David M. Brown's Blog, page 106

Awww…Mondays – May 28th – Cats get everywhere…

This week (and every week!) we’ll be taking part in Awww…Mondays, posting a weekly dose of cuteness.  To find out more about ‘Awww….Mondays’, click here.

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This is actually quite an old picture but I came across it yesterday and thought it would be a perfect Awww Monday pick!  It really is true that cats get everywhere. When Charlie was little no territory went unexplored – including my handbag!

Leave a comment and let us know what made you go ‘Awww’ this Monday!

Awww…Mondays – May 28th – Cats get everywhere… | Thank you for reading Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dave

Inspire Me Monday: May 28th – Huddersfield canal

[image error]‘Inspire Me Monday’ is a weekly creative blog hop run by The Paper Princess at Create with Joy.

The prompt question: What’s Inspiring You This Week?

I have been doing creative things this week but my inspiration has really come from my surroundings.  I live by the canal and the weather has been beautiful this week so I wanted to show a lovely picture I managed to snap of the Huddersfield Canal:

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Inspired this week?  Leave me a comment and let me know what by!

Inspire Me Monday: May 28th – Huddersfield canal | Thank you for reading Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dave

Guest post: How Giving Your Work Away for Free Makes You Money – Marlayna Glynn Brown

I’m delighted to welcome Marlayna Glynn Brown to the blog today. Marlayna is the author Overlay – A Tale of One Girl’s Life and is here to share some useful advice about using KDP Select to giveaway free books in exchange for exposure.

How Giving Your Work Away for Free Makes You Money – Marlayna Glynn Brown

As I write this post, I’m clicking back and forth between this page and my Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing page.  Why?  Because I’m watching precious versions of my memoir – which took me three years to write, edit and self-publish – fly out the proverbial Amazon door for FREE.

In the time it took me to type the above, forty versions of my blood, sweat and tears were downloaded to Kindles across the world.

But that’s not all I’m giving away.  Aside from a 48 hour promotional period on Kindle during which thousands of readers will download free versions of Overlay – A Tale of One Girl’s Life in 1970s Las Vegas, I am giving away free eBook versions on a couple of websites and blogs as well.

It’s close to costless to give away an eBook version (minus your invested wo/man-hours,) but I’ve also given away most of my first box of 25 printed versions of my memoir.  A few copies were sent to book reviewers in the United States, India and Australia.  A few copies are committed to a giveaway being held on Goodreads, on which I’ve offered two copies for free.   At last count over 160 people had signed up for the giveaway.  I also sent a few copies to people I thought were inclined to share the word to potential readers that my book was worth a read.

We’re living in an exciting time where the publishing world is evolving at a previously unknown rate of change.  In the past, a small percentage of hopeful authors were able to attract the attention of agents who then landed publishing deals on their behalf.  If an author couldn’t get an agent, there wasn’t much of a chance of landing a publishing contract.  Now anyone can publish a book thanks to Amazon, CreateSpace, AuthorHouse and other companies.  And from the looks of things, authors are self-publishing in gigantic droves.  This has increased competition for all authors – and created a need for authors to learn how to effectively self-promote their works.

Lacking the agent and publishing contract most of us don’t yet have, we need to be creative in how we get our work out to the general public to increase awareness of our talent.  We slather at the Amanda Hocking and Rebecca Wells success stories and work new ways to strategically place our books before the masses.  It’s been said that Wells’ Divine Secrets of the Ya Ya Sisterhood wasn’t getting much attention until one book club recommended it to another book club.  From there the word spread – as women began telling other women to read the book.  As we now know, that particular method worked for Wells.  And it worked WELL – no pun intended, of course.

It’s a crucial step to consider your ideal reader and think of creative ways to get your work before the reader.  Does your reader belong to a book club?  Shop at an outdoor outfitting store?  Do needlepoint?  Take local classes at a community college?  Hunt?  Run marathons? After you’ve defined your ideal reader and considered the ways in which you can reach him and her, think of ways to get others in their networks to inform them of your work.  Create citizen readers, if you will.

One strategy is to strategically give your book away.  There are numerous ways to do so, including using Amazon’s free promotion tool and staging giveaways on Goodreads.  These steps are not targeted, and are more of a carpet bomber approach.  Combine this broad approach with more direct and targeted approaches.  Is your reader of college age? Send free books to the heads of a couple of large sororities or fraternities.  Is your reader an addict or affected by addiction in the family?  Contact helping organizations and local non profits and find ways to get your book in front of those who can recommend it to others.  You get the picture.

During the time it took me to type this post, nearly 700 copies of my book were downloaded.  While that is X amount of money I did not “make,” the potential for these new citizen readers to inform others is priceless.

About Overlay – A Tale of One Girl’s Life in 1970s Las Vegas
[image error]What is it that makes one person’s life interesting to another? Could it be the reader’s perceived shared experiences with the writer? A profound thankfulness for not having shared such experiences? A desire to know about a life not personally lived? A well-crafted, mesmerizing and professionally written read? A story that evokes reader emotion – whether it be relief, anger, fear, sadness or joy? A desire to see a situation through to the end? Our shared universal desire for entropy, balance, peace and happy endings?

Author Marlayna Glynn Brown has crafted an extraordinary tale of survival and resilience in spare and convincing prose. Written from a child’s point of view from ages 4 to 17, this tale describes the precarious childhood of Marlayna in 1970s Las Vegas.

The desert perimeter serves as a hot, dry and dangerous barrier that shuts out the rest of the vibrant world and bleaches away any sense of the joy that colors childhoods. Born into an ongoing cycle of alcoholism, addiction and abandonment amidst fallen adults, Marlayna develops a powerful sense of self-preservation in contrast to the people entrusted with her care. Her story explores the personalities of the bizarre characters who populate her life as she moves from home to home, parent to parent, family to family and ultimately to homelessness at the age of fourteen. Out of the resources of her remarkable childhood emerges an inner strength that will charm and captivate readers and remain in their consciousness long after the last page of her story has been turned.

Amazon US  Amazon UK  Goodreads


About Marlayna Glynn Brown
Marlayna Glynn Brown is an author, screenwriter, actress, producer, poet, yogi and photographer. Marlayna was born and raised in Las Vegas, Nevada and bases many of her unusual characters and unexpected story lines on true events.

Her first memoir, Overlay – A Tale of One Girl’s Life in 1970s Las Vegas, was published in March 2012 and is available in print and Kindle format. Her 2009 short film, People That do Something, is based upon a chapter from Overlay. Marlayna assists authors, photographers and artists with promotional representation.

Learn more  Website

Guest post: How Giving Your Work Away for Free Makes You Money – Marlayna Glynn Brown | Thank you for reading Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dave

Film Review: Help!

About Help! (1965)

[image error]Ringo finds himself the human sacrifice target of a cult and the band must try to protect him from it.

Starring: John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Ringo Starr, Leo McKern

Directed by: Richard Lester

Runtime: 1 hour 32 minutes

Studio: Parlophone Records

Amazon US  Amazon UK

Review: Help!

I never disliked The Beatles growing up but I would never say I was passionate about their music either. In recent years I’ve started to appreciate their music a lot more and understand why they were so important. Away from dominating the charts in the Sixties, the Fab Four had a stab at the movies and my first experience of their acting abilities would be with the second of the films they made – Help!

Comparable to work by the Marx brothers and a spoof of James Bond, Help! is pure absurdity from start to finish. A sacrifice at the outset to the goddess Kaili is foiled when the high priestess notices the victim is not wearing the sacrificial ring. Where could it be? Turning to their television the cult realise the ring is on the finger of Ringo Starr, drummer with the famous band The Beatles! The group set out to pilfer the ring any way they can, leaving John, Paul and George to protect Ringo.

I’m undecided whether Help! or Rubber Soul is my favourite Beatles album so having a selection of songs from one of the albums accompanying the film was very welcome indeed. The Fab Four have to foil some truly bizarre attempts to steal the ring, including the floor being sawn underneath Ringo, while the group are recording You’re Gonna Lose That Girl, pints resting on bars, which are actually levers that trigger trapdoors and poor Paul ends up being shrunk in one scene! It’s clear this film is purely for laughs and if you take it seriously you’ll be disappointed. The group soon find aid from the high priestess Ahme (Eleanor Bron), who explains that she sent the ring to Ringo and that as the bearer he is the one that must now be sacrificed as the ring cannot be removed from his finger! Poor Ringo!

While cult leader, Clang (Leo McKern), continues to try and steal the ring, the Fab Four have further problems when they try to get the ring removed themselves. Jewellers break all their tools trying to take the ring off and when the Fab Four turn to a scientist, Foot (Victor Spinetti), and his assistant, Algernon (Roy Kinnear) for help they only have more trouble on their hands. Realising the ring’s power, Foot wants it for himself to rule the world, of course! The group’s adventures take them to the likes of the Austrian Alps, Buckingham Palace and the Bahamas. One of the most memorable moments is when the army surround the group in a field as they play The Night Before and suddenly all out war takes place! At least the tanks don’t fire until the group have finished their excellent song. The question is can the group save Ringo from being sacrificed? Will he always wear the ring? If Ringo isn’t to be sacrificed who will replace him?

Help! wouldn’t win any awards for the acting, but it’s such great fun that you won’t really care. The wacky slapstick moments are backed by a selection of great songs by The Beatles and at one point they even sing Ode to Joy to subdue a tiger, don’t ask! This does have some of the silly elements you get in Bond movies and the influence is very evident. Some aspects also made me think of Monty Python’s Flying Circus, which would follow at the end of the Sixties. Whether you’re a fan of the group or not this film is still worth considering. It’s utterly ludicrous throughout but is never dull.

Help! is good enough to make me want to see the other films the Fab Four were in. They’ll always be better musicians than actors but this still has a witty script with some great slapstick moments. I’m not convinced by some of John’s fighting skills but given what a musical genius he was I’ll forgive him and just to make my wife happy, Ringo was a great drummer. Absurdly good.

Verdict: 4/5

(Film source: reviewer’s own copy)

Film Review: Help! | Thank you for reading Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dave

Book Review: Grotesque – Natsuo Kirino

About Grotesque (2003)

[image error]Tokyo prostitutes Yuriko and Kazue have been brutally murdered, their deaths leaving a wake of unanswered questions about who they were, who their murderer is, and how their lives came to this end. As their stories unfurl in an ingeniously layered narrative, coolly mediated by Yuriko’s older sister, we are taken back to their time in a prestigious girls’ high school—where a strict social hierarchy decided their fates—and follow them through the years as they struggle against rigid societal conventions.

Shedding light on the most hidden precincts of Japanese society today, Grotesque is both a psychological investigation into the female psyche and a work of noir fiction that confirms Natsuo Kirino’s electrifying gifts.

Amazon US  Amazon UK  Goodreads

Review: Grotesque

I first came across Natsuo Kirino’s work with her brilliant novel, Out, and have since read Real World, which was quite good but couldn’t match up to Out. Kirino’s novels focus on the dark side of Japanese society and put their emphasis on women trying to survive in this often gritty and brutal world. When faced with Grotesque I was curious to see if it could match up to the previous two books.

Grotesque is a series of first person accounts tied together by our unnamed narrator. She has seen her younger sister, Yuriko, and a former school friend Kazue Sato both murdered by a man named Zhang within the space of a year. Yuriko and Kazue are similar in that they were both prostitutes and died in the same way. Our narrator reflects on their deaths and takes us back to the days when the three women were at Q High School in Tokyo and how events there led up to the tragedies of the present.

Our narrator is clearly a bitter woman, a self-proclaimed virgin, with no interest in men though with a fascination of what her children would look like if she did sleep with different men. Both the narrator and Yuriko have a Japanese mother but a white Caucasian father and the family live in Switzerland at one stage, with the narrator managing to stay in Japan for her studies. While the narrator is plain, Yuriko is startlingly beautiful, appearing more western than Japanese and this makes everyone naturally drawn to her, much to the narrator’s discontent. From a young age, Yuriko relies on her beauty and when she manages to get into Q High School with her sister it is an uncomfortable time for the narrator who just becomes “Yuriko’s older sister”, with no one bothering to learn her name, their focus purely on Yuriko. Yuriko partners up with a fellow student Kijima who begins pimping her to the other students. Yuriko isn’t concerned. Not only does she earn good money but she enjoys sex with all the students, the feeling of power it gives and being desired.

At Q High School, the narrator becomes friends with two girls – the best in the class Mitsuru and Kazue Sato. Our narrator comes to despise each and every character we are introduced to but it’s not all one way traffic. The novel breaks from the narrator’s account to give us extracts from the journal of Yuriko, we also hear an account of the murderer Zhang who fled poverty in China with his sister for a new life in Japan, and finally there is the journal of Kazue Sato. While Yuriko was naturally pre-disposed towards prostitution, Kazue is somewhat different. She works in an office by day and at night takes to the streets in search of clients. This dual life is exhausting and Kirino leaves out no details of Sato’s acquaintances and the myriad of acts she has to perform for increasingly less money as she becomes older and less desirable. Kazue and Yuriko cross paths on the streets and even Yuriko, at the time of her death, has lost much of her beauty and is willing to sleep with men for measly sums of money. The tragedy is that Yuriko is not only aware of how dangerous her profession is but she welcomes the idea of her end.

Grotesque isn’t a crime novel, which Kirino is known for but a fascinating series of character studies. It’s almost like reading several novels in one go such is the difference in the narratives. The characters are not particularly likable. The narrator is bitter, twisted and unreliable, while Yuriko’s account won’t make you feel pity either. Zhang’s story is tragic as he flees China but this novel is full of characters that are not necessarily honest so it’s difficult to be sure who is telling the truth. Hearing everyone’s version of events is what makes it fascinating. For me, this is as good as, if not better, than Out.

Grotesque is a gritty novel but contains an intriguing group of characters with some unpleasant stories to tell. Sibling rivalry, teenage crushes, bullying, sex, violence, murder, incest, it’s all here and Kirino doesn’t shy from depicting the darkest side of society. While some of these themes may not appeal to all readers I found Kirino’s novel to be a great read from start to finish.

Verdict 5/5

(Book source: reviewer’s own purchase)

Book Review: Grotesque – Natsuo Kirino | Thank you for reading Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dave

Film Review: The Third Man

About The Third Man (1949)

[image error]Pulp novelist Holly Martins travels to shadowy, postwar Vienna, only to find himself investigating the mysterious death of an old friend, black-market opportunist Harry Lime.

Starring: Joseph Cotten, Alida Valli
Directed by: Carol Reed
Runtime: 1 hour 42 minutes
Studio: Lionsgate

Amazon US  Amazon UK

Review: The Third Man

Carol Reed’s classic film noir, based on the novel by Graham Greene, is one I have wanted to see for a while but have only done so now. Coming to The Third Man so late its reputation obviously preceded it and there were moments I was already aware of. My biggest concern was that with more than sixty years of praise would the film live up to its acclaim?

Set in Vienna in the aftermath of the Second World War, the film follows the progress of American author Holly Martins (Joseph Cotton) who is invited to work in the devastated city by his old friend Harry Lime (Orson Welles) only to find that Lime has been hit by a truck and killed. Ever the inquisitive writer, Martins attends Lime’s funeral and begins hearing differing accounts of his friend’s death. Two policemen Major Calloway (Trevor Howard) and Sergeant Paine (Bernard Lee) are insistent that Martins should return home but with inconsistencies in the testimonies Martins is determined to find the truth of whether or not Lime really is dead.

The first notable aspect of The Third Man is the setting in Vienna. The bulk of the streets are still decimated from the Second World War with piles of rubble and an overwhelming sense of unease and tension in the air. The cinematography in the film, especially on the dark streets with the moving shadows or in the subterranean network of sewers is all simply fantastic for a film that is more than sixty years old. The story is very intriguing from the start with Martins stunned to learn that Lime has been killed but accounts of the death vary with some insistent Lime was killed immediately while others are adamant he was alive long enough to convey his wishes that both his friend Martins and his girlfriend Anna (Alida Valli) would be taken care of. Martins also learns from one account that there was a third man at the scene who helped carry Lime’s body. Nothing is consistent and immediately we’re left wondering what is going on in Vienna.

Martins is soon drawn to Anna who works in theatre and falls foul of the local police due to a fake passport, the work of Lime, which leaves her facing the prospect of being returned to Russian hands. Martins and Anna grow closer through their mutual affiliation with Lime and Martins even becomes fond of Anna though these feelings are not reciprocated. It’s nigh on impossible to read about The Third Man and not know some of the famous scenes but seeing them flowing seamlessly with the rest of the film is an absolute joy. When Martins is meeting with Anna we see a figure on the streets outside, hidden in the shadows of a doorway save for his shoes protruding from the darkness and into the light. Anna’s cat, that’s notably only fond of Lime, heads outside and curls up around the feet of the unseen figure. When Martins ventures outside and notices the figure watching from the shadows he challenges him to show his face. Though the figure doesn’t comply a resident hearing the commotion, turns on a light, which casts away the shadows hiding the lone figure and there before us is Harry Lime. Surprised to have his cover blown Lime simply looks at Martins and offers a cheeky smile before disappearing into the night. It’s a brilliant introduction and enhances the mystique about the elusive Harry Lime. For the rest of the film we’re treated to a thrilling cat and mouse chase as Lime’s nefarious activities in Vienna are exposed and Martins is faced with a choice of allowing his friend to remain free or cooperate with the authorities and bring him to justice.

The Third Man did not disappoint at any stage. The mystery of Lime’s death is gripping from the outset and when he makes his appearance the film becomes even more enjoyable. Another highlight has to be a private meeting between Lime and Martins on a Ferris wheel, which includes some brilliant dialogue from Orson Welles, especially the “cuckoo clock” reference when he mentions Switzerland. Cotton and Valli are both very good but this film belongs to Welles whose presence in that introduction is striking and his subsequent dialogue that follows is delivered wonderfully. I’m ashamed to say this is the first time I’ve seen the great Orson Welles in action and with that fact in mind I find myself even more embarrassed given how great he was in this film. There’s even some mystery and ambiguity at the end which is also aptly bittersweet and makes for a dark conclusion to our time in the ruins of post-war Vienna.

The Third Man is a fascinating film noir boasting an engaging storyline, some great performances and fabulous settings. There was a time when I would have turned my nose up at old films, especially anything in black and white, but a new perspective has helped me realise just what I have been missing all these years.

(Film source: reviewer’s own purchase)

Film Review: The Third Man | Thank you for reading Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dave

Book Review: In Leah’s Wake – Terri Giuliano Long

In Leah’s Wake (2010) – Terri Giuliano Long

This acclaimed debut novel from Terri Giuliano Long has been selling well for many months and is one of the success stories of indie publishing. Naturally, I was ready to dip in and see if I could find the secret to Mrs Long’s achievement in a novel about an ordinary family going through some difficult changes.

On the surface the Tyler family are just like any other family. They are well respected in the local community. The parents Will and Zoe work hard, their eldest daughter, Leah, is a star player in the school soccer team and their youngest daughter, Justine, is less athletic but what she lacks in sporting endeavour she more than makes up for in her intelligence, a straight A student. Leah is sixteen at the start of the novel and her parents are expecting a bright future for her, perhaps Harvard, and a glittering soccer career to boot. However, all is not well. Leah’s grades are beginning to tumble and she has a new boyfriend, Todd, who is fond of alcohol and drugs. The Tyler’s family idyll is gradually ripped apart as Leah begins to change and the consequences are devastating.

Long addresses every parent’s worst nightmare as their children grow up. Leah and Justine seem like the perfect daughters, but Leah has become withdrawn, even distant with her sister, and her love of soccer is seemingly on the wane. Leah’s parents believe the solution is simply to keep their daughter away from her boyfriend Todd but Leah’s problems run much deeper. Todd holds down a job but has been guilty of stealing money from his boss and he introduces Leah to drugs, alcohol and pressures her for sex. This is quite a lot for a sixteen year old to suddenly be facing.

There is more to Leah than just a stereotypical terrible teen, full of mood swings and ill-discipline. Long writes the character well in that we may frown upon some of her actions, but at other times we will feel sympathetic. Switching the narrative perspective around the family is a good tactic, offering different viewpoints and feelings whenever serious incidents occur. As Leah becomes worse so too do her parents. Will becomes more aggressive, especially towards Todd, and Zoe drifts between making the effort and distancing herself from Leah. In the background Justine looks and her only comfort is the family pet, Dog. You just want the family to sit down and talk to one another! Also thrown into this domestic maelstrom is Jerry, a police officer, with a story of his own. He has a wife and twins to care for but he is clearly unhappy in the relationship and after crossing paths with Leah, he becomes friendly with Zoe. The novel carefully builds up the tension as these characters all respond to the changes in Leah. This isn’t just about how she changes though. It is about how what happens to her impacts on everyone and what they do to cope.

I didn’t think there was a bad character in In Leah’s Wake and that each one had a lot of depth. Zoe and Will have backgrounds from their own upbringings and as parents they love their children and want what is right for them, but they prove being a parent and getting things right is not easy. Their daughter makes mistakes but so do they. Leah is a complex character and you will despair and sympathise as you follow her self-destructive journey. Justine was my favourite character, the innocent voice of reason, but even she is hit hard by the events in the novel and is very different by the end. What worked for me was that Long didn’t choose to give us a Hollywood, melodramatic and sentimental ending. The final pages are hard-hitting in that they embrace the realism of family life. Bad things happen in families but they continue to love one another, even though some things are impossible to forget or to move on from. There are no miracle cures in In Leah’s Wake. The novel ends with some welcome hope, but it’s a delicate kind of hope.

In Leah’s Wake is a well-crafted novel of an American family going through the difficult motions of a daughter’s maturity and independence. This is never an easy transition for any family and the novel is proof that thing can go wrong for anyone, no matter how perfect everything may seem. Long’s novel is worth all the plaudits it has enjoyed.

Verdict: 4/5

Book Review: In Leah’s Wake – Terri Giuliano Long | Thank you for reading Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dave

Film Review: War, Inc.

War, Inc. (2008)

John Cusack’s role in Grosse Point Blank (1997) is one of his finest to date, so the prospect of him being a hitman again in Joshua Seftel’s War, Inc. certainly appealed to me. The film had a limited release on the big screen and reviews were generally pretty poor, but I still went along with an open mind. After all, it’s not often Cusack does a bad film.

Brand Hauser (John Cusack) is a ruthless hitman who is contacted at the outset by the former Vice President (Dan Aykroyd) and given the task of assassinating Omar Sharif (Lyubomir Neikov), CEO of the oil company, Ugigas. Hauser heads for the war-torn country of Turaqistan and to the Emerald City where he poses as the organiser of a trade show and a celebrity wedding with the advertising company Tamerlane (the historical figure is worth looking up!). While waiting for the opportunity to kill Sharif, Hauser must contend with Asian pop star Yonica (Hilary Duff) and her fiancée, Ooq-Mi-Fay (Sergei Trifunovic) whose wedding he must organise. Hauser also has the problem of journalist Natalie Hegalhuzen (Marisa Tomei) who is looking for a story.

After watching Hauser take out a trio of men at the outset, he is soon onto his next mission, briefed by the Vice President who is sitting on the toilet at the time! Heading into Turaqistan, Hauser makes for the Emerald City where gunfire and bombs regularly explode on the streets! He pairs up with Marsha (Joan Cusack) and seeks counsel from his navigation system, Jerry (Montel Williams). Hauser has to follow the orders of the Viceroy who is hidden in a secret building behind a restaurant and is heard but not seen. All goes along swimmingly until Hauser meets journalist, Natalie, and finds himself falling for her, something she uses to her advantage to try and gain access to Tamerlane.

Hauser’s meeting with Yonica proves uncomfortable when she frequently tries to seduce him. Whenever Hauser is nervous he takes to drinking small bottles of hot sauce, which he keeps tucked in his jacket. Watching Yonica rehearse a song and make eyes at him, Hauser proceeds to be sick on Natalie’s coat! It seems our cool and calm hitman is anything but. Hauser has a back story and we see this in flashbacks involving fellow hitman Walken (Ben Kingsley) during a time when Hauser had grown weary of his work and wanted to quit. Hauser’s growing affection for Natalie and organising Yonica’s wedding keep him distracted from killing Sharif but Hauser hasn’t forgotten what he needs to do. The question is will he go through with it.

Plot-wise this is a busy film but I’m confused why so many people have criticised it. Some reviewers abandoned this after just 20 minutes! Some elements are pretty predictable, especially when Hauser’s back story is uncovered and the ending is a bit gun-toting melodramatics, but this is great fun throughout with some laugh out loud moments, one in particular you probably shouldn’t laugh at, but it’s hard to resist! This isn’t one of Cusack’s best performances but he still manages to shine and is well backed by the supporting cast.

I’m not sure if this political satire was too clever for some reviewers but I found it to be very enjoyable. It’s a bit plodding early on but soon gathers pace and the last half an hour or so is action-packed and exciting. I just wish I could have a Tamerlane goodie bag that Hauser and Marsha hand over to everyone they come into contact with!

Verdict: 8/10

Film Review: War, Inc. | Thank you for reading Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dave

Book excerpt: After the Fog – Kathleen Shoop

I’m delighted to welcome Kathleen Shoop to the blog today! Kathleen is the author of bestselling novel The Last Letter. Her newest release is After the Fog – you can read my review here.

Excerpt: After the FogHenry Feels a Pang of Jealousy

It couldn’t be her.

Henry whipped his head around to see, and shook his head. What was Rose still doing there? He ducked behind the coat rack and surveyed the room. He spread a brown wool coat away from a black one that smelled of body odor and peered past the wooden pole that held the whole thing up.

Rose. Her back was to him, then her profile, spinning on the stool. She threw her head back laughing like she didn’t have a care in the world, like she was being photographed for Life Magazine or some shit. She leaned over her beer, gulping it while lifting her hand to signal for another. Henry’s friend Jack sat with Rose, enraptured, swimming in her hilarity.

Henry squinted through the coats. Rose was not the type to linger and socialize after a call. Buzzy had told Henry over the phone that Rose had been unable to get into the back room and he would be trapped there until she was gone. Not that he could leave, anyhow. The men who were going to break his legs didn’t think it was smart to let him wander since Buzzy owed them seven hundred dollars.

Henry nearly stepped forward to spill the whole thing to Rose, to simply tell her the truth and make Buzzy, make all of them just own up to their deceit and start things over. But, Rose had been through too much that day. Did he really need to pile on more trouble? He was chicken-shit, he knew it. Maybe if Dottie hadn’t been involved he could come clean, but not then, not there.
Rose laughed out loud, bending forward, nearly into Jack’s lap. Her laughter was unladylike and he had loved it from the first time he heard it. When had he heard it last?

Rose straightened and hiccupped, laughing harder. Jack was enjoying her, his hard, barrel-belly quaking. Henry’s stomach tightened. Not with fear or dread, but full, black jealousy. Maybe he wouldn’t have felt threatened if he hadn’t put such mileage between him and Rose. He’d never felt jealous.
The first time Henry met Rose she was drunk. But sweetly so. She knew who Henry was, a pitcher for the Pirates, but unlike most women—those who were awed by him—Rose was charmed, not enamored. She regaled his teammates with tales of nursing, and for the first time, the fellas weren’t telling their stories of baseball glory. This chestnut-haired, long-legged, intelligent woman mesmerized them. She was an equal. And she knew it. A woman like that was the kind of woman Henry could marry.

He glanced at his watch. He needed to get to Buzzy before he was dismembered. He’d have to deal later with his envy over watching Jack share such a delightful time with Rose. He’d just have to go into the storage room through the back of the bar instead of through the front.

Henry turned and exited the bar, his breathing labored by the air. He moved slowly along the sidewalk, inching along the wall to get to the back of the building, remembering his first night with Rose—the night they married, and had sex for the first time. There was no coy, shyness on Rose’s part, no “help me through this, I’ve never done it,” act. And, when it was over, she left. Had a sandwich in the kitchen. Not with a pout and shame splashed across her face or weighing on her posture. She just had a bite then went to work.

Leaving Henry, utterly, somehow sadly in love. Rose was not a woman who thought she drew her first breath upon the arrival of her prince. No, this woman did not need anyone but herself and for Henry that was as intoxicating as a woman could be.

Henry did not have time to reminisce. Twenty years had brought problems and right then, his problem was Buzzy. Henry reached the back room door and pounded until a large man, his bloated fingers clutching a baseball, let Henry in. Henry watched as the man lobbed the ball into the air, spinning it, its autographs melting into a blur as he did.

Henry shook his head. In the cramped room of stale booze and broken souls, Henry saw once and for all, that his brother would sell anything for gambling, even the baseball Henry had gotten signed by every one of his Pittsburgh Pirate teammates. Even that.

About After the Fog

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Rose Pavlesic is a straight-talking, gifted nurse who is also controlling and demanding. She has to be to ensure her life is mistake-free and to create a life for her children that reflects everything she missed as an orphaned child. Rose has managed to keep her painful secrets buried in her past, away from her loving husband—who she discovers has secrets of his own—their dutiful children and their large extended, complicated family.

But, as a stagnant weather cycle works to trap poisonous gasses from the three mills in town, Rose’s nursing career thrusts her into a conflict of interest she never could have fathomed—putting the lives of her loved ones at risk. As the fog thickens, Rose’s neighbors are dying; thousands of people in the community are becoming increasingly ill. Rose is faced with decisions that can destroy her carefully constructed House of Pavlesic and reveal its true character.

Amazon US Amazon UK About Kathleen Shoop

[image error]“I’m married with two children. I’ve been seriously writing for almost a decade although I dabbled much earlier than that! I’ve had short stories published in four Chicken Soup for the Soul books, am a regular contributor to a local magazine, Pittsburgh Parent, and have had essays in local newspapers as well.

I have a PhD in Reading Education and currently work as a Language Arts Coach at a school in Pittsburgh. I work with teachers and their students in grades k-8 and am lucky to learn something new from them every time I walk through their doors.”

Book excerpt: After the Fog – Kathleen Shoop | Thank you for reading Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dave

Guest post: Read Like a Writer – Kathleen Shoop

I’m delighted to welcome Kathleen Shoop to the blog today! Kathleen is the author of bestselling novel The Last Letter. Her newest release is After the Fog – you can read my review here.

Read Like a Writer – Kathleen Shoop

Everyone knows writing is a solitary endeavor. I love the time spent alone, the time with characters, plots and events that live only through print and in my head. But, there’s another part of me that’s social and highly collaborative. Luckily I have ways to attend to both parts of my existence.

For example, one of the ways I’ve become a social writer is through colleagues and mentors. These people offer a social connection to my craft. One opportunity for this is through writing co-ops. I belong to Madhu Wangu’s meditative writing group. We meditate for 30 minutes and then write for hours in each other’s company. Lunch follows writing. There are no cell-phones or chatting about kids during the meditation and writing segments. The talk that follows is constructive and collaborative; we celebrate breakthroughs in manuscripts and solve problems that remain. Just being in the company of others while writing can propel me through a tough drafting spot. Though writing remains solitary at its heart, this group feels supportive and it satisfies that yearning for a social experience.

Then there are my very famous teachers. Francine Prose, Sara Gruen, and Elizabeth Strout have all helped me grow as a writer. No, they don’t phone in their feedback or join me for coffee after reading my drafts, but they are with me. Reading extensively as a writer is central to a writer’s growth. I know we barely have enough time to get words down on paper, but for me, I had major breakthroughs once I took seriously this idea of learning from the masters.

When I first started writing, I was afraid to read in my genre for fear I’d copy the authors I admire. Now I realize, that’s impossible. Francine Prose was especially important in this development for me. Her book, “Reading like a Writer: A guide for People Who Love Books and for Those Who Want to Write Them,” is full of examples of how literature works in a multitude of ways. She shows how the giants of literature sometimes break rules, that following the “you musts and you shoulds” can amputate the essence of your writing and remove the part that is unique.  She might not have sent an email saying just that, but that’s what I got from her loud and clear.

Through Prose I discovered what I’m looking for in the books I read in my genre is not something that will accidentally rub off on me. Rather, it is found in the purposeful way they place objects in character’s hands and express language in a way that is solely theirs. In more fully studying others, I found my voice. I found it was impossible to copy theirs if I was studying just the right things.

Now I’ve found, not everyone likes my voice, the cadence of my prose, or any number of things that make it mine. But, what I’ve developed and released into the world is truly mine and that is the greatest gift a writer can give herself. So thanks to all my friends, famous or not, I write with you in the room, always. I am not alone at all.

About After the Fog

[image error]Source: I received a copy in exchange for my fair and honest review

Rose Pavlesic is a straight-talking, gifted nurse who is also controlling and demanding. She has to be to ensure her life is mistake-free and to create a life for her children that reflects everything she missed as an orphaned child. Rose has managed to keep her painful secrets buried in her past, away from her loving husband—who she discovers has secrets of his own—their dutiful children and their large extended, complicated family.

But, as a stagnant weather cycle works to trap poisonous gasses from the three mills in town, Rose’s nursing career thrusts her into a conflict of interest she never could have fathomed—putting the lives of her loved ones at risk. As the fog thickens, Rose’s neighbors are dying; thousands of people in the community are becoming increasingly ill. Rose is faced with decisions that can destroy her carefully constructed House of Pavlesic and reveal its true character.

Amazon US  Amazon UK About Kathleen Shoop

[image error]“I’m married with two children. I’ve been seriously writing for almost a decade although I dabbled much earlier than that! I’ve had short stories published in four Chicken Soup for the Soul books, am a regular contributor to a local magazine, Pittsburgh Parent, and have had essays in local newspapers as well.

I have a PhD in Reading Education and currently work as a Language Arts Coach at a school in Pittsburgh. I work with teachers and their students in grades k-8 and am lucky to learn something new from them every time I walk through their doors.”

Guest post: Read Like a Writer – Kathleen Shoop | Thank you for reading Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dave