Tess' Trip Across the 50

Always wanted to read more broadly, both in and outside of the U.S. This will help me chart my cause. I will only start tracking books I read in 2021.

Alabama

Alaska

Arizona
Sing Down the Moon

Arkansas

California
A Dead Red Heart Modesto
The Mark of the Loon
Of Mice and Men
The Day of the Locust
Move Over, Darling
Who Gets the Drumstick

Colorado

Connecticut

Delaware
Thin Rich Bitches

Florida
Ninety Two in the Shade Palm Beach

Georgia
Ward Allen: Savannah River Market Hunter

Hawaii

Idaho
Her Final Words

Illinois
Ordinary People (Forest Lake)
To Sleep with the Angels: A Story of Fire (Chicago)

Indiana
The Legend of Mickey Tussler: A Novel

Iowa
When I Was You

Kansas

Kentucky
The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek

Louisiana

Maine

Maryland

Massachusetts
Wickett's Remedy Boston
Dark Tide: The Great Boston Molasses Flood of 1919
The Shape of Mercy Salem
In The Heart of the Sea primarily Nantucket
The Mayflower Compact
Of Plimouth Plantation

Michigan

Minnesota

Mississippi

Missouri

Montana

Nebraska Nebraska
The Rim of the Prairie
Zoo Nebraska: The Dismantling of an American Dream
Mother Mason

Nevada

New Hampshire

New Jersey
American Pastoral

New Mexico
The Narrative of the Texan Santa Fe Expedition
Down the Santa Fe Trail and into Mexico

New York
Patience and Sarah Greene County
Flesh and Blood New York City
Rosemary The Hidden Kennedy (Bronxville)
Life with Father (Madison Avenue)
The Battle with the Slum

North Carolina
Miss Julia to the Rescue

North Dakota

Ohio
The Pioneers

Oklahoma

Oregon
Primordial Earth (Portland Zoo)

Pennsylvania

Rhode Island

South Carolina

South Dakota
The Personal History of Rachel DuPree: A Novel
Badlands
Peder Victorious
Hunting Trips of a Ranchman: Sketches of Sport on the
Northern Cattle Plains (Medora)

Tennessee

Texas

Utah
Educated: A Memoir

Vermont
Midwives

Virginia
Baby Tramp (Blackburg)

Washington Washington
This is My Lemonade: An Adoption Story (at least 50%
takes place in Washington)

West Virginia

Wisconsin
Drowning Ruth

Wyoming
One for the Blackbird, One for the Crow

Washington DC
Mrs. Lincoln's Dressmaker
What is Life Worth?

South Dakota: Peder Victorious by O.E. Rolvaag is a coming of age immigrant narrative. When I began reading, I had no idea that this is book two of a trilogy. Now that I've read book two, I can just about guess the story in book one and book three, which I'm not going to read--not because this book was bad, but it was also not stellar. This particular book focuses its attention on Peder, the son of a Norwegian immigrant, who is straddling the line (forced by his mother, a first generation immigrant) between retaining the "old ways" and becoming assimilated. There are many conflicts, of which the largest one in this book is that of religion. This story is set in South Dakota, where there was/is a large settlement of Norwegian immigrants. In the end it seems that author has tied up everything with a nice ribbon! 325 pages

New York: Flesh and Blood by Thomas Cook was a New York City murder mystery with its origins in the 1930's.

Idaho: Her Final Words by Brianna Labuskes was billed as a psychological thriller, but not so much.

North Carolina: Miss Julia to the Rescue Humorous 60 something lady comes to the rescue of those for whom she cares. 4 1/2 stars 304 pages

Arizona: Sing Down the Moon by Scott O'Dell. Story of the forced immigration of Navajos from their tribal lands to Ft. Sumner. 124 pages

Iowa: When I Was You by Minka Kent-a psychological thriller set mainly in po-dunk Iowa.

Nebraska: Mother Mason by Bess Streeter Aldrich. Daily life in small town Nebraska.

Ohio: The Pioneers by David McCullough Settlement of the Ohio River Valley, Marietta to be specific.

California: The Mark of the Loon by Molly Greene mystery

>5 Tess_W: I like your concise summaries, especially this one. I set out to write brief reviews, but they never stay that way. I can't even keep this reply short!

>11 Tess_W: Thanks, Tess, for your recent post. I have neglected, indeed forgotten about this challenge. I’ll need to go over my list of read books and add them to my list.

>12 ritacate: TY I have limited myself to 1-2 sentences here. This isn't my "main group", so these are minimized reviews.

>13 marell: YVW

Illinois-To Sleep with the Angels: A Story of Fire by David Cowan was the tragic non-fiction read of the fire at Our Lady of Angels school in Chicago in 1958.

California--Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck. Set during the great depression in California.

New Mexico-The Texas Santa Fe Expedition by George Kendall.

Washington DC (for the most part) Mrs. Lincoln's Dressmaker by Jennifer Chiaverini. 384 pages 4*

California-The Day of the Locust by Nathanael West 160 pages 2.5*

New Mexico--Down the Santa Fe Trail and into Mexico Most of the action took place in New Mexico.

New York: Rosemary The Hidden Kennedy. The family spent more time (in this book) in New York than Mass, so I'm posting to New York.

Virginia- Baby Tramp a short story by Ambrose Bierce.

New Jersey (for the most part) American Pastoral by Philip Roth

Georgia- Ward Allen: Savannah River Market Hunter by Jack Cay.

Washington DC What is Life Worth? by Kenneth Feinberg This was a non-fiction read that explained the difficult process that was derived at for compensating the victims of 911. Feinberg was asked by President Bush to head a committee to disburse the millions of dollars in relief money to the families of victims. Oh my, he ran into some unsolvable problems and was hailed as both a hero and a demon. There was no right or wrong side to this process; it was all just very personal and I understand that each person thought they had suffered more than the next. 241 pages 4 stars

New York Life with Father by Clarence Day
California Move Over, Darling
California Who Gets the Drumstick
South Dakota Hunting Trips of a Ranchman: Sketches of Sport on the Northern Cattle Plains

Massachusetts In the Heart of the Sea about the sinking of the whaleship Essex. They set sail from Nantucket, end up in Nantucket and the last few chapters take place in Nantucket, so I'm basing this book in Massachusetts.

Massachusetts: The Mayflower Compact by the Pilgrim Fathers

New York: The Battle with the Slum by Jacob Riis-NF

Wyoming: One for the Blackbird, One for the Crow by Olivia Hawker.

Oregon: Primordial Earth by Baileigh Higgins

Mass: Of Plimouth Plantation by William Bradford