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Writing, Reading, and Rural Life With a Border Collie

Category Archives: Book Reviews – Non-Fiction


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”Dance in the Meadow’ Offers Food for the Soul

Dance in the Meadow

Conversations of Self-Discovery, Clarity, and Love

By Cathay O. Reta

Pages: 148

Publisher: Keep Walking Publications, 2023

Note: We received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Solitude and quiet conversation are becoming a lost art n this often-frenetic, fast-paced world of “Double, double, toil and trouble; Fire burn, and cauldron bubble!”  Remember that game? When people got together and actually talked? Like, for real? Face to face? Instead of burying themselves in their devices and ignoring the real live person right next to them??

Those were the days.

And a new book by Cathay Reta gently draws us back to the art of conversation. Dialogue. Give and take. Learning. Growing. Sharing. Letting go.

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2 Woof-Worthy Reads (I’d Grab ‘Em Now ‘Fize You)

“Mom! Mom! I like THIS one!”

Kimber the Magnificent here. Telling you about how I nudged Her Momness in the direction of a book that looked really good the other day. “Oh, and this one , too!” I mean, hey. Who can resist these covers? We’re talking Serious Sweet Stuff here, right? Like, Canines R Us.

So I talked Mom into grabbing two woof-worthy titles. (It wasn’t hard, if ya know what I mean.) Here’s the 4-1-1:

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King of Narrative NF Shows How It’s Done With ‘Into The Wild’

Into The Wild

By Jon Krakauer

Genre: Narrative Non-Fiction/Biography/Autobiography

Via: Library

There’s a reason Jon Krakauer is a bestselling author of narrative nonfiction. If you’re unfamiliar with  Krakauer, then consider picking up a copy of his book Into The Wild. It’s an excellent introduction into the work of this crack investigative journalist as he pieces together the life and death of Christopher McCandless (aka: “Alexander Supertramp”).

The 4-1-1

The son of a well-off family, McCandless disappeared after graduating from college. He donated his $25,000 in savings to charity. Abandoned his car and most of his possessions. Burned all the cash he had. McCandless chose to become a “leather tramp,” relying on hitchhiking as his primary mode of transportation (as opposed to a “rubber tramp,” someone who travels on wheels).

Essentially divested of all connections to civilization, McCandless sets off across the country with his sights set on his “great Alaskan adventure.” Intending to spend the summer alone in the bush, living off the land, McCandless walked into the Alaskan wilderness in April 1992. Along with his meager possessions, McCandless carried a pair of borrowed boots, a guide book on edible plants, and a ten pound bag of rice.

He was found dead by moose hunters four months later. He weighed 67 pounds. What may have happened to McCandless and why makes up the balance of this riveting read.

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New Picture Book Takes the ‘Scary’ Out of Hospitals

 

The Higgily Hospital

By Dr. Tyler Robinson

Genre: Children

Pages: 24

Note: We received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Okay, Mom and Dad and other grown-ups. ‘Fess up. How many times have you wished you had an informative but low-key and highly readable resource to grab during that mad dash to the E.R. with a sick or injured kiddo?

Well, pardner. Wait no more. Cuz that resource is here in The Higgily Hospital. 

And you don’t have to be a ‘brain surgeon’ to figure this one out. None of that ‘doctorese’ or medical mumbo-jumbo here. Nope. This is an honest, easy-to-read and soothing resources for little ones. And big people, too. Like this:

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‘Go Find’ Gets Lost

Go Find

My Journey to Find the Lost – and Myself

By Sue Purvis

Genre: Nonfiction – Memoir/Outdoor Adventure/Dog

Blackstone Publishing, 2019

Pages: 344

Via: Library

Go Find is about being lost. The memoir tells the true story of how Sue and her avalanche dog, a black Lab named Tasha, search for missing people in the high country of Colorado and elsewhere from about 1995 to 2007. 

We had high hopes for this book. But it gets lost in Soap Opera Land, with too many side trips into Tedium, Tiresome and Blurrysville. Ditto the countless detours into life with the author’s allegedly petulant, controlling husband, Sir Pouts-a-Lot. 

“Decomp”

We eventually learn that the vast majority of Tasha’s deployments are “decomp” missions to locate human remains. A live find is rare. Sue and Tasha are often deployed as “last resorts” – long after any decent chance of locating a live missing person has flown the coop. Too often egos, petty politics and jealousies within the SAR community as well as weather, terrain, logistical details and a lot of other stuff mitigate against a live find. It’s depressing and frustrating.

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‘Death by Pitbull’ Pulls No Punches

Death by Pitbull:

Bred to Kill

By Richard Morris

Genre: Non-fiction/Animals

Independently Published

Pages: 235

Note: We received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

A Little Background

Back in February 2022 we received a review request for a “dog book.” It sang the praises of a pit bull, Stella. Here’s how we wrapped up that review:

So there’s no doubt Stella is a wonderful dog. (Not as wonderful as a certain Border Collie mix. But nobody’s perfect.) After awhile, however, I just wanted this book to end. Additionally, Kimber has a story of her own on the subject. Sort of.

Kimber: When I was about a year old, Mom and I were out for a walk. On a public street. Chugging along. Minding our own business. All of a sudden two dogs tore out of a house, racing straight toward us. They had us surrounded faster than you can say “Rin Tin Tin.”

One dog grabbed my shoulder. Mom pushed him off. He came back again. Mom jumped between us. She morphed into Mama Grizzly Mode, yelling and screaming at those dogs to Go away! Go home! Leave us alone! Get. Your. Dogs! (Note: You so don’t want to mess with Mama Grizzly Mom the Raving Lunatic. Ever.)

The owner finally came out of the house. The dogs didn’t pay any attention to her. Another human finally came out and got ahold of those two dogs. It took some doing.

We got away. I wasn’t hurt. But I was scared! Those were the most aggressive dogs I’ve ever seen.

Both were pit bulls.

You can read our review in full here. 

So Richard Morris’s book struck a chord. Here’s our review:

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20+ Mesmerizing Memoirs/Biogs To Read Before You Die!

Kimber: “Memoirs? Biogs? Is that like when that Barbra lady sings about misty water-colored memories? Like in the movie with Robert Corvette?”

Mom: “The movie is The Way We Were, Kimster. And the actor is Robert Redford.”

Kimber: “You drive what you want and I’ll drive what I want… Wait. Where was I? Oh yeah. Memoirs and Biogs.  Guess we better start with some definitions:”

  • A memoir is usually a collection of memories written by the person themselves. It’s the story of a specific time, theme, or experience in a person’s life.
  • A biography presents chronological events from the life of a specific person. It’s the story of someone’s life told by someone else.
  • An autobiography is a person telling their own life story.

Got that? Great. Cuz we’re gonna color outside the lines a bit. Bring you some of All of the Above, under the general-ish category of Memoir/Biogs. (We’re using the terms a bit loosely. So don’t blow a gasket, okay?)

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‘Be Right Back’ Isn’t Your Average Book of Poetry – Here’s Why

Be Right Back – The Travelogues of a Wandering Mind

By Jeffrey Greenmun, 2023

Genre: Non-Fiction, Poetry (Don’t freak out, okay? More on that in a min.)

Pages: 174

Note: We received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Okay, okay. Quiet down in the back. Especially those of you who want to jump up and run screaming from the room the minute you hear the word “poetry.”

You know who you are.

So just hang on a min, okay? Cuz if poetry isn’t your cuppa, give Jeffrey Greenmun’s Be Right Back – The Travelogues of a Wandering Mind a chance. Articulate and eloquent, this delicious blend of poetry and biography may change your mind. Here’s the 4-1-1:

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Will You Remember ‘Sweethearts’?

Sweethearts:

The Timeless Love Affair – On-Screen and Off – Between Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy

By Sharon Rich

Published by; Donald I. Fine, Inc., 1994

Genre: Non-Fiction/Biography

Via: Library

Kimber: Let’s get one thing straight right out of the kennel, okay? Her Crankiness is a huge MacEddy fan. (For you young whipper-snappers, that’s a person who loves Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy films from Tinseltown’s Golden Era.)

So altho some MacEddy fans may rave about Sweethearts, ‘ole Stick in the Mud (Hi, Mom) disagrees. Somethin’ about ‘disappointing’ and ‘a one-way ticket to Snoozeville.’

We’ll get to why in a min. So kindly keep your hair on, okay? First, a little background:

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‘Purposeful Work, Blessed Rest’ A Breath of Fresh Air

Purposeful Work, Blessed Rest:

A 6-Week Devotional for Mothers

By Anna Hawkes Cabral, 2023

Genre: Non-Fiction/Inspirational

Via: Author request

Kimber here. Being all magnificent and everything. And letting you in on a little secret. So listen up. (Are you listening? Good!) I’m getting the Most Terrific-est, Woniferous, Splendiferous and All-Around PAW-somest person on the planet a little something special for a Really, Really Important Day.

Mom: Kimmi, are you talking about yourself again?

Kimber: Well. Maybe. But I’m really talking about Mother’s Day. (I’ll let you guess who that Really PAWsome person is. Besides me, of course.) Her Momness will fill you in on the rest:

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