Underrated Reads

The Ones Who Don’t Say They Love You: Stories – Maurice Carlos Ruffin

Posted on December 8, 2022 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by JD Jung) #CommisionsEarned “In New Orleans, culture doesn’t come down from on high, it bubbles up from the street.” - Jazz Pianist Ellis Marsalis (1934-2020) This quote that opens the book epitomizes these stories, as we meet New Orleans residents of all ages and gender identifications just trying to make it day by day.…

Posted in Short stories | Tagged gentrification, New Orleans, poverty, race relations, society | Comments Off

Uncle Charlie Killed Dutch Schultz: The Jewish Mob: A Family Affair – Alan Geik

Posted on December 4, 2022 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by Don Jung) #CommissionsEarned There are a lot of family histories out there to read about, but this one is different. While Alan Geik’s parents were not directly in the mafia, many of their relatives and friends he met growing up were gangsters. This is an amazing story of the East Coast Jewish, Irish,…

Posted in Bios and Memoirs, History, Non-fiction, Reviewers' Top Picks | Tagged Crime, gangsters, Mafia, Prohibition, WWII | Comments Off

American Refuge: True Stories of the Refugee Experience – Diya Abdo

Posted on November 25, 2022 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by JD Jung) “When refugees leave, it is rarely, if ever, happy. And it is never something they choose to do. Their bodies, finding no other way to survive, split themselves from their souls, wave goodbye to them, on the fragile hope that soon, they will meet again.” Dr. Diya Abdo knows this firsthand…

Posted in Immigration, Reviewers' Top Picks, World Issues | Tagged immigration, Interviews, refugees, resettlement | Comments Off

Hold the Line: The Insurrection and One Cop’s Battle for America’s Soul – Michael Fanone and John Shiffman

Posted on November 17, 2022 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by JD Jung) “What sort of American tries to overthrow democracy? What kind of man becomes so consumed by a false belief that he drives across the country, storms the Capitol, and assaults police officers?” Those are pressing questions from Metropolitan Police Dept. (MPD) Officer Michael Fanone, who was almost killed by rioters as…

Posted in Bios and Memoirs, Non-fiction, Reviewers' Top Picks | Tagged insurrection, January 6, law enforcement, police brutality, PTSD | Comments Off

Tower of the Sun – Tomihiko Morimi (Translated by Stephen Kohler)

Posted on November 13, 2022 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by JD Jung) #CommissionsEarned “Even if the tides of time take to trumpeting tender togetherness, should we not remain alert to the dangers of praising love? Love is irrational. It is a dark passion that swirls in the depths of the human heart. Though we dress it in sweet words, at the end of…

Posted in Far Eastern Literature, Humor & Satire, World Literature | Tagged humor, love, self-awareness | Comments Off

An UnderratedRead Revisited: A Pocketful Of Confidence: Self-help for the confidence-challenged – Nancy Lombardo

Posted on November 10, 2022 by J D Jung

(Review and poem by Betty Jo Tucker) #CommissionsEarned A helpful book to live by, folks. filled with secrets and even jokes. “A Pocketful of Confidence” Includes great tips that make good sense. Easy reading and lots of fun Your life will change when you are done. Your self-confidence will increase. And shyness stopping you should…

Posted in Revisited | Tagged psychology, self-awareness, self-help | Comments Off

An UnderratedRead Revisited: Here, Right Matters: An American Story – Alexander Vindman

Posted on November 5, 2022 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by JD Jung) #CommissionsEarned “Regardless of any impact on the president, the domestic and foreign policy consequences, or personal costs, I had no choice but to report what I’d heard. That duty to report is a critical component of U.S. Army values and of the oath I’d taken to support and defend the U.S.…

Posted in Revisited | Tagged Donald Trump, ethics, immigration, impeachment, military, Russia, Soviet Union | Comments Off

An UnderratedRead Revisited: Pastels and Pedophiles: Inside the Mind of QAnon – Mia Bloom and Sophia Moskalenko

Posted on November 2, 2022 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by JD Jung) #CommissionsEarned “In a short four years, QAnon metastasized from a fringe movement on anonymous message boards into a cultlike movement, with millions of followers around the world…and practically seized control of the Republican Party.” What actually is QAnon? How has it been able to attract followers from all socioeconomic and educational…

Posted in Revisited | Tagged conspiracy theories, psychology, QAnon, terrorism | Comments Off

An UnderratedRead Revisited: Mygale (City Lights Noir)-Thierry Jonquet (translated by Donald Nicolson Smith

Posted on October 30, 2022 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by JD Jung) Ah, revenge can be so sweet. Now mix it with obsession and a touch of madness, and it turns utterly twisted and bizarre. Such is the case with the intense and fascinating novel, Mygale, written by the late French crime novelist Thierry Jonquet. Richard Lafargue, a successful, well-respected plastic surgeon carries…

Posted in Revisited | Tagged Crime, French noir, horror, Paris, revenge | Comments Off