Reviewer: Sharon Brunner Nathan Shore’s “The New King” offers a view of an extremely dangerous and corrupt organization hidden under the guise of a benevolent religious cult. A couple of wealthy parents from the Upper Peninsula of Michigan (U.P) hired a disbarred lawyer to find their daughter. Hirsch found their…
Reviewer: Sharon Brunner Tim Mulherin’s “This Magnetic North: Candid Conversations on a Changing Northern Michigan” offers a view of a northern paradise in Michigan and how its residents have dealt with a vast array of adversity. The book took place in Grand Traverse, Leelanau Peninsula areas and Indianapolis. The author’s…
Reviewer: Sharon Brunner Jennifer Bonn’s book “What Kaitlyn Finds in the Lake” is a delightful story of a young girl who explores the lake area and finds various forms of nature. The main characters are Kaitlyn and her mother. Bonn is from Georgia. The lake in the book could be…
Reviewer: Sharon Brunner Helen Mitsios’ (Editor) “Out of the Blue: New Short Fiction from Iceland” offers a variety of the island’s personal realities concerning life, love, and family. Twenty Icelandic Authors wrote the stories, which are filled with mystery and culture. The stories took place in Iceland and other parts…
Reviewer: Sharon Brunner Deborah K. Frontiera’s Living on Sisu: The 1913 Union Copper Strike Tragedy offers a candid view of a violent strike against the mining companies in Houghton and Keweenaw counties of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula (U.P.) Twelve-year-old Emma Niemi narrated the story about her family’s participation in the strike…
Reviewer: Sharon Brunner Patricia Killelea’s Solace: Poems from the Northwoods” offers a haunting and alluring view of life in the Northwoods of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan (U.P.). The U.P. was and still is considered an immense array of ruggedness and beauty. A black bear can be just around the…
Reviewer: Sharon Brunner Randall S. Griffis’s book Where Youth and Laughter Go: The Tahquamenon Country and World War I offers a heart-wrenching rendition of World War I and some encounters of men from the Tahquamenon Country who fought in the war. Tahquamenon Country encompasses the small town of Soo Junction,…
Reviewer: Sharon Brunner Mary Jane Welch’s and Meghan Bjork’s There’s Gnome Place Like Marquette offers a delightful tour of the interesting sights associated with Marquette, Michigan, an Upper Peninsula of Michigan (U.P.) community. The main characters are a Gnome, a deer, and an owl. Gnome was curious about what it…
Reviewer: Sharon Brunner Raymond Luczak’s book Ironhood: Poems recalls neighbors, neighborhoods, shopkeepers, his mother, past events, and places associated with the town of Ironwood, Michigan, a Gogebic Iron Range community. Ironwood is a town located in the western portion of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan (U.P.). The town was founded…
Reviewer: Sharon Brunner Jim Olson’s The Reindeer and the Easter Bunny: A Children’s Story for All Ages offers a delightful tale about how a snowstorm almost ruined the Eater bunny’s delivery of Easter baskets. The main human characters lived in an old inn on a lake in the Northwoods. Their…
Reviewer: Sharon Brunner Jameson R. Sweet’s Mixed-Blood Histories: Race, Law, And Dakota Indians in the Nineteenth-Century Midwest delineated the legal and economic ramifications of the intermarriages between Euro-Americans and American Indians. The book took place in the Midwest which included the following states: Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa,…
Reviewer: Sharon Brunner Thomas L. Pelissero’s Bring One Home: A Memoir of Boyhood, Basketball, and Hometown Spirit brought to life a basketball team’s multiple losses: the town’s loss of jobs, the school’s financial strife, amongst a never-ending hometown spirit. The story took place during the 1960s in the small town of…
Review by Sharon Brunner Phyllis Carlson’s “Dairies That Delivered Milk to the Residents of Dickinson County, Michigan” introduced a number of dairies that were in operation in the aforementioned county from the late 1800s to the 1970s during a time when lumbering and mining served as prevalent sources of income….
Reviewer: Sharon Brunner Phil Bellfy’s “Merciless Savages (NOT): A how to guide to help you write and talk respectfully about American Indians” provides a culturally appropriate approach for addressing the Indigenous population. He applied humor and honest critical references in this book. The Declaration of Independence referred to the Indigenous…
Reviewer: Sharon Brunner Ellen Lord’s book Vigil: Poems captures the nuances of everyday life and its vast array of emotions. Lord portrays an early December morning and how cold suspends time. She pictured an old cabin which was currently empty and memories such as counting the time between lightening strikes…
Reviewer: Sharon Brunner Dylan Bolander’s Until We Meow Again spun a web of supernatural heroism. The story took place in Texas, New Jersey, Marquette, Michigan, an Upper Peninsula of Michigan city (U.P.), rainbow bridges, and various realms outside of the Earth’s plane. In the story there was more than one…
Reviewer: Sharon Brunner Johnny Storm’s Upper Peninsula in the Sun: Hooray for Camp Days portrayed the Upper Peninsula of Michigan (U.P.) as an enjoyable place to spend time outside, sight seeing and having fun with family. The main characters were the author’s family who spent time at the Keweenaw Peninsula and…
Reviewer: Sharon Brunner Terri Martin’s Straw Horse was filled with intrigue, suspense and humor coupled with a blooming romance. The story took place in the Northwoods at a fictional town called Peshekee located in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan (U.P.). The main characters in the book were Kat, Nikko, Sheriff…
