Quote of the Day, Redwall movie, The Soul of A Woman by Isabel Allende, President Obama Thanks Booksellers, Come Fly the World: The Jet-Age Story of the Women of Pan Am, by Julia Cooke, The Paris Library by Janet Skeslein Charles, The Woman in the Green Dress by Tea Cooper and Wish Upon a Straw by Devon Monk

Hello Bibliophiles! Turns out that the COVID vaccinations were cancelled due to the storms in the Midwest where they're manufacturing the vaccine, so they couldn't get the trucks out to the West Coast because they were snowed in. Mail has been delayed and packages haven't been delivered, so everything's on hold until later this week. So that light at the end of the tunnel is going to take awhile to appear fully, unfortunately. Meanwhile, I am waiting on some books to be delivered, and I've been reading a lot of books on my Kindle Paperwhite. I've also noticed that since the quarantine began a year ago, I watch most of my TV shows and movies online, rather than on the TV. I used to watch DVDs from Redbox, but I rarely do that now. Netflix and CBS All Access and Amazon Prime Video are my top three favorites, with Apple + and Disney not too far behind. So grab your popcorn or snack, sit for a spell and watch a good story unfold on your streaming service of choice!

I totally agree with Adam Stern...bookstores are the heart of community

Quotation of the Day

Bookstores 'More Needed than Ever'

"The twin pillars of independent bookstores are browsing and community.... Bookstores--places that nurture learning and discussion, champion diverse voices and ideas, celebrate language, treasure knowledge and connect the past with our chaotic present to show us how we might go forward--are more needed than ever. We must do everything we can to support them now, before it is too late because they are hubs of building what Martin Luther King Jr. called the Beloved Community, centered on justice, equality and love."--Adam Stern, bookseller at the Seminary Co-op http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz47467941, Chicago, Ill., in an op-ed published by the Chicago Tribune

I used to read the Redwall books to my son when he was little. I'm looking forward to the film and TV series.

Movies: Redwall

A new rights deal between Netflix and Penguin Random House Children will result in the Redwall http://www.shelfawareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz47468000 books by Brian Jacques being adapted into a film and TV series. Variety reported that the deal "marks the first time that the film rights to the entire book series have been held by the same company and the first time a feature film of any of Jacques's works will be made."

Patrick McHale, creator of Cartoon Network's Over the Garden Wall, will write the film, based on Jacques's first book in the series, Redwall. Netflix is also developing an event series based on the character Martin the Warrior.

Ben Horslen, fiction publisher, Penguin Random House Children's, said, "These perennially popular stories have been etched onto the hearts of millions of readers, and we are thrilled to partner with Netflix to bring those beloved characters on screen for families worldwide to enjoy."

 This book sounds fantastic...I hope that I get the chance to read it before the end of the year.

Book Review: The Soul of a Woman

"Women's emancipation is not incompatible with femininity," declares Chilean novelist Isabel Allende (A Long Petal of the Sea in her fifth nonfiction book, The Soul of a Woman. "Quite the opposite: I think they are complementary." In this slim memoir-cum-manifesto, Allende, a passionate feminist since age five by her own estimation, recounts her experiences with the patriarchy as a young woman, her early career as a journalist and translator, and her eventual success as a novelist (and a thrice-married woman). In the book's second half, Allende details some of the atrocities faced by women around the world and makes a cogent case for changing laws and policies to empower women and ensure their rights, reproductive and otherwise.

Best known for her novels featuring strong women, Latin American politics and magical realism (The House of the Spirits; The Stories of Eva Luna), Allende is also a long-time supporter of vulnerable women and girls through her eponymous foundation. She recounts her own early experiences as the daughter of a single mother, Panchita, who was forced to take refuge with her father (Isabel's grandfather) after her husband disappeared. As a young girl, Allende saw her mother dominated by men with economic and political power, and she vowed not to live her life the same way. Determined to forge her own path, she worked in TV and magazine journalism before turning to fiction. She peppers this brief autobiography with wry asides about political systems that routinely oppress women, the conflicting messages women receive about beauty and power, and the newfangled ideas about gender politics that her grandchildren bring to her attention. Some of Allende's comments on changing cultural practices sound like the musings of an older woman reflecting on the way things used to be. However, her comments on the value of passion, the unexpectedness of romantic love and the absolute value of women as human beings are both timeless and timely.

Allende's narrative rambles at times, but she never loses sight of her chief objective: to celebrate women's worth and value, and urge readers to stand up for the women in their lives, including themselves. Readers of Allende's fiction and memoirs will enjoy this sharp, thoughtful, often charmingly irascible glimpse into the author's fiercely feminist soul. She comments, "I am not interested in the warrior's rest; I'd rather keep some ardency of mind and blood." The Soul of a Woman is--among other things--an ardent call to keep fighting the good fight. --Katie Noah Gibson mailto:katieleigh83@gmail.com, blogger at Cakes, Tea and Dreams http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz47499623

 My favorite president is such a great guy and a wonderful reader that it doesn't surprise me that he developed a love of reading as a child. And I also used to find books at garage sales, and beg my mom for a dime or a quarter to buy them.

 

 President Obama Thanks Booksellers for 'Everything'

At the opening of the 2012 Winter Institute yesterday, President Obama sent this grateful message via video to booksellers:

Growing up, whenever I was nagging my mom, whenever I told her I was bored or distracted her while she was at work, she'd tell me to pick up a book. And over time, reading became my refuge, a world I could escape to no matter what else was going on in my life. Now as a teenager, there were a few years when I spent more time bouncing basketballs and chasing romance than exploring literature, as my grades attested. But one of the most formative moments in my life came around 10th grade, when my grandparents took me to a rummage sale and I found myself in front of a bin of old hardcover books. As I write about it in A Promised Land, for

some reason I started pulling out titles that appealed to me or sounded vaguely familiar. There were books by Ralph Ellison, Langston Hughes,

Robert Penn Warren, and Dostoevsky, D.H. Lawrence and Ralph Waldo

Emerson. My grandfather gave me a confused look when I walked up with my box full of books. He joked, 'What, you planning on opening a library?'

My grandmother shushed him. She was happy that I was reading. Though she did say I might want to finish my homework before digging into Crime and Punishment.

 

And so I read all those books and found that they were expanding my mind and filling my spirit and broadening my sense of possibility and helping me sort through a budding identity, who I was and how I might want to live. And I went on to pick up a lot more books, at rummage sales and libraries and bookstores like yours. And that's why I want to record this video for all of you. Because what happened to me you're providing to so many other kids and teenagers and adults around the world, the same thing that those rummage sales first provided me.

 

You aren't selling books. You're selling knowledge, discovery, wisdom,

empathy, access to thoughts and worlds that readers have never experienced before. And by virtue of them experiencing the lives of others through books, they start understanding themselves better. So as a reader and as an author, I couldn't be more grateful for the work that all of you do every single day, especially during such a tough year. Thank you all for everything. I hope to see some of you again in person soon, in bookstores or libraries in your community.

 

This quote really spoke to me, as I have often felt that booksellers and authors and librarians all had a hand in saving my soul, and raising me from an isolated asthmatic child to a woman who made her living with words as a journalist.

Jennifer Finney Boylan http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz47501384 advised that if "you want to open people's hearts, if you want to inspire passion and fire and resistance, there's no other way to go about it than by writing books, by publishing books, by selling books. I would be shocked if there were not plenty of days when many of you, many of us, have simply felt worn down by our working lives....

"I'm here to remind you that sometimes the frustrating work that we do makes a huge difference. In a world of bullshit, it is an act of defiance, an act of resistance and an act of love. So, from the bottom of my heart, on behalf of all the authors who are represented by the thousands and thousands of books all of you help to bring into the world, I just want to say thank you. The work we do may not seem glamorous sometimes, but truly, on a good day, we really are all in the business of saving souls."

 

Another book that I'd really love to read, because there used to be such a mystique about stewardesses, especially the chic Pam Am women with their smart outfits and handbags and hats...they always looked so glamorous. I would bet the stories in this book are really juicy and fascinating.

Book Review: Come Fly the World: The Jet-Age Story of the Women of Pan Am

In the golden age of air travel, Pan Am stewardesses were a symbol of independence, glamour and sexual empowerment. They were beautiful, college-educated, skilled in diplomacy and crowd control (as well as navigating tight spaces, turbulence and even war zones). But they were also real women, with varied backgrounds and experiences both on the ground and in the air. In her second nonfiction book, Come Fly the World, journalist Julia Cooke explores the rise and fall of Pan Am against the backdrop of the Vietnam War and rapidly changing--if often inconsistent--attitudes toward women in the workplace.

Cooke (The Other Side of Paradise) conducted extensive interviews with former stewardesses, and she devotes large chunks of her narrative to their perspectives. A small-town girl from upstate New York, a young Norwegian woman who would eventually make her home in California, a woman who became one of Pan Am's first Black stewardesses--all of them came to the airline seeking adventure and a chance to make their own way. They went through rigorous training and dealt with sexism (covert and overt) in every area, from their uniforms' fit to the smiles they were expected to give passengers. More importantly, they learned valuable skills and embraced international adventures: swimming in multiple oceans, visiting cities they'd only dreamed about, even handling hijackings and other tense situations on board.

As the Vietnam War dragged on, many stewardesses helped ferry American GIs to or from combat zones. The experience affected them deeply and gave them a new perspective on both anti-war protests and hawkish government attitude back in the States. When President Gerald Ford ordered the evacuation of nearly 3,000 war "orphans" from Vietnam in 1975, Pan Am stewardesses were an integral part of what became known as Operation Babylift. They were simply doing their jobs, but they became a part of history by showing up to work.

Cooke's narrative examines the shifts in attitudes and regulations relating to women in the workplace, as well as the balancing act of standing up to sexism while keeping a job. She traces the careers of a few women who refused to quit flying when they got married, pursued managerial positions, or both. She also explores the decline of luxury air travel, the effects of various political events on the industry, and the enduring stereotypes surrounding flight attendants and their work.

Thoughtful, well-researched and utterly engaging, Come Fly the World is smart escapist journalism and a tribute to hundreds of women who were much more than just a crew of pretty faces. --Katie Noah Gibson, blogger at Cakes, Tea and Dreams http://www.shelfawareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz47535947

The Paris Library by Janet Skeslein Charles is a gorgeous and engaging novel that takes place in Paris in 1939 through the end of WWII, and in Montana in 1983. Though the two places couldn't seem more distinct and different, the lives of the two women protagonists have much of the same anxieties and problems fitting into their surroundings, and they find books to be a connector to their past, present and future. Here's the blurb: Based on the true World War II story of the heroic librarians at the American Library in Paris, this is an unforgettable story of romance, friendship, family, and the power of literature to bring us together, perfect for fans of The Lilac Girls and The Paris Wife.

Paris, 1939: Young and ambitious Odile Souchet has it all: her handsome police officer beau and a dream job at the American Library in Paris. When the Nazis march into Paris, Odile stands to lose everything she holds dear, including her beloved library. Together with her fellow librarians, Odile joins the Resistance with the best weapons she has: books. But when the war finally ends, instead of freedom, Odile tastes the bitter sting of unspeakable betrayal.

Montana, 1983: Lily is a lonely teenager looking for adventure in small-town Montana. Her interest is piqued by her solitary, elderly neighbor. As Lily uncovers more about her neighbor’s mysterious past, she finds that they share a love of language, the same longings, and the same intense jealousy, never suspecting that a dark secret from the past connects them.

A powerful novel that explores the consequences of our choices and the relationships that make us who we are—family, friends, and favorite authors—The Paris Library shows that extraordinary heroism can sometimes be found in the quietest of places. 

The first question that I had about this book, after reading it, was what happened to Odile's first husband Paul? It's like he was a plot device that was used and then he just disappeared into thin air! That said, the prose was elegant and vital, while the plot raced along on dove's wings. It was a page-turner that kept me up until the wee hours. However, as there were some questions left unanswered at the end, I've got to give this book an A- instead of a straight A, and recommend it to those who want a birds eye view of what the cost of heroism was to those stuck in Paris during the Nazi occupation. Also the cost of being scapegoated as a woman, while the male perpetrators go free. 

The Woman in the Green Dress by Tea Cooper was an ebook that I snagged for a low price on Amazon. This book was about two different eras in Australian history that are connected by opals and taxidermy, as odd as that may seem. Here's the blurb:

A cursed opal, a gnarled family tree, and a sinister woman in a green dress emerge in the aftermath of World War I.

After a whirlwind romance, London teashop waitress Fleur Richards can’t wait for her new husband, Hugh, to return from the Great War. But when word of his death arrives on Armistice Day, Fleur learns he has left her a sizable family fortune. Refusing to accept the inheritance, she heads to his beloved home country of Australia in search of the relatives who deserve it more.

In spite of her reluctance, she soon finds herself the sole owner of a remote farm and a dilapidated curio shop full of long-forgotten artifacts, remarkable preserved creatures, and a mystery that began more than sixty-five years ago. With the help of Kip, a repatriated soldier dealing with the sobering aftereffects of war, Fleur finds herself unable to resist pulling on the threads of the past. What she finds is a shocking story surrounding an opal and a woman in a green dress. . . a story that, nevertheless, offers hope and healing for the future.

This romantic mystery from award-winning Australian novelist Tea Cooper will keep readers guessing until the astonishing conclusion.

“Readers of Kate Morton and Beatriz Williams will be dazzled. The Woman in the Green Dress spins readers into an evocative world of mystery and romance in this deeply researched book by Tea Cooper. There is a Dickensian flair to Cooper’s carefully constructed world of lost inheritances and found treasures as two indomitable women stretched across centuries work to reconcile their pasts while reclaiming love, identity and belonging against two richly moving historical settings. As soon as you turn the last page you want to start again just to see how every last thread is sewn in anticipation of its thrilling conclusion. One of the most intelligent, visceral and vibrant historical reads I have had the privilege of visiting in an age.” —Rachel McMillan, author of The London Restoration

I agree with Rachel McMillan that there is a Dickensian flair to Cooper's prose, and the characters she has created are just as memorable as some of Dicken's heroes and heroines and chilly villains. The plot is just winding enough to make the journey interesting, and yet it never flags or slows down so the reader gets stuck. And I have to admit, SPOILER, that I didn't see the "dead body in the basement" scene coming at all...I was flabbergasted! I was also surprised to learn how ubiquitous arsenic was in the 19th century, used to help tan hides and prepare animals for taxidermy, as well as used to make a green coloring that was put into fabric, wallpaper and makeup. I wonder how many people died before someone finally figured out that arsenic was deadly in all its forms? Anyway, I enjoyed this book and would give it a B+, and recommend it to anyone who is interested in 19th and early 20th century Australia.

Wish Upon a Straw by Devon Monk is a story from an anthology called "Once Upon A Wish," which contains 17 fairy tale reboot/reimagined stories. As you can surmise from the title of her story, Monk has taken the Rumplestiltskin story and turned it on it's head, with a smart female protagonist who figures out what she wants and what Rumple the fae wants and manages to get everyone what they most desire for an HEA ending. The fact that there are dragons involved is a bonus. As usual, Monk's prose is expertly wrought, full of wit and warmth, and her plot is picture perfect, making the story seem all too short. I haven't read any of the other stories in the anthology, mainly because I don't recognize the authors and I dislike wasting time on stories that aren't up to the high standards set by Devon Monk's work. However, I might still take a look at them if I find myself hard pressed for a quick read. I'd give this particular tale an A, and recommend it to anyone who has ever wondered if someone could get the better of the famous Rumplestiltskin. 

 

Colbert Spotlights Indie Bookstore, This Was Our Pact Movie, The Wizard of Oz Remake and Free Radicals, The Last Tiara by MJ Rose, My Funny Valentine by Debbie Macomber, Lord of Stariel by A.J.Lancaster, Empire of Ash by LRW Lee, and Moonburner by Clare Luana

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY to all my book loving friends! Read a romantic book tonight and enjoy some chocolate (or sweets of your choice!) I've had a great day and have scheduled my first appointment for the COVID 19 vaccine on the 20th! That will make it almost exactly one year since I've been in quarantine here at home. There's light at the end of the tunnel, finally!

I adore Stephen Colbert and his wonderful wit and sense of humor...I think it's fantastic that he's helping out a small indie bookstore during the pandemic.

Colbert's Late Show Spotlights N.C. Bookstore

Last night, on his special post-Super Bowl edition of The Late Show, Stephen Colbert featured a commercial for an unlikely business http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz47398862: Foggy Pine Books http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz47398863 in Boone, N.C. Colbert explained, "Big companies aren't the ones that need our support the most right now. It's small businesses that have been hurt the most in this pandemic. Of course a small business could never afford the millions of dollars it would cost to produce and run an ad on CBS tonight, which is why we here The Late Show have decided to just pick one and just give it to them."

The ad, which opens with a skydiver plummeting from a plane, features Sam Elliott, who narrates ("every book is an adventure waiting to happen"), and "satisfied customer" Tom Hanks ("Foggy Pine Books has the best selection in all of Boone. They have books on all of my interests, such as World War II, and also books about the events from 1939-45").

The bookstore tweeted, "We are so excited & honored to be featured on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert! Welcome everyone!!"

 

Peter D as a bear? Say no more, I'm there for this!

Movies: This Was Our Pact

Peter Dinklage will produce the upcoming animated film This Was Our Pact http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz47400669, based on the graphic novel by Ryan Andrews, Variety reported, adding that Dinklage is also voicing one of the lead characters--a "mysterious and charismatic bear."

Dinklage and David Ginsberg's production company Estuary Films is collaborating on the project with veteran animator Ken Duncan's Duncan Studio team. Will Collins, screenwriter of Golden Globe-nominated Wolfwalkers and Oscar-nominated Song of the Sea, will write the script.

"I'm delighted to be a part of the team tasked with adapting This Was Our Pact into an animated feature," Collins said. "Ryan Andrews created a gem of a coming-of-age story which takes the reader on a journey through a unique, mysterious and beautiful place. From the outset I knew these boys, I knew the joy and pain of their friendship, and I willed that friendship to triumph with every turn of the page. It's a pleasure to be collaborating with Ken Duncan and the talented team at Duncan Studio and Estuary Films to bring this story to life."

Duncan added: "This Was Our Pact is a fantastic tale full of twists and turns, but at its heart is the relationships between the characters, and their developed friendship. We're excited to capture the unique qualities of the book, in the visual style as well as storytelling--it is utterly captivating and enchanting. With Will Collins coming on as our writer, we know this will be a film that will thrill the many fans of the graphic novel and help Ryan Andrews' wonderful work discover new audiences."

More movies I'm very interested in seeing, the remake of the Wizard of Oz! I don't know how they will beat the original 1939 musical, which I grew up watching (and being terrified of the Wicked Witch of the West and her flying monkeys!) but it's very brave of them to try!

Movies: The Wonderful Wizard of Oz; Free Radicals

Nicole Kassell (Watchmen) will direct New Line's film adaptation of L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz47431297, Deadline reported, noting that this is "a major priority project for the studio and a big star-making opportunity for Kassell.... Her selection follows an extensive director search by New Line to find a visionary filmmaker to re-imagine The Wonderful Wizard of Oz." Temple Hill partners Marty Bowen and Wyck Godfrey are producing with Marc Platt. Isaac Klausner will be executive producer.

"I am incredibly honored to join Temple Hill and New Line in bringing this beloved classic to the screen," Kassell said. "While the 1939 musical is part of my DNA, I am exhilarated and humbled by the responsibility of re-imagining such a legendary tale. The opportunity to examine the original themes--the quest for courage, love, wisdom and home--feels more timely and urgent than ever. These are profoundly iconic shoes to fill, and I am eager to dance alongside these heroes of my childhood as we pave a newly minted yellow brick road."

Miramax has optioned Alice Munro's short story "Free Radicals," which will be adapted by writer-director Xia Magnus and producer Alyssa Polk, with Magnus also attached to direct, Deadline reported. Free Radicals http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz47431298 will be produced by Jon Shestack, who brought the package to Miramax."The story, like so much of Alice Munro's work, is dark and intelligent," Shestack said. "The encounter between the main characters is so unexpected and intense, it feels like it was conceived for the screen."

 Here are the reviews of my latest e-reads and regular dead-tree reads for the week.

The Last Tiara by MJ Rose is probably the 13th book of hers that I've read, and loved. Rose's prose is always sterling, her plots swift and her stories mesmerizing. I'm a huge fan of how she world builds and populates her historical fiction with unforgettable characters that linger long after the book is finished. Here's the blurb: From New York Times bestseller M.J. Rose comes a provocative and moving story of a young female architect in post-World War II Manhattan, who stumbles upon a hidden treasure and begins a journey to discovering her mother’s life during the fall of the Romanovs.

Sophia Moon had always been reticent about her life in Russia and when she dies, suspiciously, on a wintry New York evening, Isobelle despairs that her mother’s secrets have died with her. But while renovating the apartment they shared, Isobelle discovers something among her mother’s effects—a stunning silver tiara, stripped of its jewels.

Isobelle’s research into the tiara’s provenance draws her closer to her mother’s past—including the story of what became of her father back in Russia, a man she has never known. The facts elude her until she meets a young jeweler, who wants to help her but is conflicted by his loyalty to the Midas Society, a covert international organization whose mission is to return lost and stolen antiques, jewels, and artwork to their original owners.

Told in alternating points of view, the stories of the two young women unfurl as each struggles to find their way during two separate wars. In 1915, young Sofiya Petrovitch, favorite of the royal household and best friend of Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna, tends to wounded soldiers in a makeshift hospital within the grounds of the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg and finds the love of her life. In 1948 New York, Isobelle Moon works to break through the rampant sexism of the age as one of very few women working in a male-dominated profession and discovers far more about love and family than she ever hoped for.

In M.J. Rose’s deftly constructed narrative, the secrets of Sofiya’s early life are revealed incrementally, even as Isobelle herself works to solve the mystery of the historic Romanov tiara (which is based on an actual Romanov artifact that is, to this day, still missing)—and how it is that her mother came to possess it. The two strands play off each other in finely-tuned counterpoint, building to a series of surprising and deeply satisfying revelations.

Like most of her books, I couldn't put The Last Tiara down, and read it all the way through in a day and evening. My only problem with the book was SPOILER ALERT, I found it hard to believe that Izzy's father was still alive and yet never came to find her, and the whole ending seemed a bit too far fetched, though it was a modified HEA. Still, I'd give this beautiful novel an A- and recommend it to anyone who enjoys stories of Russian jewels and mysteries.

My Funny Valentine by Debbie Macomber was a free ebook, and I have to say that it was only worth that, as it was a very cliched and trope filled romance that I would never have paid for. Here's the blurb: Dianne Williams needs a man . . . but only for a night. The night of the Port Blossom Community Center’s Valentine’s dinner, to be precise. As the dinner approaches, she grows more and more exasperated by her children’s relentless efforts to set her up on a blind date. But one day, when a kind stranger helps her with car troubles, Dianne decides to take matters into her own hands. 

Steve Creighton fits the bill perfectly: He’s handsome, he’s charming, and he owns a decent suit. When Dianne asks him to accompany her to a Valentine’s dinner after only just having met him, he can’t help but find the offer amusing. As he and Dianne grow closer, however, his feelings for her only intensify—and, to Dianne’s surprise, so do hers.

This is billed as a Macomber classic romance, which basically means it's one of her backlist or old titles that she's trying to breathe new life into by giving it away. I think she should have saved us all time and painful reading by mothballing this ridiculously stereotypical romance. The female protagonist is a cardboard cutout of a damsel in distress, the male protagonist is the rich and handsome knight in shining armor who rescues her, and of course she can't resist him, (ugh) and they live happily ever after, one assumes. It bothered me a great deal that this woman's entire family, her children and her mother seem to run her life and constantly force her to date men she's not interested in, and then when she brings one home, they decide that they like him and that he has to propose and marry her...as if she has no agency, no will of her own! GROW A SPINE, woman! Tell your children, first of all, that your love life is NONE OF THEIR CONCERN or business, (which it isn't) and tell your nosy, bossy overbearing mother to STFU and leave you alone, because, again, its your life, not hers. If you want to be alone, be alone. No one should be bullied or coerced into a relationship that they don't want or need! Sheez! Be an adult and stand up for yourself, already! With that in mind, I give this sexist novel a D, and I don't recommend it to anyone with a brain.

Lord of Stariel by A.J. Lancaster was another low priced ebook that is a YA fantasy romance, and was surprisingly good, for an author I've never heard of. I really enjoyed this author's take on the Fae and their connection to the land, and the human/fae connection to the land and right of birth to magic. Here's the blurb: The Lord of Stariel is dead. Long live the Lord of Stariel. Whoever that is.

Everyone knows who the magical estate will choose for its next ruler. Or do they?
Will it be the lord’s eldest son, who he despised? His favourite nephew, with the strongest magical land-sense?
His scandalous daughter, who ran away from home years ago to study illusion?

Hetta knows it won’t be her, and she’s glad of it. Returning home for her father’s funeral, all Hetta has to do is survive the family drama and avoid entanglements with irritatingly attractive local men until the Choosing. Then she can leave.
But whoever Stariel chooses will have bigger problems than eccentric relatives to deal with.

Winged, beautifully deadly problems. For the first time in centuries, the fae are returning to the Mortal Realm, and only the Lord of Stariel can keep the estate safe. In theory.

It's not a huge spoiler, since anyone will see it coming, but SPOILER ALERT, I was fascinated by Hetta's growing response to the land and the sense of responsibility as caretaker of the land and it's people. Lancaster's prose is rich and lush, while her spartan plot manages to keep all that prose from becoming too much for the reader to handle. Nicely done ebook, and one that leads me to contemplate buying the rest of the series. Meanwhile, I'd give it an A, and recommend it to anyone who enjoys paranormal fantasy from an earlier time period that is graceful and well thought out.

Empire of Ash by LRW Lee was yet another ebook that I was encouraged to check out, and when I did I was pleasantly surprised by my fascination with the main character, an orphaned archeologist. The prose was slick and contemporary, while the plot got a bit wispy in parts and almost farcical in others. This was billed as a "passionate paranormal romance with adult appeal" and while I could see that was what the author was attempting, what she ended up with was much more like a YA paranormal romance that has very little "adult" appeal, especially when it comes to sex scenes, of which there are NONE at all. The main characters share a few passionate kisses and sniff each other quite a bit, but that's it. No booty calls at all. Here's the blurb:

Dangerous magic, a dark god, and ancient secrets.

Archaeologist Pellucid Rose discovers THE find of the century when an earthquake hits her Mycenae, Greece dig. But before she can claim it, a dark, dangerous, and very sexy stranger steps from a swirl of shadows claiming she’s loosed a sphinx on the world by translating an ancient secret on one of the scrolls.

What’s more, he insists Secret Magic requires her to go with him to capture the ferocious creature.

Against better judgment, Pell teams up with the hot stranger to discover a world of magic where the impossible is reality, crooked mortals hide corrupt secrets, and mysteries older than myth can kill you. That thought alone makes her heart race, but things get even worse when she discovers he’s hiding world-altering secrets, and only she has what it takes to stop him.

Empire of Ash is the first book in the enthralling God of Secrets paranormal romance series. If you like Jim Butcher's Dresden Files and Holly Black's Cruel Prince, you’ll adore USA Today Bestselling author L. R. W. Lee’s vulnerable, intimate, and gritty tale of destined lovers, potent sorcery, and unique ancient myth retellings.

There's zero grit in this "gritty tale" and there's also a lack of "destined lovers" because they never actually make love. And we never find out what the "sexy stranger" Harpoc "really" is...though he claims to be a god, he flies with wings like an angel, turns to smoke like a Jinn and acts like a sexist jerk when he's not oogling or sniffing Pell, or not answering her questions with anything but a smirk. I honestly liked Pell up until she started acting like a goofy, giggling, blushing teenager,  but in the end, I wasn't enthralled with the tale enough to want to continue with the series. I'd give it a C, and only recommend it to anyone who is seriously into Egyptian archeology and myths.

Moonburner by Clare Luana is the first book in a YA fantasy trilogy that is somewhat reminiscent of Mulan in it's Chinese myths and characters. The prose was clean and lyrical, and the plot sailed long on phoenix wings, much to my surprise. Here's the blurb:

Mulan meets Sarah J Maas in this thrilling tale filled with celestial magic, death-defying adventure, and enduring friendships.

Kai is a Moonburner—a female sorceress reviled by her people and normally killed at birth. Except Kai's parents saved her by disguising her as a boy—a ruse they've kept up for almost seventeen years. But when her village is attacked, Kai’s secret is revealed and she’s sentenced to death.Thankfully, the gods aren’t done with Kai. Despite the odds stacked against her, she escapes her fate, undertaking a harrowing journey to a land where Moonburners are revered and trained as warriors. But her new home has dangers of its own—the ancient war against the male Sunburners has led the Moonburners down a dark path that could destroy all magic. And Kai, armed only with a secret from her past and a handsome but dangerous ally, may be the only one who can prevent the destruction of her people...

I was surprised at how much I loved Kai and her journey, and how beautifully written this tale was, like a Chinese legend or folklore piece come to life. It almost reads as a stand-alone, and there's a satisfying ending to this first book in the series, so you can read it and not have to commit to reading the other books if you don't like it, or enjoy the tale as-is. I loved the "daemon" (from the Golden Compass series) familiars that each moonburner/sunburner is paired with, and Kai's fox reminded me of Sabrina the teenage witch's cat Salem, wisecracks and all. That's why I'd give this book an A and recommend it to anyone interested in Chinese folktales and Chinese paranormal fantasy.

Happy 16th Birthday, Butterfly Books Blog, RIP Christopher Little, Sandman TV Show is Cast, Vroman's Honored as Legacy Business, Bezos Gives up CEO Post at Amazon, Burton is Pen/Faulkner Literary Champion, The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah, and The Invitation by Vi Keeland

Sixteen years ago, during the Superbowl, my husband noticed that I was bored by watching a football game, so he told me he'd help me start a "blog" about whatever I wanted on a new website he'd heard of called "Blogger." So to alleviate my boredom with organized sports on TV, this little book review blog was born! As today is Super Bowl Sunday, I thought I would wish my 753rd blog post a happy birthday, and make a wish for this blog to continue through to at least one thousand posts.

JK Rowling's Harry Potter series would be nowhere without the tenacious talents of Christopher Little, RIP.

Obituary Note: Christopher Little

Christopher Little http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz47289926, "who as a struggling literary agent took a chance on a scrappy submission about tween-age wizards--even though he once disdained children's fiction as a money-loser--and built it into the most successful literary empire in history on the strength of its lead character, Harry Potter," died January 7, the New York Times reported. He was 79.

"Christopher Little was the first person in the publishing industry to believe in me," Rowling said. "Being taken on by his agency was a huge break for an unknown writer. He represented me throughout the 10 years I published Harry Potter and, in doing so, changed my life."

Nicholson first became an agent in 1979 when a childhood friend asked him to help sell his first novel, a thriller written under the pen name A.J. Quinnell. The book, Man on Fire, ultimately sold 7.5 million copies and was twice adapted for film, most recently in 2004 with Denzel Washington. Little subsequently opened the Christopher Little Literary Agency, "though he maintained that selling manuscripts was just a 'hobby.' It soon became more than that," the Times wrote.

In 1995, Rowling, an unpublished, unemployed single mother in Edinburgh, sent Little the first three chapters of her book "after finding his name in a directory of literary agents. Knowing nothing about the business, she picked him because his name made him sound like a character from a children's book," the Times noted.

Little submitted the manuscript for Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone to 12 publishers and received 12 rejections before selling it for 2,500 (about $3,420), "a meager amount, but his genius was in the details: He sold only the rights to publish it in Britain and the Commonwealth, and he asked for high royalties," the Times wrote. Little sold the U.S. rights for just over $100,000 and the film rights for $1.8 million.

In 2011, Rowling split with Little when his in-house lawyer, Neil Blair, left to establish his own agency. Although Little threatened to sue, he backed off after Rowling paid him an undisclosed sum.

Little went on to represent bestselling authors like Darren O'Shaughnessy and Janet Gleeson. In 2012 he merged his agency with Curtis Brown and continued to take on new clients, including Shiromi Pinto, author most recently of the novel Plastic Emotions. "It was because he took a chance with her, that he was able to take a chance on someone like me," Pinto said.

I am desperately looking forward to this adaptation of the Sandman graphic novels, which have spent decades in pre-production hell. Hopefully, now that it has been cast the project will move forward, and we'll see it on the small screen next year.

TV: Sandman; All Our Wrong Todays

Netflix has confirmed the casting choices for Netflix's upcoming adaptation of Neil Gaiman's The Sandman http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz47289953, including Tom Sturridge, Gwendoline Christie, Vivienne Acheampong, Boyd Holbrook, Charles Dance, Asim Chaudhry and Sanjeem Bhaskar, IndieWire reported.

Gaiman is executive producing the series alongside David S. Goyer and Allan Heinberg. IndieWire noted that the creative team "has long attempted to bring The Sandman to the big screen, including a failed movie adaptation in 2013 with Joseph Gordon-Levitt attached to star." The new project was adapted by Gaiman and Heinberg.

"For the last 33 years, the Sandman characters have breathed and walked around and talked in my head," Gaiman said. "I'm unbelievably happy that now, finally, they get to step out of my head and into reality. I can't wait until the people out there get to see what we've been seeing as Dream, and the rest of them take flesh, and the flesh belongs to some of the finest actors out there.... This is astonishing, and I'm so grateful to the actors and to all of The Sandman collaborators--Netflix, Warner Bros., DC, to Allan Heinberg and David Goyer, and the legions of crafters and geniuses on the show--for making the wildest of all my dreams into reality."

My dear friend Jenny lives in Pasadena, and she will, once the pandemic is brought to heel, most certainly make a visit to the fabulous Vroman's, which has rightfully been named a Legacy Business in California. Kudos to this fantastic bookstore!

Vroman's Honored As Pasadena, Calif., 'Legacy Business'

Vroman's http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz47291800, Pasadena, Calif., is one of the two local businesses to be honored as part of the new Legacy Business Program instituted by the City of Pasadena, according to PasadenaNow.

Under the program, the city "honors businesses that have been in Pasadena for 50 years and contributed to the city in a unique way," PasadenaNow wrote. "Besides the formal recognition, the businesses will be recognized in the city's newsletter and on its social media platforms. The owners of the businesses will receive accommodations and a window decal identifying it as a legacy business."

"As the result of the pandemic, small businesses are more than ever challenged with economic challenges," Pasadena Mayor Victor Gordo said. "This is an attempt to recognize some of these businesses."

Vroman's is 126 years old. The other business honored under the Legacy Business Program is Pashgian Brothers Fine Oriental Rugs, which was established in 1889. Similar legacy business programs have been founded in Long Beach and San Francisco, Calif., and in San Antonio, Tex.

Unsurprisingly, the pandemic and quarantine has brought more online shoppers to sites like Amazon, and therefore more wealth to it's CEO, Jeff Bezos. Now, it would appear that Bezos is stepping into a more creative role within the company (and spending more time on his rocket ship company, Blue Origin), and letting Jassy take the reins (or the oars, as the case may be) of the ship that sails the Amazon. It's hard to believe that when we moved here to Seattle, there was no Amazon, and the internet was still in it's toddler years. I didn't even get an email address until 1995, and then there were few places to actually interact online. I'd say that I never ordered a book online, or from Amazon, until the early 2000s, back when Amazon was all about books...now they hardly even mention books as being among their bestselling products...how times have changed! BTW, I just recently purchased an Amazon Kindle Paperwhite e-reader for reading books digitally, and I transferred books from my old Kindle Fire onto it. Never thought I'd say that I read books that aren't made of dead trees.

Amazon: Jeff Bezos Giving Up CEO Post; Record Quarterly Results

The big news from Amazon yesterday wasn't so much its fourth-quarter results--which set a record as more consumers did more buying online because of the pandemic--as the announcement that founder and CEO Jeff Bezos is giving up the CEO post sometime after July 1 and will become executive chair. Andy Jassy, who is currently CEO of Amazon's highly profitable cloud division, Amazon Web Services (AWS), will succeed him as CEO.

Jessy, 53, is a graduate of Harvard Business School and joined Amazon in 1997 as a marketing manager. In 2003, he launched AWS and was became AWS CEO in 2016.

Amazon announced the move in a way that was as much an advertisement for the company as an explanation, quoting Bezos as saying, "Amazon is what it is because of invention. We do crazy things together and then make them normal. We pioneered customer reviews, 1-Click, personalized recommendations, Prime's insanely-fast shipping, Just Walk Out shopping, the Climate Pledge, Kindle, Alexa, marketplace, infrastructure cloud computing, Career Choice, and much more. If you do it right, a few years after a surprising invention, the new thing has become normal. People yawn. That yawn is the greatest compliment an inventor can receive. When you look at our financial results, what you're actually seeing are the long-run cumulative results of invention. Right now I see Amazon at its most inventive ever, making it an optimal time for this transition." 

In an e-mail to employees, Bezos, 57, said, "As much as I still tap dance into the office, I'm excited about this transition Millions of customers depend on us for our services, and more than a million employees depend on us for their livelihoods. Being the CEO of Amazon is a deep responsibility, and it's consuming. When you have a responsibility like that, it's hard to put attention on anything else.

As exec chair, I will stay engaged in important Amazon initiatives but also have the time and energy I need to focus on the Day 1 Fund, the Bezos Earth Fund, Blue Origin, the Washington Post, and my other passions. I've never had more energy, and this isn't about retiring. I'm super passionate about the impact I think these organizations can have."

The New York Times noted that "in recent years, Mr. Bezos had stepped back http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz47321370 from much of Amazon's day-to-day business, delegating those responsibilities to two main deputies, including Mr. Jassy. He instead had focused on Amazon's future and personal projects such as space travel... But the pandemic pulled Mr. Bezos back into Amazon's daily operations last spring. As Amazon grappled with a flood of e-commerce demand, labor unrest and supply chain challenges brought on by the coronavirus, Mr. Bezos began holding daily calls to help make decisions about inventory, talked to government officials and made a much-publicized visit to one of Amazon's warehouses. Amazon has now stabilized and its growth surged."

Bezos founded Amazon 27 years ago as an online bookseller. Of course, Amazon has grown a bit since then, and now in press releases about company results, books are rarely if ever mentioned. Bezos's personal fortune is estimated at $188 billion, making him the second richest person in the world. (If not for his 2019 divorce settlement and Tesla's huge jump in stock price, he would easily be the richest person in the world now.)

 I love LeVar Burton's "Reading Rainbow" and I also adore him as a talented actor, especially as Geordie LaForge on Star Trek Next Generation. This award is well deserved.

Burton is the First PEN/Faulkner Literary Champion

LeVar Burton, award-winning actor and longtime host of Reading Rainbow, has been named the inaugural PEN/Faulkner Literary Champion http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz47321422, which recognizes "devoted literary advocacy and a commitment to inspiring new generations of readers and writers."

"For decades, LeVar Burton has inspired readers all over the world," said PEN/Faulkner's executive director Gwydion Suilebhan. "He has brought stories to life in a magical and meaningful way for generations of book lovers, and his work has made a lasting, positive impact in literature."

Burton added: "I come from a family for whom service to others is the highest possible calling. Whatever efforts I have made toward advancing the cause of literacy, give honor to my mother, Erma Gene Christian, my first teacher and from whom I have inherited my love for books and reading. As we move forward out of a time when alternative facts and mendacious propaganda shaped public opinion, the work you do through the PEN/Faulkner Award, and your committed investment in D.C. schools, has never been more important. I couldn't be more honored to be the inaugural PEN/Faulkner Literary Champion."

The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah is probably her 9th or 10th book that I've read. Her prose is always sterling, her plots solid and deep, and her characters brilliant. And unlike many other popular authors today, she never writes about the same thing twice. She always has a different take on a unique subject for every novel. Here's the blurb:

From the number-one bestselling author of The Nightingale and The Great Alone comes a powerful American epic about love and heroism and hope, set during the Great Depression, a time when the country was in crisis and at war with itself, when millions were out of work and even the land seemed to have turned against them.

“My land tells its story if you listen. The story of our family.”

Texas, 1921. A time of abundance. The Great War is over, the bounty of the land is plentiful, and America is on the brink of a new and optimistic era. But for Elsa Wolcott, deemed too old to marry in a time when marriage is a woman’s only option, the future seems bleak. Until the night she meets Rafe Martinelli and decides to change the direction of her life. With her reputation in ruin, there is only one respectable choice: marriage to a man she barely knows.

By 1934, the world has changed; millions are out of work and drought has devastated the Great Plains. Farmers are fighting to keep their land and their livelihoods as crops fail and water dries up and the earth cracks open. Dust storms roll relentlessly across the plains. Everything on the Martinelli farm is dying, including Elsa’s tenuous marriage; each day is a desperate battle against nature and a fight to keep her children alive.

In this uncertain and perilous time, Elsa―like so many of her neighbors―must make an agonizing choice: fight for the land she loves or leave it behind and go west, to California, in search of a better life for her family.
The Four Winds is a rich, sweeping novel that stunningly brings to life the Great Depression and the people who lived through it―the harsh realities that divided us as a nation and the enduring battle between the haves and the have-nots. A testament to hope, resilience, and the strength of the human spirit to survive adversity, The Four Winds is an indelible portrait of America and the American dream, as seen through the eyes of one indomitable woman whose courage and sacrifice will come to define a generation. 

Though I read this page turner all in one day, I would recommend that others take their time and savor it, because there is so much history and pathos here that you really shouldn't miss it. I also felt terrible for Elsa, the protagonist, because she was so desperate for any scraps of love and affection and acceptance that she could come by that it verged on the pathetic. Her parents were horrible people, so cruel and prejudiced, but perhaps at the time that was common. 

I was reminded of my mother's mother, my Grandma Lang, who also got married during the Great Depression, after having been considered an "old maid" because she was tall, skinny and thought to be homely, with a long face and a strong nose and big, long feet. She loved to dance during the 1920s, when she was young, and she liked dressing up and going to church and gossiping about everyone around her. She was over 30 by the time she met my grandfather, the son of Swiss immigrants who owned a dairy and corn farm out in the middle of nowhere in Iowa. My mother wasn't born until 1937, toward the end of the Depression, and my Uncle Ron was born in the midst of WWII, 5 years later. So I could understand what it meant for my grandma to be a hard working farm wife during the Depression, raising her children and only getting by because Iowa farms didn't have much of a drought during those years. So my mother didn't have to worry about starvation, though there wasn't much money for anything but the necessities of whatever they couldn't grow themselves. 

And everyone worked...both my parents worked on their family farms from the time they were toddlers. My mother had the hated job of collecting eggs and feeding the chickens, cleaning the hen house and outrunning the mean old rooster (she still hates chickens). My dad helped feed the livestock and helped dig and weed and fertilize the garden and helped rogue corn when he was still a child. My grandma Semler (my father's mother) traded and bartered for what she needed in terms of cloth for children's clothing (which she sewed by hand) and quilted blankets with the local Amish in a quilting bee once a week. She gave birth to all her children on the kitchen table, without any help, and went right back to work. For decades we got all of our meat, from beef to chicken and turkey and sometimes lamb, from my grandparents meat processing plant (it still galls me what a snob I was about it, too, always turning my nose up at steaks and burgers and leg of lamb because I "didn't like the taste" and I assumed that it was cheap because we never had to pay for meat. What a ninny I was!) 

So reading about the farms going under and the families having to desert their land to head to California, where they only wanted to work to make a better life for their children, (and were repelled by prejudice and greedy farm owners) was fascinating to me, and made me wonder what would have happened to my family if my grandparents on both sides had had to give up their farms and move out West.  This is a story that has a lot of tragedy in it, and it also has an ending that will make you cry, if you have any heart at all, like it made me weep for over an hour. Still it was worth it! I'd give this book an A, and recommend it to anyone who wants to know about the strong women who survived the Dustbowl and the Depression. I think those who have never known poverty should also read it, because we don't realize how fortunate we are in this day and age.

The Invitation by Vi Keeland was yet another of her saucy contemporary romance novels that I got for a song and read on my new Kindle Paperwhite e-reader. I enjoy the slickness of Keeland's prose and the swift plots she sets up, but I was surprised at how many tropes wormed their way into this novel, and the dreaded euphemisms for sex that followed. I had thought better of the author than to succumb to this kind of paint by numbers nonsense. Here's the blurb: The first time I met Hudson Rothschild was at a wedding. I’d received an unexpected invitation to one of the swankiest venues in the city.

Hudson was a groomsman and quite possibly the most gorgeous man I’d ever laid eyes on. He asked me to dance, and our chemistry was off the charts.

I knew it wasn’t a good idea to get involved with him, considering the wedding I was at. But our connection was intense, and I was having a great time.

Though the fun came to a screeching halt when Hudson figured out I wasn’t who I’d said I was. You see, that unexpected invitation I received? Well, it hadn’t actually been addressed to me—it was sent to my ex-roommate who’d bounced a check for two months’ rent and moved out in the middle of the night. I figured she owed me an expensive night out, but I guess, technically, I was crashing the wedding.

Once caught, I couldn’t get out of there fast enough. As I bolted for the door, I might’ve plucked a few bottles of expensive champagne off the tables I passed, all while the gorgeous, angry groomsman was hot on my tail.
Outside, I jumped into a taxi. My heart ricocheted against my ribs as we drove down the block—but at least I’d escaped unscathed.
Or so I thought.
Until I realized I’d left my cell phone behind at the table.
Take one guess who found it?

This is the crazy story of how Hudson Rothschild and I met. But trust me, it’s only the tip of the iceberg. 

The problems with this book started with Hudson being an entitled, privileged jerk, a dickhead and an asshat, all at different times in the book, but he doesn't seem to come out of jerk mode until the very end, and even then, I didn't trust him. So a woman who isn't a wealthy, shallow poser crashes his sister's wedding? So what? (the bride, BTW, forgives Stella and becomes her best friend). It's not like they can't afford it, or afford to lose a few bottles of champagne. Also her gay friend Fisher eggs her on, but does he get any blowback from crashing the wedding and drinking and eating on the sly? Of course not, he's a guy, and guys are supposed to get away with all kinds of crap while women take the blame. But no, Hudson the scumbag decides to make Stella PAY for her crimes by humiliating her right and left, even after she apologizes, sending gifts to both Hudson and his sister and offers to pay for her meal, though she can ill afford it. Of course, he wants to schtup her the moment he lays eyes on her, but he's too much of a jerk to ask her nicely for a date, no, he has to treat her like crap for many more chapters until they get together. 

He also comments on how lovely her "little hands" are and her "delicate neck" and of course how petite but buxom she is, because, as we all know from every romance trope there is, only tiny, child-like women are sexy, and then only to tall, broad shouldered men who seem to find women who resemble children (hairless and peach-skinned and short) the height of sensuality (which makes them pedophiles, really, but romance authors never seem to understand this, or if they do, they somehow think it's normal, which is disgusting on so many levels). Then there's the whole "lips swollen from kissing" cliche that I've read in almost every romance novel, or novel with a romantic subplot, since the 70s. Why is this still a thing? I've been kissed plenty of times and my lips have never swollen up like balloons during or after kissing someone. Then there's the use of fingers to get a woman to orgasm. Why, again, would any woman need a man to do that? The only reason to have sex with a man is that he has a penis which, when used properly, is great fun during sex and can help a woman (with simultaneous clitoral stimulation) reach orgasm, and can also fertilize her eggs if she wants to get pregnant. Yes, there's some sexy foreplay that's fun, but really, if you want penetrative sex, a man with a penis or a woman with a vibrator are your best options (or you can DIY, but that's a whole other story). So all this fingering seems to me to be a huge waste of time and again, somewhat weird. 

Anyway, the end of this book was slightly unsatisfying, as I just couldn't get how Stella could fall in love with Hudson the handsy. But, as with everything else, your mileage may vary. I'd give it a C+, and only recommend it to women who find masochism and wealthy douchebags captivating.