Indianapolis by Lynn Vincent and Sara Vladic

 Started: 2/16/2021

Finished: 2/27/2021

Year: 2018

Pages: 578

Genre: Military Non Fiction

Grade: A

Type: hardcover

Reason for reading: Goodreads.com giveaway

Blurb (from book jacket): "Just after midnight on July 30, 1945, days after delivering the components of the atomic bomb from California to the Pacific Islands in the most highly classified naval mission of the war, USS Indianapolis is sailing alone in the center of the Philippine Sea when she is struck by two Japanese torpedoes. The ship is instantly transferred into a fiery cauldron and sinks within minutes. Some 300 men go down with the ship. Nearly 900 make it into the water alive. For the next five nights and four days, almost three hundred miles from the nearest land, the men battle injuries, sharks, dehydration, insanity and eventually each other. Only 316 will survive.

"For the better part of a century, the story of USS Indianapolis has been understood as sinking tale. The reality, however, is far more complicated-and compelling. Now, for the first time, thanks to a decade of original research and interviews with 107 survivors and eyewitnesses, Lynn Vincent and Sara Vladic tell the complete story of the ship, her crew, and their final mission to save one of their own."

Opinion: Wow. I'm not usually a reader of military books and not even sure why I entered the giveaway other than because the USS Indianapolis is the boat that is discussed in Jaws during one of my favorite scenes. I didn't expect to enjoy this as much as I did. Very compelling stories from the survivors and about bs that the US Navy did to one of its own.

It by Stephen King

 Started: 9/16/2019

Finished: 2/16/2021

Year: 2016 (this edition)

Pages: 1153

Genre: Horror

Grade: B+

Reason for reading: reread after the new movies.

Type: Paperback

Blurb (from back cover): "To the children, the town was their whole world. To the adults, knowing better, Derry, Maine, was just their home town: familiar, well-ordered, a good place to live. It was the children who saw-and felt-what made Derry so horribly different. In the stormdrains, in the sewers, It lurked, taking on the shape of every nightmare, each person's deepest dread. Sometimes It reached up, seizing, tearing, killing...

"The adults, knowing better, knew nothing. Time passed and the children grew up, moved away. The horror of It was deep-buried, wrapped in forgetfulness. Until the grown-up children were called back, once more to confront It as It stirred and coiled in the sullen depths of their memories, reaching up again to make their past nightmares a terrible present reality."

Opinion: I enjoyed both the TV miniseries and the new movies. I read this several years ago and decided to reread it after I watched the new movies. Surprisingly, my brain pictured the miniseries instead of the new movies when rereading it. Definitely worth the reread.

The All-Girl Filling Station's Last Reunion by Fannie Flagg

 Started: 2/3/2021

Finished: DNF

Year: 2014

Pages: 347

Genre: Southern Literature

Grade: F

Type: Trade Paperback

Reason for reading: bookcrossing.com book

Blurb (from back cover): "Mrs. Sookie Poole of Point Clear, Alabama, has just married off the last of her daughter and is looking forward to relaxing with her husband, Earle. Then, quite by accident, Sookie stumbles on a secret about her mother, the formidable Lenore Simmons Krackenberry-a discovery that suddenly calls into question everything she ever thought she knew about herself. Sookie begins a search for answers that takes her to California, the Midwest, and back in time to the 1940s, when an irrepressible woman named Fritzi takes on the the job of running her family's filling station. As Sookie learns about the adventures of the girls at the All-Girls Filling Station, she finds new inspiration for her own life."

Opinion: Again I have tried a Flagg book and hated it. It is just something about her character Sookie that makes me want to throw the book across the room-or at least reach into the book and smack Sookie for being so over the top annoying. I gave it just over 100 pages and said nope, I have over 400 other books in my house to read....NEXT.

With You Always by Rena Olsen

 Started: 1/29/21

Finished: 2/3/21

Year: 2018

Pages: 339

Genre: Literature/suspense

Grade: B-

Reason for reading: Goodreads.com giveaway

Type: ARC

Blurb (from back cover): "In the wake of a painful breakup and struggling to provider herself at work, Julia feels adrift. When Bryce blows into her life, he seems like the perfect anchor. Handsome, charming, secure, and confident, Bryce brings out the best in Julia, sweeping her off her feet with attention and affection while grounding her with his certainty and faith. Together they embark on a path guided by the principles of his family and their church, each step a paving stone leading to happily ever after.

"But this is no fairy tale.

"Step by step, one small concession leading to another, Julia is slowly isolated from her job, her friend, and her family, until she comes to find that her dream come true is a cage. Then one day everything changes...and Julia is faced with no choice but to find a way out."

Opinion: Great way of describing how one can get caught up in a cult/abusive situation but the ending was rushed. And the solution was too quick after all of the rest of the book. Throughout reading it, I kept shaking my head at the naivety of Julia.