Book Review: Nights in Rodanthe

Nights in Rodanthe2Nights in Rodanthe by Nicholas Sparks is a poignant, heart-warming novel that I couldn’t put down.

Adrienne Willis’ daughter has suffered the death of her husband, leaving her with two small sons to raise alone. Adrienne is concerned that her daughter’s grief is consuming her, leaving her sons adrift without their mother’s attention. Adrienne decides to share with her grieving daughter an experience that happened years before.

In a flashback to fifteen years earlier, Adrienne is raising her three children alone since her husband left her for a younger woman.

Dr. Paul Flanner was a highly sought-after physician who poured all his energy into his practice. After their son leaves for college, his wife leaves him. Dr. Flanner sells his practice and plans to attempt to reconcile with his son who is now practicing medicine in Ecuador.

While her children are visiting their father, Adrienne is taking care of a friend’s bed and breakfast for a few days in the small coastal town of Rodanthe, North Carolina. Only one guest is expected for the weekend, a Dr. Paul Flanner. Also expected is a fierce nor’easter. As residents prepare for the worst storm in years, another type of storm is brewing at the bed and breakfast.

When love goes bad or is neglected, it so often involves many more lives than the two directly involved. When new love is again found, it is a gift to be treasured, but invariably involves other people as well.

The novel seamlessly switches from present-day to fifteen years earlier, making for an enjoyable, exciting novel which keeps the reader guessing at each juncture.

A gifted novelist, Nicholas Sparks writes with deeply moving tenderness. He manages to keep suspense dangling while writing with detailed clarity. Nights in Rodanthe is a bitter-sweet story of the healing power of love.

Book Review: A Better Way of Dying

A Better Way of DyingMost people would say the ideal way to die is one where they’ve been able to a tie up loose ends, say farewell to loved ones and leave this world without plunging their family into dept with huge medical bills. A Better Way of Dying: How to Make the Best Choices at the End of Life, co-authored by sisters Jeanne Fitzpatrick, M.D. and Eileen M. Fitzpatrick, J.D. provides a logical method of making realistic end-of-life decisions.

The authors guide readers through various scenarios discussing usual medical procedures. We learn about choices we have the right to make to ensure control over our own end-of-life experience.

Having a Living Will and Do Not Resuscitate order are steps in the right direction, but inadequate to fully protect us from unwanted aggressive medical treatment when we are ready to die.

A long slow death in a nursing home is a nightmare most of us would avoid if given the chance. Whether the cause of death is the result of a terminal illness, dementia, an accident, or just old age, there are steps we can take to ensure our end-of-life experience is what we want it to be, not what insurance companies dictate, or what hospitals can do to prolong life with various life-support equipment.

A Better Way of Dying introduces The Compassion Protocol, a step-by-step guide that helps people experience a natural death in a timely fashion. The suggestions introduced in this book are practical and ethical.

I consider this compassionate book an important read for the young, old and everyone in between. Although we have already signed Living Will and Do Not Resuscitate forms, my husband and I now realize that we have more to do. From Doctor Jeanne Fitzpatrick we learn how end-of-life treatments are carried out unless patients have taken steps to avoid it. From attorney Eileen M. Fitzpatrick we learn how we can legally protect ourselves and our loved ones from expensive treatment that only prolongs the evitable.

For more information, visit www.compassionprotocol.com

The Pieces We Keep

The Pieces 1The Pieces We Keep by Northwest writer Kristina McMorris is a gripping multilayered story steeped in rich details and deep emotions. Newly widowed Audra Hughes hopes to get a fresh start by leaving Portland and accepting a veterinary job in Philadelphia. When she and her son Jack, seven, attempt to fly to Boston for her interview, Jack has a panic attack. Jack’s fears continue in the form of violent nightmares that threaten to consume him. An Afghanistan veteran Sean Malloy, struggling with his own injuries, becomes a part of their lives, but triggers in Jack memories that would be impossible for him to have.

The book alternates from present day to the war years, beginning in 1939 London, England. Vivian James is having a clandestine affair with Isaak, an American of German decent. As the war rages on, Vivian’s life becomes more complicated as she attempts to help Isaak extricate his relatives from Nazi Germany. Vivian finds herself embroiled in an FBI investigation involving German saboteurs in the United States.

Alternating between time periods, it becomes clear that there is a link between present day, World War II and Jack’s vivid nightmares.

The Pieces We Keep emphasizes the importance of family bonds and loyalty. Kristina McMorris does an excellent job of developing her characters in their respective time periods. Her research in many aspects of this novel was extensive and the story she weaves is believable. I highly recommend this book.

Book Review: The Divinity of Dogs

Divinity DogsJennifer Skiff has gathered a precious collection of stories about dogs and their people in The Divinity of Dogs, True Stories of Miracles Inspired by Man’s Best Friend. Skiff, an award-winning television producer, journalist and author, is personally and professionally involved with dogs in the U.S. and Australia.

The book is divided into sections: Love, Comfort, Intuition, Healing, Gratitude, Loyalty, Passing, Compassion and Forgiveness. Skiff begins each section with a personal story, followed by stories written by other people inspired by their own experiences with dogs. Each story has a picture of the dog involved and some of the pictures are so captivating I viewed them time and again.

As with many books of this nature, I gained insight into my own dog, Toby, a chocolate lab. This book has further opened my eyes as to the depth of a dog’s intuition, love and loyalty. Even when rejected, a dog will often rise above it and fill a human’s need.

Many of the stories carry messages of desperation, many of sadness, some of joy. No matter. You’ll come away enlightened, inspired, and enriched.

The Divinity of Dogs is a great read, compiled with the perfect balance of the many facets of the divine essence of dogs.

Book Review: Sincerely Yours

Sincerely Yours

Sincerely Yours is a collection of four novellas with a common thread of love.

 

A Moonlight Promise by Laurie Alice Eakes
English born Camilla Renfrew is desperate, not only to find a new life, but to bury the old. She receives a letter from a friend that could answer her prayers. Camilla manages to hitch a ride on Nathaniel Black’s steamboat in her rush to get to Albany to meet her friend. When the steamboat is sabotaged, Camilla and Nathaniel recognize in each other what is important, what true faith is, and how it can shape their lives. A Moonlight Promise is not only a lovely story, it offers an intriguing glimpse of steamboat life on the Hudson River in the early 1800’s.

Lessons in Love by Ann Shorey
It’s 1858 and Merrie Bentley has a secret passion. More than anything, she wants to be a writer. She is of marriageable age and her aunt dutifully tries to fulfill the promise she made to Merrie’s parents that she would encourage the young woman to seek a suitable husband. When Merrie receives a letter addressed to Mr. Bentley, an invitation from a publisher to discuss her work, her joy is shattered. Confident that as a woman she won’t be published, she convinces Colin Thackery, her piano teacher, to act as Mr. Bentley for the meeting. The plan takes an unusual turn and so do social expectations of marrying within one’s station in life. Lessons in Love is a fun read and especially enlightening about social expectations in the mid-1850’s.

One Little Word by Amanda Cabot
Lorraine Caldwell was trained to be the wife of a wealthy man. Her uncle and guardian since her parents’ death has her future husband all picked out. Unfortunately she has no love for the man. When Lorraine receives a letter from her brother asking her to visit him at a resort some distance from New York City, she is thrilled, yet mystified. Arriving at the train station she is met by English-born Jonah Mann, a carousel maker. The purpose for Lorraine’s visit opens her eyes to a new kind of life. Besides the well-drawn characters in One Little Word, the story is enhanced by carousel lore, history and traditions. The story takes place in 1892.

A Saving Grace by Jane Kirkpatrick
Music teacher Grace Hathaway receives two letters in the same envelope. One, a letter from her young godchild, Carolyn, asking for help, the other from an attorney writing on behalf of Carolyn’s caretaker. Carolyn’s mother, a recent widow, is in a sanatarium and cannot be convinced to leave. Grace leaves her teaching position in Oregon’s ranch country and travels to Olalla, a small community on Puget Sound. At the hotel where she stays, Grace is attracted to another guest, Claude Millikan, a pharmacist who is temporarily working at the sanitarium. When she visits the sanatarium she’s appalled by her friend’s condition and the treatment given other patients. Grace devises a ruse to save her friend, but finds herself in danger when her plan backfires. Although fiction, the story is based on a real Olalla sanatarium that operated with questionable medical practices in 1911, when this story is set. A Saving Grace offers interesting views of health and social norms of the era.

Each of the novellas in Sincerely Yours ends with a letter from the author to the reader adding authenticity and interest to the 1800’s and early 1900’s, particularly as they pertain to women’s lives today compared to expectations in the past. The well-crafted collection of stories is highly recommended.

 

Book Review: Emily, Alone

Emily AloneStewart O’Nan’s Emily, Alone touched my heart as it follows Emily Maxwell on her final journey, alone. The novel is a sequel to the acclaimed Wish You Were Here.

Now 80, Emily manages to fill her days maintaining the home where she and her late husband raised their children. She hires a few things done, but she has her rigid housekeeping rituals, her music, her garden and her old dog, Rufus.

Emily’s children live a distance from her Philadelphia home, so visits with them and her grandchildren are infrequent. In any event, she finds their relationship as distant as the miles that separate them.

When Arlene, Emily’s best friend and sister-in-law, faints at their favorite breakfast buffet, Emily finds herself without transportation. She dusts off her husband’s old, treasured Oldsmobile, and drives to the hospital where Arlene has been admitted. Emily is intimidated with the huge car, but for now she can’t rely on Arlene for transportation.

Another vehicle sideswipes the car where it’s parked on the street and Emily feels compelled to replace it with a new, smaller car. The new car paves the way toward a new independence. Arlene is discharged from the hospital and now Emily is often the driver for their excursions. She discovers she can go places and do things on her own and she savors these new possibilities.

Emily, Alone follows the daily life of a woman used to an orderly life. The novel goes into the sort of detail that brings Emily into the reader’s world. It’s a rare glimpse into the life of a person in her twilight years with typical anxieties, hopes and frustrations. I found myself holding my breath as Emily braves the freeway by herself to visit the graves of her parents, an errand she feels duty-bound to fulfill.

Emily, Alone isn’t a fast-paced novel with a breath-taking plot. It’s a quiet story of a lovable woman who faces life with dignity, hope and wry, sometimes quirky humor. I loved this story and its humane, intricate details.

Book Review: Rules of Civility

Rules of CivilityAmor Towles’ debut novel, Rules of Civility is a captivating period piece that takes place in New York City, particularly in Manhattan. The story begins in 1966 but quickly turns back to New Year’s Eve, 1939.

Kate Kontent and her roommate Eve meet wealthy Tinker Gray at a jazz club on New Year’s Eve. A solid friendship forms and the three of them share many enjoyable times together. An accident abruptly changes their relationship and the direction of their lives.

Kate, who narrates the novel, is at first in a secretarial pool at a successful law firm, but quickly moves on to become a secretary at a trendy magazine. The daughter of a Russian immigrant, she never denies her background and that she is among “the working class,” but finds herself socializing with a privileged group of people (white, rich and sophisticated). Kate, extremely well-read and intelligent, remains grounded, but finds herself involved in the social activities of the well-to-do with their well-kept secrets and expensive life-style.

As we ride along with Kate, we learn about the lives of the New York rich. The book takes place toward the end of the depression and the wealthy portrayed don’t seem to have suffered unduly. It’s an era of surprisingly aimless goals among the rich, smoking, drinking martinis, rarely cooking one’s own meal, living exclusively in apartments, and commuting in cabs or chauffeured limousines. The dialog is fast-paced and witty, the sense of New York rich in detail.

Rules of Civility takes its name after the 110 rules that George Washington crafted during his teenage years, “Rules of Civility & Decent Behaviour in Company and Conversation.” Towles ends the book with the complete list of rules, often mentioned in the novel as either rules to be followed in a civilized society, or possibly rules no longer relevant. Here’s Washington’s 6th Rule of Civility:

“Sleep not when others Speak, Sit not when others stand, Speak not when you Should hold your Peace, walk not on when others Stop.”

I enjoyed Rules of Civility. I marveled at the differences between New York and the mid-west or west. The novel concentrates on either the very rich and the poor working class. There must have been some “middle class” but this novel does not touch on what most of us recognize as normal. The author’s descriptions of scenes and scenery feel realistic and vibrant. The book gave me a glimpse of an era and place now changed forever. I recommend Rules of Civility and look forward to reading more of this author’s work.

Book Review: Matterhorn

Matterhorn

Matterhorn: A Novel of the Vietnam War by Karl Marlantes is a gripping, gritty account of life as a Marine in Vietnam.

We were torn as a nation over Vietnam. As the war between U.S. backed South Vietnam and U.S.S.R. backed North Vietnam raged, so did the U.S. citizens at home. As far as U.S. Marines were concerned, they had a job to do, a job for which they had been rigorously trained.

Lieutenant Waino Mellas, a young Marine on his first mission, together with his comrades in Bravo Company are dropped into the mountainous jungle of Vietnam with orders to take Matterhorn, a mountain renamed by Americans after the Swiss Alps. The North Vietnamese Army (NVA) isn’t their only enemy. The Marines, most of whom are boys in their late teens and early twenties, fight their way through thick, nearly impenetrable jungle, monsoon rain and mud, blood-sucking leeches, jungle rot that seriously infects their skin, immersion foot which can result in amputation, malnutrition, dehydration, diarrhea, and even killed or maimed by tigers. When the company is nearly overwhelmed by the sheer numbers of a highly trained enemy regiment, the Marines are thrust into the raw terror of mortal combat.

Luckily, the author has furnished a flowchart of the Chain of Command and principal characters. I found myself referring to that many times to refresh my memory as to names and ranks. Another great aid is a glossary explaining slang, military jargon and technical terms. I’d recommend marking these two sections with sticky-note bookmarks for easy reference. The maps furnished also help to clarify troop locations.

Matterhorn was an eye opener to me. Although I was acutely aware of the Vietnam War, I was unaware of many of the issues and obstacles involved. Now, forty-some years after the war, it’s hard to remember that integration had just recently been introduced into the Marine Corps. Although African Americans kept to themselves during their off-time, in combat they worked in closely-knit units.

Matterhorn was written by a highly decorated Vietnam veteran who turned his own experience into this raw, emotional novel. His honesty is stark and disturbing. Marlantes removes all doubt that many decisions of war are made by ambitious men who use troops to further their own careers. Counts of enemy dead are magnified, of American troops, minimized.

Another disturbing fact is the reality of “friendly fire,” when a fellow warrior is in the way of fire, or mistaken for the enemy. It is a constant nightmare to a combatant who may have been responsible for a comrade’s death or serious injury.

Probably the most disturbing fact is the practice called “fragging,” murdering someone, usually an unpopular officer or sergeant, by throwing a fragmentation grenade into his living quarters or fighting hole. In his glossary, Marlantes states that the Marine Corps had forty-three fragging incidents during the Vietnam War, although not all ended in fatalities.

I was surprised to learn how much liquor was consumed, especially nights before battles. My practical spirit would dictate getting all the rest you can before a huge push, but the mind-set is different among those going into a battle from which they possibly won’t return.

War is hell, of this there is no doubt. It’s a hell that continues on long after the actual battle in the form of life-changing injuries or PTSD and the resultant chronic rages and fear attacks.

I recommend Matterhorn, though it isn’t for everyone. At first I didn’t think it was for me, but I slogged on and was soon “hooked.” The book is a raw, naked look at war and all its blood, filth and exhaustion. It’s also a book about bravery and the bonds of friendship forged in battle. It’s a large book, the paperback version is 608 pages, so plan on spending a block of time reliving the horrors of the Vietnam War. It isn’t all grim–there are humorous, fun parts, too. For sure, it’s a memorable chronicle of war.

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Book Review: Where Lilacs Still Bloom

Where Lilacs

 

Award winning author Jane Kirkpatrick’s historical novel, Where Lilacs Still Bloom, filled my heart. It’s a compelling story of enduring love of family and God’s earthly bounties.

The story begins in 1889 in Woodland, Washington, when German immigrant and farm wife Hulda Klager seizes an idea to improve the pie apples growing in their small orchard. She’s weary of the scrawny fruit that’s hard to peel. Her experiments with apple hybridization result in a crisp, juicy apple that’s easy to peel. Her consuming interest is questioned by those who feel she’s overstepping boundaries of a simple housewife and mother. Some even assert that she’s tampering with God’s plan.

Hulda’s father encourages her to follow her God-given talents. Even though her husband Frank teases her about her “hobby,” he encourages her to pursue her growing interest, providing there’s “bread on the table and pies in the oven.” She begins to experiment with flowers, concentrating on lilacs, with a dream of growing a creamy white lilac with twelve petals. By 1905 Hulda had created 14 new varieties of lilac, using a turkey feather to cross-pollinate, always seeking to produce “bigger blooms, hardier stalks, richer color, and finer fragrance.”

Interest in Hulda’s garden grows and she begins to hold open houses, sometimes drawing hundreds of people, even from distant communities. She resists selling cuttings, preferring instead to share God’s bounty. Her four children help in the garden, and as they leave home to begin their own families, Hulda opens her home to two young girls who need a loving home and who can help in the garden. These girls’ lives, thread throughout the book, show how tender care for plants mirrors life.

Throughout Hulda’s long life she sees tragedy in the loss of loved ones, but she endures and finds comfort in her horticultural interests. Her gardens, along with their farm and their neighbors’ property, are threatened with seasonal floods and when the Columbia and Lewis Rivers overflow in 1948, the entire community is flooded. We learn the true character of this legendary woman as she deals with this calamity.

Where Lilacs Still Bloom is filled with the richness and grace found in Jane Kirkpatrick’s work. This novel is her twenty-second book and nineteenth novel. A master storyteller, Kirkpatrick researches her subjects, then brings their story to readers in a compelling, refreshingly creative way, yet always keeping true the subject’s spirit. I highly recommend this book. It would be of special interest to garden enthusiasts, but also to anyone drawn to an inspirational story of loyalty, faith, family values and God’s bounty. For more information about the author, visit www.jkbooks.com

Reviewers Note: I was especially fascinated with this book since I also live in Washington. Next spring I hope to drive to Woodland in the southwest part of the state to visit Hulda Klager Lilac Gardens. For more information, visit www.lilacgardens.com

Book Review: The Longest Trail

The Longest Trail

Roni McFadden has written a memorable book,The Longest Trail, a true-life novel that begins in 1963 in northern California when Roni is twelve years old. After saving her baby-sitting money for two years, she buys her first horse, Sparol, for $125,

While on horseback, Roni can forget the sexual abuse from her step-father, forget that she isn’t accepted at school, and, later, that the crowd she’s running with could get her into serious trouble with sex, drugs and free love. When astride a horse, she feels whole and at peace with herself.

Through a friend, Roni meets John Slaughter, then in his forties and married with his own children, a throw-back cowboy with a kind nature and a magical way with horses. In addition to his regular job, John takes hunters on pack trips in the High Sierra Mountains. He offers her an opportunity to help with the horses, to exercise, feed and groom them, and clean corrals. While at school, she lives for the time when she’ll be with the horses, when she’ll be at peace.

Roni proves her value and is soon a part of John’s pack operation and joins him at a pack-station, a place where they stage high-country trips. Through the years, Roni is given more responsibility. With the responsibility comes dealing with city folks who bring the noise and rush of city life to their country outings. She learns patience, self-reliance and how to deal with hardship and discomfort. She learns to appreciate the high country’s beauty and simple pleasures. Roni finds a kinship with horses that few achieve.

An important part of this intriguing story is Roni’s involvement with the by-gone spirits of native peoples. As she learns more about herself, she absorbs ancient spiritual values, wisdom that enriches the rest of her life.

The Longest Trail is the story of an angry, confused girl becoming a woman of strength and character. It’s a fascinating journey, sometimes rough, sometimes awesomely beautiful, always entertaining. I highly recommend this coming-of-age book–it’s an unforgettable story. To learn more about the author, visit www.thebiscuitpress.com