Discover the true essence of Teddy Roosevelt in “The Old Lion,” a novel by Jeff Shaara that captures the President’s persona, manners, & vulnerabilities

The Books of Jacob is a superb masterpiece. In my humble, layperson’s opinion, the book is in the same class as Tolstoy’s War and Peace.

This is a book which is meant for discussion and dissection. There’s a lot of discovery, both on the road and in the characters’ growth throughout the story.

I loved how the author incorporated scenes from The Little Prince into the narrative, allowing Saint-Exupéry to build his classic over the years

Richard I, “Lionheart”, takes his vows seriously including the one to free Jerusalem from Salah-a-Din. He leaves his kingdom with his armies to the holy land.

Pictures of real American circus scenes from the first half of the century peppered throughout the book which really hit home and helped visualize the narrative

The female characters are drawn very nicely, but the males seemed to be a bit flat . That’s too bad because Xerxes, Mordechai and Haman are fascinating

Mr. Atkins breaths life into these characters, George is not the hard nosed gangster we all thought he was, but a big lug who likes the Sunday funnies