Midnight in Chernobyl

 

Midnight in Chernobyl by Adam Higginbotham  538 pages

Summary from Goodreads: April 25, 1986, in Chernobyl, was a turning point in world history. The disaster not only changed the world’s perception of nuclear power and the science that spawned it, but also our understanding of the planet’s delicate ecology. With the images of the abandoned homes and playgrounds beyond the barbed wire of the 30-kilometer Exclusion Zone, the rusting graveyards of contaminated trucks and helicopters, the farmland lashed with black rain, the event fixed for all time the notion of radiation as an invisible killer.

Chernobyl was also a key event in the destruction of the Soviet Union, and, with it, the United States’ victory in the Cold War. For Moscow, it was a political and financial catastrophe as much as an environmental and scientific one. With a total cost of 18 billion rubles—at the time equivalent to $18 billion—Chernobyl bankrupted an already teetering economy and revealed to its population a state built upon a pillar of lies.

The full story of the events that started that night in the control room of Reactor No.4 of the V.I. Lenin Nuclear Power Plant has never been told—until now. Through two decades of reporting, new archival information, and firsthand interviews with witnesses, journalist Adam Higginbotham tells the full dramatic story, including Alexander Akimov and Anatoli Dyatlov, who represented the best and worst of Soviet life; denizens of a vanished world of secret policemen, internal passports, food lines, and heroic self-sacrifice for the Motherland. Midnight in Chernobyl, award-worthy nonfiction that reads like sci-fi, shows not only the final epic struggle of a dying empire but also the story of individual heroism and desperate, ingenious technical improvisation joining forces against a new kind of enemy. 

And here's what I thought: Maybe not an uplifting story, but definitely very interesting -- and scary. I remember when this accident happened and how the details really did not come out for a very, very long time. Which did not make it any less scary.

Understanding what the USSR was like at the time gives perspective here, and I liked that the author includes political details here, not just a step-by-step of what happened. The Soviet approach to everything really did impact what led up to the disaster and how it was handled, so it's important to give a full picture of that. 

This book is insightful and detailed, and includes the human element of the whole disaster, which really makes it clear just how horrifying the whole accident was. It's a scary book, but engrossing and interesting. 

Dark Horses

 Dark Horses by Susan Mihalic  344 pages

Summary from Goodreads: Fifteen-year-old equestrian prodigy Roan Montgomery has only ever known two worlds: inside the riding arena, and outside of it. Both, for as long as she can remember, have been ruled by her father, who demands strict obedience in all areas of her life. The warped power dynamic of coach and rider extends far beyond the stables, and Roan's relationship with her father has long been inappropriate. She has been able to compartmentalize that dark aspect of her life, ruthlessly focusing on her ambitions as a rider heading for the Olympics, just as her father had done. However, her developing relationship with Will Howard, a boy her own age, broadens the scope of her vision.

And here's what I thought:  I found this to be a dark, compulsive pageturner of a read and found it difficult to put down once I started. It's a bit of a trainwreck with the main character and it's impossible to look away. As you can see from the summary, Roan's relationship with her father has some big problems --- no spoiler alerts here. But be prepared to be disturbed. I found the characters compelling and the story interesting, even as there are plenty of disturbing elements here. 

White Oleander

 White Oleander by Janet Fitch  390 pages

Summary from Goodreads: Everywhere hailed as a novel of rare beauty and power, White Oleander tells the unforgettable story of Ingrid, a brilliant poet imprisoned for murder, and her daughter, Astrid, whose odyssey through a series of Los Angeles foster homes--each its own universe, with its own laws, its own dangers, its own hard lessons to be learned--becomes a redeeming and surprising journey of self-discovery.

And here's what I thought: I re-read this book about once a year because I enjoy the story and a lot of the imagery. Both Astrid and her mother are interesting characters and the way they play off each other lends an extra element to the story of a daughter exploring the results of her own choices. When Astrid's mother is charged with murder and imprisoned, Astrid is left to navigate the foster care system. As expected, some places are better than others and through the years, Astrid has to struggle to hang on to who she really is.  Astrid is an artist and her mother is a poet, so there are plenty of both throughout the story. This is a book that is beautifully written, which is why I re-read it on a regular basis.

The Calculating Stars

 The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal  431 pages

Summary from Goodreads: On a cold spring night in 1952, a huge meteorite fell to earth and obliterated much of the east coast of the United States, including Washington D.C. The ensuing climate cataclysm will soon render the earth inhospitable for humanity, as the last such meteorite did for the dinosaurs. This looming threat calls for a radically accelerated effort to colonize space, and requires a much larger share of humanity to take part in the process.

Elma York’s experience as a WASP pilot and mathematician earns her a place in the International Aerospace Coalition’s attempts to put man on the moon, as a calculator. But with so many skilled and experienced women pilots and scientists involved with the program, it doesn’t take long before Elma begins to wonder why they can’t go into space, too.

Elma’s drive to become the first Lady Astronaut is so strong that even the most dearly held conventions of society may not stand a chance against her.

And here's what I thought: I picked up this book for a book group read and really enjoyed it. The premise is interesting and believable, and I liked that the story focused on a woman who is really good at math. Which may sound odd --- but really, it's kind of nice to have a focus on intelligence, rather than what she looks like. Or how bad-ass she is.  Because she is bad-ass --- but it's because she's really smart.

Kowal includes plenty of realistic details, so you could imagine this story really happening.  This is alternate history, but it's so well done that it could be a nonfiction memoir. Definitely looking forward to reading more in this series!

Takedown Twenty

 

Shirley J.             Adult Fiction                    Female Bounty Hunters, Comedy Adventures

Takedown Twenty by Janet Evanovich   307 pages

Why is there a giraffe moseying down the street?   Lula sees it first, then later Stephanie does.   THey begin to question whether it is a magical giraffe, because they are the only ones who have seen it and no one has reported a live giraffe just out strolling around.  Huh?  In this adventure, Morelli's Uncle Sonny is wreaking havoc, stealing, he's already a known killer and he also just happens to have missed his curt date so Stephanie and Lula are on a mission to apprehend him which is not as easy as it sounds even if he is an old guy.   He has lots of family watching over him especially Gramma Bella who is cursing  Stephanie with her super duper burn in hell evil ey this time.   Sonny is one of gramma Bella's favorite nephews afterall.   Stephanie finds herself being dropped off a bridge, she breaks a finger and she gets her nose broken in a freak accident with a gangbanger.   Steph decides it is time to find another career and tries her hand at being a butcher (through a hookup made by her mother- but you would always have great meat and at the very least a big discount when the family went to buy meat).

Lula names the giraffe, Kevin and starts leaving lettuce out for him.   A fun story from beginning to end.   I recommend this one to mature middleschoolers on up.

The Last Ballad

The Last Ballad by Wiley Cash   416 pgs

Shirley J.                          Adult Historical Fiction                       Mill Workers 1929,  unions

Ella May Wiggins was the Norma Rae of her generation.   Working in a cotton mill in North Carolina in 1929, there were no rules for pay, for hours, nor anything really concerning workers who basically had no rights on the job and no voice with management. .   The years after the Great Depression were especially difficult and bosses were allowed to treat their employees however they liked.  They could pay them little or unequal pay and fire people without notice on a whim.   this is a fictionalized version of what actually happened and how a  mother of four, doing her best to scrape by became the surprise voice of the union revolution beginning across the south at the time.   A very fine story told with candor and appreciation to detail.   A good read to gain a deeper understanding of the times and the worker's plight.    I recommend this book to adults who will appreciate the deeply emotional situations the characters find themselves in

The Merry Spinster

Shirley J.                Adult Fiction            New Spins on Old Tales with Fractured Endings    190 pgs

The Merry Spinster: Tales of Every Day Horrors by Mallory Ortberg

Oh my dears, these are not the tales as Disney would have told them, all these familiar classics have a little bite and venom to them.   From the little princess who goes 9ut in the woods to find her 6 brothers missing for many years with lots of story in that time to how when she is supposed to be living her happily ever after, her prince is not quite so charming and her enchanted brothers save her one day by pulling out a giant sized can of Whupass on the blaggart and his kingdome.   I especially liked the Merry spinster version of the Velveteen Rabbit when like Pinocchio once the rabbit's boy believes him to be real he becomes real and life blossoms from tragedy.    There are optional ending takes on Beauty and the Beast,  the Goose Girl, new twists on true love, ie. take the ring and vanish.  THe take on Mr. Toad's Wild Ride is more like going down the rabbit hole with Alice.turning into a when good friends go bad situation and they try to convince him he has lost his mind- Bad Friends!  Bad Friends!   A few different Mermaid stories, one with marriage, children, poison and kidnapping, there is a transgender tale of the Frog and the Princes that  has so many read between the lines moments and inuendos it almost rates a R rating and the Flounder and the Fisherman becomes a tale of no matter you just can't please some folks and end up sticking it to yourself by trying.   Very interesting spins on old tomes.   I think I would recommend this one to adults who have already been through a few jaded times in their lives and will appreciate where these stories are coming from.   All in all, I have to say I did like this book and the not entirely happy endings it delivers. 

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Winter's Bone

Shirley J.           Adult Fiction              Children of Meth dealers growing up in poverty in the Ozarks

Winter's Bone by Daniel Woodrell    193 pages

Life is tough enough on kids and families when you are poor but add to the mix, Daddy is cooking Meth instead of moonshine in the Ozark hills.    The mother of the family is not quite "right," herself ,  which leaves the oldest daughter Rees to take care of her two younger brothers.    Folks in the community are not keen on the family as they have a long history of being trouble makers and low lifes.   Unfortunately the stigma of the father is visited on the entire bunch and neighbors and law enforcement alike have little to do with them and never offer a kind word or help even to the youngest innocents reaping the sin of their father.    When Daddy is missing and might miss his upcoming court court date on drug charges no one in the house thinks much of it.   It is a pretty standard pattern for him, he often disappears for spells then turns up like nothing happened.   This time the house was put up for his bail and the family will be turned out to fend for themselves in the field if he doesn't appear.   Their mother is a lost cause in trying to get him back so Rees takes it on her own shoulders to try to locate him and get him to appear in court.   She does her best sleuthing trying to figure out where he might be hiding or if he wronged somebody else and could be laying in a creek somewhere.   Much happens and the language is written like the characters speak. with the language, cadence and colloquialisms  familiar to the speech of folks living in the Ozarks or Appalachia.   A good story.   I would recommend this one to adults.

Notorious Nineteen

Shirley J.                Adult Fiction                 Feale Bounty Hunters, Little People, Grave Digging

Notorious Nineteen by Janet Evanovich    356 pages

Stephanie Plum is at it again and up to her elbows in corpses. sometimes because she is thrown into an open grave that is already occupied.    What is going on?  One of the perps Stephanie and Lula are tracking has stolen a Tiki statue from Hawaii and become abnormally attached to it (O.K. he thinks it is speaking to him)  then when it ends up riding around with Lula and Stephanie, they too, start receiving messages from "Tiki" and begin loading up on carbs like there is no tomorrow.   and Stephanie is trying not to gain weight because Ranger needs her to work security at a wedding which she somehow gets roped into being the Maid of Honor and forced to wear this pink monstrosity of a dress with a giant bow on her butt and another one for her hair which is another story all in itself.   More vehicles are blown up,  our favorite little person is back and getting stuffed thrugh a mail drop slot to help her gain access to a suspect  warehouse.   So much going on and Grandma Mazur proves her sleuthing chops.  Sliced with a knife, poisoned and set on fire - our girl is having way more than a bad hair day.     Excellent story as always.   I recommend this one to MiddleMiddle Schoolers on up. 

The Days of Anna Madrigal

Shirley J.          Adult Fiction               A Transgender Life,   Burning Man, Regrets and Reparations 

The Days of Anna Madrigal by Armistead Maupin (Book 9 in the Tales of the City series)  270 pages

An enjoyable story of a transgender woman named Anna Madrigal who lives in San Francisco and is ninety-two.   It is very much a coming of age story, a coming of sexual orientation story and a last hurrah at Burning Man for wanton pagan debauchery and fun.    Anna confides her life story how she became who she is, the regrets she bears and the best way she knows how to honor what has gone before and since.   Fun details of burning man, bittersweet memories of several lives touched  and proof that rough beginnings don't hold us back, they just teach us how to proceed.   Excellent story,    I recommend this one for mature teens on up

Cavewomen Don't Get Fat

Shirley J.               Adult Non-Fiction                    Low Carbohydrates/High Protein Diet Info.

Cavewomen Don't Get Fat: The Paleo Chic Diet for Rapid Results by Esther Blum   304 pages

I have heard a lot about the Paleo diet and this book explains it from the get-go and more importantly goes over all of the benefits women can gleen from it.    While I was delighted to find it is basically the low carb/high protein diet that I am extremely familiar with Esther Blum also goes into several herbal and vitamin additions that aid in detoxifying the female body, balancing estrogen, progesterone and testosterone, yeah, ladies, we have a little of that, too, and how you can feel better, look better and do your body better healthwise by eating a diet heavy in protein like our cavelady ancestors ate and giving a nod to that hunter gatherer lifestyle gals back then had, she tells you how foraging the produce aisles at the grocery store/health food store can prove amazing on getting us lean in a short time with miniimal effort on our parts.   She recommends exercise but not nedesssarily hard core hit the gym 6 hours a day 7 days a week stuff.  no, do some form of exercise 20 to 30 minutes 3x a week while staying away from the processed food stuffs and revisiting our love of meat or other forms of protein, eating good for you fats and treating yourself to sweets of the fruit variety or natural think a bit of honey, after the first week will please that sweet tooth.  Taking a walk counts as big-time exercise so don't worry about   anything strenuous unless you want to go that route.   It is a good book with lots of good information in it and for a change recipes that not only taste good but aremade from stuff normal people buy not celebrity chefs.    I recommend this book to anyone yung r old who would like to drop pounds and learn how to love and live the life that will keep them off.

Hanging God

The Hanging God by James Matthew Wilson, 81 pages

In 2017, James Matthew Wilson released The Vision of the Soul, a magnificent argument for imagination and beauty as portals to truth.  It is difficult to read this collection of poetry, published a year later, outside of the light or shadow of the earlier work.

     It pleases, rather,

     In wakefulness

     To praise and bless

     What grows and gives

     To thoughtless matter

     Its purposes.

In The Hanging God he confirms that he is an artist rather than an ideologue.  The poems collected here, on subjects ranging from friends' weddings to vicious lovers to the Way of the Cross, have the freedom to be beautiful without being forced to prove some abstract point.

     For our ideas are fading things,

     Wants change with what the weather brings,

          But this stamped weight of being remains.

Of course, in so doing, he makes his case, and offers considerable pleasure besides.

     Chastening us that though our time seems dire,

     Much has endured through beating rains and fire,

     And good can still be made in this dark season.

Hamnet

 Hamnet: A Novel of the Plague by Maggie O'Farrell, 372 pages

An award-winning book that had been on my radar for a little while, I was glad to get the chance to read this! Although he is never specifically named, instead being referred to as "the Latin tutor" or "Hamnet's father", etc., this book is a fictionalized story of William Shakespeare and his family. Names are important in this book: Hamnet's mother, Agnes, tells "the Latin tutor" her name is Anne at their first meeting, and the pronunciation of her name is often mentioned throughout the book. Similarly, the book begins with the explanation that during the time period that this book was set, the names Hamlet and Hamnet were interchangeable. So while the reader is always aware that this is a story about William Shakespeare's family, by never naming him, and keeping him out of much of the action (he is in London at this point, gaining fame as an actor and playwright), the reader becomes much more invested in the story of Hamnet and his twin sister Judith, as well as the story of Agnes and her courtship with "the Latin tutor".

As the subtitle states, this is a novel of the plague and the author tells us in advance who in the family will be affected. But the author is excellent at drawing the reader into the story of the family as a whole, and specifically Hamnet and his mother, Agnes. In addition, we learn much about how families lived and interacted during this time, and we get a glimpse of how Shakespeare's family might have functioned, and how his relationship with his wife, in-laws, and his own family might have shaped him. History knows very little about Shakespeare's wife and I found her character in this story to be richly imagined and fascinating. I very much enjoyed this book and have been thinking about it quite a bit since reading it.

The Enchanted Hour: The Miraculous Power of Reading Aloud in the Age of Distraction

 Shirley J.       Adult Non-Fiction         How Reading Aloud can Improve the Quality of LIfe

The Enchanted Hour: The Miraculous Power of Reading Aloud in the Age of Distraction

 by Meghan Cox Gurdon    278 pages

The author discusses how she began reading to her children andcontinued into their early teens.   It became a family time with age appropriate books and there was lively discussions of the stories, some acting out of the story especially by her son, Paris who particularly loved treasure Islad and playing the part of the Pirates.    Her children preferred her using different voices and accents to portray multiple characters in the stories.   Through observation she noted this down time, just an hour a night relaxed the children and this became a part of their winding down process before bedtime.   She discussed it with friends and colleagues and when they tried it with their children  all were astonished at how gettig away from their tablets ipads, and phones to spen quality time with one another improved their children's vocabularies, helped them to be more socialized at school and in life.   They developed a comfort level with speaking to and also in front of others when she introduced allowing the children to read aloud too.   Her friends found that while babies would rampage during the pre-verbalizing stage, by the time they were two they had settled down and were picking their own stories to be read instead of chewing on the books.   She has also found that reading to Alzheier patients,  and the elderly in general is also a pacifying exercise enjoyable to all involved.  She found you never become too old to appreciate the sound of someone reading to yu.   She had been hesitant thinking older people wuld not go for it, but, to her delight found out they did enjoy it.   She experimented further while volunteering at an animal shelter finding that the animals that came in fearful and hyper would calm down when she sat down in front of their cages or on one to one times listening to her read to them soothed them, they would often come closer when they had at first stayed as far back in their cages as possible.   There have beren studies done proving that children who are read to perform better academically.   While realizing it is often not doable for families who work and may not have the time to indulge in an hour of reading but she suggests even a short book, or newspaper article or even reading the ingredients off of a cereal bos, cake mix, etc. as one woman told her that during the Second World War in England when there was little time and little access to storybooks, she would read the backs of food packages to her son to keep the idea of storytime going.   She said his favorite was reading the back of an ovaltine box.    So many delightful ways the spoken word helps improve the quality of life for every one man and beast.regardless of age.   I love audiobooks myself and I'm 65.   I remember when my Mom would read newspaper articles to me after dinner while we still sat at the table talking.   When I was little she was an avid reader and set the example for me to read, too, bringing me Little Golden Books to read.  Good times.   I recommend this book to parents, teachers, and all who love the written and spoken word.  

The Bohemians

 The Bohemians by Jasmin Darznik 352 pages

Dorothea Lange. I wonder how many young people recognize her name or recognize the most famous photograph, “Migrant Mother” taken in 1936 during the Great Depression. Probably not that many in the thirty and younger crowd. I have to admit, while I know the name and the photograph, I knew little about the woman behind the camera. Author Daznik has written a compelling biographical fiction novel that allows readers to get to know Dorothea during her coming-of age as an artist in the 1920s.

Dorothea left her native Hoboken, New Jersey, when she as twenty-three years old for San Francisco. She arrived in a town, only twelve years from the 1906 earthquake, that celebrated and misfits.

One of the first things I learned about Dorothea was that, when she was seven years old, she suffered from polio which left her with a stunted leg and a noticeable limp. She loved photography because she felt that she could hide behind a camera; that no one would notice her.

When she first arrived, she was pickpocketed of all the money, some two hundred dollars, she had in the world. In a city where she knew no one, she was terrified. She spent her first night there on the street. One of the first people she was met was, in the book, called Caroline Lee. In reality, Caroline is referred to as “Ah-yee” or the “Chinese Mission Girl” in the historical data.

The two became quite close. Carolina introduced her to the Monkey Block, where all the artists lived. It once occupied the site of the Transamerica Building. Its pyramid-shaped is one of the city’s most iconic buildings. Back then, Monkey Block was “a four-story artists’ colony that housed some eight hundred writers, performers, and artists…and it was the heart of San Francisco’s bohemian area.” According to the Author’s Notes, that only Chinatown still stands---and looks much like it did in the 1920s.

“’The Bohemians’ is about a lost time and hidden history.” It is a story that resonates in today’s world---anti-immigration sentiments, corrupt politics, war, a world pandemic and racism.

I almost put this novel on my DNF list, but I kept seeing it on all the book sites. Granted I didn’t really care for the first 80 pages, but if you decide to read this novel, hang in there until then. Something grabbed me and wouldn’t let go. “The Bohemians” receives 5 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

 

Broken Silence: Conversations with 23 Silent Film Stars

Broken Silence: Conversations with 23 Silent Film Stars by Michael G. Ankerich 331 pages

When I think of silent movie stars, there are certain figures who leap to mind: Mary Pickford, Charlie Chaplin, Valentino, Lillian Gish, Tom Mix, Keystone Cops, Theda Bara. In addition there are countless other who started in the silent but really made a name for themselves in the talkies: Greta Garbo, Clark Gable, Laurel & Hardy, Gary Cooper, to name only a few.

In his book, “Broken Silence: Conversations with 23 Silent Film Stars,” author Ankerich chose to highlight the ones who may have been household names decades ago, but who have sadly faded from memory. With the exception of one that is: Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. I’m expected more of the remembered names and less of those who have receded into the twilight.

Ankerich conducted these interviews from 1987 to 1991. He had three methods of interviewing these now-elderly individuals: by mail, by phone or in person. He started with Lina Basquette and ended with Dorothy Janis. Remember them? Me either.

I liked the Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. chapter a lot. Maybe it’s because I know a little more about him, his career and his life. Other than that chapter, I was disappointed in this book. I felt like all the mini-bios were just a collection of facts, some more engaging than others, but most kept me at arm’s length. I never felt pulled into their stories; they didn’t touch me at all.

“Broken Silence: Conversations with 23 Silent Film Stars” receives 2 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

 

Every Breath You Take

 Shirley J.                 Adult Fiction            Reality T.V. Show,  Cold Case Files

Every Breath You Take by Mary Higgins Clark (Under Suspicion Series)   287 pages

Laurie Moran is the host of a reality based t.v. show, "Under Suspicion,' which delves into unsolved criminal cold cases to try and solve them through interviews with the witnesses and suspects from the time of the event and by researching all the clues.   Her new co-host Ryan Nichols is the nephew of one of Laurie's boss' friends and landed the job and seems like he is trying to take over the show.   When Ryan sets up an interview with his personal trainer, Ivan Gray, who was under suspicion of murdering his much older wealthy girlfriend 3 years ago, Laurie is ready to hit the roof until she looks deeper into the details of the case.  Wealthy widow, Trustee on the Board of the Met who gives money and expensive presents to her lover and when her grown children and nephew give her grief about his being a golddigger, she decides to cut them all out of her will and donate her vast fortune to charity leaving them only their father's company to run or run in the ground as their inheritance and while her husband suggested leaving her nephew a quarter million s his inheritance, she cuts him down to $50,000 due to his gambling addiction .  Word gets back to her kids and nephew of her plans and the next thing she is tossed off the roof of the Met during a lavish fund-raiser.  The suspect pool has increased significantly.  While the siblings and cousin are all pointing the finger at the boyfriend are their hands completely clean?  Good book, excellent murder mystery.  I will be reading all 7 books in this series.   I recommend this one to highschoolers on up and expecially for murder mystery fans. 

You Don't Own Me

 Shirley J.                  Adult Fiction                     Reality Cold Case File T.V. show   

You Don't Own Me by  Mary Higgins Clark  271 pages

Robert and Cynthia Bell contact Laurie Moran to reconsider re-opening  their son's murder case.  They believe their daughter-in-law murdered him though it was never  proven.   Their son was an upstanding member of the community, a doctor no less, well respected and had no enemies.  He was unhappy with his wife and wanted to divorce her but was afraid he might lose custody of their two children.   After his death, his parents wanted the mother found guilty and they want to take the two kids to raise saying their daughter-in-law is unfit, she drinks, she takes drugs and witnesses have said she was in the company of a rough looking guy and the nanny said she would keep large amounts of money.in drawers around her room then all of a sudden the money would be gone but the nanny didn't see any purchases to show for it.   So many accusers but no guilty conviction.   Can Laurie prove her innocence or guilt on "Under Suspciion," or will new evidence come to light?   Good story, good plot line all the way to the end.   I would recommend this to  highschoolers on up.                 

TED Talks: the Official TED Guide to Public Speaking

 Shirley J.                         Adult Non-Fiction                      Public Speaking,  TED Talks

TED Talks: the Official TED Guide to Public Speaking by Chris Anderson   269 pages

The complete handbook for how to give a TED Talk, or really how to best present yourself while maintaining calm and keeping your audience interested from the time you walk out on the stage to when you wrap up and leave the stage.   Tried and true methods on what to do and what not to do when giving a speech, a presentation an informal talk.   The tips here are invaluable.  From talk about what you are passionate about and as if you are explaining it to your best friend.   What to do if your mind goes blank, you start to sweat and need a minute to find your place while standing in front of 10,000 people.   Chris Anderson shares tips on how to engage your audience and how not to begin your talk by boring them to death.   This is the best book on public speaking I have ever come across.   He cites many examples and gives names of some of the best speakers in the series and tells how to find their TED talks on YouTube.   So much good information here I recommend this to middle schoolers on up to senior citizens.  You can't start too early nor too late in learning how to speak comfortably in front of an audience.  Speakers, actors, politicians, teachers, preachers, students, everybody will benefit from reading this book.   I can't recommend it enough.   This is another of those books we all ought to be handed as guidebooks to life.  Excellent!

STL Scavenger

 Shirley J                         Adult Non-Fiction                  Scavenger Hunt/St. Louis

STL Scavenger: The Ultimate Search for St. Louis' Hidden Treasures by Dea Hoover  184 pages

All 366 clues in this book are written in rhyme they take you through 17 neighborhoods in St. Louis (Soulard, Beov, the Hill, Downtown, Forest Park, etc.)and to some of its surrounding cities, Ferguson, Edwardsville, St. Charles sharing clues to uniques sites in all of the areas covered to delight and surprise readers.   The bonus here is that the book is actually a real scavenger hunt and anyone solving all 366 of the clues can submit their findings to:  www.stlscavenger.com between May 1 and December 1, 2021.   All of the correct submissions will be put in a hat and a name will be drawn for the 1st prize - $500   2nd prize is a goodie bag from STL Made full of local fun stuff and 3rd prize will also be StL memorabilia.  So making a present of this book to someone is truly the gift that keeps on giving whether you win the prize or not you get the fun of  learning more about the area and seeing things you might never have known existed.   Kudos to Dea who is both a local tour guide, a state of Missouri tour guide and an international tour guide owning her own businesses scheduling each.  Kudos to Dea Hoover for making good use of her pandemic downtime! 

Handmade Wedding

 Shirley J                Adult Non-Fiction                               Wedding Crafts

Handmade Wedding: 35 Handcrafted Projects To Make Your Special Day Unique  by  CICO Books  260 pages

Tissue paper, craft knife, hot glue gun, you are in business!   These are some of the most easiest crafts that end up looking like yu put a ton of effort into them, but, the time and effort amount to a fun day in Art Class at school.   From paper brides to feathery butterflies to Huge Poms and Roses and hydrangea garlands to faerie light  flowers from coffee filters no less!  I love the bonbon hearts that look like these huge boxes of valentine candy to  tissue paper hearts hung from the ceiling so gorgeous this is the first one I'm going to make.   The stencil cutouts are so Pennsylvania Dutch looking, so intricate they look like a professional must have spent days or hurs on them, yet with the guides and instructions you will find her they are no more difficult to create than the valentine hearts we all cut out in gradeschool and covered our school windows with.  Amazing!   the invitations, the memory book, the favors for folks to take home with them fill decorated bags or create elaborate looking crackers lie you see at Christmas sometimes.  I really like the fun confetti heart shaped boxes and the confetti itself heart shaped, so cute.   There is such an easy to make china teacup and white rose table decoration in here that is just gorgeous and so simple to make.   I have always loved doing crafts and I especially like  things that are easy and turn out beautiful from simple supplies.   This is that book!   Table decorations and how to make your own invitations will save folks a bundle of cash when you want an amazing looking wedding but don't have a caviar budget.      Of course, I also use these ideas to create things for other occasions and the knowledge you glean here will bring joy in so many different venues once you learn how to make them.  What a blessing!   I recommend it to brides, to crafters to anyone wanting to make beautiful things without paying humongeous prices to do so.   Something that is fun to do will gain anyone putting the time in a lot of praise.  

When No One Is Watching

 Shirley J              Adult Fiction (Let's hope!)                      Gentrification,   Cover-Ups

                                                                                           Unethical Practices,  Racism

When No One Is Watching by Alyssa Cole   352 pages

Let me start off by saying, OMgosh!!!!!   Let's hope this book is fiction!   Set in the Gifford Place neighborhood of Brooklyn, the story starts out with a bunch of Yuppies with attitude coming in on a tour scoping out the predominantly black neighborhood with some ethnic businesses.  Sydney, who lives in Gifford Pace joins the tour to see what is up.   Funny, the tour guide talks about the history of the white settlers to the area way back when, but, fails to mention the indigenous people, the Native Americans who were living there that the white settlers drove out.   No mention was made of Weeksville either which was a settlement of Free Blacks living there during the era being discussed on the tour.   Sydney kept bringing up significant histories of Black Americans who lived in the area, who owned various homes the tourguide was pointing out the architecture of but never mentioning any of the minority inhabitants.    Not long after the tour, young up and coming white couples began moving in the neighborhood.   Most chose not to get to know the people living in the neighborhood.  Verentech, a mysterious corporation has gone against public outcries and intend to put a methodone clinic in the neighborhood which the current residents are against but the Yuppies are for due to the new jobs that will come.   Funny, the company wants to buy out the neighborhood for expansion but the local residents aren't for it, yet, all of a sudden some people seem to be selling their property to the corporation.    Weird happenings are going on around the old abandoned some say haunted hospital.   There are rumors of mole people!    What the heck is going on?      Good book.    A tale of gentrification  gone hallucinogenic.    I would recommend this book to adults.   

Wicked Business

 Shirley J.             Adult Fiction                       Magical people, cookbooks, demons

Wicked Business (Book 2 of the Lizzie & Diesel series) by Janet Evanovich    299 pages

O.K., I love Janet Evanovich's writing. I'm just making an observation, I think Lizzie Tucker is Stephanie Plum's magic alter ego and I love them both.  Both series are fun with great characters and storylines and Diesel slips easily from the Lizzie & Diesel series to the Stephanie Plum series where he becomes a third person of interest in Stepanie's love life, too.   (What would Lizzie say?  Heck of a cat fight that one!)   In this, book 2, of the Lizzie and Diesel series,  Lizzie comes up with an idea for a cookbook and plies the publisher with her cupcakes to sweeten the deal.   He is in love with her cupcakes, her cookbook, not so much.   But, then, he does believe himself to be the reincarnation of one of the seven princes of Hell, the demon, Mammon to which he plans to ascend.  Wolf is still lurking around and some people are turning up with handprints burtned into their flesh like the one he put on Lizzie.  Hmmm, his signature move or is this a thing with some unmentionables?  Lizzie meets a mortician who might be doable except that Diesel is front and center.  What is up with the sonnet thing and its connection to the Luxuria Stone (the stone of Lust in keeping with the 7 deadly sins theme).   Lizzie's one-eyed cat, Cat 7143 and Carl the monkey are back, as is Hatchett and Glo, Clara and Dazzle's bakery.  Glo puts a bloating spell on Hatchett and gives a customer her order for free to hurry her out the door before the farts soak into her cupcakes!    This book made me laugh till I had tears in my eyes.  It's a riot!  I recommend this one to mature middle schoolers on up.   Diesel introduces everyone to the Sandman and who is Diedre Early?   Loved this story.

Wicked Charms

 

Shirley J.                  Adult Fiction                      Search for stones representing the 7 deadly sins

Wicked Charms by Janet Evanovich  (Book 3 in the Lizee & Diesel series)     308 pages

THis is supposed to be the last book in this series but it leaves some major things unaddressed so I am wondering if at some point Janet Evanovich will revisit this story line and give if not closure, at least some more information about some things. There are signs and symbols and writing that only certain pure hearts can recognize, except for Carl, that is.    He gets more than the normal monkey,  but has an attitude on things where he just gives everyone the finger and goes on   There is more to the pirate in the cage at the pirate museum than first meets the eye.   Glo,  who considers herself a wizard not a witch, thank you, picks up a magic 8 ball at a yard sale for $2 and finds it to be surprisingly accurate.   Then there is broom who at one point goes floating by and Glo tells Lizzie,  "Look, Broom is going for help1"   Funny how things have a way of working out.   Maybe that is what happens when you read the Harry Potter series through 4 times.   Books, paintings, bells and what was that Van Gogh connection?   Hatchett is starting to look good to Glo but then she has her own pirate, Josh doing pirate speak,   Anarchy runs rampant, no wait that was also happening in the last book.      A devoted Rutherford remains one of my favorite characters and i am so glad he jumps series and shows up wonderfully.   I could listen to him talk for days, he is one of the best characters ever.   He reminds me of Tim GUnn on Project Runway.  And the dude knows when and how to get out, get out now and get out gracefully without offending anyone even when it looks like he may have to kill them.   And what do man's best friend and Grampa's shark tank have in common?  Maps to nudie seniors islands, betraying boyfriends or is it the pull of the avarice stone making everyone greedy?  Thank goodness if you don't add the powedered newt snot the spell is only temporaray.    Hey wait a minute, Lizzie's cookies have preservatives and dye in them,  what the heck  she got a boat load of cash - fie on you Amerethia stone!   I love Janet Evanovich's writing!   Middle schoolers on up will enjoy it, too, I think.  

The One and Only Bob

 Shirley J                Juvenile Fiction                            Life in a menagerie from a dog's perspective           

The One and Only Bob by Katherine Applegate   340 pages

This book is told from the perspective of Bob, the dog, who comes to live in the menagerie that Ivan, the Gorilla and Ruby the elephant live in.    He wondered in to Ivan''s cage one night during the time Bob was living on the streets.   He admits in this book that he doesn't know what he was thinking but Ivan just looked so comfy laying there snoring that Bob climbed up on his stomach and went to sleep, too.   Ivan, a gentle natured gorilla did not hurt Bob when he woke up and found him on his stomach, but, instead, let Bob sleep.  They became fast buddies and best friends for life.  This book is autobiographical of Bob telling many stories from his life, how men came in the dark and took him from his mother, how he helped to save some of the other animals when a hurricane came and destroyed the menagerie,and how  he meets up with his sister who's son is trapped in a car in the horrific flood occuring from the hurricane.   So many stories starring Bob that like Ivan says in the book, the one and only Bob, he is a treasure and while he doesn't necessarily like being thought of as man's best friend, he truly is the best friend of all who are lucky enough to know him,   He is so endearing the sweet way he talks to his "niece", Ruby.   I recommend this book to all ages from pre-school on up to senior citizens a sweet story of a sweet dog. 

Big Summer

Shirley J.                Adult Fiction                   Plus Sized Women; FrienemiesMurder                         

Big Summer by Jennifer Weiner  357 pages

It is sometimes hard to know when a person is being sincere and when they are playing you for what they can use you for.    When big girl, (plus sized) Daphne Berg meets up with Drue Cavanaugh, who happens to be insanely rich, Drue seems to be sincere in offering friendship, but over the years while they have their fun moments together, Drue also gets Daphne to lend her money, do her homework, even write papers all through college for her.   There are trade-offs so Daphne is good with it even though other people tell her how Drue is using her and how she uses people up then drops them, boyfriends included.   There are even rumors that Drue or her family paid someone else to take her SATs.  The story was the girl who impersonated Drue to take the test was chastised but Drue got off scott-free and was allowed into Harvard no less!   Due to a falling out between Daphne and Drue over hurt feelings due to Drue's fixing Daphne up with a "pity" chance in counter at a bar when the guy's true feelings come out about Daphne being fat etc the incident ends up going viral and for several years the  two don't speak.   All of a sudden one day, Drue shows up begging Daphne to be in her wedding.  She even offers to pay her to do it because she has no friends.   THat is only the beginning of the story there is waaaaay more going on than that.   Good story that deals with people's motives, and body shaming,, deception, jealousy, greed, and more.   So many people in this story turn out not to be what they seem.   Well written, good plot and so are the side stories.   I recommend this to middle schoolers on up.  Deals with many school issues teens go through..

Spinster Goose

 Shirley J.                 Juvenile Fiction                         Nursery Rhymes about naughty kids

Spinster Goose:Twisted Rhymes for Naughty Children by Lisa Wheeler and Sophie Blackall  

48 pages

It isn't widely known that Mother Goose has a sister name Spinster who runs a school for wayward boys and girls.  It is not the technicolor happy place of Mother Goose's sweet rhymes, but, more  a drab gray reform school where bratty kids are taught the err of their ways and that they must atone for their misdeeds all told in the familiar rhyme format we so love and with nods to the original rhymes to give you a clue as to which Spinster is speaking of.   Fun and funny and certainly worth the read.   I think that kids of any age will like the meter and the rhymes but I think toddlers might not understand  the concept as well as kindergarten age kids might.     I also think how funny the idea is of kids that will understand what is happening/being said will be.   Personally, I got a kick out of them as I think all adults will if not necessarily all the kids.   I still recommend this book to anyone who wants to read or listen to it and I think seniors will doubly get a kick out of it.

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Battle Ground

 Shirley J.                       Adult Fiction                            Paranormal Beings ,  Apocalyptic War

Battle Ground by Jim Butcher 643  pages

Book 17 in the Dresden Files series.   Every possible supernatural creature and being that you can think of meets in Chicago for the most apocalyptic war you can imagine.   On the good side, the Angels, the wizard's council,  the Fae, Winter and Summer Ladies and all of their subjects, Unicorns, Lara's vampires, Marcone, Murphy, Butters, Shapeshifters, Sasquatch, and the human residents of Chicago who want to defend their town and more.   There are some bloody frightening things happening and our boy Dresden may or may not come out of this one, not everyone will and those that do will never be the same.   The war seems to go on forever with hundreds of pages devoted to it, but, then, I guess that is what war feels like that it is unending with no relief in sight    You feel that and utter despair within these pages.  The carnage is aptly described in detail.   If you are a Dresden fan, you will take it in stride, if not, brace yourself.   I highly recommend this one to Dresden fans and anyone who is into sci-fy and magic.   

Finding Mrs. Ford

Finding Mrs. Ford by Deborah Goodrich Royce 404 pages

I have to admit, I thought Finding Mrs. Ford was going to be about Henry Ford’s wife. Don’t know where I got that; there is nothing on the cover that even remotely suggests that. It doesn’t matter---once I started this wonderful novel, I couldn’t put it down.

Mrs. Susan Ford, no relation to Henry that is mentioned in the book, lives a privileged life. She is wealthy, has a stepson whom she adores (and who adores her), a beautiful home, money and staff to take care of her and her home.  Living the good life takes little doing on her part.

Thirty-five years have passed since the events of 1979, and now that past has come to call. She must pay for the life she led then. And for what she did. The FBI knocks on her door and asks about a man named Sammy Fakhouri. An Iraqi with ties to ISIS, he is arrested on his way to see Susan, although Susan was not expecting him.

Jump back to the summer of ‘79. Susan was a college co-ed, a rather studious and quiet young woman. She meets the out-going and sassy Annie. The two become best friends, although they could not be more different. They had a summer job, but when an opportunity arises to work as a waitress in a disco, both jump at the opportunity—Annie more so than Susan.

The disco is a gross, shady place where there is more going on than music, dancing, getting high and drinking. It’s a place were extremely powerful men hangout. Susan gets romantically involved with Sammy. But in 2014, Susan is wondering why he’s coming to see her.

The novel is broken into two parts: Part One focuses on Susan while Part Two focuses on Annie. There is a major twist right at the point where Part One transitions to Part Two---a stunner for sure. Not one that I saw coming.

“Finding Mrs. Ford” receives 5 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

 

The Man Who Lived Underground

The Man Who Lived Underground by Richard Wright 240 pages

When I was in graduate school, I read “The Man Who Lived Underground” as it was published in author Wright’s posthumous collection, “Eight Men.” In that collection, the work had been “drastically condensed and truncated.” I thought highly of it then but knowing that it wasn’t the complete work left me unsatisfied.

Now, the complete work, the one that Wright was unable to publish in his lifetime, has landed on bookshelves. This work meant more to him than any of his other publications: “I have never written anything in my life that stemmed more from sheer inspiration.”

The story is heartbreakingly simple. It’s 1941-42.  Fred Daniels, a Black man, is on his way home after collecting his week’s wages (a whopping seventeen dollars!) to his wife who is due to give birth any time. As he walks along, happy with his place in the world, he notices a police car with three police officers, just sitting there. As he approaches the police exit the car and arrest him for the horrifically vicious double murder that occurred at the neighbors of his employer’s home.

Although he proclaims his innocence, his words fall on deaf ears. The cops need a perpetrator. and Fred is their man. The police haul him to the station and torture him until he signs a confession. Case closed.

However, Fred is able to escape (or was he allowed, I was never really sure) and heads for the sewers beneath the Chicago streets. There he traverses the systems. As Fred wandered, he was able to view other lives by removing some of the bricks tht led into basements. There he gathers some food, robbed a bank from which he plastered the money to the walls of the main tunnel, heard a church choir sign, etc.

The novel is more of  stream of consciousness than I like, but what stood out to me the most, that eighty years later, not much has changed for the African Americans. They are still the first ones suspected of a crime.

The work also contains the essay, “Memories of my Grandmother,” which a companion to Fred’s story. I didn’t care for it. To me, it didn’t have that immediacy of Underground.  “The Man Who Lived Underground” receives 4 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

 

The Joy of Chemistry: A Quick Study Guide for Kids and Beginners to Learn Chemistry Using Fun Analogies and Examples

The Joy of Chemistry: A Quick Study Guide for Kids and Beginners to Learn Chemistry Using Fun Analogies and Examples by Dr. Nervana Elkhadragy 59 pages

I cannot remember how I got out of high school chemistry, but I am certain it was divine intervention. Math and science are just not my strong suits.

In this book aimed at an audience of high schoolers up to age 100, Dr. Nervana Elkhadragy puts a spin on explaining the differences between protons, electrons, atoms, orbits, particles, nuclei and elements. She uses humans to explain how they work and to help non-science people understand better.

I found the reading fascinating, and thought, AT LAST! I understand this stuff! The sad part is now, a week later, I couldn’t explain the difference between any of those items. I did enjoy learning how the period table came to be and how elements were assigned their symbols. The analogies got a little repetitive using people. It might have been better if she had used different analogies for each item. That would have made more sense to me.

“The Joy of Chemistry” receives 3 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

 

Radar Girls

Radar Girls by Sara Ackerman 368 pages

Daisy Wilder lives on the Hawaiian island of O’ahu (the spelling the author uses and is correct). She lives in an oceanfront shack with her mother, who is suffering a deep, deep depression. Daisy works on a nearby ranch to support them, and she loves working with the horses. Other than the people she works with, she has no other social life.

On the morning of December 7, 1941, Daisy has “borrowed” one of the ranch’s finest stallions, Moon, for a run on the beach. He is coal black with a gently fierce heart. As the Japanese planes roar overheard, headed to Pearl Harbor, Moon bolts and runs away.

Terrified for the animal, Daisy looks for him, but to no avail. She needs to get back to the shack to be with her mother. Her mother is oblivious, but Daisy is terrified. Will there be a land invasion? There have been rumors. What about Moon? What will the Japanese do to him if they find? What about her mom?

As the day progresses, Daisy’s anxieties dim, but never go away (and they will stay with her for the next four years). She tries, in vain, to find Moon. There is talk of relocating all civilians to the Mainland. She knows she has to get her mother to California to be with a relative, but Daisy plans on staying on the island.

After searching for Moon, who seems to have just disappeared, Daisy must tell the ranch’s owner what has happened. Hal Montgomery is beside himself, accusing Daisy of stealing and fires her. She is devastated.

Mr. Montgomery’s son, Walker, comes home before the bombs fall to heal from a severe concussion.. He is a navy pilot, but now it’s all hands on desk.  He is stationed aboard the USS Enterprise. And we all know what happens when boy meets girl.

Wanting to do her part for the war effort, and since she is out of a job, Daisy signs up for the Women’s Air Raid Defense. The military is looking for twenty intelligent women to help provide air defense for Hawaii. Daisy passes all the tests and is made part of the team. There she finds something she has never had before, female friendship. She must learn to navigate these are much as she learns to navigate the radar system.

Throughout the entire war, Daisy never loses hope of finding Moon and is always on the lookout.

The details about those early days in radar were fascinating and author Ackerman does a wonderful job balancing too much information and teaching me something new.

Thanks to Ackerman’s vivid descriptions of the Hawaiian Islands, the ocean, the fish, the salty air, reading “Radar Girls” is like taking a beach vacation without getting sand in your underwear. It’s also a boy-meets-girl-loses-boy-gets-girl story set against the beauty of Hawaii and the fears and the uncertainties of World War II. Therefore, “Radar Girls” receives 5 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

 

SLPL Team May, 2021 totals

 This month, the SLPL team's stats show:

5 people

read 43 books

for a total of 12,944 pages

We also had several people log books with bonuses (City in the Title or Title Ends in Y)

Again, Shirley J. was the Super Reader this month, logging 5011 pages.  Go Shirley!!