February 21, 2020 GOIN' BY THE BOOK

Spent some time at one of my favorite bookstores this week--R J Julia in Madison. Pretty sure I was meant for the place. The atmosphere was incredible and the BOOK SELLERS REALLY KNEW BOOKS. I can SO picture myself working there and talking BOOKS ALL DAY LONG. I had this great conversation with one of the book sellers. It went something like this.---I told her that I needed a book to get me through February and March. I went on to specify that it had to be as good as A Gentleman In Moscow--with a touch of Dickens--and the romance of--The Art of Healing Heartbeats. Sounds CRAZY RIGHT? But not to her. She understood exactly what I wanted because she's a book aficionado. Came home with a few new books that I can't wait to read. FYI---found out that R J Julia is hosting a book talk with Erik Larson--author of Dead Wake and Devil In The White City in March. He will be discussing his new book The Splendid and the Vile. Check out their website for more details. Spent the last week reading as semi- dense historical novel about the American West in the late 19th century called Inland by Tea Obreht. 
Set in the brutal Arizona Territory, this novel is told from two perspectives. Nora, is a frontierswoman and mother of four, haunted by the death of her daughter. After spending twenty years trying to build a life in this unforgiving land, she questions whether it was really worth the effort. She's lonely, isolated, and most of all thirsty as their water supply has all but dried up. She's also been left  to manage the children, a niece and mother-in-law while her husband  searches for water. After two of her sons go missing, and he husband's return is delayed, she is forced to make many difficult choices. Lurie, the other narrator, is an immigrant who can see the dead. Orphaned at a young age, he becomes an outlaw wanted for murder. He later joins the U.S. Army Camel Corps with a band of colorful characters and travels with the army as they build roads and  settle the West. Lurie and his camel, Burke, are eventually forced to leave the corp because a Marshal is on his tail. These two separate stories become one by the end of the book. The landscape of the West is as much a character in this book as the main characters. I will admit that it took me a while to get into this book, but I did enjoy it and the writing is worth the effort.  It's about 375 pages or a 5 mile run that will leave you rethinking everything you learned in a history book.

February 15, 2020 GOOD VIBRATIONS

It's been a year. I can't believe it. One year since Michele passed away. I think about her a lot. She continues to be an inspiration to me each and every day. She taught me so many lessons--by example-- about how to be a better person and live a more meaningful life. I've been trying to  live many of the things she taught me so that I can keep her close to my heart. Some of these include:
 Appreciating Family & Friends
Being Kind
Lending a Helping Hand
Remembering--Every day is a GOOD DAY
Living in Positivity
 Smiling
Being Thankful
Taking care --mentally--physically--spiritually
Thanks for everything. Miss you.
 Laurel & Daphne Wolfe should have practiced some of these lessons in Cathleen Schine's new novel The Grammarians. Laurel and Daphne are identical twins born in the 1960's in New York. They are inseparable little red heads obsessed with words whose prized possession is an old Webster Dictionary. The first part of the book is devoted to the girls as children and their quirky, hilarious family. After the girls graduate from college, they move into an apartment in Manhattan and their relationship begins to change. Daphne becomes a copy editor and grammar columnist devoted to standard English while Laurel becomes a poet devoted to bending the English language to meet her needs.  This philosophical difference strains their relationship but add to the mix husbands, children, sibling rivalry, and competition to inherit the Webster Dictionary and the siblings are barely speaking to each other. Find out who inherits the dictionary and if the girls ever talk to each other again when you read this story about what it's like to be an identical twin for yourself. It's about 270 pages or a 3 mile run every Word lover will appreciate.

February 7, 2020 WHY CAN'T WE BE FRIENDS

TGIF. It was a LOOONNNGGGG week. Not sure why it felt that way. I couldn't wait to get home from school today. Just wanted to relax on the couch and STAY HOME. Back IN the day--I had plans EVERY Friday AND Saturday night. AND the bars were open til 3:00 am. Would have NEVER sat home on a Friday Night. Now I welcome staying home. Can't believe I'm saying that--TIMES THEY ARE A-CHANGING.  I'm JUST exhausted by Friday. Can't think another thought or be in charge of anything else. My brain is MUSH. All I've got left--before I forget it-- is a review of Christy Lefteri's International bestseller The Beekeeper of Aleppo.  
Talk about a timely book. The Beekeeper of Aleppo is the story of a young couple who are forced to leave their life in Aleppo after everything they love is destroyed in the Syrian War. Nuri is a beekeeper and his wife Afra is an artist. They have a simple life. He tends to his bees and she sells her paintings at the market on weekends. They refuse to believe that their beloved homeland is being consumed by war until it's almost too late. After Afra is blinded, the couple courageously set out for a new life. They navigate a treacherous journey that stretches through Turkey, Greece and eventually Britain, where they hope to meet up with a cousin. This story humanizes the immigration experience and the desperation people face right now. Lefteri definitely understands the situation as she is the daughter of refugees and she has also volunteered at a center in Athens for displaced citizens. It is a frightening situation. Imagine living your ordinary life--and one day it's taken away.  That's what happens to Nuri and Afra. This beautifully written, heart-wrenching book is about 315 pages or a 4 mile run that should be required reading for all Americans.

February 2, 2020 COWARD OF THE COUNTY

DEEPLY TROUBLED. Let me get this straight. Edward Boyle was sentenced to ONLY 19 years in prison for the rape and murder a young woman AS WELL AS  the rapes of five other women. ARE YOU KIDDING ME?? IT GETS WORSE. In 1999 he was released only to be arrested again--THIS TIME--for sexually assaulting a 14 year old--where he was sentenced to 5 years in prison. He was then released in 2009 under --STRICT SUPERVISION--and rearrested again after missing sexual offender treatment and going out of range with his GPS tracking device. In 2011-- he encountered other difficulties when prison officials found out he was corresponding with yet  another 14 year old girl????? BELIEVE IT OR NOT--this MANIC was granted --SPECIAL PAROLE--on Friday. HELLO?? Does anyone else see something VERY WRONG HERE?? What about the victims and their families?? Will they ever have closure ?? Something is VERY wrong with the system if this SAD EXCUSE FOR A HUMAN BEING --who has proven over and over again--THAT HE IS A SEXUAL PREDATOR--is let out of prison AGAIN--right here in New London County. Scary stuff. 

If you're looking to get your mind off the things that don't make sense in our world, then check out Amanda Quick's new book Tightrope. 

Set in the 1930's, Amalie Vaughn is a former trapeze artist who decides to reinvent herself in Burning Cove. She purchases an inn that just so happens to be cursed. Shortly after the inn opens, the first guest, Dr. Pickwell, is murdered by his own robot invention. Matthias Jones, rumored to be connected to the mob, is on the trail to discover the truth and locate the cipher machine that was stolen from the murder scene. Sparks fly between Amalie and Matthias after he books a room at the inn and enlists Amalie to help him find the truth. This book has several subplots, interesting characters and more twists and turns than a rollercoaster. It's also filled with mystery, suspense, and romance. At 320 pages--or a 3 mile run--it's a quick read for those times you just want to be entertained. Enjoy.

January 29, 2020 FOR THE FIRST TIME

Although I HATE getting older--I have to admit that there are a few good things about it. One of the BEST things-- I REALLY don't care what other people think. OKAY--maybe the cocktails helped too. So--Last weekend I went to Boston to visit my daughter and we went out to celebrate my birthday. Talk about FUN. She took me to a piano bar and the next thing I knew--I was called on stage for a birthday song. YUP--I VERY eagerly ran on to the stage and hopped on the piano for my song. I WAS a famous performer for 5 minutes. I Didn't feel--embarrassed --self-conscious--SHY at all. I was a REAL HAM. WHO KNEW???  I NEVER would have done that when I was younger BUT now that I'm older--I totally embraced it. I was ALL in. When was the last time you did something out of the ordinary??
The three main characters in Kate Quinn's new book The Huntress had extraordinary lives because they lived on their own terms. The Huntress is a historically based novel set just after World War II in Austria and the United States that is told through three different characters.  Ian Graham, a journalist during the war, is now on the trail of Nazi war criminals.  He is obsessed with catching the Huntress because she killed his brother during the war. Nina Markova was a member of a Russian, all female bomber regiment during the war. After falling behind enemy lines, she barely escaped with her life as the Huntress tried to kill her. After the war, Nina is recruited to help track down the Huntress because she is the only person who can identify her. The final character is Jordan McBride. She lives in post-war Boston with her long widowed father, Dan. Shortly after meeting a German widow and her young daughter, Dan decides that it's time to marry again even though his daughter has suspicions about the widow's past. Don't want to say much more about the book except that I loved it. It was well written, the characters were interesting and it was a real page turner. It's about 550 pages--or a 5 mile run--that flies.

January 17, 2020 DRAW THE LINE

Drawing is hard work. It's hard because artists have to really SEE. I know you SEE things every day and that's part of  the problem. The brain has preprogrammed images stored up about what things look like so when someone tries to draw--say a tree-- the brain  takes over  and the person draws what the brain THINKS the tree looks like from stored memories instead of what the person actually sees. An artist must learn to OVERRIDE the brain and draw only what he or she SEES. It's really difficult at first but with practice it gets easier. It's the same with all shapes. Take the nose--the brain tries to take over and its a disaster. But if you really take the time to SEE--you will notice that the nose is really  just some curvy shapes with two oval-like shapes for the nostrils. Anyone can  learn to draw--it's just a matter of SEEING and PUTTING in the effort it takes to get better.
Many things in life take a lot of effort and this is seen in Sally Rooney's new book Normal People. This lovely novel is the story of Connell and Marianne and their relationship. It begins in a small town in West Ireland and continues when the two attend Trinity College. Connell is from a poor but loving family while Marianne is from a  wealthy but  unloving, dysfunctional family. These factors determine how they relate to each other and the world around them. The story is told from both points of view where often times each misinterprets what the other says or means leading to a series of break ups. Even when they break up, Connell and Marianne are still drawn to each other because they share a strong bond and mutual attraction. This is ultimately a story about relationships and how they shape our lives. It's also about friendship, misunderstanding and the damage family can do that can shape the way someone sees world. I really enjoyed this book and think you will too. It's only 290 pages or a 3 mile run that will leave you with a lot to think about.  Enjoy.

January 12, 2020 GET ME SOME OF THAT

Is there really such a thing as forgive and forget? I GUESS if the thing you HAVE to forget is benign. Forgiveness--in my mind--is the easy part--we forgive FOR ourselves NOT  the other person. Right? We  forgive so that we can grow and try to be happy in life. If we don't forgive--we eventually become full of resentment-- anger--bitterness--nasty buggers that will RUIN your life.  Okay--I can forgive but I can't forget AND that sometimes gets in my way.  Some people are  lucky enough (I think) to develop a case of SELECTIVE MEMORY.  Seriously--Science has actually shown that people can choose to remember or forget things. They can actually train their brains to forget unpleasant memories. I gotta get me some of that. Don't think there is any forgive or forget in Margaret Atwood's sequel to The Handmaid's Tale. 
Atwood's new book The Testaments picks up fifteen years after the first novel and the Republic of Gilead is still in control. This novel is a three part narrative where the characters take turns filling the reader in on what's happened between novels as well as what is currently happening in Gilead. Agnes Jemima is a young girl who  grew up in Gilead, the daughter of a Commander and his Wife. She is trying to make sense of Gilead and her place as a female. Aunt Lydia is a powerful Aunt who has been around since the birth of the Republic. One of the most powerful women in Gilead,  Aunt Lydia works behind the scenes with Commander Judd. Daisy is a young woman who lives outside of Gilead's border.  After her parents are murdered, she joins the Mayday Movement to try to infultrate Gilead and destroy the republic. This novel is more about the fall of Gilead, a world run by fear, control, and executions. It is truly a dystopia that is even more shocking than the original book because its leadership is out of control. I don't usually read sequels but this was recommended by a friend and is worth the read. Atwood's writing is beautiful--it's like slipping into an old shoe. This novel is about 400 pages that flies by like a 4 mile run.