Miss Julia is just getting over the shock of her banker husband's death, who left her surprisingly wealthy, when a woman shows up with a little boy who belongs to Miss Julia's husband. She leaving the boy with Miss Julia so she can go to North Carolina to become a beautician to support herself and her son. Now Miss Julia is saddled with a skinny 9 year-old boy. While she resents the boy, she still feels sorry for the innocent little thing.

Living in small-town southern USA, she can't escape the nosiness of her neighbors and especially her Presbyterian pastor who chides her for taking in an "orphan." When the boy's uncle comes to claim him, offering to return him to his mother, Miss Julia gladly turns him over to the uncle. After her house is ransacked and learning a bit more about the uncle, Miss Julia comes to regret her decision to let the boy go.

Although Miss Julia is rather naïve, she has plenty of grit. Unfortunately, Miss Julia has had decisions made for her all her life. She was taught from youth that her husband and the Pastor always knows best, even so far as being a submissive wife to a philandering husband. Miss Julia is beginning to see the hypocrisy that has surrounded her whole life. Though coming to this revelation, and desiring to live in her new-found freedom with the death of her more-than-frugal husband, at times it is difficult for her to always be able let go of the old paradigms and to see what's going on. When the pastor ambushes her with a Doctor of Psychology who makes a play for her, then blames her for being vulnerable to his advances, Miss Julia reverts to her fears of what will people think. They have played on these fears, threatening to tell all unless she lets them be appointed her guardian - all to get her money. However, there are twists and turns at the end.

This is an amusing and fast read.

American Dirt

 by Jeanine Cummins

I normally read the jacket covers before reading a book, just to get an idea of what the book is about. I didn't on this one, and I am so glad I made that choice. I was hooked from the first page forward. I loved reading of Lydia's bookstore; the bathroom scene at home was gripping. When Lydia realized she needed to take her son, Luca, and disappear, every scene was well thought out, and I found relying on gut instinct amazing, and learning the ways of migrants along her journey helped in making her choices.

I will be the first to admit that I have always felt that illegals entering the States is not right, but I was forced to admit that sometimes there is no other way. I never saw that coming.

Lydia and Luca's trek is filled with danger as they jump onto and from the tops of trains, along with encountering people they run into and away from throughout their trip. Lydia finds that everyone is not who they say they are, making it difficult to know just who to trust making choices from the best of bad.

I cannot imagine living in a third-world country that is filled with corruption on every level. I cannot imagine the danger that even middle-class people encounter on an every-day basis.

I consider this book life-changing, mind-blowing and a must-read.

 

The Ghost

by Danielle Steel

I would have given this at least four stars, but it was difficult to get past that it was so poorly written. I have read a few of Danielle Steel's books, but had never noticed the repetitiveness, nor the editing being this poor.

I'm not normally into love stories, but I did like the story line of three fragile people who had been hurt by previous spouses and that they met new people. I could definitely understand the fascination with the diaries written by the "ghost." I was kind of hoping that the owner of the bed and breakfast was at least the great- or great-great-granddaughter of the ghost. Her character could have been more highly developed.

A concept that could have been five stars, unfortunately became for me a struggle between two or three stars. I chose three just to be nice.

The Innocents Abroad

by Mark Twain

I found the book boring at times, but if I "muddled" through those parts, I came across passages that were so delightful it was worth the boring part. As he traveled through Europe, I found myself wishing he had traveled with a camera, but I soon realized that his description of the lands and the people were almost as good as having a camera. He He was only 20-21 at the time he made the trip, so I enjoyed his antics off-shore, sneaking into places and stealing grapes. I enjoyed his cynicism at being a tourist in Europe and the Holy Land. He often mentioned how he knew things were true about the objects he saw because he'd seen the same elsewhere - each guide stating it was the "one" true object.

As the described the peoples I found myself relieved as he left the filthy areas to go to the nicer areas of the towns and villages. I had no idea that in so many towns the houses were so close together that the sun barely reached the streets. I had no idea that the building that houses the Vatican was so huge.

I took Art Appreciation in college and loved it, so I could understand a little of how he felt when he described early Christian paintings; I agreed that the Renaissance era was much more beautiful. I mean it has to be - enlightenment is always so much better than being stuck in the Dark Ages. It made me wonder - is something beautiful just because it's old and ancient? They both tell their story. Freedom always wins.

When he got to the Holy Land, I cringed almost all the way through that trek. His description of the ruined horses he rode that had never been allowed to rest, never given enough to eat, and never ever having their saddles removed made me sad. I wondered why there were so many malformed people who were always surrounding them, calling "bakeesh"! Constantly asking for money. Why did such an area have so many poor and sick people? Incest? Small gene pool? His description of children with fly-encrusted eyes made me sick at times, as it did him.

I loved the descriptions of "camping" through the Holy Land. He'd been camping before and knew it would not be like being in a hotel, but he had to eat those words as he told of the wonder of finding tents with wash basins filled with clean water and beds made up with soft white sheets. A breakfast seemingly fit for a king. Their guides apologizing that it wasn't better. I sensed as they traveled further, the guides weren't quite so accommodating as it wasn't mentioned again. I felt fear as they tried to make sure they were hidden from the "Boudain" (Arabs who might or might not have been chasing them).

I loved that he told it like he saw it, the beauty and ugliness alike.

I enjoyed the biblical references (he seemed to know the stories plus he was traveling with several ministers and teachers).

So he was able to go from boring parts that I really don't remember, to wonderfully descriptive segments that made me feel that I was there with him and could almost smell the dirt and sweat and tears of those with him.

I wanted to read this because I had just finished Jonathan Cahn's The Oracle where the book is mentioned several times. I really need to reread both again. Jonathan's book was difficult to get through also mainly because it was so repetitive. I thought that he mentioned early on that Mark Twain was in a Jewish service where he heard certain passages read from the Old Testament about the Holy Land, but I don't remember that in Innocents Abroad. If I re-read Innocents, I want to be sure and do so with Google Earth readily available to see how the countryside has either remained the same or changed.

All Around the Town

by Mary Higgins Clark

Four-year-old Laurie Kenyon was abducted from her front lawn and then released two years later in the early morning hours at a school house where she was found by the caretaker.

When she is picked up by her parents, they are just glad to have her home and deny that she might need counseling. Her sister Sarah had vowed to keep Laurie safe hoping it would make the "gift" of her own birth as wonderful as the "miracle" of Laurie's birth. The nuns had told her a miracle was always better than a gift.

It is now 15 years later; Sarah and Laurie's parents have been killed in an automobile accident. It has become evident that Laurie's parents made a mistake by not allowing her to go through counseling. She is now a senior in college and has been accused of murdering her English professor, Allan Grant. She has no memory of the murder. The investigation reveals Laurie exhibiting other personalities that have been hidden these past years. Each personality takes turns to protect Laurie, making find the truth more difficult.

Did Laurie kill Professor Grant or was it one of her other personalities that murdered him? Sarah, who is now an attorney has quit her job and decided to spend her time investigating the crime and representing her sister in court.

While much of the story is predictable, there are a few twists and turns I didn't see coming. I found it quite enjoyable.

The Second Mrs. Hockaday

by Susan Rivers

Seventeen-year-old Placidia, a bride of two days, is left to care for her husband's farm and his small son when Major Gryffth Hockaday is called back to the Civil War. Coming from a well-to-do family, she is unprepared to run a farm or raise a child and must depend and trust the very few servants who also live on the land.

Two years later when Major Hockaday returns, he is hurt and angry at the rumors that his wife bore a child and murdered it. He immediately demands that she be arrested. Alone at home while Placidia is in jail, the Major comes across pages of a favored book where the true story has been handwritten in the blank end pages. The secret she tried to hide is now brought to light.

Based on a true incident, we see order and relationships amongst Southerners in a new way. Wartime has brought its own desperate order. This is a love story that reveals how the Civil War brought about the beginning of changes in the country's racial divide.

As I read this book, I was struck by the sometimes difficult relationships between land owners and their servants or slaves. People were either ruled by attitude of the day or they could go against it and be ruled by what was just and right. It takes a lot of courage to go against convention to protect those who may need it most. 

Vinegar Hill

by A. Manette Ansay

James had always been interested in Ellen's sister, but since she rejected him several times, he decided to take Ellen out on a date. On the way home, they were stranded in his car by a snowstorm. When it finally ended the next morning, they knew that marriage was the only option for both of them.

But now James has, with no warning, quit his job. He's just announced that he's moving his family in with his parents. Ellen has no idea how much her life is about to change.

Helen and her two children have moved into a house filled with hate, bitterness, cruelty, greed, false piety and horrifying secrets. The only time I found myself cheering was when she finally got enough backbone to leave.

The only thing I can say about this book is it was the most depressing book I've ever read. I don't care how the characters came to their circumstances, I don't care that it has the Oprah Book Club seal on the front cover, getting through the book was like going through hell with these characters.

Halfway through the book I was tempted to trash it, then I started skimming and skipping through the pages enough to get the gist of the rest of the story. By the time I finished, I actually ended up with a headache.

All I can say is that the book is aptly named.

The Almost Sisters

by Joshilyn Jackson

Leia Birch Briggs is a comic book writer and illustrator, tasked with writing a prequel for her most loved character Violet. However Leia discovers that a one-night stand with the cute black "Batman" she met at a comic convention has resulted in pregnancy, and now it's difficult come up with Violet's beginnings. Her mind is consumed by her pregnancy.

The first person she wants to tell is her grandmother, "Birchie," who lives in Alabama. But she soons find out that Birchie has been diagnosed with Lewy Bodies, a form of dementia. Birchie mostly sees bunny rabbits everywhere - doing what they do best. Birchie and her bosom buddy Wattie have tried very hard to hide the disease, but after the recent church fish fry it can't be hidden any longer. And because of her outburst, a few members can no longer show their faces at the little Baptist church. Leia realizes that she has to help her grandmother. However, before she leaves home, she also finds herself in the middle of the marital woes of her half-sister Rachel and winds up taking along her niece, Lavender.

Conversation during the first dinner hints of the trouble that is on the horizon. Birchie flatly refuses to go into assisted living, but just in case she's forced, she orders that a trunk be moved into Leia's car and she and Wattie attempt to drive off with it. But as they're driving out of the yard, Wattie accidentally backs into the mailbox and the trunk is discovered. In front of nosy neighbors no less. Neighbors who have called the police who feel they need to open the trunk - the trunk that contains human remains!

So the book about the comic book writer who gets knocked up by a black Batman is about to become much more interesting than I originally thought.

It deals with small southern town values, prejudices, rape, bi-racial children, two churches within a church, two towns within one town, and "almost sisters" or does the word "almost" really apply?

The Red Garden

The Red Garden

by Alice Hoffman

Hallie Brady saved early settlers from starvation that first winter in 1750 by catching eels and stealing milk from a hibernating bear. She befriends six-year-old Harry Partridge who learns her secret, only he was too late.

In later chapters, the descendants of the Brady and Partridge families encounter John Chapman, the planter of apple trees; the ghost at Eel River; the fisherman's beautiful wife who may or may not be an eel; and in 1986 Gratitude and Apology cakes - all within distance of the Red Garden in the back yard. The Red Garden where the soil is red and everything that is planted there grows red - even green beans. But the tomatoes grown there - they are magic - they can make dreams come true. And during the year of no summer, trees bloomed in the snow.

Alice Hoffman weaves a tale full of magic, secrets and loyalty generation to generation in the town of Blackwell, Massachusetts.

The Poisonwood Bible

The Poisonwood Bible

by Barbara Kingsolver

Missionary Nathan Price along with his wife and four daughters have arrived in the Congo for a one-year mission trip. The year is 1959. Although they have planned for this trip and have packed all things they believe will be necessary - down to garden seeds - at the airport they find that they are allowed only 44 pounds per each person's luggage. Trying to lessen the weight of their luggage, they resort to unpacking and wearing every item of clothing they own onto the plane.

Once they've arrived, they find the Congo is absolutely nothing like they imagined. They are vastly unprepared for this climate. The seeds they planted are washed away by the torrential rains, the cake mix they brought for a birthday cake is ruined by the humidity. Nathan does not understand why he cannot baptize even one convert in the nearby river. What he does not understand is that no one goes into the river - ever - it's full of crocodiles.

He never seems to "get" that these people, native to the Congo, whose culture is drastically different from his own, understand the land of their birth. They have learned how to survive in this violent atmosphere. They know that the wisdom handed down generation to generation will help them survive the jungle where they live and the American missionary has no idea what he's talking about.

One thing I found interesting is that had it not been for the natives coming to the aid of this family, they would never have survived.

The story is told by his four daughters - 15-year-old Rachel (who hates everything about her new life); 14-year-old twins, Leah and Adah (Leah enjoys observing the culture, while Adah enjoys studying plant life and insects), and five-year-old Ruth May (who enjoys her childhood and playing with the native children). His wife, Orleanna who speaks in five of the chapters, is a southern woman who has been beat down by Nathan's sour attitude and an unfortunate belief that God is really on the side of her husband - no matter how wrong he might be and how much he has subjected his family to danger.

The story revolves around Missionary Price's uncompromising beliefs, his failure to understand the land and culture, and the political discontent and eventual uprising at the time.

After 18 months in the jungle, disaster struck. The young girls grew up overnight, and their characters seemed to solidify into their adult characters. As with so many long historical narratives, I found the ending to be rambling. This could be my own problem, as I found while reading James Michener's books, the first three-quarters of the novels were absolutely fascinating, then as he started narrating characters in modern times and I lost all interest.

Overall, I loved the book until the last few chapters.

A Lady’s Life

in the Rocky Mountains

by Isabella Bird

Isabella Bird was born in 1831 in Yorkshire. She was a precocious child, but both she and her father (a minister) were in frail health. Their family doctor suggested travel for their ailments. She had already written several books about her travels when she penned these letters to her sister.

The letters written in the year 1879 are about her travels from San Francisco through the Rocky Mountains and on into Denver - 800 miles on favorite horse, Birdie. During these three months, as she travels the terrain, watching the sunrises and sunsets, one wishes she'd had a camera; but her descriptions are so vivid that I'm not sure photography would do justice to what she saw.

She travels alone much of the time with only her Birdie. And even when she thinks that she can't go another mile, one step ahead is a lit cabin - a place of refuge from the cold and snow for the night. All cabin dwellers were welcoming. Even the men, including the desperados. I did not get the sense that she had many fearful moments from people - only the land and the weather. Her travels take place from September through December - and she only in light clothing. How she did not freeze to death at times is a wonder to me. She speaks many times of traveling through snow up to the horse's shoulders, trying to walk on ice or waking up in an "unchinked" log cabin with snow all over her and as she is cleaning out the cabin, she doesn't just "sweep" it out, she sometimes has to "shovel" it out.

Folklore has it that she had a romantic relationship with Mountain Jim Nugent - a gentleman outlaw. She had a relationship with him it seems, though in her writings romance is played down. In fact she says something to the effect that it would be easy to fall in love with him, but only a foolish woman would marry him. It is evident that they did greatly value each other's friendship.

I'm amazed at her bravery, her tenacity and her overall positive attitude. She definitely believed in pulling her own weight and while she appreciated help from men, she did not expect it nor demand it.

I would very much like to read her other writings if I come across them. As I started to research her before writing this, I found that after she left the Rockies and Mountain Jim died, she married. She again fell into ill health - until her husband died - and she began to travel again - around the world. Apparently her doctor - even way back then - knew what she needed. Because as soon as she began to travel, her health improved tremendously until her death at age 73 in 1904 in Edinburgh.

The Gift

by Danielle Steel

It's the 1950s, Liz and John Whittaker along with their children, Tommy and Annie, are living in a dream world, they couldn't be happier. Then tragedy strikes taking four-year-old Annie. The family is devastated. Liz and John's marriage is falling apart and Tommy is struggling.

Meanwhile miles away, Maribeth Robertson is getting ready for her first Prom. She loves her beautiful peacock blue taffeta strapless dress with it's little bolero, but her dad is throwing a fit, telling her that she and all the other girls who are going to prom are dressing like sluts. She finally returns to her room where her mother helps her pick out a navy blue dress with a white collar and long sleeves. She feels mortified, but desperately wants to go to the prom - even if it is with David O'Connor, a boy she barely knows, but the only one who invited her. Maribeth knows he probably couldn't get a date with anyone else.

Once at the prom, David goes in search of drinks for both of them, and when he returns after almost a half hour, Maribeth realizes David had had a few "drinks" before returning to her. She wasn't interested in alcohol and is realizing that coming to the prom wasn't such a good idea after all.

After sending David back for a "proper" drink for a teenager, she decides to walk home, but rests on a bench outside for a while. There she is approached by Paul Browne, the coolest and most handsome high school senior who offers her a ride home. It takes some coaxing, but she finally accepts the ride, and is secretly thrilled that he has noticed her. He suggests going for a hamburger before going home and she readily accepts. After they've eaten, they get back into the car and he suggests driving around for a little while as there is still time before her curfew.

I think she's never been on a date as she is giddy with the attention he is showering on her. They find a place to park and a kiss leads to other things and finally the inevitable. She is confused, happy and scared.

A couple of months later her biggest fear is realized and she knows she has to tell her parents she is pregnant. Of course, her father hits the roof while her mother cries. Her father sends her away with money to cover staying at a local convent until the baby is born. One month there and she knows she cannot stay any longer. She still has a few hundred dollars and decides to head for Chicago. At a bus stop, she eats in the diner. She decides she loves the atmosphere of the town and when she notices a help wanted sign in the window, she decides to stay. She gets the job and meets a young man.

Maribeth doesn't realize it, but she has a "gift" for everyone in that town, especially the Whittakers.

I'm not particularly a Danielle Steel fan, but I found this to be a lovely story of someone who's fallen from grace, finds love and redemption and then the strength to give to others.

Bye Bye, Sweet Susie

by David A Estes

Just before Jeff Timberlake’s mother dies, she hands him an envelope and instructs him to deliver it to an old friend in the town of Marlow, Missouri. This suits him fine because Marlow is on the way to St. Louis where he’s going to apply for a newsman job at a radio station. 

When he hits the outskirts of Marlow he sees a billboard that reads … ‘SUSIE McCORD DIED HERE’. The words pique his interest. Is Susie McCord a celebrity? someone he should know? He’s not sure, but one thing he discovers is the town folks clam up when he starts asking questions. His journalistic nose tells him something is going on in the city of Marlow.

David A. Estes has written 10 novels so far and I've read three of them. I love his Ozarkian style of writing, especially depicting the 1950s or 1960s as in this book. I enjoyed the interaction between Jeff and the people of Marlow. As Jeff noses into the town's business, I was waiting for someone to run him out of town. I thought it a tad unbelievable that he could solve a four-year-old mystery of who killed Susie McCord within less than a week though. But then sometimes those things are easy in books.

The Bell Jar

by Sylvia Plath

I know this has been reviewed by many others. But while the book appears on many of the must-read lists, I found it was one of the most depressing books I've ever read. Supposedly, Plath is writing about her own life and attempts at suicide masked in comedic drama. Esther has received a coveted six-week internship at a famous magazine publishing house. During a summer break from her college classes that are covered by scholarships, she lives at a hotel for girls - those what were prominent in large cities during the 1950s and 1960s. Even as she has her mental breakdowns, those expenses are covered by a wealthy matron. I find myself jealous of all that has been given to her and she seems to have no appreciation for any of it. In fact, nothing nor no one seems to be good enough. All she can see are the flaws of others.

It seems to me that when someone is continually looking for perfection in others while ignoring their own blemishes, they are going to be disappointed. The protagonist in this book tears down and dissects everything around her. This book seems to glamorize that depression. But then, maybe shock treatments were the "thing" back then like psychiatric and psychological treatments seemed to be the "thing" in the 1960s. I read other reviews of this book, I read explanations of this book, but the thing I wonder is if had she not committed suicide shortly after the publication of the book, would it still be a must-read?