The Trumpster Fire Escape Almanac

I received a free copy of this book from Librarything's Early Reviewer's Club in exchange for an honest review. With just 84 pages, the book still manages to contain a wealth of information on how to relocate to another country. If Donald Trump has you thinking about leaving the U.S., this book is for you.

The publisher's summary: 

Donald Trump’s America feels less like the land of the free and more like a quickly spreading dumpster fire. If you’ve ever thought, “Maybe it’s time to think about getting out of the US…” this book is your roadmap to moving abroad.

The Trumpster Fire Escape Almanac blends biting political commentary with practical guidance for Americans considering living overseas. Part escape manual, part statistical almanac, it helps you answer the real questions about leaving America.

Where can I live without my blood pressure spiking at every headline? Which countries welcome expats with decent healthcare, affordable living, and functional democracy? How do visas, taxes, language, and safety stack up in 99 countries and nearly 500 cities worldwide?

What’s the difference between running away and choosing a better life?

With data pulled from the World Bank, CIA Factbook, UN, and more, this unique relocation guide offers both the facts and the comic relief you’ll need to plan your expat life. Whether you’re a retiree, a digital nomad, or just someone who can’t breathe through the smoke anymore, this book shows you how to scout, select, and settle into your new homeland.

There is alot of political anti-Trump commentary as well as practical advise for Americans looking to move abroad.  Topics covered include visas, healthcare, cost of living and safety from 99 countries. Most of this information is contained within two spreadsheets that the author created. 

The chapters are short making the book a fast read. The information the author provides is thorough. He gives all of the necessary considerations you need to know to plan an international move. I would say, though, that this information is just the starting point for the research that you must do in order to be fully prepared for your move.

The book was published in late October 2025 so the information inside the pages might be out of date. This will depend on which country you might consider moving to. If you are someone afraid of what Trump might do to you, this book is required reading. 5 out of 5 stars.

Daughters of Shangdong

The Daughters of Shangdong is Eve Chung's debut novel. It's a winner! This historical fiction novel is based upon the author's grandmother's experience in China. The story delves into her attempts to escape from China after the Communists won the civil war.

The publisher's summary: 

Daughters are the Ang family’s curse.

In 1948, civil war ravages the Chinese countryside, but in rural Shandong, the wealthy, landowning Angs are more concerned with their lack of an heir. Hai is the eldest of four girls and spends her days looking after her sisters. Headstrong Di, who is just a year younger, learns to hide in plain sight, and their mother—abused by the family for failing to birth a boy—finds her own small acts of rebellion in the kitchen. As the Communist army closes in on their town, the rest of the prosperous household flees, leaving behind the girls and their mother because they view them as useless mouths to feed.

Without an Ang male to punish, the land-seizing cadres choose Hai, as the eldest child, to stand trial for her family’s crimes. She barely survives their brutality. Realizing the worst is yet to come, the women plan their escape. Starving and penniless but resourceful, they forge travel permits and embark on a thousand-mile journey to confront the family that abandoned them.

From the countryside to the bustling city of Qingdao, and onward to British Hong Kong and eventually Taiwan, they witness the changing tide of a nation and the plight of multitudes caught in the wake of revolution. But with the loss of their home and the life they’ve known also comes new freedom—to take hold of their fate, to shake free of the bonds of their gender, and to claim their own story.

Told in assured, evocative prose, with impeccably drawn characters, Daughters of Shandong is a hopeful, powerful story about the resilience of women in war; the enduring love between mothers, daughters, and sisters; and the sacrifices made to lift up future generations.

This story is intense and emotional. Hai, Di and their mother went through so much trauma during these years it's amazing that they were able to forge a life for themselves afterwards. Hai almost died when Mao's guards grabbed her and denounced her among her neighbors. She was struck another of times and spent hours kneeling in the town square. She was an Ang and had to be punished for coming from a privileged family. The guards wanted to know where her parents and grandparents were because they were the real targets. Unfortunately, the family deserted her mother and sister and ran for safety from the Communists. Hai suffered lifelong pain from just this one experience.

Di was more adaptable and she handled the loss of food and shelter much better. However, their mother was stuck in the culture in which her grandmother was raised. She believed that she must be subservient to all of the men and elders in the family. Mom never was able to overcome this training she received from childhood. That said, Mom was incredibly resilient. Mom made sure her daughters would have good careers and husbands. That is what she fought for. The struggles of these ladies showcase the lengths that people will go through to be free. 

Along the way, the ladies lived with neighbors, refugee camps and in a box. They've used all the legal means available to them in order to travel to Taiwan. It took years.  Also, I learned alot about the adverse history between mainland China and Taiwan. The book is a good primer on their current relations. 

I loved this heart-wrenching story. I highly recommend the book and am rating it 5 out of 5 stars. I think it will be in my top ten books of the year.