Shrines of Gaiety--#52 finished

Based in 1920s London a family with the mother as the strong leader runs a series of late night clubs.  London after the war is a place that people want to move to and stay out late and drink and dance.  A corrupt cop, a back from nowhere criminal, some young girls and a clean up stuff cop get involved with the daughters and sons of this family.  I had read a book by author years and years ago about a modern detective and remembering enjoying it and have a few of her other books as well.  This one took a long time to get going and were a bunch of characters introduced that took a while for them to come back around.  Following along and slow story just made this one a hard one for me to enjoy.  Just an okay read for me.

There are 17 WL for this book on PBS so will probably post & send off at some point. 

A Free Man--#51 finished

The rest of this title: A True Story of Life & Death in Delhi.  I haven't read much of India and thought this would be a kind of quick read.  It was but not really a fan of it though.  A journalist in Dehli goes to a bazaar area where day workers basically live on the street and he follows one main man and some people around him.  The man Mohammed Ashraf has an interesting life but certainly did not explain it in any rational or reasonable way.  An interesting character that basically drew the journalist back for sounds like years to hear the stories and follow his life.  The journalist even lets Ashraf know that a book is being written and tries to help Ashraf better his life.  In the end just doesn't really happen, Ashraf sort of disappears and many of the friends around him passed away.  It is a life on the street where alcoholism runs their lives as much as anything.  Some cover reviews mention humor but really was hard for me to see.  Oh well, will have to try other books on India.

There are 2 WL for this book on PBS so I will post at some point & send away.

Bending the Arc--#50 finished

The rest of the title: My Journey from Prison to Politics.  The author Keeda Haynes has a really good story of her life where she got caught up with a guy she should not have trusted and into a justice system that did not believe her which she fought against.  Fighting earned her a prison sentence but she was able to come out and get into law school and then pass and get admitted to the bar in Kentucky.  After a few years as a public defender she ran for a Congressional seat, she didn't win but pushed some issues.  I can see why some in justice didn't believe her, the boyfriend was paying her to have packages delivered to her work and home addresses which then someone else would pick up.  She even brought a sister and friend into this.  Well the packages were supposed to be phones & beepers but were really drugs--marijuana.  So can see why she wasn't more aware of what was happening but to step back and see she was a 19 year old girl with a boyfriend telling her all okay and giving a kind of reasonable explanation, can see where she just didn't ask the questions.  Is troubling that the judge sentenced her harshly for this.  Overall a good read about what she had gone though and how she was able to fight for herself.

There are no copies in system at PBS but so far not really ready to post either since was a lot of information in here. 

The Churchill Complex--#49 finished

The rest of the title: The Curse of Being Special, from Winston and FDR to Trump and Brexit.  Starts off on FDR and Churchill's relationship during WWII and continues with the relationships between the US & English leaders from then to now.  A really good and interesting read.  Learned a lot about the different circumstances and decisions made often with this relationship in mind.  England has basically always been our major supporter while we--the US--exercised our superpower over the globe.  Good read with a lot of information.

There are 3 WL for this book on PBS so will probably post and mail off at some point. 

Population: 485--#48 finished

The author Michael Perry has moved back to his hometown, a small town in WI back in the 1990s after moving away for several years.  He gets a house in town and joins the volunteer EMS/Fire Dept.  He is trained as a nurse but has become a writer over time.  This book has stories about the calls he goes on and his thoughts on just a lot of things.  A lot about the rough calls where people have or are in process of dying, really makes you think about this from the first responder perspective.  Really enjoyed the read even with some very sad stories.

I have posted it on PBS, it is the only copy in system so might get requested at some point.

Wild Game--#47 finished

The rest of the title:  My Mother, Her Lover, and Me.  The author at 14 was pulled into finding out & helping her mother cheat on her step dad.  If that wasn't bad enough, the lover was the step dad's best friend.  The lover and his wife were really great friends of her mother and step dad.  A screwed up situation.  Step dad had a stroke shortly after married to mother and the lover's wife was poor health and getting a little worse over time as well, so the two healthy ones sort of fell in love but neither wanted to end their marriage so a long term cheating went on.  To make it even more screwed up, the author after college moves to San Diego and marries the other couple's son.  Son is adopted because of the wife's health issues but certainly sees her as his mom.  Author keeps all this a secret still until right before wedding the best friend opens up to his wife and it all falls apart.  The step dad had already passed by this time.  Well of course the guy stays with his wife and the mom is shattered and lonely.  Wife dies about 2 years after this and then friend and author's mom do marry very soon afterwards.  Well author and husband grow apart, move apart and divorce but still friends and see each other on holidays since parents are married.  Author does find love and marries and has a couple kids.  Lots in here about her struggles with her mom, kinda reads like a very long session with a therapist.  

There are 22 WL for this book on PBS so will post and mail away at some point.

Delphine Jones Takes a Chance--#46 finished

I wanted a lighter kind of read and this book was sitting near the top of a pile so I picked it up.  It was a nice light read, maybe a little more chic-lit than I thought but a nice read.  Single mom--had her daughter at 16 and basically had to quit school in England at that point--at least no college.  Delphine is obviously very smart and talented but because raising her daughter and having a father that checked out when her mom died, Delphine had to take care of the household.  I get that but when she starts turning things around, she can sing, play piano, exceptionally well read and can write--just don't see why she was struggling at a terrible coffee shop which she gets fired from.  Oh well, she turns her life around and maybe finds a little love as well.  Some answers on her past also come through.  Nice read overall.

There is 1 WL for this book on PBS so I went ahead and posted it, will see if gets accepted or not in next couple of days.