Begin Again, James Baldwin’s America and its Urgent Lessons for Our Own —by Eddie S. Glaude Jr.

 

Nonfiction / Biography / Immigrant History / 

Crown; 1^st edition

June 30, 2020

ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0525575324

ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0525575320

272 pages

Hardcover

$13.26

5 Stars

 

I’ve always considered myself fairly well-read. I read a pretty eclectic assortment of books. I don’t much care for straight Romance, Mathematics, Horror, or Spy genres, but I’ve been known to read in each of those now and then. So how did I never read any of James Baldwin’s books? I knew the name, I recognized his photos, but I don’t think I’ve ever read any of his writings. I now have six of his books (audio) on my phone and am on my way to treating my ignorance. (Remember, ignorance is a treatable condition; stupidity is not.) I remember Angela Davis, Stokely Carmichael, Martin Luther King Jr, the Freedom Marches, but not Baldwin.  My ignorance is shameful, but treatable. 

 

I was just starting Chapter Seven when Roe v Wade was killed. By the end of the second paragraph, I had an epiphany—maybe Glaude and Baldwin wrote it for and about people of color, but it is equally about the other ‘not quite human’—woman. The part that struck me,

reads: “We tolerated bigotry and discrimination…I think there is a kind of smog in the air that’s created by the history of slavery and lynching and segregation, and I don’t think we’re going to get healthy, I don’t think we can be free…until we address this problem. But to get there we’re going to have to be willing to tell the truth.” And I don’t think the dominant caste wants to hear the truth, let alone own it. [Italics mine.]

 

Just about every place in this book that either Glaude or Baldwin say “black man” can easily be changed to “woman.” That is not to take away anything from either author, but to give a new meaning to the words. If you don’t own your body, someone else does. The one is a slave, the other a master.

 

Like Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents —by Isabel Wilkerson, I think Begin Again should be required reading for anyone who wants a High School Diploma. This book will cause the reader to think, to ponder, and hopefully, to search their own heart and mind and figure out what they can do to help bring America together as a whole, whether black or brown, copper or yellow, or varying shades of pink. White privilege exists and it must be recognized and disposed of.

 

Glaude is a marvelous writer, and a captivating speaker. I would love to take a class from him. I wasn’t sure about his use of “Jimmy” for Baldwin, but then I realized it brought Baldwin closer to me, not someone far away, but a friend in the other room. This is a book I shall read again.

 

And I finish with one other quote from the book, “‘George Santayana, the Spanish-born American philosopher, was right to point out that “those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.’ But what he didn’t say is that those who willfully refuse to remember become moral monsters.” [Italics mine.]

Addendum:  I have just been sent, and listened to, the podcast Coffee & Books where the host talks to Eddie Glaude about the writing of Begin Again. It is very interesting and you might want to give it a try: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/eddie-s-glaude-jr-talks-begin-again-james-baldwins/id1522592619?i=1000484720156

The Indenture of Ivy O'Neill --by Diane Helentjaris

 Fiction / History / Ireland / US Colonies 

AIA Publishing; 1^st edition

June 3, 2022

ASIN: B09XWQ2QT2

1848 KB

ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1922329312

ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1922329318 

300 pages

$22.50 (Hardback, Paperback is also available, as well as electronic)

5 Stars

 

Full disclosure here, I know Diane Helentjaris, and read an early version of this novel. When the book came out, I reread it, and enjoyed it more. I’m a bit of a history buff and was thoroughly entranced by this story. An adult book, I would not hesitate to let any of my children read the book. 

 

Ivy O’Neill is an Irish lass, who with her older brother, Sean, steal off to sell their mother’s weavings on board a ship for more money than they could get in their village. They are kidnapped, and find themselves in Baltimore, Colonial America in 1670 where they are sold for four years indenturement to two different men. 

 

A red-headed Irish lass who hates the British with good cause, Ivy finds herself in quite a pickle—kidnapped by the British, sold to a British American, she must work for him at whatever chores he sets for four years. Fortunately, he’s of a different stripe that the others, and he wants Ivy to help raise his motherless children. Ivy only wants to run away and get home to Ireland, her family, and her neighbor Kevin, to whom she is almost engaged.

 

Helentjaris is masterful at weaving stories. She not only gives us diverse and believable characters, she gives them bones and muscle, brains and speech, she clothes them in detail and personalities. Had I read more books like hers when considerably younger, I may have become a serious, educated historian. Ivy O’Neill is a thoroughly believable protagonist who comes of age in a new and strange life in a new and strange land. How strange? Well, at that time there were no skunks in Ireland.  

Susie—M. C. Beaton (writing as Marion Chesney) —read by Lindy Nettleton

 Fiction / Historical Romance / Mystery / Humor / Regency Romance / Brain Candy

Blackstone Audio

May 15, 2014

Unabridged

About 5hr 31min

Through www.chirpbooks.com

current price: $12.99

 

This is my first audio book ever. I’ve ordered several but chose this one to listen to first.

 

Our protagonist, Susie, is somewhat empty headed. Her parents have convinced her they know what is right for her, have kept her home and sheltered, in the hopes of marrying her off to a rich man. When one appears, they do so. She doesn’t want to marry him, but her father tells her if she doesn’t she will be put out of the house and disowned. She marries the rich old man and on her wedding night finds herself a very wealthy widow.

 

It seems Death is at her beck and call, and her dream life romance overlays her real life situations, to many humorous adventures. 

 

M.C Beaton wrote the Hamish Macbeth stories, which is the only reason I bought this book when it was on sale. I loved the Hamish Macbeth tv show and figured this one was worth the try. It has a, for me, slow beginning, but once into the story, a great many laughs out loud. Since I listened to it while walking the dog and had my phone in my pocket and the story played directly to my hearing aids, I’m fairly sure some of my neighbors wonder why I was laughing out loud at nothing they could hear.

 

Lindy Nettleton gave a marvelous performance. While the story was humorous, I do believe her reading of it gave me more laughs than originally there.

May It Please The Court (Daniel Mendoza Thrillers Book 1) --by Daniel Maldonado

Fiction / Mystery / Legal / Private Investigators

Next Chapter, 3^rd edition

September 27, 2020

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B08K8VFLPS

2266 KB

Kindle $0.99

ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 979-8691416293

306 pages

Paperback $12.99

4 Stars

 

I’d really like to give this book 3.5 stars, but… I enjoyed the story, I enjoyed an older protagonist, I enjoyed a lot of the characters, I would have enjoyed the book 5 stars worth if Mr. Maldonado had hired a copy editor. He used his own name twice—a place holder? deliberate? beats the heck outa me—but it threw me out of the story. The forgotten words, the tense shifts, the extraneous words, all minor, but detracted, sometimes enough to throw me out of the story. Sometimes I’d have to go back a couple pages to see if I’d missed something.

 

I did have to finish reading it, just to see if I was right in my choice of antagonist. I wasn’t. There were a couple areas I’d have appreciated a bit more information, such as the confession of the killer. It seemed a bit too pat. Was it a spontaneous admission? Did s/he trip over their lies? We just were informed s/he had confessed. I also would have liked a bit more reaction from the family during the arrest.

 

Will I read another of the series? Yes, all writers have learning curves, and I found the actual story fun, though a bit wordy. “Well, Bob, let me tell you how to do a data dump.”

 

I read fiction to escape my reality, and when I read a Who Done It? I seldom try to figure it out, I really do want to be surprised at the end. I was. I did think one of the main characters was a tad unbelievable, especially at the end of the book. I did enjoy sitting in on the deposition. I’ve only heard about them, and seen them on tv/movies, so that was interesting. It’s always fun to see how the law works or doesn’t work. And how could he not have seen how one of the witnesses would end up? Even I could see that one from 8 miles away, at night, with no moon or stars! I would have liked a bit more court time.  

Talking Smack to The Dead --by Walt Peterson

 Nonfiction / poetry / prose

Cyberwit.net

2022

ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 8182539048

ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-8182539044

91 Pages

Paperback $15.00

42 pieces

5 Stars

 

I’m not sure when I’ve enjoyed a book as much as I enjoyed this one. Mr. Peterson mixed his delightful poetry with his equally enjoyable short fiction. Reading it was like layering calorie-free chocolate, peanut butter, and pretzels a few times, chilling, and eating for fun. The book is divided into five parts, starting off with Part Of What We Pay Is For The Car… The lead poem, Two-Lane Blacktop, begins with, “What I need to know, country boy / —are you in or are you out?” If that first line in the book doesn’t tell you the good ol’ boys are getting together, nothing’ will. With this poem, our engines are started, and at the drop of her arm, the race is on. The diesel fumes get a tad thick now and then, suggest you read in a well-ventilated room. 

 

There is a great deal of humor in these pieces, and knowledge. I believe I read somewhere that these are working men’s poetry. And they are. There is music in every poem, in every story. In Appalachian Suite, “Music … is winter rain hissing from eighteen wheels / on the interstate.” I could not only hear that symphony, I could just about smell it!

 

Peterson is a natural teacher, and a paid one. So, of course, there must be a test. They do love their tests, don’t they? And in the section titled, Someday Your Life Will Pass Before You, is “Interactive Memory Blitz”. This piece of prose is also a test. Go ahead, take it. I don’t think there are any wrong answers. Oh, and there are also directions on how to cook an opossum on the road.

 

The last piece in this section is “The Chicken, The Road, The Widow. Fair warning don’t be eating or drinking while reading this, or you stand a good chance of snorting said food or drink when you start laughing. This story alone is worth the price of admission, several times over.

 

He does have some serious pieces, and “Shanksville, Flight 93” is one of them. “And the wind bears no witness / for me.” It is serious, but neither maudlin nor preachy. It will make you pause, stop, and perchance think.

 

The last section, Belt In, Shut Up, Hang On, brought back some great memories, starting with “Clark’s Lotus Grabbing Air, “…Jimmy Clark’s Lotus grabbing air / over the jump at Nurburgring.” I saw him race his last race at der Hockenheimring. And who among us hasn’t read and enjoyed Mark Twain’s short story, “The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County”? Peterson’s title, “The Completely Unheralded Jumping Frog of Calaveras County” is almost as long as the laugh-out-loud poem. 

 

Red Solo Cup introduces us to Sweet Pea and Granddaddy in West Virginian Appalachians. It is a coming-of-age story of a young girl who must drive her Grandaddy through the mountains on narrow, twisty roads, chased by bigger trucks and less patient drivers. She’s scared, but her Granddaddy needs to see the doctor. She’s also a mountain girl. ‘Nuff said.

 

This book is a way of looking at the lemon’s life tosses us now and then, and instead of tasting only sour, he shows us how easy it is to celebrate life with humor. Some a tad dark, but all the humor is funny. I laughed out loud several times while reading. Even if you’re sure you wouldn’t like the poetry, that’s okay. Buy the book and just read the stories. But remember there is poetry and when that odd mood sits on your shoulders, try a poem or two. Poets are patient. Many are starving, so support your local poet, buy this book.

A Guide to Getting Lost --by Jeremy Springsteed

 Nonfiction / poetry 

Cyberwit.net

2022

ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 8182539412

ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-8182539419

75 pages

25 poems

4 Stars

 

I am, perhaps, being unfair in my 4-star review of this book. Mr. Springsteed is a performance poet of some renown in the Seattle area. Alas, this reviewer missed the performance poetry gene of appreciation. Although I was not able to connect with the poems, that is not to say they weren’t well constructed and quite possibly another reviewer will give it a higher rating.

 

Although I did not connect with the poems, I did, upon occasion find connection with a line or two, starting with the first, Previous Scene, and the first line, “My fingers are knives,” which immediately made me think of Edward Scissorhands. That was my first mistake, he is not channeling the spirit of said story.

 

Having lived in Seattle many years, there were some lines in Seattle, that resonated. “Still the murders go on crowing the sky, / …All the while the suicides / in their moment of flight. / At the same time sea stars / rip themselves apart.” It became obvious through several of his lines that he has lived there, and I believe still does.

 

One of my favorite lines is in Church of Me, “…unanswered prayers / that I have been saving for a soup.” That one line made the read worthwhile to me. Beyond the Breakers held some great images, “Empty boxes / begging words. // There are dreams of hiding. / Dreams of space/time…” In fact, his images were luminescent spots that brought life to the poems.

 

Batboy brought me a laugh out loud moment, with “A book of lies to explain scars,” Many were the times when something would happen, and I would make up some fantastical story to tell people the why of my bandage or cast. 

 

The title poem, A Guide To Getting Lost, has several good lines, “To get lost / one has to keep walking. / Do not stop for flowers- / they point the way home.” And two lines that had me grinning, “Remember meeting dogs? / Please explain cats.” Indeed, anyone who can explain cats has my vote.

 

And the last poem, How To Leave Things, “Set on fire / in metro tunnel. The travelers can taste / the smoke of my sleep.” 

 

So, although I only gave the book 4 stars, there very obviously are many lines that bring them to the fore. I just had to work my way through all the words to find the gems of brilliance. If you are a fan of performance poetry, you will undoubtedly be able to bring the proper cadence and inflection to these poems that they deserve, and that I could not. 

A Doom with a View (Goodnight Mysteries Book 2) --by Elise Sax

Fiction / cozy

13 Lakes Publishing

November 21, 2018

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B07HVMFL55

622 KB

ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 173147007X

ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1731470072

256 pages, paperback

$4.99 Kindle

$12.99 paperback

5 Stars

 

Not only am I homesick for New Mexico, I’m homesick for Goodnight, NM, and it only exists in books and electrons! 

 

Gracious, in writing this review, I came to the realization I never reviewed the first book, Die Noon. I don’t know how that happened, other than I’m old and spaced on it. Fortunately, both books were offered together, and I read Die Noon a second time, and if possible, I laughed even more. Sax has a somewhat warped sense of humor which I love. She also has a conversational way of writing, which I also like. 

 

Our protagonist, Matilda Dare, inherits a small town newspaper from an uncle. She also inherits all the people in the small town, both the hunky sheriff and his twin brother, equally hunky, maybe even more so. Oh, did I mention the twin brother rented a room at her house and paid rent for a year, so he’s very much in the picture. When he’s home. It helps the two brothers aren’t on speaking terms. Sort of.

 

Matilda Dare is trouble in human form. Wherever she goes, she seems to find trouble—bodies, ghosts, evil people. She really tries to stay out of trouble, but she’s curious, and she’s pretty sure she’s solved the murder, the kidnapping, whatever.

 

She’s also sworn off men. Technically, she’s still married. Her soon-to-be-ex is a convicted murderer and is spending life in San Quentin, or an equally romantic space for murder, and does not want the divorce because if it goes through, he loses his inheritance. She’s also very human.

 

Yes, there is sex in the books. Tastefully done. Still, if your kids are wanting to read them, I suggest you read one or two beforehand, as you know what their tender psyches can handle, or not. (I found with mine, that they just weren’t into those parts and skimmed until they got back to what they consider ‘the good stuff’.)

 

Having read the first two books, I am so looking forward to the rest of the series. I think they shall become the carrot that I may indulge in once my chores are completed. ;-) 

Lost Girls of Devon --by Barbara O'Neal

 Fiction / Women’s / beach book / mother-daughter relationships

Lake Union Publishing

July 14, 2020

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B082SXNWX8

2945 KB

ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1542020727

ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1542020725

351 pages (paperback)

$0.00 Kindle Prime as of date of review (4 Jun 22)

$7.49 (paperback)

5 Stars

 

What happens when a young mother abandons her young daughter to Grandma and goes traipsing off around the world? The mother is mourned, until finally shoved aside in anger at the abandonment. It’s the grandmother who raises the girl, who becomes her mother. Then the mother returns to a home of only her mother, her daughter being overseas with her own daughter. (Believe me, the story isn’t as complicated as what I just wrote!)

 

The youngest daughter went through a nightmarish situation at school and refuses to talk about it. The grandma isn’t well. So, granddaughter and great granddaughter return to Devon, where the Grandmother lives, but so does the runaway mother. And people need to solve a crime or two as well as grow up.

 

If you enjoyed the stories by Maeve Binchy, I think you will enjoy the books by Barbara O’Neal. Complex characters, complex stories, most satisfying endings. 

 

Previously read and reviewed books by Barbara O’Neal:

http://lenoragood.blogspot.com/search?q=barbara+o%27neal

The Japanese Lover --by Isabel Allende

 Fiction / magical realism / love / historical

Atria Books; Reprint edition

November 3, 2015

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00URY5CE8

8014 KB

ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1501116991

ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1501116995

336 pages (paperback)

$10.84 paperback

$12.99 Kindle

5 Stars

 

 

This is a story of love, both requited and unrequited. It’s a complex novel of a young Jewish girl, sent to live with relatives in San Francisco as her native Poland falls to the Nazi’s. She’s frightened, alone, and extremely bright. She becomes the apple of her uncle’s eye. And as a child meets the son of the Japanese gardener. They become fast friends, and when sent to the concentration camps, they correspond. His letters to her are highly censored, so he uses his talent of drawing to send her pictures, which she can interpret.

 

Allende follows the protagonist not just through her life, but also through the political times she lives through. We meet her late husband, and several of her friends both long-standing and new. This book deals with complex characters and complex forms of love and romance, and is a beautiful book with a satisfactory ending. I needed a tissue when her husband died. (Can I get involved in a good story? indeed I can!)

 

I truly enjoy living in Allende’s universes. She has never let me down. 

Wild Sign (Alpha and Omega Book 5) --Patricia Briggs

 Fiction / urban fantasy / werewolves

Ace 

March 16, 2022

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B08BKSQF78

2621 KB

Page numbers source ISBN ‏ : ‎ 0356513696

364 pages

$8.99 Kindle

5 Stars

 

As those of you who follow me know, I read fiction for one reason, and one reason alone—escape. It’s not that my reality is bad, but sometimes I just want to run away to a different universe for a few hours, and it’s especially fun when I run into old friends who take me on their adventures. Charles and Anna are two of those old friends whose company a enjoy tremendously.

 

Charles, Anna, and Tag are sent to some property the pack owns in California, or to be more specific, the Maroc’s wife, Leah, to discover what happened to the people who lived there, off the grid. They just disappeared. Totally. No one knows where they went, or why they left, not taking their pets, their IDs, their money. It’s as if they went up in a puff of smoke.

 

I found this story riveting, and did not want to get to the end, even though I knew that’s where all would be made known to my mundane self. The end of Briggs’ books is like the last piece of cake and ice cream. It was wonderful while it lasted, but the last bite means it’s over. For now. At least in enjoying her books, I’m not ingesting calories ;-)

My reviews of other Patricia Briggs' books:

http://lenoragood.blogspot.com/search?q=patricia+briggs