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Karen Z

Karen Z

has 132 followers and is following 136 people

I just wrote my first book last year about my dad and me right after he died called "My Funny Dad, Harry." I am married to Gerard, a wonderful husband, and have two cats, Spunky Doodle and Manny (they have blogs on http://karen.pnn.com (Cat Corner-MEOW section). I love teaching a 5th grade boys Sunday School class and am on the puppet team at... more »
  • Parma (suburb of Cleveland), OH, USA
  • member since February 9, 2008

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Displaying 1-10 of 531 reviews
  • The Violets of March
    • Rated 4 stars

    "The Violets of March" by Sarah Jio is a very interesting romance novel with mystery as well. It’s about a successful New York author who is recently divorced and goes to visit her aunt Bee at her beach house in Bainbridge to get away and think things through. While there, she discovers a diary about a woman’s similar experience to hers and gets drawn into trying to piece the bits and pieces together about her grandmother’s story.

    I liked this book because it is not predictable from the start like many romance novels are. I didn’t understand what drew men to her like bees to honey, but it kept my interest all through. It’s about following your heart and knowing your true love will last forever. I enjoyed this light and entertaining read. If you like romance novels, I highly recommend it!

    Karen Z wrote this review 5 days ago. ( reply | permalink )
  • Through My Eyes
    • Rated 2 stars

    I enjoyed the first half of Through My Eyes by Tim Tebow about his background. I learned that he was homeschooled and didn't know that homeschoolers could still play on school teams, but he did. I liked reading about his training and his work ethic. He has two older brothers and lived on a farm. About halfway through the book though, he goes into specific games and gives a play-by-play narrative which I found boring after awhile and quit reading it to move to something more interesting. I suppose if you are really into the nuts and bolts of football, you would enjoy it. I expected to read more about his off the field experiences, but there was only a little about that.

    Karen Z wrote this review 8 days ago. ( reply | permalink )
  • Fragile
    • Rated 5 stars

    Fragile by Lisa Unger is a good contemporary fiction novel about a missing teen girl, Charlene, that brings back memories for a lot of people about another missing girl who was found dead years before. The story takes place in a small town near New York City where people generally live out their entire lives and know each other very well since they grew up together, but still manage to keep secrets. There are many interesting characters in Fragile who are connected through past events. Ricky’s girlfriend turns up missing and his dad, the police detective, heads up the investigation that conjures up some guilty feelings from his past when he let an innocent teen confess to a murder he knew the kid did not commit.



    There are so many aspects this book hits that makes it an excellent choice for a book club to discuss—friendship, parenting teens, suicide, rape, ethics and young love.


    Fragile is not action packed, but rather delves into ethics and the consequences of actions. I liked how once the mystery was solved, the book didn’t end there, but continued to reveal more to the characters about the past and have the father-son relationship healed. I recommend this if you like books about relationships and family dynamics.

    Karen Z wrote this review 11 days ago. ( reply | permalink )
  • Shelter
    • Rated 4 stars

    "Shelter" by Harlan Coben is a teen mystery that three high school students solve. There are a lot of surprises along the way and mysterious characters. Although Mickey’s dad resigned from an organization that rescues children so his son could have a normal life through high school; Mickey finds himself drawn into it unexpectedly when he tries to save his girlfriend from harm. This was an interesting read that moved along quickly for me but seemed a bit far-fetched and not very believable.

    Karen Z wrote this review 2 weeks ago. ( reply | permalink )
  • Time Cat
    • Rated 2 stars

    "Time Cat" by Lloyd Alexander is a children's book, but I don't think it's one children would like very much. It is fantasy and the cat talks a little bit but not a lot. It's about time travel. The cat and Jason, the boy who owns the cat, travel back in time to different countries in Jason's dream. They have different adventures with historical events and people. I didn't care much for this one, but if you like history and travel, you might enjoy it.

    Karen Z wrote this review 2 weeks ago. ( reply | permalink )
  • The Off Season
    • Rated 3 stars

    The Off Season by Catherine Gilbert Murdock is the second book in the Dairy Queen series about a family who owns a small Dairy farm in Wisconsin. The story is told through the eyes of D.J., a 16-yr.-old girl who leaves the farm to be with her older brother, Win, who gets a spinal cord injury playing college football. The story involves being friends with people no matter what others think and not letting the opinions of others stop you from living.

    My favorite part of the book is when D.J. gets through to Win to make him care about getting better by letting him coach her in basketball at the gym and the rehab center. I look forward to reading the last book of this trilogy, Front and Center.

    Karen Z wrote this review 2 weeks ago. ( reply | permalink )
  • Unwind
    • Rated 5 stars

    "Unwind" by Neal Shusterman is a fascinating and disturbing YA novel about recycling body parts. This is carrying transplants to the extreme by making it legal for parents to sign a paper turning the kid over to be unwound if they are a troublesome teen, or the tenth child in the family which is a tithe, or if an orphanage/state home is too crowded. The “unwinds” are brought to a “Harvest Camp” where they cut up the teens in their “Chop Shop” and use their different body parts in other people. Most of the story is how the three teens, Connor, Risa and Lev, who were signed over for different reasons to be unwound fight for survival and work together. This is such a good book because of the different characters and how they interact with each other. It is really interesting to see how Connor matures along the way and how Lev learns to be street smart. I absolutely loved the ending!

    Karen Z wrote this review 3 weeks ago. ( reply | permalink )
  • Toes
    • Rated 3 stars

    TOES is a children's book, 5th grade level, about a black cat with seven toes on each paw. His litter mates don't accept him so he leaves home and finds a musician to live with. The cat is very intelligent and helps the man achieve his dream. I did not like the sad ending at all. Other than that, I enjoyed the fast fun read.

    Karen Z wrote this review 3 weeks ago. ( reply | permalink )
  • Dairy Queen
    • Rated 4 stars

    This is a story about D.J., a 15-yr.-old girl who helps with the family Dairy Farm in Red Bend, Wisconsin, and has a love for football. She used to play with her two older brothers and gets sucked into helping Brian Nelson, the good-looking quarterback of her school's arch rival team, train over the summer. As she gets to know him, she gets to like him. He is shocked and feels betrayed though when he finds out she will be playing against him!

    Teaser: "But if I made the Red Bend football team, it would mean I wasn't a cow. That's what I'd been struggling with ever since Brian showed up." p. 131

    This is a fun read about a girl and her self-esteem issues. I enjoyed learning some about Dairy farming, the whole football aspect of the book, and how D.J. learns that communication is so important. There is enough included about her family and friends to make this realistic fiction. I look forward to reading the sequel.

    Karen Z wrote this review Monday, January 16, 2012. ( reply | permalink )
  • Shatter Me
    • Rated 3 stars

    This is a fast-paced teen science fiction romance that kept my interest. I thought it was sort of a strange book because Juliette, a teen, has some super power of being able to kill people she touches although the book never explained why her power is only effective with certain people but not others. I didn't understand that part. I liked the adventure parts where Adam and Juliette ran away together from the asylum but didn't care for all the strikeouts throughout the book. I found them to be distracting. Maybe that was the idea of them, I'm not sure.

    Overall, I think the theme is to realize you are unique and accept yourself. At the beginning, Juliette has been confined for a long time in solitary and is feeling very depressed. Then gets a cell mate who she recognizes from her past and is nice to her because he's always liked her but pretends he doesn't know her. Eventually she becomes hopeful for a future and a happy life ever after. If you like teen romance with a twist, I recommend this one.

    Karen Z wrote this review Saturday, January 14, 2012. ( reply | permalink )
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Displaying 1-10 of 531 reviews