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Twain's End by Lynn Cullen (Gallery)

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It begins with 1909. It's March. Unfortunately, it's not a autumnal month of the year. There is trouble, anger, jealousy, an affair, and guess who is involved? Mark Twain. I'm not a fan of Mark Twain. Well, I loved Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn. I've always felt unsafe with his racial values. Perhaps, I have judged him by his appearance: The white goatee, the white suit, the whole look. I just never wanted him to make me laugh. I wouldn't give in and read  "The Celebrated Jumping Frog Of Calveras County.  twain.lib.virginia.edu/huckfinn/jumpfrog.html   At last, I'm going to read this short story. It's followed me for years. I pray it won't make me laugh. If I laugh, it will mean Mark Twain is in line to become an author I like.I hope along the way to read to learn about this author's personal life. I'm already feeling sorry for that woman, but that's not right. Maybe I'm thinking of Anna Karenina. Well, I'm off to read about Isabel

Twain's End by Lynn Cullen (Gallery)

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It begins with 1909. It's March. Unfortunately, it's not a autumnal month of the year. There is trouble, anger, jealousy, an affair, and guess who is involved? Mark Twain. I'm not a fan of Mark Twain. Well, I loved Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn. I've always felt unsafe with his racial values. Perhaps, I have judged him by his appearance: The white goatee, the white suit, the whole look. I just never wanted him to make me laugh. I wouldn't give in and read  "The Celebrated Jumping Frog Of Calveras County.  twain.lib.virginia.edu/huckfinn/jumpfrog.html   At last, I'm going to read this short story. It's followed me for years. I pray it won't make me laugh. If I laugh, it will mean Mark Twain is in line to become an author I like. Yummy, the first page has taken me away to somewhere else where there is a "painting of the Pitti Palace in Florence." sbas.fi.it/english/musei/palatina/ This man, Mark Twain, is very complicated. He's not a Hum

The Curious Charms Of Arhur Pepper by Phaedra Patrick

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"He didn't even feel it. So he tried again, this time digging in his nails. He just wanted to feel something, physical pain, to tell him that he was alive, that this was all happening." adailyrhythm.com

The Bible and Me Retold by Lois Roc/illustrated by Alida Massari

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This is a simply written and beautiful written Bible book. Children and grown-ups will enjoy it. I especially relished looking at the colorful paintings. These pictures seemed to fit the stories so well.Then, there are the prayers and scriptures. All information is easy to find and fun to glance over again and again. The book begins with the Creation story and ends with the New Jerusalem. I would like to end by mentioning the poetry. One stanza in particular is great for grace before a meal. "At this table / Take your place: / Feast upon / God's love and grace." Both The Old Testament and New Testament are shared within the pages of the book. The content pages are very easy to follow allowing a reader to choose randomly what to read for that day or night. kregel.com/lois-rock/the-bible-and-me/

Murdered in Argentina by Dianne Harmann

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It has been a light and heavy week with " Murdered in Argentina" by Dianne Harman. The heavy part was the murder of Ray, a CEO, who loved Fly fishing. The light and fun part was the armchair visit to Argentina. I didn't know anything about Argentina. Now I know there is a high production of my favorite sweet, chocolate. There is also a high production of leather. I have to mention the foods which made me feel hungry for a bit of beef or tomatoes. I felt happy to see the recipes at the end of the novella. Oh, the Fly fishing was fun too. I thought of the movie titled A River Runs Through It." I have fallen in love with Dianne Harman's mysteries because they are simply written. There isn't a lot of folderol. At times she might slide into too much detail. However, this doesn't happen often. I really liked the fact that the solution in this one makes perfect sense. I shocked myself by solving bits of it before the end of all the drama. There is the w

The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead

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Colson Whitehead's The Underground Railroad has led to a desire to widen my net of genres. I haven't read Alternative Histories often. In this one, I felt deeply hurt not to read Harriet Tubman's name within the pages. However, I kept in mind that this is an invented history. A uniquely designed history is one where the author has the option to fictionalize the past as much as he or she may desire. I understand that point well. Therefore if I have a deep desire to read more research about Harriet Tubman I must choose another genre rather than an Alternative History. I did like reading about the tunnels and the railroad mechanisms. I tried very hard to gather a picture in my mind. Thinking that this railroad would not look like the engines I'm use to seeing. I could also feel the places in the novel where I thought Colson Whitehead's enthusiasm glowed. At times, I thought his light glowed too brightly. Then, I had to catch myself like a fisherman catc

brown girl dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson

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Naive? Maybe. I can't name anything bad about this book. Honestly. I loved the whole book. I especially liked learning about Jacqueline Woodson's family and sense of place through poetry. While reading the book, her family became my family. I won't forget her favorite uncle and his troubles. Neither will I forget her mother and her gentle way of teaching obedience. I will remember her friend, Maria and Maria's mother's cooking. I recalled the History of New York from what I had learned in my elementary school: the Dutch, Peter Stuyvesant and the slaves. In brown girl dreaming , I came away loving the trips so many of us have made from the North to the South and back again. I will think more about the role religion plays in our lives. I found it easy to put away the negative words I have heard about a place called Kingdom Hall and congregations called Jehovah Witnesses. Most of all I will continue to ponder the importance of a girl coming of age in the United St