Stoningham Connecticut |
Thursday, March 25, 2021
Review of The Shadow Box by Luanne Rice
Thursday, March 18, 2021
Where the Blind Horse Sings - Book Review
Tuesday, March 16, 2021
Canada Reads Book List 2021
I thought I would give you a brief review of the Canada Reads program and the books that were nominated this year. It was interesting to learn a bit about each of the books and consider adding them to my reading list. Obviously since I have not read them, I cannot personally vouch for them though I can give you a brief description, share the official Canada Reads book trailers, and, at the end, tell you the name of this year's winner. I might help to know that these books have often been nominated for other literary awards.
Here we go, the nominated books for 2021 under the theme 'One Book to Transport Us'.
BUTTER HONEY PIG BREAD BY FRANCESCA EKWUYASI
Butter Honey Pig Bread transports the reader from Lagos to London to Halifax. It is the story of three generations of women from Nigeria, a mother and her estranged twin daughters. The mother "believes that she is an Ogbanje, or an Abiku, a non-human spirit that plagues a family with misfortune by being born and then dying in childhood to cause a human mother misery. She has made the unnatural choice of staying alive to love her human family but lives in fear of the consequences of her decision." This book is about food and family and forgiveness, about choices and consequences, and about friendship and faith.
Rated 4.3 out of 5 by Amazon readers and 4.4 out of 5 by Goodreads readers.
Writing on The Suburban author Meredith says that this book "ended up being her personal favourite to win the 2021 competition. It was a book that she simply didn’t want to put down and a story that she didn’t want to end."
Here's the official Canada Reads book trailer:
TWO TREES MAKE A FOREST: IN SEARCH OF MY FAMILY'S PAST AMONG TAIWAN'S MOUNTAINS AND COASTS
The author uncovers letters written by her immigrant grandfather that take her from Canada to her ancestral home in Taiwan where she searches for her grandfather's story while learning about the land that he grew up on. She hikes and bikes and swims. She learns about the mountains and the flatlands, the flora and the fauna. She discovers the similarities between natural stories and human stories that created her family and this island. The book is about the world of nature but it also looks at the colonial exploration of Taiwan. It "encompasses history, travel, nature, and memoir."
Rated 4.1 out of 5 by Amazon readers and 3.6 out of 5 by Goodreads readers.
The reviewer on Bomb says, that this book is "A remarkable exercise in careful attention, be it to the nuances of language, the turns of colonial history, or a grandfather’s difficult-to-read handwriting, Two Trees Makes A Forest is a moving treatise on how to look closely and see truthfully, even as the fog rolls in."
Here's the official Canada Reads book trailer:
THE MIDNIGHT BARGAIN BY C.L. POLK
Rated 4.3 out of 5 by Amazon readers and 4.2 out of 5 by Goodreads readers.
Colleen Mondor on Locus says, "The witty exchanges are indeed sparkling and the verbal cuts are of the sharpest varieties. Polk is so clearly in her element that readers will be carried away by the sheer radiance of her smartly crafted prose and, like me, sorely miss Beatrice when they make that final and satisfying turn of the page."
Here's the official Canada Reads trailer for The Midnight Bargain:
HENCH BY NATALIE ZINA WALSCHOTS
JOHNNY APPLESEED BY JOSHUA WHITEHEAD
AND THE WINNER IS...
Monday, March 15, 2021
Book Review: The First-Time Gardener Growing Vegetables
Perhaps you want to grow your own food but are afraid and have no clue where to begin. Or maybe you can relate to me, having had some experience and success growing literally a couple of vegetables over the decades but far more familiar with wasted time, money, and failed gardening attempts. If you would like to grow your own vegetable garden with confidence, The First Time Gardener Growing Vegetables: All the Know-How and Encouragement You need to Grow and Fall in Love with Your Brand New Food Garden by Jessica Sowards is an excellent investment.
The First Time Gardener - Growing Vegetables |
With the purchase of my land, construction of my home, and dreams of having a successful vegetable garden, I am familiar with Jessica Sowards of Roots and Refuge Farm fame through her youtube channel. I spend nearly all of my indoor free time watching videos about gardening and homesteading and her channel has been one that I have learned a good deal from. Her love of gardening is contagious and she is a wealth of vegetable knowledge. When she announced that she had written a book I knew I had to buy it.
The First Time Gardener Growing Vegetables: All the Know-How and Encouragement You need to Grow and Fall in Love with Your Brand New Food Garden
This 176 page book is written by Jessica Sowards with photographs by Makenzie Evans Photography. It is part gardening guide, part inspirational prose, and part coffee table visual feast. This book is not an in-depth, encyclopedia of plant names, varieties, and specific growing details of each plant. It is summarized bits of encouraging information.
The Chapters include:
- Welcome to the Classroom
- The Foundation - What Every Gardener Needs to Succeed
- Creating Your Garden
- Growing with the Seasons
- The Needs for Seed... or Not
- Grow Something Lovely - Designing a Captivating Space
- The Nitty-Gritty of Garden Management
- Making the Harvest
- Conclusion - Grow on, Gardener
aka "fertilizers" - I've only recently learned about coconut coir |
a list of some of the best food plants for container gardening |
More About Why I Chose This Book
I currently live in a metro area apartment. I have successfully grown some tomatoes (and a small handful of tiny potatoes) on my south-facing balcony. But I haven't tried to grow a garden in the ground for some years (oh my gosh, decades! My how time flies!). With my planned move to four acres, I am dreaming of having a garden with a variety of vegetables that I will be able to eat fresh or can for later. While I am excited about my plans, I am also afraid.
I am afraid of more plant failure. Over my lifetime, I have made many attempts to grow plants: houseplants, vegetables, berries, fruit trees... and I have failed massively. I have wasted so much time, energy, and money only to end up with seedlings that die, plants purchased from a store that I kill, and a variety of plants that never grow anything edible.
I am also overwhelmed by feeling as though there is so much information to remember; when to plant, what to use for fertilizer, when to harvest, and so on. While everything is available on the internet, I want to make sure to have some good reference books in my home. I do not have reliable connectivity on top of the mountain ridge. There will be many times that I will not be able to look up things on the internet. Also, with this book it will be quicker to flip open to a list or a quick reminder.
Last year I impulsively bought a couple of zucchini and cabbage starts from a roadside stand and planted them in my flower garden. Even though I only sporadically visited my land and did not provide care for those plants, several zucchini grew and I was able to make my own zucchini bread. With a little guidance and support from Jessica's book I should be able to have even more success this coming year.
Related Links:
Make sure you check out the Review This! Gardening tab to see the other posts by our contributors. Our group includes some very talented gardeners. Click this link or the gardening tab at the top of this page and scroll down to see previous gardening posts.
To read more about my land and future homestead please visit my personal blog or take a peek at the video of my house under construction. But be advised, I am not a "youtuber". But with a peek at the videos or blog post it will be easy to see why I will do much of my gardening in containers or raised beds. And that I will need all of the guidance I can get.
I mentioned Jessica's youtube channel. If you love to watch gardening videos and/or someone who finds quiet joy in gardening, be sure to check out Roots and Refuge.
To see what others are saying about The First Time Gardener Growing Vegetables: All the Know-How and Encouragement You need to Grow and Fall in Love with Your Brand New Food Garden be sure to check out the reviews on Amazon.
Friday, March 12, 2021
The Governess of Penwythe Hall (The Cornwall Novels - Book 1) Reviewed
The Governess of Penwythe Hall Book 1 Synopsis
(The Cornwall Novels) The opening scenes in this book are in Cornwall (1808) and Cordelia (Delia) Greythorne is leaving her home. Recently widowed, her husband's family not only blames her for his death, but believes she knows more than she is telling. Her mother-in-law follows her to the carriage and hurls final insults at Delia. The Greythorne family has many secrets, all of which Delia knows, and that makes her a threat to them. They want her gone and perhaps would kill her if she didn't have valuable information they needed.
While not as wealthy as his brother, Jac Twethewey owns Penwythe Hall, which was actually the reason for the breach between brothers. As the oldest brother, Randall expected to inherent Penwythe Hall, but their benefactor left it to Jac instead. Randall believed Jac had cheated him out of his proper inheritance. Once you get to know Jac, you know he didn't cheat anyone out of anything. Their Uncle Angrove simply believed Jac would be a better overseer of Penwythe Hall and left it to him.
Once You Have Read the First Book in this Series, You Will Want More!
The Cornwall NovelsCheck Price The Governess of Penwythe Hall (Book 1)Check Price The Thief of Lanwyn Manor (Book 2)Check Price The Light at Wyndcliff (Book 3)Check Price
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Thursday, March 4, 2021
The Moonlight Child - Book Review
Things just aren't adding up. Late one night, while out on her patio watching a lunar eclipse, Sharon spies what appears to be a very small child washing dishes in the kitchen of the house across her back yard fence. How can that be? The neighbors don't have a child that young. And even if they did, why would she be doing dishes hours past her bedtime?
Perhaps it is nothing, but what if it isn't? Sharon Lemke finds herself wondering if her imagination is merely running wild. Soon, though, when Niki, an eighteen-year-old who has recently aged out of the foster care system comes to live with her, Sharon's concerns become shared.
As it has been said, it takes one to know one, and Niki knows plenty about what it means to be endangered. The clues are pinging Niki's internal radar system. She isn't willing to leave things to chance if there is a child who may be at risk.
Though Sharon has followed proper channels (notifying the appropriate social services authorities about the unusual circumstance next door), bureaucratic wheels often turn much too slowly for those fearing the worst.
Niki and Sharon decide to take matters into their own hands. Can they pull off a clandestine investigation without endangering themselves or others? Is there something sinister at play here? What will happen if they are caught in the act of spying on neighbors who may not be what they outwardly appear to be?
For me, an exceptional book is one that makes me care. I was all in shortly after being introduced to Sharon, Niki, Mia, Jacob, and Griswold. There was so much to love about the redemptive moments. Of course, there are individuals you will likely despise. Every powerful story needs that counterbalance.
I came away from this read thinking about the people who pay attention when they feel something isn't right. Not only that, I reflected on the difference between those who act on their intuition and those who do not. This story drove home for me the necessity of being a noticer who actually does something for the lost and the unseen individuals of the world.
I highly recommend The Moonlight Child by Karen McQuestion.
Wednesday, March 3, 2021
Too Early to Plant, So Take a Trip Through a Garden Instead!
March has arrived! It's too early to plant, so take a nice trip through the outback of Australia with this memorable book reviewed here!
Saturday, February 27, 2021
Book Review of Confessions on the 7:45
Lisa Unger's Latest Novel
You may remember the novel by Patricia Highsmith called “Strangers on a Train” which became a famous Alfred Hitchcock movie in 1951. It was a psychological thriller about two men who meet on a train and whose lives become entangled after one of them proposes they "trade" murders.
Confessions on the 7:45 by Lisa Unger is a bit reminiscent of “Strangers on a Train”. The story begins with two women, strangers to one another, who begin talking when their commuter train is stalled on the tracks. Unlike “Strangers”, there is no proposed murder involved. Instead, the women end up sharing confessions. Martha confesses she is having an affair with her married boss; Selena ends up admitting she suspects her husband is having an affair with their nanny. The women part ways, presumably never to meet again.
The Plot
Days after the strange 'confessions', Selena's nanny disappears and soon Selena's near-perfect life begins to turn upside down. The fractures in her marriage become deeper and the mystery surrounding the missing nanny intensifies.
Be careful to whom you tell your darkest secrets
In the midst of all that is going on in her life, dealing with her husband who admits he had been sleeping with the missing nanny and with the police who are investigating, Selena receives a text message from Martha. Before she can figure out how Martha got her phone number, another text arrives saying:
It's Martha, by the way.
From the Train.
Selena begins to wonder, who was Martha, really? But she is hardly prepared for what she’ll discover…
Summary
The chapters of this book are labeled by names as the plot unfolds. There are chapters called SELENA, and other chapters labeled PEARL and ANNE. Who are these other women and what do they have to do with MARTHA? Deep into the book we have a chapter called HUNTER. Each of these people have a role in what happens in the story.
Confessions on the 7:45 is a riveting thriller by master of suspense author Lisa Unger about a chance encounter that unravels a stunning web of lies.
Quick Link of Related Article:
Book Review of Confessions on the 7:45 written by (c) Wednesday Elf
Tuesday, February 23, 2021
Antoine Laurain's Vintage 1954 Book Reviewed
I usually know exactly how I am going to start a book review before I even put the book down. However, that was not the case with the book Vintage 1954 by Antoine Laurain because I was concerned that speaking of any of the individual moments in the book would ruin the fun surprises.
Inspired by the tagline on the front of the book I decided I would simply ask, “What would you do if you could travel to the Paris of your dreams. In 1954?” That is exactly what happens in this book though it is definitely a case of time travel for entertainment purposes and not a scientific look at time travel.
Four residents of a Parisian apartment building meet and, after sharing a very special bottle of 1954 Beaujolais, they discover that it has, as the back cover of the book says, special properties. They wake up the next morning in 1954 with some of them temporarily unaware of the difference and others instantly aware that things are not as they should be.
The characters are an interesting mix that includes a man whose family originally owned almost all of the apartments in the building, an antique restorer, a mixologist and an American tourist who is renting an Airbnb. It is through each of their perspectives that we see Paris of the 1950s.
NB Magazine put it perfectly when they say that, "the comedy is gentle and slightly absurd and that there are many clever vignettes and sketches that enrich the novel." I totally agree. Vintage 1954 is a lightweight but charming, entertaining and sometimes funny book that is RECOMMENDED by me.
In my mind, there is nothing dark or nasty about it at all though there is a sex scene and the drinking of alcohol. The book is a chance for a trip to Paris from the comfort of your armchair and an opportunity to see and think about some of the contrasts between the Paris of 2017 and the Paris of 1954 and of course, simply the contrasts between those years wherever you may be. The world is a very different place today than it was then.
I enjoyed meeting the characters, seeing Paris through each of their individual lenses, seeing the city of lights in a different time and having the opportunity to meet some of the celebrities who frequented 1950s Paris. I am not naming the celebrities so that you can enjoy them when you meet them in the book. I was surprised at the very end of the book when the author managed to squeeze in a little life lesson for each of them.
How about it? Would you like to travel back to 1954 or to read this book? Find your copy of or learn more about Vintage 1954 on Amazon by clicking right here.
See you
At the bookstore!
Brenda
Quick Links:
Buy your copy of Vintage 1954 on Amazon.
The Time Traveler’s Wife movie review.
An American in Paris movie review.
Discover French Kiss, the ultimate romantic movie soundtrack
Pam Jenoff's Lost Girls of Paris book review.
Thursday, February 18, 2021
The Spirit of Animal Healing - Book Review
As I sit here reflecting on The Spirit of Animal Healing, I find my mind fixed on Finn and Blessing. Engaging in the healing journeys of these dogs has taught, and is teaching, me much about the nature of wellness and how to be an agent of healing. Though Dr. Marty Goldstein's new book touches on many essential aspects of holistic, or integrative animal care, I cannot imagine anything much more important than his emphasis on invoking the residual healing properties that exist within all living creatures.
Healing and well-being are not so much about disease. They are about the elements that enable body, mind, and spirit to work together with appropriate therapies to move systems toward a natural balance. Dr. Marty speaks about the combined power of all types of good medicine: the right nutrition, supplements, and immune system boosters that prevent unnecessary illness and promote quality of life.
Some of the topics covered in The Spirit of Animal Healing, in addition to the three mentioned above, include: homeopathic medicine, nutraceuticals, acupuncture, vaccinations, cancer, pet food, magnetic wave therapy, and the importance of finding an integrative veterinarian who will come to intimately know your animal.
As one who interacts on a daily basis with rescue animals in great need of healing, I found this to be a valuable and thought-provoking read. Even though I constantly consume books about animal health, I found much that engaged me in new ways. I was particularly taken with the discussion about Pulsed Electromagnetic Field Therapy (PEFT) and the Schumann Resonance. To learn how the earth's electromagnetic waves and the resonant frequency of the atmosphere are thought to be the frequency of life itself was astounding. Even DNA sequences communicate at that same frequency of 7.83 Hz. Stunning!
There is so much yet to discover about healing. Dr. Goldstein encourages us to be open to every possible avenue of healing and to seek the sweet spot between conventional and alternative, or integrative, medical practices that have the potential to help our animals thrive.
I wish to thank NetGalley, and St. Martin's Press, for the opportunity to preview The Spirit of Animal Healing. I received a digital galley of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Tuesday, February 16, 2021
Pam Jenoff's Lost Girls of Paris Book Review
With the novel The Lost Girls of Paris by Pam Jenoff, I once again reviewed life in Europe during and just after World War II. The book is fictional but based on the true story of Vera Atkins and her female special operations agents.
THE STORY
I struggled at first to settle into the pages of this book but when I did, I was rewarded with the story of a woman named Eleanor Trigg and a group of women she recruited and trained to become secret agents. Those women would eventually be sent from England to occupied France as part of the resistance movement’s effort to disrupt the advance of the German army. The women were employed as couriers and radio operators and were eventually lost.
REVIEWS
Reviewers on Amazon peg the book quite correctly as romantic in nature. Some question some of the historical facts and many of the decisions made by characters in the book. Some felt that the book had too many coincidences and that it did not always ring true. However, despite these criticisms, the book received 86 percent four- and five-star ratings, which does not seem too bad to me so I looked further.
U.S.A. Today called this Jenoff work of fiction “a gauzier, more florid and awkwardly romantic account” of the true story of Vera Atkins and her team of spies saying that the book has “all of the tension of a Hallmark card.” I agree. It definitely is romantic and nice version of the story and is not the best historical fiction book from that time period that I have read.
Kirkus calls the book, “a sadly slapdash World War II adventure”, which references, I believe, some of the factual problems readers have with this book. The problems are in errors with the details. Did diners (restaurants) have television sets in the 1940s? Would those TVs have been broadcasting the news while diners ate their meals? How could you have planned a honeymoon aboard the Queen Elizabeth II, which was not built until the 1960s? Was renting a car possible in those days? Were the terms single mother and Ms. in use? Was duct tape available to the public or just the military? How many states were there in the United States in 1946? I have not fact checked any of these questions and some of them I did not jump out at me when I was reading the book. A few of them could have and hopefully have been easily corrected in subsequent printings.
Finally, the readers at Goodreads give The Lost Girls of Paris a score of 3.88. Once again, that score is not too bad in my opinion. On that platform, reviewer Matthew said, “I liked the story, but in the realm of WWII fiction it is not in the upper echelons. Maybe you will enjoy it more than I did and can look past the issues…” Personally, I am inclined to agree with that score on Goodreads and with Matthew’s comments.
If you enjoy historical fiction set in World War II, Europe, or if you are looking for a book with interesting female protagonists, you should enjoy this book. That is, if you are willing to accept it as written and not be tripped up by historical inaccuracies like those referenced above.
If you want to learn more, you can find The Lost Girls of Paris on Amazon by clicking right here. If you do read the book, be sure to come back and let us know what you think.
I will end with a question. How important is historical accuracy to you in your historical fiction books? Do mistakes like those mentioned above ruin a book for you or are you happy to discount them as part of an author’s work at crafting a compelling story?
See you
At the book store!
Brenda
More World War II Fiction:
Thursday, February 11, 2021
Review of Historical Novel....West with Giraffes
Photograph my sister Julie took while in Tanzania |
West with Giraffes is one of the best books I've read in a long time and I have read some books I've really enjoyed lately. But you know how some books just resonate with you, well that is how West with Giraffes was with me. I usually read before I go to bed for about 1/2 hour. With this book, I would wake up in the morning thinking about the book and of course I had to make time to read more during the day.
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Characters
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