Reviewed by Asher Syed for Readers' Favorite

A Cup of Tea on the Commode by Mark Steven Porro is the memoir of Hollywood dream-chaser Mark and his unwavering commitment to caring for his ailing mother, Genevieve. Mark reflects on a childhood shaped by Catholicism and recounts his initiation into caregiving with humor. Discussions include family traditions, unique culinary experiences, conmen, and the family's heritage. The difficulties seem endless, particularly with contentious hired aides and legal hurdles. Mark ultimately transitions to full-time caregiving, providing insight into daily routines, the evolving dynamics of family, and even the impact of Hurricane Sandy. Mark also battles uphill with his own health and a personal life that humorously details events like his experience with long-distance relationships. When it comes time to say goodbye, Mark looks back on his time with his mother, the unique ways individuals grieve, and the challenges of facing the end of a long journey with loved ones.

A Cup of Tea on the Commode by Mark Steven Porro is a funny, loving, and lovely tribute to the passing of a beloved mother and the time the author, her son, was given to spend with her as her caregiver. Mark writes in a comfortable and conversational style that allows a reader to feel like they are chatting with a friend over coffee. The result is a connection to the work and the people in it that is hard to come by in memoirs written by or about people most readers do not know or know of. I loved Mark's skillful injection of humor into difficult situations, such as his mother's relentless search for discarded cheese labels during a family reunion. The comical scene of Mark and his brothers feigning collapse as Genevieve points her accusing finger is hilarious, and the anecdote involving his nephew's reaction to the chaotic scene adds to its levity. There is an intentional thoughtfulness to Mark's narrative structure and in making connections, like birthdays, and the gradual progression from joyful celebrations to the somber acknowledgment of his mother's limited time. Overall, this is a beautifully told story that will likely prove comforting to others on similar journeys. Very highly recommended.

Reviewed by Nino Lobiladze for Readers' Favorite

Ryan is not content with the quality of his life. He refuses to continue pretending that he is successful. His career in pharmaceutical marketing starts to suffocate him. His marriage ends in divorce. Ryan becomes desperate and battles dark thoughts. Then, he decides to change his life fundamentally. Raised in the rural parts of New Jersey, Ryan remembers the excitement of being free in the wild. He quits his job and accepts the challenge of the Appalachian Trail, which is more than two thousand miles long. Ryan hikes from Georgia to Maine, meets many incredible people, and ruminates over his life choices. Wander by Ryan Benz appeals to fans of memoirs, adventure, and inspirational literature.

Ryan Benz's Wander is an engaging story of overtaking self-imposed limitations. Ryan is very honest with himself and his readers throughout the book. He openly speaks about his mistakes and describes his misfortunes on the trail with sparkling humor. Ryan's first encounter with a bear gives us chills and makes us smile at the same time. The author's sense of humor is contagious, and the wisdom he shares is priceless. "I was comfortable with the illusion," says Ryan about his old life. The author's experience on the Appalachian Trail shows that such a journey is not for the faint-hearted and requires enormous willpower at every stage. I appreciated Ryan's stories about the people called "trail angels," like the hospitable Linda, whom he met in Hartford, Vermont, and vivid descriptions of the natural wonders the author observed along the way. Also, Ryan raises awareness of cystic fibrosis, gently nudging us toward a better understanding of those battling it.

Reviewed by Joe Wisinski for Readers' Favorite

Just Fireworks by Nader Barrak is an account of the Lebanese Civil War as seen through the eyes of a child who was almost three years old when the war began. He describes what it was like to be in the middle of the warring factions, never knowing if or when an attack from one side or the other would occur near his home. The author went through many horrendous experiences, including the kidnapping of his father, who was held in captivity for three months, and a stray bullet that literally went through his mother’s hair. In addition to being a behind-the-scenes account of the war, the book is a history of Lebanon and the surrounding area. There are numerous photos and maps throughout that help readers understand the history of the war. An epilogue consists of a timeline of Lebanon from 1990, when the civil war officially ended, through 2022.

Anyone interested in history should read Just Fireworks. But beyond its value as history, this compelling book will teach its readers just how terrible war is and why it must be avoided. Additionally, although the accounts of the war are horrifying, they are must-reads for anyone who wants to understand the history of Lebanon and nearby countries. The photos are fascinating too. Readers won’t find them in many other accounts of the Lebanese Civil War. I learned more about Lebanon and the surrounding area just by reading this book than I knew up to this point in my life. Author Nader Barrak is a fine writer, and his passion for telling his story shows through on every page. I can see this book as required reading in a high school or college course about Middle Eastern history. I highly recommend it to anyone.

Reviewed by K.C. Finn for Readers' Favorite

Of Dirt and Wildflowers: A Memoir On Growing the Courage to Bloom is a work of non-fiction in the autobiographical, memoir, and inspirational writing subgenres. It is best suited to the general adult reading audience and is penned by Kylee J. Marshall. In this heartfelt memoir that takes us on a powerful emotional narrative, we follow Marshall’s struggles with self-confidence and self-image. We see how she blossomed and grew through exploring her narrative and dreams for the future. In this way, she shows us how we can plan for growth as we navigate the different seasons of our lives.

Kylee J. Marshall's unique narrative style grips you from the off in this tender work, which is part memoir and part inspirational guide to life. Everyone has struggles in their sense of self and path toward a better future, and Marshall writes in such an engaging and soothing way that it feels like a wise old friend is sitting you down for a heart-to-heart. I enjoyed the flow of the work, and the vignettes and anecdotes from her life were well-balanced and framed in an engaging way to expand them into poignant life lessons and points for action. The idea of ending perfectionism caught my attention, and those wise words around the subject will stay with me for a long time after setting the book down. Overall, I recommend Of Dirt and Wildflowers as a deeply engaging read for fans of memoirs who want to be inspired for their next steps in life.

Reviewed by Jamie Michele for Readers' Favorite

In her memoir Diary of 66: The Night I Burned Alive, Alexandra Furnea recounts her painful journey following the 2015 Colectiv Club fire in Bucharest, where she details the inadequate medical care, mistreatment, and systemic failures she lived through. She survived when dozens of others did not, but this was only the beginning. Despite initial reluctance, she shares her story to expose the flaws in the Romanian medical system. Enduring excruciating pain and dehumanizing treatments, she reflects on the loss of her former self and the challenges of rehabilitation. Furnea highlights moments of resilience and support from loved ones even as rampant neglect and corruption rankled within the healthcare system. Even after horrific setbacks and dismissiveness from medical professionals, she persists in seeking justice and better care for burn victims, shedding light on the systemic abandonment they endured upon their discharge from the hospital and the aftermath and collapse that followed.

Diary of 66 is an incredible memoir and Alexandra Furnea describes everything she experienced in clear, horrifying detail. I'm quite ashamed to say that it was not a tragedy I had much exposure to in the United States, but the gravity of it is substantial and resonates across Europe even today. I read a lot of memoirs, and Furnea's is among the best and most engrossing I have read this year. What makes this book so beautiful, even in light of all that had happened, is that Furnea demonstrates empathy and compassion toward herself and others who have suffered similar fates. In her writing, she uses metaphors that show a deep understanding of pain and trauma with lines like, "The stories their intricate designs tell are no longer only of pain and destruction, but also of redemption, and the latter have multiplied, with every surgery that succeeded and every kindhearted human being who healed instead of harming." Stories like Furnea's are the ones that need to be told so that what happened is amplified to the point that it never, ever happens again. Very highly recommended.

Reviewed by K.C. Finn for Readers' Favorite

Bike Riding in Kabul: The Global Adventures of a Foreign Aid Practitioner is a work of non-fiction in the memoir and cross-cultural writing subgenres. It is best suited to the general adult reading audience and was penned by Jamie Bowman. In this revealing and fascinating work, we discover what it means to work in legal consultancy on an international scale. Attorney Jamie Bowman’s amazing life experiences have taken her to some of the world’s most dangerous and complex countries, from Kosovo to Rwanda and everywhere in between. This memoir offers tales from some of the most unusual cross-cultural experiences, but also a deep insight into the dedicated work Bowman does in putting a stop to corruption and encouraging reform.

Jamie Bowman holds nothing back in this detailed, heartfelt, and emotionally open memoir about the thrilling and rewarding – but also sometimes nerve-wracking – world of consultancy. The work has a really clear focus on bringing together the culture shock elements of an American working abroad with the challenges of being an attorney, and especially a female attorney, in places where sentiments of freedom, justice, and honesty are not as we expect them to be in the western world. I enjoyed the fact that we also saw the softer side of Jamie’s life with her supportive partner and had an insight into how she decompresses to put such stressful situations aside when she returns to ‘normality’ in her life. I would highly recommend Bike Riding in Kabul as a must-read to fans of work-based memoirs, but also those who are fascinated by international legal issues and cross-cultural viewpoints on the modern USA.

Reviewed by Maria Victoria Beltran for Readers' Favorite

Ivy Lodge: A Memoir of Translation and Discovery by multi-linguist and professional translator Linda Murphy Marshall is a unique memoir triggered by the death of the author’s parents. Returning to Ivy Lodge, her childhood home in the Midwest, with her siblings to sort out the family’s belongings, she tries to make sense of her life. Going through the objects in each room brings back childhood experiences that she now translates, looking for signs and subtexts as it relates to her relationship with her family and her life. What follows is an exciting recollection that starts on the day the family moved to Ivy Lodge in 1960. Ivy Lodge is a regal-looking Tudor home with an impressive façade, but its walls hide the dysfunction of a middle-class family that seems perfect from the outside.

Linda Murphy Marshall’s Ivy Lodge: A Memoir of Translation and Discovery is a captivating journey into the author’s past. Written in the first person point of view, it is a deeply personal and honest account that captures the reader’s heart early on. While we accompany the writer in sorting out the contents of Ivy Lodge, we also experience and relive the emotional impacts of the moments as they are recalled. This book is a masterpiece of social observation and self-scrutiny. It is a translation of the snapshots of the author’s life woven together by the debris of a difficult family past. It is about the lessons the author has learned from re-creating her personal story that she now shares with her readers. Highly recommended.

Reviewed by Gordon D. Durich for Readers' Favorite

Inside Passage: A Memoir is a story told by an unwitting young gypsy, Keema Waterfield. In this memoir set in Alaska, the author tells of traveling with her free-spirited twenty-something mother on the folk music festival circuit. Dealing with the fallout from her absent pot-dealing pa, she is enmeshed in the past belonging to her mother. Joining the adventures and the misadventures a-la-Anchorage circa 1980 are colorful characters - musicians, drinkers, and more. Waterfield wants a home. Instead, she is forced to endure a lifestyle of unpredictability and insecurity.

Keema Waterfield’s touching and moving memoir Inside Passage is a vivid work. Reminiscent of a Mark Twain tale, with its unique wild setting and colorful real-life characters, I enjoyed it. Her beginnings in an Alaskan trailer gave her material for a riveting storytelling opportunity. And it worked. Growing up in unusual and remote Alaska would not be everyone’s idea of bliss. Having traveled to Alaska, I could visualize the setting, although that was in greater comfort. I love the notion of a freeform existence, and know a fellow artist and writer who travels the country living in his van called “Bertie.” My late mother-in-law Louise lived a similar bohemian lifestyle and the book reminded me of her. It made me wonder what it would be like to live in such an unconventional way. Music played by guitar, cello, and fiddle can almost be heard in the background. It would make for a wonderful audiobook.

Reviewed by K.C. Finn for Readers' Favorite

Lost In Beirut: A True Story of Love, Loss and War is a work of non-fiction in the memoir subgenre. It is aimed at mature readers and was penned by author team Ashe Stevens and Magdalena Stevens. The book follows Ashe Stevens, an actor on the rise in early 2000s America, who accepts an invitation to visit his dear friend Danny who is working in Lebanon. The trip takes a turn for the fateful when a conflict breaks out that traps Ashe in a deadly warzone. His only hope is to make it to the Syrian border but dangerous threats are waiting at every stage of the journey.

Memoirs live and die based on the willingness of the author to be vulnerable with their reader, whether they can truly and honestly share a painful part of themselves and allow the world to see it. In this work, we see such a willingness from the dynamic duo of Ashe and Magdalena Stevens, who openly share the painful and profound parts of the story in equal measure and in doing so create an unforgettable journey through danger and spiritual enlightenment. The real-life conflict experienced through the events of the story provides a powerful backdrop to the author's journey of self-discovery as the real world outside the safety of Hollywood prompts them to grow in important and powerful new directions. Overall, Lost In Beirut takes the retelling of a painful experience for the author and uses it as an opportunity to shine a light on some of the more beautiful aspects of the real world, telling a tale as it does so that will inspire readers to go out and get to know themselves better.

Reviewed by Viga Boland for Readers' Favorite

Today, as a grandmother, my memories of how my two daughters tried my patience and drove me to despair when they were squabbling, misbehaving youngsters have grown dim. As I read Keri Williams’ memoir But, He Spit in my Coffee, I couldn’t help but wonder if I would say that if my child-raising days were even remotely close to Keri’s. This memoir about adopting a child, Devon, with Reactive Attachment Disorder, is eye-opening, but almost as chilling as a horror novel…except this story isn’t fiction. When Keri and her husband, Delano, who already had other young children, decided to adopt a pair of siblings, looking at 3-year-old Devon’s sweet face, they had no idea that behind his captivating smile was a child who had experienced neglect, possibly abuse, and separation during the critical stages of his development in the first three years of life. As he grew, Devon’s behavior became more uncontrolled and manipulative. His violent outbursts, which Keri eventually learned were “rages”, not mere “tantrums”, proved dangerous to his adopted siblings, classmates, and Keri herself. Keri wanted to believe, like her mother and others, that all Devon needed was lots of love. But love alone was far from a cure because while “…it’s possible for children with RAD to heal, most will continue to have some personality and relationship issues into adulthood.”

Though Devon’s behavior was appalling, what was even more appalling were the attitudes of other adults…Keri’s husband, mother, hospital personnel, even therapists…to what Keri was experiencing daily. While she was falling apart at the seams as she tried to cope between work obligations and keeping her other children and herself safe from Devon, she was made to feel like a bad, incompetent mother. She was also guilt-ridden with shame for almost hating Devon, for wanting to lash out at him in response to his rages toward her and others. If nothing else, He Spit in My Coffee is a strong cautionary message to those thinking of adopting. As the author points out in her epilogue, she and Delano jumped into adopting “heart-first”, but because children with RAD “don’t know how to be in a healthy relationship, they feel safer pushing people away.” 

Since adoptive parents don’t already receive training and support for dealing with developmental trauma, too many of these RAD children end up in treatment centers that “are virtual incubators for violence, churning out angry, dangerous young people.”
Keri Williams has written this important memoir in an easy-to-read style, initially taking readers gently from the earlier happier days when Devon was still little. But as Devon grows and becomes more violent, Williams’ writing becomes hard-hitting and in-your-face, much like Devon’s behavior, making her story delivery that much more unforgettable. If it’s true that children are our future, and if you, like Keri and her husband, are thinking of adopting, you MUST read this memoir. Being forewarned is fore-armed. Consider yourself warned as both readers and future adoptive parents.