Pachinko Book Review

4.5 stars out of 5 stars

Read synopsis here.

Review:

Having read Pachinko by Min Jin Lee a few years back, I remembered that I enjoyed it but couldn’t remember the details as it has been awhile. I was glad to re-read this book to see if I liked it as much as the first time around.

I must admit, the second time around was better!! Not sure if it was because I listened to the book this time around. My hectic life with the kids has meant that I do a lot of audio books rather than reading the book physically. Regardless, I gave Pachinko and extra 1/2 star from last time.

Here’s what I loved about the book:

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Pachinko Book Club Discussion Questions

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Discussion Questions:

1.Did you know what Pachinko was before you read the book?

2. Pachinko is a popular gambling machine in Japan. Why do you think the book is call Pachinko? What does the title of the book relate to?

3. What was your initial reaction to the book at the beginning? Did it pull you in right away or did it take time to hook you?

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Small Great Things Book Review

Book Review by Dinh.

5 out of 5 stars

Read synopsis here.

Review:

My interest was piqued on reading the blurb on the book jacket of Jodi Picoult’s book Small Great Things. It looked like it will be a thought-provoking book!

I have read a couple of Picoult’s book so I know she’s a decent writer and familiar with her style of writing.

Did Small Great Things live up to my expectation? Yes it did!

Here’s what I loved about the book:

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Small Great Things Book Club Discussion Questions

Read synopsis here.

Discussion Questions:

1. The title of the book, Small Great Things is adapted from Dr. Martin Luther King’s speech “If I cannot do great things, I can do small things in a great way.” What does that mean? What does the characters do to show this?

2. The book is told in three people’s perspectives- Turk, the white supremacist, Ruth, the Black nurse, and Kennedy, the public defender. Did you enjoy reading these three points of view? Did it enhance your reading experience and the book?

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The Storied Life Of A. J. Fikry Book Review

Book review by Dinh.

3.5 Stars

Read synopsis here.

Review:

I was looking forward to reading The Storied Life Of A. J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin. The book jacket gave the hint of a promising read. I do like to read books in which the main character transform or blossoms by the end of the book!

This is my first book by this author so I didn’t really know what to expect going in. The hardback book was only 258 pages which is on the shorter side of a novel I usually read. On the plus side, it would be a quick read, however it did make me wonder if Zevin was able to pull off a good story.

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The Storied Life Of A. J. Fikry Book Club Discussion Questions

Read synopsis here.

Discussion Questions:

1. At the start of the book, A. J. has lots of preferences on books that he will read or not read but by the end of the book his preferences changed. What happened to make him change his preferences? Do you have specifics that determine what types of books you read?

2. A. J. is a bookseller and the book pays homage to books, with references to books throughout the novel. Have you read any of the books or authors mentioned in the novel? (James and the Giant Peach, Alex Cross series, The Book Thief, Anne of Green Gables, A Little Princess, Case Histories, Bel Canto, The Awakening, Tess of the d’Urbervilles, Cloud Atlas etc.) Did you enjoy reading all the literary references? Why? Which ones did you like the most?

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The Extraordinary Life Of Sam Hell Book Review

Book review by Dinh.

5 out of 5 stars

Read synopsis here.

Review:

The Extraordinary Life Of Sam Hell by Robert Dugoni has recently become a popular read because of recommendations through word of mouth. It was published in 2019 and now lots of people are reading it and recommending it.

This is the first book I have read by Robert Dugoni so I didn’t know what to expect going in. He is known for his crime thrillers and is a prolific writer so I assume his writing would be good.

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