A staff pick and a beautifully written short book by poet Aimee N. While not poems, the short stories written about flora and fauna are poetic in nature. The author picks specific subjects that have meaning in her life and intertwines scientific facts with stories about her family as well as about world issues. The stories about the Potoo and the Octopus were favorites.

I love how Jeanne Birdsall makes very exciting twists and I also love how she makes the characters grow up it not all at once. She is an amazing author and I think everyone should red her first novel the Penderwick

It was fine, though not this author’s best. The characters never cohered, but the climactic moments were exciting.

I liked this one more than the first book in the series. I like Jane and Jimmy’s alternate chapters. The ending was open ended and I think there will be another book in this series which I am looking forward to reading.

A charming premise that delivers a quietly satisfying read. The characterizations are tender, and the heart of the book, rather than plot.

The author harkens back to the time where actors and actresses were king and queen and movies were all the rage right before the horrors of World War II. This book, which I hope is the first in a cozy series, takes place during the filming of Hitchcock's famous movie Rebecca. The plot revolves around a young Hollywood script supervisor, Evelyn Galloway, who finds herself embroiled in a mystery surrounding the murder of an actor from the studio she is working at. With the help of her room mate and others actors, she finds herself in an adventure that evokes the time and place of the early 1940's. I had seen Rebecca a few times previously and now after reading this "behind the scenes" (albeit fictional portrayal of Hitchcock and the main actors), I want to see it again. The mystery has a great ending and Evelyn then accept a job working on another Hitchcock movie, The Foreign Correspondent, so I hope that means there will be a followup. Likeable characters and very interesting plot. I found myself googling various people and events in the story to gain more insight. A fun read overall!

The Penderwicks in spring deserves 5 stars because the author made it so interesting for the reader and heartfelt to the reader

Set in the mid-1990s, this novel felt both of its time period and timely for today: then, the early popularilty of the Internet, and today's similar feeling around AI. Jane grew up in an isolated, off-the-grid cabin in Montana with her father. She knows little of the outside world, just that her mother died in a car crash and they used to live in the California Bay Area. But as she gets older she wants to know more, and she starts to question her dad's teachings and ever-more-disturbing actions. Technology vs. nature; isolation vs. society; innocence vs. knowledge — this book is suspenseful, poignant, and a great read.

A fun, light romance. It was a cute read. A few moments that kind of took me out of the storyline, but overall I enjoyed it for what it is.

Heartbreaking, heartwarming, funny, sad, charming, poignant—this book hits many emotions. Fredrik Backman knows people, and his characters are multi-dimensional, complex, and charming. The book is a story within a story, as the retelling of one remarkable summer for four teenage friends is shared during a train ride. Chance encounters, special connections, and the power of good friendship, especially during teenage years. Highly recommend.