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A. Hall & Co. by Joseph C. Lincoln
Avatar: The Last Airbender: The Search, Part 3 by Gene Luen Yang
Binky Takes Charge by Ashley Spires
Blockhead: The Life of Fibonacci by Joseph D'Agnese
The Brontë Sisters by Catherine Reef
Can You Count to a Googol? by Robert E. Wells
The Chairs Are Where the People Go by Misha Glouberman
Constable and Toop by Gareth P. Jones
The Disappearing Spoon by Sam Kean
Dishwasher by Pete Jordan
Ghost Knight by Cornelia Funke
Going Postal by Terry Pratchett
Home Front Girl by Joan Wehlen Morrison
I Am John I Am Paul by Mark Tedesco
Ichiro by Ryan Inzana
The Legend of Korra: The Art of the Animated Series by Michael Dante DiMartino
Linoleum, Better Babies, and the Modern Farm Woman, 1890-1930 by Marilyn Irvin Holt
Little Bo in Italy by Julie Andrews Edwards
Little Fish: A Memoir from a Different Kind of Year by Ramsey Beyer
Mary-'Gusta by Joseph C. Lincoln
The Notorious Benedict Arnold by Steve Sheinkin
On the Beach by Nevil Shute
The Salaryman's Wife by Sujata Massey
Silent Visions by John Bengtson
Specials by Scott Westerfeld
Squid and Octopus Friends for Always by Tao Nyeu
A State of Change: Forgotten Landscapes of California by Laura Cunningham
Suite Scarlett by Maureen Johnson
The Unusual Suspects by Michael Buckley
Varjak Paw by S.F. Said
The View from the Top by Hillary Frank

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Comments for I Am John I Am Paul

I Am John I Am Paul: 03/26/14

cover art

I Am John I Am Paul by Mark Tedesco is a short historical fiction that recreates in modern, accessible language, the life and times of Ionnes Fulvis Marcus Romanus and Paulus. They were Roman soldiers from the 4th century who forged a life long friendship.

Told from John's point of view, we follow his life as a Roman soldier as he is shipped across the empire, desiring only to stay close to his family and his friend Paul. As a lifer he is shipped to all the different corners, including a lengthy and frustrating stay in Egypt.

Although the book was pitched as a gay novel that didn't strike me as the overt point. It's really more about life in the military and the problems of poor leadership, hazing among the ranks, and the same sorts of themes you'd see in any contemporary war novel. That's not to say there's nothing between the two men, it's just understated. Really the relationship can be read between the lines but it's not out there, screaming for the reader's attention.

Three stars

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