Wesley Britton's Blog, page 8
November 27, 2019
Book Review: The Reluctant Healer by Andrew HimmelThe Reluctant Healer
The Reluctant Healer
Andrew Himmel
Publisher: Greenleaf Book Group Press
Release date: October 8, 2018
ISBN-10: 1626345309
ISBN-13: 978-1626345300
https://www.amazon.com/Reluctant-Heal...
Reviewed by Dr. Wesley Britton
Andrew Himmel's original debut novel is told with a fresh writing style, an eccentric approach to his subjects and characters, and a dry, wry wit, especially in the descriptions and observations expressed in the viewpoint of the novel's main character, New York attorney Will Alexander.
The main theme of The Reluctant Healer is the collision of Alexander's legalist, rationalist world view which is challenged when he meets the sexy New Ager Erica Wells. When they meet, Erica reveals she's an energy healer who can perceive Alexander has extraordinary abilities as a natural healer. Alexander doesn't accept that judgement but finds himself drawn to the beautiful woman who is an intellectual match for him even if her metaphysical beliefs are the polar opposite of his own.
Very reluctantly, Alexander finds himself being put in situations where his natural energies seem to, in fact, cure all manner of diseases and afflictions. For Erica, natural healers like Alexander are badly needed in a new era where viruses are becoming immune to antibiotics and it's natural energy, energies found in everything, that can be cures when the afflicted are merely in Alexander's presence.
Alexander's journey takes him into all manner of circumstances including long motorcycle rides, theft of an opponent's cell phone, and situations that ultimately place him in legal jeopardy. To say more would be to swerve into the world of spoilers.
Himmel's style and tone are extremely cerebral and the book is not light reading. It's a book with serious intent. In supplementary material at the end of the book, Himmel reveals much of the book's content was inspired by his own journey, very much like Alexander's, as the author' wife Michelle became interested in energy healing and pulled him into her realm of Universal Energy healing. Jumping off from his real-life experiences, Himmel claims his novel was ignited when he mused, "What if the conventional individual, rigid in his beliefs, developed
the capability of healing others, even as he distrusted much of the alternative world? His struggle would become poignant and pronounced, because he would
be grappling not just with tension in his relationship but also with internal conflict with phenomena that challenged both his sense of self and his worldview."
In a quiz prepared for readers with an academic bent, Himmel says, "The author believes that The Reluctant Healer is a bigger story about how we as human beings get along with and coexist with people who are different from—and
sometimes the complete opposite of— us."
It seems to me larger themes also include a modern twist on the conflicts between the rational and the mystical. In other words, The Reluctant Healer is a brain tickler designed to stimulate thought an reflection in Himmel's readers. He offers no answers, no final conclusions, advocates no point-of-view, and leaves the story open for a sequel already in progress.
Not a book for all readers, but certainly one for readers who like to digest what they read and be challenged by above average language choices, imaginative imagery, and be willing to absorb the story slowly. I had to read it in chunks, always eagerly returning quickly to continue the flow.
This review first appeared at BookPleasures.com on Nov. 27, 2019 at:
https://waa.ai/OQKw
Andrew Himmel
Publisher: Greenleaf Book Group Press
Release date: October 8, 2018
ISBN-10: 1626345309
ISBN-13: 978-1626345300
https://www.amazon.com/Reluctant-Heal...
Reviewed by Dr. Wesley Britton
Andrew Himmel's original debut novel is told with a fresh writing style, an eccentric approach to his subjects and characters, and a dry, wry wit, especially in the descriptions and observations expressed in the viewpoint of the novel's main character, New York attorney Will Alexander.
The main theme of The Reluctant Healer is the collision of Alexander's legalist, rationalist world view which is challenged when he meets the sexy New Ager Erica Wells. When they meet, Erica reveals she's an energy healer who can perceive Alexander has extraordinary abilities as a natural healer. Alexander doesn't accept that judgement but finds himself drawn to the beautiful woman who is an intellectual match for him even if her metaphysical beliefs are the polar opposite of his own.
Very reluctantly, Alexander finds himself being put in situations where his natural energies seem to, in fact, cure all manner of diseases and afflictions. For Erica, natural healers like Alexander are badly needed in a new era where viruses are becoming immune to antibiotics and it's natural energy, energies found in everything, that can be cures when the afflicted are merely in Alexander's presence.
Alexander's journey takes him into all manner of circumstances including long motorcycle rides, theft of an opponent's cell phone, and situations that ultimately place him in legal jeopardy. To say more would be to swerve into the world of spoilers.
Himmel's style and tone are extremely cerebral and the book is not light reading. It's a book with serious intent. In supplementary material at the end of the book, Himmel reveals much of the book's content was inspired by his own journey, very much like Alexander's, as the author' wife Michelle became interested in energy healing and pulled him into her realm of Universal Energy healing. Jumping off from his real-life experiences, Himmel claims his novel was ignited when he mused, "What if the conventional individual, rigid in his beliefs, developed
the capability of healing others, even as he distrusted much of the alternative world? His struggle would become poignant and pronounced, because he would
be grappling not just with tension in his relationship but also with internal conflict with phenomena that challenged both his sense of self and his worldview."
In a quiz prepared for readers with an academic bent, Himmel says, "The author believes that The Reluctant Healer is a bigger story about how we as human beings get along with and coexist with people who are different from—and
sometimes the complete opposite of— us."
It seems to me larger themes also include a modern twist on the conflicts between the rational and the mystical. In other words, The Reluctant Healer is a brain tickler designed to stimulate thought an reflection in Himmel's readers. He offers no answers, no final conclusions, advocates no point-of-view, and leaves the story open for a sequel already in progress.
Not a book for all readers, but certainly one for readers who like to digest what they read and be challenged by above average language choices, imaginative imagery, and be willing to absorb the story slowly. I had to read it in chunks, always eagerly returning quickly to continue the flow.
This review first appeared at BookPleasures.com on Nov. 27, 2019 at:
https://waa.ai/OQKw
November 26, 2019
Book Signing on Sunday, Dec. 1!
On Sunday, Dec. 1, Wes Britton will be signing books at the Cupboardmaker Bookstore in Enola, PA from 1:00-3:00 at:
157 N Enola Rd, Enola, PA
Phone:
717-732-7288
(Directions below.)
"Finish off your Black Friday weekend with books from local authors, because signed books make great gifts! Join authors Joel Burcat, Wesley Britton, and C.S. Wachter to kick off the holiday season. All three authors will be signing their books and ready to talk to readers.
Joel Burcat is the author of the thriller Drink to Every Beast. Find out more about Joel and his work at joelburcat.com
Wesley Britton is the author of the Beta Earth Chronicles, a six-book science fiction series. Find out more about Wesley and his books at drwesleybritton.com
C.S. Wachter is the author of The Seven Words, a four-book Christian fantasy series, and its sequel A Weight of Reckoning. Find out more about C.S. and her books at cswachter.com"
•From Interstate-81: Take the Enola/Marysville exit 21 onto 11/15 south. Go 1.8 miles and we are the large cinder block building with book spines painted on the sides.
•From Camp Hill: Take 11/15 north toward the Susquehanna River. Continue north on 11/15 at the river and travel about 3.1 miles. We are the large cinder block building with Books on the sides.
•From Interstate 83 North: Follow signs for Harrisburg, Lemoyne and 11/15 north. Once on 11/15 north travel approximately 5.1 miles toward Enola. We are the large cinder block building with Books on the sides.
See you then!
https://www.cupboardmaker.com/index.p...
157 N Enola Rd, Enola, PA
Phone:
717-732-7288
(Directions below.)
"Finish off your Black Friday weekend with books from local authors, because signed books make great gifts! Join authors Joel Burcat, Wesley Britton, and C.S. Wachter to kick off the holiday season. All three authors will be signing their books and ready to talk to readers.
Joel Burcat is the author of the thriller Drink to Every Beast. Find out more about Joel and his work at joelburcat.com
Wesley Britton is the author of the Beta Earth Chronicles, a six-book science fiction series. Find out more about Wesley and his books at drwesleybritton.com
C.S. Wachter is the author of The Seven Words, a four-book Christian fantasy series, and its sequel A Weight of Reckoning. Find out more about C.S. and her books at cswachter.com"
•From Interstate-81: Take the Enola/Marysville exit 21 onto 11/15 south. Go 1.8 miles and we are the large cinder block building with book spines painted on the sides.
•From Camp Hill: Take 11/15 north toward the Susquehanna River. Continue north on 11/15 at the river and travel about 3.1 miles. We are the large cinder block building with Books on the sides.
•From Interstate 83 North: Follow signs for Harrisburg, Lemoyne and 11/15 north. Once on 11/15 north travel approximately 5.1 miles toward Enola. We are the large cinder block building with Books on the sides.
See you then!
https://www.cupboardmaker.com/index.p...
September 25, 2019
Book Review: The Siege of Troy: A novel by Theodor Kallifatides
The Siege of Troy: A novel
Theodor Kallifatides
Translated from the Swedish edition by Marlaine Delargy
Paperback: 208 pages
Publisher: Other Press (September 10, 2019)
ISBN-10: 159051971X
ISBN-13: 978-1590519714
https://www.amazon.com/Siege-Troy-Nov...
Reviewed by Dr. Wesley Britton
It's been decades since I read Homer's The Iliad, so my memory of it is extremely dim. I remember many of the stories, the abduction of Helen, the famous Greek warriors who besieged the city of Troy for 10 years, the use of poetic devices like the opening "Invocation to the Muse," the long descriptions of soldier's armor, etc.
Now, Swedish author Theodor Kallifatides has re-imagined the Iliad for modern readers and I suspect most non-scholars of Greek literature are going to prefer the new version. For one matter, all the poetic devices are stripped away and replaced by a much simpler prose narrative. For another, Kallifatides created a framework for his retelling that has a Greek schoolteacher recounting the story of The Iliad day-by-day to one of her classes during World War II when air strikes repeatedly forced the class to run to nearby caves for protection.
The 1940s set part of the novel includes an ongoing love triangle as well as interactions between the German occupiers and local citizens. I'll confess, I was drawn into this story as much as the retelling of events in ancient Troy. It's a fresh approach even if the two storylines don't really parallel each other.
In regards to the old, old stories, I had forgotten just how bloody the war was. I was often surprised by the number of combatants. That many warriors, on both sides, dying in droves and droves? Seems historically doubtful, but I could be wrong.
I had also forgotten just how Achilles was a stubborn, selfish, and petulant figure. I didn't know his death by way of an arrow in his heel is not a story in the Iliad and thus not in The Siege of Troy either. The same is true of the Trojan Horse episode which wasn't told until Virgil's Aeneid. I didn't know that either until I did some homework to see why things in Homer's poem weren't in the Kallifatides reworking. Well, Kallifatides turns out to be a very faithful adapter of the ancient stories although he left many things out, mostly descriptions of the various armies and the quarrels between the gods which appear much less frequently in The Siege of Troy.
Author Theodor Kallifatides is actually Greek but immigrated to Sweden where his works are first published in Swedish. The Siege of Troy is his second work Translated by Marlaine Delargy, the first being the 2018 Another Life. Sounds like a book I would like to explore as The Siege of Troy was one of my favorite readings of 2019. Hopefully, for you too.
This review first appeared at BookPleasures.com on Sept. 25, 2019:
https://waa.ai/3bG1
Theodor Kallifatides
Translated from the Swedish edition by Marlaine Delargy
Paperback: 208 pages
Publisher: Other Press (September 10, 2019)
ISBN-10: 159051971X
ISBN-13: 978-1590519714
https://www.amazon.com/Siege-Troy-Nov...
Reviewed by Dr. Wesley Britton
It's been decades since I read Homer's The Iliad, so my memory of it is extremely dim. I remember many of the stories, the abduction of Helen, the famous Greek warriors who besieged the city of Troy for 10 years, the use of poetic devices like the opening "Invocation to the Muse," the long descriptions of soldier's armor, etc.
Now, Swedish author Theodor Kallifatides has re-imagined the Iliad for modern readers and I suspect most non-scholars of Greek literature are going to prefer the new version. For one matter, all the poetic devices are stripped away and replaced by a much simpler prose narrative. For another, Kallifatides created a framework for his retelling that has a Greek schoolteacher recounting the story of The Iliad day-by-day to one of her classes during World War II when air strikes repeatedly forced the class to run to nearby caves for protection.
The 1940s set part of the novel includes an ongoing love triangle as well as interactions between the German occupiers and local citizens. I'll confess, I was drawn into this story as much as the retelling of events in ancient Troy. It's a fresh approach even if the two storylines don't really parallel each other.
In regards to the old, old stories, I had forgotten just how bloody the war was. I was often surprised by the number of combatants. That many warriors, on both sides, dying in droves and droves? Seems historically doubtful, but I could be wrong.
I had also forgotten just how Achilles was a stubborn, selfish, and petulant figure. I didn't know his death by way of an arrow in his heel is not a story in the Iliad and thus not in The Siege of Troy either. The same is true of the Trojan Horse episode which wasn't told until Virgil's Aeneid. I didn't know that either until I did some homework to see why things in Homer's poem weren't in the Kallifatides reworking. Well, Kallifatides turns out to be a very faithful adapter of the ancient stories although he left many things out, mostly descriptions of the various armies and the quarrels between the gods which appear much less frequently in The Siege of Troy.
Author Theodor Kallifatides is actually Greek but immigrated to Sweden where his works are first published in Swedish. The Siege of Troy is his second work Translated by Marlaine Delargy, the first being the 2018 Another Life. Sounds like a book I would like to explore as The Siege of Troy was one of my favorite readings of 2019. Hopefully, for you too.
This review first appeared at BookPleasures.com on Sept. 25, 2019:
https://waa.ai/3bG1
Book Review: There There by Tommy Orange
There There: A Novel
Tommy Orange
Hardcover: 304 pages
Publisher: Knopf; First Edition (June 5, 2018)
ISBN-10: 0525520376
ISBN-13: 978-0525520375
https://www.amazon.com/There-novel-To...
Reviewed by Dr. Wesley Britton
There There was a novel assigned to the members of a local book club I belong to. The book inspired a lot of discussion at our last meeting, and the responses ran the range.
I was among the members who really liked the book, but I easily understood the reactions of others with less positive feedback. Some were confused by the structure of the book as Orange has 12 characters telling their stories interwoven together, introducing us to one of the urbanized Native Americans living in Oakland, then the next, and so on, then back around the circle again. Other readers didn't like the book as it is rather dark and depressing in many sections. I have one friend who gave up reading the novel for that reason.
Much of the club's discussion didn't focus on the book itself, but rather the situations of identity in the modern Native Americans. Many of the characters not only wrestled with both pride and deep regret about the distant past when their cultures were devastated; some of the characters know very little about their heritage but still have strong opinions about it; and others know little about their personal bloodlines including any knowledge of who their birth parents are. All these threads are pulled together at a pow-wow in Oakland where all the book's characters congregate for a variety of reasons and mixed motives.
The cast includes Jacquie Red Feather, an alcoholic with a tortured past who meets her daughter Blue, for the first time. In turn, we meet the trio of Jacquie's grandsons like Orvil who adds a touch of magic realism to the story by continually pulling spider legs out of a wound on his own leg.
We also meet Danny who creates plastic guns on a 3D printer, one of the characters who infuses modern technology into a realm where most everyone has mixed feelings about their Native American past. Some characters plan on robbing the pow wow and come armed with Danny's guns as plastic can slip past metal detectors. But to describe the admittedly confusing pow wow falls into the realm of spoilers, so I won't say anything more about it.
Some readers in my book club didn't care for Orange's terse, spare writing style but I thought he was trying to allow many of his characters to speak in their own voices. yes, the book is dark and can be a downer, but that's offset, in my opinion, by the education we get into the circumstances of modern, urbanized Native Americans so far removed from their more agrarian forefathers and foremothers. Few of these stories are pretty; all of them seem all too real.
This review first appeared at BookPleasures.com on Sept. 25, 2019:
https://waa.ai/3bPq
There There: A Novel
Tommy Orange
Hardcover: 304 pages
Publisher: Knopf; First Edition (June 5, 2018)
ISBN-10: 0525520376
ISBN-13: 978-0525520375
https://www.amazon.com/There-novel-To...
Reviewed by Dr. Wesley Britton
There There was a novel assigned to the members of a local book club I belong to. The book inspired a lot of discussion at our last meeting, and the responses ran the range.
I was among the members who really liked the book, but I easily understood the reactions of others with less positive feedback. Some were confused by the structure of the book as Orange has 12 characters telling their stories interwoven together, introducing us to one of the urbanized Native Americans living in Oakland, then the next, and so on, then back around the circle again. Other readers didn't like the book as it is rather dark and depressing in many sections. I have one friend who gave up reading the novel for that reason.
Much of the club's discussion didn't focus on the book itself, but rather the situations of identity in the modern Native Americans. Many of the characters not only wrestled with both pride and deep regret about the distant past when their cultures were devastated; some of the characters know very little about their heritage but still have strong opinions about it; and others know little about their personal bloodlines including any knowledge of who their birth parents are. All these threads are pulled together at a pow-wow in Oakland where all the book's characters congregate for a variety of reasons and mixed motives.
The cast includes Jacquie Red Feather, an alcoholic with a tortured past who meets her daughter Blue, for the first time. In turn, we meet the trio of Jacquie's grandsons like Orvil who adds a touch of magic realism to the story by continually pulling spider legs out of a wound on his own leg.
We also meet Danny who creates plastic guns on a 3D printer, one of the characters who infuses modern technology into a realm where most everyone has mixed feelings about their Native American past. Some characters plan on robbing the pow wow and come armed with Danny's guns as plastic can slip past metal detectors. But to describe the admittedly confusing pow wow falls into the realm of spoilers, so I won't say anything more about it.
Some readers in my book club didn't care for Orange's terse, spare writing style but I thought he was trying to allow many of his characters to speak in their own voices. yes, the book is dark and can be a downer, but that's offset, in my opinion, by the education we get into the circumstances of modern, urbanized Native Americans so far removed from their more agrarian forefathers and foremothers. Few of these stories are pretty; all of them seem all too real.
This review first appeared at BookPleasures.com on Sept. 25, 2019:
https://waa.ai/3bPq
Tommy Orange
Hardcover: 304 pages
Publisher: Knopf; First Edition (June 5, 2018)
ISBN-10: 0525520376
ISBN-13: 978-0525520375
https://www.amazon.com/There-novel-To...
Reviewed by Dr. Wesley Britton
There There was a novel assigned to the members of a local book club I belong to. The book inspired a lot of discussion at our last meeting, and the responses ran the range.
I was among the members who really liked the book, but I easily understood the reactions of others with less positive feedback. Some were confused by the structure of the book as Orange has 12 characters telling their stories interwoven together, introducing us to one of the urbanized Native Americans living in Oakland, then the next, and so on, then back around the circle again. Other readers didn't like the book as it is rather dark and depressing in many sections. I have one friend who gave up reading the novel for that reason.
Much of the club's discussion didn't focus on the book itself, but rather the situations of identity in the modern Native Americans. Many of the characters not only wrestled with both pride and deep regret about the distant past when their cultures were devastated; some of the characters know very little about their heritage but still have strong opinions about it; and others know little about their personal bloodlines including any knowledge of who their birth parents are. All these threads are pulled together at a pow-wow in Oakland where all the book's characters congregate for a variety of reasons and mixed motives.
The cast includes Jacquie Red Feather, an alcoholic with a tortured past who meets her daughter Blue, for the first time. In turn, we meet the trio of Jacquie's grandsons like Orvil who adds a touch of magic realism to the story by continually pulling spider legs out of a wound on his own leg.
We also meet Danny who creates plastic guns on a 3D printer, one of the characters who infuses modern technology into a realm where most everyone has mixed feelings about their Native American past. Some characters plan on robbing the pow wow and come armed with Danny's guns as plastic can slip past metal detectors. But to describe the admittedly confusing pow wow falls into the realm of spoilers, so I won't say anything more about it.
Some readers in my book club didn't care for Orange's terse, spare writing style but I thought he was trying to allow many of his characters to speak in their own voices. yes, the book is dark and can be a downer, but that's offset, in my opinion, by the education we get into the circumstances of modern, urbanized Native Americans so far removed from their more agrarian forefathers and foremothers. Few of these stories are pretty; all of them seem all too real.
This review first appeared at BookPleasures.com on Sept. 25, 2019:
https://waa.ai/3bPq
There There: A Novel
Tommy Orange
Hardcover: 304 pages
Publisher: Knopf; First Edition (June 5, 2018)
ISBN-10: 0525520376
ISBN-13: 978-0525520375
https://www.amazon.com/There-novel-To...
Reviewed by Dr. Wesley Britton
There There was a novel assigned to the members of a local book club I belong to. The book inspired a lot of discussion at our last meeting, and the responses ran the range.
I was among the members who really liked the book, but I easily understood the reactions of others with less positive feedback. Some were confused by the structure of the book as Orange has 12 characters telling their stories interwoven together, introducing us to one of the urbanized Native Americans living in Oakland, then the next, and so on, then back around the circle again. Other readers didn't like the book as it is rather dark and depressing in many sections. I have one friend who gave up reading the novel for that reason.
Much of the club's discussion didn't focus on the book itself, but rather the situations of identity in the modern Native Americans. Many of the characters not only wrestled with both pride and deep regret about the distant past when their cultures were devastated; some of the characters know very little about their heritage but still have strong opinions about it; and others know little about their personal bloodlines including any knowledge of who their birth parents are. All these threads are pulled together at a pow-wow in Oakland where all the book's characters congregate for a variety of reasons and mixed motives.
The cast includes Jacquie Red Feather, an alcoholic with a tortured past who meets her daughter Blue, for the first time. In turn, we meet the trio of Jacquie's grandsons like Orvil who adds a touch of magic realism to the story by continually pulling spider legs out of a wound on his own leg.
We also meet Danny who creates plastic guns on a 3D printer, one of the characters who infuses modern technology into a realm where most everyone has mixed feelings about their Native American past. Some characters plan on robbing the pow wow and come armed with Danny's guns as plastic can slip past metal detectors. But to describe the admittedly confusing pow wow falls into the realm of spoilers, so I won't say anything more about it.
Some readers in my book club didn't care for Orange's terse, spare writing style but I thought he was trying to allow many of his characters to speak in their own voices. yes, the book is dark and can be a downer, but that's offset, in my opinion, by the education we get into the circumstances of modern, urbanized Native Americans so far removed from their more agrarian forefathers and foremothers. Few of these stories are pretty; all of them seem all too real.
This review first appeared at BookPleasures.com on Sept. 25, 2019:
https://waa.ai/3bPq
September 11, 2019
Book Review: The Marijuana MurdersThe Marijuana Murders: A Nostalgia City Mystery #3 (Nostalgia City Mysteries) by Mark Bacon
The Marijuana Murders: A Nostalgia City Mystery #3 (Nostalgia City Mysteries)
Mark S. Bacon
Publisher: Archer & Clark Publishing (June 17, 2019)
Sold by: Amazon Digital Services LLC
ASIN: B07T94PKPM
https://www.amazon.com/Marijuana-Murd...
Reviewed by Dr. Wesley Britton
It doesn't happen to me very often--in the first pages of The Marijuana Murders, I knew I was going to enjoy the ride. I was glad I stuck with it.
For one thing, much of the story is set in Nostalgia City--no, not the real museum in Myrtle Beach--but a fictional theme park in Arizona where everything is maintained in the state it was in the 1970s. Especially cars.
For another thing, the backdrop to the story is the competing interests of two movements wanting to legalize pot in Arizona; one wants to impose corporate control over pot sales and the other wants a looser, grow-your-own approach. Do their conflicting interests set the stage for murders in Nostalgia City? Toss in those opposed to legalizing pot at all and we get a number of competing perspectives. Everything is happening with major touches of the '70s mixed in with contemporary issues.
And right from the get-go, we are introduced to a stellar cast of characters revolving around the pivotal pair of Kate Sorenson, the Vice President of Public Relations for Nostalgia City walking around on alluring long legs, and Lyle Deming, former cop and now cab driver for visitors to the immense theme park. They assist official law enforcement when employees start dying in a refurbishing garage which turns out to be the center of a large-scale drug ring.
Mark S. Bacon unwinds his mystery with a light tone and often humorous touches as parallel investigations get underway as various potential criminals are checked out, ruled out, pulled to the top of the suspect lists, and put Kate, Lyle, and Arizona police in deadly danger for unclear and unknown motives. Through it all, Mark Bacon keeps the pace fast-moving, the descriptions vivid, the setting unusual, the lead players interesting, the plot intriguing, and the surprises coming. You want more in a murder mystery?
I admit, after completing the third volume in the Nostalgia City yarns, I plan on going back and diving into volumes one and two and hoping for another round down the road.
This review first appeared at BookPleasures.com on Sept. 11, 2019:
https://waa.ai/367T
Mark S. Bacon
Publisher: Archer & Clark Publishing (June 17, 2019)
Sold by: Amazon Digital Services LLC
ASIN: B07T94PKPM
https://www.amazon.com/Marijuana-Murd...
Reviewed by Dr. Wesley Britton
It doesn't happen to me very often--in the first pages of The Marijuana Murders, I knew I was going to enjoy the ride. I was glad I stuck with it.
For one thing, much of the story is set in Nostalgia City--no, not the real museum in Myrtle Beach--but a fictional theme park in Arizona where everything is maintained in the state it was in the 1970s. Especially cars.
For another thing, the backdrop to the story is the competing interests of two movements wanting to legalize pot in Arizona; one wants to impose corporate control over pot sales and the other wants a looser, grow-your-own approach. Do their conflicting interests set the stage for murders in Nostalgia City? Toss in those opposed to legalizing pot at all and we get a number of competing perspectives. Everything is happening with major touches of the '70s mixed in with contemporary issues.
And right from the get-go, we are introduced to a stellar cast of characters revolving around the pivotal pair of Kate Sorenson, the Vice President of Public Relations for Nostalgia City walking around on alluring long legs, and Lyle Deming, former cop and now cab driver for visitors to the immense theme park. They assist official law enforcement when employees start dying in a refurbishing garage which turns out to be the center of a large-scale drug ring.
Mark S. Bacon unwinds his mystery with a light tone and often humorous touches as parallel investigations get underway as various potential criminals are checked out, ruled out, pulled to the top of the suspect lists, and put Kate, Lyle, and Arizona police in deadly danger for unclear and unknown motives. Through it all, Mark Bacon keeps the pace fast-moving, the descriptions vivid, the setting unusual, the lead players interesting, the plot intriguing, and the surprises coming. You want more in a murder mystery?
I admit, after completing the third volume in the Nostalgia City yarns, I plan on going back and diving into volumes one and two and hoping for another round down the road.
This review first appeared at BookPleasures.com on Sept. 11, 2019:
https://waa.ai/367T
August 26, 2019
Book Review: A Woman of No Importance: The Untold Story of the American Spy Who Helped Win World War II by Sonia Purnell
A Woman of No Importance: The Untold Story of the American Spy Who Helped Win World War II
Sonia Purnell
Hardcover: 368 pages
Publisher: Viking (April 9, 2019)
ISBN-10: 073522529X
ISBN-13: 978-0735225299
https://www.amazon.com/Woman-No-Impor...
This summer turned out to be my unexpected exploration into female participants in the French resistance during World War II. It began when I read D-Day Girls: The Spies Who Armed the Resistance, Sabotaged the Nazis, and Helped Win World War II by Sarah Rose as well as Madame Fourcade's Secret War: The Daring Young Woman Who Led France's Largest Spy Network Against Hitler by Lynne Olson. Now, I've read a long-overdue, in-depth biography of American spy Virginia Hall by Sonia Purnell. I must concur with all the other complimentary reviewers who gave this history five star reviews.
I first read a short but very complimentary biography of Virginia Hall in Emily Yellen'sOur Mother's War: American Women at Home and at the Front During World War II (2004). In fact, Hall was the premiere lady spy in Yellen's overview that only glancingly looked at behind-the-lines operatives in France. Of course, Purnell's tome reaches far beyond the sort of general information Yellen had access to.
Purnell's years of research is an impressive achievement considering the gaps in available files and the likelihood many of Hall's exploits were never recorded by anyone. Part of this oversight is likely based on the reality Hall's labors were so clandestine there was every reason not to keep files on her work. Equally important is the fact female agents were not the norm and there was a widespread prejudice against women being involved in the war at all except as support staff, code-breakers, ambulance-drivers, the like.
In the case of Hall, her persistence in breaking through the glass ceiling is even more impressive when you realize she was raised and groomed for a life as well-off--and married--woman in high society, not a rough-and-tumble agent living on the lam and in often dire circumstances. Add to that that the lower half of her left leg had been amputated leaving Hall a woman with a disability that could have dimmed her prospects--if not for that determined, iron will of hers.
Because of that leg and her age, Hall wasn't the most likely covert agent for the Gestapo to hunt. She was versatile in her use of disguises, using her disability as a way to throw the hounds off her trail. All she really couldn't do was run. But she could hike across a treacherous mountain trail in the snowy Pyrenees. And that was just one exploit to admire in Hall's many-faceted career.
Another woman to admire is biographer Sonia Purnell who not only keeps a fast-paced, detailed story going, but she keeps reader interest with her scattered indications of what is to come, especially the consequences of certain events. It becomes very clear Virginia Hall was a stand-out officer during World War II and could have become a valuable asset in the CIA had the agency not been populated by the Father Knows Best mentality of the Cold War years.
So readers learn much more than the day-to-day operations of Hall's covert actions and I often wondered where Purnell found so many minute details of conversations, movements, relationships, etc. As with the other books I've read this summer, I ended up feeling a sense of shame that there was a time when women, no matter how talented, creative, motivated or successful, just didn't get their due and rightful recognition. Until now.
My July 1, 2019 review of D-Day Girls: The Spies Who Armed the Resistance, Sabotaged the Nazis, and Helped Win World War II by Sarah Rose first appeared at BookPleasures.com:
https://waa.ai/XA7U
My July 25th review of Madame Fourcade's Secret War: The Daring Young Woman Who Led France's Largest Spy Network Against Hitler by Lynne Olson first appeared at BookPleasures.com:
https://waa.ai/3uLD
This review first appeared at BookPleasures.com on Aug. 26 at BookPleasures.com:
https://waa.ai/3RtY
Sonia Purnell
Hardcover: 368 pages
Publisher: Viking (April 9, 2019)
ISBN-10: 073522529X
ISBN-13: 978-0735225299
https://www.amazon.com/Woman-No-Impor...
This summer turned out to be my unexpected exploration into female participants in the French resistance during World War II. It began when I read D-Day Girls: The Spies Who Armed the Resistance, Sabotaged the Nazis, and Helped Win World War II by Sarah Rose as well as Madame Fourcade's Secret War: The Daring Young Woman Who Led France's Largest Spy Network Against Hitler by Lynne Olson. Now, I've read a long-overdue, in-depth biography of American spy Virginia Hall by Sonia Purnell. I must concur with all the other complimentary reviewers who gave this history five star reviews.
I first read a short but very complimentary biography of Virginia Hall in Emily Yellen'sOur Mother's War: American Women at Home and at the Front During World War II (2004). In fact, Hall was the premiere lady spy in Yellen's overview that only glancingly looked at behind-the-lines operatives in France. Of course, Purnell's tome reaches far beyond the sort of general information Yellen had access to.
Purnell's years of research is an impressive achievement considering the gaps in available files and the likelihood many of Hall's exploits were never recorded by anyone. Part of this oversight is likely based on the reality Hall's labors were so clandestine there was every reason not to keep files on her work. Equally important is the fact female agents were not the norm and there was a widespread prejudice against women being involved in the war at all except as support staff, code-breakers, ambulance-drivers, the like.
In the case of Hall, her persistence in breaking through the glass ceiling is even more impressive when you realize she was raised and groomed for a life as well-off--and married--woman in high society, not a rough-and-tumble agent living on the lam and in often dire circumstances. Add to that that the lower half of her left leg had been amputated leaving Hall a woman with a disability that could have dimmed her prospects--if not for that determined, iron will of hers.
Because of that leg and her age, Hall wasn't the most likely covert agent for the Gestapo to hunt. She was versatile in her use of disguises, using her disability as a way to throw the hounds off her trail. All she really couldn't do was run. But she could hike across a treacherous mountain trail in the snowy Pyrenees. And that was just one exploit to admire in Hall's many-faceted career.
Another woman to admire is biographer Sonia Purnell who not only keeps a fast-paced, detailed story going, but she keeps reader interest with her scattered indications of what is to come, especially the consequences of certain events. It becomes very clear Virginia Hall was a stand-out officer during World War II and could have become a valuable asset in the CIA had the agency not been populated by the Father Knows Best mentality of the Cold War years.
So readers learn much more than the day-to-day operations of Hall's covert actions and I often wondered where Purnell found so many minute details of conversations, movements, relationships, etc. As with the other books I've read this summer, I ended up feeling a sense of shame that there was a time when women, no matter how talented, creative, motivated or successful, just didn't get their due and rightful recognition. Until now.
My July 1, 2019 review of D-Day Girls: The Spies Who Armed the Resistance, Sabotaged the Nazis, and Helped Win World War II by Sarah Rose first appeared at BookPleasures.com:
https://waa.ai/XA7U
My July 25th review of Madame Fourcade's Secret War: The Daring Young Woman Who Led France's Largest Spy Network Against Hitler by Lynne Olson first appeared at BookPleasures.com:
https://waa.ai/3uLD
This review first appeared at BookPleasures.com on Aug. 26 at BookPleasures.com:
https://waa.ai/3RtY
August 14, 2019
Two Video Interviews with Wes Britton August 15:
In addition to "The Blind Truth" Harrisburg Trailer video airing tomorrow, (described below), Wes Britton will be one of three panelists on "Attracting Your Unique Tribe of Readers" live YouTube chat Thursday, August 15, at 10PM EST.
Check us out and join the conversation at:
https://¬www.youtube.com/¬watch?v=hLf...
The other two guests will be:
Errol Baptiste (https://¬www.amazon.com/¬author/errolba
and Donald Firesmith (http://¬donaldfiresmith.com/)
Fans are welcome to participate!
Now, the first interview is complete for Central PA: The Human Trailer Project featuring Wesley Britton talking about the impact of blindness on his life. "The Blind Truth" (not "Blind Trust," my error) running 4 minutes and 45 seconds, will officialy debut Thursday, August 15, 2019 at 9:00 AM
m.youtube.com/watch?v=lmaEj3kI1rk
If you're on Meet Up, Harrisburg, you can tell Alex you're coming--
Or watch anytime at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmaEj...
Check us out and join the conversation at:
https://¬www.youtube.com/¬watch?v=hLf...
The other two guests will be:
Errol Baptiste (https://¬www.amazon.com/¬author/errolba
and Donald Firesmith (http://¬donaldfiresmith.com/)
Fans are welcome to participate!
Now, the first interview is complete for Central PA: The Human Trailer Project featuring Wesley Britton talking about the impact of blindness on his life. "The Blind Truth" (not "Blind Trust," my error) running 4 minutes and 45 seconds, will officialy debut Thursday, August 15, 2019 at 9:00 AM
m.youtube.com/watch?v=lmaEj3kI1rk
If you're on Meet Up, Harrisburg, you can tell Alex you're coming--
Or watch anytime at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmaEj...
August 12, 2019
The Blind Trust video
Alex Sliwecki produced a 4 minute, 45 second film on me called "The Blind Truth." The comments I've gotten so far tell me it was very well done. Well, that was all Alex.
"The Blind Truth" is available at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmaEj...
(Alex caught me on a day when I hadn't played drums for at least a month. My rust shows. Sigh.)
"The Blind Truth" is available at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmaEj...
(Alex caught me on a day when I hadn't played drums for at least a month. My rust shows. Sigh.)
August 9, 2019
Book Review: Dragon Chronicles Book 3, The Hunted, by Andrew Wichland
Dragon Knight Chronicles Book 3: The Hunted
Andrew Wichland
Publication Date: July 14, 2019
Sold by: Amazon Digital Services LLC
ASIN: B07V9C1PPJ
https://www.amazon.com/kindle-dbs/hz/...
Reviewed by Dr. Wesley Britton
There's a certain breed of science-fiction/ fantasy that's mostly non-stop action-adventure set out in a galaxy far, far away with the intent of entertaining readers with none of the warnings or alarms in so many dystopian
futures.
In his Dragon Knight Chronicles, Andrew Wichland shows he's got as good a handle on this sub-genre as anyone. Throughout The Hunted, book 3 of this series, Wichland juggles many of the familiar formulas and tropes of such yarns like inexplicable instant armor that can grow on a Dragon Knight's body in but a moment. Dragon Knights can suddenly be armed with arsenals of weapons that can take out fleets of pursuers in seemingly overwhelmingly powerful starships. In this case, there's an occasional nod to fantasy with Knights wearing bracelets that can tap into mystical powers when the occasion calls for them. Along the way, dwarves and minotars help populate the conversations.
When stories zip along like The Hunted, there's not much character development and it seems obvious reading the previous two volumes might fill in many of the unanswered or under-explained elements of The Hunted. For example, plot-twisting characters pop in and then quickly disappear. Some have apparently played key roles in the saga in previous stories. Some of them were very intrigueing, enigmatic, and quickly gone. Never to be seen again? The ending of the tale is one of those open-ended episodes setting the stage for volume 4. Perhaps some of those characters will make return engagements?
It seemed clear Wichland wanted readers to associate his main protagonist, Robin, with earth's Robin Hood, but that connection seemed very thin to me beyond some character names--Little John, Tuck, the like. This Robin Hood is on a quest to protect members of his people, track down a missing brother after finding a long-lost sister, and I'm not clear what else. We don't see much of the forces of the Black Dragon whose evil empire dominates the galaxy.
The Hunted is light, very fast reading that will send you out into outer space for a summer evening or two. It's not meant to seriously engage your mental engines but rather to get your blood racing and your eyes popping. And what's wrong with that?
This review first appeared at BookPleasures.com On Aug. 9, 2019:
https://waa.ai/3saC
Andrew Wichland
Publication Date: July 14, 2019
Sold by: Amazon Digital Services LLC
ASIN: B07V9C1PPJ
https://www.amazon.com/kindle-dbs/hz/...
Reviewed by Dr. Wesley Britton
There's a certain breed of science-fiction/ fantasy that's mostly non-stop action-adventure set out in a galaxy far, far away with the intent of entertaining readers with none of the warnings or alarms in so many dystopian
futures.
In his Dragon Knight Chronicles, Andrew Wichland shows he's got as good a handle on this sub-genre as anyone. Throughout The Hunted, book 3 of this series, Wichland juggles many of the familiar formulas and tropes of such yarns like inexplicable instant armor that can grow on a Dragon Knight's body in but a moment. Dragon Knights can suddenly be armed with arsenals of weapons that can take out fleets of pursuers in seemingly overwhelmingly powerful starships. In this case, there's an occasional nod to fantasy with Knights wearing bracelets that can tap into mystical powers when the occasion calls for them. Along the way, dwarves and minotars help populate the conversations.
When stories zip along like The Hunted, there's not much character development and it seems obvious reading the previous two volumes might fill in many of the unanswered or under-explained elements of The Hunted. For example, plot-twisting characters pop in and then quickly disappear. Some have apparently played key roles in the saga in previous stories. Some of them were very intrigueing, enigmatic, and quickly gone. Never to be seen again? The ending of the tale is one of those open-ended episodes setting the stage for volume 4. Perhaps some of those characters will make return engagements?
It seemed clear Wichland wanted readers to associate his main protagonist, Robin, with earth's Robin Hood, but that connection seemed very thin to me beyond some character names--Little John, Tuck, the like. This Robin Hood is on a quest to protect members of his people, track down a missing brother after finding a long-lost sister, and I'm not clear what else. We don't see much of the forces of the Black Dragon whose evil empire dominates the galaxy.
The Hunted is light, very fast reading that will send you out into outer space for a summer evening or two. It's not meant to seriously engage your mental engines but rather to get your blood racing and your eyes popping. And what's wrong with that?
This review first appeared at BookPleasures.com On Aug. 9, 2019:
https://waa.ai/3saC
August 5, 2019
Book Review: Rising Strong by Brene Brown
Rising Strong: How the Ability to Reset Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead
Brené Brown
Paperback: 352 pages
Publisher: Random House Trade Paperbacks; Reprint edition (April 4, 2017)
ISBN-10: 081298580X
ISBN-13: 978-0812985801
https://www.amazon.com/Rising-Strong-...
Reviewed by Dr. Wesley Britton
I was assigned this title as a monthly reading for a book club I belong to for widows and widowers going through the grief process. Is this a book helpful for readers like us? At first glance, no, not really. Brown's focus is how to get off the ground after you've fallen face down and need to admit your own vulnerability and shame to work through your recovery. Well, those going through the grief process already know about vulnerability and shame rarely applies to that situation.
I admit, I felt like I should have liked the book much better after reading some glowing reviews at Amazon and Goodreads. So clearly there is a very responsive audience for Brown's very academic and formulaic approach for working through the hard situations in life. I started to tune out a bit when Chapter Two kicked in and Brown talked about a pivotal moment in her marriage. During an unhappy swim, her husband didn't respond the way she wanted in a brief conversation. Not exactly a turning point for most people. It seemed like the sort of missed communication you can have countless times in a day. That was the first of such small moments that inspired chapter after chapter where Brown, her colleagues, family and friends worked through usually rather small-scale crises. Well, not small-scale to them, of course.
Whatever set-back or crisis you face, Brown has a three part formula for you: The reckoning where you tell your story so you can understand it; the rumble where you face your challenge and take ownership of it; the revolution where you have a transformative experience and move on. Put another way, fall. Get Up. Try again.
Other teachings in the book include: Integrity is choosing courage over comfort; choosing what is right over what is fun, fast, or easy; and choosing to practice our values rather than simply professing them.
Hmm, now that I've written all this down, I think I need to rethink my introduction. I still don't think the book is especially helpful for those suffering grief. The section on broken hearts is rather short and did disappoint me. That's what I most needed to explore. But the lessons do seem quite helpful in human and business relationships, if you're willing to look at things in ways you hadn't before. For example, if you're willing to accept that most people are doing the best that they can.
So, while Rising Strong might not be the first self-help book you might want to pick up this year, or even the first Brené Brown title to read judging from descriptions of her earlier titles, it's still a tome full of nuggets and insights well worth the price of admission. It could very well be a transformative book in your life.
This review first appeared at BookPleasures.com on Aug. 5:
https://waa.ai/3FxZ
Addendum:
After posting this review at BookPleasures, I had thoughts I wished I'd have included in this review. First, Brown admits in supplementary material at the back of her book that her study doesn't really help with grief. That takes more intensive counseling. I realized I was going through a "Rumble" of my own trying to come to terms with a dying relationship with someone who qualifies as "emotionally numb," to use another Brown term. Thanks to Brown, I am now writing a journal to tell the story of that relationship, at least my side of it where I admit learning I spend too much time imagining what's going on at the other end.
Nuff said--
Brené Brown
Paperback: 352 pages
Publisher: Random House Trade Paperbacks; Reprint edition (April 4, 2017)
ISBN-10: 081298580X
ISBN-13: 978-0812985801
https://www.amazon.com/Rising-Strong-...
Reviewed by Dr. Wesley Britton
I was assigned this title as a monthly reading for a book club I belong to for widows and widowers going through the grief process. Is this a book helpful for readers like us? At first glance, no, not really. Brown's focus is how to get off the ground after you've fallen face down and need to admit your own vulnerability and shame to work through your recovery. Well, those going through the grief process already know about vulnerability and shame rarely applies to that situation.
I admit, I felt like I should have liked the book much better after reading some glowing reviews at Amazon and Goodreads. So clearly there is a very responsive audience for Brown's very academic and formulaic approach for working through the hard situations in life. I started to tune out a bit when Chapter Two kicked in and Brown talked about a pivotal moment in her marriage. During an unhappy swim, her husband didn't respond the way she wanted in a brief conversation. Not exactly a turning point for most people. It seemed like the sort of missed communication you can have countless times in a day. That was the first of such small moments that inspired chapter after chapter where Brown, her colleagues, family and friends worked through usually rather small-scale crises. Well, not small-scale to them, of course.
Whatever set-back or crisis you face, Brown has a three part formula for you: The reckoning where you tell your story so you can understand it; the rumble where you face your challenge and take ownership of it; the revolution where you have a transformative experience and move on. Put another way, fall. Get Up. Try again.
Other teachings in the book include: Integrity is choosing courage over comfort; choosing what is right over what is fun, fast, or easy; and choosing to practice our values rather than simply professing them.
Hmm, now that I've written all this down, I think I need to rethink my introduction. I still don't think the book is especially helpful for those suffering grief. The section on broken hearts is rather short and did disappoint me. That's what I most needed to explore. But the lessons do seem quite helpful in human and business relationships, if you're willing to look at things in ways you hadn't before. For example, if you're willing to accept that most people are doing the best that they can.
So, while Rising Strong might not be the first self-help book you might want to pick up this year, or even the first Brené Brown title to read judging from descriptions of her earlier titles, it's still a tome full of nuggets and insights well worth the price of admission. It could very well be a transformative book in your life.
This review first appeared at BookPleasures.com on Aug. 5:
https://waa.ai/3FxZ
Addendum:
After posting this review at BookPleasures, I had thoughts I wished I'd have included in this review. First, Brown admits in supplementary material at the back of her book that her study doesn't really help with grief. That takes more intensive counseling. I realized I was going through a "Rumble" of my own trying to come to terms with a dying relationship with someone who qualifies as "emotionally numb," to use another Brown term. Thanks to Brown, I am now writing a journal to tell the story of that relationship, at least my side of it where I admit learning I spend too much time imagining what's going on at the other end.
Nuff said--
Wesley Britton's Blog
This just came in. My favorite two sentences of all time!
“The Blind Alien is a story with a highly original concept, fascinating characters, and not-too-subtle but truthful allegories. Don’t let the ...more
“The Blind Alien is a story with a highly original concept, fascinating characters, and not-too-subtle but truthful allegories. Don’t let the ...more
- Wesley Britton's profile
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