Take a daytime adventure to your local library or base library this month, and check out a new book to read.
The Happiest Man on Earth: The Beautiful Life of an Auschwitz Survivor by Eddie Jaku
Genre: Memoir
My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Format: Audiobook
Summary: I listened to the audiobook of The Happiest Man on Earth in one day while I was in bed with the flu. I tend to gravitate towards World War II historical fiction, but I also find Holocaust survivor memoirs incredibly interesting because they are varied and unique. My mind still can’t comprehend the atrocities that these people lived through and survived to tell their story. Eddie Jaku wrote this memoir as he turned 100. There are many things I hope to be doing in my later life, but I’m not sure if publishing a book at age 100 is on the list. Jaku saw himself as a German who was Jewish, so when he was taken into a concentration camp in 1938, surprise and shock were at the forefront of his mind. He spent time in Buchenwald and Auschwitz over the course of seven years and had an extraordinary tale to share, yet all while keeping happiness and joy front and center.
The Correspondent by Virginia Evans
Genre: Fiction
My Rating:⭐⭐⭐⭐
Format: Audiobook
Summary: The Correspondent, by Virginia Evans, is certainly taking the literature charts by storm, but it took me a little bit to get into this audiobook. I ended up giving it a four-star rating because of the sweetness of the story. We meet our elderly main character, Sybil Van Antwerp, who takes time out of her day to write and send snail mail to a variety of people, including family, authors, and college professors. This book was really just a breath of fresh air and a good reminder to slow down and participate in an art form that is being lost amid the rise of social media and technology. When was the last time you wrote a letter, and what did it uncover, if anything?
Rise of the Earth Dragon by Tracey West
Genre: Fantasy
My Rating:⭐⭐⭐⭐
Format: Paperback
Summary: It finally happened. My third son picked up a book about dragons. My older sons have shown no interest in the ever-popular dragon series, of which there are many these days. Still, my reluctant reader grabbed the Rise of the Earth Dragon off our bookshelf. It was the perfect catalyst to get him to read the story of our main character, Drake, a dragon master who goes to live in a castle where he will bond with a dragon and meet other dragon Masters and their dragons. This was a great introduction to a series with 30 titles. My son’s classmates started reading the books as well and formed a little club of their own, where they each created their own dragons. It was adorable! I love seeing him truly engaged in a fun story. These books were not super long, and became a great go-to bedtime story that we could read over the course of a week.
The Raft: The Courageous Struggle of Three Naval Airmen Against the Sea by Robert Trumbull
Genre: Fiction
My Rating:⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Format: Audiobook
Summary: Many years ago, I read the book Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand, and several things have stayed with me from reading it and watching the movie. One of which was the description of the sharks hitting the raft in open water. I was intrigued to read this story, The Raft, about three naval airmen who endured a crash landing and survived 34 days at sea in their raft. We are currently stationed near the Pensacola Naval Air Station, and the raft from this story is actually located at the Pensacola Naval Air Museum. I had a chance to view it a few years ago. When you think about three adult men surviving in this tiny raft in the middle of the ocean for so long, it truly is amazing to me. This is another quick-listen audiobook that I gave five stars.
The Magnificent Lives of Marjorie Post by Allison Pataki
Genre: Historical Fiction
My Rating:⭐⭐⭐⭐
Format: Paperback
Summary: If you are a fan of Marie Benedict’s historical fiction books, you will love The Magnificent Lives of Marjorie Post by Allison Pataky. I gave this book a four-star rating, and it took me a long time to read, as it was often my secondary go-to book, but I thought Marjorie Post was a fascinating person to learn about. She had many marriages. She was the air to the Post Cereal Company; she played a role in World War II; she was the original designer and owner of Mar-a-Lago; and she had a major influence on global affairs in the decades of her life across multiple countries and continents.
Looking for the links to all these wonderful books in one place? Check out The Military Mom Collective’s April Reads Amazon list! Disclaimer: We do receive a very small percentage of sales if you choose to purchase through these links.
