Category Archives: Books

Book Review: Seven at Sea

Seven at seaEver feel like taking a chance in life and leaving your comfort zone for the great unknown?  Erik and Emily Orton decided to do just that.  They left their lives in New York City behind to spend a year on a sailboat with their five children and they tell their story in “Seven at Sea.”

Erik wasn’t even an experienced sailor six years before their trip.  Watching sailboats pass by as he looked out his corporate office, he decided he wanted to learn how to sail.  He signed up for classes at a nearby marina and began to learn.  Soon after, he realized it would be cheaper and easier if he enlisted his family to take the classes with him to become certified to sail.

Now, don’t think Erik and Emily are multi-millionaires and can do whatever they please whenever they please.  They are not rich.  They are just a normal middle class family with a dream to be free from the doldrums of the corporate world, and free to set their days as they please.

Even as a family of seven, they were able to find a way to make it work…this dream.  They got in as much training as they could, finding economical ways to rent boats, earning money while shuttling their friends around on excursions.  But the big step they wanted to take was to buy a boat of their own to take some time away from the city with their family to sail to parts unknown (to them).

It took six years to make that dream a realization, but they stuck to their goal together as a family.  Then one day, they bought a boat and their adventure began.

Review

What “Seven at Sea” teaches us is that we should all work towards our goals and dreams.  For the Ortons, it took a lot of planning, preparing and learning before their dream could even begin.  Even at the start, when they first arrived on their boat, it wasn’t all smooth sailing.  There was still more to learn and mistakes that needed to be made, because no matter how much you prepare, when you are in the thick of it, it is not necessarily what you envisioned.

With Erik micromanaging their schedule, he quickly learned that you can’t plan life or dreams.  You have to sort of go with the flow.  They spent the first few months in their first port of call, Sint Maarten (the Netherlands side – the French side of the island is Saint Martin).  Between fixing the boat and equipping it with the things they would need to make their journey, they were stuck on Sint Maarten/Saint Martin.

But it was a good thing this happened.  It allowed them to get their sea legs taking short jaunts to nearby islands, preparing them for the longer stretches.  They made friends with other families doing the same thing as them (always good to know you’re not alone).  Thanks to fellow sailors, he was able to learn how to fix his boat – a vital source of knowledge when you’re alone on the seas and no one nearby who can help.  These are all things he could only learn with hands on training.  Books and the internet can only get you so far.

I will admit, reading this book turned me off from that fantasy of learning how to sail.  It’s something I always thought about doing, not necessarily around the world, but maybe off the coast of New England or in the Mediterranean.  I’ll explain why I was turned off – learning how to fix your own boat, the problems that could arise, being stuck on a boat with other people – really, it was all of the technical details that turned me off from learning how to sail.  Then again, I would probably be the worst sailor of the group like Emily, so maybe someone else can sail and I can just be the matron.

At any rate, being on a boat allows you to have some soul searching moments.  Erik shared a lot of his thoughts in this book and they really rang true with how we should look at life, especially the dreamers.

“A lot of times people feel like, ‘Oh we have kids so we can’t do that until the kids are out of the house.’  The time to go is when you have your kids with you because you only have them for a short period.  There will be plenty of time to make more money.  There’ll be plenty of time to take it easy in retirement when you’re older, but the reason we’re going now is because we want to go while our kids are with us.  Let your kids be a reason rather than an excuse.”

I also appreciated Erik’s thoughts on having patience and playing the waiting game.

“For so many weeks, I’d been trying to push and force the situation.  I wanted the engine fixed on my timeline.  I wanted to hustle off to the BVI (British Virgin Islands).  I wanted to know when and where we would arrive in the Bahamas.  The truth is, there was no way of knowing.  I would have to let it emerge.  I could predict, plan, and hope, but in the end, the wind, sea, and a thousand other breezes would shape the unfolding events.  I had to wait, just like everyone else.  No amount of planning or willpower could make it otherwise.  I learned to become fairly zen about it.  “It will emerge” was the yin to the yang of “trial and error works every time.”  Tenacity has its place.  But so does waiting; engaged, curious, and resourceful, but patient.”

On fear and the uneasiness of taking the first jump:

“At the moment, Jane was happier to be at the top of the grotto, barefoot, hot, and scared, than she was to be in the cool, clear water below.  Her anxiety over what she could no longer see, and the fear of what it would take to get there, were more powerful than her will to jump.  We did our best to help her shift the balance, but it was up to her.  Only she could decide when she wanted to move and how she would do it.  She could climb back down or she could jump.  The push of her current situation, the pull of her new situation, her anxiety about her future, and her loyalty to her present were all shifting moment by moment.  We change when we’re more excited about getting the new thing than we are scared about losing the old thing.  I go through this same semiconscious process every time I face my own fears.  I think we all do.  It’s very personal. I internally weigh all these factors in the balance, and something happens or it doesn’t.”

Karina Orton, after being asked how she had changed on Fezywig (their boat):

“I don’t think I’ve changed,” she said.  “I’ve become even more myself.  I’ve gone further down the path that I was already on.”

Emily Orton on the ‘confidence that it will emerge’:

Erik – “Why do you think the last one is more important?”

Emily – “Because it lets us get started.  We don’t have to know everything.  We don’t have to control everything.  It lets us be patient while we’re figuring it out.”

***

Why you should read “Seven at Sea”:  If you’re a dreamer thinking ‘someday,’ this book will help give you the confidence to take risks and chase after that dream.  It is a raw look into how difficult it is to make your dreams come true.  From making excuses to planning and researching for that big day, it’s all about getting over that fear and taking the leap.  You have to have patience that the journey “will emerge.”  You can’t force it to happen on your timeline.  It will emerge on its own.

There are a lot of life lessons here for those who have dreams that want to make them come true.  This book is not just about a family who bought a sailboat and sailed from the Caribbean to New York City one year.  This is about living your best life and taking the chance to live your life to the fullest and the Ortons are here to inspire you to do so.

[Disclaimer:  I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an unbiased review.  This post contains affiliate links.] 

Curated Library: Waiting for Fitz Book Review

It is rare I come across a novel that astounds me.  That moment is so rare, I can probably count how many times that has happened to me on one hand. 

Enter “Waiting for Fitz.”  What makes this book so unique is that this story allowed me to see into the mind of teenagers with mental illnesses, and it was eye opening.  Yet, it was not just the story that astounded me.  It was the words and the way the author chose to share the lessons he’s learned about life. 

There were a lot of elements involved in my decision to curate this book into my personal library.  I like to look at my personal curated library as a place that if the end of the world came, and someone came across my library, they would learn so much about the world and humanity through that collection.  It’s not just about the story or whether it was well written that qualifies a book to be curated into my personal collection.  It is all about what I learned from the book and whether the philosophical lessons helped mold me into the human being I am today. 

That is what makes my curated library what it is.  It is a statement of who I am as a human being.  These are the books that helped mold my way of thinking or made me understand things in a new light.  These are the stories that become a part of me. 

So what is it about “Waiting for Fitz” that molded me? 


The Story

Addie is OCD…like really bad OCD.  She redefines what it means to be OCD.


Each morning before school, I’d walk to the bathroom, careful not to brush the wrong carpet thread when I reached the threshold.  I’d stand up and sit down three times before entering the bathroom.  I’d sniff two times with each step while also counting the tiles beneath each foot.  I’d make sure I blinked with my left eye before entering the shower.  Counting each time I tapped on the shower wall, each tap on the faucet, and each throat-clearing, I’d net two hundred and seven.  I’d do this seven times before exiting the shower.  Then I’d wash my hands forty-three times.  Those two numbers added together made two hundred and fifty, and the two and the five made seven, of course – my favorite number.  Finally, I’d dry off, sit on the bed, and count to eleven.  What a great number, eleven: it’s first place two times, or seven and four, which is nice.

These little ticks and rituals are one thing, but the moment when she really needs help is when she believes that if she did not do all of these things, those she loved (her mother or her dog) would die.

So her mother does what is best for her and admits her into a hospital to work with a doctor that can help her.  It is here that she meets other teenagers with mental problems, including Fitz. 

Fitz is schizophrenic.  He hears voices in his head and constantly talks to them.  He’s smart and witty, just like Addie.  The medication he’s on helps him to be more aware that the voices are there, but he is the one in control, not the voices.

Fitz and Addie develop an attraction to each other, mainly because of their love for words and witty banter as they constantly put a spin on words and phrases.

Yet, Addie can’t figure Fitz out.  He goes into moments of anger that are unexplained.  He walks away and refuses to talk to her for days.  She never knows what triggers his anger, but he always comes back and asks for forgiveness. 

Then one day, he slips a note under her door asking her to escape the facility with him.  This is not his first attempt.  The only thing she can get out of the other patients is that this has something to do with Quentin…and she is not sure if Quentin is a real person or a voice in his head.  All she knows is that Fitz is seeking forgiveness…atonement.

She decides to help and escapes with him, because one of the things she’s learning is that maybe if she focused on others by helping them, it will help her take the focus off of herself.  It will help her get to a normal stage where she’s focusing on others, rather than her own ticks and obsessions. 

With the help of the rest of the group, they are able to escape and go to San Juan Island, Washington.  She follows Fitz and lets him unravel his story piece by piece, never pressuring him to explain why they had to go to San Juan Island.  What Fitz reveals to her is heartbreaking, explaining who Quentin is and why his mother never visits him at the hospital.

As they make their return to the mainland, Fitz, being without his medication, begins to unravel and he loses control over the voices.  They take over and Addie is forced to seek help, because she is now in danger.


The Quotes

These quotes are the reason why I decided to curate this book into my library.

“A great pleasure in life is doing what people say you cannot do…I guess it’s time to start living the words instead of just reading them.”

“Behind her, a few candles burned low in their cups of wax, and I wondered what my life would be like: would I get blown out, or flicker and come back stronger?  We all flicker; it just depends on how willing we are to emerge again, and with how much light.”

“Like, something that is dead and gone can still light up our world.  What was can still be an is if we put ourselves in the right place.”  [This made me think of the story of Gilgamesh and Enkidu.  Gilgamesh spent his entire life seeking a way to be ok again after Enkidu died.]

“I guess we all have an interior monologue, but for it to be so insistent and loud and populated would be impossible to ignore.  Maybe his life was a series of interruptions, and he lived in the space between.  He lived in the spurts and spats between the longer moments of conversing with the imaginary group that followed him everywhere.”

“Everyone wears a mask, but actors get to change theirs constantly.  I kind of envied the way they played different parts and got to live different lives.  They could empathize with so many types of people, of personhood.  If actors were the opposite of people, what did that make me?  A series of masks, maybe.”

“We dive as deep as we can and hope somebody is listening to our call across the deep waters.  All of us, at some point.”

“Because she’s amazing.  Because she knows how to love.  Because her heart has enough room for everybody and everything.”

“I thought of Aeolus opening up his bag of winds and how winds can take you everywhere you need to go, just like language can do great things, poetic things, but ultimately you can’t tell someone how much you love them because even that won’t adequately express how you feel.  All the winds except the one you want or need, I guess.”

“Truth is overlooked, ignored, searched for but never found, and only when we think the character can’t possibly make it out of the innermost cave alive, we witness a resurrection.”

“Hope is meant to surprise us.  Existence is meant to surprise.  Love is meant to surprise.  Love does not bow to the odds.  Never has.  Never will.”

On the meaning of Waiting for Godot:  “Because they had everything to wait for.  They had everything to show for it, as soon as that thing showed up…But life is just a series of absurd rituals until something or someone comes along to give it all meaning, right?  They were waiting for that thing.  For that person…Sometimes it doesn’t show up.  We’re lucky if it does.  But if it does, then we have something to live for.  We don’t always need to wait, but when we do…Well, it’s worth waiting your entire life for that one thing, that person, to come along.  It’s what gives life meaning.”

“I don’t think writers are sacred, but words are. They deserve respect.  If you get the right ones in the right order, you can nudge the world a little.”  –  Tom Stoppard

Review

The quotes above are the reason why this book will stay with me for the rest of my life.  It was like taking various moments in my life, sprinkling a little gold dust over it, making the wounds heal a little faster.

As a writer, the quote from Tom Stoppard really made me think about the words I am writing in my own novel.  That is the ultimate goal of the writer, to nudge the world a little, just as Spencer Hyde has done in “Waiting for Fitz.” 

The words he chose to deeply contemplate the world around us were completely breathtaking and drove to the point.  This book is more than just a story.  It is a philosophical wonder that leaves the reader walking away with a deeper understanding to many of the obstacles we face in life, an angle we may not have considered.

As for the story itself, I don’t think I’ll ever use the term “OCD” lightly anymore.  I never really understood what mental illness looked like.  It is so difficult to step into the shoes of others who struggle every day to find normalcy.  What Hyde has done here is open up that gateway of understanding, so we can feel their struggle, fears, and desire to be okay again as they try to stop hurting those they love because their brain is not okay. 

More importantly, this book helps the reader to understand that people suffering from mental illness are not at fault for what they are going through.  There is that fear people who commit suicide do it because of a mental illness. Many are left asking why, not truly understanding the struggle.  Sure, we should have compassion, but I always wondered why.  I don’t have to ask that anymore. 

In terms of modern day works that I expect to become classical pieces of literature in the future, “Waiting for Fitz” is a novel that I believe deserves to be ranked amongst the greats.  It is unlike any other book I’ve ever read.  It belongs alongside the shelves of Fahrenheit 451, 1984, Frankenstein and Lord of the Flies, because it makes you explore the depths of the unknown and come out a better human being because of it.  That is what “Waiting for Fitz” does.  It should be on everyone’s list of Books to Read in this Lifetime.  Except, don’t just put it on a list.  Buy it.  Absorb the words and then curate it into your own library. 

[Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in return for an unbiased review.  This post contains affiliate links.]

Book Review: A Monster Like Me

What if you had a tumor on your face?  That’s what young Sophie has, a hemangioma (a benign tumor birthmark) on her face.  People stare at her, so she tries to hide it behind her hair and her Big Book of Monsters.  When children see her birthmark, they call her a monster. 

It’s easier to beat the bullies to the chase and believe you are a monster before they call you one.  Better yet, it is better to believe everyone is a monster or a mythological creature so that you can feel like you are not alone, that this world you live in is filled with creatures that are either good or bad.

This is how Sophie copes with her monster mark.  But it doesn’t stop the bullies or reality from crashing in on her world.  Along with her fairy friend, Autumn, they collect pieces to create a magical amulet that will cure her from being a monster, making her human again.

What she finds in her journey is that a monster mark is not what makes you a monster, it’s what you do that makes you human.

The Review

This book is rather magical.  If we could only see the world the way that Sophie saw the world.  It is so much easier to see the world filled with monsters, witches and fairies to explain the good and evil that happens in the world, than to see that humans can be monsters.

Wendy S. Swore, the author, as a child

What makes us monsters?  Is it a disability or a birthmark?  Or is it the circumstances with which we live that can force us to lash out and hurt others because we are hurting inside? 

A Monster Like Me not only explores what it means to be a child that looks different, but it also takes a look at bullying in a way that helps bullied children understand why bullies are bullies. 

Sometimes when we dream so big and wish for something so great, it is hard for us to see anything but ourselves and our wants.  For Sophie, she learns to see what she has is a gift that not everyone has.  There are things we have in our lives that we take for granted that someone may wish they had themselves, like the ability to run around and play, instead of being stuck in a hospital bed.

It is not necessarily what you look like on the outside that makes you human, but what you do that defines your humanity.

This book is well worth the read, especially for young readers facing challenges in school.

[Disclaimer:  I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an unbiased review.  This post contains affiliate links.]

Book Review: Healing Hearts

For all of those lovers out there who need a little bit of Valentine’s Day reading, I would like to introduce you to “Healing Hearts.” This is the latest title from Proper Romance (Shadow Mountain).

If you are a fan of Jane Austen or the Bronte sisters, then Proper Romance should be your “go to” source for romance books. The books are PG-rated (so no blushing in public during the heated scenes).

The Review

“Healing Hearts” is a heartwarming story that will make you smile. When Miriam arrives in Savage Wells, she believes she is there to take a position as a new nurse. As the town whisks her into the local chapel, she realizes she was misled. Doctor Gideon MacNamara has requested a mail order bride, who can also serve as the town’s nurse.

When Miriam realizes she is supposed to marry Dr. MacNamara, she runs from the chapel.

Even though Gideon’s pride is hurt, he cares about the town more and is willing to let bygones be bygones and hires her on as a nurse. After all, it was not her fault that she did not know this was an arranged marriage.

With Miriam comes many dark secrets. These secrets eventually see the light of day as Dr. MacNamara and the town gets to know her. Even though she starts off on the wrong foot by not marrying the good doctor, the town grows to forgive her after she saves them from an epidemic that spreads like wildfire.

And when her past comes back to haunt her, the town rallies around her to save her.

You will enjoy this story from start to finish. There are parts that will leave you smiling with pure happiness. Then there are parts that will leave you at the edge of your seat, wondering just how bad things really are for Miriam…what is she escaping? And when you discover what she’s escaping from, it will leave you horrified.

Thoughts

I always say this about the Proper Romance books from Shadow Mountain, but I really love the stories they publish. Romance books that leave me blushing while I am reading on the train or on the bus are just not the type of books for me. The good old fashion stories from Jane Austen and Charlotte Bronte where a simple kiss is all that is needed, as well as honesty at how one feels about another, are the perfect romance stories for me.

I enjoyed this story because I could see a little of myself in Miriam. When she says to the doctor that if he really knew who she was, he would find it a blessing he did not marry her, I know I’ve felt the same way time and time again. In a way, it’s rejecting yourself for the other person because you know they will reject you if they really knew you. It saves yourself from whatever heartache will follow.

Of course, in Miriam’s story, he didn’t care. But isn’t that what every person that rejects themselves wants? To be told everyone is broken somehow, so it does not matter?

One very important aspect of the story I found extremely interesting is insanity and how women were treated. It is only in the last few decades that we’ve treated illnesses differently. Women lost all individual rights and deemed insane if they had a seizure or had heavy or erratic menstrual cycles. They were committed to asylums to be forgotten by loved ones. People with dementia or Alzheimer’s were “treated” until they stopped showing any signs of life.

Can you imagine today being committed to an asylum and labeled insane just because you suffered from epilepsy or had a horrible menstrual cycle? These were the issues women faced back then.

“Healing Hearts” brings a lot of these matters to light. It will shock you to discover just how bad things were back then. Even though this is a work of fiction, what happened in asylums, especially to women, still rings true historically.

I highly recommend picking up a copy of this book. The love story will warm your heart. The part where you can’t stop turning the pages is when you discover what happened to Miriam. Stories like this will not only help you to understand the past, but to see that many of the issues that broken people face are still the same. It takes a lot to convince them that people will not hurt them and that they can actually trust people.

That’s the thing with this story, there’s proving to people that you are not what they think you are. You are better than their misconceived notions. You can change the way they think by being yourself. But it takes a lot to trust an entire community with your secrets that they will protect and save you and not turn you over to those who seek to do you harm.

Getting to that point that you can trust people…that is something that Miriam will make you ponder if you could do the same if you were in her shoes.

[DISCLOSURE: I received a free copy of this book from the publisher for purposes of an unbiased review. This post contains affiliate links.]

What I Read in 2018 – All 84 Books

My 2018 New Year’s Resolution was to read 100 books.  I did not accomplish that goal this year.  I was 16 books short.  The prior year, I read only 64 books.  This year, I read 20 more books than the previous year for a total of 84 books.  That’s not bad.  That’s 1.6 books each week.  

If I keep this up, I’ll be able to finally reach my goal of 100 books in 2019. 

Along the way to my goal, I discovered the secret to getting in an extra book a week.  On Sundays, I choose an easy read that’s 225 pages or less and read it in one day.  Of course, I didn’t discover how this could help my numbers until I was 3/4 of the way into the year.  

In 2018, I became more selective with what I chose to read instead of reading whatever is sent to me.  I am fortunate that the books I read were the ones that helped me grow this year.  I learned so much from every single book, but more importantly, I learned more about myself this past year.  

All 84 of the books I read this year helped me to answer the questions burning inside of me.  They educated me.  I learned that everything happens for a reason, and books can find their way into your hands when you need them the most.  In May, I was asked to leave New York and travel the world indefinitely with this guy I’ve been crushing on for the last 7 years.  When I decided to stay, I realized what was really going on in the grander scheme of the universe.  This beautiful man was trying to wake me up and free me from the cage I had built around myself since the tumor was removed (2013).  I was blind to what I had done to myself out of fear.

As my crush left for Tibet, Tal Gur contacted me and asked if I would like a copy of his book to review.  I read it and thought to myself…WOW.  This was the book I needed in this moment.  I understood what I needed to do.  I needed to free myself so that the next time when the hottest guy I know offers me the world, I will be in a position where I can drop everything and run away with him, because in my heart, that’s what I really wanted to do.  

Publishers and authors sent their books.  As I read each one, I realized that each book isn’t just an escape from this horrible 2018.  It was also the universe’s guide book into helping me get back on my feet again, to seeing what I was doing to myself out of fear, but most importantly shining the beam of light to show me how to be me again.

Sometimes it was the entire story, or it was just a sentence or a paragraph.  All 84 of the books listed below were the words I needed in 2018.  

The Best of the Best

For those looking for some ideas on what to read, these are the books that I found to be the best reads of 2018.

The Books I Curated Into My Library: For the books I thought were the best of the best were very few.  It’s a given that I curate all autographed copies and classical literature into my library.  But the books that entered into my collection based on its own merits (i.e. the books I would want saved for mankind to read if there was some cataclysmic end) are as follows:  Slade House, Hag, The Air You Breathe, Melmoth, The Mermaid and Mrs. Hancock, Scribe, Dietland, Neverwhere, Sommelier of Deformity, The Stuff of Stars, Everything Happens for a Reason, A Higher Loyalty, Anansi Boys, and The Tuner of Silences.

The Stuff I Learned from Self-Help:  This year was a tough year.  I literally fell apart.  My poor work husband spent most of this year trying to put me back together again.  When he wasn’t around, I read a lot of self-help books to try to get back to who I was.  Of all the books I read, I think The Abundance Project and Make Peace with Money were two of the most important books, because they speak my language.   At work, the Speed Reading book taught me how to perfect my craft (reading). 

What really helped me in understanding why everything was happening was Everything Happens for a Reason.  When one of my colleagues left to travel the world, Tal Gur contacted me about his book, The Art of Fully Living.  I made the difficult decision to not run off with my colleague.  While I do regret doing so, I thought…maybe my circumstances will change.  Gur’s book helped me to make the decision to free myself from the cage I built around myself that prevented me from running off with the hottest guy I know who was trying to give me the entire world. [Review: The Abundance Project]   

The Best YA/Children’s Books: When I tell publishers I read almost everything, that includes children’s books.  Oh, and I love YA.  Besides Brad Meltzer’s “I Am” collection (I curate all of his titles into my library, because he signs everything I have), I curated in The Stuff of Stars.  When I met the author, there was a moment between us when she asked me to read/review her book.  I haven’t written about her book yet, because I don’t know how to describe it beyond it being the most wonderful children’s book I’ve ever read.  It gave me goosebumps.  I cried at the end because it was so beautiful.  I thought…if I had a kid, this is exactly how I would feel telling them the story of how they came to be in my life.  It was just…I have no words.  The story took my breath away.  I feel like this book became a little secret in my life that I want to tell the world, but I don’t know how to accurately describe how this book made me feel.  So parents…pick up the book.  Read it to yourself and then decide. 

As for the others, Prince & Knight was beautifully done.  Loved it!  To finish off the year, I ended with Wundersmith, Book 2 in the Nevermoor series.  I love this series.  It sucks that I have to wait for Book 3 now.  [Review: Nevermoor]

Proper Romance Changed Me: I have a rule.  Or maybe I should say I had a rule.  I don’t do romance books.  But Shadow Mountain Publishing changed my mind about romance books when they launched their Proper Romance group.  The book that changed me was Promises and Primroses.  Lies, Love, and Breakfast at Tiffany’s followed.  They even have a steampunk series that I’ve been trying to finish (when I’m not trying to meet deadlines).  What I like about their stories is that it’s not mushy all unrealistic lovey dovey romcom books.  There’s no over the top “well this is just unrealistic” love stories.  It’s all PG rated.  None of that 50 Shades stuff I turn up my nose to.  In other words, it’s a clean romance.  It’s the way I like stories to be told (in a Jane Austen kind of way), especially because I am the type that will vomit after I say the words “be in a relationship with” or “get married.” [Review: Lies, Love and Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Christmas by Accident]   

The Scary & the SciFi Books: I read a lot of the Cirque du Freak series this year.  I have two books left.  Neil Gaiman’s books are excellent.  American Gods is still my favorite, but Anansi Boys and Neverwhere were just as good.  Erik Therme’s Roam scared me.  Scribe was one of the best ghost stories I’ve read in a while.  Melmoth made my mouth drop.  It disturbed me so much, I had to text my brother (who never reads) about it.  Did I mention I curated Melmoth into my library?  Hag was excellent (my first book I’ve read that has roots in Scotland).   But the story that really scared me this year was David Mitchell’s Slade House (another curated book).  

The Best Stories:  The stories I really enjoyed in 2018 beyond the ones mentioned above are: Before We Were Yours, The Air You Breathe, The Mermaid and Mrs. Hancock, Sommelier of Deformity, Dietland, The Escape Artist, The Girl You Left Behind, and The Other Side of the Bridge.

The Book Deserves Its Own Category: James Comey.  A Higher Loyalty.  The book was excellent…until the last 3 chapters.  This book helped me to understand my guys a lot better, because they used to work with Comey.  There’s so much about leadership that I recommend for all lawyers/public officials to read.  But the parts that really stood out to me is how he found a silver lining in life when he was faced with tragedy.  It made me understand the book Everything Happens for a Reason so much better. [Review]

Food:  Every single cookbook I read this year was so amazing.  I loved Siriously Delicious so much, I bought the book.  Then I found out Siri Daly was signing the book.  I showed up and told her who I was and she said she read my review and loved it.  Copycat Cooking from Six Sisters’ Stuff is also one of my all-time favorite cookbooks now.  The In N Out Burger and fries recipes were so much better than the real thing.  I can’t visualize a burger any other way now.  Glow 15 made me look at caring for myself differently now.  I take different vitamins now and eat differently because of it.  I recommend all 3 of these books.  [Reviews: Siriously Delicious, Copycat Cooking, Glow 15]

The Classics:  My work husband saw Villette sitting on my desk and he asked me about it.  He was a literature major in college, so naturally, he would ask.  I didn’t have the heart to tell him why I was reading it.  It’s a book you read when your heart has been broken.  It’s about unrequited love.  It took me most of the year to read it, but when I got to the end, I sat there heartbroken for Charlotte Bronte.  My friend was going through something similar where someone was in love with her and acting like M. Paul.  She couldn’t understand his crazy.  I explained to her what was really going on.  Men haven’t changed so much in the last 200 years. 

I finally read another monster classic: The Invisible Man.  I will say I was unimpressed.  The Legend of Sleepy Hollow read exactly like the Disney cartoon.  Kudos to Disney!  I don’t understand why Of Mice and Men is a classic.  I’m wondering if it has more to do with the language Steinbeck chose.  The highlight and uplifting classic of the year beyond Villette was T.S. Eliot’s Four Quartets.  It had a very profound affect on me. 

I also finally read The Great Gatsby.  I read it alongside The Art of X-Ray Reading by Roy Peter Clark.  It helped me to really understand the depths of how beautiful this book is.  I do not recommend reading The Great Gatsby without Clark’s commentary (it’s only a chapter in X-Ray).  You will miss the importance of some of the elements used in the book, like color.    

Best Non-Fiction: Slave Stealers.  I learned so much about slavery then and now.  It’s not so different.  The providence at work for Tim Ballard and his team as they try to free children from the depths of hell just amazed me.  I remember sitting in bed, reading, exclaiming out loud, “No fucking way!”  Just amazing to see the Universe working to help people who are saving the innocents.  I highly recommend this book about real life work around the world to stop human trafficking (aka slavery).  [Review]

Below is the complete list of books I read this year.  If you’re interested in any of them, just click on the book and it will take you to Amazon where you can read more about the book and you can order it from there.

Book Review: Christmas by Accident

Tis the season to get into the Christmas spirit with Camron Wright’s latest novel Christmas by Accident.  If you are looking for a book to inspire you or to gift for those who love Christmas, the author of The Orphan Keeper, The Rent Collector and The Other Side of the Bridge has written the perfect book for you. [The Other Side of the Bridge Review]

The Story

Christmas by Accident is a story about an insurance adjuster who is fired for embellishing his reports (instead of writing just the dry facts, he wrote the reports in a way that would make you think you were reading the latest thriller).  His last case involves an accident where the driver’s insurance was canceled.

When Carter inspects the car, he finds a photo of the driver, Abby, and he knows he just needs to meet her.  So he begs his coworker to let him deliver the cancellation letter to Abby (after he’s been fired).

Abby helps run the ReadMore Cafe, a bookstore owned by her Uncle Mannie.  On the day Carter arrives, Abby isn’t in, but something sparks his eye.  It’s October and they already have their Christmas display of books up.  He is not a fan of Christmas, but he has an epiphany that he could write a book about Christmas.  So he purchases every Christmas title to figure out the formula for writing a bestselling Christmas book.

Abby, meanwhile, is visiting her uncle in the hospital.  He refuses to tell her that he has a rare disease that is enlarging his heart and wreaking havoc on his organs.  The doctors give him only a couple of months to live.  All he wants is to make it through Christmas, Abby’s favorite time of year.  He doesn’t want to destroy the holiday for her.

When Carter and Abby finally meet, she’s knocking on his door trying to understand how her insurance could be canceled.  She has the canceled check in her hand.  Even though Carter no longer works for the insurance company, he offers to help her navigate the system.  He finds out she’s an editor and they make a trade off that he’ll help her and she can help him edit his book.

Their friendship leads to romance which leads to making important life decisions, choices that could jeopardize this new romance.

An accident brings them together, but it is also an accident that could rip them apart forever.

Thoughts

If you like Hallmark Christmas movies, this book is perfect for you.  What I loved reading about were the mouthwatering treats served up at the ReadMore Cafe.  Imagine my surprise when I discovered the Christmas inspired recipes were at the back of the book!!!

I am a fan of Camron Wright’s works.  This story reminds me a lot of The Other Side of the Bridge, but with a Christmas spin.  The thing about Camron’s stories is that you will never forget his tales.  There is always something that will strike a chord within your soul that will have you remembering his stories for the rest of your life.  That is the magic of his works.

For me, the accidents hit me hard, because it reminded me of the time I contemplated a life lived, at a time when I pondered if I was going to live or die after my surgery.  All of those questions we ask ourselves when our lives are hanging in the balance he covered well.    

I think I will always be asking myself if I will have a smile on my face when, at the end of this lifetime, I look back on the life that I lived.  Why?  Because that’s one of those little gems Camron poses that will stick with you for the rest of your life.

Everyone takes what they need from the books they read.  For me, this story made me think about life.  For others, they may see something in the love story and discover that love is the choice you make every time.  Some may even see their faults in trying to focus too much on selling that they forget the true meaning of what they are doing.  Others may see the power of family and being there to protect them, even long after they are gone.

Whatever you take from this book, it comes at just the right time as the holidays approach.  It helps us to re-evaluate the decisions we are making, so that we can focus on the things that truly matter in this life.  After all, isn’t that what the true power of Christmas is all about?

[Disclosure: I received a copy of this book from the publisher for purposes of an unbiased review.  This post contains affiliate links, which means that if you purchase the books in any of these links, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.]

Lies, Love, and Breakfast at Tiffany’s

Lies, Love and Breakfast at Tiffany’s.  A young woman trying to make it in Hollywood as a film editor finds herself in a predicament.  She is a brand new employee at Portal Pictures and her boss is a drunk.  All of the work he was supposed to put into Sliver of Midnight fell upon her.  She ended up doing everything.

When it comes time for the final cuts, he is passed out on the couch and she needs to get final approval for the film.  She needs someone to take a look at it.  So when she runs into her friend and colleague from a rival studio at a club while she is trying to get her boss to go back to the office, she turns to him for assistance.

Silvia Bradshaw edited her heart out for this film and the executives realize that this could be an Academy Award winning film on their hands.  But it is her boss that takes credit for the film, even though the filmmakers know he did nothing.

Meanwhile, Silvia’s feelings for her former colleague, Ben, starts to blossom.  But he has a girlfriend already.  Or does he?  

The danger lies in anyone finding out Ben worked on this film.  It could jeopardize their relationship and careers forever.

The Verdict

The real story goes much deeper than just a romance and a girl trying to make it in Hollywood.

Silvia has a disability.  She lost her eye to cancer when she was a child.  Audrey Hepburn died the day she lost her eye.  So she imagined Audrey as being her angel and protector while she battled cancer.

When she received her first prosthetic, she called the eye ‘Audrey.’  

Overcoming this adversity adds to the difficulties women go through in Hollywood just to be accepted.  Silvia is supposed to be a heroine in this story, fighting for recognition.  Yet, she has to bend to her male boss.  He is the one that will take all the credit for her work, because that’s the way it is.

The author’s dedication is really symbolic to the message she is trying to share in Silvia’s story.  “To all the women who work in Hollywood, and in other creative endeavors, who are making the changes needed to have their creativity and voices heard and recognized.”

There’s also the ghost of change in this book, Audrey Hepburn.  What Silvia knows about Audrey mostly comes from her films.  She never really saw how Audrey lived her life.  When she learns how inspiring and meaningful life can be by being the change, she decides to follow Audrey’s example of how she lived her life.

What this book ultimately represents beyond a romantic comedy is inspiring change for women trying to make it in a boy’s club world.  The author seeks to inspire women to live inspirational lives (like Audrey), but also to fight for their work.  

If you’ve put in all the work, don’t let someone else take credit for it.  Fight for your right to get your name put on it.  Get exactly what you worked hard for.  Speak up for yourself.

There’s also the need to have more representation in these industries.  Women, as well as men, should help to encourage other women to enter these sectors.  Even if she’s dating the guy you’re in love with, help her get her foot in the door, because the world needs women in the business.

You have to uplift each other, not sabotage each other’s efforts.  In other words, we’re all in this together with the same mission in mind…more equal representation.

The book is inspirational and a fun read.  I enjoyed it because it talked a lot about Audrey and movies, two subjects I love.  Even moreso, I am happy the book discussed Audrey’s life works beyond movies.  It helps give you the road map on how one should live their life.

4 out of 5 stars.

The November To Be Read Book Stack

As promised, here is my TBR book stack for November.  There are a mix of books coming out in November, as well as a few that came out last month. 

I can’t possibly get through this entire stack in one month, so this is my wish list I plan on reading from this month.  I haven’t chosen my classic novel yet.  I will probably peruse my library this weekend to figure out which book I plan on reading.

As for the stack, here is what is in it…

November Releases

Lies, Love and Breakfast at Tiffany’s from Julie Wright (November 6, 2018)

Synopsis from Amazon:

The Lie
Women in Hollywood are just pretty faces. But Silvia Bradshaw knows that’s a lie, and she’s ready to be treated as an equal and prove her worth as one of Hollywood’s newest film editors.

The Love
She and Ben Mason had worked together as editors before Silvia got her big break, so he’s the perfect person to ask for feedback on her first major film. But even as their friendship begins to blossom into something more, a lawsuit surfaces, jeopardizing both of their jobs—as well as their fledgling romance. Audrey Hepburn once said: “The most important things is to enjoy your life—to be happy—it’s all that matters.” Silvia agrees. Or she used to. It’s one thing to risk her job and her heart, but can she really risk Ben’s too? Does she have the right to make decisions for her own happiness when they affect so many other people?

The Breakfast
With everything to lose, Silvia meets Ben for breakfast at his favorite diner, Tiffany’s, for one last conversation before the credits roll on true love.

Vita Nostra from Marina and Sergey Dyachenko (November 13, 2018)

Synopsis from Amazon: 

While vacationing at the beach with her mother, Sasha Samokhina meets the mysterious Farit Kozhennikov under the most peculiar circumstances. The teenage girl is powerless to refuse when this strange and unusual man with an air of the sinister directs her to perform a task with potentially scandalous consequences. He rewards her effort with a strange golden coin.

As the days progress, Sasha carries out other acts for which she receives more coins from Kozhennikov. As summer ends, her domineering mentor directs her to move to a remote village and use her gold to enter the Institute of Special Technologies. Though she does not want to go to this unknown town or school, she also feels it’s the only place she should be. Against her mother’s wishes, Sasha leaves behind all that is familiar and begins her education.

As she quickly discovers, the institute’s “special technologies” are unlike anything she has ever encountered. The books are impossible to read, the lessons obscure to the point of maddening, and the work refuses memorization. Using terror and coercion to keep the students in line, the school does not punish them for their transgressions and failures; instead, their families pay a terrible price. Yet despite her fear, Sasha undergoes changes that defy the dictates of matter and time; experiences which are nothing she has ever dreamed of . . . and suddenly all she could ever want.

A complex blend of adventure, magic, science, and philosophy that probes the mysteries of existence, filtered through a distinct Russian sensibility, this astonishing work of speculative fiction—brilliantly translated by Julia Meitov Hersey—is reminiscent of modern classics such as Lev Grossman’s The Magicians, Max Barry’s Lexicon, and Katherine Arden’s The Bear and the Nightingale, but will transport them to a place far beyond those fantastical worlds.

The Western Wind by Samantha Harvey

Currently Available

Miss Blaine’s Prefect and the Golden Samovar by Olga Wojtas

Synopsis from Amazon:

Never underestimate a librarian. Comfortably padded and in her middle years, Shona McMonagle may look bookish and harmless, but her education at the Marcia Blaine School for Girls has left her with a deadly expertise in everything from martial arts to quantum physics. It has also left her with a bone-deep loathing for The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, that scurrilous novel that spread scandalous untruths about the finest educational institution in Edinburgh. Her skills, her deceptively mild appearance, and her passionate loyalty make Shona the perfect recruit for a new and interesting project: Time-travel to Tzarist Russia, prevent a gross miscarriage of romance, and – in any spare time – see to it that only the right people get murdered. It’s a big job, but no task is too daunting for a Head Girl from Miss Blaine’s.

The Summer Wives by Beatriz Williams

Synopsis from Amazon: 

New York Times bestselling author Beatriz Williams brings us the blockbuster novel of the season—an electrifying postwar fable of love, class, power, and redemption set among the inhabitants of an island off the New England coast . . .

In the summer of 1951, Miranda Schuyler arrives on elite, secretive Winthrop Island as a schoolgirl from the margins of high society, still reeling from the loss of her father in the Second World War. When her beautiful mother marries Hugh Fisher, whose summer house on Winthrop overlooks the famous lighthouse, Miranda’s catapulted into a heady new world of pedigrees and cocktails, status and swimming pools. Isobel Fisher, Miranda’s new stepsister—all long legs and world-weary bravado, engaged to a wealthy Island scion—is eager to draw Miranda into the arcane customs of Winthrop society.

But beneath the island’s patrician surface, there are really two clans: the summer families with their steadfast ways and quiet obsessions, and the working class of Portuguese fishermen and domestic workers who earn their living on the water and in the laundries of the summer houses. Uneasy among Isobel’s privileged friends, Miranda finds herself drawn to Joseph Vargas, whose father keeps the lighthouse with his mysterious wife. In summer, Joseph helps his father in the lobster boats, but in the autumn he returns to Brown University, where he’s determined to make something of himself. Since childhood, Joseph’s enjoyed an intense, complex friendship with Isobel Fisher, and as the summer winds to its end, Miranda’s caught in a catastrophe that will shatter Winthrop’s hard-won tranquility and banish Miranda from the island for nearly two decades.

Now, in the landmark summer of 1969, Miranda returns at last, as a renowned Shakespearean actress hiding a terrible heartbreak. On its surface, the Island remains the same—determined to keep the outside world from its shores, fiercely loyal to those who belong. But the formerly powerful Fisher family is a shadow of itself, and Joseph Vargas has recently escaped the prison where he was incarcerated for the murder of Miranda’s stepfather eighteen years earlier. What’s more, Miranda herself is no longer a naïve teenager, and she begins a fierce, inexorable quest for justice for the man she once loved . . . even if it means uncovering every last one of the secrets that bind together the families of Winthrop Island.

The Greatest Love Story Ever Told by Megan Mullally & Nick Offerman

Synopsis from Amazon:

Megan Mullally and Nick Offerman reveal the full story behind their epic romance–presented in a series of intimate conversations between the couple, including photos, anecdotes, and the occasional puzzle.

The year: 2000. The setting: Los Angeles. A gorgeous virtuoso of an actress agreed to star in a random play, and a basement-dwelling scenic carpenter said he would assay a supporting role in the selfsame pageant. At the first rehearsal she surveyed her fellow cast members, determining if any of the men might qualify to provide her with a satisfying fling. Her gaze fell upon the carpenter, and like a bolt of lightning the thought struck her: no dice. Moving on.

Yet, unbeknownst to our protagonists, Cupid had merely set down his bow and picked up a rocket launcher . . . that fired a love rocket (not a euphemism). The players were Megan Mullally and Nick Offerman, and the resulting romance, once ignited, was . . . epic. Beyond epic. It resulted in a coupling that has endured to this day; a sizzling, perpetual tryst that has captivated the world with its kindness, athleticism, astonishingly low-brow humor, and true (fire emoji) passion.

How did they do it? They came from completely different families, ignored a significant age difference, and were separated by the gulf of several social strata. Megan loved books and art history; Nick loved hammers. But much more than these seemingly unsurpassable obstacles were the values they held in common: respect, decency, the ability to mention genitalia in almost any context, and an abiding obsession with the songs of Tom Waits.

Eighteen years later, they’re still very much in love and have finally decided to reveal the philosophical mountains they have conquered, the lessons they’ve learned, and the myriad jigsaw puzzles they’ve completed. Presented as an oral history in a series of conversations between the couple, the book features anecdotes, hijinks, photos, and a veritable grab bag of tomfoolery. This is not only the intoxicating book that Mullally’s and Offerman’s fans have been waiting for, it might just hold the solution to the greatest threat facing our modern world: the single life.

Every Breath by Nicholas Sparks

Synopsis from Amazon:

Hope Anderson is at a crossroads. At thirty-six, she’s been dating her boyfriend, an orthopedic surgeon, for six years. With no wedding plans in sight, and her father recently diagnosed with ALS, she decides to use a week at her family’s cottage in Sunset Beach, North Carolina, to ready the house for sale and mull over some difficult decisions about her future.
Tru Walls has never visited North Carolina but is summoned to Sunset Beach by a letter from a man claiming to be his father. A safari guide, born and raised in Zimbabwe, Tru hopes to unravel some of the mysteries surrounding his mother’s early life and recapture memories lost with her death. When the two strangers cross paths, their connection is as electric as it is unfathomable . . . but in the immersive days that follow, their feelings for each other will give way to choices that pit family duty against personal happiness in devastating ways.

Illuminating life’s heartbreaking regrets and enduring hope, EVERY BREATH explores the many facets of love that lay claim to our deepest loyalties–while asking the question, How long can a dream survive?

Cherry Blossoms from Kim Hooper

Synopsis from Amazon:

From the author of the critically-acclaimed debut People Who Knew Me comes the story of one man’s determination to abandon his will to live.

Jonathan Krause is a man with a plan. He is going to quit his advertising job and, when his money runs out, he is going to die. He just has one final mission: A trip to Japan. It’s a trip he was supposed to take with his girlfriend, Sara. It’s a trip inspired by his regrets. And it’s a trip to pay homage to the Japanese, the inventors of his chosen suicide technique.

In preparation for his final voyage, Jonathan enrolls in a Japanese language class where he meets Riko, who has her own plans to visit her homeland, for very different reasons. Their unexpected and unusual friendship takes them to Japan together, where they each struggle to make peace with their past and accept that happiness, loneliness, and grief come and go—just like the cherry blossoms.

Haunted by lost love, Jonathan must decide if he can embrace the transient nature of life, or if he must choose the certainty of death.

Unsheltered from Barbara Kingsolver.  {Note: This is also one of the November Book of the Month options that you can get for $14.99 from Book of the Month [You can also get an extra book for free using code: FRIENDSGIVING.]}

Synopsis from Amazon: 

The New York Times bestselling author of Flight Behavior, The Lacuna, and The Poisonwood Bible and recipient of numerous literary awards—including the National Humanities Medal, the Dayton Literary Peace Prize, and the Orange Prize—returns with a timely novel that interweaves past and present to explore the human capacity for resiliency and compassion in times of great upheaval.

How could two hardworking people do everything right in life, a woman asks, and end up destitute? Willa Knox and her husband followed all the rules as responsible parents and professionals, and have nothing to show for it but debts and an inherited brick house that is falling apart. The magazine where Willa worked has folded; the college where her husband had tenure has closed. Their dubious shelter is also the only option for a disabled father-in-law and an exasperating, free-spirited daughter. When the family’s one success story, an Ivy-educated son, is uprooted by tragedy he seems likely to join them, with dark complications of his own.

In another time, a troubled husband and public servant asks, How can a man tell the truth, and be reviled for it? A science teacher with a passion for honest investigation, Thatcher Greenwood finds himself under siege: his employer forbids him to speak of the exciting work just published by Charles Darwin. His young bride and social-climbing mother-in-law bristle at the risk of scandal, and dismiss his worries that their elegant house is unsound. In a village ostensibly founded as a benevolent Utopia, Thatcher wants only to honor his duties, but his friendships with a woman scientist and a renegade newspaper editor threaten to draw him into a vendetta with the town’s powerful men.

Unsheltered is the compulsively readable story of two families, in two centuries, who live at the corner of Sixth and Plum in Vineland, New Jersey, navigating what seems to be the end of the world as they know it. With history as their tantalizing canvas, these characters paint a startlingly relevant portrait of life in precarious times when the foundations of the past have failed to prepare us for the future.

The Library Book from Susan Orlean

Synopsis from Amazon:

On the morning of April 29, 1986, a fire alarm sounded in the Los Angeles Public Library. As the moments passed, the patrons and staff who had been cleared out of the building realized this was not the usual fire alarm. As one fireman recounted, “Once that first stack got going, it was ‘Goodbye, Charlie.’” The fire was disastrous: it reached 2000 degrees and burned for more than seven hours. By the time it was extinguished, it had consumed four hundred thousand books and damaged seven hundred thousand more. Investigators descended on the scene, but more than thirty years later, the mystery remains: Did someone purposefully set fire to the library—and if so, who?

Weaving her lifelong love of books and reading into an investigation of the fire, award-winning New Yorker reporter and New York Times bestselling author Susan Orlean delivers a mesmerizing and uniquely compelling book that manages to tell the broader story of libraries and librarians in a way that has never been done before.

In The Library Book, Orlean chronicles the LAPL fire and its aftermath to showcase the larger, crucial role that libraries play in our lives; delves into the evolution of libraries across the country and around the world, from their humble beginnings as a metropolitan charitable initiative to their current status as a cornerstone of national identity; brings each department of the library to vivid life through on-the-ground reporting; studies arson and attempts to burn a copy of a book herself; reflects on her own experiences in libraries; and reexamines the case of Harry Peak, the blond-haired actor long suspected of setting fire to the LAPL more than thirty years ago.

Along the way, Orlean introduces us to an unforgettable cast of characters from libraries past and present—from Mary Foy, who in 1880 at eighteen years old was named the head of the Los Angeles Public Library at a time when men still dominated the role, to Dr. C.J.K. Jones, a pastor, citrus farmer, and polymath known as “The Human Encyclopedia” who roamed the library dispensing information; from Charles Lummis, a wildly eccentric journalist and adventurer who was determined to make the L.A. library one of the best in the world, to the current staff, who do heroic work every day to ensure that their institution remains a vital part of the city it serves.

Brimming with her signature wit, insight, compassion, and talent for deep research, The Library Book is Susan Orlean’s thrilling journey through the stacks that reveals how these beloved institutions provide much more than just books—and why they remain an essential part of the heart, mind, and soul of our country. It is also a master journalist’s reminder that, perhaps especially in the digital era, they are more necessary than ever.

House of Gold from Natasha Solomons

Synopsis from Amazon:

The start of a war. The end of a dynasty.

Vienna, 1911. Greta Goldbaum has always dreamed of being free to choose her own life’s path, but the Goldbaum family, one of the wealthiest in the world, has different expectations. United across Europe, Goldbaum men are bankers, while Goldbaum women marry Goldbaum men to produce Goldbaum children. Jewish and perpetual outsiders, they know that though power lies in wealth, strength lies in family.

So Greta moves to England to wed Albert, a distant cousin. Defiant and lonely, she longs for connection and a place to call her own. When Albert’s mother gives Greta a garden, things begin to change. Perhaps she and Albert will find a way to each other. 

But just as she begins to taste an unexpected happiness, war is looming and even the influential Goldaums can’t alter its course. For the first time in two hundred years, the family will find themselves on opposing sides and Greta will have to choose: the family she’s created or the one she was forced to leave behind.

A sweeping family saga from a beloved and New York Times bestselling author, House of Goldis Natasha Solomons’s most dazzling and moving novel yet.

Christmas by Accident by Camron Wright

Synopsis from Amazon: 

Carter is an insurance adjuster whose longing for creative expression spills over sometimes into his accident reports.

Abby works for her adoptive father, Uncle Mannie, in the family bookstore, the ReadMore Cafe.

Carter can barely tolerate Christmas; Abby loves it. She can’t wait past October to build her favorite display, the annual Christmas book tree stack, which Carter despises.

When an automobile accident throws Carter and Abby together, Uncle Mannie, who is harboring secrets of his own, sees a chance for lasting happiness for his little girl. But there are so many hurdles, and not much time left. Will this Christmas deliver the miracles everyone is hoping for?

Bridge of Clay from Markus Zusak (author of “The Book Thief”)

Synopsis from Amazon:

The breathtaking story of five brothers who bring each other up in a world run by their own rules. As the Dunbar boys love and fight and learn to reckon with the adult world, they discover the moving secret behind their father’s disappearance.

At the center of the Dunbar family is Clay, a boy who will build a bridge—for his family, for his past, for greatness, for his sins, for a miracle.

The question is, how far is Clay willing to go? And how much can he overcome?

Written in powerfully inventive language and bursting with heart, BRIDGE OF CLAY is signature Zusak.

The Collector’s Apprentice from B. A. Shapiro

Synopsis from Amazon:

It’s the summer of 1922, and nineteen-year-old Paulien Mertens finds herself in Paris—broke, disowned, and completely alone. Everyone in Belgium, including her own family, believes she stole millions in a sophisticated con game perpetrated by her then-fiancé, George Everard. To protect herself from the law and the wrath of those who lost everything, she creates a new identity, a Frenchwoman named Vivienne Gregsby, and sets out to recover her father’s art collection, prove her innocence—and exact revenge on George.

When the eccentric and wealthy American art collector Edwin Bradley offers Vivienne the perfect job, she is soon caught up in the Parisian world of post-Impressionists and expatriates—including Gertrude Stein and Henri Matisse, with whom Vivienne becomes romantically entwined. As she travels between Paris and Philadelphia, where Bradley is building an art museum, her life becomes even more complicated: George returns with unclear motives . . . and then Vivienne is arrested for Bradley’s murder.

B. A. Shapiro has made the historical art thriller her own. In The Collector’s Apprentice, she gives us an unforgettable tale about the lengths to which people will go for their obsession, whether it be art, money, love, or vengeance.

The October Book Stack

Today, I am introducing a new feature at Perfectionist Wannabe.  I will be showing you at the end of each month the books I read that month.  At the beginning of each month, I’ll show you my To Be Read pile.

The To Be Read pile is usually advanced copies of books coming out that month I need to get through.  I try to read at least one classic and whatever looks good on my shelf I’ve been meaning to get to.

So let’s get to the current October stack.  I tried to read as many scary books as I could.  Six of the eight books featured are, at the minimum, about a ghost or a witch.

I did not include below “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” by Washington Irving, because the story is part of a collection of stories.  I will include that when I finish Irving’s book. 

The October Stack

The Air You Breathe

The Air You Breathe is my favorite book this month.  This is one of my Book of the Month subscription picks and I absolutely love it.  The story takes place in Brazil.

A young girl, Dores, is a kitchen servant on a sugar plantation.  She’s been there since she was born.  During the lean years, when sugar prices bottom out, she remains on the plantation with the head cook, when the sugar baron’s family leaves for the city. 

But then the next sugar baron in the family arrives with his family.  Their child, Graça, is around the same age as Dores.  They do not get along in the beginning, but soon Dores becomes Graça’s playmate.  They do everything together.  

Graça’s mother realizes that unlike her daughter, Dores is intelligent and absorbs everything she is taught. She offers Dores the same opportunities given to her own daughter, but with limitations. 

One day, she introduces Dores to music and her world changes. 

Music is what shapes this story of the two girls growing up together on a sugar plantation.  They later escape to Rio de Janeiro to try their luck at fame and fortune.  One girl is the beauty and the voice, the other has the smarts and the talent with words. 

Their story is filled with love, loss and obsession.  You’ll learn how these girls help make samba a revolution, and how Hollywood changes their lives forever.  This is a story that will whisk you away to a time before the great war.  You will fall in love in Brazil, and you will grow to appreciate the world of samba.

Hag

Hag is a witchy tale that starts off in Scotland and transports you to Colorado and then London as we follow Alice, the descendant of the Cailleach (an ancient witch who takes residence in the Scottish cliffs). 

As Alice grows up and tries to understand the weird things she can do, she has no idea her daughter will bring all of the Cailleach ancestors of witches together, bringing the story of the Cailleach full circle. 

What I liked about this story is that I saw a lot of myself in Alice.  For people that know me very well, they know there are a few things I can do that is just not explainable.  I used to tell my dad that if we were back in the 15th or 16th century, he probably would have had me burned at the stake for being a witch. 

After reading this book, I think I became a little more accepting of who I am.  Sometimes people have a better intuition than others, or as my friend says, I am better in tune to the universe than most people.  I think maybe back in the day, I would have been labeled a witch. 

In this book, I believe the author was well versed in the subject of witchcraft and what it has evolved into today.  Not all witches are brewing potions or practicing magic.  Some are just regular people living their lives, but are a little bit more in tune with the universe and the universe responds.

The Witch of Willow Hall

The Witch of Willow Hall is my favorite scary read this month.  Speaking of women trying to understand who they are, the weird things they can do and thinking that back in the day, they would have been burned at the stake or hung by the neck.  It is 1821 and right outside of Boston in a town called New Oldbury, Lydia and her family have relocated to Willow Hall to escape the embarrassment her family endured in Boston thanks to her older sister Catherine and brother Cyrus. 

Willow Hall is filled with ghosts and secrets, which makes it a perfect place for the Montrose family. 

Lydia and Catherine are always at odds.  When they lose Emeline, the youngest Montrose, the family begins to completely fall apart as Catherine’s sins unravel before them. 

Lydia is not aware she is a witch.  She can see ghosts and notices storms brew when she becomes upset.  It takes her mother being on her death bed to reveal Lydia’s true ancestry. 

For this story, it’s the ghosts that will scare you.  What will make your stomach turn is how evil Catherine can be and how she will do everything she can to destroy her sister’s happiness.  Oh, and there is a bit of a love story in there, blackmail, incest and scary dead witches…but damn, if this isn’t a great book.

The Clockmaker’s Daughter

The Clockmaker’s Daughter is a ghost story.  This book is a popular new release for the month of October.  I stood in line for a long time to get this book. 

I will warn you right now that I had a hard time getting through the first 60% of the book.  It kept putting me to sleep.  But the last part of the book, I could not put the book down.  I kept thinking…why in the world was I having a difficult time reading this book in the beginning?  Maybe because she saved the best part for last? 

This story jumps between the present and the past.  We follow the story of Elodie in the present day.  She discovers a leather satchel with a sketchbook and a photograph.  One of the sketches reminds her of a story her mother used to tell her before she died.  She becomes so obsessed with the picture that she starts to investigate the truth of its origins. 

We are then transported back to a different time…around 1862.  A group of artists spend the summer at Birchwood Manor.  What happens in Birchwood changes their lives forever. 

Over the next 150 years, a ghost haunts the old manor.  It is her story that is being told and it is up to Elodie to unravel the mystery of Birchwood Manor.  The ending is well worth it.

Violin

Violin is another ghost story.  This time it comes from the queen of vampires, Anne Rice.  Believe it or not, it has taken me a few years to get through this book.  I started it years ago and then put it to the side.  I decided to finally finish the last 150 pages. 

It was time to find out what becomes of Stefan, the evil fiddler and the woman he is haunting. 

I did not expect that Triana would become a world class violinist that mesmerizes her audiences with the haunting violin that actually does not even exist.  This violin was destroyed back when Stefan was alive, but in death, he took the essence of the violin with him and made it real.  He made himself (and the violin) real again to those who could hear his hypnotic melodies.  So when Triana steals it from his grasp, the violin transforms her world.  Stefan will do anything to get his violin back…but how far will he go?

Villette

Villette is a classic tale from Charlotte Bronte.  I love Jane Eyre  so when I got my heart broken, I decided to read this book.  It was recommended for people with broken hearts. 

This is a somewhat true story of Charlotte’s life…about unrequited love. 

It is funny how I saw the things happening in my life, as well as my friends, echoing what I read in this book.  Men act funny when they are in love with someone they know they cannot have.  It seems that things still have not changed 170 years later. 

One person on Twitter told me that she noticed there are a lot of people that have a difficult time with this book because of the ongoing misogyny.  But if you press on, you’ll really enjoy how the book ends.  I have to agree with her on that.  It was very difficult to not want to reach into the book and punch Monsieur Paul, but you’ll find as you continue that he has some redeeming qualities. 

Bronte is supreme at writing.  What I appreciate about Jane Eyre continues in her writings here.

Cirque du Freak: Hunters of the Dark

Cirque du Freak: Hunters of the Dark is a continuation of Darren Shan’s adventures as the Vampire Prince (book 7). 

The rise of the Vampaneze Lord brings Mr. Tiny to Vampire Mountain to issue a new prophecy and a quest for Darren and Mr. Crepsley.  They return to the Cirque du Freak to have their first of four encounters with the Vampaneze Lord. 

I’m probably going to spoil the next few novels, but my guess is that the Vampaneze Lord is Darren’s best friend from the time when he was still a mortal.  This friend is the reason why Darren became a vampire to begin with…to save his life. 

Don’t tell me…I want to figure it out myself in the next few novels.

Waiting for Tomorrow

Waiting for Tomorrow is a very sad tale about a family torn apart.  The story takes place in France.

Anita is an immigrant from Mauritius who meets her husband at a New Year’s Eve party in Paris.  They have a child together and decide to move to the country where Anita freelances as a journalist and Adam is an architect. 

When Adele, another Mauritius immigrant, enters their lives, she turns their lives around.  She helps care for their home and their daughter.  But she has this magnetic pull about her that inspires Adam to be the painter he always wanted to be and Anita to finally write the novel she’s been dreaming of.  But the strange thing is that the subject of their work is Adele. 

As the novel goes on, we find Adam is in prison and their daughter is in a wheelchair.  But why?  What happened?  I will say that I never saw the ending coming.  It was very surprising. 

This is a quick read.  Only 176 pages.

The Curated Collection

Each month, when I finish reading the books for that month, I try to decide which books will be curated into my library.  This month, I decided to keep Villette (I like to keep all classic novels), The Clockmaker’s Daughter (signed), The Air You Breathe and The Witch of Willow Hall (signed).  Generally speaking, if the book is signed, I will keep it.  For books not signed, it has to be an exceptionally good book in order to be placed in the curated collection.  The Air You Breathe was really that good and deserved to be placed on the shelves.

Book Review: Slave Stealers

There is a new book out that I believe everyone should read.  It’s called “Slave Stealers” by Tim Ballard.  This is one of the most phenomenal stories I’ve read this year.  In a way, Ballard’s story represents a lot of what this site is supposed to be about…sharing the stories of people who are making the world better than it was yesterday.

And that is where we start, Ballard telling the story of yesterday in order to learn from our past to create a plan to save innocent children from slavery.

Did you know American children are kidnapped and sold into the sex slave trade?  Within 48 hours of that child being taken, they are sold many times to complete strangers for sex.  These children are raped by pedophiles again and again.  A child could be raped up to 50 times every single day by complete strangers until they are rescued.  Sometimes that can take years (or until they become too old to be of use – mainly around 18 years old).

Out of the 20-30 million people enslaved, “close to six million…are children.”

“Human trafficking brings in an estimated $150 billion annually and is the fastest growing criminal enterprise on the planet.  With thousands of children currently forced into the commercial sex trade in the US, and thousands more children smuggled into the US annually for the same purpose.”

The Super Bowl is the “largest single trafficking event in the world.”  Surprised?  I was.

Children are sold over again and again to rapists and pedophiles at the Super Bowl.  It happens right under our nose, on our very own soil.  These children are in the sex SLAVE trade on American soil, and until recently were legally sold on the internet thanks to a legal loophole that Congress had to change.  [See CDA 230.]

How do we stop this?  How do we save the children that are in captivity?  The answer is Operation Underground Railroad.

Operation Underground Railroad

Tim Ballard was one of the first members of Homeland Security’s child crimes/countertrafficking group in the early 2000s.  This was a relatively new agency (that came out of 9/11/01), as well as a new unit focused on saving children.  Saving children from the sex slave trade is a difficult task.  You have to go into the deepest, darkest pits of the criminal underground world to save these kids…and that means pretending to be a pedophile.

There were a lot of trainees that could not stomach this.  As they role played in class, there were men that had to leave the room to throw up or just couldn’t hack being in this unit, because they were fathers, too.  To say they wanted to have sex with a young child, that could have been a child the same age as their own, disgusted them.

But the thing is in order for this unit to work, they had to say the things they had to say in order to get access to the kids to free them.  They had to put up a wall that separated themselves from that dark world with that loving family they have at home.

Since this was a relatively new field for this Homeland Security group, they had to come up with tactics to free these child slaves.  Ballard decided to read up on the Underground Railroad and slavery.  This led him to Harriet Jacobs.

She is one of the first slaves that ever wrote a book.  Her book, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, gave Ballard the tools he needed to understand slavery and how to get people out.

When he came across Guesno Mardy’s story, Ballard’s time with Homeland Security came to an end.  Why?  Because he saw that he could not limit himself to just America anymore.  He had to help everyone.

Guesno Mardy’s son was kidnapped and sold two weeks before the earthquake crippled his country, Haiti.  When Ballard read Mardy’s story, he knew he had to help.  He invited Mardy to California where they sat down to talk about what happened.  Ballard made a promise to him that he would help him find his son, but he could not do that as long as he was working for Homeland Security (due to jurisdictional issues).

So he left Homeland Security and started Operation Underground Railroad so that he could help everyone around the world combat human trafficking.  This is where he would be able to make the biggest impact in saving children from the slave trade.

Harriet Jacobs

In order to understand slavery today, Ballard decided to take a look at the way slavery was in America during the 1800s.  Harriet Jacobs served as his guide as she told her story of what it meant to be a slave in her book “Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl.”

Her story of life as a slave, and later as a liberator for those in the Underground Railroad, helped Ballard understand what he needed to do to help these kids.  She helped provide the framework he needed on his missions to save trafficked children.

Jacobs is a strong woman that needs to be commended for standing up for herself when her master tried to have his way with her when she was still young.  She put safeguards up to protect herself from him, no matter how many years he pursued her.  He was obsessed with her, even offered to put her up in her own cottage, so long as she would be his mistress.  The obsession grew even more each time she ran away.

His need for Harriet was not in controlling his property.  His obsession with her was that he could not control her as a slave, as property or as a woman.

There were people helping her all along her journey, but her greatest fear was that her children would be subjected to the same abuses (or even worse) that she was trying to escape from.  She needed to do whatever she could to keep them safe, even if it meant staying close to them by staying in a cramped attic space for almost seven years battling the elements of extreme heat and cold, and being unable to move around freely.

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Why I Care and Why YOU Should Care

There is a reason why I feel strongly about this book and want people to read it, as well as watch the documentary “I Am Jane Doe.”

When I was 18, my mother was in tears when she told me her greatest hurt and secret…she was sold into slavery when she was eight years old.  She lived in servitude for seven years before running away to Bangkok.  At 21, she married the first GI that paid attention to her (my father) and disembarked to America where her children could not be sold into slavery.

My best friend in high school’s mother waited until her daughter was in her 20s to tell her.  Actually, her aunt told her the truth…that she had an older brother.  Her mother had been sold into the sex slave trade to serve as a concubine.  She was 13.  At 15, she gave birth to a son and was immediately turned out of the home where she was forced to live and work in a brothel.  She later married a GI and escaped to America so that her children could not be sold into the sex slave trade as she had been.

My cousins from Thailand call my mother to tell of their issues finding work.  People approach them about new trafficking schemes where they can go to X country to work.  All they have to do is pay a fee for the plane ticket and placement.  There are many human trafficking schemes and this is one of them.  It happens all of the time.  Promises of jobs in other countries, when in fact the job is really a position as a slave.

The slave trade is one of the most lucrative criminal enterprises in all of the world.  It never stopped.  No matter how many laws the world can come up with to banish slavery, it still exists in one form or another…and people are making billions of dollars from it.  For as long as they are making money from selling human beings, they are not going to stop.

Believe it or not, the demand to have child sex slaves is popular in America.  The biggest clientele are Americans.  What does that say to you?  Pedophilia is an even bigger problem than you can imagine.  What better way to get away with it than to use child prostitutes that no one is looking for?  Or if their parents are looking for them, how best to hide them?

When you see a huge culmination of missing children (like in Washington, DC), you have to question if they are being trafficked.  After all, DC was one of the main hubs for slavery when it was legal.  Just because it is illegal today, it does not mean the slave trade ever stopped.  They just changed the way they did business, catering to a whole new clientele.

If they are making $150 billion annually, selling and reselling the same person over and over again, don’t you think there is a problem?  After all, selling a person once nets you only so much money.  Selling them up to 50 times a day, every day, for years will net more money…and to them, this is about money, not human lives.  As long as there is a demand, they will keep enslaving people and selling them.

If you watch “I Am Jane Doe” (on Youtube, Netflix, etc.), you’ll see this happens to American families.  One woman’s daughter was kidnapped right from soccer practice while her mother was sitting in the parking lot waiting for her.  Within 48 hours of her disappearance, she found her daughter for sale on the internet.

This happens in American communities.  It happens in inner city neighborhoods.  This happens when children survive disasters (like the Haiti earthquake) and find they do not have parents anymore.  If we could put a stop to this, how could we?

The Pittsburgh Steelers Team Up With O.U.R.

How do we stop this?  That is the question this book asks.  How do we stop the chaos happening in America?  Maybe joining together for a common cause will help put an end to the slave trade in America.

If Americans cared enough about the children, maybe we could ban together to save all of them and create a world where people will not buy children for sex.  Instead of allowing politicians to normalize pedophilia, we must take a strong stance against it, unified in that cause to protect children.

That is where the Pittsburgh Steelers come in.  The forward to this book was written by Coach Mike Tomlin.  He is working with O.U.R. along with the Steelers to help educate the community about the need to end modern day slavery.  Considering the Super Bowl is the biggest single sex trafficking event in the world, having a NFL team step in to end it says something.

With everyone burning Nikes, protesting the flag, taking the knee, etc., we can take a moment to all agree that we need to help save the kids being trafficked to games for someone’s sexual pleasure.  The 13th Amendment is supposed to protect them, but the criminal world seeks to defy our freedom to be truly free from slavery.  These kids are not free human beings and are unable to have the opportunity to burn their Nikes or protest in some manner.  When they take a knee, it’s for a reason none of us wants to imagine.  That is not a world any child should be living in.

O.U.R. and the Pittsburgh Steelers hope is that we, as a nation, can come together to help liberate those in America that are in chains.  We can put our political differences aside and focus on saving humans that are trafficked in America.  It does not mean building a wall, because not all sex trafficked victims are coming in from Mexico.

Sex trafficked victims are Americans.  They are from other countries.  The criminal network finds ways to bring them into our country.  They will find ways to snatch your children up right in front of you.

Conclusion

I highly recommend reading this book.  Understanding slavery in the past is an insight into how we can deal with modern day slavery.

My favorite parts in this book all deal with Providence (i.e. God is winking back).  When you are doing something as crazy as leaving a stable job to start a non-profit, you’re going to need all of the providence you can get.  Those little winks keep happening over and over again as Tim Ballard races to save the day with his team.

The things that have happened over the course of O.U.R. is incredible.  My favorite story is of the videographer that decided one officer should wear a Go Pro camera on his helmet.  He was adamant on which officer should wear it.

When the raid goes down, an officer sees a girl running away.  He follows her into a sex den where they are keeping the other girls and finds men raping these young girls.  He grabs the men from off of them and slams them into the walls.  The men gather up their clothing and flee.

When the officer comes out with the girls with him, he tells them that the rapists got away.  But guess which officer found the girls?  The only officer with the Go Pro camera on his helmet.  They were able to identify each of the men in the video and prosecute all of them.

How is that for providence?

I am hoping that others discover “Slave Stealers” and “I Am Jane Doe,” because they talk about modern day slavery.  “I Am Jane Doe” changed CDA 230, the law allowing for the sale of humans on the internet.  Congress changed the law because of the Jane Does.

If something as simple as a few former child sex slaves begging for change could bring about change on Capitol Hill, then a group like O.U.R. and Americans wanting to keep slavery out of America for good can change the narrative in America.  We can end the slave trade in America and around the world.  If there’s no demand or money in selling humans, then this criminal enterprise will end.  It’s up to all of us to create that change together.

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[Disclosure: I received a free copy of this book from the publisher for purposes of an unbiased review.  This post contains affiliate links.]

Looking for Your Next Book? Try Book of the Month


Do you ever wonder what you should read next?  There are so many titles to choose from, but what book should you get?  Have you seen the prices of books?  No wonder why Amazon is putting bookstores out of business…

Wait…maybe I went too far.

Let me take this back a little.  A few weeks ago, a good friend of mine visited me.  We went into Barnes & Noble so she could pick up a few magazines.  I perused the books on all of the tables, but I didn’t pick up any books.

I said to my friend, “I’ve either read everything here or I have the book already.”  She responded, “That does not surprise me.”  She’s seen my library and all of my advanced copies of books.

Technically speaking, everything I need to read, I already have.  I don’t really buy books anymore, except once in a blue moon while I’m on Amazon looking for an answer to what ails me.  There are some titles that I am not able to get my hands on because I make it to the publisher’s booth too late (for instance, I missed out on Celeste Ng’s “Little Fires Everywhere” last summer).  I have a serious fear of missing out when it comes to books.

So while I was looking for a title I did not own already, I flipped the paperback over to see the price and almost fainted at how much a book costs these days.  Now, I understand why Amazon is putting bookstores out of business.

The Answer to My Fear of Missing Out



So every now and again, there’s a title that for some reason does not make it into my hands and I am left going…I kind of need that book!  Well, the answer to my fear of missing out now comes in the form of $14.99/month from the Book of the Month club.  Not only was I able to get my hands on a new title, I was able to get Celeste Ng’s book for free by using the July code: SUGARHIGH.

When you look online, the hardcover is over $20 for “The Summer Wives.”  So $14.99 for a new hardcover book is a serious deal.  Plus, the more people you refer, the more credits you can receive for more free books.

The way it works is that at the beginning of every month Book of the Month releases a list of 5 new titles that should be the “IT” books for the month.  Of the 5, you can pick one for your monthly membership.  You can also choose additional titles for an additional $9.99, or you can use credits).

What I love about Book of the Month is that this is a perfect way to start up your very own Book Club.  No more fear of missing out on what everyone else is reading.  You can stay on top of your reading game.  So get your girlfriends to join, your mom, your aunts, cousins, etc.  Maybe you can share the different titles between your little network.

So far, I am enjoying this club.  It’s every bibliophile’s answer to keeping on top of all of the latest IT titles.

To Join: BOOK OF THE MONTH

P.S. I’m thinking of having our own little book club here based on BOTM titles.  If interested, comment below and I’ll work it into next month’s title rotations.

Book Review: The House at Saltwater Point

Just in time for the Fourth of July holiday is a new novel from Colleen Coble called “The House at Saltwater Point.” [Due out July 3, 2018]

This is book two in the Lavender Tides series.  You don’t need to read The View from Rainshadow Bay to get a sense of what is going on, because the story stands very well on its own.  It ties in characters from the first book, allowing them to develop their own unique backgrounds within this story.

When I read this book, I kept asking myself which publisher gave me this book.  I try not to read the back cover when I start reading a book, because I want to be surprised.  There should be no hints as to what this book could possibly be about.  I don’t want to know the genre.  Yet, if I had flipped to the back of the book, I would have figured out the publisher was Thomas Nelson, a HarperCollins publication.

But I decided to read forward without seeing who the publisher was to see if I could figure it out just by reading the book…and I did figure it out.  Some publishers place their own unique stamp (or style) in the type of books they publish.  HarperCollins is one of them.

I do not pick up too many religious titles.  I avoid them like the plague…UNLESS it comes from HarperCollins.  Why?  Because even though some of the books they publish may have some sort of religious theme, it is not being shoved down your throat.  And I appreciate that.

I knew this was a HarperCollins publication because there were references to ‘praying’ or ‘God.’  No mention of the word “Jesus.”  To me, this book passed the test for this site to be willing to write a review.  Why?  Because in everyday conversation, we may not all be religious, but when people are hurting or need direction, it is perfectly normal to say that we will pray for them or ask God to help them.  God is more encompassing of all religions.  Using the word ‘Jesus’ limits it to one religion, and not all people believe in that religion.

So let’s talk about “The House at Saltwater Point.”

What drew me to this book was the main character.  Not only is she a house flipper, but she is also a blogger for a site called “Hammer Girl.”  Ellie is the type of person I would follow on social media.  I would probably read her blog, too.  She is basically living in a world that many wonder about and would love to know more about.  She lives an inspiring life, buying houses, flipping them into something beautiful and then moves on to the next project.  I can just imagine how awesome her Instagram account would be!

So throw in a murder mystery with a missing sister (possibly dead) and a bunch of missing cocaine.  There is even a terrorist plot underway in her beautiful hometown.

Yes, I said a terrorist plot!!!

Add in a little bit of a love story, family issues, and a lot of suspense in a dreamy locale where you are constantly visualizing the beautiful water with tall boats floating by in a quaint seaside town where everybody knows everyone, and you have the elements of what makes this story worth picking up.

You will have no idea what is going on as the adventure unveils.  Is Ellie’s sister, Mac, still alive or is she dead?  Is she connected to the missing cocaine?  Why is there a terrorist involved in this?  What does North Korea have to do with anything?  ISIS on US soil?  Who is trying to kill Ellie?  What did she do?  Why is there a dead man in her basement?  Why does Mac have information about making EMPs (bombs) on her laptop?

You will ask a lot of questions, and they will all be answered in the most incredible way.  Did I see who the mastermind was going to be?  No.  Then I felt stupid for not seeing the foreshadowing.  [That’s how you know it was a well planned murder mystery…when you feel like you should have seen the result coming at the end, but you didn’t.]

The Verdict

I really enjoyed this book.  I do not read suspenseful murder mysteries very often, but this one is worth the read.  Despite the crazy that comes out of the town of Lavender Tides, it sounds like a dream.  The locale seems like paradise, if it weren’t for all of the sinister plots going on.

There are elements in this story that ties in the first book and will likely tie in the third book.  What binds the stories together are Shauna and Grayson.  Shauna’s story appears in the first book.

She is not a main character in the second book, only Grayson.  There is enough intrigue that I looked up the first book in the series.  It goes further into Shauna’s tale of what happened the day of the earthquake.  The line that hooked me in this book to want to pick up the first book is Coble’s reference to the earthquake being caused by Shauna’s father.  Now, she has my attention.

Lavender Tides binge to be continued…

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How to be a Book Reviewer and Other Things to Consider

I love books.  As a writer, reading books is a livelihood.  It is a way to become inspired by other authors who are honing or have already honed their crafts.  I want to know what people think, create and escape to when they put a book together.  It is not just the stories they are telling.  The words.  The words are the most important part.

Without words, we would have no story, no way to express the tales that linger within our souls.  Words may be elegant.  They can be sharp.  Each word tied together can create something beautiful that may inspire or enlighten us.  Done right, it can even warm our hearts to love even greater.

As we move further into this age of technology, people are spending more time connecting with the internet than connecting with life.  Their eyes are constantly on their devices instead of absorbing the pages of books.  More and more people claim they are too busy to read books.  They read Facebook, Twitter and headlines, never clicking on the story to get further information.  The headlines, tweet or meme tell them whatever they need to know in a few words or less.  To them, that’s all they need to know everything.

In reality, this method is dumbing people down.  For instance, yesterday, when the Supreme Court of the United States released their opinion in Masterpiece Cakeshop, Ltd., et al. v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission et al. the only thing people read was that the court sided with Masterpiece Cakeshop in their right to deny service due to their religious beliefs.  But that is not what the Court said.

If people took time to read the opinion, they would have found that SCOTUS believed that the baker’s rights were violated by the Colorado Civil Rights Commission.  The baker was accused of heinous things by the Commission.  They were hostile towards him and persecuted him because of his religious beliefs.  Instead of listening to both sides of the argument in a neutral manner to decide if it legal or illegal for a business to deny service to someone due to religious beliefs (a question that SCOTUS would have answered), the Commission chose to be hostile and punished the baker for his religious beliefs.

That, right there, is illegal under the First Amendment of the US Constitution.  The decision on Monday addressed only what the Commission said and did to the baker.  They did not address whether it was legal or illegal to discriminate against LGBTQ persons.  That question became irrelevant when the Commission (the government entity) decided to persecute the baker for his religious beliefs.  No government can persecute or act hostile to anyone because of their religious beliefs.  In this case, that is what the Colorado Civil Rights Commission did.  If they had been neutral in their decision, SCOTUS would have discussed the question of whether businesses can discriminate against LGBTQ persons due to religious differences.  But because the Commission persecuted the baker, that violation of the First Amendment took precedence.

To sum it up: The Supreme Court did not say it was ok to discriminate against LGBTQ persons.  It was not part of the decision.

But the only way you would know that is if you read the opinion or got your news from someone who actually read the opinion.  It’s like flag burning.  Most Americans have no idea that burning the flag is perfectly LEGAL because it is protected as free speech…just like taking the knee during the national anthem is free speech, whether you like it or not.  They would know this if they did a quick Google search.

It disappoints me that people choose ignorance over truth.  They choose a meme over the real story, even if the meme is completely wrong.  They believe the meme!

But what disappoints me even more is that people don’t read books anymore, at least not like they used to.  There are so many people out there with so many stories to tell.  From the good to the bad to the ugly…stories connect us.  As we grow as human beings, reading books allows us to learn from others who are different from us (or just like us) so that we can better understand who they (or we) are.

The narrative does not belong to just one race anymore.  It belongs to all of us, including that dreamer crossing the border from Mexico into the United States.  That kid you bullied because they were transgender?  Even they have a tale to tell to you about themselves.  But you will never know if you don’t take the time to enlighten yourself.  You may find that you have more in common with them than you thought you did.

Pick up a book.  Learn.  Become enlightened.  Whatever answers you are looking for in life don’t always just happen to you.  Sometimes the answer can be found in someone else’s story…in their own words.

Are Book Reviews Dying?



Not only are we moving towards an age where people are not reading books, but we are also moving into a time where promoting books is a dying business.  While Amazon is taking over the market (books are actually their biggest seller), many booksellers are struggling.  But it’s not just the booksellers that are struggling.  The book reviewer is finding a shrinking marketplace to tell you about the book they read that you really should read too.

Very few newspapers give space for book reviews these days.  Even magazines give a short blurb about the book they probably got directly from the publisher.  But the funny thing is, depending on the paper, the more intelligent the publication, the more likely they have space for book reviews.

Now, ask yourself…how many intelligent publications are left?  Look to see if that media material you are reading has book reviews with 500 words or more.  If not, it’s not an intelligent publication.

During Book Expo America 2018, a panel of book reviewers discussed the industry as a whole.  Are book reviews dead?  Even moreso, is the livelihood of the book reviewer becoming non-existent?

First, when I went to this panel, I had no idea people were paid to write book reviews.  I generate income in a different way when I write book reviews.  Sure, I could see being a book reviewer was a realistic job back before the turn of the century.  But today?  We are lucky to find people that actually read books!  Getting kids, let alone adults, to read a book is a struggle for every parent and educator.  Even adults are finding it more difficult to find time to read books.  Where is Oprah’s Book Club when you need it?

At the panel, Christopher Carduff, the Books Editor from The Wall Street Journal spoke about how he was considered the White Rhino at WSJ.  When he leaves, book reviews in WSJ will disappear with him.  The people that read the book reviews and the weekend book section are the most intelligent readers of the WSJ.  They are also the ones that stay on the site the longest to read more articles.

When the WSJ writes a book review, they are looking for the jewels to share with their readers.  Believe it or not, finding those jewels are becoming harder to find as the book industry becomes watered down with so many stories from everyone wanting to be a writer (even if they can’t write).  Trust me, I’ve read my share of crap books and I had to ask myself just what in the world publishers were thinking asking me to read this crap.

When you read a review in the WSJ, they have sifted through a lot of shit just to find something that wasn’t a piece of shit to share with you.  Their reviews are thought provoking and written by a good writer.  Believe it or not, book reviewers are all writers.  Every good writer reads a lot of books.  Just look at Stephen King.  He writes and then he reads every single day…and he reads a lot of books.

The Book Reviewer aka The Writer

So if you are going to be an author who writes well, you need to read well.  You need to read a lot of books.  You need to learn from the masters, as well as the ones who are just horrible (in order to learn what not to do).  I also believe that you should share what you read.

They say blogging is becoming a dying art, but there are bloggers that miss it.  At least once a week, I see a blogger I love go on a rant about how they miss writing stories for their blog.  If you are a writer, don’t ever stop blogging.  Do not sacrifice to the whims of the world for a watered down version of yourself or your brand.  Keep writing.

There are people that still read book reviews.  It still remains to be one of the more popular sections of the Wall Street Journal both in print and online.  There are educators and bibliophiles that read book reviews.  There are highly intelligent people that read book reviews so that they can find their next great read.

As a book reviewer, it is our responsibility to find those gems out there to share with the world.  After all, it is the publisher/author looking for that opportunity to have their book reviewed and shared with the world.  They are looking for that sales push (aka free marketing).

Book reviews in the marketplace may be dying, but for those who have blogs and websites…keep reviewing.  It will make you into a better writer.  Read the classics and bestsellers, but also discover new voices.  They will all teach you how to be a better writer.

How to be a Book Reviewer

For those who want to start reviewing books, start by having 1) a blog or website where you can post reviews regularly, 2) an Instagram account and 3) a Twitter account.  Optional: Tumblr & Facebook.

The first one is self-explanatory, but keep in mind that if you want to be taken seriously as a book reviewer, you absolutely cannot write a short blurb about every book you read, unless you are doing a short summary promoting books like you will find on my PW Book Club page.  You can create a similar page, but make sure your actual site has complete reviews.

When you post a review, make sure to let the author and the publisher know about the review.  The easiest way to do that is to tweet it on Twitter.  Most authors and all publishers have Twitter accounts.  Add them to your tweet when you publicize the review.

On Instagram, take creative pictures of books you are reading, book hauls, bookstores, etc.  In other words, anything that promotes books.  Some book reviewers post a short review of the book they are reading on Instagram, encouraging people to click on the link in their bio for more.  [NOTE: Don’t do socks with books.  It was cute in the beginning, but now it is overdone and boring to publishers.]

For other social media accounts, I find that sharing books with friends on Facebook gets the most traction, because many of my friends read my blog and want book suggestions.  Tumblr is also very popular among the younger generation.

I also recommend posting a portion of your review on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Goodreads (save time by linking your Amazon and Goodreads accounts).

How to Get Advanced Copies of Books

When you’ve built up a rather large amount of writing on your site, there are different ways to get review copies.  For newbies, I highly encourage you to post reviews on Amazon, but also make sure you create a public profile on Amazon [example] that allows authors and publishers the ability to contact you.

I’ve met many new authors this way and discovered some great books this way.

Also, for those starting out, get yourself to a Book Con.  Book Cons are designed for fans of books.  You can get advanced copies of books from many publishers for free.  If your blog has been around for a little longer and you’ve established yourself as a legitimate book reviewer, you can sign up for the Book Expo (which is strictly for those in the industry).  The Book Expo is generally more expensive, but they also include panels and MORE FREE advanced reader copies (aka galleys or ARCs).  You’ll have more access to what is expected to be the IT books of the year at the Expo.  It is also not as crazy as the Cons.

If you are at Book Expo level, you can also sign up for NetGalley.  You’ll get your ARCs delivered electronically through Kindle documents.  You will need to post your blog review to NetGalley, as well as on Amazon and Barnes & Noble as a requirement to read ARCs from NetGalley.

If you are at Book Expo level, it is important that you develop relationships with the publishers.  Make sure you come equipped with business cards and a willingness to market your site verbally to the publishers.  I’ve developed great relationships with publishers over the years by marketing my site when I talk to them about my business plan in relation to promoting their books.

It is also very important to tag the publisher in your book review tweets.  They remember the review, especially if it is a very good one.  For instance, my most recent review was on Siri Daly’s cookbook. I tweeted the review to both Siri and her publisher.  At the Book Expo last Thursday, Siri was there signing her new cookbook.  I introduced myself and told her I reviewed her cookbook at Perfectionist Wannabe.  Both she and her publisher lit up, knowing exactly which review and which site I was referencing.  They both exclaimed how much they liked the review.

When you write reviews that are well received by both the author and the publisher, it helps in their decision making process on whether they will work with you in the future for future book reviews.  Those coveted titles you want to get your hands on before anyone else does…it helps if you have a good relationship with the publisher.

One publisher I love working with is Simon & Schuster.  They have created incredible opportunities for me as a writer to learn from their bestselling authors on how to write better and to just plain finish the damn novel!  They are usually the first to open up the door for me in both the writing and reviewing realm.

That is another reason why it is important to develop relationships with publishers, especially if you are writing a book.  They will help you develop as a writer by giving you the tools you need to learn how to become a better writer by learning from their best-selling authors on how to troubleshoot the writing process, develop techniques and inspire you to complete your novel.  For me, it also helps me in the decision making process on which publisher I want to work with to publish my book.  I look at each book they hand to me to review as a calling card of what their company can do in the editing, marketing, and talent handling processes.  To me, it’s not just a book to be reviewed, it’s an extension of who they are as a publishing company and whether I want to work with them in the future.

So if they hand me a lot of crap books to review, what does that say about the company?  Something to think about if you are looking to publish your novel.  I would prefer to work with a qualitative editor and publisher than just a company that will publish anything and everything.

There are other ways that book reviewers receive their advanced copies, but these are my ways that work very well for me.

Should We Read Comey’s Book?

Should the American public read Jim Comey’s book, A Higher Loyalty?  If you care about the facts, truth, democracy and America, then YES! you need to read this book.

“What is happening now is not normal.  It is not fake news.  It is not okay.” – James Comey, p. 276.

This book is not about Trump or a disgruntled former government employee trying to get his 15 minutes of fame.  This book is about ethics and leadership.  Someone is ringing the liberty bell sounding the alert that something is very wrong.  We need to pay attention to what is being said and what is happening.

Every fact in this book is being echoed and repeated again and again everywhere we turn.  These very facts were even featured in the Democratic National Committee’s complaint in DNC vs. Russia, Trump, et al. that was filed in court on April 20, 2018.  If you have not read the complaint, take time to read the facts.  It details how the Russians interfered with our election and how the Trump Campaign worked with the Russians to commit treasonous illegal acts to get Donald Trump elected.

While those of you who may read this post are not Democrat  and will dismiss the action because it is a lawsuit filed by the DNC, the point I want to make is that the DNC echoes what the former FBI Director mentions in his book and in his memos.  The truth is being repeated again and again.  It is up to you whether you want to take the politics out of it and focus on what is more important, the truth or the lies.

As Americans, we cannot dismiss what is happening.  Take the politics out of of it.  That is what Comey is doing here and has been doing ever since he first became a public servant.  He serves America, not any political party.  After reading this book, I think you will understand how stupid and nasty politics can be.  There is no place for it in our justice system.

Disclosure

Before I begin my review of James Comey’s book A Higher Loyalty, I need to do a full disclosure.

I do not know Mr. Comey personally, but I do know former AUSAs (Assistant US Attorneys) that worked with him and for him.  Two of them are actually his friends.  I am proud to call all three of those former AUSAs “my guys.”

The characteristics I admire the most about Comey, I see in my guys.  The ethics, professionalism and leadership are all things they learned from him.  These are all traits I cherish greatly in my guys, so to see people challenge Mr. Comey, it is like a punch in the gut to me.  People are saying the things I love the most about my guys are not worthy of praise…when they are.

With leaders like Comey, you can see how they inspire and challenge people to be better than they already are.  One of my guys did that with me.  His leadership skills are a direct result of what he learned from Comey.  This is him in a nutshell:

“Effective leaders almost never need to yell. The leader will have created an environment where disappointing him causes his people to be disappointed in themselves.  Guilt and affection are far more powerful motivators than fear.

They love this man, know he loves them, and will work tirelessly not to disappoint him.  People are drawn to this kind of leader, as I draw on all those years ago to Harry Howell, the grocer.  A leader who screams at his employees or belittles them will not attract and retain great talent over the long term.” – James Comey (p. 135)

That is why you should read this book, especially if you are in a leadership role, or want to one day be a leader.  Comey’s leadership points are all the points I value in ethical leadership.

But we can’t talk about Comey without talking about the elephant in the room.

There is a consensus among us that Comey’s handling of Hillary Clinton’s emails was ill handled.  I would not have gone running to Congress or made an announcement that there was a ‘matter.’  He should have waited until the investigation was concluded before saying anything.  Because in the end, they found nothing worth prosecuting her for.

Comey thought about this from every angle (after the fact), including what his colleagues would say.  No surprise, they said those things.  Imagine their surprise when I pointed to the exact passage in Comey’s book where their criticism of his handling of the emails was what he knew they would say about him.

He even thought about what someone else would have ultimately decided if they were in his place (concealing until the investigation was complete).  He chose to speak, rather than to conceal. That is a decision he does not regret making.  The only thing he regrets is that Clinton ever had a laptop to begin with.  He wishes she never did this with her emails.

He presents all of the facts and all of the factors influencing him in this decision and asks if you would have done things differently.  Or would you have done the same thing?

That being said, I do believe that as each and every one of us has a right to speak, you also need to let Comey speak.  He has that same right, too.  After all, he is one of us now…a private citizen.

I attended his first stop on his book tour.  When my guys asked me how it went, they were shocked at my response, because I walked away from the event hurt and sad.  Comey was okay.  He is everything and more than I expected.  It was what happened that night that bothered me.

The Protesters

When I arrived at the Barnes & Noble in Union Square, I saw 30-40 NYPD officers out front.  There were several manning the doors to the store.  At first, I thought there was a bomb threat or a situation going on and I needed to evacuate.  That’s when I saw them.

Sectioned off to the side were two groups of protesters with signs with Trump’s words about Comey on them.  Trumpers.

When I realized that was why all the cops were there, I showed the cop my bracelet and he opened the door for me.  As I made my way upstairs, the escalator leading to the event was blocked off.  People were just standing around looking at security.  So I asked security if the event was full.  She started to say something and I showed her my bracelet.  She waved me through, saying I was okay.

I took my seat in a room packed with people that not only bought the book, but support Comey.  They were there to hear what he had to say, because really he’s not the bad guy.  He is the good guy that Trump decided to make into his enemy.

Comey arrived and described what is in 11 of the 14 chapters of the book (you know, the part the media is not talking about).  When he switched to answering pre-submitted questions, a protester spoke up and started shouting at him.  The rest of the room tried to drown her out so that the microphone and cameras could not pick up what she was saying.

In that moment, I felt complete sadness and disappointment in the human race that our political climate has led us to irrational monsters like this.  I looked at Comey as all of this transpired.  Even though it was like they were throwing shit at his face, he did exactly what his childhood mentor, Harry Howell, would have done.  He turned the other cheek and smiled.

Five minutes or so after the first protester was removed, another stood up holding up some flag about fascism.  What that has to do with Comey, I don’t know.  But as I felt that disappointment and sadness again, I looked to Comey.  Once again, he stood there silent, waiting for the woman to be removed.  He had turned the other cheek and smiled. This is what I call a man with good moral fiber.

As I left at the end of the event, I took the escalators down.  On the next floor, a group of protesters waited.  One woman saw me and pushed people aside and almost climbed onto the escalator.  She started yelling at me and anyone that would listen: “Did he even apologize?”

Of course, I am thinking, “For what?”  But I am not about to take the bait and argue with a woman acting bat shit crazy.  I mean, she was trying to jump onto the side of the escalator to get to me.  I just gave her a complete look of disgust because this is not normal.  This is not how people act.

As I started to leave, a NYPD officer held the door open for me.  I did not even have one foot out the door of Barnes & Noble when a Trumper yelled something so horrible at me, the cop reeled back in disgust.

I think I stopped, realizing something was amiss and turned in the direction the words came from.  The cop quietly said to me, “Just ignore her and walk away.”  I don’t even know what the person said.  I just followed what the officer said because he was trying to protect me.

I crossed the street into Union Square and almost cried.  Why?  Because of how low humanity has become.  I felt disappointed that people act this way.  I was sad for humanity, but even sadder for Comey.  Everyone deserves the right to speak, including him.

That is the purpose of this book.  This is Comey trying to tell you about his life and career and what led him to making all of the decisions he made.

DO NOT, and I mean DO NOT go by what the media is telling you this book is about.  Read it for yourself like I did.  I bought four copies.  I gave one to each of my guys.

And for that Trumper protester that said shit to me…and I know you are the same person who said you were banning Barnes & Noble when I first arrived.  My only response to your ban is: So?  You probably don’t read books anyway.  You should try.  That way you won’t be wasting your time outside of a bookstore yelling at it.

A Surprise For You

So I recorded the audio from the event.  I didn’t get the first few minutes of it, because I wasn’t thinking.  But I did get the majority of it, including the protesters.  When the second protester came by talking about fascism, I covered the microphone on the phone.

While I believe that everyone should have their right to speak, there is a time and a place for it.  If you are shouting something bat shit crazy that the world does not need to know, I am not giving you MY platform to continue your crazy.

So whether you, the reader of this post, think this is unfair, keep in mind that there are certain ideologies that should not be passed around.  Those truths belong to that woman.  I don’t need it and the world does not need it.  She needs it.

This event was about Jim Comey, not her.  You came here to read about Comey, not the ideologies of a deranged woman.  Bearing that in mind, I am sharing with you the audio from the event.

The Review From Someone Who Actually Read the Book

 

“The credibility of the Department of Justice is its bedrock.  The American people must see the administration of justice as independent of politics, race, class, religion, or any of the many other things that divide humans into tribes.”  – James Comey

There are 14 chapters in this book.  Only 3 chapters detail what happened with Trump.  The rest is about Comey’s life and career.  One surefire way to tell if the person of the book review actually read the book is one simple thing…did they find the bombshell Comey drops in the book?  If there is no mention of the bombshell or that it even exists, then guess what?  They didn’t read the book.

Comey even dropped the clue in the audio feed (see above).  I was not that far into the book when he mentioned it, but now that I’ve read the book, I am like…WHOA!  And guess what?  I am not going to tell you what the bombshell is.  You have to, I don’t know, read the book to find out.

I say that to be mean, because I know a lot of the reviews out there are based on people reading the last three chapters of his book.  They skip over the first 11 chapters as if they are not relevant, when they are.  I would call every single one of those book reviews FAKE NEWS.  And each and every single media person that published their reviews as such should be ashamed of themselves.  What happened to ethics and integrity?

Then there are also the plagiarizers.  You know who you are.  Read the book.

What you need to know…

Why You Need To Read the Book

When I first began reading Comey’s book, I did not know what to expect beyond the fact it was about ethics and professionalism (and something in there about Trump).  And truthfully, I am glad I did not know what to expect, because it was a pleasant surprise.  I wanted more and more of what Comey had to say about his life and career.

The Thursday before the book came out, I stood in my work husband’s office as he showed me framed collages of his work at the US Attorney’s Office SDNY taking down notorious criminals, including the mob.  [After prosecutors successfully convict a notorious criminal, someone in the US DOJ compiles all of the newspaper headlines, shrinks them down and puts them into an artful collage to give to the prosecutor.]  So imagine hearing those stories and then opening up Comey’s book and reading about those same stories from another, more in depth perspective.

From the mob stories to being on the edge of your seat as Comey races to save the day against agents from the White House who sought to take advantage of an incapacitated Attorney General to Comey’s discomfort, trying to hide from President Trump, almost to the point of jumping out the window, his book will intrigue you as you beg for even more.  You will laugh, cry, feel heartbroken and proud that this man tried to stand up to do what he believed was right every single time.

More importantly, he tried his best to distance himself from politics so he could focus on the rule of law.  Comey stresses how important it is for the DOJ to be separate from the White House and politics.  They must be independent so that they can protect Americans and the US Constitution.  The FBI does not protect the President.  That’s what the Secret Service is for.  The FBI protects Americans and the Constitution.  It should never belong to any President or political party.  It must be independent.

“We are fortunate some ethical leaders have chosen to serve and to stay at senior levels of government, but they cannot prevent all of the damage from the forest fire that is the Trump presidency.  Their task is to try to contain it.” (p. 275)

When I mailed this book to one of my guys that decided to return to the senior levels of government to be one of the people Comey references above, I noted that everyone gets a little something different out of what they read in books.  For me, it has a lot to do with things happening for a reason.

The part that stuck out to me as the main theme throughout is that he keeps repeating everything happens for a reason.

When he was a teen, the Ramsey Rapist paid a visit to his home.  What happened that nightmarish night would later help him go down a path that would lead him to becoming the FBI Director, putting away criminals like the Ramsey Rapist.

When he was learning the ropes, fresh out of law school, he would watch as AUSAs prosecuted members of the mob.  He would later become an AUSA prosecuting mobsters, to one day becoming the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York.

When they lost their infant son, Collin, to sepsis (a blood infection), his wife tried to find meaning in the loss.  She never wanted what happened to her to happen to another mother.  So she went on a mission to make sure the laws in America changed.  And they did.  Collin Edward Comey’s death is the reason why today, pregnant mothers are tested for the Strep B virus, and the babies are treated with penicillin when they are born.

“But sometimes it isn’t when we face death ourselves, but rather when death takes away those we love the most, that we really learn about just how short our time on earth is and why what we do with that time matters.” (p. 43)

It is in reading these stories from moments in his life that you can see how James Comey shaped his own fate.   When bad things happened, he (and his wife) looked for the silver lining.  They never let those moments deter them or destroy them, instead, they used those experiences to help guide them in their journey to becoming better versions of themselves.

It is in understanding the moments that shaped James Comey that will help you to understand the decisions he made with regards to Hillary Clinton’s emails and Trump.

Can We Trust Comey?

Someone asked me recently if Comey is credible.  I am going to say, “Yes.”

It is not in his character to be the bad guy.  He is not going to lie about the things that matter the most.  Sure, he used to lie about playing basketball in school, but that is only because the lie did not matter.  But the truth is the lie did matter.  He regretted ever lying to begin with.

What tests your moral fiber of whether you are innately good or bad is when you do something bad like bully or lie.  How did you feel afterward?  Did you feel remorse?  Did you hate that feeling in the pit of your stomach that you did something wrong?  Or no?  You felt nothing?

I think at some point, in order to test who we really are, we have to stand on both sides to understand our own moral compass.  Comey talks about the years he was bullied (including the wedgies), and then the time he bullied someone else and regretted it.  He also talks about the lies he told people about playing basketball, and then later regretted.

He uses himself as an example to compare the good/bad moral compass when he describes the bullying and lies coming from Trump.  It is far different and allows you to see this presidency from a different perspective – his own.

You must keep in mind that Comey is a Republican.  He donated to campaigns that ran against President Obama.  But you will see his respect for Obama as a leader and what he learned from him on how to be a more effective leader.

You don’t have to be from the same political party to respect someone as a leader.  When you take the politics out of it, things get done.  You learn more from each other.

Working under Bush and then Obama, Comey learned many things about leadership.  Knowing how a president is supposed to act, taking notes means that something is amiss and not right.  In a way, everything that happened in his life up until that moment, prepared him for what was to come.  It helped him to make the decisions he made, including legally releasing the unclassified memos as a private citizen, and writing this book.

In the End

With Comey’s firing, I wonder how this will shape the next part of his story.  His book sold out within two days.  He sold 2x more (600,000 copies) than Hillary Clinton’s book sold (300,000 copies) in the first week.  That $18 signed first edition copy I got was worth $500 just six days later.

He may never return to government service.  Maybe he’ll continue to write more books, sharing his stories from his mob days or his days as Deputy Attorney General or FBI Director.  Or maybe he’ll continue teaching the world the importance of ethical leadership.

If you want to know what I really think…everyone who cares about what is going on today should read this book.  I enjoyed this book immensely.  When he described the White House encounter with Trump and how he was trying so hard to hide, I laughed hysterically.  I cried when he described the note his mother kept in her drawer.  My heart broke when they lost Collin.  I sat on the edge of my seat as they sped down Pennsylvania Avenue to get to the Attorney General.  And my head shook at the evil words Trump delivered to Andrew McCabe.

I want to leave with this quote from his book that goes perfectly with what Perfectionist Wannabe is about.  This is an example of what one of my guys learned from Comey about leadership.  He passed these qualities along to me and it helped shape me into who I am today.

“LeBron James…he is never satisfied he is good enough.  I have read that he spends every off-season working on some part of his game to improve it.  At first glance, that seems crazy; he’s already better than everybody else.  But it makes complete sense when you consider his perspective: he isn’t measuring himself against the other players; he is measuring himself against himself.  The best leaders don’t care much about “benchmarking,” comparing their organization to others.  They know theirs is not good enough, and constantly push to get better.” (p. 135)

 

Love Yourself: What to Read When Your Heart is Broken

Whoever thought I could get hit with a broken heart?  I started off this year all gung ho about my new mission this year: TO LOVE MYSELF.  The first eleven days were fantastic.  I focused on my health, my mind, my body and just doing the things that would bring me joy.  I reminded myself with each change I was making: you are doing this because you love yourself.

Then I got hit with a massive snowball that knocked me flat on my ass in the middle of the snowy dirty sludge of a New York City gutter.  Ok…maybe it wasn’t that bad.  But the fact remained, someone had broken my heart.  And it took me three months to realize that.

First of all, I was being forced to say goodbye to someone I did not want to say goodbye to.  Well, I say forced because that is what it felt like.

We were not in any kind of romantic relationship, but we had a very special bond that people always spoke about.  Everyone said they had never before seen the kind of relationship like we had.  We worked very well together as a team.  He changed me for the better.  Most of all, he inspired and challenged me to be better than I am.

He tapped into that part of me that strives to be better (i.e. the tagline for this site), gave me the tools I needed and guided me to becoming a better version of myself.  This is the only person I’ve met in this lifetime that has done that for me.  He is my perfectionist guru and because of that, I think the world of him.



Unfortunately, all great things have to come to an end.  As we were saying our final goodbyes, he said something to me…a lie.  And for anyone that knows me, they know that they should never lie to me, because the entire truth will come forward.  I will see the truth.

The lie was a little lie.  Nothing bad.  He must have heard my boss say this, because we have this type of relationship he was describing.  I did not have this type of relationship with him.  He tried to use an example and that’s when I saw the truth.  His heart was finishing the story.  I realized he was in love with me.  Then I saw how the universe had been conspiring for the past few months.  I looked at him and asked myself: now that I know how he feels, how do I feel?  I realized I felt the same way.

And just like that, he broke my heart.  You see, he was leaving that day.  Never coming back.  I was left devastated.


Come the next business morning, I had a meeting with my boss.  We got coffee and beignets, sat down and talked about what happened.  He wanted to get to the root of why I was so devastated.  I had absolutely no idea why I felt this way.  So many people come and go in my life.  Why was this one so different?  I mean, I was really messed up!

Sitting there talking to him about this, it seemed like we were in couple’s therapy, trying to improve on our relationship.  We talked about why I was so devastated, but I did not actually tell him what happened.  You will not believe what he did next.

He picked up the pieces of my shattered existence and started putting me back together by inserting himself in the place where the other person had left a hole in my life.  For that, I am lucky I have him.  He is the first person I’ve ever met that refused to let me go through this alone.  We became closer because of it.

Three months later, I realize what happened that day…my heart was broken.  And I was not okay with that.  How can someone just open up the door to my heart, pull on my heart strings and walk right out?  I mean, what did I do to him for him to be so cruel?

I meditated about this and asked God to help me get back to the person I was before this happened.  Help me to heal this broken heart and get me back on track to my goals I planned for myself.

The next day, he let me know that this devastation was about a broken heart.  So while I was perusing the upcoming book release database, I noticed a new release called “How to Fix a Broken Heart” by Guy Winch.  And surprise, surprise, the psychologist works in Manhattan!

When I bought the book, another book popped up in the recommendations called, “This is Me Letting You Go” by Heidi Priebe.  I bought it immediately, because that is exactly what I needed to be able to say.

I binged the books over the weekend and here is what I learned.

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How to Fix a Broken Heart

You may know that feeling when someone leaves that you need to keep in contact with them somehow.  You text, call, email…anything for some recognition from them that they are not completely gone.  Guess what, kiddies?  That is an addiction.  You are going through withdrawal.

While none of the cases mentioned in this book had anything to do with what I was going through, it still explained some of the psychological patterns people experience when they go through a loss.

Here are some points I took from the book:

  • To heal from a broken heart we have to first stop making things worse.
  • What makes letting go so challenging is that we need to let go of far more than mere emotional pain – we need to let go of hope, of the fantasy in which we undo what went wrong, of the psychological presence the person or pet has in our daily thoughts, and thus, in our lives.  We need to truly say goodbye – to turn away from love, even when there is no longer a person or animal there to receive it.  And we need to let go of a part of ourselves, of the person we were when our love still mattered.
  • Numerous studies have found that recovering our sense of self and getting in touch with our core is a crucial variable in our ability to heal from heartbreak.
  • Recovering from heartbreak always starts with a decision, a determination to move on when our mind is fighting to keep us stuck.  The battle ahead requires courage and determination but also knowledge and awareness:
    • We have to fight the addictive tendency to keep those whom we have lost in our lives, whether via memories or reminders.
    • We have to rebuild our self-esteem by practicing self-compassion.
    • We have to recognize the voids that have been created in our lives and take steps to fill them.
    • We have to reconnect to our core so we can get back in touch with the essence of what makes us who we are.
  • Our heart might be broken but we do not have to break with it.

Especially relevant is mention of an interesting study of how devastating a broken heart can be to a person.  They concluded that the pain from a broken heart is just as intense as subjecting your body to extreme pain (10 on a scale of 10).  So that pain you feel in your heart is the equivalent of your body feeling like you are in extreme, excruciating pain.  Interesting study, to say the least.

After I read this book, I felt that I was probably one step closer to healing.  Maybe I was ready to move on towards letting go.



This is Me Letting You Go

Based on the title, you would think this book is about telling someone to fuck off, because you are letting them go.  I am sorry to say…nope.  This is the perfect book to read to get you back to who you are, to really, truly heal.

This book is a collection of short essays the author wrote to help her get over the various degrees of letting go.  The most important lesson to learn in all of this is to learn to continue loving that person even though they are no longer in your life.  You were loved and you loved them in return.  It is a wonderful feeling, but you also have to learn to let them go when it is time.

People are in our lives for a reason.  They can be here for a short time or they can be here for the rest of your life.  You don’t know how much time you have with someone, but when the time comes to let them go, you need to let them go.  But let them go with love.

Here are some of the wonderful points I got from this book.  Not everything is just about healing.  Some of the words are just beautiful and loving, including learning to love yourself.

  • To love without expectation, you learn to appreciate what’s there. Other people are not ours to own or rearrange or expect things from and the more anticipation we pit onto others, the more we let ourselves down in the end.  All we can do is appreciate who we have when we have them, and let them go when we do not.  To lend our hearts like vacant hotel rooms: celebrating others when they come in and letting them go when they leave.  Understanding that at the end of the day, all we can do is refuse occupancy.  But we cannot force anyone to stay.
  • To love without expectation you have to be okay with yourself.  Okay with opening your doors, spreading your arms, baring your heart and understanding that not everyone is going to be gentle with it.  You have to know that you can recover from those aches, that you can heal your own wounds, that you can trust yourself to walk away from the situations that do not grow or aid you.
  • Need for others to accept you, to validate you, to tell you that you’re good and worthwhile and strong.  And if you can do that for yourself – if you can live up to your own expectations and desires, then the need for other people to do so disappears.
  • Take a chance on me.  Because the timing’s always going to be wrong and the stars are never going to align but I would break every clock in this city and I’d shut every star down from shining if it meant that for one afternoon we could cast all that aside and give in.
  • Take a chance on me – because tomorrow the Universe could collapse in on itself and this city could disintegrate to ashes and the sun could burst into a thousand disjointed rays and goddammit if I am going to die never knowing what it feels like to have your lips on mine.
  • I have been promised too many forevers to have much faith in them anymore so instead I’d like to offer you right now.
  • Through every twist and bump in the road that threatens to tear us apart I will choose you with the ferocious certainty I’ve felt since the fist time I ever laid eyes on you.  I’m not worried about falling out of love with you baby, because I never fell in.  Loving you was a waking, conscious choice and it’s one that I’m going to keep making until the day my heart stops beating.
  • You have to show up to your new life, your new world and your new way of doing things, no matter how painful and raw it all feels.  You have [to] face forward toward the future you hadn’t planned for and the life you didn’t know that you would lead.  You have to stop showing up to the land of used-to-be’s and could-be-stills and show up to this world.  The one where it hurts.  The one that’s unfair.  The world that is here, because it’s the only one you have left.
  • To learn from people you’ve lost and to embrace the people that you have left.  To embrace the life you have left.
  • And maybe this is the Universe where I learn to not need you anymore.
  • We want to capture it and hold it between our palms forever – not realizing that we have to let it go for it to mean anything at all.
  • Maybe anyone worth loving is worth loving inconclusively…to allow yourself to love someone with everything you’ve got – and then to fully and completely let them go.
  • This is me knowing that we’re going to grow old.  That your life is going to be huge and important and chockfull of love but that it’s all going to transpire without me.
  • I want you to take whatever crooked, twisted path you need to take if it will lead you towards your dreams.  This is me letting you go.



What I Learned

In the second book, “This is Me Letting You Go,” I noticed that there is more than just one love being talked about that I did not consider before.  There is the love from the people around me, helping me get through this.  My friends express their love in their own ways.

Especially my boss, doing something like picking up the pieces from my shattered existence and trying to put me back together again, that is love.  All I wanted to do was yell at him and tell him to leave it.  Let me sweep it up and throw it in the trash.  Except, he would not let me do that.  He picked the pieces up for me and tried to be the person I needed after suffering this loss.  What boss does that?  Most would just tell you to get your shit together.

This one, though, I think he knew what he was dealing with before I even knew.  For that, I am thankful I have such a wonderful person in my life.  That is love.  [I also realize he may read this…just know, I appreciate what you’ve done for me.]

You see, love is not always just romantic love that leads to intimate relationships.  Sometimes it is the love of family, friends, bosses, even complete strangers.  They are all part of the process of helping you to heal.  I am thankful that the Universe has been conspiring all throughout to help me get through this.

Go With Love

As mad as I am that he left the way he did and could not leave like a normal person, I realize maybe I really did need to know I was loved.  And I needed to confront the truth that maybe I loved what he did for me in my life.  He made me into a better person during the short time he was in my life.  Even though I live by the motto that when you find someone that inspires you to be greater than you are, you never let them go.  This time, though, I had no choice but to let him go.

I need to let him go with love.  My life was amazing with him in it, but sometimes you have to let guys like him go so he can go change the world.  You cannot keep him forever.  The world is calling for guys like him to help change our world.  He has a bigger fight to fight.

Right.  Did I mention he is perfect?  Yeah…he is one of those guys out fighting the good fight.  I’m not joking when I say that.  He really is.  That is why he left.  And I am proud of him.  I just kind of wish he left without pulling my heart strings on his way out the door.

These two books helped me to let him go.  The point where my broken heart healed is when I realized I needed to let him go with love.  Letting someone go is never easy, because it creates a finality of the moment.  Sometimes when the moment is so amazing, you don’t want it to end.  That was the case with me.

Letting go with love means that you don’t stop loving them.  You just let them go so they can chase after their dreams.  You can’t stifle someone’s journey in life.  Wish them the best and give yourself fully while they are in your life.  There will always be a part of them you carry inside your heart; and there will always be a part of you that they carry within themselves.  Let that be the love that is carried along in your separate journeys in life.

That is how you let go.



Currently Reading the Latest from Shadow Mountain

On Tuesday, Shadow Mountain released two new books “Wizard for Hire” and “The Other Side of the Bridge.”  One book is for the kids, the other is for those searching for answers when you feel like you have nothing left.

Wizard for Hire

This new YA book from Obert Skye is very different from most YA books I’ve read these past 20 years.  Most books have this fantastic, magical journey that is jam packed with action from start to finish.  This book, on the other hand, has the adventure, but it also has the emotion of loss and loneliness throughout the entire book.

While I usually do a short description of what happened in the book, this time I am going to share only my thoughts.

The title leads one to believe that this book is about magic, I believe it is more about facing reality.  While it seems unbelievable that a child could go seven years without human contact, caring only for themselves, could it indeed happen?

When we take stories like Harry Potter into account, we see children diving into the world of magic without parents, but truthfully there are always adults around.  A teacher, parent or guardian is nearby willing to help the kids.  In this story, there are no adults for seven years.  Just a seven year old boy who is on his own with no electricity, a cellar full of food and everything he could possibly need to survive on his own.

When Ozzy is introduced to his new non-human friend, a talking mechanical bird with a sentient mind, the story starts to push Ozzy outside of his comfort zone and into the world.  It is in the world where synchronistic moments begin to happen, from meeting his first human to asking a wizard to help him.

I never could quite figure out if Rin was a real wizard or not.  Maybe there was some magic, but this is the real world.  Does magic even exist?  That is the question that is posed throughout the book.  While there are no wizarding schools like Hogwarts in our world today, could magic still exist?

The answers Ozzy is looking for do not turn out well.  He discovers truths that could cost him his life.  His faith and trust in new friendships, and even in a little bit of magic is what saves him.

This YA book is not like any other YA novel I’ve read in the last 2 decades.  In other YA books, you don’t question whether you believe in magic.  You just do, because books are designed to transport you to new places of wonder, where you can escape reality.  Skye instead transports you to reality and makes you ask yourself if magic is real in our world.

The answer to that question is in this book.  I know it makes me look at the world very differently now.

The Other Side of the Bridge

This emotionally gripping book is a must read this year.  And I mean, you need to read this.  This story intertwines the lives of two people that have one thing in common: the Golden Gate Bridge.  They live on two separate sides of America.  One is a researcher, the other is a NYC executive.

Dave Riley loses everything in one instant.  He loses his wife and kids, leaving him to struggle with what comes next.  Everything in his life comes to an abrupt stop.  He has no idea what he is supposed to do next.

His entire life loses all meaning, because everything was taken away from him.  But something inside of him is pushing him to move forward and to find new meaning.

Before his 40th birthday, he tells his wife about his dream to ride a Harley across the Golden Gate Bridge.  While she teases him about this silly dream and how he feels like he can find whatever answer he is looking for when he crosses the other side of the bridge, she still supports him.  She finds the perfect Harley leather jacket for him right before his birthday.

Months after she is gone, he finds the jacket.  It is as if this is a sign.  When his marketing research firm receives a request from a motorcycle company to help their ad agency with their next marketing campaign, Dave knows this is a sign and works towards getting his life back together to be trusted enough to take on the account.

He heads to the nearest bike shop and starts his research.  As a result, his research lands him on a bike.  That bike leads to riding lessons.  Then, he goes on his first ride.  Until finally, he decides to just jump on the bike, not care one bit about his job or anything he will be leaving behind, and just rides to the bridge.

Meanwhile, Katie, the researcher, discovers a journal her father kept hidden.  He used to work on the bridge, talking people down from jumping off the bridge, saving so many lives.

She discovers this journal belongs to one of the original steelworkers that worked on the bridge.  Her father was trying to find the family to return the journal to them.  So she decides to continue the search for him.  This is her way of finding her own closure with her own father’s passing.

Meanwhile, Dave’s ride to the bridge reminds us that sometimes finding the answers we seek are found along the journey, not at the destination.  What we think we will find does not necessarily turn out the way we hope.  Sometimes what we find will make us turn right back around and choose a completely new path in life, one we did not know existed.

For Dave, halfway to his destination, the perfect solution appeared.

This is the part of the book that really hit home with me.  When Dave’s bike runs into some problems, it is as if the universe is forcing him to stop for a moment so that he can find what he is truly looking for.  But people do not always notice when the answers in life are presenting themselves.  You are just there in the moment, experiencing something you did not know you had in you.  And then you run, thinking this is not what you need.

As a result, Crystal watched Dave leave and it shattered her.  The universe threw them together for some strange reason for a short amount of time, and it was exactly what they both needed.

Dave tells her this is not the right time and leaves.  As a result, she is left devastated.  This is like having someone open up the door to your heart, pull on your heart strings and walk right out the door.  You have no idea if they are coming back or not.  As a result, you are left devastated, because who are you to stop someone from finding the answers to the questions they are asking.  Maybe they will realize the answer lies with you.

Dave continues on his journey, eventually making it to the bridge.  Did he find his answers?  Did something magical happen there like he hoped?  What about the researcher?  Did she find the person she was looking for?  What brings Dave and Katie’s story together?

You’ll need to read the book to find out.

For me, I needed to keep reading Dave’s story, because I needed to know if he would be able to find his answers.  Maybe, in a way, I wondered if I would find the answer I was looking for in this story.

For those looking for answers in this journey in life, Dave’s story is one to read, because it will inspire you.  Maybe it will even give you that feeling that you need to go on a trip to find your own answers.

When I read the author’s notes afterward, I appreciated the story more.  Sometimes the stories that touch your heart are the ones that need to be shared.  This story was based on a similar real story the author heard when he was a young man.

In conclusion, there are times you need to find your own answers and just leave everything behind and keep on riding until you reach your destination.  Consequently, you may not find the answers at your destination, but along the way, you will discover yourself.

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[Disclosure: I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a review.  This post contains affiliate links, which means that this site may receive a commission from Amazon if you make a purchase through their site.]

Book Review: The Abundance Project

Have you ever felt stuck?  No matter what you do, you can’t get back to attracting the good things in life to you.  You feel disconnected from God/the Universe/the Source.  You don’t feel like yourself.

That was me.  Since my surgery in 2013 to remove a tumor in my parathyroid gland, I felt stuck.  I lost a sense of myself. Meditations were difficult.  I did not know what was wrong with me.  My entire existence felt like it was on pause.  I could not move forward, because I was stuck.

I came across “The Abundance Project” by Derek Rydall recently and his book helped me untangle the water hose of my mind.  Rydall uses that term to describe how things can become so twisted up in our connection to God/the Universe/the Source. Water hoses gets tangled up, making it difficult for water to flow easily.  You have to undo all of the kinks in the hose so that the water can flow freely and with great force.   Like the water hose, we have to untangle our connection to the source so that abundance can flow freely.

In this book, he gives you a step-by-step guide on how you can untangle the hose so the water can flow.  This is about focusing on tapping into the Source that is within you to generate an abundance of wealth in all aspects of your life.  It’s not just about money.  This is also about love, happiness, friendships, family, and so much more.

The key element in awakening abundance lies in the seven variations of giving.  “Whatever’s missing is what we’re not giving,” is a repetitive theme throughout the book.  This concept serves as a mirror to our own being.  Are we giving what we would like to create more abundance of?  Can we stretch our limits and give more?

When I first read the reviews for this book, many people kept referencing “The Secret.”  That is the incorrect way to describe this book, because “The Secret” only touches lightly on these principles.  It does not dive into the true essence of how “The Secret” works.  It is this quote that makes this book stand out from “The Secret”:

Life isn’t holding anything back from us; we are holding ourselves back from life, because we’ve been hypnotized into believing we have to be more, feel more, and believe more before we can ask, seek, knock and act from our highest vision.

With books that talk about the Law of Attraction, the whole concept is to believe in what you want and to put positive thoughts into the universe so that what you put out there comes right back to you (aka karma).  What Rydall does goes much deeper, straight to the source which is within all of us.  He tells us how to do this correctly.  It’s not just about thinking pretty all of the time.

In other words, abundance is within us, we just have to go within to bring forth what is already within us.

This book is very lengthy and filled with so much information.  If you stick with it to the end, you will be able to unravel the garden hose so that it will allow the abundance to flow at full strength.  He uses many quotes from the Bible throughout the book, but this is not a book aimed only towards Christians.  It is for everybody that wants to learn how to bring forth great wealth and abundance in their lives.

For me, he helped me work through the twists and turns to help me reconnect with my inner source.  He helped me realize that it’s okay to ask for the impossible, if that is what I truly want.  “Ask and it will be given to you.”

I was able to create a plan, just like I did when I first started out on my journey to creating abundance 10 years ago.  When I was sidetracked with the tumor, I lost sight of who I was.  Rydall helped me reconnect to my being.

One quote that stood out to me the most was this: “An amateur makes excuses for why they can’t; a pro gets the job done.”  I am one of the biggest procrastinators and saboteurs in my life.  I wrote down this quote as a reminder that I am a pro.  Only an amateur keeps making excuses, so stop it!

This book comes out tomorrow (February 20, 2018).

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[All quotes in this post are subject to change in the finished publication.  I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher.  This post contains affiliate links, which means this site may receive a commission on the sale of the products listed in this post.]

Books to Read During Black History Month

It is Black History Month.  This past year, I had the pleasure of being introduced to some great authors and stories that really hit home and I enjoyed immensely.  If you are looking for something to read this month, I recommend these books.

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Jesmyn Ward

I was introduced to Jesmyn Ward’s work a few years ago when “Salvage the Bones” came out.  It was so beautifully written, it was such a breath of fresh air to know there are still writers out there that value well written words and character development.  She masterfully tells stories of people from the South, where she immerses you in the unique dialects of the characters, while describing conditions of extreme poverty in America.  Her stories are haunting, which means they will stick with you.  You will never forget her protagonists, because she makes you feel deeply for them.

Ward is essentially a modern day Great American Writer, telling the stories of the forgotten people of America by giving them life on the pages of her books.  She has won many awards for her works.

Three reasons why it is important to read Ward’s works now: 1) to understand the human conditions of those left forgotten in America, the ones who have no voice, 2) you are witnessing brilliance in real time of a living Great American Author, and 3) her works will one day be the classics people will be reading centuries from now.

Jason Reynolds

One of my favorite YA authors right now is Jason Reynolds.  When I saw him at the Book Expo, he looked like this super cool dude everyone wants to be friends with.  When he spoke about his childhood sitting under the pecan tree, we got a glimpse into the man behind the stories and why they exist.

You see, Reynolds is writing the stories he wished he had when he was growing up.  When I read “Miles Morales,” I was blown away by the life lessons he was teaching.  While Miles is a story about a superhero, Reynolds teaches that you can be a hero in your own neighborhood.  You don’t need super powers to be a hero.  [Read the PW review]

Long Way Down moved me with Reynolds’s elegance and power of words.  So few words were used, but so many things were being said.  It was so well done.

Even if you do not read YA, consider picking up Reynolds’s books.  He will blow your mind.

Moonless, Starless Sky

While this book is about extremism in Africa, it is written by a staff writer from the New Yorker.  The reporting and writing of this story was done so well, I closed the book when I finished and said, “That’s the way journalism should be.”

Alexis Okeowo is a first generation American that covered the stories of people in Africa fighting extremism.  The irony though is that these stories are very reminiscent of what we are seeing in America.  In a way, it will inspire you to fight against the extremism that is rising in America today.

I want you to pick up this book because I want to make sure you read Alexis’s work.  In this day and age of mediocrity and fake media, it is a breath of fresh air to encounter a journalist that steps up their game and rises above it all.  This is journalism at its best.

Stay With Me

Stay With Me is considered to be one of the most important books you need to read this year.  While there’s nothing quite American about this book, there is something to be said about a 30 year old that can write such a powerful novel like this.

Ayobami Adebayo is Nigerian.  In her debut novel, she brings us into the world of Nigeria and the struggles women and couples go through.  In this story, we follow a couple with fertility issues.  When Yejide fails to produce a child, her in-laws and the village forces her husband to take a second wife.

The way outsiders can come in and dictate to a couple how their marriage should be shows not only the error in judging, but also the error of not acknowledging that what happens between a married couple is sacred.  For Yejide and Akin, they hold a much deeper secret that no one outside of their marriage should know.  Letting someone know their secret can destroy their marriage.

I recommend this book because it helps us look outside of ourselves and the American life to see a different world when it comes to marriage and motherhood.  A powerful, remarkable book from a fresh, new voice.

For the Kids

Every MLK, Jr. Day, the sales for Brad Meltzer’s book “I Am Martin Luther King, Jr.” skyrockets.  His series for children, “Ordinary People Change the World,” is such an amazing take on the lives of the most influential people in human history.

I started off with “I Am Rosa Parks” and it shook my heart and soul.  To see her story from the aspect of a child, it made me see just how real these icons are.  They are just like you.  They are just like me.  They are ordinary people that decided one day to make a stand (or stay seated in this case), and it changed the course of history.

There is nothing remarkable about any of these people.  There was nothing that made them stand out from anyone else.  Then one day, when they were faced with adversity, they made a decision, and made the world into a better place because of that decision.

These books are designed for children to understand that people like Rosa Parks, Harriet Tubman, and Martin Luther King, Jr. were just like them.  They were kids once.  They faced hardships and adversity.  Then one day, they decided to change the way their story was being told.  They decided to make a stand.

Meltzer designed these stories to inspire the next generation of heroes.  Get your hands on these books.  Every single one of them.  Your kids will benefit from them, so will you.  It doesn’t matter what your age is, you can learn something from these books.  It will touch your soul and inspire you to be greater than you already are.

What to Read When You Want to Learn How to Be French

When you think of French literature, one book that comes to mind is the famous children’s classic, The Little Prince(or Le Petit Prince) by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry.  What most people do not know is that this classic was written and first published in New York City.

The Morgan Library and Museum in NYC recently had an exhibition showcasing the American side of the story. The story’s origins and how the exhibition came to be…that is a bit of a remarkable story.

As he prepared to leave the city to rejoin the war effort as a reconnaissance pilot, Saint-Exupéry appeared at his friend Silvia Hamilton’s door wearing his military uniform. “I’d like to give you something splendid,” he said, “but this is all I have.” He tossed a rumpled paper bag onto her entryway table. Inside were the manuscript and drawings for The Little Prince, which the Morgan acquired from her in 1968.

I loved this part of their description of the story:

his beloved story that reminds us that what matters most can only be seen with the heart.

Sorbonne (c) 2011 Michelle Kenneth
Sorbonne (c) 2011 Michelle Kenneth

When I was in Paris a few years ago, I spent some time on the Left Bank (Rive Gauche) perusing titles in bookstores, especially around Sorbonne.  Beyond picking up a few Moliére and other French classics, my mission was to find Le Petit Prince, which I found in a ‘newer’ bookstore (like Barnes & Noble).

I wanted to read the book the way it was meant to be read: in French.  Luckily, you don’t have to buy the book if you want to read it in French.  It’s available via PDF online.

After I finish Donna Tartt’s “The Goldfinch,” I’ll be opening up my copy of Le Petit Prince to enjoy all over again.



Blogs to Read

I have a few favorite bloggers that cover the topic of France and the French lifestyle.

1. Paris in Four Months: This Swedish lady, Carin, spent four months in Paris to learn the language before returning back home to Stockholm.  She began to miss Paris so she moved there in 2013 and started a brand new adventure.  Through her photo blog, I came to fall in love with the way she saw beauty.  She shares that beauty in her photos.  They’re all so beautiful.  One of her subjects (or models) has her own blog: Gary Pepper.  If you want to fall in love with beauty…follow both of these blogs.  It’s a little bit of breathtaking beauty every single day. [Fashion/Lifestyle/Photography]

2. French Country Cottage: The key to a fabulous blog all lies within the pictures.  It’s like looking in a magazine.  That’s what you’ll find here at the French Country Cottage.  I also follow her on Twitter because there are pointers and photos and conversations going on that for those who love home decor and beautiful home decor, will be genuinely pleased with what she offers.  [Home/Entertaining]

3. French Revolution: Born and raised in New York with a French mom (who loves food and to cook) and a father who has a love for great food?  I give you French Revolution.  Highly recommended for those who love a good story to go along with a recipe.  She loves her food, so that means she loves good food.  A must follow. [Food]

4.  Oh So French: What is it about the French lifestyle that makes us feel so glamorous? Whatever that je ne sais quoi is, you, too can live it up like the French with me this month.  Oh So French shows you how. [Lifestyle]

5. Jen Reviews: At Jen Reviews, Jen has come up with 15 classic essential French dishes that everyone should learn how to master.  She takes you through all 15 recipes from Bouillabaisse to ratatouille and the Croque-Monsieur (my favorite).  If you want to challenge yourself in the kitchen and learn how to cook French food, this is an excellent place to start. [Lifestyle, Food, Health, Travel]



French Literature

How many classical French literature books have you read in your lifetime?  As I was perusing the Goodreads.com list, I noticed I not only have read a lot of them, but I own the majority of them.  That’s a lot.  Considering I don’t feel like I’ve read a lot of classical literature books, it ends up the majority of the classical literature I gravitated towards were all French.

Here are some of my favorites I highly recommend:

The Stranger (Albert Camus)
Madame Bovary (Gustave Flaubert) [Note: this book is steamy]
Les Misérables (Victor Hugo) [I love this story]
Tartuffe (Moliére) [Everyone needs to read Moliére. This was the first play I ever read from him]
Candide (Voltaire) [I don’t even know why I liked this book, but I remember reading it one summer while I was in college and felt wiser because I had.]

For those wanting a bit of French culture and great literature, I highly recommend The Paris Wife (Random House Reader’s Circle Deluxe Reading Group Edition): A Novel.  This is the story of Ernest Hemingway and his first wife.  I read this book before I went to Paris last time.  I ended up going around Paris trying to see the city through the eyes of Hemingway.  A literary adventure is always the best adventure to take while traveling.  My favorite moment was walking into Shakespeare & Company (the place where Hemingway ordered all of his English/American books) to see photos of Hemingway and his son as soon as you walk in.  To think that Hemingway once stood in this store, perusing titles, talking to the owners…you can’t help but feel more connected to him.  As a writer, it’s chicken soup for our souls.  A definite MUST READ.

What are some of your favorite French reads?



Extra

When I’m in Paris, I always spend time in bookstores looking for French books and classics.  One author I am constantly looking for is Goethe…the man who made Faust what it is today.  Goethe is a German writer, but his works have been transcribed into French. I am always looking for any version of his work in French, but as close to the original date of first publication.  I was fortunate to find a piece from the 1800s the last time I was in Paris.

When I returned to the US, I happened upon an antiques street festival and came across the original Goethe works in German.  The binding had to be replaced, but the inside was pristine.  I snatched up every single book, took it to the register and they said $5.

So I walked away a happy customer, because I had finally found the books I had spent countless hours looking for while I was in Europe.  One woman realized what I had and chased me down the street trying to purchase them off of me.  I looked at her funny and walked away.  When you’ve spent years looking for something and you finally find it, there’s no way you’re going to ever give it up.

xxoo,

Michelle

Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow is the Next Harry Potter

I was growing tired of reading about everyone’s problems.  It got to the point where book after book I reviewed were about people with very deep issues.  I needed a break from these real life stories, so I went through my stack of October releases and pulled out a very special book from the pile, “Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow” by Jessica Townsend.

I flipped to the first page where the publisher wrote a special note about this publication.  In the letter to the reader, she pens that when she received this title, it was right after the election.  Everywhere she went, she could not escape the political conversations that took over our popular culture.  Frankly, she was exhausted of it.

This book hit her desk and something magical happened.  It provided her with a world to which she could escape to.  “And what a delicious escape it was,” she said.

After reading her words, I hoped it would provide me with that same escape as I turned the pages of Townsend’s book.  She wasn’t lying.

Thoughts

First of all, I cannot wait until the next book.  I hate that I ever had to put this story down or that this story came to an end.

I keep this book out on my console table.  Every single time I look at the cover, I think of how this was such a wonderful story.  I remember how it made me feel…wonderful.

Out of all of the amazing books I read this year, this book quickly went to the top as my favorite read of the year.  It is #1 on my list this year, and I read a lot this year.  This tale marks #49 for me in 2017.  [You can see all of the books I read this year in the PW book club.]

Throughout the book, I tried to guess the ending.  I thought maybe I had everything figured out until the last 30 pages.  In the end, I discovered I really had no idea what was so special about Morrigan Crow.

Most noteworthy, Townsend kept that secret until the end.  As a result of the way she ended the book, I went a little crazy when I realized there is currently no second book.

I felt like I needed that next book, just like I needed all seven books of Harry Potter just to see how it would all end.  All throughout the book I wondered if Morrigan was really a cursed child.  Is she the girl that everyone told her she was?  Or is there something special about her?  What is her knack?

Separation Anxiety

This story will make you despise each time you have to put the book down because the world is still revolving.  You will cringe each time you have to step out of Nevermoor and back into our universe.  As a result of turning that last page, you will feel a slight madness, because the most marvelous story in our world has momentarily come to an end.

You will feel sad and feel a slight withdrawal.  Hence, you will need to go cold turkey from one of the best highs you’ve ever had.  This is probably something only bibliophiles go through each time they must walk away from an incredible story.

Do you understand now why this book became my favorite read of the year?  I felt all of those emotions.

I was in a space where I felt safe from other people’s problems.  Nor did I have to hear about the apocalypse day in and day out.  I could live in Nevermoor with Morrigan and Jupiter North like an illegal alien hiding away in a magical hotel with a ginormous cat that can talk, a vampire dwarf (or was it dwarf vampire?), an opera singer, and an adventurer.  I could run around with Morrigan and her dragon riding friend as they prepared for their trials.

To have it all come to a crashing end…I need more.

Seems like the main problem for me right now is that the book is not released yet.  It comes out on Halloween (or Hallowmas) 2017.  That means I have to wait for any follow up book for God knows how long.  So now I must continue my search for the next great read until Townsend’s next book.  I think for 2017, it will be very hard to match Nevermoor.

Similarities

Nevermoor is similar to Harry Potter in many ways.  First of all, this is not a story about witchcraft.  Magic?  Yes, but rather in a special magical place we, as children, wish to escape to when the world becomes difficult.

When you feel alone and like no one cares about you or loves you, this book allows you to see the world through a different microscope.  Rather than believing you have no one who believes in you, you find the exact opposite.  There are people across this universe who are reaching out to you to let you know that you are not alone.  They are there trying to help us.

When we are trying to discover who we are in the grand scheme of things, sometimes it is not our talents (or knacks) we should be so focused upon.  Maybe we should be focused on our gifts and becoming the person we know we are inside.

That is the whole purpose of books like Harry Potter and Nevermoor.  They teach us that we are never alone, no matter how scary things get.

This book is set to be released on October 31, 2017.  Pre-order it immediately.  You will not regret diving into this book.

[Disclosure: I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a review.  This post contains affiliate links.  If you click on one of the links, I may receive a commission.]