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Writing, Reading, and Rural Life With a Border Collie

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10 Fine Reads for Fall!

“Fall is in the air!” Mom announced the other day. I’m not sure what that means, exactly. But Mom is skipping merrily around the house, chirping about “fall colors,” “sweater weather” and “hot chocolate.” I’d be just as happy with a nice, thick New York steak. Whatever.

I figure it’s only a matter of time until Mom breaks out that orange thingy she hauls me into whenever we go out in cold weather. Pay off: Coming home to cozy spot in front of a nice, warm fireplace.

I know, I know. I’m adorable.

Anyway, Mom says it’s the first day of fall today. And a great time to grab a hot cuppa whatever and curl up next to a roaring fire with a good book! She’s got a list. Checked it twice. (I helped. The first list didn’t smell right.)

So to kick off the arrival of fall, here are some of Mom’s top picks for the season. Note that we received complimentary copies of these books in exchange for honest reviews. Some are old. Some are new. In no particular order:

1. The Samaritan’s Patient – Chevron Ross

Paige Abernathy wakes up in a hospital and doesn’t remember a thing. Not her name or birthdate. Not her address or phone. Not friends or family. All the hospital staff knows is that some guy in a business suit found her beaten to a pulp on a Texas bridge, brought her in to the E.R. and disappeared.

Questions swirl in this fast-paced and riveting read: Who is Paige Abernathy? What happened to her? Where does she belong? Why was she standing on a bridge in the middle of nowhere dressed in a ballgown, dance shoes, and a tiara? Why does she have so many enemies? Who’s trying to kill her, and why?

Marinated in mercy and seasoned with hope, this gently faith-flavored novel simmers with transcendent themes as it serves up a heaping helping of hope. It’s a heartfelt and captivating read that will resonate long after the last page is turned. Bravo!

2. Mother To Elephants: The Story of Daphne Sheldrick – R.G. de Rouen

Nicknamed “The Elephant Mother” because of her lifelong devotion to these magnificent pachyderms, Daphne Sheldrick’s life story is skillfully chronicled in this delightful picture book. The part about how many of the former elephant orphans return to visit Daphne after growing up and being set free is so endearing.

Indeed, Mother to Elephants is a terrific read! It’s not only an engaging story, it also raises awareness about the plight of elephants and the dangers they face from poachers. Young readers will find great empathy, sensitivity, insight, and awe in these pages. The text gently imparts fascinating facts about elephants as well as valuable lessons about treating animals with respect and compassion. And don’t miss the Elefacts at the end!

Mom loved this book! It’s a little Out of Africa (Isak Dinesen). A little Born Free: A Lioness of Two Worlds (Joy Adamson.) And all heart. With a gripping true story, bright and beautiful illustrations, and a magnificent real-life setting, Mother to Elephants is sure to delight young readers and their parents alike.

3. Out of the Dust – Karen Hesse

Powerful and poignant, this award-winning story is set in the Oklahoma Dust Bowl of the Great Depression. The author’s masterful use of spare free verse propels this story right off the pages. You can almost taste the dust and hear Billie Jo’s piano.

4. Dead By Proxy – Manning Wolfe

Most people don’t get to attend their own funeral. Or hear their eulogy. But criminal defense attorney Byron Douglas does both in this gripping legal thriller by Manning Wolfe. Indeed, it’s a case of out of the frying pan, into the fire for Byron Douglas in this riveting read that expertly teams courtroom drama and legal maneuvering with imminent danger, spine-tingling suspense, a touch of romance, and non-stop action. Talk about an adrenaline rush!

5.  Mystery at Sea Edge: A Monterey Adventure – J. Margaret Bell

When Wick Farrington and his sister arrive on California’s central coast for the summer, the kids have no idea what mysteries and discoveries await in J. Margaret Bell’s imminently engaging and thoroughly enjoyable historical fiction novel, Mystery at Sea Edge: A Monterey Adventure.

Searching for an elusive figure who seemed to be spying on them the previous day, Wick, his sister Rindy, and new friend Les find a gold locket entangled on a bush. Then they find an old, weather-beaten “Gingerbread House.” The house belongs to a strange old man named Garcia. Let’s just say that Garcia isn’t exactly a warm and fuzzy kind of guy. He prefers to be left alone.

On a visit to a nearby wharf the next day, Les notices a boy with what appears to be the other half of the gold locket. What’s up with that?

The fog and the plot thicken when Wick, Rindy, Les, and their new pal Joe visit a museum. They find a mannequin there with a gold locket that looks just like Joe’s! What’s up with that 2.0? The plot – and the fog– thicken some more when some old letters are discovered inside the Gingerbread House. And also… Oh, wait. You’ll have to read the book yourself to find out what happens next. But lemme tell ya, it’s one humdinger of a story. It also makes history fun!

6. Death by Pitbull – Richard Morris

Are pit bulls aggressive, unpredictable dogs with the potential to kill anything that moves? Or are they loyal and lovable family pets who are too often misunderstood, the victims of bad press and unfounded fear?

Attorney Richard Morris takes an in-depth look at the pit bull controversy in his new and highly engaging book, Death by Pitbull: Bred to Kill. Powerful, articulate, and persuasive, this highly readable book takes a close look at a “high-risk” dog and its dangers. Intense and riveting!

7. Library of Lost Souls – Ransom Riggs

Library of Lost Souls serves up a fantastical smorgasborg of plucky heroes and heroines like Jacob and Emma, stubborn ymbrenes like Miss Peregrine, dastardly, double-crossing siblings (Caul and Bentham), and incredible  adventures amid a riveting plot peppered with alternate realities. It packs a wallop from start to finish. The prose is also top-notch, with enough dry humor and rapier wit to thaw the chilliest Yeth-faru or wake the worst ambro addict.

This may be the best book in the entire “Peculiar” series.

8. The Family Romanov: Murder, Rebellion, and the Fall of Imperial Russia – Candace Fleming

Almost Shakespeare-eque in its scope, depth, and sense of tragedy, this is a history that reads like a novel. Meticulously researched and thoroughly documented, this intriguing look at Russia’s last tsar and his family may be the definitive work on the subject.

Candace Fleming pierces the veil of mystery and secrecy surrounding the final, tragic fate of the Romanovs with primary source material, a generous amount of photos, and great dignity. If you want to better understand what happened to Russia’s last family dynasty and why, this book is for you.

9. Partners in Time – Nicholas Hodgson

Time travel can have unintended consequences. Just ask Harry or his friend Jett. Both step into alternate histories with horrifying implications when they discover a mysterious door. Now the boys must muster all their courage and wits to go back in time and prevent an unthinkable future from taking place in the high voltage, rip-roarin’ page-turner, Partners in Time.

When investigating a mysterious door in a basement of the British Museum in 1941, Harry suddenly finds himself in New Zealand – in 2022!

When the boys return to London 1941, they find a Nazi swastika flag flying over Buckingham Palace. And New Zealand is a colony under Nazi administration.

Now Harry and Jett must go back in time and set things right. All they have to do is find a secret tunnel under Westminster Abbey, break into one of the most secure places in the world, and steal an ancient artifact. Without getting caught by Nazi guards who are swarming all over the place. What could possibly go wrong?

10. Hudson’s Piratey Summer – Mason Bell

Ahoy, me hearties! Is your middle schooler buried in Boringsville, USA? Stuck in Snooze City? Then grab a copy of Hudson’s Piratey Summer and join Hudson Bell as he sets sail for a pirate adventure brimming with scoundrels, scallywags, traitorous scum, relatives, and an evil mermaid queen.

A potent blend of magic, time travel, adventure, hidden treasure, evil queen mermaids, and pacts between pirates, this fun-loving frolic also includes rapier wit, plenty of action and double bacon cheeseburgers. Ahoy! Cuz this rip-roarin’ fantasy read is up to its crow’s nest in ayes and args. Besides. “How often does a kid get to swim with mermaids, much less be kissed by one?”

What would you add?

***

Now if I can just remember where Mom stashed that steak. Hmmm.


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5 Fine Reads for Fall (or anytime)

HAPPY FALL YA’LL!

Mom’s at it again. She’s skipping around the house chirping about sweater weather. Pumpkins. Leaves changing clothes. And FALL! I have no idea what that means. But you know Mom!

Squirrel!

Wait. Where was I? Oh yeah. Fall and reading. Like we noted before, Mom says fall is perfect for curling up with a good book and a cuppa hot whatever. She made a list of recent reads that fill the bill. Checked it twice. (I helped. The first list didn’t smell right.)

Anyway, here are some of our top picks for the season. In no particular order:

1.Gone to the Woods: Surving a Lost Childhood (Farrar Straus Girous Books/Macmillan, 2021)

By Gary Paulsen

Non-fiction/Memoir

Via: Library

“One of the most remarkable memoirs I’ve ever read” – Mom

Gary Paulsen has long been a favorite author. We love his simple, almost terse style of storytelling about nature and outdoor adventures. So when this book came along, we snapped it up quick.

Can’t Skim or Skip

Some books you can skim. Skip through pages or chapters like a game of hop scotch. Gone to the Woods: Surviving a Lost Childhood isn’t one of them. This is the kind of book you have to slow down for. You’ll want to savor each chapter. Suck the marrow out of every paragraph and sentence.

Gripping & Compelling

Indeed, the story of how Paulsen survived his turbulent childhood is gripping. Compelling. Contents include The Farm, The River, The Ship, Thirteen, and Soldier. All are vintage Paulsen: Real and raw.

Backstory

With absentee/alcoholic parents, Paulsen pretty much raised himself. There were only two places he felt safe: the woods and later, the library.

He describes living in a basement at age 13 to escape his drunken parents. It’s “blue winter.” Paulsen stumbles into a library to get warm. With the help of a kind-hearted librarian, Paulsen discovers the wonderful world of books and reading. It changes his life.

This is Paulsen at his most powerful and riveting. An exceptional achievement.

Hardcover Soldier's Heart: Being the Story of the Enlistment and Due Service of the Boy Charley Goddard in the First Minnesota Volunteers Book2. Soldier’s Heart

By Gary Paulsen

Historical Fiction

Via: Library

“There’s always fear and there’s always a meadow.” – Soldier’s Heart

Charley Goddard didn’t really know what  a “shooting war” meant when he lied about his age, 15, to enlist with the First Minnesota Volunteers.  He didn’t really understand why he was fighting. He just didn’t want to miss out on “a great adventure.”

In this fast-paced, based-on-fact historical fiction, it doesn’t take long for Charley to discover the true face of war – and all its horrors – from the first Battle of Bull Run to Gettysburg.

Giving Voice

Soldier’s Heart gives voice to all the anonymous young men who fought and died in the Civil War. It is brutal. Chilling. Heartbreaking. And not to be missed. At just 102 pages, you can read it cover-to-cover in an afternoon. We did.

Another absorbing Paulsen read.

3. Neverhome

By Laird Hunt

Historical Fiction

Via: Library

A farmer’s wife disguises herself as a young man and marches into the U.S. Civil War to fight for the Union.

Compelling & Mysterious

In this compelling, mysterious read, “Gallant Ash” becomes a hero, a traitor, a madwoman, and a legend.

Told in the first person in short, staccato sentences, Neverhome makes the Civil War stand up and walk as “Ash” provides eye witness accounts of the bloody battlefield of war. Also intense longing. Suffocating loneliness. Sweat-drenched fear. Fierce devotion. Confusion and bewilderment as thick as a pea soup fog.

The narrative has an authentic first-person quality to it, with phrases common to the language of the period. It reads like you’re looking over the writer’s shoulder as she pens letters home or drafts entries into her diary.

Why?

Swirling throughout the story is the inevitable undercurrent of “Why?” Why did this woman leave her home and husband and join the war in the first place? Readers are kept guessing in this intriguing, unusual account of some of the bloodiest years in U.S. history.

4. Night Swiftly Falling

By Tricia D. Wagner

Fiction/Novella/Juvenile Fiction

Via: Reedsy/Discovery

Tragedy is narrowly averted when eight year-old Swift and his best friend and fellow pirate, Ash, suddenly discover the power of the restless sea.

The Story

After being warned not to play by the water alone, Ash tumbles into the deep. Frantic, Swift calls for help. But no one comes. So he dives in after Ash – and emerges with a fractured friendship.

Bewildered and confused by Ash’s sudden rejection post-rescue, Swift struggles with a friendship fabric torn asunder. As his older brother, Caius, helps Swift slowly realize he can’t control others, Swift discovers the anguish and frustration that accompanies the desire to help someone who needs help but can’t or won’t accept it.

How?

As Swift mourns a friendship gone south, he slowly learns that sometimes letting go is all that’s left. And that change “is the nature of life.” But “how not to lose oneself?” Swift wonders. “How not to lose those you love in the face of unstoppable pain?”

Tightly Woven

This is one of the most clever, contemplative books I’ve read in awhile. In addition to a tightly woven plot, the author demonstrates a masterful command of the language in every paragraph that’ll keep you turning pages until the end.

Propelled by delicious prose, Night Swiftly Falling is also poignant and heartfelt. It’s relatively short – just seven chapters. But this beautifully written novella packs a punch. It’s honest and hopeful at the same time. A triumph.

5. Listen to Me: How My Down Syndrome Brother Saved My Life

By Lynne Podrat

Via: Reedsy/Discovery

This book opens in August 2020 as the author watches the original Star Trek TV series with her Down Syndrome brother. “Brucie” has been diagnosed with kidney disease and pancreatic cancer at age fifty-three.

The rest of the book is a retrospective on Bruce’s life and the impact he had on not just the author but on many others as well.

Mission Change

Intent on becoming a veterinarian, the author’s life mission changes from saving animals to saving Bruce and children like him. While focusing on Bruce’s life and his unique challenges, the narrative also touches on family interactions and events such as bar and bat mitzvahs, weddings, graduations, and later, trips to the hospital for Bruce as his health deteriorates. Through it all, Bruce remains a “source of heartache and inspiration.”

To ‘Open and Enrich’

The author writes that her plans for Bruce were “to open and enrich his world.” In the end, however, she realizes how being with Bruce “accomplished so much more.” She realizes how this “sweet small man” and “Brucie’s” capacity to love and to “just go on because there was no other choice” profoundly influenced her life. And how Bruce opened and enriched her world.

I’d bring tissue ‘fize you. 

 

 

What are you reading?