Combining history and biography can be a challenge, especially when the setting is a world war. But two recently read books do that and more, offering compelling reads that shouldn’t be missed. Both are set in WWII.
Here they are:
10 Fabulous Reads for FALL!
“Fall is in the air!” Mom announced the other day. I’m not sure what that means. 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 stupid bright orange thingy she hauls me into whenever we go out in cold weather. Pay off: Coming home to a cozy spot in front of a nice, warm fireplace.
Anyway, Mom says fall is 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.)
Here are some of Mom’s top picks for the season. Some are old. Some are new. All are worthy reads. In no particular order:
Shout Out for ‘Bell Hammers’
Kimber here. “This looks fun!” says I to Mom. “And it’s not even bacon!”
This debut novel looks promising. It purportedly has a Mark Twain-ish ring to it (we love ‘ole Sam Clemens). We just don’t have time to read it right now.
But the author recently reached out to us. He asked for “a quick shout-out on your social media platforms on the 12th of October, the day it comes out.”
Well. Mom and I? We like to be helpful. So:
Shout out for Bell Hammers, a new novel that looks almost as good as crisp-fried bacon.
The book blurb includes:
Four generations of carpenters and lovers take on major oil and coal companies using pranks.
PRANKS. OIL. PROTEST. JOKES BETWEEN NEWLYWEDS.AND ONE HILARIOUS SIEGE OF A MAJOR CORPORATION.
Says the author:
Critics compare it to Mark Twain, but I compare it to my grandpa’s old pranks.
Bell Hammers comes out today. Find out more about Bell Hammers here.
How was that?
Rating System & Submission Guidelines
This might also be a good time to re-introduce our Rating System & Submission Guidelines.
We’re getting quite a few review requests that do not meet our submission parameters. Please save yourself and us some time and effort by taking a few minutes to read our submission guidelines prior to contacting us for a review. We’re picky, okay?
Thanks! and Woof!
AUTHOR INTERVIEW: Monique Roy On Art, Historical Fiction
You know we’re big historical fiction fans here, right? Kimber here. Mom and I, we love the creativity of a novel balanced with actual people, places, and events. We eat that stuff up like gourmet dog chow! So when we were asked to review a historical novel about Nazi looting of priceless art items from Jewish owners during World War II, we ate it up!
The book is A Savage Kultur. It’s by Monique Roy. Read our full review here.
We reached out to Monique and asked her to do a guest post, telling us a little more about herself and her book. Why historical fiction. Stuff like that. Monique agreed. Here’s her post. Take it away, Monique!
‘Thirteen Miracles’ & My New Best Bud!
Thirteen Miracles
Christian Fiction, 2020
Kimber the Magnificent here. Introducing my new best bud, Bebo. He’s a blue-eyed albino boxer dog. Super smart. Loyal. Dependable. Totally fearless. Solid as the Rock of Gibraltar. All-around awesome. You know. Like me.
Anyway, Bebo my new best bud is the hero of this cool book Mom and I recently read. It’s called Thirteen Miracles. Humans probably think this book is about a lady named Abby Welles. She kinda has a crisis of faith after her twin sister dies in a car wreck.
Depressed, confused, and running on faith fumes, Abby travels to Mexico to find Jose Luis Hernandez, aka: Destiny Man. He supposedly knows about miracles. Abby wants to research and write a book on the subject. She heads into the Sierra Madres and the Devil’s Backbone to try to make some sense of her life’s loose ends. What she finds is more than she bargained for as something dark and evil stalks her every step.
But Bebo steals the show.
Why “A Healing Touch” Isn’t – or – How to NOT Tick Off Mom
Happy Sunday Authors!
At least it’s a happy Sunday for some of us. Others who shall remain nameless are sulking (Hi, Mom!). Lemme explain.
Her Crankiness (hi again, Mom) is miff-ified at authors who waste her time by not adhering to and/or ignoring our submission guidelines when they request a review.
Case in point.
A Big Stretch
Back in August Mom got a review request for a “historical fiction” book “because many people turn to independent reviewers for realistic recommendations on what to read. Considering the current social, economic, and political climate, not only are readers looking for something new and different, many are wondering about young America’s beginnings as a nation. A Healing Touch speaks to this interest.”
We enjoy historical fiction. So we decided to dive in. Only to find out that “historical fiction” is a mighty big stretch for this thing.
Cuz what starts out as a story “of two people blazing trails into the Northwest Territory along the Ohio River in 1796” crashes big time in chapter 22. Here the author seems to forget where she is, jumping from historical fiction into porno. Too bad. It was a pretty good story up until that point.
Bye! Outta here! Doneski! Hasta la vista baby!
“Can’t believe I wasted two days on that,” grumbles Her Crankiness. Cuz there are two things that’ll get your book into the nearest round file (trash can), right off the puppy chow:
- Mistreating any animal, especially dogs, or
- Crap of the R-rated variety (or worse).
So don’t even go there. Don’t waste our time. It ticks us off. It gets you on our Kitty Litter List. You don’t want to be there, okay? (I’m telling you this so you won’t hawk up a hairball when we pan your stuff because you didn’t bother to read the submission guidelines. Think of it as a public service announcement.)
Speaking of Which
For the zillionth time, as noted in the first line of our Rating System & Submissions page (for anyone who could be bothered to read it):
We review fiction and nonfiction books rated G to PG-13. We don’t have the time or interest in anything else. (Occasional exceptions may be made on the basis of artistic merit. But that is rare.)
Stay Inside the Lines
The novel noted above colored outside these lines. Way outside. And nothing tees off Her Crankiness like authors who can’t or won’t follow simple instructions or who misrepresent their work. She will not be happy that you’ve wasted her time. (Not a good idea. Trust me on this.)
Since you’re still reading, however, you’re smarter than that. You’re up front about your book. Its genre, storyline and content. If you’re honest about that, we like you already. If you’re not, then off to the Big Kitty Litter Box in the Sky with you!
Are we clear here?
Between The “Light” We Cannot See
All the Light We Cannot See (Scribner – Simon & Schuster, 2014)
By Anthony Doerr
10 Best Books by The New York Times, 2014
National Book Award Finalist
Pulitzer Prize Winner – Fiction
True-ism: We’re not big fans of “Winner” books. Mom and me, we’ve been around long enough to realize that politics and too much other non-bookish stuff goes into handing out those kinds of awards. We don’t do auto-impress just cuz something has “prize winner” attached to it.
As in, Big Wow. Not.
This “Light” book, we’re not sure about yet. Finished it the other day. Didn’t exactly love it. But we didn’t hate it, either. We’re somewhere in between. Like….
AUTHOR INTERVIEW: ‘Dear Hero’ Authors Talk Co-Writing
Ever wonder how two people co-write a book? Where do the ideas come from? How do they coordinate the characters, action, pacing, dialogue and plot? What about details like who are the real heroes and villains? What about that “fine line” between love and hate?
We heard some answers to these questions and learned a little more about the process with YA authors Hope Bolinger and Alssya Roat. They co-wrote the new YA title, Dear Hero. This “superhero hero” romance was released on September 28 by INtense Publications.
Let’s listen in:
‘Euphrates Yield’ & Buying a Piglet
Euphrates Yield (Mascot Books, August 2020)
By David H. Hanks
Mystery/Thriller
The third and final installment in the Carson Griffin series, Euphrates Yield tries hard to be a Tom Clancy-esque mystery thriller and spy/espionage story with a high octane kick.
It falls short for several reasons.
Dark Secrets & Mysterious Menace Revealed in ‘A Savage Kultur’
A Savage Kultur
By Monique Roy
Historical Fiction
The art world is filled with secrets and a dark past.
Mystery abounds as Oxford art student Ava Goldman tries to unravel the truth about her family’s past with the help of her ailing grandmother, Gisela. It begins with a “chance” encounter with a uniformed Nazi on the banks of the Thames River in 2013, followed by a posthumous letter from Ava’s art loving grandfather, Karl. Vowing to find a priceless van Gogh painting plundered by the Nazis from her grandparents, Ava steps into a world of shadow, mystery, and menace.
Pages & Paws 