Churchill Defiant

This biography of Winston Churchill's postwar years was fascinating. Churchill Defiant outlines the triumph and tragedy of the postwar/early Cold War years as Churchill confronts medical setbacks, political defeats and unfinished plans. Thrown out of office as Prime Minister in the middle of the Potsdam talks of 1945 on a tidal Labour party victory over the Conservatives, Churchill must leave important negotiations to lower-level ministers, setting the stage for historical events that continue to impact us today. His continued efforts for high-level peace talks with the Russians were met with opposition from his own Cabinet as well as from a fearful, fumbling Eisenhower. Read this (and perhaps someday, Churchill's own multi-volume memoir of WWII) for a perspective on today's world situation and political intricacies. I wish the author had included photos from key events in the book rather than simply describing them; they would have greatly amplified the text.

Teacher Man

It's been a good while since I read Frank McCourt's Angela's Ashes and 'Tis, but it wasn't long into Teacher Man that I fell back into his style: lilting Irish, but all at once "in your face". The man who must write the longest sentences in modern prose describes his days as a high school English teacher, and a brief stint at the community college level, as well as a failed attempt at a doctorate degree at Trinity College, Dublin. The failures are many for McCourt, but he gives a glimpse of the triumphs as well in teaching teens to think and create. As a parent of a teen, I wish all teachers would spend more time teaching children at all levels of study to think and create, rather than to spew information on a standardized test.

Mistress of the Art of Death

A medieval mystery? Yes, and Mistress of the Art of Death delivers a great story, historically accurate details and gripping characters, all set in the 12th century town of Cambridge during the reign of Henry II the Plantagenet. Not being one to read murder mysteries, I started this one with caution, but was rewarded with a heroic leading lady rushing to solve grisly tortures and murders of children before another is snatched for a certain death. And a love story too? Oh yes. Twists and turns? Oh yes. Looking for Franklin's next book, The Serpent's Tale starring the same leading lady? A third, emphatic yes.