The Color Chartreuse, Etc., by Jane Hallock Combs

The Color Chartreuse, Etc by Jane Hallock Combs
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Who doesn't love reading about quirky family members? But then, most of us are related to quirky family members; that, or we are the quirky one, right?

The Color Chartreuse, Etc, by Jane Hallock Combs, is full of quirky family members. Many of the essays here were read on NPR station WKMS in Murray, Kentucky, as well as appearing in several newspapers.

Disclaimer time: I do appear several times in The Color Chartreuse, Etc, as Jane Hallock Combs was my mom. So, maybe I'm a little partial to many, if not most of the essays. I have a feeling, though, that even without that family link, I would laugh at many of these essays.

Why? you ask. Fair question.

Example: Cousins Anna Mae and Ezra, who, during WWII, held off a Nazi invasion with a baseball bat - when they weren't literally tearing their house apart; Greg, who didn't want the tooth fairy tip-toeing into his room to leave money for the tooth under his pillow, and sat in his bedroom doorway with a baseball bat to keep the tooth fairy out; Greg, who after breaking his leg, had a double-legged cast on, and, unable to help Mom at the laundromat, leaned out the Volkswagon's sun-roof, giving a passionate speech to passers-by about being "a poor little boy with a broken leg who just wanted to hep with the laundry!"; and more. There's the time the school bus went to take Mom to school, after her brother told her that the road being taken was the road to heaven...

If you want a good laugh, this is the place. The Color Chartreuse, Etc, by Jane Hallock Combs, has enough laughs to help you through the day.

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Dead Land, by Sara Paretsky

Dead Land by Sara Paretsky

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

How is it that trouble always manages to find certain people? Fortunately for those of us who love Sara Paretsky's V.I. Warshawski books, trouble doesn't so much find Vic as much as trips her up, sending her in an unexpected direction.

Dead Land starts off with a mysterious man, Coop, leaving his dog tied up outside V.I.'s apartment, with a note to "Look after Bear until I come back for him."

Just what Vic needs: another dog to watch after.

Vic's goddaughter, Bernie Fouchard, is spending the summer in Chicago, coaching a girls' soccer team. Bernie has also discovered that singer-songwriter Lydia Zamir in now living on the streets of Chicago, playing her music on a toy piano, and protected by the mysterious Coop. While Bernie wants to rescue Lydia, Vic finds herself protecting Bernie.

At one point, Vic accompanies Bernie to a community meeting. Unfortunately, tempers flare up during the meeting; it doesn't take long for people to begin dying because of the flare-ups, including Bernie's boyfriend.

Between trying to find the killer(s), locating Lydia (who disappears to Kansas, along with Coop), and keeping Bernie and her friends safe, V.I. must also try to stay alive. She is shot at numerous times, ending up in the hospital.

On top of that, Vic's ex-lover, Murray Ryerson, is shot and left for dead. Will he make it? (Yes, he does, but you'll have to read the book to find out the details.)

All in all, Dead Land is another fine example of Sara Paretsky's writing, and well worth the read.
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Revolutionary Letters, by Diane di Prima

REVOLUTIONARY LETTERS by Diane di Prima
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A slim book of poetry should take a relatively short period of time to read, right?

Well, not always. Diane di Prima's Revolutionary Letters is a wonderfully slim volume of poems that, like a pan of rich fudge or fine music, should be savored, one at a time.

It took me months to finish this book. Why so long, especially when I had it next to my seat at the dining room table (where I do much of my reading)? I'd pick it up when I only had several minutes to read, but wanted something relatively intense; these poems/letters were that. They are short, with only a few more than one or two pages long, but definitely full of nuances, intensity, and much to think about. The fact that most of the poems' sentence structure was a little disjointed made it so that a poem might have to be read two or three times for the reader to really begin to fully understand the poem. This might be a problem with a less gifted writer; in di Prima's hands, this is very do-able.

Diane di Prima spent the latter part of the 1950s and early '60s in Manhattan where she was involved in the Beat movement; from 1974 to 1997, she taught at the Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics, along side Allen Ginsburg, William S. Burroughs, and others.

Revolutionary Letters is a book to be read, savored, and reread again.

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The Sewing Room: Uncommon Reflections on Live, Love and Work, by Barbara Cawthorne Crafton

The Sewing Room: Uncommon Reflections on Life, Love and Work by Barbara Cawthorne Crafton

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

There are books of essays that are dry and bordering on boring. Then there are books full of entertaining essays that leave the reader feeling like he or she has just had a visit with a beloved friend or a slightly older sibling. The Sewing Room: Uncommon Reflections on Life, Love and Work by Barbara Cawthorne Crafton definitely falls into the second category.

Barbara Cawthorne Crafton is an Episcopal priest, writer, and lecturer who has written several books on spirituality. Her book The Sewing Room: Uncommon Reflections on Life, Love and Work is full of essays written about her time as an active priest, the people she's met, ministered to, and loved over the years. While the essays tend to be short, we meet a wide range of people through them: seafarers, AIDS patients, the homeless, and others struggling with their daily lives, who still manage to maintain their humanity.

This version of the book (it originally came out in hardback) ends with an essay that brings us up to date on the people we met in the earlier essays, bringing us full-circle to our new acquaintances.

If you're looking for a book filled with satisfying essays, Barbara Cawthorne Crafton's The Sewing Room: Uncommon Reflections on Life, Love and Work should fit the bill nicely.

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Mercy Street, by Jennifer Haigh

Mercy Street by Jennifer Haigh

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Have you ever read a book that you connected with to the point that, upon finishing the last page, has you wanting to start back on page one immediately?

Mercy Street by Jennifer Haigh is one of those books in my recently-read stack that I wanted to restart almost immediately. (More on that in a minute.)

Claudia Birch works in a women's center on Boston's Mercy Street (hence the title). Every morning, despite the cold winter weather, she must work her way through the crowd of protesters to get to the building, where she and her coworkers man the phone lines, dispensing advice to women needing birth control and/or abortions. Divorced, childless, and estranged from her mother, Claudia finds her job rewarding, but stressful, occasionally visiting her local pot dealer to help her make it through the work week.

The book also dives into the lives of Tim (the pot dealer), Anthony (disabled from a work accident, who finds his daily trips to church, smoking weed, and protesting in front of Mercy Street all as ways of finding meaning in his life), and Victor, a scary, misogynistic man who posts signs around the country denouncing abortion, and runs an internet site showing women who he perceives are getting abortions.

How all these lives, as well as the other women on Mercy Street - workers and those in need - intertwine and feed off of each other binds the story together in a thoroughly engrossing way.

Whatever the reader's thoughts on abortion might be, Mercy Street still makes for interesting reading. The very end of the book - what happens to all of the main characters - wraps the book up nicely.

This is definitely a "must read."

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Water for Elephants, by Sara Gruen

Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Have you ever stumbled onto a book that you started reading, with no expectations of liking it, then finding out that it's a gem? For me, Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen is one of those books.

The book's narrator, Jacob Jankowski, is a 90 (or 93) year old man living in a nursing home, getting weekly visits from his children. The chapters dealing with the present - looking forward to a trip to the circus, discovering that his son has forgotten to visit and bring him to the circus, and his "escape" to see the circus - anchor the book as they are interspersed between his memories of his youth.

When studying for his finals to become a vet, he learns his parents have died. He skips out of his finals, and ends up joining a traveling circus, the Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth. After working several jobs with the circus, he is hired on as the show's vet. He makes friends with several of the circus people, and eventually falls in love with Marlena, who is married to an abusive horse trainer with the circus. (Spoiler: Marlena and Jacob do end up together at the end of the book. How? You'll have to read it to find out.)

I really didn't have any expectations when I started the book. But the more I read of Water for Elephants, the more I wanted to read; it was the old "just one more chapter" situation.

The one down side (if it can be called that) is that there are two or three places that could be considered risque. But even then, they only last for a couple of paragraphs, and really don't detract from the story.

The punchline is that if you're looking for an engaging book that will keep you interested from start to finish, Sara Gruen's Water for Elephants is it. When I got to the last page - the last chapter was a bit of a surprise, but realistic - I was tempted to start the book again. Alas, it's a library book, so back it goes. Guess I'll have to buy my own copy!

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Turtle Moon, by Alice Hoffman

Turtle Moon by Alice Hoffman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Welcome to Verity, Florida, where the month of May is a dangerous time: long-time residents know better than to make any life-altering decisions during May, as everyone seems to "go a little crazy."

It is where Lucy Rosen and her son Keith have landed after leaving New York in Alice Hoffman's wonderful book, Turtle Moon.

While Lucy has come to Verity to escape an unhappy marriage, 12-year-old Keith is miserable in Florida, and gets into non-stop trouble - stealing, skipping school, and more - with a new friend.

One night, a single mother in the Rosen's apartment complex is murdered and her baby disappears. The "meanest boy" in town finds the baby in the complex's laundry room, realizes that no one is coming for her, and takes off with the baby, becoming her protector.

Julian Cash is the police officer assigned to solving the murder and finding the baby. He, too, was once considered the "meanest boy" in Verity, and can relate to Keith when he (Cash) finds the boy.

What transpires in Turtle Moon is a fast-paced story of complex people trying to find what will give their lives direction, while learning how to trust, as well as growing and letting go.

If you're looking for your next satisfying fast read, Turtle Moon by Alice Hoffman is sure to please.

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Talk Before Sleep, by Elizabeth Berg

Talk Before Sleep by Elizabeth Berg

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

For those of us who love to read, there are a few books that we reread for a variety of reasons. Whether it's to learn more on a subject, reread a well-written book, or simply akin to revisiting an old friend, it's something we usually enjoy.

Talk Before Sleep, by Elizabeth Berg is one of my go-to books when I want something quick, yet satisfying. It was the first of Berg's books that I'd read, and probably my favorite, for several reasons.

Talk Before Sleep is the story of friendship, told from Ann's perspective. Ann and Ruth first meet at a party. Ann was immediately put off by Ruth's good looks; she soon discovers, though, that Ruth has an honesty that is even more breath-taking than her looks. The book follows their friendship, shifting back and forth through past and present. The present describes Ruth's coping with terminal breast cancer, and how the two women, along with a small group of friends cope with Ruth's ongoing health issue.

The book feels as comfortable as the flannel shirts that L.D. - one of Ruth's friends - wears, while showing how distressing the disease is to the group.

A review in Kirkus several years ago states that "Berg...offers a sappy tale about a woman witnessing the death of her friend..." (https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-re...). While the book might be viewed as borderline-sappy, it came across more as telling about how friendships can help us through difficult times.

Talk Before Sleep is well worth reading, especially if looking for a quick, satisfying read.

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AWOL on the Appalachian Trail, by David "Awol" Miller

AWOL on the Appalachian Trail by David "Awol" Miller

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Ever notice how you can go through life without reading a book on a particular subject, then suddenly find yourself reading several books on that subject in a short period of time? I've been doing that with books about the Appalachian Trail; more specifically, books by people who have walked the A.T.

Several years ago, I'd read a short article about someone who'd walked the A.T. and was immediately intrigued. Since then, I've periodically thought, If only... Many of us have dreams of what we'd do if only we didn't have a full-time job, mortgage, etc. That is where books come in; we can live vicariously, whether through a good novel, an interesting memoir, or whatever genre we've chosen for our next read.

I first read AWOL on the Appalachian Trail by David "Awol" Miller on my Kindle in 2013, and figured it was time to read the hard copy version of it. As with the kindle version, it did not disappoint.

In 2003, David Miller walked away from a job as a computer programmer to hike the Appalachian Trail. "...I broke the news to my boss. He said, 'If you need to have a midlife crisis, couldn't you just buy a Corvette?'" According to Miller, several thousand people decided to walk the Appalachian Trail (the AT) in 2003; eighty percent didn't make it. The trail's length (2,172 miles) undoubtedly had something to do with that.

Miller left Florida the end of April, 2003 to walk the trail, leaving his wife and three daughters for several months. Throughout the book, the reader learns many things about hiking the AT. First off, there are several kinds of hikers on the trail: thru-hikers, who walk the entire length of the trail at one time; section hikers, who walk a particular section of the AT; and day hikers, who simply walk a day's-worth of trail. Miller spent a good portion of 2003 as a thru-hiker.

Another thing one learns is that most hikers end up with trail nicknames. Miller nearly chose Corvette as his trail name (after his boss's comment), but decided on AWOL. (Apparently, there were other AWOLs at other times on the AT.)

Throughout, the book, AWOL/Miller describes his trip in descriptive detail; the reader gets a sense of travelling with him, experiencing what he experiences...except, maybe, the blisters which threaten to end his hike about half-way through it. Fortunately, a visit to a doctor, followed by a round of antibiotics and several days' rest (known by hikers as zero days, since they put zero miles on the trail). Miller also introduces the reader to other thru-hikers: Superman and Torch, Stretch, Tipperary, Elwood, Doc and Llama, Ken and Marcia, as well as several people in different towns and hostels who interact with thru-hikers.

There are many reasons why AWOL on the Appalachian Trail is the perfect AT book. At the beginning of each new section, Miller has a map showing the section of trail included in the chapter ahead so that the reader has a clear idea the section he's describing. He has also included numerous photos throughout the book, giving us a better look at the area. His descriptions of the trail, his exhaustion, the side trips into different towns, the other hikers, the entire experience, give the reader the distinct feeling of being there with Miller.

This is definitely a must-read, especially for anyone who is curious about the Appalachian Trail, whether one has hiked it, is planning to hike it, or wishes that one would or could hike it.

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Grandma Gatewood's Walk: The Inspiring Story of the Woman Who Saved the Appalachian Trail, by Ben Montgomery

Grandma Gatewood's Walk: The Inspiring Story of the Woman Who Saved the Appalachian Trail, by Ben Montgomery

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

As a child, I loved the outdoors. I still love going outside to "commune with nature," as my mom used to say.

Early on, I'd heard about the Appalachian Trail and, after asking my parents about it, thought that walking the A.T. sounded like a great adventure. I thought it would be fun. My parents looked at me askew, hoping I'd forget about such fun.

I never did get around to walking the A.T.; there's a probability that I never will. But that's where reading comes in: one can live vicariously through other people's adventures, whether in fiction or non-fiction.

Grandma Gatewood's Walk: The Inspiring Story of the Woman Who Saved the Appalachian Trail by Ben Montgomery is one of the wonderful books dealing with one's adventures hiking the Appalachian Trail. Emma Gatewood, a 67-year-old mother of eleven, loved to walk. In 1955, after divorcing an abusive husband, she told her grown children she was going for a walk and left home with $200. The walk was along the then 2,050-mile Appalachian Trail, where she encountered not only breath-taking scenery, but two hurricanes, survived a rattlesnake strike and, at one point, spent the night with Harlem gang-members.

Unlike AWOL On The Appalachian Trail, by David Miller and Dennis Blanchard's Three Hundred Zeroes, Grandma Gatewood's Walk was written by someone other than the A.T. thru-hiker. It also moves at a slightly slower pace than the latter two books. Part of the slightly slower pace comes from introducing history and what was going on in the world at large during Emma's first thru-hike. The history part was both Emma's personal history - her marriage to P. C. Gatewood and, years later, her divorce from him, her relationship with her children, and why she decided to hike the A.T. - and history of the A.T. The book also weaves the outside world into Emma's walk, telling of the two hurricanes that, unbeknownst to Emma, were heading up the Eastern United States and would affect part of her hike. Also mentioned after her first hike, which takes up the majority of the book, are her second A.T. thru-hike (she was the first person - man or woman - to walk the trail more than once, going for three trail walks), as well as other walks, and mention of her guest appearance on Groucho Marx's You Bet Your Life.

While Grandma Gatewood's Walk takes a different look at the Appalachian Trail than either AWOL or Three Hundred Zeros (both reviewed here on June 6, 2013), Ben Montgomery wrote a totally engrossing book about Emma Gatewood and the Appalachian Trail. It should be noted that Montgomery was a finalist for the 2010 Pulitzer Prize. I highly recommend picking up a copy and hiking through it.

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The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

For years, I had heard glowing reviews about The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini's debut novel. Yet, I'd put off reading it, while it sat on a shelf on one of my many bookcases.

I ended up reading it several years ago, then recently reread it; it's that good.

A stunning book, The Kite Runner pulls the reader into the life and experiences of Afghan immigrant Amir, who leaves his homeland with his father in the late 20th century. The book begins when Amir and his father, Baba, are still in Kabul, where his father is a well-to-do merchant. Amir's best friend, Hassan, is a Hazara boy who lives with his own alleged father on Amir's father's property. Neither boy cares that the two are from different classes, they are still friends.

At one point, Hassan, Amir's kite runner - a person who brings back one's kite during kite-flying contests - is victim to unspeakable violence, which Amir is unable to protect him from.

Years later, after Amir has grown, he goes back to Kabul to try to find redemption by righting wrongs against Hassan. In the end, he brings Hassan's son back to the U.S. with him (Hassan and his wife are dead), in the hopes of adopting his friend's son.

While the book is absolutely stunning, it is not necessarily an easy read. Several parts are fairly difficult, and almost caused me to put the book aside. However, this book is truly a work of art that should be read through to the end. While the story does end with Hassan's son being rendered mute, and Amir and his wife caring for the boy, there is hope that life will slowly get better.

This is one book that definitely needs to be read and reread, as its multi-faceted layers show the reader different ways to view the world.

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Orphan Train, by Christina Baker Kline

Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Have you ever read a book that you felt would be only mildly interesting, only to find that you could not put it down, since it was that good? Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline is the most recent book that did that for me.

Seventeen-year-old Molly Ayer, a Penobscot Indian, has been in and out of foster care for most of her youth. After stealing a battered copy of a book from the library, she is court-ordered to do community service in an effort to keep her out of juvenile hall. Her service involves helping 91-year-old Vivian Daly clean out her attic.

As Molly helps Vivian go through her possessions, Vivian, an Irish immigrant, tells her stories of her youth, which she spent on the Orphan Train across the U.S. Some of the families that Vivian stayed were, at best, uncaring, others, worse, before Vivian finally arrived with a caring family.

It doesn't take long for Molly to realize that she and Vivian are more alike than not and the two form an unexpected friendship.

While Orphan Train does have a few rough spots - most particularly dealing with an atrocious family Vivian stays with for a short while - this is a book well worth the read. For anyone looking for a basically good read, Christina Baker Kline's Orphan Train is what you're looking for.

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Shell Game, by Sara Paretsky

Shell Game by Sara Paretsky
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Every time I think that Sara Paretsky can't outdo herself with her next V.I. Warshawski novel, she proves me wrong.

In Shell Game, V.I. Warshawski's mentor Lotty Herschel's nephew is a murder suspect. When Vic sets out to save Felix Herschel, she suddenly finds herself in the middle of an international ring of thieves trying to steal Mid Eastern artifacts.

On top of this, Vic's niece (by way of ex-husband Dick Yarborough), Reno, goes missing, presumably because of problems with the higher-ups at Rest EZ, where she works. Now Vic has to prove Felix is innocent, while trying to find Reno, protect Harmony (Reno's younger sister), tangle with her ex-husband, outrun international thugs, find missing artifacts, keeping her neighbor Mr. Contreras up to speed (and letting him "help" by keeping an eye out for Harmony), all while trying to stay alive. In other words, another exciting V.I. Warshawski novel set in Chicago.

In the end, Vic finds Reno (barely alive), fights her way out of the shack where Reno was placed by thugs, proves Felix is, indeed, innocent, and protects both nieces, while showing up her ex- and sending thugs packing. (Oh, and she also finds a new love interest, because, of course, even a strong feminist P.I. needs someone to occasionally lean on, right?)

If you haven't read Shell Game by Sara Paretsky, it's high time that you do. Definitely a great read.

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To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Many books are destined to be forgotten shortly after being read, while others become classics. The reasons for a book being a classic are many: it may be an enjoyable read; it might have truths that need to be explored; no matter when it is read, it has the ability to inspire, teach, while getting under one's skin. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is such a classic.

Jean Louise (Scout) Finch lives with her older brother Jeremy (Jem) and father Atticus in Georgia during the Great Depression. They are helped by their housekeeper, Calpurnia, as their mother died with Scout was two.

Part One of the book sets the stage for the story. Scout and Jem spend summers playing with Dill, a boy who is shuttled between relatives, and who spends summers with his Aunt Rachael. Their first summer after meeting Dill, the three decide to see if they can lure reclusive Boo Radley from his house. This lands them in trouble with both Atticus, along with being shot at.

During the school year, the reader learns how racist many of the minor characters are. This is the southern U.S. during the 1930s, so many of the characters use the "n" word when referring to African-Americans. However, when Scout uses the word, Atticus tells her not to use it, as it is derogatory.

We learn early on that Atticus is an attorney, and a highly respected man by most of his neighbors. At one point, he is been appointed to defend Tom Robinson, a black man falsely accused of raping a white woman. The job of defending Tom should have gone to another lawyer, but Atticus was chosen (we learn in Part Two) as he was the best attorney to defend Tom.

At the end of Part One, Jem and Scout get involved with Mrs. Dubose, a racist woman who screams at the two about their "n...-loving" father. This causes Jem to get into trouble. His punishment is to read to Mrs. Dubose every afternoon for more than a month.

After the month is over, Atticus is called to Mrs. Dubose's house; when he gets back home, he announces that she has died, and that, despite her disapproval of Atticus defending Tom Robinson in Tom's upcoming trial, she was the bravest person he knew. The reason he gives is that she had to fight a battle at the end of her life where the chances of winning were almost non-existant. However, to her way of thinking, she had to fight this fight, knowing that she probably wouldn't win. This exemplifies a big part of why Atticus defends Tom in Part Two: even though he knew that they would probably lose the trial, defending Tom was the right and honorable thing to do, as Tom was innocent.

Harper Lee's writing in To Kill a Mockingbird is wonderful; there is nothing in the book that doesn't move the story forward. While Ms. Lee considered this to be a love story, it goes beyond that. It is a story of right verses wrong, about people having to sort out their feelings and prejudices, and challenges the reader to consider his or her prejudices and how best to confront them. (Not bad for a book published more than 60 years ago.)

If you haven't read To Kill a Mockingbird, I highly recommend it.

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Jonathan Livingston Seagull, by Richard Bach

Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

During the early 1970s, it seemed everyone read Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach. I had read it several times, and had fond memories of it.

Several years ago, I received a copy of this slim book from two different people and decided to reread it to see how it stood up over the intervening years. Since then, I've reread it several times.

Jonathan Livingston Seagull tells of a seagull who doesn't quit fit in and is banned from his flock as a misfit. Jonathan's misdeed? He loves to fly, loves learning how to improve on flight, how to fly faster, and knows that such learning is, itself, what makes life worth living. The flock, however, has come to the understanding that flight should be merely to be used for food-gathering. Thus, since Jonathan can't comply with living beneath what he is capable of, he is labeled a misfit and cast out of the flock.

It doesn't take long for him to reach a higher consciousness, learning from those who have gone on before him. However, those gulls who teach him soon admit that Jonathan is higher than they are, and that the student has become a teacher.

It isn't long before Jonathan realizes that he must go back to his previous flock and start teaching the newer out-casts, several of whom call him the Son of the Great Gull.

This novella, with its photos of seagulls, can be considered spiritual in nature without being preachy. It shows the reader that we all need to be the best we can be, that we should be our truest self, and while we are learning from those more knowledgeable than we are, we are also to teach those coming up after us.

This is one book that I feel has held up well over the years.

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