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The Tobacco Wives- A Book Review |
Alaska is an epic novel by James Michener that spans an unimaginable length of time and describes Alaska and it's people from the beginning. From the formation of mountains and land masses to Mastodons to modern times. As soon as I pick up where I left off in the story I find myself surrounded by the people in the unique land that eventually became a U.S state.
Steve Berry explains how he came to read his first James Michener novel then goes on to tells us a bit about James Michener the man and author. Michener was reportedly an orphan, adopted by Mabel Michener. He lived in poverty in Bucks County, Pennsylvania for at least a portion of his childhood. Then as a young adult, he traveled the country by train (in boxcars to be more specific) and found odd jobs. James Michener wrote his autobiography in 1991 titled The World is My Home. He attributes his curiosity about people and their lands. I feel that his curiosity about people, their cultures, and their lands as well as his love of travel shines through his writing.
Alaska is a historical novel. Fiction. But based in fact. The Fact and Fiction chapter explains some of the examples in which fact and fiction come together. For example, it is widely accepted that the order of the arrival of humans in Alaska was The Athapascans first, followed by the Eskimos then followed by the Aleuts (with the Tlinglits being offshoots of the Athapascans). But the time of their arrival is unclear and possibly somewhere between 12,000 B.P.E and 40,000 to 30,000 B.P.E.
This novel has me hooked. I am writing this before I've finished the novel but due to the length, I feel that's acceptable.
Michener describes how the land was likely formed. How the collision of plates created the Aleutian Islands and the mountains of Alaska. How the Mastodons and Mammoths arrived, lived, and perished in the area. The arrival of humans. And how conflict begins as soon as different groups live in proximity of each other. As time moves on, we learn about the Russians who settle there under Tsar Peter the Great and how others such as Vitus Bering and Georg Stellar explore the area. The story goes on to include the introduction of different religions; Shamanism, Russian Orthodoxy, and eventually Christianity. The area transfers from Russian ownership to American. Then comes the Gold Rush and moves on to more recent places and events.
I wish I could write the review this story deserves. I can't. Some online reviews describe the beginning of the book as slow and hard to get through. For me, I enjoyed thinking about the massive number of years that it took for the land to form over time, mountains being sent to great highs due to the movement of the plates and volcanos forming due to the geographical events that are beyond my comprehension.
I am amazed that Alaska was settled at all. People walked to get there. They rode in tiny kayaks to hunt whale for survival and to change their location Conflict, war, and slavery occurred long before I had imagined. Larger ships began to move people up the Yukon and into the land but became frozen in the ice and stranded for months until the thaw. Humans have gone through a lot to find and keep a home.
The writing is beautiful.
"And each one was formed by some segment of the Pacific Plate bulldozing it's way into the North American Plate, submerging along the edge, and causing such tremendous commotion and movement of forces that the great mountains erupted as a consequence. When one looks at the glorious mountains of Alaska he sees proof of the power of the Pacific Plate as it noses its way north and east... "
"The ten children were like a collection of colorful flowers, for the clothes they wore were varied in design and color. Some wore short tunics with stripes of white and blue, others long robes and heavy boots, but all wore in their hair some ornament, some flashing bit of shell or ivory"
I find myself cheering on the adventurers, crying with those who have suffered loss, and booing the villains. All while learning how Alaska became a place where humans chose to call home.
I have two regrets with reading this book. First, I regret that I don't have more time that I can dedicate to getting comfy in a chair and reading for days upon days. Second, I'm not sure that starting this novel during my winter holiday break was the best choice. My area was hit with a powerful ice storm that wrecked havoc in our county followed by an Arctic blast that was most uncomfortable. Choosing to read Alaska during that time frame was almost as bad as choosing to read Jaws before going to an ocean beach for the first time. Other than those two things, I am enjoying this immensely.
Born in Athens, Greece as an Air Force brat, Teri M Brown graduated from UNC Greensboro. She began her writing career helping small businesses with content creation and published five nonfiction self-help books dealing with real estate and finance, receiving "First Runner Up" in the Eric Hoffman Book Awards for 301 Simple Things You Can Do To Sell Your Home Now, finalist in the USA Best Books Awards for How To Open and Operate a Financially Successful Redesign, Redecorate, and Real Estate Staging Business and for 301 Simple Things You Can Do To Sell Your Home Now, and Honorable Mention in Foreword Magazine’s Book of the Year Award for Private Mortgage Investing. In 2017, after winning the First Annual Anita Bloom Ornoff Award for Inspirational Short Story, she began writing fiction in earnest, and published Sunflowers Beneath the Snow in January 2022. Her second novel, An Enemy Like Me, launches in January 2023. Teri is a wife, mother, grandmother, and author who loves word games, reading, bumming on the beach, taking photos, singing in the shower, hunting for bargains, ballroom dancing, playing bridge, and mentoring others. Learn more at www.terimbrown.com.
Ashtyn Newbold has written & published a delightfully unique and entertaining series with the Larkhall Letters.
I had previously read and reviewed the first 4 books in the series, but had to wait for the 5th book to be released. As soon as Lord Blackwell's Promise was published, I downloaded it to my Kindle and immediately started reading.
One of the things I like best about Ashtyn Newbold's writing, is that she develops her characters so well that readers feel like they know them personally. In Lord Blackwells' Promise, both Lord Blackwell and Margaret Lovell have strong personalities, devotion to their families and conflicting emotions, much like a lot of real people.
As expected, it was another excellent book that I can highly recommend to Regency Romance novel lovers of any age. Not only is it a unique story, it is interlaced with witty conversations and funny interactions.
It is another book by Newbold that I hated to see end, even though I was pleased with the ending!
Lord Blackwell’s Promise: A Regency Romance (Larkhall Letters Book 5)Check PriceLord Blackwell is dying. He is surrounded by his family, his mother and sisters. They are the people he has spent his life trying to provide for and protect. His mother is currently the most influential individual in his life. When she speaks, he considers what she says, not only because he loves her, but because he truly respects her opinions. When she recommends that he make amends to the people he has harmed, he contemplates her suggestion. How could he possibly make things right with the family he has so grievously harmed by swindling them and ruining the father's reputation. When his mother suggests that he marry the daughter and move the family into their home, Peter (Lord Blackwell) thinks why not? After all, he is dying. Who he marries, doesn't matter. Plus, by marrying the daughter and financially providing for the Lovell family, he will be restoring their wealth and social standing.
Margaret Lovell is deeply devoted to her family and greatly concerned for her father's health. When her brother is hurt and needs surgery, she has to seriously consider the proposal from someone she despises: Lord Blackwell. Her family can't afford doctors. They barely have enough food. As she ponders her options, she realizes with the Earl dying, she wouldn't really need to be a wife. She would simply be married to him. As his widow, her family would be wealthy again.
After the ceremony at the dying man's bedside, Margaret's family is moved into Lord Blackwell's castle. All seems to be going as planned, that is, until Lord Blackwell recovers!
To find out what happens to Lord Blackwell, his new wife and both
families, you will need to read the book for yourself. It is well
worth reading!
The Ace of Hearts Review The Captain's Confidant Review With Love, Louisa Review
All the Forgivenesses is a debut novel set in early 20th century Kentucky featuring young Bertie Winslow. The story is told from Albertina's (Bertie's) perspective and we follow her through a difficult childhood in Kentucky and into adulthood onto the oil fields of Kansas. The story was written based on stories about oil fields life in the early twentieth century told to the author by her mother and aunts. "The voice of this novel is my recollection of the speech of my maternal grandmother" the author writes. It was Bertie's voice that took me away to another time and land.
Bertie carried baby Dacia into Grandma Sweet's and placed her in a crib. Then made a pallet for Timmy and he fell asleep too. Later in the day Bertie discovers that Timmy is missing from the pallet and is missing from the area around the house. The search begins for Timmy but it is too late. His body was found in the creek the next morning.
With that tragedy, the already difficult family situation becomes worse for the four remaining children.
Mama is less able to emotionally care for the children fully and Bertie becomes increasingly responsible for the household. Mama becomes pregnant, becomes physically ill, and young Bertie has more siblings to care for while Mama spends her days in bed. Their father comes and goes and the children do their best not to attract his attention while trying to survive.
We follow Bertie through her adolescence, her marriage, and adulthood. Like so many people, she carries her childhood experiences into her own marriage. Her husband, Sam, is a better provider for the family than her father was and a kind, patient man. They move to the oil fields in Kansas for work.
"Inspired by the stories told by the author's mother and aunts, All The Forgivenesses is as authentic as it is lyrical -- a captivating novel of family loyalty, redemption, and resilience" quote from Goodreads
I feel that I am having difficulty writing the kind of review that explains how much I enjoyed this book without giving spoilers. I agree whole-heartedly with the description of "authentic" and "lyrical". We watch as Bertie is forced into the role of caregiver as a child and how she continues in that role as an adult woman. Parts of her story are heart-breaking. She's the heroine but she's not perfect or superhuman. Bertie carries both her strengths and her flaws into her marriage. Despite the hard conditions and difficult relationships there is something beautiful unfolding for this family; not only does Bertie keep children alive, she is able to help them thrive.
This book reminded me a bit of the Winter's Bone story in that a young girl is responsible for siblings while the adults are absent in one way or another and is making the best life they can for their siblings in an impoverished, isolated setting.
Before we ever read the first word in the book, the title tells us what to expect. What the title doesn't reveal is how and why Selena loses her position in society.
This historical fiction is set in Hertfordshire, England in 1817 and paints a vivid picture of how easy it was for a young woman, or even a whole family, to have the ton (high society) shun them.
Imagine having everything you have ever known or expected your life to be,
stripped from you because someone else made a mistake. By no fault of your
own, you have to learn how to make a living for yourself while watching the
world you once knew carry on without you. Becoming an employee in a house
where you would previously have been received as a desired guest and ushered
into the drawing room for tea with the countess. Instead, you will now
be expected to use the servants entrance and consider yourself fortunate
that the countess has favored you enough to even allow you to be her
companion.
That is what happened to Selena Lockhart in "A Fall from Grace" by Jennie Goutet.
A Fall from Grace
(Clavering Chronicles Book 1)Check Price
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As the lone female occupant of a broken down stagecoach, Selena needs shelter from the snow storm and other danger. She believes her salvation must lie within the walls of a nearby home which is lit well enough for her to see in the distance. Dispute her lack of warm clothing, she sets out for the house and has plenty of time to recount the events that put her in this frightening situation. Her father's extreme gambling problems followed by his subsequent death; her fiance's recindment of his offer of marriage; insufficient funds to sustain her mother & sisters; all combined to create this life she was so ill-prepared to live. She was equally unprepared to be greeted by the cynical landowner who did not readily welcome her in out of the cold.
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Following Selena's story of becoming a companion to a bitter and unhappy widowed countess, caused me to consider what a truly difficult situation this would have been for a young lady who was raised in a wealthy home with the expectations of a prosperous marriage and continued position in high society. It would require a strong and determined individual to make this unwanted transition in life status.
Since this is a Regency Romance novel, the reader can rest assured there will be a developing romantic relationship throughout the book. However, I was equally interested in watching the other relationships develop in this book.
I highly recommend this book, and series, to anyone who enjoys clean & wholesome romance novels.
At publishing time of this review, "A Fall from Grace" is available for free with a Kindle Unlimited Subscription. Or, you can purchase it with the link below.
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Imagine that you are a young woman in 1940's Russia. You are a mother raising a young son alone as you work in a library and study to gain your degree. You are forging along in everyday life when suddenly your country is invaded, and you are facing a world at war. In this riveting novel, Kate Quinn gives a look into the life of Mila Pavlichenko, a young history student and mother who joins the Russian military and becomes a world-famous sniper.
If you are looking for a sweet, romantic easy to read book, you will love "The Social Tutor" by Sally Britton. It is the first book in her Branches of Love series and quite a delightful read.
Earlier this week, I was without electricity for approximately 5 hours.
Since I couldn't cook, work around the house due to the dark, or even work
on my computer, I grabbed my Kindle and settled in to read. I opened it to
"The Social Tutor" and was immediately allowed to relax as I was pulled into
a lovely story set in the early 1800's in England. A time when women were
expected to marry someone who benefited their family whether they were in
love or not.
I am a huge historical fiction fan and I prefer clean romantic stories. "The Social Tutor" was the perfect choice for me! When the electricity was restored, I was already so deep into the book that I didn't set it down until I had finished reading the entire book.
It had been made perfectly clear to Christine Devon that she would marry someone who would bring wealth, business associations and hopefully a title to her family. Her father would give her one season in London to complete this mission.
Christine was the second daughter in the household. Her older sister had failed to make the desired alliance and was relegated to overseeing her father's household. He would not waste any more money on her.
The Social Tutor: Branches of Love, Book 1Check PriceBecause she was under so much pressure, Christine knew she would need help. Since her mother had died years before, she had never been taught how to attract a man's attention, engage him in an acceptable conversation, and make him choose to marry her out of all of the eligible young women in the "marriage mart".
Thomas Gilbert had been friends with Christine's mother. They had shared a love for horses and Mrs. Devon had taken him under her wing to teach him about horses. It was Thomas's desire to add a horse breeding venture to his family's farm. With the right horse selections, he believed he could bred champions and sell them to society members who demanded the best.
Christine decided she would ask Thomas to tutor her. In exchange for the lessons, she would allow him to borrow the horses she had inherited from her mother. Even though Thomas wasn't exactly sure at first how he could help her, the offer was too good for him to pass up. After all, Miss. Devon owned the best horses in the area and their offspring would be highly desired.
They agreed to meet every 3rd day until Christmas (only a few months) to prepare her for the social season which would begin immediately thereafter. Thomas had no idea just how naive and trusting Christine was. He knew she would be eaten alive by both the men and the women of society and he suspected that is what happened to her older sister. Without their mother's direction and oversight, it would be like a lamb among wolves. Out of loyalty to her mother, he could not let that happen to Christine.
Perhaps, you think you have already figured out what happens. Maybe you
have, maybe you have not. Either way, it is a charming romance to read. I
have no doubt, you will want to continue reading through the entire
series.
An American Victorian Romance
I am quickly becoming a big fan of historical fiction books written by Sally Britton. Previously, I read the Supposed Scandal series and loved all three books.
Silver Dollar Duke is the first book in the "Hearts of Arizona"
series and I really enjoyed the story. I have no doubt I will love the next
2 books in this series as well. I plan to start reading the second book,
Copper for the Countess, immediately.
I wasn't sure how an American silver dollar would relate to an English duke, but I
was rather intrigued by the title. Turns out, the silver dollar played a big
part in the duke's life, but I won't ruin that touch of mystery for you by
sharing that significance in this review.
This is a rather light, entertaining read that any historical romance
fiction fan would enjoy. In most of the books I read, the female is the
central focus of the story. While there is a prominent female character, the
duke and his childhood dreams are the highlight of this book.
As the second son of a marquess in England, Evan Rounsevell had his life
mapped out for him. He knew he would be required to “work” for his father
even though all of the family property would be inherited by his older
brother, and then his brother's son.
Silver Dollar Duke: An American Victorian Romance (Hearts of Arizona Book 1)Check PriceDuke didn't resent the expectations or family obligations, but he did have a lifelong dream. As a child, he had met Buffalo Bill and had seen him perform. Duke wanted to visit the wild west of America and experience being a cowboy firsthand before he was completely entrenched in England. He spent his childhood learning to shoot, practicing lassoing a cow by lassoing sheep, and riding horses. As an adult, he knew he would have to run away for a little while to have the opportunity to make his dream come true. That is exactly what he did!
Duke quickly found himself running out of money as he traveled across America. He needed a job to continue his adventure and for his return ticket home. When he met the Bolton brothers in Tombstone, Arizona, they offered him a job as a ranch hand on their father’s ranch along with the promise of getting to participate in a cattle drive. Duke was thrilled by this fabulous, once in a lifetime opportunity. It was exactly what he had always desired.
There were some unexpected experiences in his wild west journey including falling in love with the ranch owner's daughter, Daniella "Dannie" Bolton.
The last thing Dannie needed was another "temporary" man in her life. From
the very beginning, Duke had made it clear that he had to return to England.
They agreed to be friends and nothing more, but the "best laid plans" often
go awry.
Silver Dollar Duke: An American Victorian Romance (Hearts of Arizona Book 1)Check Price Copper for the Countess: An American Victorian Romance (Hearts of Arizona Book 2)Check Price A Lady's Heart of Gold: An American Victorian Romance (Hearts of Arizona Book 3)Check Price Silver Dollar Duke: An American Victorian Romance - AudioCheck Price
The Four Winds is a fictional novel based on the events that occurred during the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl. More specifically, how one woman from Texas - Elsinore (Elsa) Wolcott - made exceedingly difficult decisions to try to keep her children alive during the 1930s.
Elsa Wolcott lived her childhood in solitude. Defined as medically fragile and as "not nearly pretty as her sisters" the story opens as she is turning 25 and facing a future as a spinster.
"There was a pain that came with constant disapproval; a sense of having lost something unnamed, unknown. Else had survived it by being quiet, by not demanding or seeking attention, by accepting that she was loved, but unliked" -excerpt from The Four Winds
Elsa had learned to entertain herself by reading and survived the cruel comments by making herself as invisible as possible while her family carried on in an otherwise tight-knit group. Things started to fall apart when she informed her family that she wanted to attend college in Chicago. Her family was relatively affluent and cultured but the answer from her parents was a resounding no. They continued to define her as ill. She quietly returned to her room upstairs to her reading.
The next morning, while walking through town to the library, Elsa stopped at the mercantile where she was told about a piece of red silk. The store owner wanted Elsa to inform her beautiful sisters of this dress material. Instead, Elsa bought it for herself.
The resulting red dress, glittery silver headband and an secret attempt to enter a speakeasy during the days of prohibition changed everything.
Elsa responded to the first attention she received. And Raffaello entered her life. Very quickly, Elsa went from being the daughter of the in-town-living, Christian, daughter of a successful business man who sells tractors to the farmers to the wife of a young, Italian, Catholic son of struggling farmers.
Elsa became a farmer's wife. A mother. And she became a part of a family.
The years pass. In 1934, the Great Depression had been in full swing. And it was an extraordinarily hot August. Unknown to Elsa and her family, the Dust Bowl is coming.
As the heat and dust settled in for months, and then years, Elsa had to decide whether to remain on the "farm" (now a pile of dust) with her family or escape to California for work.
I had some vague awareness of both the Great Depression and of the Dust Bowl. I knew that both were disasters. And I knew that my grandparents were frugal - saving every little thing in case it would be needed as a result of their experience (or their parent's experiences) during this era. My grandparents have been gone for a long time now. And I wish I knew their stories. But I don't.
Now I realize how very little I know of that era and what people went through trying to survive the times. I was aware that the Dust Bowl occurred. For some reason, I imagined that nearly the entire US was in drought for a single growing season. I did not realize that it spanned the middle US states, hitting Colorado, Oklahoma, Kansas, Texas, New Mexico the hardest. And that it lasted for years. I knew that crops were killed. I did not realize the enormous toll it took on all livestock and wildlife. And I did not realize the extent of human lives lost. Of course, the death toll was not accurately recorded during these crises but it is thought that hundreds to thousands died of Dust Pneumonia alone. And several hundred thousands fled the plains area to try to survive.
This story impacts me now as I consider the current happenings in the US. Wild fires, droughts, and torrential spring rains during planting season is impacting agriculture. As is the current economic situation. Many farmers and ranchers are in a tough situation as I type this. Reading this book now reminds me of the time I read the book Jaws on my first trip to Florida and visit to Cocoa Beach. I was afraid to enter the ocean for fear of what might be lurking. I am currently concerned about food supplies, our farmers and ranchers, and what disaster may be lurking next.
Do I wish I hadn't read this book. My answer is a resounding NO. I am glad to have read this book and recommend it to others. It is a story of a woman who had not received unconditional love as a child and who not only gave unconditional love to her children but who would die for them to save them. It is the story of navigating parent-child relationships. It is a story of proud, hard-working people who just wanted to be able to take care of themselves. Their tenacity and willingness to work hard despite the odds inspires me. Despite the very tough topic and times, this book was filled with love stories.
Ms. Hannah wrote her Author's Note in May 2020. In the three years that she was writing this book the pandemic arrived in the US. Imagine that. Writing about the death, famine, and destruction of the dust bowl during the death, near-famine, and destruction of the pandemic.
The Author notes that the timeline is not completely accurate in her fiction. She includes a suggested reading list on her website for more historically accurate information. Ms. Hannah also mentions having taken a tour of "Weedpatch" camp in Arvin, California. And a novel by Sanora Babb titled Whose Names Are Unknown. I find it interesting that Babb's manuscript was submitted in 1939 and was not published until 2004. Read more about that here. I will be reading Ms. Babb's book.
Reading about the dust bowl reminded me of another famine. The potato famine. Like the Dust Bowl, I had known that a potato famine in Ireland occurred. But I had no idea of the extent of it until I had read Galway Bay by Mary Pat Kelly. You can read my review of that historical fiction here. I highly recommend it and have read it more than once.
Apparently, the Review This Reviews! contributors are Kristin Hannah fans. Our previous reviews are listed below:
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