A Room Of Books

 Christy  Boulware has faced the beast. Winston Churchill called it the Black Dog. In "Nervous Breakthrough she writes twelve million Americans know and can identify with her illness. It is here. It is real. What do we do about it?   It is amazing that this phenomena can happen to the most successful people. The ones whom we admire and envy. In "Nervous Breakthrough," she kicks and tears down our maps to the good life. Should we trust her? Believing in her is a serious vote that touches on who we really are behind our darkened lamp posts.

  Donn Leon is not only a famous International Mystery author. She has occupied her life in many ways. "Wandering Through Life" is like eating Beef Wellington. She has taught English to the Iranians.She is also a connoisseur of Opera. Tosca is one that has been on her itinerary.  Since she did see it on stage,  Tosca, the mind wonders whether she cried. Perhaps, seeing and hearing music in a foreign language causes the brain to react differently.  The Lady is different. She is ever learning and enjoying life in her way. Let's hope she still has admiration for Guido Brunetti, the detective in her novels. He lives in Venice. That means twirling the world globe again. I need to put my feet up. Donna Leon's  "Wandering Through"  Life is an exciting but quiet tome.      

 I would give her acting job. Not sure I would make her a star. Anna May Wong is one of the characters in "The Brightest Star." Sadly, society has racist ideas about the Chinese community. From the time she starts school, people stereotype her personality and the way she looks. Gail Tsukiyama fully flavors the book with facts in an entertaining way. You must turn the page to see how the lady's life will turn out. It is shameful how we treat those who come to America looking for hope and happiness. The author picks the word "provincial." I would pick it too or are there worse words to describe the way we think of people who look different than ourselves? Also, there it is again. A woman should only live her life in a certain way. Preferably as a mother and wife. Just do not think so much. This is a Historical Fiction novel. Would you like to come to the movies with me?

 Their world has become one of fear and suffering. A mother, not wanting to, has succumbed to depression. She can not hide her feelings from her daughter. I am filled with fear too. On there doorstep is nothing good. The Nazis are all over Germany. There is no escape from this danger. I know Nazis from other books. "The Porcelain Maker" by Sarah Freethy is in some way different. Possibly, we never reach a  complete end to knowing what happened in the Forties. I can not release Sarah Freethy's hand there is too much to know.

 Apples, apples and more apples.  It is the passion for apples in "North Woods" by Daniel Mason.  The beginning was difficult for me to read. I kept reading "North Woods" because the author is the one who wrote a very special book earlier. The dryness does not last too long. Only long enough to see two sisters, Mary and Alice grow up. I think of this one as a Family Saga. Every word is like a song. And guess what? You end up wanting to hear more about America and apples.  

    August Wilson spent his life in Pittsburgh. While living in the Hill District, he began to feel passionate about words. Now we know him as an African American Poet and Playwright. August Wilson by Patti Hartigan is a great book. It is not boring. His style of writing leads to a desire to play with words. Maybe appear in a staged play yourself.  August Wilson is so kind. He seems too good. He allows the homeless and those with hard addictions to stay in his flat.  Meeting him in a diner and watching him write his thoughts on a napkin would have been encouraging. Learning about his life gives me a new goal. I  have read some of his plays but not all of them. His poems? I was not aware he wrote poetry. There is more and more to learn about his life.

  Rarity owns  a  bookstore in  Sedona, Arizona. She and her employees like planning bookclubs. These clubs add a special charm to the store. When death comes to town, Rarity's  friends and employees are willing to help investigate the murder.  The bookstore setting is fun. Hearing people tell why they have decided on the book they have chosen is interesting. The answer to why is as complicated as why we want peaches and not bananas.  It is also entertaining wondering why people like Rarity have a an over zealous need to find the solution to such horrible happenings. This is not Rarity's first time. She has fallen into other investigations.  Rarity's main squeeze is "Killer." He happens to love all of Rarity's friends. Killer is a Yorkie. This cozy includes family members. When family loyalty and love is involved, it is harder to conclude who might have done the awful  act. "Death In The Romance Aisle" bounces our emotions around. There is time for a

   Robert  McLoughlin founded Oregon City. We also meet Jacob Vanderpool. The name Vanderpool is Dutch.It is thought that Jacob Vanderpool was from the West Indies. There is not much of his life story known.  He is biracial. His mother was an African woman.  His father was Dutch.  I can fully recommend "The Place We Make because Sarah L. Sanderson writes hard facts in  a simple way.  She opens our curiosity up. Some times we take our birth places for granted. Never knowing who or why the state and city were founded or who lived there in the past. In other words, how much has the state changed. Sarah L. Sanderson's personal journey guides us along.  During Jacob Vanderpool's time Racial hate was alive and well. There was an Exclusion Act and a Lash Law. These rules were especially cruel for any one who was not White.  He was told to leave Oregon City. No Blacks allowed. Oregon has definitely come a long way. This telling begins before the Civil War.  The definite question a

   Buffalo  Girl by Jessica Q. Stark is a book that retells a fairy tale.  The fairy tale is "Little Red Riding  Hood." It is  interesting to  read and think. about this famous story in a  different way. Throughout time children and women have  experienced the inner anger of wolves. The "woods" no longer are a safe habitat.  There is also the rupture caused by Vietnam. Only so far can we run from these specters of abuse. We must face them like Buffalo Girl one more time each day.

     In the  beginning, Anna Bliss describes the whispered words about antisemitism. Anna Bliss calmly creates the  dreariness of hate. How horrible it is to stereotype people. It is insanity. Some make this jarring hate decision without ever having really gotten to know a Jewish person.With just a few words Anna Bliss makes you squirm and the stomach begins to feel like its seasick. The war has not begun yet. It is in the air blowing gray smoke. Nineteen thirty-six is the year  Four  or five  years  years before the sky stopped being a beautiful blue and became blackened by the fighter planes bringing death. "Bonfire Nights" is also a Love story. Two people, one Irish and one Jewish are attracted to one another. The author eases into this dating game. Feeling their love for one another melts you. Just touching  a knee under the table becomes a sensuous moment. Their faith and ethnicity juxtaposed brings to remembrance the fact that love can some times hurt. All of a sudden

 The father of a family has disappeared: there is the mother,there is the daughter and a son including Eugene. Where could the main man have gone?  Have I missed it? Is it told later in the book? I would really like to know Eugene's age? I have read a few things, that includes, a book or two.Does this illness start to show itself only in children, or  can it begin in  old age? Can autistic children or adults understand language? English, etc.

I This is a book about friendship. Ingrid and Cece are best friends. Close friendship becomes complicated over time.due to all that naturally happens in life.Cece dies of a brain tumor. In "The Words We Lost"  by Nicole Deese, Cece is not forgotten. There is Ingrid, Cece's best friend and Joel, her cousin who are left explicit instructions to follow in her will. As the story goes along, Cece's desires are introduced. The unfolding of a life is what it is about. Fascinating is the fact that friendships are like snowflakes.In a group, eight people could share a friend story and all would tell a different experience. This is a complimentary copy from Bethany House.

      It is very mysterious. Mike Lupica's and Robert B.Parker's Broken Trust leaves more questions than answers. A husband and wife's life is changed. It begins with Andrew Crain's disappearance. No one has any idea where he has gone.There are no notes, nothing. Then,his wife, Laura, is beaten to death. This is all we really know. All of this relates to big business. Most of the book is the interrogation of those who knew the couple and knew about the merger of the business. I did not like sitting through so many interviews. Broken glass might have caused the needed interruption. The interview simply bored me. Quantity defeated quality. Nicely, the novel is slo

 

It is surprising how many women feel away from their husband and children. It is where you expect the  most love and  a feeling of freedom.When you do not find these, the emotions scurry away from you  leaving you in a dilly of madness. Alejandra has this deep need to spend time without her children. That way she can explore and discover herself again. In shorter words, Alejandra feels lost. Sadly, no one is looking for her.  

Not until I read "Leave The Lights On" by Liv Andersson did I know there are "varieties of lavender."" I haven't seen a tree house lately. If I need to or want to see one, I know where to find one. This story is like finding summer for the first time. Thinking about Luke becomes your loving summer goal. After all, how many secrets are there in the middle of no where?. It is a retreat for artists. Each cabin is named after those who became allured to a life of creativity. People like Frida Kahlo. What drives them? They live to catch the moment no matter whether it is pleasing or not. The place is called Ross Island. Once it was a mental health center.

 In Patrice Gopo's Autumn Song, there is a gentle bounce, from story to story. There are times reminiscent  of seasons gone before and come again. My heart cries out for the black men murdered before they ever had the chance to state their case.While reading, that one theme is always there in the back of your head.Where is fairness? The author shares thoughts about the places where Blacks have lived. Some of these places became Historical Districts. These places were not always run down, these  areas were where doctors and other highly influential Black people lived. It is like reading a simple but complex Social History or an American History textbook.Vernon Sawyer is a Black singer with a group called "Blue Magic. People are sure to remember living in the midst of greatness.  When the community becomes stricken with poverty, drugs and violence, the architects and engineers  will renovate and modernize inner city communities for the real estate salesman to sell. White  home

 Mary Margaret Miller lives in Trail, Ohio. She's quiet and stays to herself.  Soon, Mary's life goes through changes. This happens partly because Mary wants a change in her life. Becoming more extroverted is her goal.. Soon, there is a trip to Florida with other girls. All the girls are Amish. Each one wants  to change their personality. Because there purposes  blend the girls fit together like a well coordinated quilt.  The greatest gift they desire is to become more honest with themselves and their friends and family. "Her Heart's Desire" by Shelley Shepard Gray encourages the men on the trip too. They also want to share their honest feelings during vacation and at home. The book leaves you wanting to take a vacation. While away there is time to renew your mind and your body. Who knows? When you return home, your family and friends might feel and see that you are a different person.  

Boundless Deep And Other stories is able to reach any emotion you have experienced or not experienced. The stories are like water flowing through your personal reality. Nishina feels he is a periscope. He is looking for a lost, shipwrecked one.  Gen Del Reye writes about death and life. Hideto is a memory that  must live forward with us. He is dying in segments. His frame is likened to chicken bones. His father's poses recall what we look like in mourning. We limp along. The book is about death. How death lives beside life. As one leaves and one stays behind with a wondering mind.  

I hate when we yank our child's arm to come along. Children are so vulnerable at that age. We are the giants who always make the right decisions.Temple Folk by Aalliyah Bilal begins with an event. It is a special day. The Trailway bus is their transportation.From the first story, you can feel  that the author, Aaliyah Bilal, writes wonderful descriptions of people, places or things. If you are not familiar with the Muslim culture, do not worry. She eases new words like Messenger into the story. There are ten stories, not many to hover over. Plus, the stories are not boring. The first  story "Blue" is interesting because this father of the family is striving to convince his family to leave the Nation. Each story is very different.A reminder that no culture is worthy of an ignoring eye.  

  Life is more complicated than many moons ago. Look at the title. There are people celebrating one or more than one holiday every year. Some men and women choose this time of year to get married. Just think festivities while reading this one. You're sure to find a laugh. Just do not let any sad parts leave you down. It is, really, all about  love. All those traveling have their minds on something.This Rom-Com gives many ways to look at a celebration.

 It's a tragic book. It is difficult to understand the mind. Lucia grows up with the name of thugs and their faces in her mind. Almost immediately, at the beginning of"Where No One will See," Lucia's father is dead. He has met a miserable death The only real fact we have is that he did not come home for dinner that evening.The family and friends seem to take it easily except for Angie, ,his wife who becomes more solemn. You don't see it in writing but you know her love runs deep.  Lucia is their daughter. While grieving,her mind is asking questions. What happened? There are always secrets. Some told ; Some stay hidden forever. Lucia's father worked and gained money by killing people.These men who do this type of service are called Contract Killers. Deep down what are the feelings of the immediate family. After all, all their hearts beat like any other person's . It is not who you love. It is how much you loved this Jane Doe or John Smith. Whom we love and