Story of a couple in England who face the unravelling of their marriage. I'm Jim McKeown , welcome to Likely Stories, a weekly review of fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and biographies. I always look forward to reading the first novel of a new, young writer. Hellen Cullen wrote her debut novel while in an English novel writing program. She has an MA in theater studies from the University College Dublin. She also has a journalism and broadcasting background. Born in Ireland, she currently lives in

Another amazing adventure with surprises, treachery, and suspense by Peter Heller I’m Jim McKeown , welcome to Likely Stories, a weekly review of fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and biographies. Peter Heller is a relatively new writer, and The River is his fourth novel. Of the three I have read, I thoroughly enjoyed the suspense and the thrills. Peter Heller has an MFA from the Iowa Writer’s Workshop in poetry and fiction. He lives in Denver Colorado. Jack and Wynn are college buddies who decided

A tangled story of two families, intertwined by divorce and marriage I'm Jim McKeown , welcome to Likely Stories, a weekly review of fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and biographies. Numerous individuals have urged me to read something by Ann Patchett. But I could not uncover some special character or an interesting idea to grab onto. I decided to forgo my Rule of 50 as a test of the efficacy of that rule. Commonwealth is Patchett’s tenth novel. According to the dust jacket, Ann Patchett has

A story of Korean women who dive in dangerous waters to gather food A few years ago, our book club read Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See. That novel told a story of the horrific practice of “foot-binding.” Several others followed along similar lines. (more)

Exhaustive tour through the libraries in the Ancient world from Gilgamesh to the Romans

Mystical story of a young girl obsessed with finding out about her father

Novel by one of the great writers of the 20 th century

Heartfelt novella of a man dealing with his conscience

Exciting story of a white child kidnapped by the Kiowa tribe.

Sweeping novel of the new world open to explorers trying to make a fortune in timber.