June 2015 Book Report

Stephania (1953) by Ilona Karmel

Stephania is a hunchback whose spine started curving while she was in a concentration camp and unable to get medical treatment. After the war, she went to a hospital in Stockholm to see if her back could be straightened. Her room mates at the hospital were a woman recovering from a badly broken leg and a teenage girl suffering from polio. The 3 women become close in the course of a year, but it’s proven that nothing will help Stephania.

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Davy Crockett (1955) by Stewart H. Holbrook

From the YA section of the library. A good little biography. Naturally, I read it with the image of Fess Parker in my mind.

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The Girls on the 10^th Floor (1958) by Steve Allen

What great bunch of short stories! I’ve always admired Steve Allen. He was an incredibly intelligent man. Good writer!

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The Illyrian Adventure (1986) by Lloyd Alexander

The first book in a series for YA readers. Vesper Holly is a female teenage Indiana Jones. Very intelligent; absolutely fearless; good little diplomat. Vesper and her guardian try to prevent civil war between Illyria and Zenta.

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A Solo in Tom-toms (1946) by Gene Fowler

Great autobiography of the author and his childhood in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Wonderful read. It was such a different time in this country. Some of the great western legends were still alive. Definitely makes me want to get more of Fowler’s books.