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I'm uncertain how long Margaret and her husband, John Laurence (from whom our Manitoba star obtained her famous name) were in Africa before well-building machinery arrived. Her plural of the word month means at least three of them. They had the surveying and plans done and time for a few adventures. Now: it will be enthralling to see how she & John made the Somalian wells and how widely extra wells helped people.

Always, Margaret's masterful writing draws me into any subject. She handles even Somalia's hardship and people as perceptively as kindly. Not once was she exasperated with the thought "Why do people idiotically not help people help them"! She is understanding of the way they have to think; of a constant possibility of starvation, in weather and terrain they can't control. I am enjoying this better than expected.

I remember little of this story's film, being young but was sure it was about the actress "Suzanne" and a famous, perhaps unintentionally upstaging Mother. Then Meryl Streep, finally feeling alright, sings at the end. Suzanne's Mom has not been visible so far; said to have visited the rehab clinic, brought gifts, and phoned to check on her and ofter comforting advice when she was home. There are a few more pages.

We are introduced to "Suzanne": mature, doing well in rehab and then finding her feet while dating an abominably useless producer. But before him, there is a long segment with the drugged excuses and downfall of a guy with no connection except sharing Suzanne's rehab group. I forged through it and am finally following Suzanne's acting jobs and her Grandparents. Now, I feel like Carrie Fisher is being highlighted.

Too soon to know what I think of a style and subject so different for me. But I am very glad to be hearing Carrie Fisher's voice. I want to stay with her for as long as I can. I have two hardcovers of her fiction novels to savour and look forward to as well. Losing Carrie and David Bowie were definitely the biggest artist shocks for me. Doris Roberts is a personal loss for me too but I do accept that she was 90.

Oh, Carrie can't be gone yet. Star Wars is making three films. It is she, whom I enjoy and look forward to most. She still has a regal and endearing presence. I can't imagine the third film without you. Of the many physical departures this last year, this is one that is too soon. I miss you already but I have your most personal words and I have the second Star Wars film. I hope you filmed some of the third.

This was planned to be my 150th finalist for 2016. It's all right. I preferred to clean, bake, cook a few easy treats, and have a nice new year's eve waiting for my spouse to get home from a two-night family visit! Then of course, we had that supper and dessert and celebrated new year's eve! I say 149 books are cool enough. I don't mind putting this one towards 2017 instead. Happy new year 2017 everyone!

Lovely, exquisite pictures! As visially qhenching as the sentiments expressed in words. They lull us into understanding on a journey of another girl's personality and home.

This does not appear to be a better novel than the last one. Right away: the gaudy style of having characters lurch into pointless action and none we can believe! Finding a letter's owner would be puzzle enough. It did not need to be stolen before Nancy reads it. The team thought hearing the contents in an overseas phone call would be more exciting than reading of it? Note: the Goodreads synopsis is a spoiler!

It's funny books turn out opposite from our measurement: we like least some we expected to love. Of my three "Our Canadian Girl" stories, Keeley's is free, not grim or poverty-stricken. She and her Dad are a fun pair in newly-built Alberta. Unfortunately I see Deborah Ellis has a penchant for visual comedy: a style I can't stand! Thice, she created crazy incidents instead of moving her history portrait forward.

MERRY CHRISTMAS 2016 from Carolyn, Ron, and our precious kitties in Manitoba, Canada!
Joyeux Noel!
!Feliz Navidad!
Frohe Weinachten!

This guy knew everyone! He not only knew the Sea Shepherd captain of animal rights lore: the idea to thwart newborn seal-clubbers by ship came from a meeting with Paul at Cleveland's hotel room! From Beverly Hills conferences, oh, what celebrities rode the cause too! Carey Grant, Doris Day, Jeremy Winters, Katherine Hepburn, Jean Stapleton... Their team made the first "Real People Don't Wear Fur" television ads!

I could absorb all of this book of 240 glorious pages, in a day but it is among those special attention-holding, memorable stories we don't wish to close. I am sure I will carry this story with me and the sequel I own too. I am glad there is a third but sorry Cleveland Amory hasn't been with us since 1998. He was a real author, a legendary master with words! And a pioneer animal rights founder! Bless him and PB!

I am not cynical and let books entertain me by being what they are. However when I reached a part, soon, where it is clear captain Eli's ghost gets a narrative: I thought "Oh no, this is not going to be about the high atmosphere of discovering that ghosts exists". This is what I look for when I purchase paranormal fiction and I am disappointed. However: it is time to see how I enjoy what it is instead.

I knew I would like this biography about an immensely local personage, from the Japanese portion of our city's culture that I don't know. However this book was not about declaring "See how great this guy was. Let's learn to be like him". It is, interspersed by Yoshimaru's happy hobbies and talents all the way: an important record of negative 1940s wartime history, in British Columbia. I've learned a great deal.

I have an autographed copy by all three authors. Although this biography is largely Japanese and then starts in British Columbia; it is very strongly a history of Manitoba. We have more nations than we can count so it is a pleasure to learn about this culture's origins in our home province. Like in no other history: I know the streets, places, people, weather, landscape, and flavour this book is referring to!

All this novel is missing is a little splash in the way it is told to engage us three-dimensionally, that a traditional publisher's team might offer. Michael Richan should have a contract because his ideas are unique and abundant as his metaphorical river. He is great at not straying from the good parts. A little filler would be all right but we zoom from useful scene to important scene. I'm near the end already!

I think feeling that dialogue isn't three-dimensional and sparking to life is the product of dictacting a story, instead of putting readers into it. The dictation, the "telling instead of showing", is not too bad because Michael's story is nearly all comprised of dialogue. Perhaps this stiffness and flatness wears off as he gained momentum. He published many more volumes, with good ideas. Editing errors are few.

I am enjoying this. As a first novel it is a good signal for the numerous others. The dialogue isn't stiltled but feels like Michael was conscientious of writing it out. It doesn't spark with life, tipping the hand that this might be a self-published oeuvre. However if so, a self-publication done very well in every other way. I am compelled. "The Bank Of The River" is suspenseful, with a refreshing originality.

I blew through this in a night, aftering being one of the pioneering items of my Amazon.ca wish list, since March 29, 2006! Aversion to 5-star enjoyment, is starting with the subject of sexual assault. Especially, when the book opened, we didn't know what Richard meant by "surveillance tape". Police? Home security? Gradually we find he and the new tenants, his friends, conducted formal paranormal investigations!

I have had this on my Amazon Canada wish list since March 29, 2006: one of its first requests! It migrated to such a far back page that I brought a few of these to the front on an impulse after I had revisited them. It says something about being certain about what I like and where I reliably invest my interest, that I find myself reading even more modern releases of material like this ten years hence.