Ben Hubbard knows how to tell a good story, and starting his book about MBS (Mohammed bin Salman, the current Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia) by conveying his tutor’s impressions of him […]
MBS by Ben Hubbard narrated by Robert Petkoff
Cynthia
Cynthia Sally Haggard was born and reared in Surrey, England. About 30 years ago she surfaced in the United States, settling in the Mid-Atlantic region as she wound her way through four careers: violinist, cognitive scientist, medical writer, and novelist.
In June, 2015, Cynthia graduated with an MFA in Creative Writing from Lesley University, Cambridge MA.
Her first novel, "Thwarted Queen," a frustrating tale (hence the title) of a woman who was nearly crowned Queen of England, was shortlisted for many awards, including the 2012 Eric Hoffer New Horizon Award for debut authors. To date, sales have surpassed 38,000 copies.
Her second novel, "Farewell My Life," a Cinderella-ish tale with not-so-charming princes who inhabit the edgy setting of 1920s and 1930s Berlin during the rise of the Nazis, won a Pinnacle Award for Historical Fiction (2019) and was a Distinguished Favorite for the 2019 New York City Big Book Awards.
Lawrence Durrell’s THE ALEXANDRIA QUARTET: JUSTINE, BALTHAZAR, MOUNTOLIVE and CLÉA
It is easy to see that Lawrence Durrell started life as a poet, for his prose is magnificent. But his strongest suit is his brilliant evocation of time and place, in recreating […]
Reading Sundays: THE NON-AFFAIR (Part 4) a short story by Cynthia Sally Haggard
He leaned across that huge desk as if to reach for my hand, but his arm lay on his side of the desk, his fingers hovering in the air, disconnected. He spoke […]
PICTURE PERFECT by Jodi Picoult, narrated by Brian Hutchison & Amanda Cobb
As a professional writer myself, I thoroughly enjoyed the way that Jodi Picoult began this tale. What better way to introduce a character and her situation by having her lose her memory? […]
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
May everyone find something to be thankful for during this very difficult year….
HARVESTING THE HEART by Jodi Picoult narrated by Cassandra Campell
Author Jodi Picoult writes with such empathy and this novel was well supported by Cassandra Campbell’s superb narration. Here is the tale of a young woman who marries up into a family […]
SONGS OF THE HUMPBACK WHALE by Jodi Picoult
Jodi Picoult’s debut novel is not a particularly easy read. It doesn’t help that we have FIVE point-of-view characters, and that one of those characters – teenager Rebecca Jones – is telling […]
Reading Sundays: THE NON-AFFAIR (Part 3) a short story by Cynthia Sally Haggard
And so our friendship began, with regular visits to the office hours he used to hold once a week for each class. It wasn’t hard for me to become his star student. […]
A fascinating account that explains today’s troubles: (AMERICAN NATIONS by Colin Woodard narrated by Walter Dixon
I don’t normally read non-fiction, but my husband raved about this book and so I picked it up. It was absolutely fascinating. Mr. Woodard’s thesis is that far from being a confederation […]
HAMLET’S MILL by Giorgio de Santillana & Hertha von Dechend
As many have noted, HAMLET’S MILL is not an easy read. It is written by scholars who are fluent in many languages (French, German, Latin and Greek) and because this was published […]
Graham Anderson’s FAIRYTALE IN THE ANCIENT WORLD
Did the familiar children’s fairytales of today exist in the ancient world? Were there ancient Cinderellas, Twelve Dancing Princesses, Sleeping Beauties and Pusses in Boots? The answer: Maybe. In FAIRYTALE IN THE […]
Readings Sundays: THE NON-AFFAIR (Part 2) a short story by Cynthia Sally Haggard
My parents had reluctantly granted my request to go to University, provided that I continue to live with them. When I’d finally gathered the courage in my first year to ask Father […]
BABYLON: Mesopotamia & The Birth of Civilization by Paul Kriwaczek
I found this book both fascinating and inspiring. As someone who is NOT an expert on Mesopotamia, but looking for background material for a possible forthcoming novel, I found this volume to […]
WHORE OF BABYLON by Azaria Frost
I really didn’t know what to expect when I picked up this book. I hated the title, but loved the cover (designed by the author herself.) One thing I was curious about […]
She could write…3,800 years ago (SHE WROTE ON CLAY) by Shirley Graetz
It is approximate 1,800 BCE. We are in the city of Sippar on the banks of the Euphrates in ancient Sumeria. In those days, people who needed to communicate wrote cuneiform characters […]
Reading Sundays: THE NON-AFFAIR (Part 1) a short story by Cynthia Sally Haggard
Spring Semester, 1960 By itself it was unremarkable, a boxy desk made of cheap materials with a fake wood veneer, a standard issue object that populated countless offices in college campuses. What […]
THE SHIELD RING by Rosemary Sutcliff
This is the story of the last stand (or shield ring) that the Vikings made (with their Saxon friends) against the Normans who’d conquered England in 1066, and now wanted to make […]
THE ORACLE by William J. Broad
William J. Broad’s THE ORACLE is a fascinating look at the science behind the Delphic Oracle. Blending ancient history, recent modern history and the scientific disciplines of anthropology, geology and archeology, the […]
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