I fight for my Whiskey like I fight for my country! RRRRRR!!

Ok so my title sounds like a pirate and this story is backwoods, not open ocean, but it just felt right. The Whiskey Rebels by David Liss is on the docket today and what a case it makes for itself!

I tend to get a wee bit nervous with adult historical fiction. It can seem more like nonfiction sometimes and just be tedious. When I originally heard about The Whiskey Rebels my original thought was the above, that it would be boring and long, but it was about whiskey...and rebels...so it had to have something good going on between those covers. One weekend while traversing the great Midwest in my loyal green stallion (also known as my Sebring), I decided to partake of this book on CD instead of drinking in the glorious Midwestern landscape...of corn fields, and flat ground. Sixteen CDs later, I fell back in love with historical fiction.

The Whiskey Rebels is taken from two different perspectives. One the disgraced former American spy, Ethan Saunders, who finds himself caught up in the affairs of his former love that leads down a long and winding road and Joan Maycott, the strong willed, intelligent, determined woman who began a plot to get the justice that is owed her. Both characters have stories that keep the pages turning and plots that move the reader along. Through a labyrinth of historical figures and settings, the reader learns about life on the frontier and life in the city post-Revolution. The underlying plot of this story is rich, detailed and well thought out. Not only does the reader get a sense of the era, but they become engrossed in the characters.

Ethan Saunders is a rogue. At the beginning of the novel, he seeks only escape from his life through sleeping around and drinking, but he is clever, sly, intelligent, cunning, and usually, pretty damn funny. All in all, you love the guy. He has a moral code that bends to his will, but he is an honorable man even if society does not see him that way.

Joan is a determined woman from the moment the audience meets her to the end. She is candid, intelligent and bold for a woman of her time, but she knows what she wants and she goes for it. I envy her ability to know her own mind. She has morals and values that she sticks to, and when wronged, she is determined to make those who ruined her pay the price that a corrupt system would not extract. Vengeance is a dish best served cold and Joan is brilliant in her method.

The first thing that got me was the quality of the reading and production. There was music at the beginning and the end of each CD that fit perfectly and the actor who read, Christopher Lane, did a brilliant job portraying each character in a different way that made them all distinguishable. Just like in film, audio actors make all the difference between a good book and a disaster. Lane has a commanding, masculine voice that never got old. Truly enjoyable to listen to.

The book keeps moving and although there were times when Joan explained an economic practice that I zoned out a bit, I was always avidly listening. I truly liked the characters and thought the plot was well constructed. It is a lengthy read and the author probably could cut some of the writing out, but I did not think he was long winded or overly explicative. I will certainly be looking for more David Liss books in the future.

Back to the Blog!

Well it has been ever too long since I last posted. Life gets in the way and I haven't felt much like writing lately, so I have ignored my blog. Well I suppose it's time to start writing about what I've been reading. I'm supposed to be writing this for my own good, so I have a source to look back at when I need recommendations and ideas. Here we go then!!

I've read/listened to two books recently that were not as satisfying as I hoped. Don't you hate it when you're looking forward to reading something and you get all the way through it and think "well I won't remember that one!" Me too. After both these books I had to go back to a classic that I knew wouldn't disappoint and I could breeze through, so I could move onto a new (perhaps risky) read.

Well book one was Empress Orchid by Anchee Min. I love royal historic novels. They're exotic because of the difference in era, culture, and the royal court. I was so looking forward to the tale of a normal woman who ended up as Empress of China and her climb to power. I don't know much about China and don't often read novels focused on Asia, so this was definitely exotic for me.

This novel starts with Orchid's poor family. Her father, a governor of a poor district, has just died and they can hardly afford to take him to Peking and bury him. The family ends up staying in Peking, and while there, the call comes for all Manchu women with family in the governing class and above can try there luck to become one of the Emperor's brides or a concubine. From here, Orchid makes her way through the process and into the Imperial court where she must seek the Emperor's attention, work her way through the intricacies of court life, and conquer political enemies. On top of all of this, however, Orchid is still a woman, and later a mother, who craves the attention of a man and the love of her child. She wants a life that she gave up, but must try to make the best of a glamorous life that is crumbling apart as China fights off outsiders.

I expected a dramatic, lush, exciting drama about court life in China and a female who takes the lead. In this novel, you certainly get details about court life and you see the start of a woman who is taking charge, to be continued with The Last Empress, but I didn't feel as connected with Orchid or the story as I hoped. I thought the text skipped around and within a section, it would suddenly allude to something that was going to happen, but even when that event happened it was not as dramatic as originally implied. There would be details thrown in that did not fit or were superfluous to what was going on. Keep it simple and make what you put in the text good. Although I thought this was a fine read, I didn't think it was great, and I won't remember it down the line.

Next I listened to the book The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender. I saw this on the staff recommendations at my library and I've heard about it around the web.

Welcome to the world of magical realism. The genre of magical realism is characterized by one thing being supernatural, magical, or out of the norm. Typically only a few characters or maybe only one has a special ability. The world is the exact same as what we live in. Think of movies like "Practical Magic" or "Chocolat". Well I was very excited about The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake because I thought it was going to be kind of chick lit-ish and light. Not so much.

Rose was a pretty normal girl until her ninth birthday when she tasted her mother's lemon cake. Instead of tasting the sweet and sour flavor of her favorite cake, she tasted sadness, depression, and self doubt. From this day on, Rose can taste the feelings of those who cooked the food she eats. She does not seem to be the only one with a strange gift. Her brother is harboring a secret that ends up affecting their whole family.


This book is more about the family relationship. It's about Rose growing up and figuring out who to tell and how to deal with her difference. I was not expecting this to be so serious. It was not a light read at all. Although parts of the book can be probing and question our relationships and feelings, for the most part I just didn't feel it. It wasn't terribly deep or new. An annoyance in the book was that Rose would skip occasionally from the present to future or past happenings. It was hard to follow these instances, perhaps because I was listening and couldn't see any breaks between paragraphs, but I was confused by the jumping between different time frames. On top of that, Rose would say things like "that was the last time I saw him", but later on she talked about seeing that person again. Again it might have been a flashback, but it was terribly confusing when the author jumped back and forth.

All in all, those two books, not my favorite. I will proceed to ax them from my memory to make room for more important things.

Until next time my dear reader.

The Wandering Falcon

Just so you, my dear reader, knows, I originally wrote this post for my library's adult services reading blog. I cannot lie to you, but I also wanted this on here, mainly for my own purposes:)

Afghanistan and Pakistan are areas that are in the news...a lot. The Middle East has its problems, but what about its culture and traditions? In Jamil Ahmad's book, The Wandering Falcon, the reader gets a short glimpse into the Tribal areas of the border lands between Pakistan and Afghanistan. 

Through a weaving train of stories, the reader gets to know the culture of wandering tribal families and individuals. The story starts after WWII, by my calculations, with the birth of Tor Baz and the tragic story that accompanies his earliest years. From this point the story wanders along with different individuals who work for the government in these lands and people looking out for their family, themselves, and their tribes. It's about outcasts and people trying to make it through life in the mountains and plains, finding happiness in those around them or disappointment in the lot life hands them. Ahmad loosely ties these stories together through a "Where's Waldo" with the character Tor Baz. He shows up in almost every story playing minimal roles or just sticking his head in. 

Ahmad is a storyteller. He knows how to introduce characters and situations without much back story and flag down the reader's interest. Although the names could be confusing, it was not hard to follow. The stories were short and to the point without much pomp and circumstance. Often these stories abruptly ended, but Ahmad made it work. As the reader, perhaps you never figured out the full story, but maybe you're never supposed to. The characters are surprising. In many stories, the women speak their minds and are unguarded. You meet people who are looking out for what's best, and some who are looking out for their best interests. I found myself surprised and amused unexpectedly throughout the book.

The physical book is a little thing, small enough to fit in your back pocket (not quite, but close) and about 250 pages in length. For those who enjoy literary short stories, want a look into tribal life in the Middle East, or are curious readers, give this book a read. 

Fairy Tale Adaptions: Part 1

Fairy tales, folktales, and legends are a bit of a cherished area of mine. I love how old, yet relevant and historical these tales are. They are magical and although I know most people scoff at them when they're adults, there is a TON of value in all of these stories. Stories like Cinderella and Aesop's fables were oral traditions, passed down from generation to generation. I've heard it said that language was the result of storytelling. People wanted to tell each other what they did that day or the *tall* tale of how they killed the largest mammoth in all the land, so language was born. Even though the stories may seem childish or grotesque in some cases, they are artifacts from past ages that still resonate throughout our culture with themes of love, greed, jealousy, and justice. Originally these tales were not collected for their appeal to children, but as an anthropological study of cultures. Maybe people don't understand the art of storytelling, but it's a lot more prevalent today than we think. Everyone has that friend or relative who is just captivating when they speak and they tell their stories in a way that makes you want to listen. That is a skill that is hard to come by, but that is what all of those ancient tales are about. One person mesmerizing an audience with a story. That is only part of what I ADORE about fairy/folk tales.

As part of a series of posts I will start, I will review fairy/folk tale adaptions.

One of my favorite folk/fairy tales is "East o' the Sun, West o' the Moon" from the Nordic lands. This is a story about an ordinary, yet determined, young woman who saves an enchanted prince from marrying a troll. Well another thing I love is fairytale adaptions and that is where East by Edith Pattou comes in.

East is an adaption of this fairy tale. It is a young adult novel about 500 pages long. Rose is an adventurous young girl who is determined to explore the world. She gets her chance when a great talking white bear comes and promises to solve her family's problems if only she will come away with him. Away she goes to a castle in a mountain where she must stay with the white bear. This is no average bear, however, and at night, Rose has a companion who lays beside her, but whom she is unable to lay eyes on. Her curiosity gets the best of her and she finds a way of seeing the stranger's face one night only to discover that by so doing, she has broken the enchantment...for the worse. The white bear/man is swept away by the troll queen to a land east of the sun, west of the moon. Rose refuses to let her mistake stand, so she goes on a great journey, searching for the white bear.

One nice thing about fairy tales is that they are short. This can be an annoyance when you really want to learn the motivations behind people's actions, or more of the story. I enjoyed East for the most part, but thought it was a little long winded. Not knowing all the details leaves some magic and mystery in the story, but I felt that this rendition overdid it. The story is broken down into chapters written by a few characters, which gave the reader a good break to hear different sides of the story and different voices. All in all, it was a bit too lengthy and not as captivating as I was expecting.

I will continue reading folk/fairy tales and their adaptions because I want to hear what happened and know more of the story. Isn't that the sign of a good story, that you always want more? What stories stand out to you?

A bleak beginning to the new year

After deciding it is time to read some adult books, I chose one with a title and cover that I really liked. Not always the best idea, but Oprah reinforced this one, so you know it's good *sarcasm*. House of Sand and Fog by Andre Dubus III is a bleak read. Taken from the point of view of two people battling for ownership of a house, this is a book that forces you out of your comfort zone and into the middle man position.

Kathy's husband walked out on her and all she has left is the house her father left her brother that she now lives in in California. Colonel Behrani is an Iranian immigrant who fled with his family to America during the Islamic Revolution because he was in the old regime's military. He works hard to support his family, but has a plan to start flipping real estate. The new house he moves his family into, just happens to be Kathy's house that the county wrongfully took from her. As Kathy fights to stay off the streets and get her home back, the Colonel fights to make his family feel normal again and lead them into a better future. Things start taking a turn when Kathy and a local cop, Lester, get involved. Soon the passive aggressive struggles over the house turn into full out war.

This is certainly not a beach read, but it is engaging. There is a steady under current of suspense that makes you want to know more about the characters and what will develop. The Colonel and Kathy both have broken pasts, albeit for very different reasons. The reader may identify with the characters, but they are not particularly heartwarming people. The writing style is a strong suit in this novel. The characters have distinct voices and the Colonel's sections are written in dialect with words in Farsi and the sentence structure of someone whose first language is not English. This can be a risky move, but it paid off.

This is a read for those looking for something real and unfiltered. It shows the perspectives of two people who are living hard lives and trying or attempting to get out of their situations and regain some semblance of a normal life. For read alikes, I would say Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck or As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner.

So this guy walks into a publisher's office...

"Under the Rug"
Two weeks passed and it happened again.

Yeah sounds like the beginning of a joke, I know. 1954, Harris Burdick walked into a publisher's office, handed him 14 illustrations paired with a title and caption and told the publisher "I have stories to accompany these. Are you interested in publishing them?" The publisher looked at the drawings and was astounded. They were all unrelated to one another and would be great stories. He agreed to see the stories Burdick would bring in the next day. The next day came and Burdick didn't show. He never showed and thus began the mystery of Harris Burdick.

No one knows what happened and if this was the man's real name, if he actually had stories, or if something tragic happened to him. What is left, however, are brilliantly inspiring images and captions for creative writers. Chris Van Allsburg put the images together in a book, so anyone may view them and might I suggest you do so...IMMEDIATELY! As a middle school girl, we were assigned to write a story about one of the images. They were all so thrilling and held so much potential. Since then I have loved the pictures. Who doesn't love a good mystery? All I wanted were the stories that accompanied them. Luckily, Van Allsburg put together 14 well known writers to write their versions of the stories in The Chronicles of Harris Burdick from Kate DiCamillo (The Tale of Despereaux) to Stephen King.

"The Harp"
So it's true he thought, it's really true.

I must say that after years of waiting and forming story lines in my head, I was disappointed by many of the stories. They were not fantastical enough for my liking or I didn't think some of them really paired with the picture or caption. But isn't that what always happens when someone takes something you love and plays with it? From a more objective point of view, the stories were all different. Well written and always with some fantastical or sci-fi underlining. There is such a variety here, that it's hard not to find one story you liked. This is a great children's book, but remember that these are not the real stories...just another writers interpretations. The drawings are still a mystery and perhaps that's exactly what Burdick was going for. He wanted to inspire young writers (in age and at heart) to write! So do! Get absorbed in the images and the mystery and create your own adventures and inspire young ones around you to do the same. What a great way to get people using those creative juices.  Maybe you can do it better than the famous writers themselves.

Alice + Dorothy=Septmeber

The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of her Own Making by Catherynne Valente. Wow what a title!! Have fun tripping over that one. I love fairy stories and fantasies, so when I heard about this novel and saw the cover art, I knew I had to read it.

September is a young girl from Omaha who one day gets swept up by the Green Wind and the Leopard of Little Breezes and brought to Fairyland. Once there, she meets a variety of creatures and sets off on adventures to retrieve a spoon for Goodbye the witch. She meets her beloved Wyvern and together they make their way to Pandemonium, Fairyland's capital. September learns about the Marquess, the ruler of this land who has made all sorts of rules and brought bureaucracy to the land. In an instant, the girl September is supposed to detest, the Marquess, sends September on a quest to the Autumn lands to retrieve a sword. From here, September discovers more about the land and things living here. She loses and gains alliances and gets altogether wrapped up in the politics and happenings.

The writing reminded me a lot of Alice in Wonderland with language being played with and corrected and all sorts of things that are silly in our world being taken seriously in Fairyland. The adventure is much like The Wizard of Oz with a little girl getting caught up in the happenings of a world she knows nothing about and forming friendships along the way. But September is her own character. A well meaning girl trying to help those around her. I thought this was going to be a light and fluffy read. Although it's about Fairyland, there are some deep moments and the plot is not as happy and frolicsome as expected. Nothing in the story is dark or ominous, but there is a lot more going on under the surface than a sweet little fairy story. The main themes in this novel have to do with friendship and responsibility. Although September is young, she is a mature girl. She knows how to take care of herself and she knows what is right to do even when there's an easy way out.

As with Alice in Wonderland, I found myself getting a bit bored at times. There's a good amount of talking and wondering about what's happening, which can be a bit tiresome after a while. Things must be explained, but that is normal with world-building books. The first in the series must lay the land for the upcoming books. This is the first in a planned series of books.

I would put this in the young adult section. Although the name and subject matter speak to a juvenile audience, I think it would be difficult for a young crowd to understand all the talk and stay attentive to the story. Certainly a good read, but for those who are open to more descriptive writing. Fairyland will stick in my mind for a while, and I see myself picking up the next book in the series whenever it makes its way to shelves.