60. A Mismatch Made in London

60. A Mismatch Made in London. Melanie Dickerson. 2026. 304 pages. [Source: Library] [5 stars, historical romance, clean romance]

First sentence: I concentrated on putting the finishing touch of red paint on the paper soldier I was making for Matthew.

Premise/plot: Amelia Moore is the oldest daughter of a large family. She's been invited by her aunt and uncle to spend time with them in London for the season in the hopes of making a match and securing her future. Her family isn't poor or destitute, but, there are a LOT of them. After being called a country bumpkin essentially, Amelia gets emotional and is saved by the super, super sweet Juliet Beaumont. The two become friendly--quite friendly. But her brother, Jeremy, who is the "catch of the season" allegedly, has his doubts on Amelia's motives. Did she seek out his sister so that she could spend time with HIM. She is insulted by this insinuation, but, she is the forgiving sort. Jeremy may not be friend material BUT Juliet is sweet and lovely. Being in London is great fun with a good friend by your side. As the two navigate the season--both young and inexperienced in the ways of the world--they will face challenges...and a possible scandal or two.

A Mismatch Made in London is set in England in 1811 during the Regency period. It is a clean romance though there is mention of more adult things. Juliet makes an unwise decision and ends up in danger. I think this was handled well and is realistic. Chaperones were necessary for a reason. But I love that Juliet's closest reassure her she did absolutely nothing wrong to deserve it.

My thoughts: I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this one. I didn't like Melanie Dickerson's other historical romance that I read earlier this year inspired by Jane Eyre, but, this one was FABULOUS. It is inspired by Pride and Prejudice AND Northanger Abbey. AND it features the tropes romance with best friend's brother AND enemies to lovers.

I enjoyed all of the characters--particularly Juliet, Amelia, and Jeremy. I loved that Amelia didn't forget her family--her brothers and sisters. She was always thinking of her family. She wasn't swept up and away by city life. And it felt natural. There aren't a lot of side characters, but, the three main characters are well fleshed.

It is technically Christian fiction. BUT I would say it's light, mild. I would say it is more "clean romance" than Christian romance with the intent to share the gospel. It's more like "forgiveness is good" and "be kind to others."


© 2026 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

59. The Phantom Tollbooth

59. The Phantom Tollbooth. Norton Juster. Illustrated by Jules Feiffer. 1961/2011. Random House. 272 pages. [Source: Library] [5 stars, children's fantasy, children's classic]

First sentence: There was once a boy named Milo who didn't know what to do with himself--not just sometimes, but always.

Premise/plot: Milo, our hero, is about to have an "impossible" adventure. His day starts out very ordinary, however, by the end of the day Milo will be quite transformed!

It starts with a mysterious gift-box. It holds a tollbooth for him to construct, also included are instructions, rule books, and a map. He randomly chooses to go to Dictionopolis. But though that is his original destination, Milo finds that travels--magical or not--take some thought and intention.

My thoughts: I loved, loved, loved this one! I first read it in September 2013. I'm only now rereading it, but, this should be one I read again and again more frequently.

The writing is AMAZING. It is clever, rich in meaning and symbolism. And it is oh so quotable! One of those rare books where you could almost open up the book to any page and find a gem worth quoting!

Loved the writing, loved the creativity, loved the characters!

Favorite quotes:

“Expect everything, I always say, and the unexpected never happens.”

“You may not see it now," said the Princess of Pure Reason, looking knowingly at Milo's puzzled face, "but whatever we learn has a purpose and whatever we do affects everything and everyone else, if even in the tiniest way. Why, when a housefly flaps his wings, a breeze goes round the world; when a speck of dust falls to the ground, the entire planet weighs a little more; and when you stamp your foot, the earth moves slightly off its course. Whenever you laugh, gladness spreads like the ripples in the pond; and whenever you're sad, no one anywhere can be really happy. And it's much the same thing with knowledge, for whenever you learn something new, the whole world becomes that much richer.”

“So many things are possible just as long as you don't know they're impossible.”

“Everybody is so terribly sensitive about the things they know best.”

“And remember, also," added the Princess of Sweet Rhyme, "that many places you would like to see are just off the map and many things you want to know are just out of sight or a little beyond your reach. But someday you'll reach them all, for what you learn today, for no reason at all, will help you discover all the wonderful secrets of tomorrow.”

“In this box are all the words I know…Most of them you will never need, some you will use constantly, but with them you may ask all the questions which have never been answered and answer all the questions which have never been asked. All the great books of the past and all the ones yet to come are made with these words. With them there is no obstacle you cannot overcome. All you must learn to do is to use them well and in the right places.” 

© 2026 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

57. This is Christmas

57. This is Christmas: Song by Song: The Stories Behind 100 Holiday Hits. 2023. 224 pages. [Source: Library] [3 stars, Christmas, music appreciation]

First sentence: When you think of Christmas music, what comes to mind?

Premise/plot: This is Christmas: Song by Song is a nonfiction book bordering on a novelty book. Is this a good match for you? Maybe. Maybe not. With the right expectations you might find yourself lightly entertained. OR if you have an incredibly short attention span and are looking for a light, fluffy, unsubstantial read. OR if you are vaguely curious and want a light, shallow answer to satisfy your curiosity.

The book offers the story (or "story") of 100 holiday hits. Perhaps the clue is in the word HOLIDAY HITS. This isn't a book about the songs themselves. Not really. Which is perhaps fair enough. After all, look at ANY Christmas album and there's a good chance 75 to 90% of the songs are covers of Christmas classics. Whether it's a traditional Christmas hymn/carol--think Silent Night, O Holy Night, God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen, or a traditional Christmas song--think Sleigh Ride, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Jingle Bells--they've been covered thousands of times if not tens of thousands of times. This book has selected particular covers when it comes to some of these. So it isn't the history of the SONG but trivial, light stories of one particular cover that you may or may not have ever heard of...or liked...or wanted to hear again. There are a handful of songs that are highlighted by their original artist. This is for better or worse. IF you've heard of the song and liked it--and it's been part of your Christmases long, long ago--then it's interesting enough. If you've never heard the song, never heard the artist, then it's just dull and meaningless. Often I found myself wishing that the artist chosen to be highlighted was different.

Essentially everything about this book is subjective.

My thoughts: I think this one--which is arranged chronologically by the particular song (song cover) being released--has the potential to frustrate readers of all ages. For example, I was annoyed by all this "new" music that I'd never heard of and don't care to hear. I can easily, easily, easily imagine a younger reader being annoyed by all the "old" and "ancient" music that he/she had never heard of and don't care to hear. The book covers so many styles and genres that if there was a playlist with these particular versions of songs would be extremely disjointed and not much "fun" for any listener.

I would have personally loved if the book was the HISTORY of Christmas music. WHO introduced the song to the world first? OR which artist(s) made it a HIT in the first year or two of being written. WHICH artist(s) have made it his/her own. WHAT makes a particular rendition resonate with listeners? Even if it meant covering certain songs two or three times.

I also felt that this isn't the 100 "greatest" Christmas songs. Many of the songs were 'original' songs that may or may not be timeless and still played today. No one can denied that Last Christmas is played incessantly every Christmas. BUT some of these songs are VERY taste-specific.


© 2026 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

56. Paperboy

56. Paperboy. Vince Vawter. 2013. Random House. 240 pages. [Source: Library] [5 stars, MG fiction, coming of age, MG historical, based on true story]

First sentence: I'm talking about the stabbing for a good reason. I can't talk. Without stuttering.

Premise/plot: Paperboy is set in Memphis, Tennessee, in July of 1959. The narrator is a young boy (11, I think?) who stutters. He doesn't want stuttering to define him. He doesn't think that's fair. He is good at many, many things, like baseball. He is GREAT at baseball. He is good at typing, at writing. He loves words. But his stutter keeps him from loving speaking words aloud. It keeps him nervous and awkward around new people or strangers, people he feels will judge him based on his stutter alone, who will assume that his inability to speak clearly means he's unable to THINK clearly too.

So. The month of July will prove challenging to him for he has agreed to take over his best friend's paper route. Oh, he's not worried about the delivering part. He knows he's got that handled. He's worried about Fridays, about the day when he'll have to go to the door and TALK to people and ask for the money owed. You might think, in some ways, that it would be the first week that would be the most difficult, and that, all other weeks would just be easy after that initial effort. That is only partly true. He does make a friend, a wonderful friend. And he does learn a few life lessons that help him grow up a bit and cope a bit. And, I suppose, you could say that his perspective expands a bit in that he sees that the world is full of people who have problems, who have issues; that every person is dealing with something, struggling with something.

My thoughts: Paperboy had me at hello. I loved, loved, loved, loved, REALLY LOVED this one. Yes, I'm going to gush about how wonderful and just-right this one is. I think I loved the narrator best. The book is in his own words, he's recounting these events. There is something in the narrator's life, a secret that he discovers one day, and it could potentially be big and disturbing--just as there are other events in the novel that could be BIG AND DISTURBING. But this one thing that he wrestles with on his own, quietly meditating on it perhaps, was handled so tenderly and lovingly that it just worked for me. It made a novel that I already LOVED, LOVED, LOVED that much more wow-worthy.

I also loved other characters in this novel. Characters that might have seemed minor, but, were anything but. Characters like Mam, Rat (Art), Mr. Spiro, and, to a certain extent his Dad.

I first read this one in November 2013. I reread it in August 2026.



© 2026 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

53. The Best Bear in All the World

53. The Best Bear in All the World. Paul Bright, Brian Sibley, Jeanne Willis, Kate Saunders. 2016. 115 pages. [Source: Library] [3 stars, audio book, Winnie the Pooh sequel]

First sentence: "Ninety?" said Winnie the Pooh. "Is that more than seven?" "Yes, Pooh," said Kanga patiently. "You're ninety years old, which calls for a celebration."

Premise/plot: Four new stories starring Winnie the Pooh and all his friends from the Hundred Acre Woods. There is a story set in Autumn (in which Pooh and Piglet prepare to meet a Dragon). There is a story set in Winter (in which Penguin arrives in the forest). There is a story set in spring (in which Eeyore suspects another donkey is after his thistles). There is a story set in summer (in which Pooh dreams of the Sauce of the Nile).

My thoughts: I have wanted to READ this one for years. But the library didn't have it in print. I saw it on audio book and thought I'd give it a try. I didn't like it much on audio. BUT I realize that could be the narrator being a disappointment in doing ALL the characters in unique voices. I realize that no one can DO the character voices like Disney does. I wasn't expecting it to be amazing. But I wanted it to be better than it was. I also think that the book would have been more enjoyable, perhaps, if it had had ONE author instead of four. The stories are just decent. These aren't "new" stories or "original" stories so much as slightly changing and adapting a few stories and having them happen again slightly differently.

Perhaps audio wasn't the best way to experience this book since I missed out on the illustrations. AND it's certainly possible that reading the book in print with the more proper voices in my head narrating might have led me to like it better.


© 2026 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

52. Prey

52. Prey. Michael Crichton. 2002. 507 pages. [Source: Library] [audio book, 5 stars, adult science fiction, adult thriller]

First sentence: Things never turn out the way you think they will.

Premise/plot: Jack Forman, our protagonist, is a stay at home dad. (Three kids, if my memory is correct). After losing his job because he was a whistleblower--or trying to be--he's been unable to get another job in his field. (He reported something unethical and dangerous not knowing the person he was reporting to was IN on the shady shady side of things). His wife, Julia, well she's SOMETHING. Perhaps she wasn't always so something. Maybe there was a time when she was loving, supportive, and a great mother. But we never see that side of her--not really.

Jack Forman finds himself at the center of a GREAT mystery. And it starts soon after a terribly horrible health scare with his youngest. Soon he's being asked by the people who fired him to "help out" and trouble shoot with code that he developed. BUT he soon finds that what they are NOT telling him could feel all the libraries in the world. And his creepy wife is at the center of it--for better or worse.

A science experiment has gone terribly, terribly, terribly wrong! And Jack Forman finds himself almost completely alone in trying to save the world.

My thoughts: Prey is my fourth Michael Crichton novel that I've read. I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED, LOVED IT. I listened to the audio narrated by Robert Sean Leonard. It was FABULOUS. I have a feeling I would have loved the story either way--in print or on audio. I COULD not stop reading this one.



© 2026 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

50. Knife of Never Letting Go

50. The Knife of Never Letting Go. (Chaos Walking #1) Patrick Ness. 2008. 512 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: The first thing you find out when yer dog learns to talk is that dogs don’t got nothing much to say. About anything.

The Knife of Never Letting Go is a science fiction novel for young adults. (What kind of science fiction? It's the colonizing other planets sort. Also the trying to survive sort. And the encountering alien sort.)

Here are a few things you should know before picking it up.

1) It is science fiction. It is set on another planet, aka "New World." The planet has a handful of small settlements, including Prentisstown, the hometown of our narrator/hero. The planet's biggest settlement is Haven.

2) Todd is our narrator. He is a few weeks away from his thirteenth birthday. He "becomes a Man" on his thirteenth birthday. He is an orphan being raised by two men, Cillian and Ben.

3) There are NO WOMEN in Prentisstown. Todd has been taught all his life that there was a plague or virus that killed all the women of the settlement.

4) A virus (perhaps the same virus that allegedly killed all the women?) has made it so that all the men can hear one another's thoughts all the time. This is called NOISE. It isn't just men, though, they can hear thoughts of animals too. Manchee is Todd's dog. And he's a bit too forthright to say the least!

5) The book is thriller-esque. It's essentially one big action-sequence from cover to cover. Well, perhaps it takes three or four chapters to get him on his way. But once he gets started...he stays going. It's an intense, action-packed book.

6) He doesn't go alone. Manchee, his faithful dog that he once didn't even want, is with him....but more importantly he meets Viola.

7) Viola basically "dropped from the sky" and right into his path. Viola is the sole survivor of the settler's scout ship. Her parents died in the crash. The ships with thousands of more settlers is about seven or so months behind the scout ship. Todd cannot hear Viola's noise. Viola is the first female he can remember seeing--apart from reading the memories of the men in his settlement--which is not the same thing I think you'll agree.

8) Both Viola and Todd are in GREAT DANGER. Why?????? Well, it has to do with SECRETS and SCHEMES and PLOTS. The mayor of Prentisstown is ambitious and manipulative....to pick two of his tamer qualities.

9) Todd has some internal conflict going on inside....he cannot bring himself to kill. So while I might have spent a good deal of time emphasizing the ACTION, ACTION, ACTION aspect of this one, that doesn't mean it is without characterization and complexity.

10) Be warned it doesn't really have an ending.

11) It has profanity. A good deal of profanity. For some people it may be off-putting enough to pass on the book. For others that might be a big non-issue.

12) Poor grammar is part of the world-building. This may or may not bother readers!  

The first time I read it, I was meh. I was bothered by the poor grammar and the profanity. The second time I read it, I definitely liked it much better. The third time I read it, I loved it. I was fully engaged and absorbing the world-making and the depths of the characters. I was paying attention to the relationships, the conversations, all the feels. Things that were both spoken and unspoken. 

I have been listening to a lot of Preacher Boys on YouTube. His podcast deals a lot with abuse in the Independent Fundamental Baptist denomination. Or "denomination" as the case may be since technically each church is independent and there is no infrastructure binding the churches together. As I was reading The Knife Of Never Letting Go, I couldn't help thinking that one or two of the settlements might portray a what if--what if an IFB church decided to colonize space and set up their own theocracy?!

So that was one thing running through my mind this time around, but also I thought of all the changes we've gone through the past few decades--in particular the internet, social media, and media itself. All the bits about NOISE felt like it could be talking about our society--in some ways.

This third read was definitely more thoughtful and philosophical. I found myself making lots of notes.

Quotes:

• The loud is a different kind of loud, because swamp loud is just curiosity, creachers figuring out who you are and if yer a threat. Whereas the town knows all about you already and wants to know more and wants to beat you with what it knows till how can you have any of yerself left at all?
• Men lie, and they lie to theirselves worst of all.
• Noise ain’t truth, Noise is what men want to be true, and there’s a difference twixt those two things so big that it could ruddy well kill you if you don’t watch out.
• The Church is why we’re all here on New World in the first place, of course, and pretty much every Sunday you can hear Aaron preaching about why we left behind the corrupshun and sin of Old World and about how we’d aimed to start a new life of purity and brotherhood in a whole new Eden. That worked out well, huh?
• Praying Noise comes from inside, it’s got a special feel to it, a special purply sick feel like men are bleeding it out, even tho it’s always the same stuff but the purply blood just keeps on coming. Help us, save us, forgive us, help us, save us, forgive us, get us outta here, please, God, please, God, please, God, tho as far as I know no one’s never heard no Noise back from this God fella.
• Noise is like grey fire behind him and you can’t pick out anything in it and he might be up to something, mightn’t he? The sermon might be covering for something and I’m beginning to wonder if I know what that something is.
• Men’s minds are messy places and Noise is like the active, breathing face of that mess. It’s what’s true and what’s believed and what’s imagined and what’s fantasized and it says one thing and a completely opposite thing at the same time and even tho the truth is definitely in there, how can you tell what’s true and what’s not when yer getting everything?
• The Noise is a man unfiltered, and without a filter, a man is just chaos walking.
• But a knife ain’t just a thing, is it? It’s a choice, it’s something you do. A knife says yes or no, cut or not, die or don’t. A knife takes a decision out of your hand and puts it in the world and it never goes back again.
• “History ain’t so important when yer just trying to survive,” I say, spitting it out under my breath. “That’s actually when it’s most important,” Hildy says, standing at the end of the table.
• “Men’s thoughts, Todd,” she says. “Men. And you notice he said he was going to ask the eldermen to come seek out your advice?” I get a horrible thought. “Did the women all die here, too?” “Oh, there’s women,” she says, fiddling with a butter knife. “They clean and they cook and they make babies and they all live in a big dormitory outside of town where they can’t interfere in men’s business.”
• He shakes his head. “What d’you think’s been driving you on? What d’you think’s got you this far?” “Fear,” Viola says. “Desperayshun,” I say. “No,” he says, taking us both in. “No, no, no. You’ve come farther than most people on this planet will do in their lifetimes. You’ve overcome obstacles and dangers and things that should’ve killed you. You’ve outrun an army and a madman and deadly illness and seen things most people will never see. How do you think you could have possibly come this far if you didn’t have hope?”
• “Everything on this planet talks to each other,” he says. “Everything. That’s what New World is. Informayshun, all the time, never stopping, whether you want it or not. The Spackle knew it, evolved to live with it, but we weren’t equipped for it. Not even close.
• And too much informayshun can drive a man mad. Too much informayshun becomes just Noise. And it never, never stops.
• “War is a monster,” he says, almost to himself. “War is the devil. It starts and it consumes and it grows and grows and grows.” He’s looking at me now. “And otherwise normal men become monsters, too.”
• Doing what’s right should be easy. It shouldn’t be just another big mess like everything else.
• She hurts. I know all this. I know it’s true. Cuz I can read her. I can read her Noise even tho she ain’t got none. I know who she is. I know Viola Eade. And I look at her sitting there and she looks across the river and we wait as the dawn fully arrives, each of us knowing. Each of us knowing the other.
• Hope may be the thing that pulls you forward, may be the thing that keeps you going, but that it’s dangerous, too, that it’s painful and risky, that it’s making a dare to the world and when has the world ever let us win a dare?
• “God works thru men,” Aaron says. “So does evil,” Viola says.

© 2026 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

48. Jurassic Park: The Lost World

48. The Lost World (Jurassic Park #2) Michael Crichton. 1995. 448 pages. [Source: Library] [adult science fiction, 5 stars, dinosaurs]

First sentence: The late twentieth century has witnessed a remarkable growth in scientific interest in the subject of extinction.

Premise/plot: One scientist, Richard Levine, is on a mission to prove that there is a LOST WORLD of dinosaurs. He is following clues here and there--which leads him to Ian Malcolm among others. But he has no proof, just a dream, a goal, a quest. Ian is keeping the whole surviving dinosaur thing hush, hush, hush. Only those who have heard his nightmares would ever suspect that he might be keeping big secrets. Still no one--at the start--is quite sure WHERE this alleged lost world might be. When Levine appears to be completely and totally in distress--moments away from being a dinosaur's snack--Malcolm leads a team (Thorne, Sarah Harding, two kids (Arby? Kelly?) to try to find him on an island. Piecing together the clues that Levine left behind. Bringing the best (though untested) equipment. But they are not the only ones looking for the "Lost" World.

My thoughts: I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED this one. I loved how there were fewer characters. I loved how there was more story. It seemed less gimmicky to me, perhaps. OR maybe I'm just so invested to the story that I'm stopping the overthinking enough for me to love the story completely and fully. I was less annoyed with this one as well--in terms of the "kids" in the story. Though offhand, I'm not sure how old these kids were supposed to be--well, that or in the original. I also loved that the story wasn't all dinosaurs attack people 100% of the time always and always.


© 2026 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

47. How a Bear Became a Book

47. How a Bear Became a Book: The Collaboration That Created Winnie-The-Pooh. Annette Bay Pimentel. Illustrated by Faith Pray. 2026. 48 pages. [Source: Library] [5 stars, nonfiction, history, picture book]

First sentences: Would you like a story? WE can make one up! But stories are about things that happen, and things have to happen to someone. So we'll need a someone--a character. Any ideas? Because characters in stories begin with ideas.

Premise/plot: How a Bear Became a Book is a behind the scene glimpse at the creation process of Winnie the Pooh. It is a PROCESS. It isn't quick. It is slow. It isn't one person had an idea and POOF a book appears. It shows that writing is a process, that illustrating is a process, that publishing is a process. That everything worth doing takes WORK and MORE WORK and EVEN MORE WORK.

My thoughts: I love the Winnie the Pooh novels. I have never outgrown my love of the bear. I enjoyed reading this story. Is it thrilling and captivating every paragraph--maybe not--especially if you are young and have a short attention span. But I really enjoyed the showing of the process.

© 2026 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

46. The Andromeda Strain

46. The Andromeda Strain. Michael Crichton. 1969. 327 pages. [Source: Library] [3 stars, adult science fiction, science fiction, thriller]

First sentence: A man with binoculars. That is how it began: with a man standing by the side of the road, on a crest overlooking a small Arizona town, on a winter night.

Premise/plot: In an introduction to Fahrenheit 451, speculative fiction was explained simply focusing on three statements:

What if . . . ?

If only . . .

If this goes on . . .

The Andromeda Strain explores the 'what if' aspect of if an alien organism (entity? substance? lifeform? something) made it through the atmosphere. Is that an absolutely horrendous description? Yes, yes, it is. So "Scoop" is a super secret hush hush scientific project that is purposefully seeking to "scoop" stuff from the atmosphere for study, for science, for military purposes. When the satellite? capsule? (something or other) becomes unstable in orbit and falls to earth unexpectedly, it crashes in a super small town in Arizona. The results are devastating and catastrophic--for that town. But are there implications for the whole world? Maybe. Maybe not. But Project Wildfire isn't about taking risks--intentionally. They are also super secret hush, hush, all the classified. These scientists will be studying the TWO SURVIVORS (a baby and an old man) and the capsule itself.

My thoughts: This one is extremely super science-y and technical. I skimmed those bits. It isn't so much a thriller thriller. It is dry, technical, the opposite of action-packed. I think it could have gone a different direction, BUT, it didn't. And this direction is good for the fictional world. There isn't really a "climax" just scientists doing science-y things like experiments with a few going incredibly wrong here and there.

My first Crichton was Jurassic Park. There is no comparison. This one wasn't as action-packed or interesting or entertaining.

© 2026 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

44. Jurassic Park

44. Jurassic Park. Michael Crichton. 1990. 466 pages. [Source: Library] [5 stars, adult science fiction, dinosaurs, action/thriller]

First sentence: The tropical rain fell in drenching sheets, hammering the corrugated roof of the clinic building, roaring down the metal gutters, splashing on the ground in a torrent.

Premise/plot: Is there anyone who doesn't know the premise of Jurassic Park?????? Even if you've never actually actually seen the movie, Jurassic Park???? There are companies--individuals--playing God, if you will, who have brought "back" dinosaurs from extinction filling in the blanks as they see fit. But perhaps with not enough caution. Just because you can do something doesn't mean you should do something.

There are many, many, many characters. But essentially the book is mainly about what happens when visitors come to the park ahead of the opening--that is still in the future (or is it???). They are there to "see" what has been done....so far.

My thoughts: I loved, loved, loved, loved, loved this book!!!! I think it is SO much better than the movie. I really got swept up in the story!!!! And I loved how much more substantive the book is--in terms of both characterization and plot. Life finds a way indeed!


© 2026 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

43. The Midnight Train

43. The Midnight Train. Matt Haig. 2026. 296 pages. [Source: Library] [5 stars, adult speculative fiction, adult romance]

First sentence: Wilbur Budd died around midnight, but he had trouble remembering the details.

Premise/plot: The Midnight Train is a premise-driven novel. Think Twilight Zone, Our Town, and A Christmas Carol. Wilbur Budd, the protagonist, dies soon after the novel opens. He's lived a long life, in many ways a successful life. IF you only look at dollars or cents--or the British equivalent. But Wilbur has focused on all the wrong things for perhaps the right reasons, perhaps not the right reasons. But his need to escape the poverty of his childhood--as well as dealing with some childhood trauma, or not dealing with it as the case may be--has left his heart as cold as ice. Maggie loses the man she marries to a cash register essentially.

The night he dies, he boards a train, the "Midnight Train," the train that will take him to the afterlife. He can look out the windows and see every moment of his life flash by. There will be stops along the way. As a ghost, he will look upon significant moments of his life. Some are obviously significant. Some less obviously significant moments. Some are moments that he is overjoyed to relive, to experience with fresh eyes. Others are dark, haunting, traumatic. The train stops and he must go where it takes him.

There are RULES and more rules. But what if there weren't rules. What if Wilbur is a REBEL and a risk taker? What if he is determined to NOT go quietly...

My thoughts: I could not put this one down. It was IMPOSSIBLE for me to go to bed until I finished it. It was reflective and equal parts wonderful and heartbreaking.

I recently read Midnight Library. Nora Seed does make an extremely small appearance as a piano teacher in this one. I LOVED this one more than Midnight Library. I thought the characterization was better. Or maybe the premise was better.

Quotes:

• I don't mean to be pedantic, but the whole point of a life flashing before your eyes is that you see it.
• It was interesting, to realize that even your own past was new territory to explore. That memories were no more the real event than flags were their nations.
• A life of avoiding pain becomes a life defined by pain. Pain and regret.

© 2026 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

42. The Midnight Library

42. The Midnight Library. Matt Haig. 2020. 288 pages. [Source: Library] [adult fiction, adult science fiction, fantasy]

Premise/plot: The Midnight Library is a premise-driven, slow-moving, reflective novel. Nora Seed, our protagonist, hates her life. The book opens with a countdown until an attempt of the self-destructive sort. She's lost her job. She's lost her side job. Her cat has died. Her brother barely speaks with her. Nothing is going right. Nothing has gone right. Perhaps nothing has ever gone right. Her list of regrets is long, so long that it could in fact fill a library.

When Nora finds herself between life and death she enters the Midnight Library. A slightly more pleasant place to be than the Twilight Zone. Nora will have all the opportunities--infinite opportunities--to see how her life would have turned out if she'd made different choices. Big choices. Small choices. All the choices. Infinite parallel lives to step in and out of. But will any feel like home? Will living her other lives make her want to live?

My thoughts: The book was enjoyably thought-provoking in some ways. I liked the premise. I didn't love, love, love it. But I liked the concept. This is similar and dissimilar to It's a Wonderful Life. The book opens in the same rock-bottom place. BUT there are many, many paths to explore and not just the one if she'd never been born. It is not about how her life has impacted others. I mean in a vague way perhaps maybe if you squint and tilt your head. Nora has to learn to live life you just have to keep on keeping on, and don't think too much, don't navel-gaze, don't look for more meaning than there is, don't waste time thinking about the past or the future, just live life in the day. I don't even know if that was the message??? Honestly the messages were messy. And that was a bit of the point as well, perhaps. That life is messy, messy, messy. And it will never be anything but messy. Don't think that you're missing out on the "good life" because your life is a mess and you are a mess????

© 2026 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

40. After My Brother Sam

 

40. After My Brother Sam. James Lincoln Collier. 2026. 144 pages. [Source: Library] [1 star, mg historical fiction, why does this book even exist]

First sentence: The men had brought a couple of rough wooden coffins to the execution place. They put Sam's body in one of the coffins and loaded it onto a cart. "Timmy, can you drive this thing?" one of them asked me.

Premise/plot: After My Brother Sam is the sequel to My Brother Sam is Dead. Timmy is angry about his brother's death and acting out in strange ways. He befriends an orphan-thief, Becky, and tries his hand at being a thief. He then takes home Becky-thief to his mother and the tavern. Shortly there is a forceful man on the scene, Chauncy, (I think that is his name) who is essentially becomes a squatter at the tavern and insisting that he's the new partner or owner? No one seems to be able to make him leave???? There are a few confrontations with soldiers--both sides, I think--nothing actually actually comes close to happening. The book ends without a single thing happening except Timmy and Becky stealing stuff and eating at a tavern. Does that count as a plot? Should it count as a plot? Chauncy has to be the most irritating character ever. And one of the presumably supposed to be intelligent study questions is "why do you think  Chauncy is in the novel" and "what did you learn from him."

My thoughts: I would give this book less than one star if I could. I honestly don't know why this book was able to get published. It is just a non-book. It has a beginning perhaps. But no middle or end. It is literally like buying a bag of chips that is 80% air and 10% chips and 10% crumbs.


© 2026 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

39. My Brother Sam is Dead

39. My Brother Sam is Dead. James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier. 1974. 240 pages. [Source: Library] [3 stars, mg history, mg fiction]

First sentence: It was April, and outside in the dark the rain whipped against the windows of our tavern, making a sound like muffled drums.

Premise/plot: My Brother Sam is Dead is historical fiction for middle grade (and/or upper elementary grades). It is set during the American Revolution. The narrator, Timmy Meeker, spends the duration of the book confused by the complexities of war. He isn't really in favor or support of either side. He wants things to go back to normal. He hates that his brother Sam has been kicked out of the family for his "rebel" views and joining up with the Patriots. He knows his dad leans more towards being a Tory or Royalist. But also at the same time his dad has ALL THE OPINIONS that war is the worst thing on the planet.

My thoughts: This was my first time to read My Brother Sam is Dead. When I started it, I thought I would like it more than I did.

I picked up on the anti-war sentiment from the start. That didn't surprise me. I didn't expect war to be glamorized or idolized. I expected the view point to be war is UGLY, war is MESSY, war is TRAUMATIC, war is HORRIBLE. Many if not most books about war--any war--touch upon this ugliness, this trauma, this raw pain, this sorrow.

My Brother Sam Is Dead was written and published towards the end of the Vietnam War. Anti-war sentiment was high. America was also a few years away from celebrating the bicentennial. I don't know if either of these facts had any impact at all on the story these brothers were telling, were sharing. But it doesn't escape my attention that they might have wanted to remind readers that just because the war happened two hundred years ago, doesn't make it any less ugly, horrifying, terrifying, gross, disgusting, revolting, traumatizing. The "cause" they were fighting for did not negate the reality of war being what it fundamentally is. 

I guess what surprised me, and probably shouldn't have, is the way Tim loses his father and his brother. Not the fact that both died--or either died. BUT the how. It isn't so much that Sam Meeker dies in the novel. It is the how and why. The father's death was sad and unnecessary, but it was the brother's death that turns the novel about.

I do think that adult readers may read the book differently perhaps. I'm not sure. I do know that this is a book that I never would have picked up as a kid or teen.

As an adult, I was seeing things not so much through Tim's eyes but through the eyes of his parents.

© 2026 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

38. Wombat Waiting

38. Wombat Waiting. Katherine Applegate. 2026. 336 pages. [Source: Library] [4 stars, animal fantasy, j fiction, wildfires, dogs, pets, animals]

First sentence: Yep,
her name is Wombat,
and nope,
she's not a wombat.
True, there's
a passing resemblance,
If you squint just right.
She's stout and sturdy,
stubby-legged,
with silly ears
that look like furry cookies,
but just for the record,
she is,
most definitely,
a dog.

Premise/plot: Wombat Waiting is a novel in verse starring a destiny dog, Wombat. Wombat and Henry are meant to be--a matter of destiny. But Henry is scared of dogs and Wombat is a stray. They live miles apart. Have never met. A wildfire starts. Wombat hears a voice, the voice of destiny, telling her to run towards the fire, to get closer and closer to where the fire is burning. Henry, meanwhile, is fleeing (with his two moms and some neighbors and their bunnies?) away from the fire. Life becomes not regular at all. But Wombat knows that she is running towards her destiny. But it may take a lot of WAITING, waiting, and more waiting before Henry knows that Wombat is his dog.

My thoughts: I like this one. I do. I have enjoyed many of Katherine Applegate's books. I don't love, love, love this one. But I do like it. I do think it has a few great quotes. (I'll share my favorite below).

Quotes:
How could she say
I will be more than a friend--
I will be your beating heart?

© 2026 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

37. Project Hail Mary

37. Project Hail Mary. Andy Weir. 2021. 476 pages. [Source: Library] [adult science fiction, 5 stars]

First sentence: "What's two plus two?" Something about the question irritates me. I'm tired. I drift back to sleep. A few minutes pass, then I hear it again.

Premise/plot: Earth is in great, great danger. But the sole surviving member of the team sent to try to save it, has no memory. His memory will come in bits and pieces as he tries to remember his mission and purpose. It will turn out that Earth isn't the only planet in danger--there is a threat to many star systems or galaxies. It may take teaming up with an alien species to save both worlds.

Ryland Grace and Rocky are in some ways an unlikely pair, but, as they learn each other--each other's languages, each other's sciences, each other's characters and personality--they may be just what the other needed to succeed.

My thoughts: I have not seen the movie. I didn't really watch movie reviews and reactions until after I read the book. I knew this one involved a certain degree of self-sacrifice because it doesn't take any searching out to have heard that. And that is fairly typical for fiction--fantasy novels (Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, Narnia, etc) or science fiction (it would be harder to think of science fiction that doesn't have some degree of self-sacrifice). I really enjoyed reading this one. For me, I loved the "current" sections. I wasn't as thrilled by all the flashback scenes, though I suppose I may change my mind when I see the movie. I was invested in the "now" and the problem-solving and the suspense of what will happen next. I didn't care as much about the past.

© 2026 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

36. The Martian

36. The Martian. Andy Weir. 2011. 369 pages. [Source: Library] [adult science fiction, 5 stars, space]

First sentence: I'm pretty much f***ed.  That's my considered opinion.

Premise/plot: It's all a matter of perspective if Mark Watney is lucky or unlucky. One could argue that he's unlucky to be stranded on Mars and battling for survivor cut off almost completely from the human race, from Earth. Limited resources--though plenty of mystery novels, disco, and 70s sitcoms. One could also argue that he's incredibly lucky--lucky that he survived the original accident, lucky that he recovered, lucky that he's skilled and resourceful enough to put to use every thing he has as a resource, lucky that he has a positive outlook.

Most of the novel IS from his point of view. Though we get brief updates from those on earth about how to rescue Mark.

My thoughts: I loved the movie. I loved the book. BOTH were excellent.

© 2026 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

34. If You Lived During the American Revolution

34. If You Lived During the American Revolution. Chris Newell. Illustrated by Steffi Walthall. 2026. 88 pages. [Source: Library] [3 stars, history, nonfiction]

First sentence: Colonization by European peoples of what we now call the United States of America began as early as the sixteenth century.

I read a few "If You Lived...." books growing up. There is a newer series of books similarly titled that are being published now. This is the first I've read of the newer series. It is on a heavy, complex topic. Heavy because it's about war. Complex because every conflict, every war, has at least three sides. It is also written to line up in accordance with modern sensibilities. For better or worse. There are certainly some benefits, I'm sure, to a modern take on the past. But if exclusively or overly so, it can come across as super judgy. In other words, America should never have been colonized and all wars were a result of us unnecessarily colonizing. And the colonization of America could never be justifiable, etc. And sometimes I just want my history to be, you know, just record what was without comment or bias or opinion. Neither obnoxious praise or condemnation.

As for the facts in this one, I am too long out of school to know how accurate or inaccurate it may be. OR if the emphasis is rightly placed. It could be perfectly, perfectly fine as far as facts are concerned. OR it could have a mistake here or there. I wouldn't be able to distinguish. I last studied the American Revolution in college, and I found it fascinating then.

What I liked about the original series was how the questions were answered concisely and were full of I didn't know that facts. But this one is on a more complex, darker topic. It is probably easier to read than a textbook. (At least the textbooks of my past). BUT it isn't "fun" or "light" or "casual." (And it would probably be wrong if it was.)

© 2026 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

33. The Pioneer Girl

33. Pioneer Girl: The Annotated Autobiography. Laura Ingalls Wilder. Edited by Pamela Smith Hill. 2014. South Dakota State Historical State Society. 400 pages. [Source: Library] [5 stars, nonfiction, memoir]


Pioneer Girl is a must-read for anyone who grew up loving, or perhaps, LOVING, Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House books. Pioneer Girl is an annotated autobiography. The book itself is a draft of an autobiography written by Laura Ingalls Wilder circa 1930. Mother and daughter worked with this draft preparing to send it to various publishers (not just book publishers) for a year or two. (There are several draft versions of Pioneer Girl.) Eventually, the focus shifts from writing an adult autobiography to writing a series of historical fiction novels for children. The adult autobiography was "forgotten" as a book itself, and becomes a source--a good source--for mother and daughter to use in their own fiction. I didn't know that Rose Wilder Lane borrowed generously from her mom's autobiography while writing her adult fiction. Lane wrote Free Land and Let the Hurricane Roar (Young Pioneers).

The autobiography shares Laura Ingalls Wilder's earliest memories through her wedding day. (Those earliest memories are of being a toddler in Kansas.) These memories are, of course, in her own words. The writing is natural and casual. Some paragraphs are great at capturing details and specifics of an event. Other paragraphs are more of a rush, a blend, they seem a bit fuzzier, less exact. These are her very personal reflections written first for her daughter, and, then possibly for a larger audience. Wilder has turned reflective. She's older now, feeling that very much. (Her mom died in 1924, her sister, Mary, in 1928. She's wanting to capture these memories, these stories, to hold onto them perhaps.) One also sees the book itself as an act of love, an expression of love, a way of remembering and honoring.

The annotations are wonderful. They provide background and context. The annotations includes notes on a wide variety of subjects a) people b) places c) events d) nature e) culture (songs, dances, fashion), f) writing, editing, and publishing. There are plenty of notes that compare and contrast scenes and events as they appear in Pioneer Girl and as they appear in one of the original novels. Readers see how a memory recorded in Pioneer Girl is shaped and crafted into a finished product with plenty of detail and even dialogue. Readers see how Wilder carefully--oh-so-carefully--crafted the characters of the family. One gets the definite impression that she was purposeful with every scene, every book. It was no accident that Pa is so noble, independent, strong, and bigger-than-life almost.

I learned so much by reading Pioneer Girl. I would definitely recommend it for anyone who has enjoyed spending time with Laura and her family through the years.


© 2026 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews