TBD Teacher

Judi Holst Teaching By Design....Teaching Buttheads Daily...Tortured But Determined...Tiny Bit Dorky...Totally Brain Dead...Too-busy Disorder. You can decide what the TBD stands for. I'm a middle school teacher who has been teaching for 28 years. Visit judiholst.com

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Everything Was Beautiful and Nothing Hurt by Ben Reeves / My 5-Star Book Review

I don’t deal well with death. In fact, I usually avoid books and movies where I know the main character, especially if it’s an animal, is going to die. That’s exactly why I almost skipped Everything Was Beautiful and Nothing Hurt by Ben Reeves. Then I read a review that said this novel actually made the reviewer feel better about death. That one sentence stopped me in my tracks. If a book could…

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The Teacher's Pet by M.A. Hunter Book Review: A School Thriller That Kept Me Guessing

I spent more than thirty years in education, so it’s hard for me to resist a psychological thriller set in a school. That’s exactly why I read The Teacher’s Pet by M.A. Hunter. You just know there are going to be buried secrets, unreliable characters, and a setting that feels familiar. 3/5 stars ★★★☆☆ Click to buy on Amazon or read the summary for this book. Genre: Psychological…

The Teacher's Pet by M.A. Hunter Book Review: A School Thriller That Kept Me Guessing

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A Dead Draw by Robert Dugoni: A Suspenseful Tracy Crosswhite Mystery | Book Review

I’m a huge fan of Robert Dugoni’s writing, so there was no way I was going to let the fact that I’d never read a Tracy Crosswhite novel stop me from picking up A Dead Draw. I’m happy to report that I never felt like I was playing catch-up. Add in competitive shooting, my favorite character who is on the autism spectrum, and a suspenseful game of cat and mouse, and I’m so glad I picked up this…

A Dead Draw by Robert Dugoni: A Suspenseful Tracy Crosswhite Mystery | Book Review

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Natalie Barelli's The Housewife: Secrets and Thrills Unveiled

I just read The Housewife by Natalie Barelli, a psychological thriller, about a woman who uses flawless deep-cleaning and cooks like Julia Child to cover up her dark past. If keeping a secret requires keeping a spotless house and creating creme brulee at a moment’s notice, I’d rather just be totally honest at all times. While I wouldn’t hang out with the main character, Jodie, for a single…

Natalie Barelli's The Housewife: Secrets and Thrills Unveiled

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Alan Opts Out by Courtney Maum Review: A Funny Look at Suburban Life, Consumerism, and Starting Over

I married a guy who loves the outdoors. Camping? Sure. Rowing? Absolutely. Hiking? Definitely. Spending a weekend without wi-fi? Easy-peasy. But moving into the playhouse in our backyard? That would be the moment I’d wonder if he was having a midlife crisis. In Courtney Maum’s Alan Opts Out, that is exactly the kind of leap that Alan Anderson takes in this book. It’s a modern satire about…

Alan Opts Out by Courtney Maum Review: A Funny Look at Suburban Life, Consumerism, and Starting Over

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The Children by Melissa Albert: Read with Jenna Book Review

Can you imagine being two kids featured in your mother’s famous books, with everyone around the world loving you? And yet, in reality, you are actually just two neglected children left to survive the dark Vermont woods while your artsy parents rarely pay attention to you? Melissa Albert’s adult debut, The Children, takes sibling trauma to center stage. Real-life brother and sister Guinevere and…

The Children by Melissa Albert: Read with Jenna Book Review

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Liberty Street by Heather Marshall - Book Review

If you have ever sat in a middle school classroom, you know that eye-rolling, slammed doors, and general defiance are an everyday occurrence. After reading Liberty Street by Heather Marshall, I learned that “incorrigible behavior” could get a teenage girl or an adult woman thrown in Toronto’s notorious women’s prison until the 1960’s for a minimum of six months and up to two years. Can you…

Liberty Street by Heather Marshall - Book Review

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Beach Thriller by Jamie Day Review: A Story of Sisterhood, Sadness, and Suspense

When it comes to thrillers, I love a good plot twist. What really gets me interested and hooked, though, is the emotional impact of a character’s story. In Beach Thriller by Jamie Day, Holly Sinclair walks back into her beach house where her sister was murdered twenty years ago. This broke my heart and made me pull for her from the very start. I thought this was going to be a beachy mystery,…

Beach Thriller by Jamie Day Review: A Story of Sisterhood, Sadness, and Suspense

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The Last Time We Drowned by Saratoga Schaefer: White Lotus Meets Below Deck

A luxury yacht. Elite influencers. Endless parties. Big money. Doesn’t sound all bad, right? As soon as I saw the main character was a ‘Bookstagrammer,’ I knew I had to dive into The Last Time We Drowned by Saratoga Schaefer. It begs the question: If you were invited to join this elite inner circle and make a life-changing amount of money, would you step on board? Even if you knew everyone on…

The Last Time We Drowned by Saratoga Schaefer: White Lotus Meets Below Deck

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Good Joy, Bad Joy by Mikki Brammer | Book Review

Rule #1 of senior citizen rebellion: No one ever suspects the sweet, little old lady. In Mikki Brammer’s brilliant new novel, Good Joy, Bad Joy, you are taken on the coming-of-age voyage full of beautiful life lessons. The funniest, however, is that it’s never too late to break a few rules (and maybe a few laws) to find out who you really are. 4/5 stars ★★★★☆ To read the summary of the book 📍…

Good Joy, Bad Joy by Mikki Brammer | Book Review

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Does Katherine Center’s The Shippers Sink or Swim?

The banter? Incredible. The hero? I would totally hang out with him. The main character’s decision-making? Yikes. Today I’m reviewing The Shippers by Katherine Center. I am a fan of Katherine Center, but this high-seas rom-com proved to be a bit of a bumpy ride for me. Here’s why it didn’t quite live up to her previous books that I loved, and why I’m still going to buy her next book anyway. 3/5…

Does Katherine Center’s The Shippers Sink or Swim?

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Why The Anniversary by Alex Finlay Captivates Readers

For most of us, an anniversary is something to celebrate. A special moment in time each year. But for Jules and Quinn in The Anniversary by Alex Finlay, May 1st is an anniversary date that is stamped in trauma. By having the reader check in on them every May 1st for ten years, Finlay turns the concept of “anniversary” into a haunting, psychological thriller. 5/5 stars ★★★★★ To read the summary…

Why The Anniversary by Alex Finlay Captivates Readers

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Mad Mabel by Sally Hepworth: An Unforgettable Grumpy-Granny Mystery

It seems like every neighborhood has that one person whom everyone has determined is crazy. (In my neighborhood, it was the old woman who turned her sprinkles on us every time we had to retrieve a ball from her yard.) But was she really crazy? In Mad Mabel by Sally Hepworth, Elsie Mabel Fitzpatrick is an 81-year-old woman who is fiercely independent, hilariously blunt, and also the youngest…

Mad Mabel by Sally Hepworth: An Unforgettable Grumpy-Granny Mystery

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Leave Your Mess at Home by Tolani Akinola: Exploring Family Dynamics

Every family is a mess. But when you’re the child of immigrants, that mess is often pressurized by the weight of a thousand expectations. Tolani Akinola’s Leave Your Mess at Home takes four siblings, one Thanksgiving table, and decades of ‘don’t tell our secrets’ to show what happens when the pressure cooker finally explodes. 4/5 stars ★★★★☆ To read the summary of the book Genre: Fiction From…

Leave Your Mess at Home by Tolani Akinola: Exploring Family Dynamics

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Upward Bound by Woody Brown: A Searing Masterclass in Neurodiversity and the Power of the Unspoken Voice

In a world that often mistakes silence for a lack of intelligence, Upward Bound by Woody Brown is a masterclass in proving the skeptics wrong. Walter, the novel’s witty and sarcastic protagonist, is desperate to be heard—and though he cannot speak a single word, his voice is the sharpest one in the room. This is a “must read” in the “Read With Jenna” category. 4/5 stars ★★★★☆ To read the…

Upward Bound by Woody Brown: A Searing Masterclass in Neurodiversity and the Power of the Unspoken Voice

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Judge Stone by Viola Davis and James Patterson: My Verdict

I’ve reached a verdict. Judge Stone by Viola Davis and James Patterson is a quality courtroom drama that deals with a timely topic. It’s evident that people will talk about this book for a while. 4/5 stars ★★★★☆ To read the summary of the book Genre: Courtroom drama, Fiction From the publisher: #1 New York Times Bestseller!Academy Award winning actress Viola Davis and the world’s #1…

Judge Stone by Viola Davis and James Patterson: My Verdict

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Why Kate Quinn’s The Astral Library Smells Like Nostalgia (and 4-Star Magic)

How many of you can still recall the smell of the library you went to when you were young? I can picture the whole place, and I would know the smell in a heartbeat. It’s the place that helped to create my love of reading. What if that library could help you live in the books that you are reading? Which book would you visit? The Astral Library by Kate Quinn makes you think this could actually be a…

Why Kate Quinn’s The Astral Library Smells Like Nostalgia (and 4-Star Magic)