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A New York Tate of Mind
A New York Tate of Mind
In which this reader and explorer reviews books, muses on literary (and other) matters, and shares some of her adventures.

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My 1-5 rating system:
1 = I did not like it and would not recommend it.
2= It was fine. Read it if the subject matter interests you.
3 = I enjoyed it and would recommend it.
4 = I really liked it, and think you should read it!
5 = One of the best books I've read.
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tatedecaro
Feb 52 min read
Review: Black Star
4/5 stars Black Star , by Kwame Alexander (2024) TW: Racism, KKK activity, reference to a lynching This is a sequel to The Door of No...
7 views0 comments


tatedecaro
Nov 9, 20242 min read
Review: The Secret Book of Flora Lea
3/5 stars The Secret Book of Flora Lea , by Patti Callahan Henry (2023) London, 1939 - During the Blitz, as German planes bombed the...
7 views0 comments


tatedecaro
Jun 5, 20242 min read
Review: The Door of No Return
5/5 The Door of No Return, by Kwame Alexander (2022) TW: Violence, descriptions of the slave trade, mention of rape “Black history began...
42 views0 comments


tatedecaro
Apr 11, 20242 min read
Review: Night Wherever We Go
4/5 stars Night Wherever We Go, by Tracey Rose Peyton (2023) (I'm running way behind on posts, so you may get three notifications in...
13 views0 comments


tatedecaro
Mar 3, 20242 min read
Review: The Second Sight of Zachary Cloudesley
3/5 stars The Second Sight of Zachary Cloudesley, by Sean Lusk (2022) Zachary is born in London in 1754 to Abel Cloudesley, a renowned...
39 views0 comments


tatedecaro
Jan 16, 20243 min read
Review: Babel
2/5 stars Babel, by R.F. Kuang (2022) Oh, gosh. I dunno, guys. Am I just too weirdly picky about books? Or does the hype get me too...
99 views0 comments


tatedecaro
Oct 1, 20233 min read
Review: Horse
3/5 stars Horse, by Geraldine Brooks (2022) I'm a huge Geraldine Brooks fan - one of my all-time favorite books is People of the Book -...
976 views0 comments


tatedecaro
Sep 8, 20232 min read
Review: Everyone Knows Your Mother is a Witch
3/5 stars Everyone Knows Your Mother is a Witch, by Rivka Galchen (2021) Such a good title! This book is a work of fiction but based on...
37 views0 comments


tatedecaro
Aug 1, 20232 min read
Review: A Botanist's Guide to Parties & Poisons
3/5 stars A Botanist's Guide to Parties & Poisons, by Kate Khavari (2022) TW: Threat of rape This is a delightful, historical murder...
115 views0 comments


tatedecaro
May 23, 20231 min read
Review: Ghost Boys
3/5 stars Ghost Boys, by Jewell Parker Rhodes (2018) TW: gun violence, fatal police brutality, mention of lynching This is a middle-grade...
130 views0 comments


tatedecaro
Apr 3, 20233 min read
Review: Deaf Republic
5/5 stars Deaf Republic, by Ilya Kaminsky (2019) This past weekend I was fortunate enough to attend two of RIT/NTID's Big Read events,...
109 views0 comments


tatedecaro
Feb 1, 20232 min read
Review: The House Girl
4/5 stars The House Girl, by Tara Conklin (2013) This story is told in two alternating narratives: Josephine is a young slave girl (about...
42 views0 comments


tatedecaro
Jan 21, 20236 min read
Review: Code Name Verity series
3-5/5 stars Code Name Verity (2012), Rose Under Fire (2013), The Pearl Thief (2017), and The Enigma Game (2020), by Elizabeth Wein I had...
161 views0 comments


tatedecaro
Jan 11, 20233 min read
Review: Dictionary of Lost Words
4/5 stars The Dictionary of Lost Words, by Pip Williams (2020) For lovers of words - their history, how they're documented, and who...
714 views0 comments


tatedecaro
Sep 5, 20222 min read
Review: How High the Moon
3/5 stars How High the Moon, by Karyn Parsons (2019) It's 1943 and young Ella lives in South Carolina with her grandparents, and her...
159 views0 comments


tatedecaro
Jul 20, 20222 min read
Review: The Liar's Dictionary
3/5 stars The Liar's Dictionary, by Eley Williams (2020) You need to love learning about language and, more specifically, the etymology...
42 views0 comments


tatedecaro
Feb 19, 20221 min read
Review: Fifty Words for Rain
1/5 stars Fifty Words for Rain, by Asha Lemmie (2020) UGH. I'm so angry right now! Though it had it's flaws, I enjoyed this book... right...
162 views0 comments


tatedecaro
Oct 12, 20212 min read
Review: Conjure Women
3/5 stars Conjure Women, by Afia Atakora (2020) An impressive debut of historical fiction, the book is set on a large plantation in the...
56 views0 comments


tatedecaro
Sep 24, 20212 min read
Review: The Kingdoms
4/5 stars The Kingdoms, by Natasha Pulley (2021) Kingdoms is a very cool and complex Victorian-era/Georgian-era time travel book of...
42 views0 comments


tatedecaro
Mar 23, 20212 min read
Review: Out of Darkness, Shining Light
2/5 stars Out of Darkness, Shining Light, by Petina Gappah (2019) This is a book of historical fiction that tells the story of the people...
21 views0 comments

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