A Silken Thread

A Silken Thread by Kim Vogel Sawyer   352 pages

I loved Kim Vogel Sawyer’s “Bringing Maggie Home,” and I jumped at the chance to review her latest book, “A Silken Thread.” This historical novel takes place in Atlanta and during the Atlanta Cotton Exposition of 1895.

When the story opens, eighteen-year-old Laurel Millard has a surprise visit from her six older siblings. They are concerned about their sixty-year-old mother. They feel that Laurel must give up her dreams of a husband, a home and a family to take care of Mama in her dotage. I admit that I laughed out loud at that. Sixty isn’t old, well by today’s standards. But in the late nineteenth century, that was considered elderly. Still it was a great laugh.

Laurel, wanting to please her much older siblings, stunned by their demand, neither agrees nor disagrees, but below the surface she fumes. How dare they ask her to abandon her dream! Although, she is recovering from a broken heart, she understands that she can still find a man. Oh that sound so quaint, but that’s the way it was back then.

Laurel and her mother don’t have a lot of money. Papa’s death didn’t leave then destitute, but they weave rugs and other items that they sell for extra income. Laurel changes her reasoning, feeling she must set her sights on a wealthy man, one who would be willing to take Mama into his household.

In order to meet these types of men, Laurel gets a job in the Silk Room at the Exposition. There she weaves the raw silk into cloth while her co-workers enlighten visitors with how silk is produced.

Across town, the wealthy Mr. and Mrs. Rochester give their son, Langdon, an ultimatum: find a wife or lose his inheritance. Langdon finds that special someone, someone who is pretty and obedient, when he spots Laurel on the fairgrounds.

An unlikely romance begins to take shape, until Laurel meets another man, one of the fair’s security guards, Willie Sharp. She and Willie become friends, but Langdon isn’t convinced. As the romance plays out, reads get to see various aspects of the Exposition, which are quite interesting and made me want to know about this event.

Against the backdrop of the Exposition, author Vogel Sawyer tackle racism in all its ugly forms. Willie’s best friend is Quincy, a hot-headed young African American man. 

I enjoyed this novel quite a bit. It seemed that dragged a bit in the middle. I felt as if the same scenes were being replayed over several times, in various ways.  Therefore,  “A Silken Thread” receives 4 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

 

 

These Shallow Graves

TheseShallow Graves by Jennifer Donnelly, 487 pages

Jo Montfort’s life is turned upside down the day her father is found shot in his office.  She soon comes to realize that it wasn’t an accident, as was reported, but that he was murdered.  With the help of a reporter, Eddie, Jo delves into New York’s underworld to try to find her father’s murderer.  In the process, she learns more than she dreamed possible about what happens to underprivileged people on the streets and also finds some very uncomfortable information about her father’s business.  Both he and his partners may have been involved in some shady dealings.  Upset, but undeterred, Jo is determined to discover the truth, no matter who gets hurt.  This was an exciting book.  I would highly recommend it to teens who like historical fiction and adventure with strong female characters.

In The Company of Educated Men

In The Company of Educated Men by Leonce Gaiter, 177 pages

Julie E-C reviewed this in March of 2015 and her review is what prompted me to read it.  I had to wait a while for the library to get a copy, but it was worth the wait.  Julie covered as much plot as I would and I’m not going to recap much of it.  It’s a book about three friends and a road trip and a lot of unexpected happenings.  Because the book changes time perspectives, it’s also about reflection.  I think I liked it almost as much as Julie did and I would highly recommend this book to anyone who likes realistic fiction.  Definitely a must read, in my opinion.

Guardian

Guardian by Alex London, 340 pages

In the sequel to Proxy, the Rebooters have become the Reconciliation.  Since the revolution, the people who used to be Proxies and other marginally members of society have taken charge and their former patrons have been sent to work farms to be re-educated.  Certain words like debt and owe have been outlawed in an attempt to change society’s entire outlook.  There is only one problem with this new utopian society.  People have started to die from a frightening new illness that causes their blood to boil and their veins to burst open.  Syd, Liam, and Marie have seen this phenomenon firsthand, but their leaders don’t seem concerned so they set out to try to find a cure themselves.  Unfortunately, the cure may mean the end of everything they have worked to change.  An action packed science fiction adventure, teen fans of these genres will probably like this series.

Barracuda

Barracuda by Christos Tsiolkas    431 pages

 At 14-years old, Danny Kelly wants nothing more to swim, to be a champion, and to fit in. While he excels at swimming, the other two goals remain slightly out of reach, which is the conflict of Tsioklas’s novel.

He’s won a scholarship to a prestigious private school, but Danny is from a lower, working-class household. His father is abusive---physically, emotionally, and mentally---while his mother, younger sister, and younger brother think that Danny is the cat’s meow.

 Danny knows he has the talent to take him all the way to the Olympics; that’s why he practices four hours a day and puts up with a coach who is almost as warm-hearted as his father. Danny hates his life, and all he wants to do is swim. When he loses an important meet, Danny’s self-loathing reaches a new low. He hates the world and everyone in it. He lashes out on more than one occasion, ending with a prison sentence.

Fast-forward 20 years, Danny, now called Dan, is trying to make a new life for himself and his partner, Clyde. Clyde wants to move back to his native Scotland. Dan goes, but soon returns to Australia.  Scotland doesn’t feel right. Although he is still angry all the time, Dan does his best to keep the violence inside.

 I almost gave up on this novel after the first 107 pages. Danny whines and carries on like a five-year-old girl. He constantly feel sorry for himself and refuses to let go of any of the negativity which surrounds him.  Then I read reviews on Amazon, and decided to give the rest of the book a chance. Oh, yes, I read all 431 pages, and through it all I want to tell Danny/Dan to get over it, quit wallowing in something that happened decades earlier.

 While other have called Barracuda tender, savage, and blazingly brilliant, I call it whining, full of self-pity, and dull.

 I give Barracuda 1 out of 5 stars.

 I received this book for free from Blogging for Books for this review.

Four: A Divergent Collection

Four: A Divergent Collection by Veronica Roth                    285 pages

This book has four stories, told from the perspective of Four from the Divergent series.  The first three take place before Divergent and the last story coincides with Divergent, but we get to see what’s happening from Four’s perspective instead of Tris.  We get an in-depth look at some of the trauma that Four faced as a child and what led to his choice to join Dauntless.  We also get to see what led to his discovery of the Divergent, how he ends up training new faction members and why he becomes interested in the rebellion.  In some ways, I liked this better than the other books in the series, maybe because of the novella style of the book, which has always appealed to me.  In any case, fans of the series will like this book.  This book could be read at any time.  It explains enough of the world that teens who have not read the series will understand what’s going on and since most of it happens before Divergent chronologically, it doesn’t give much away.  Teens who like dystopian books will like this story.