That Went Well, Adventures in Caring for My Sister and reviewed it at The Common Room, “Through her family’s story we also see some of the ways America’s treatment of and acceptance for the disabled community has changed over the years (and some of the ways it hasn’t), how kindly meant words can be demoralizing and burdensome, how exhausting care-giving can be, and how important family support is, and more.”
• Lovelyn read TMJ No More and reviewed at The Art of Balanced Living, saying “TMJ No More was written by nutritionist and medical researcher, Sandra Carter. Carter struggle with TMJ for 12 years and searched every possible way from conventional medical treatment to holistic therapies to get relieve.”
• Alex Roe read Never Trust a Thin Cook, by Eric Dregni and reviewed it at Blog from Italy, saying, “I liked the book a lot, but then I do live in Italy. Great book for someone thinking about coming to live or work in Italy.”

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