Open Book – October 2019
I’m joining with Carolyn Astfalk and Catholic Mom for “An Open Book.” Here’s what I’ve been reading over the past month (and will be reading this month).
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Ella’s Promise (Great War-Great Love #3)
I’ve been editing, re-reading and re-editing for the past month. The third in the Great War Great Love trilogy will be published on November 1, 2019!
Synopsis: When she joins the war effort during the Great War, American nurse Ella Neumann doesn’t see allies or enemies. The daughter of German immigrants, all she sees are human beings in need of care. A promise to herself and a promise made to her by an enemy officer become the catalyst for the life she plans to lead after the war. But a handsome Canadian soldier may complicate her plans. In this third installment of the Great War – Great Love series, join Ella in a tale of promises, betrayal and unconditional love.
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by Dr. Becky Bailey (illustrated by James Hrkach)
Synopsis: The beloved Shubert and Sophie books build character through conflict for both children and adults. An endearing lightning bug named Shubert, his little sister Sophie, and their friends at Bug Valley School demonstrate using the Seven Skills of Conscious Discipline to solve problems. Shubert’s parents and teacher model Conscious Discipline for adults.
My review: It’s hard to be unbiased since my husband illustrated all these books. We just gave a full set to our grandson (and signed by his grandfather, the illustrator!), so we read through them again. When James first began illustrating Shubert, our youngest son was in the womb! It’s hard to believe there are now so many of them and that we have a grandson to give them to! Highly recommend!
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Without a Trace by Sylvia Wrigley
Amazon Synopsis: True Stories of Aircraft and Passengers Who Disappeared Into Thin Air. For many, aviation still brings with it an air of mystery, a century-long magic trick. Though most of us will board an aircraft at some point in our lives, we know little about how they work and the procedures surrounding their operation. It is that mystery that makes these losses, such as the vanishing of Malaysia Airlines flight 370, so terrifying.
Without a Trace explores the most interesting of these disappearances: mysteries that have baffled investigators for years. Occasionally tragic, frequently amusing, Without a Trace is unerringly accurate and informative.
The two Without a Trace volumes span 150 years and explore mysteries from around the world. This is volume one, beginning just before the golden age of aviation with a manned balloon swept over the English Channel, and ending with a top-secret spy plane disappearing at the height of the cold war. Each case is laid out in rich detail and presented chronologically, highlighting the historical context, official accident reports and contemporary news surrounding each mystery.
Where did they go?
Sylvia Wrigley introduces the crews, innocent bystanders and rescuers in this collection of true stories. Documenting the popular theories from each case, she uses her knowledge and experience as a pilot and an aviation journalist to demystify aviation jargon and narrow down each disappearance to the most likely explanations.
This collection takes a hard look at the human failings of great aviators, explorers and celebrities who have pushed the limits of flight and ended up at the heart of a mystery. The stories encompass airships, military jets and commercial airlines – all of which have vanished without a trace.
My review: I’m currently reading this. It’s interesting (and I love a good missing persons/airplane story), but the author’s writing is a bit stilted. Otherwise, it’s an interesting book. Review to come.
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The Time in Between by William Judd
Back cover synopsis: Fred Nash, an adolescent in the 1960’s, emerging from a repressive home life and seeking to recover from the loss of a first love, finds himself depressed and adrift. Will he find a true path for himself, or will he succumb to chaos and despair in the midst of a decade of significant cultural change?
My review: This is a moving coming-of-age story about a young man in the sixties. I enjoyed all the different references to music, TV and movies as I was a young child of the sixties.
