Category: Book Reviews

• Wine & Words: The Unexpected

  Great Expectations by Charles Dickens Great Expectations was not what I expected. No, I did not read Dickens in high school and yes, this was my first time reading Dickens. The inclination to read Dickens was due to an entirely different author. This author is from the modern era, but is an acquired taste. A…

  sbarillari

  July 15, 2024

  Book Reviews, Recommendations, Wine & Words

  CharlesDickens, Dönnhoff, Dickens, Germany, GreatExpectations, MissHaversham, MrPip, NaheRegion, Riesling, VictorianEngland

• Classic Mysteries: Brother Cadfael

  Who is Brother Cadfael? A Benedictine monk like no other. Set in the mid 12th century, the Brother Cadfael Chronicles by Ellis Peters are a set of twenty incredibly satisfying stories detailing the mystery-solving skills of one former crusader turned Medieval monk. The best description of Cadfael is in the opening of the first book,…

  Mary

  July 1, 2024

  Book Reviews, Recommendations

  Book Reviews, Brother Cadfael, Medieval Stories, Mysteries

• Gothic Mysteries for the Summer

  When it’s too hot outside to even go to the beach, run yourself a cool bath or take a cold shower and keep the chill on with a gothic mystery. Nothing keeps you from overheating like reading about cold tombs and drafty cathedrals. The following are some of my favorite gothic chillers. The Curse of…

  Amy S.

  June 24, 2024

  Book Reviews

  ACuriousBeginning, BarbaraMichaels, CharlotteBronte, DaphneDuMaurier, DeannaRaybourn, ElizabethPeters, GothicMystery, JaneEyre, JessArmstrong, RachelHawkins, Rebecca, SecretsOfRussellLibrary, TheCurseOfPenrythHall, TheDeedsOfTheDisturber, TheVilla, ThornfieldHall, VeronicaSpeedwell

• Celebrating Juneteenth

  Russell Library could not be more excited to take part in Middletown’s 4th Annual Liberation Day Festival on June 19th. After the parade, swing by our table at Harbor Park to pick up one of the giveaway titles listed below. They are available to Middletown residents while supplies last. Many thanks to the Middletown Ujima…

  brandiedoyle

  June 17, 2024

  Book Reviews, Events, Giveaways, Middletown, CT, Recommendations, Trending

  AdventuresOfHuckleberryFinn, AfricanTown, AliceFayeDuncan, ALittleDevilInAmerica, AllianLAgostini, AmandaGorman, AmyraLeon, AnnetteGordonReed, ArethaFranklin, ArlishaNorwood, Beyonce, BlackLiturgies, BrownGirlDreaming, CharlesJohnson, CharlesWater, ColeArthurRiley, ColsonWhitehead, DanteStewart, FourHundredSouls, FreedomWeSing, HanifAbdurraqib, HighOnTheHog, IbramXKendi, IreneLatham, JacquelineWoodson, JamesANovel, JamesBaldwin, JamesBrown, JessicaBHarris, Juneteenth, JuneteenthANovel, KeishaNBlain, KeturahABobo, LiberationDay, MiddletownCT, MollyMendoza, OnJuneteenth, OpalLee, PercivalEverett, PulitzerPrize, RalphEllison, SawyerCloud, ShoutinInTheFire, SoulTrain, TaNehisiCoates, TheFireNextTime, TheFreshPrinceOfBelAir, TheHillWeClimb, TheHistoryOfJuneteenth, TheJuneteenthStory, TheUndergroundRailroad, TheWaterDancer, UjimaAlliance, WhitneyHouton

• Wine & Words: Wellness in an American Vintage

  Wellness by Nathan Hill Finding the right book has been difficult. Recently, every book that crosses my path has been monotonous. Nothing has brought me joy. Aren’t books suppose to spark joy? I think so. If I do not like a book, I will not read it to its entirety; however, I used to. As…

  sbarillari

  June 3, 2024

  Book Reviews, Wine & Words

  ElizabethAndJack, MiddleAge, NathanHill, Oregon, TheNix, VinDeDays, Wellness, WellnessANovel, WellnessNathanHill, WillametteValley