Category: books

Epoch Booklist: Recommended Reading for Aug. 12–18

This week, we look at an engaging history of battlefield medicine and a must-read by a “horse whisperer” who uses horse sense to train leaders. Fiction A Victorian Thriller ‘By Gaslight: A Novel’ By Steven Price In this trans-Atlantic Victorian-era thriller, Detective William Pinkerton, son of the famous American detective, is in search of the man…


Book Review: ‘Percy St.-John and the Chronicle of Secrets’: Thieves and Monks, Angels and Demons, Make for a Fun YA Novel

E.A. Allen has written a fun and intriguing young-adult (YA) novel in “Percy St.-John and the Chronicle of Secrets,” which appears to be the first in a series. The story follows a young teenage protagonist, Percy St.-John, from tragic son to heroic thief. The YA novel follows the general path of initial tragedy, much like…


Book Review: ‘Tales From the Queen of the Desert’: A Beautifully-Written Travelogue

Admittedly, the first I heard of Gertrude Bell was from watching the 2015 biographical film “Queen of the Desert,” starring Nicole Kidman. I was enchanted as was Kidman with Bell’s character. A fiercely independent woman, Bell decided to leave her comfortable life as a debutante in Victorian London and take to the desert. It was…


T.S. Arthur’s Short Story: ‘Dressed for a Party’

Just as a mirror reflects how we see ourselves, so what we wear signals to others how we want them to think about us. Every time we decide on how to dress and what to wear, we choose to either hide behind the superficiality of dress or complement our inner selves by our outward adornments….


Book Review: ‘At the Gates of Rome: The Fall of the Eternal City, AD 410’

Don Hollway has followed his debut book, “The Last Viking: The True Story of King Harald Hardrada,” with an absolutely fascinating read: “At the Gates of Rome: The Fall of the Eternal City, AD 410.” Hollway has shown himself to be a true storyteller in the realm of history, and in this new book, he…


Something for Summer Reading: ‘The Prisoner of Zenda’ by Anthony Hope

This “spirited and gallant little book,” as Robert Louis Stevenson called it, is gloriously upbeat, unafraid to take a positive, unapologetic stance on the side of virtue and valor. The best summer books remind people of the warm spirit of optimism that makes life refreshing and exciting. “The Prisoner of Zenda,” written in 1894 by…


Epoch Booklist: Recommended Reading for Aug. 5–Aug. 11

This week, we look at a lively overview of England’s formative years and their impact, and a biography of a U.S. frontiersman and peacemaker. Fiction Revisiting the Glory Days ‘Bleachers’ By John Grisham This is a different book than what we might expect from the law-drama king. Grisham takes readers on a walk down memory…


Book Review: ‘Let My People Know: The Incredible Story of Middle East Peace—and What Lies Ahead’

The Abraham Accords were truly some of the most important Middle East peace negotiations since Israel became a nation in 1948. With a mainstream media that is anything but conservative and blatantly against the now former Trump Administration, it is little surprise that the epochal 2020 treaties between the UAE, Bahrain, Sudan, and Morocco, and…


Book Review: ‘The Last of the 357th Infantry: Harold Frank’s WWII Story of Faith and Courage’

There is no shortage of books on World War II due, primarily, to the fact that there is no shortage of great World War II stories. The story of Harold Frank is one of those great stories. Mark Hager’s book “The Last of the 357th Infantry: Harold Frank’s WWII Story of Faith and Courage” is…


Book Review: ‘Think Like a Horse: Lessons in Life, Leadership, and Empathy From an Unconventional Cowboy’

I have an affinity for horses. While I haven’t owned one, I’ve ridden, taken lessons, fallen, and hope, after a number of years, to be in the saddle again atop a faithful mount. One of my friends here in Virginia, Shari Goodwin, owns several horses. As a horsewoman of more than 25 years, she has…