For Every One

For Every One by Jason Reynolds, 101 pages

“Originally performed at the Kennedy Center for the unveiling of the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, and later as a tribute to Walter Dean Myers, this stirring and inspirational poem is New York Times bestselling author and National Book Award finalist Jason Reynolds's rallying cry to the dreamers of the world. For Every One is just that: for every one. For every one person. For every one dream. But especially for every one kid. The kids who dream of being better than they are. Kids who dream of doing more than they almost dare to dream. Kids who are like Jason Reynolds, a self-professed dreamer. Jason does not claim to know how to make dreams come true; he has, in fact, been fighting on the front line of his own battle to make his own dreams a reality. He expected to make it when he was sixteen. Then eighteen. Then twenty-five. Now, some of those expectations have been realized. But others, the most important ones, lay ahead, and a lot of them involve kids, how to inspire them. All the kids who are scared to dream, or don't know how to dream, or don't dare to dream because they've NEVER seen a dream come true. Jason wants kids to know that dreams take time. They involve countless struggles. But no matter how many times a dreamer gets beat down, the drive and the passion and the hope never fully extinguish--because just having the dream is the start you need, or you won't get anywhere anyway, and that is when you have to take a leap of faith. A pitch perfect graduation, baby, or love my kid gift.” This is really powerful.  It’s cataloged adult but it’s definitely appropriate for teens and kids too.  It’s for every one and every one should read it.

The Purloining of Prince Oleomargarine

ThePurloining of Prince Oleomargarine by Mark Twain & Philip Stead, 152 pages

"Based on a set of unfinished Mark Twain notes for a children's story, this is the tale of Johnny, a young boy with a magical ability to speak to animals who sets off to rescue a stolen prince." This is a very simple book that would be easy to read for beginning readers.  It might be a hard sell because the illustrations are muted and some kids might think that it looks dull but it’s a funny story that has enough adventure to be interesting and I think that a lot of kids would like it if they give it a chance.

Cakewalk: A memoir

Cakewalk: A memoir by Kate Moses   350 pages

Growing up in the 1960s and 70s, Kate Moses was surrounded by sugar. However, her parents' unhappy marriage wasn't sweet at all and they were too preoccupied with themselves to notice its effects on their children. Telling her own story, interspersed with recipes, Kate Moses writes about her parents in a compassionate and sometimes humorous way. Her mother was a frustrated artist who instructed her three children to refer to her in public as "the babysitter." Her father was aloof and prone to blasts of negative comments directed at his daughter.  Kate looked for comfort in the imaginary worlds of books and found refuge in the kitchen, where she taught herself to bake.

I enjoyed this book. Moses' parents are pretty awful, although she is able to see some of the humor in some of the situations. The author does a good job of drawing into her childhood and later years, even though the book does unravel a bit towards the end. Each chapter does end with a great-sounding recipe (although I did not make anything from this book --- I already have binders filled with dessert recipes), so that's an added bonus.

Jell-O Girls: A Family History

Jell-O Girls: A Family History by Allie Rowbottom    288 pages

"In 1899, Allie Rowbottom's great-great-great-uncle bought the patent to Jell-O from its inventor for $450. The sale would turn out to be one of the most profitable business deals in American history, and the generations that followed enjoyed immense privilege - but they were also haunted by suicides, cancer, alcoholism, and mysterious ailments."

That sounds like quite the family history, right?  That's what I thought . . . but I just didn't enjoy this book as much as I thought I would. I appreciated that the author's mother had done a lot of research and that the author delved into her family's history. However, there are a lot of parts that just felt like a lot of speculation to me. There's a lot of emotional detail in this book, where you're reading about what the author's grandmother thought, and her mother thought -- and I wondered where the author was getting all of that.  I found it more distracting than interesting at times.

This story is deeply personal, but it focuses so much on the many complaints of a wealthy and destructive family that it feels self-absorbed. The way that the author's mother blames so much on the "Jell-O curse" becomes repetitive, especially because it feels like there's no resolution. The author brings up medical issues in the family, as well as a strange bout of occurrences among girls that may or may not have some kind of link to Jell-O --- but there's no resolution.  From some of the reviews on Goodreads, and especially the one here, it appears there are some glaring errors in this book.  It's one thing if you want to write a memoir about your mother and grandmother and include things about family history, but it's another to tie a business or company in to problems in that family.

The one thing I did like was the author's inclusion of the history of Jell-O, as well as the way that the advertising changed throughout the years (and how it reflected views on women). For me, that was the most interesting part of the book. I finished this book out of curiosity, but didn't enjoy it and wouldn't recommend it.

Magic Bites

Magic Bites by Ilona Andrews 260 pages

Reviewed by Rae C.

I put this book down twice, but only because I absolutely had to! I’m not starting the second book until I have 4 hours of uninterrupted free time.  The heroine, Kate Daniels, lives in a world where our current technological age has been overtaken by magic and supernatural forces.   There are vampires, shapeshifters, necromancers, deities, and ordinary mortals.  When magical energies flood the atmosphere, technology functions badly or not at all, to the point of sometimes collapsing whole buildings.  During supernatural fluctuations, electrical power can go out, and Fey lights come up, and people (supernatural or otherwise) ride horses or use magical vehicles instead of cars.

Kate is special.  Throughout the book we get hints at the origin of her specialness, but we never learn exactly what she is. She’s strong, able to withstand a lot of pain, but she is neither shapeshifter or vampire, and she stays away from supernatural law enforcement agencies like the Order of Knights of Merciful Aid, even though she could have a guaranteed job with them.  She instead chooses to be a Mercenary, until her Guardian is killed by a new kind of monster, unfamiliar even among the supernatural communities.  The People, the vampire organization, and The Pack, the shapeshifter organization, both suspect each other, but neither side wants a war.  Since Kate’s Guardian was a member of the Order, she works with all three groups to solve the murder.

The first couple of chapters has a lot of descriptions and set up for the series, but I didn’t find it slow or dull, although the person that suggested it to me did.  I did find the gore and machismo and action/fighting scenes over done, and written for male readers (probably by the husband in the husband and wife team), and I personally felt like much of it could have been edited without the story suffering.

I appreciated that it was “romance” (paranormal or otherwise) written for women that are mature, satisfied adults that don’t need every chapter to have sex in it.  There’s a lot of hot and juicy bits, but this is not a bodice ripper or panacea for the uninitiated or unfulfilled.

Kate Daniels is a strong, self-contained woman that can take a man if he’s worthy, and leave him if he’s not.  But she's also a tough outsider, a longer by necessity, and a cynic when it comes to men.  I don’t want to give any spoilers, but that is why the situation with Dr. Crest was so bittersweet and achingly emotionally honest.

The story is well-plotted and suspenseful, and only sometimes predictable, and even then, the world Daniels’ inhabits has surprises for the reader.  I loved that the authors did thorough research on esoteric and ceremonial magick, and appreciated the references to obscure mythologies and demons. 

A great book for strong women, looking for adventure in an alternate paranormal world, with a little romance in the mix.  I think fans of Harry Dresden, The Invisible Library, and/or the tv show Buffy the Vampire Slayer would enjoy this book.

Squeezed: Why Our Families Can’t Afford America

Squeezed: Why Our Families Can’t Afford America by Alissa Quart   Audio Book:  9 hours     Hardback Book:  320 pages        

Very good book, well written and gets to the heart of every topic covered in an informative and conversational way.    The author cuts right to the point without candy covering any thing.  With laser precision she analyzes the problems middle class families face today and believe me she covers the gamut and then some.   Why people today live less comfortable lives than their parents did just one generation prior.    While technology advances it also thwarts.   With the competiton of robots being introduced to take over everything from factory jobs to the service industry ie. robots or A.I. artificial intelligence machines being introduced into the service sector to assist the elderly in nursing homes and doing many tasks formerly the responsibility of nurses or aides to public relations in grocery stores assisting customers, etc. many trend followers are skeptical.   They wonder just how far mankind will go in investing in robots to change the course of society.   While arguments can be made, robots don’t have to have set hours, they don’t call in sick, technically they can go 24/7 without a break or having to leave work to take care of a sick child.    While still in its infancy, A.I. assistants are becoming more accepted for the mainstream of society who still for the most part find A.I. amusing and cute but is putting too much trust in this non-human workforce really reliable?  Currently the cost of setting up robots to do the work of several humans is prohibitive.   For the price of one robot even with paying insurance and benefits it still comes out ahead for businesses to hire humans.   Humans get sick and have home lives to deal with but there is no guarantee a machine won’t break down and when a robot/automaton/high tech set up costs in the millions of dollars as opposed to a minimum wage part-time or full-time worker even with cost of living increases this can still make humans look the better choice, plus in medical care environments the human touch can do so much to assuage the fears of the elderly while a robot might be good at telling a person when to take their meds, but not so much being sympathetic to their feelings and emotions.   Even highly advanced robots while offering comforting words do not have the empathy of a fellow human being.    She talks about the disparity in wages to this day of women and minorities and how many people are choosing not to have children because it would interfere with their being able to work long hours or more than one job even as they are struggling to live paycheck to paycheck.   She discusses the debt most Americans find themselves drowning in and how those struggling paycheck to paycheck often suffer at the hands of high interest loans or credit cards just to try to make ends meet and live as they should be.   She sites many examples throughout of how people both men and women often are paying one bill with a credit card sometimes more than one then when the interest kicks in they cannot get ahead because now they not only owe the bill they owe interest and if they can’t come up with the next payment late fees begin to accrue then their credit rating suffers and they become worse off than they were.   Previous generations leery of buying on credit and living within their means until they could afford to save up and buy something are a dying breed.   Media and Marketing feed the senses that Americans must have more to be more setting up false images and false expectations and sadly piles of debt with little to show for it – debt that won’t go away becomes an all consuming monster that just grows while mankind makes minimum payments that do little to lessen the debt but feed the greed of corporations extending that credit.   Working parents find a huge chunk of their income is paid out for childcare so they can continue to work.   Many women leave the work force because they come out ahead staying home and not having to pay childcare though this puts strain on the other parent who’s income then has to cover all their fundamental needs.   A never ending circle with little hope of escape.   Hence why the lottery is so popular with the poor trying to win their dream life while struggling to come up with the money to buy that magic ticket that might just take them there except more often, it doesn’t.   Attaining the standard of living our parents had is a thing of the past for most Americans.   As many people forego parenting because they simply can’t afford it.    She does offer hopeful ideas so it isn’t all gloom and doom just reality and how it could be possible to fix it.     Really well done. 

The Complete Chi’s Sweet Home Part 1

The Complete Chi’s Sweet Home Part 1 by  Konami Kanata          Paperback Book: 480 pages           

I love, love, love, love, love Chi the adorable kitten who got lost from his mother and was found by Yohei Yamada.    Yohei Yamada’s parents feel sorry for Chi, who is mourning for her mother.  They try and find someone who will take the kitten in as the apartment building they live ins strictly forbids pets and the superintendent lives on  site and is meticulous about enforcing the NO PETS rule.   The book describes cat behavior to a tee and Chi’s antics are so funny, so sweet and so endearing.    Life has its ups and downs and Chi is so precious in how she finds fun in so many things and tries so hard to tell the Yamadas about everything she experiences because all things are so new to her being a baby cat.   She never does find her mother and the Yamadas never find anyone to take Chi until Mrs. Yamada’s sister and niece come to visit.    The little girl is pretty rough in her handling of Chi but she wants Chi.   Yohei is like NOOOOOOOO!  Because Chi is “fweaking  out!” over the in your face rough housing attitude of the little girl.    She roughs Chi up pretty good telling everyone that Chi likes it.   I  think not.    Yohei is adamant that he doesn’t want her to have Chi even though things get pretty dicey with Chi in the apartment and the Super stopping by every so often.    All heck breaks out when an adult cat is spotted on the premises.    The Super is determined to track it down and put whoever owns it out of the apartment complex.   Someone leaves the sliding door ajar and while Chi is enjoying her bowl of food this huge monstrous looking cat, later dubbed, “bear cat,” stands menacingly in the door.   Chi’s mouth drops open so far in stunned fear that her food rolls out of her mouth and onto the floor.     She is paralyzed with fear as the bear cat shuffles in fearlessly, goes over to Chi’s bowl and eats her food up!  All of it!   Chi comes back to herself and starts hissing and hollering at the bear cat that is Chi’s food!   The bear cat hardly acknowledges Chi, continues to eat then takes its time to mozey out the door and through the hedge.   Chi doesn’t know which to be more of, angry or amazed.     She goes with angry and tries to tell the Yamadas about it.   All they keep talking about is how fast Chi ate up all of her food while she desperately is telling them she is starving because the bear cat came in and ate up all of her food.   Chi goes and lays down with tears in her eyes because she is so hungry and the Yamadas are enjoying great smelling food for dinner and she doesn’t get any because they think she is full because her bowl was empty.   Poor Chi.   I just want to hold her and love her – life is so unfair sometimes, then losing her Mommy and siblings because her curiousity lured her away from them.   So heartwrenching, Poor Baby.   The good news is Chi and the Bear Cat eventually become Buds through a lot of adventures but there is bad news, too.    Don’t want to blow the story for you so I will let you find out on your own, but, the climax will leave you dying to know more!    How does Chi’s life go from here?  Omgosh!!!!   I love this story and highly recommend it and the series.

Blue Dreams

Blue Dreams: The Science and the Story of the Drugs that Changed Our Minds by Lauren Slater      Audio Book:  13 hours and 33 mins.       Hardback Book:  416 pages     

Excellent book – well written – well researched, and lived by the author.   Very real and down-to-earth look into how drugs have evolved from common natural ingredients found in nature into the big business it is today with giant multi-gazillion dollar pharmaceutical companies wining and dining the medical profession with trips, bonuses, even paying for the children’s education in some case all to get support for marketing NEW drugs to replace Old drugs that may still be fine for solving medical issues but as in the fashion industry giant pharmas roll out new medications on the red carpet to replace last years cheaper offering.    Drugs come and go and ones that work fine are often dropped completely from being produced in order to produce new and different offerings most times more expensive with several side effects which offer opportunities to prescribe more drugs to counteract the side effects brought on by the other drug.   Pharmaceuticals are a cash cow and the trickle down effect is bribing call it what you will but if a pharmaceutical rep is offering a doctor presents for promoting a particular drug, sounds like bribing a baby to eat its vegetables with the promise of icecream to come after.   I was witness to this when I overhead a conversation a doctor I was seeing had in another room outside the door of the room I was in waiting for a check-up.   The rep. spoke eloquently about the drug they were giving samples of and telling her the essentially “gifts”  trips, etc. for promoting their drug of the day to the doctor’s patients.   I noted this conversation so I was not surprised when the doctor came in and after a minimal amount of time began to discuss the benefits of this new drug and how I would be given a prescription for it to try but the doctor was pretty sure this new script would be beneficial for my health and I would continue on it.   “Really?”   Knowing what I knew I declined.   But, how often are we patients led like that?   Way more often than we know, I’m sure.   How many procedures are performed unnecessarily other than the medical practitioner receives a car from whichever company is pushing that procedure to sell their wares.   They make it very lucrative to the medical profession for setting it up, for getting patients on a regimen including their latest trendy chemical compound.   It’s a case of what the customer doesn’t see, the cook gets away with all over again.  YIKES!!!  Even the Food and Drug Administration isn’t the watchdog over our safety as much as we think.    Money talks and that other stuff walks.    And we the unknowing public are left at the ethical mercy of those we put our trust in as medical professionals.   As in all things not everyone is careful, not everyone is up on all the information available and not everyone truly cares when it comes to you or their being able to lie on the beach on someone else’s tab.  You lose.   The public needs to do its homework.   Remember, doctors are not gods they are people who took classes that we didn’t and they know enough about a field that we have not thoroughly researched to make their best guess and their best promotional behavior to get us to go along with what they say.  Do your homework people!    Author Lauren Slater is an entertaining writer, you will enjoy her writing style, also being a psychologist herself and a person who suffers from depression she has her own list of pharmaceuticals and herbs she has partaken of over the years whether prescribed by physicians or self-subscribed.   She knows of which she speaks.   Very light-hearted and enjoyable read while getting down and dirty with the history  and use of psychotropic drugs.   Statistic – 1 in 5 Americans now takes at least one psychotropic drug and usually a cocktail of a mix of them.   Science really doesn’t understand why these drugs effect our brains the way they do, they just know they do and the public reacts positively to it.  This book offers a no B.S. look at narcotics and the invention, history and science behind them.   She discusses many who’s names are familiar, Prozac, Lithium, Thorazine, Ecstasy, Psilocybin – yes, even those magic mushrooms!    Really Excellent book told by someone who knows of what she speaks.   I would definetly recommend this book.

The Seasons of My Mother: A Memoir of Love, Family and Flowers

The Seasons of My Mother: A Memoir of Love, Family and Flowers by Marcia Gay Harden       Audio Book: 8 hours, 34 minutes      Hardback Book: 336 pages       

Bittersweet book written by actress, Marcia Gay Harden about her life  from growing up at home with her parents and siblings, later going into her mother’s bout with dementia and the toll it is taking on both of them.    She speaks so lovingly about her mother, she jokes about her father’s default word that he emphasized nearly every sentence with and certainly every conversation with several times.   Funny at times but always told with just a bit of melancholy.  From their early life living in Yokohama, Japan while her Dad who was a Naval Officer was stationed there during the Viet Nam War and the family went with him.    Her Mother left alone with the 5 Harden children looked for outlets for her creative streak and settled on Ikebana or the ancient Japanese art of flower arranging and became so proficient at it she gave lectures on it and taught classes.   Just before the Alzheimer’s kicked in, Marcia’s mother, Beverly had been planning on doing a cable tv show with Marcia on gardening and flower arranging she named, “Down the Garden Path.”   The two women were excited about the project then that hateful memory dissolving thing came to be and took the present memories away left no concept of future only stray memories from the past that could be brought out bringing smiles and nods even though Beverly no longer knows who Marcia is.   A journey through 2 gifted people’s lives told with joy, regret, sometimes with anger but always with love about a very present and all consuming beast that threatens all of us but the lucky few.   May medical science find a way to stop this disease from taking over the minds and lives of the elderly and even some not so elderly.   This book will bring tears to the eyes, there is such a deep longing to embrace what was and bring it back but Alzheimer’s is not forgiving and will not release those caught in its clutches.   Marcia Gay Harden says, “I just want my Mom back.”   How gut-wrenching that someone can be so lost in their mind, yet, be right in front of you.   It rips your heart out to know this person you love and would do anything for is asking for your help as they realize they are losing control of their faculties and it kills both you and them to know there is nothing you can do about it.    Like watching a drowning victim go down for the third time, yet, you are too far away and cannot free them nor help them return to shore.   My heart goes out to her and her mother.

Baby Teeth

Baby Teeth by Zoje Stage               Audio Book:  11 hours, 6 mins.     Hardback Book:  320 pages                   

What a little demon this child is!   Yikes!   Great Book, it will elicit so many different reactions from the reader but it is so well written you won’t want to stop until you reach the end – it is that good.  It does live up to its suspense and yes quite often it is a horror show in the intensity of the actions that take place.    Everyone in this story has a little mental issue going on – each person in their own particular way.  It crosses many lines mixing a bit of mental psychosis with wiccan mystery, blend in multi-generational personality disorders with a father figure who is naïve and gullible, shake them all together and pour out a cauldronful of mental mayhem.    Perfect for this time of year, when the air begins to chill a bit as the days are growing shorter the scent of Fall is in the air and you can picture this tale of the woebegone and monsters under the bed who don’t hold a candle to the living being on top of it.    REALLY GOOD STORY but oh my gosh this kid is something else and that is the lightest thing I can say about her.    This story is gripping.   It will grab you and won’t let you go till you complete it.    Well done, Zoje Stage!   Yes, if you are a fan of scary mental asylum type fare that go in to the thinking process of the disturbed – you are going to love this book.   It was recommended to me by a friend and I am so glad she did.   Very good, I do recommend it.   This would make a terrific book club selection for October!

What Rich People Know And Desperately Want to Keep Secret

What Rich People Know And Desperately Want to Keep Secret By Brian Sher 251 pages

Reviewed by Rae C.

This is a great book! The title is completely misleading, but also great marketing- it makes you want to pick it up and find out what the secrets are!  The book should really be titled “What Successful, Ethical Businesses Know And Are Happy To Share”.  I’ve worked for a lot of small businesses, and many people are just buying themselves a job, or just want to the boss, or are really nothing more than hobbyists or dreamers with no understanding of how to run a business.  In other words, someone who loves to cook and opens a restaurant is not a business person.  This is why most small businesses fail.

If you want to start a business because you want to create a successful enterprise, become a leader in your field, and develop both customers and employees, this is a great place to start.

The book grabbed me because I opened it to the part about the importance of employees- they are just as important as customers.  Too many business people do not consider the knowledge the employee has of the customer, the work environment, and/or the product.  Sher advises consulting employees, developing relationships with employees, and respecting workers.  “Hire Giants, not Dwarves.” “Delegate, don’t try to do everything yourself.”

A successful business develops systems.  He uses McDonald’s as example.  Business owners should be able to set up systems and train other people to follow those systems.  Many small businesses never bother to set up systems, and rely on long term employees or third party contractors.  This does not lead to success.

His instructions on advertising and the actual value of a long term customer is invaluable.  Don’t spend money on advertising unless you know it is going to pay off, and follow his formula for assessing the actual cost of advertising.  Pay attention to the profit from an average sale, and how often a customer purchases from you.

I recommend this book to all business owners and to all aspiring entrepreneurs.

Miles and Me

Miles and Me by Quincy Troupe   189 pages

I picked this nonfiction piece as my August selection to meet my 2018 New Year’s resolution. As I was pondering what titles to add the list in December 27, I grabbed this one off the shelf. I’ve like jazz music, but I have to admit that I’m extremely knowledgeable about it. I was aware that Miles Davis is one of the greatest of all time.

As I started to flip the pages, I landed on the title page, where lo and behold, was an inscription to me, personally, from the author. It was dated 10/7/06. I must have picked it up at a booksigning, probably at St. Louis’ best indie bookstore, Left Bank Books, but I have absolutely no recollection of the event. So I figured it was time to read this little gem.

The book is about Troupe and Davis and their collaboration on a book, “Miles: The Autobiography,” that was published in 1989.

In the first chapter of Troupe’s memoir, “Meeting Miles,” Troupe pulls no punches telling about their rocky start and how Davis was not an easy many to get along with. In fact, he as a snob, a jerk ad used the most awful language. With that kind of drivel spewing from his mouth, no wonder he hid behind dark sunglasses most of the time.

In the second chapter, “Up Close and Personal,” the two men become friends. Miles is hard to be friends with. He’s really just a jerk who can play the trumpet. I can’t say that I would even have like to have met the man after reading this book. I was struck about how much Davis hated how black he was and wondered if that didn’t contribute to his orneriness.

The third chapter is about the music. I won’t say I can recognize a Davis piece when I hear it, but Troupe’s musical criticism seems right on. Of course, I would have no real clue if Troupe was accurate or not. The final chapter is about the last few years of Davis’s life (he died on 1991) and his legacy.

“Miles and Me” receives 4 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

Courtney's War

Courtney’s War by Wilbur Smith with David Churchill   464 pages

I was attracted to this novel on the cover. I “think” it’s a Packard emblazoned with Nazi swastikas. I was even more excited when I won a copy from Bookishfirst.com. What the blub on Bookish didn’t mention was that this is the 17^th in the Courtney Family series. I blame myself; I should have done more research before I entered the contest. Live and learn.

The story begins in 1939 with Saffron Courtney meeting with her love, Luftwaffe air ace Gerhard von Meerbach, in Paris in the spring.  The know war is coming, yet cling to each other  as they would a life preserver if they were afloat in the ocean.

Smith bridges the gap between readers meeting the couple with this little paragraph: “In less than five months, in the early hours of Friday, September 1, 1939, Hitler unleashed the forces of Nazi Germany against Poland. Two days later, Great Britain declared was on Germany. And slaughter, suffering and horror exploded across the world.”

Smith then jumps to 1942. Saffron is trying to identify the agent who betrayed the British Special Operations spy network to the Nazis. Meanwhile, Gerhard is watching the beginning of the Final Solution as it is tested for high ranking Nazi officials. The images Smith evokes kept me awake for several nights.

Gerhard manages to survive the Battle of Stalingrad, but his anti-Nazi sentiments lead him to be thrown into Dachau. Will he survive the Hitler’s Final Solution?

The book is well-written; 130 million copies of his novels sold worldwide prove that he is a good writer. However, this isn’t a standalone novel. A lot of the time I felt lost when Smith delved into the characters’ backstories. I could not care about the characters at all.

Another thing that bothered me was that in the About the Author section, there is no mention of Smith’s co-author, David Churchill.  Is he related to Winston? Readers want to know things like this. Due to these reasons, “Courtney’s War” receives 3 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

The Genius Plague

The Genius Plague by David Walton, 384 pages

Summary from Goodreads: What if the pandemic you thought would kill you made you more intelligent instead? In the Amazon jungle, a disease is spreading. To those who survive, it grants enhanced communication, memory, and pattern recognition. But the miracle may be the sinister survival mechanism of a fungal organism, manipulating the infected into serving it.
Paul Johns, a mycologist, is convinced the fungal host is the next stage of human evolution, while his brother Neil, an analyst at the NSA, is committed to its destruction. Is the human race the master in this symbiotic relationship, or are we becoming the pawns of a subtly dominating and utterly alien intelligence?

Based on the summary, you as the reader, already know a lot of what is going to happen. You can guess the final outcome as well. So, it is not so much what as how it is all going to happen. How does Neil and rest of the NSA and government figure out what is happening and the best way to combat it? Can Neil change his brother's mind? There are some twists along the way. I loved the premise and the way the author executed it. A blurb on the book touts it as a page turner and I would agree wholeheartedly. People who like Michael Crichton and Robin Cook would probably like this one.

When

When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing by Daniel H. Pink, Hardback book: 258 pages

Pink reminds us that timing is important. His goal is to provide information on the best approach to the question of when.

He organizes the book in three sections. The first is on the best times during the day. The second section is beginnings, endings and in between. The third section is synching and thinking.

My favorite facts and recommendations were from the first section. Unless you are a night owl, analytical tasks are best done in the morning and insight or creativity tasks are best for the afternoon. If you are a night owl, reverse the two. Most people are probably third birds (in between the early and late), not larks (early birds) or night owls. Naps are good for you. The best time is the in afternoon and 10-20 minutes is the best length. Lunch is the most important meal of the day. Lastly, the midlife crisis is a myth.

I thought this was an excellent book and would recommend it to everyone. For another endorsement of this book see: Shirley's review

Dark Tide Rising

Dark Tide Rising by Anne Perry  (Monk, #24)  304 pages

While this is the 24th book in the William Monk series, if you haven't read the first 23 books, you can still jump in to this story and enjoy it. Anne Perry always does a nice job of including just enough details to give you some back story (even though once in a while, too many details . . . but I digress) so you can enjoy a story without wondering what's going on.

This story begins with a kidnapping. Commander William Monk is enlisted by Kate Exeter's husband to accompany him with the ransom money and save Kate. Monk and his most trusted men arrange a secret handover in the dangerous slums of Jacob's Island, but at the last moment, someone betrays them, leaving death and destruction in the wake of a skirmish that breaks out in the dark.

Now, Monk must not only determine who kidnapped Kate, but which one of his men betrayed him. When a whistleblower claims that the ransom money was embezzled funds that incriminate Kate's husband, the whole case takes on a new twist.

I gulped down this book, setting aside time on my day off from work to sit in a favorite chair and just read, read, read. I felt Perry did an excellent job with this story, moving it along at a steadily increasing pace, adding in twists and details --- and by the end, I was still wondering if it would all turn out okay.  You have a sense you know what happened, but you have no idea how Monk is going to prove it --- and the fact that there is the underlying storyline about one of his own men betraying him just adds to the tension.  This is a great addition to the series!

Who Fears Death

Who Fears Death  by Nnedi Okorafor   419 pages

I would never have read this book were it not a book club choice as I am not drawn to science fiction or magical bildungsroman tales. It is clear that Okorafor is transitioning from YA to adult; her protagonists are young but the themes and events of the story are undeniably, brutally adult, and Okorafor certainly deserves a great deal of respect for her willingness to unflinchingly examine rape, genocide, and female genital mutilation. The novel is set in a post-apocalyptic Africa, where two clearly distinguishable ethnic groups are in conflict. At its heart, this is a standard coming-of-age story: a young person gaining a teacher, learning they are the subject of a prophecy, and going to defeat an evil lord. There was a lot more to the conclusion than the heroine realizing that she needed to upend the systemic problems that created her opponent, rather than just defeat him; the ending felt hurried and odd, like I overlooked or misinterpreted details through the story. To fully appreciate the story, I should probably go through it again, but I didn’t enjoy it enough to invest any more time doing so.

Posted by:   Regina C.  

Sadia

Sadia  by Colleen Nelson    235 pages

This YA book is not part of SLPL’s inventory, but should be considered as an addition. This book follows Sadia, a Muslim teenager whose family has immigrated to Canada from Syria, having left the country before total collapse and chaos. Sadia struggles with all things inherent in teenage lives – peer pressure, crushes, friends, school work, sports – with a complicating layer of being a minority in a foreign country. Sadia is not conflicted about her religion, but struggles with the inconveniences of wearing a hijab when playing basketball, an issue that is one of the subplots. In another subplot, Sadia is also confused about the change in her best friend, Nazreen, who “de-jabs” behind her parent’s backs, and struggles to fit into main stream society in terms of dress and behavior. Sadia is somewhat resentful that she has to act as translator and guide to Amira, a recent refugee from Syria, a task that highlights her Muslim-ness when she wishes it weren’t so obvious, in yet another subplot. Indicative of teenage lives, there is a lot going on in this story that covers a year-in-the-life of its characters, and the author tries to touch on predictable and controversial issues.

Posted by:   Regina C.  

Dunbar

Dunbar  by Edward St. Aubyn   211 pages

This short novel is a reimagining of King Lear.

Henry Dunbar is a mass media mogul, and a widower with three daughters, Abigail, Megan and Florence. Having disinherited Florence for being unwilling to dedicate herself to the company, Abby and Megan are given her own share of the fortune. Unsatisfied with having to wait for full control of the company, they have Dunbar drugged and committed to an asylum in Manchester.

With Dunbar, the futility and remorse of Lear, is clearly and brilliantly depicted. The whole essence of his ordeal was faithful and respectful of its source. The agony to right the wrongs and to escape a world that demands you to be mad is tense and vivid. The scenes of Dunbar’s time in hiding and his thoughts of remorse echo Lear’s tribulations. Florence’s fears for her father and her struggle to protect him from her sisters are well-depicted without being melodramatic. Unfortunately, the characters of Abigail and Megan significantly lower the quality of the entire novel. They exist just to be evil and the author tried too hard to make them appear as such. They had no personality, no evil maturity and menace like the villains in Shakespeare.

This novel will be a disappointment to Shakespeare purists. Since it is intended to be a retelling of Shakespeare’s work, it stands to reason that it would be compared to the original; in this case, there is no comparison.

Posted by:   Regina C.  

Orchid & the Wasp

Orchid & the Wasp  by Caoilinn Hughes   345 pages

It is clear from the writing style that the author is a poet, and the language and focus on the “art” aspect of writing often detracts from the story, as does the protagonist in the is coming-of-age novel. Gael Foess is an intelligent, articulate, opinionated and dislikeable child, and not much better as an adult. She operates alongside beautiful inspiring art while also stealing, manipulating and conning people and situations around her. The novel, narrated by Gael, spans about nine years: a politically turbulent decade that opens with Iraq War protests and closes with the Occupy movement in New York City. The financial crisis temporarily jolts Gael and Guthrie’s father, Jarleth, a high-flying Barclay’s banker who leaves the family in 2008. The biblical parable of the talents, which he recounted to Gael when she was a little girl, comes back to resonate: It’s a potent reminder that money and skills don’t get distributed fairly in this life. When Gael gets to New York in 2011, she plans to redress the balance in two paradoxical ways: living in the Occupy camp and taking part in protests; and secretly earning her brother a fortune on his modern art. 

Written in heart-stoppingly vivid prose, Orchid & the Wasp examines how we inevitably fail our families despite our best intentions; what we are owed and what we must earn; and how our lives can turn us into people we would never have imagined. While this publisher’s précis lured me in, I so disliked Gael’s character, that I struggled through the story, cringing at absolutely everything she did (with the exception of her 11 year-old self trying to set up a business of persuading school girls to break their hymens and then buy supplies of blood “virginity” capsules). While the author tries to tackle a range of societal issues, ultimately her writing style and lack of focus make this rambling story difficult to enjoy.

Posted by:   Regina C.  

Guilty Robots, Happy Dogs

Guilty Robots, Happy Dogs: the Question of Alien Minds by David McFarland, 252 pages


The question of alien minds is a tough one. What is the starting point? McFarland approaches it by considering what it means for a human to have a mind.

To this end, he looks at whether robots and animals have intentionality and beliefs, intelligence and autonomy. He considers each issue from several philosophical viewpoints but lets the reader decide what he or she thinks is best. He also uses examples of robots in action, looks at animal behavior and studies done with animals.

In the end, since we don't know what animals are or are not thinking, it may be impossible to decide if animals do have minds.

The title and subtitle are very attractive but the substance is lacking. He brings up some good questions and has some good thoughts but it was a slog when it didn't need to be and didn't provide enough insight. I was hoping for more from this book so I can't recommend it.
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Squirrel Days

Squirrel Days by Ellie Kemper     256 pages

There comes a time in every sitcom actress’s life when she is faced with the prospect of writing a book. When Ellie Kemper’s number was up, she was ready. Contagiously cheerful, predictably wholesome, and mostly inspiring except for one essay about her husband’s feet, My Squirrel Days is a funny, free-wheeling tour of Ellie’s life—from growing up in suburban St. Louis with a vivid imagination and a crush on David Letterman to moving to Los Angeles and accidentally falling on Doris Kearns Goodwin.

I was so excited to see this book on NetGalley – I knew I had to read it. As a self-proclaimed Office and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt fan, and as a St. Louis native, I knew I had to read Kemper’s book. And I am so glad I did! Kemper’s humor comes across in her writing so well. I giggled constantly while reading this book. Each chapter tells of a different experience or memory from Kemper’s life and she is very open and honest in her writing. She includes a disclaimer in the beginning of the book that her stories will be embellished – and there are plenty of moments where you can see this in action, and it gives the work an artful storytelling quality that I quite enjoyed, because really, everyone remembers things differently than how they happened. Kemper uses this to channel her humor and creates a scene that almost feels like you’re reading the scene of a movie. It was wonderful seeing all the bits and pieces that Kemper includes about St. Louis in her story. St. Louis is both a fairly large city and at the same like a small town (where you bump into people you know more often than not), so it often gets passed up when people consider major cities in the US. It was nice to get this little nod of recognition from Kemper. As she related bits about her childhood, I could easily picture the places she mentions and I got a little thrill every time. It was also amazing to hear a little behind the scenes tidbits from the shows and movies she’s acted in, like getting a little Office trivia. It was very cool to see things from her perspective about a show that I’ve watched so many times. She actually lived some of it! I would definitely recommend this to fans of the Office or Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. It’s also just a really funny book with lots of slice of life scenes that are made larger than life with Kemper’s humor and storytelling. A fun, quick read that’s worth picking up.

As Long as We Both Shall Live

As Long as We Both Shall Live by JoAnn Chaney    324 pages  I read a galley - book is due to be published in January, 2019

Sometimes, it's easier to walk away than make it work. Or maybe it's a better solution to just get someone completely out of the way of your new life. 

Is that what happened with Matt and his wife, Marie? While on a hike, Matt frantically tells park rangers that Marie has fallen off a cliff into the raging river below. No one could have survived that fall; it was a tragic accident.  Or was it? Matt's first wife died under suspicious circumstances. And when the police pull a body out of the river, Matt faces even more questions. This character-driven story is written with a taught, steadily increasing pace that will have you turning the pages (and probably staying up past your bedtime to read)!

I enjoyed that this story is character-driven and you get the perspectives of Matt and Marie, as well as some of the police detectives who are investigating what happened. It's an interesting way to get a fuller perspective and also adds some rich layers to the story. I don't like referring to Gone Girl (yet again, as so many book blurbs seem to), but this has some of the same appeal factors: a steady pace, unlikely characters (who may just be misunderstood) and some plot twists that keep you guessing.

The Good Neighbor: The Life and Work of Fred Rogers

The Good Neighbor: The Life and Work of Fred Rogers by Maxwell King   320 pages

This is the first full-length biography of Fred Rogers (known to most of us as Mister Rogers). The author uses archival documents, original interviews, oral histories and more and takes the reader through Rogers' childhood through his decades of work.

I found this an absolutely fascinating book (and thought I would, so that was nice). I didn't know much about Fred Rogers and some of the information surprised me. For example, I didn't know that he had stopped working on programs for children for a while and made television for adults --- only to return to the Neighborhood with more sophisticated episodes. I also didn't know how extensively he consulted with experts on childhood development --- I mean, I assumed that he did and that he himself had some background in child development, but I didn't know how much time he spent with his mentor in the field.

This is a really richly written biography. You get a full picture not only of the person, but also of what they meant to the people around them. Fred Rogers is a beloved person to many of (even now, years after his death), but how much do we really know about him? This book does a great job of being true to its subject in an engaging way, even as a lot of information is covered. As a child, I watched Mister Rogers' Neighborhood and I remember really loving some of those shows (Daniel Tiger was my favorite).

Now, I just need to grab my box of tissues and find the new documentary about him to watch.

Origin Story: A Big History of Everything

Origin Story: A Big History of Everything by David Christian         Audio Book:  12 hours, 23 minutes       Hardback Book:  368 pages                  

Excellent book that tells the evolution of space dust to space particles all the way through humans and animals today.    Told in such a lively, fully engaged way, author David Christian makes the reader want to know more and more all the way to the end and yes, David Christian even goes so far as to predict where both the planet and civilization is headed discussing the melting of glaciers, the destruction of rainforests,  over consumption of earth’s land and sea, man’s continuing to ignore the time bomb of desecration going on to earth’s atmosphere offering discussions on how it could be lessened and how fast we need to be doing something about it and the lack of desire on many levels as capital gain drives corporate motives disregarding the need to safeguard the planet as well as ourselves.    He discusses the destruction of life as the dinosaurs knew it and how history is repeating itself as man is on a collision course of desimation and will kill off life as we know it unless the course is changed.   Beyond fascinating, this book is full of so much information and explains the ins and outs of how this universe and others could house life on other planets with a section on how earth in order to save its inhabitants may find colonizing Mars and even other heavenly bodies a necessity not just research.    Really compelling book.   Goes from what is scientifically known of the beginning of all things  leaving the reader confronted with the current trajectory as is currently and where things may go with different scenarios.    Well researched, well written totally down to earth language and concepts even when discussing thermal nuclear fusion, plate tectonics,  astro-physics principles to adaptations by man and animals over the years in balance with their diverse environments throughout time as we know it there is nothing that will be over any body’s head, he breaks things down in totally conversational terms and makes the lofty absolutely understandable like talking to a friend on every topic imaginable and still communicating on terms you each get.    Great book – much learning to be had here- lots of new ways of thinking on subjects covered many times over the years.   Well done David Christian. I would highly recommend this read.

Back Talk: Stories

Back Talk: Stories by Danielle Lazarin                                Audiobook: 6 hours, 30 mins                      Paperback Book:  256 pages                       Genre: Adult Fiction-Stories about females coping with their situations

Really well written stories about females of all ages accepting and dealing with the circumstances they find themselves in, some not so happy, some uplifting, some growing experiences some funny (I love the psychic sisters for example).    These stories take the reader through many circumstances with many alternating routes arriving at the destination as they do.   I enjoyed the stories in this book, the reader will get swept away with each one, I know I did.   The characters here go from young children, teens, young adults, adults, midlifers and elderly.    Each one unique and poignant.   I liked each story found in this book for its triumph for the shero (female hero) and there are some truly warrior gals to be found here, so much so, I can almost here that Xena, Warrior Princess yell going in the background.   Not everyone is nice but neither are they truly evil, just doing the best they can with what they have to deal with and in the end that is all any of us can do with life, it doesn’t always come in a pretty packages sometimes it is pretty rough and you still have to carry it and continue on and these stories offer some wonderful insights into their characters.   Good, bad, happy, sad and even indifferent – these are all good stories and worth your time.   I would recommend this read.

Every Time You Go Away

Every Time You Go Away by Beth Harbison           Audio Book:  8 hours, 13 minutes           Paperback Book:  320 pages               Genre:    Paranormal Romance

Willa has lost her husband, Ben and has been grieving for the past 3 years trying to force herself to continue living and going on with her life.    She can’t even be much of a comfort to their son, Jamie, because she is so distraught and her world as she knew it is gone.  The family own a beach house which is where Ben was when he died of a heartattack.    Willa has not be able to go there since because of all the memories it holds of all the good times they have had there over the years with family and friends and friend’s children.    After much thought, Willa decides to sell the beach house in Maryland.   Summoning all of her courage she knows she has to go there and clean it up and get it ready to put on the market.     Her son, Jamie cannot stand the thought of going back there knowing his Dad died there, Willa’s best friend has to work, but, promises to come up to the beach house that weekend to join Willa and help her get it sale ready.  So with much dismay Willa begins the trek dreading it all the way.    When she arrives there is a lot of work neede to be done to update the place and when she contacts a realtor she gets an even longer list of to dos on the place.   She decides to stay as long as it takes to get it all done and over with from there the story takes off into the paranormal range.   I don’t want to spoil it for the reader, but, it is really well done and I think anyone who is a fan of the ghostly, a fan of romance novels, anyone who has lost a loved one and anyone who enjoys a good read will find this book pleasing.    It shows the remorse of losing someone you love, the reality of not being able to function, the inability to be there for others as much as you would like when you are drowning in your own pain and the guilt of not being the comforter to your own children when grief surrounds you so wholely and the value of dear friends in your time of need and understanding.    Well done, well told, enjoyable read.