Author Archives: J D Jung

The Club of True Creators – Milan Tripkovi

(Reviewed by JD Jung) “We aren’t criminals! We are authors whose works your children will study in Serbian language classes one day. We are the architects of some of the most refined literary achievements ever committed to the Serbian tongue. … Continue reading

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An UnderratedRead Revisited: Girl From Rostov – Shitij Sharma

(Reviewed by JD Jung) “Everything adds up. Every second, every lie, every breath. In the end, it all catches up with you.” “Even if you have little to do with it. Family, for instance.” That’s what young Maya had to … Continue reading

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An UnderratedRead Revisited-Pancakes in Paris: Living the American Dream in France (Culinary Memoir for Francophiles and Foodies) – Craig Carlson

(Reviewed by J.D. Jung) “I spoke of my favorite city and how beautiful it was…How all it needed was an American breakfast joint, and then it would be perfect!” Former Hollywood screenwriter, Craig Carlson, wanted to live his dream and … Continue reading

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An UnderratedRead Revisited-Aiming High: How a Prominent Sports and Celebrity Agent Hit Bottom at the Top – Darren Prince and Kristen McGuiness

(Reviewed by Heidi A. Swan) “At 15 years old, my love for baseball became a million-dollar baseball card business. By my late teens, I had turned my hobby into a successful memorabilia company. By the time I was 25, I … Continue reading

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The Pursuit of Happiness: How Classical Writers on Virtue Inspired the Lives of the Founders and Defined America – Jeffrey Rosen

(reviewed by JD Jung) “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness” is a well-known phrase in the United States Declaration of Independence. But what did the “pursuit of Happiness” mean to the founding fathers? American legal scholar, Jeffrey Rosen uncovers … Continue reading

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An UnderratedRead Revisited: Shades: Detroit Love Stories – Esperanza M. Cintrón

(Reviewed by JD Jung) It’s the 1960s and we follow two women into a bar who just want a diversion from the hardships of everyday life. From there, Shades draws us in and takes hold of us through the entire … Continue reading

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An UnderratedRead Revisited: They Got Daddy: One Family’s Reckoning with Racism and Faith: Sharon Tubbs

(Reviewed by JD Jung) “This story would reveal parts of who I am, as a Black woman in America, by discovering who my grandfather was.” This was not her original intention though. She wanted to learn more about her grandfather’s … Continue reading

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Safe: A Memoir of Fatherhood, Foster Care, and the Risks We Take for Family – Mark Daley

(Reviewed by Jay Gendron) Mark Daley takes us through a courageous, heartbreaking journey in Safe: A Memoir of Fatherhood, Foster Care, and the Risks We Take for Family. This book serves as an indictment of the foster care system in … Continue reading

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Goldenseal – Maria Hummel

(Reviewed by JD Jung)   Lacey and Edith, ages seventy and seventy-one respectively, have been estranged for forty-four years. It’s now 1990, and Edith decides to travel across the country to visit her one-time best friend. Lacey, born in Prague, … Continue reading

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An UnderratedRead Revisited:The Blue Is Where God Lives – Sharon Sochil Washington

(Reviewed by JD Jung) “If Satan is successful, the family’s history will end with the blue baby girl.” It is currently 2008, and Blue (referenced above) is grieving the murder of her daughter. She questions God’s existence, which leads her … Continue reading

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