Unsheltered and Undone: Barbara Kingsolver novels complete, what to read?

Kudos to me: I really know how to drag something out.

I've been worried about running out of Barbara Kingsolver novels since at least 2007. And now, having finished Unsheltered, here I am.

Packing and Unpacking the Human Condition

I'll spare you my in-depth review of Unsheltered, because for one thing, this isn't really a review site.* Also, The Guardian ran two reviews: one very favorable, the other not-so-much. Both sides of the story, so to speak. For what it's worth, I think the AP's review was better than both of those.

But since this is my blog, I'll admit, I didn't fall head over heels for the book. At first.

As poet/author Kate Clanchy noted in her (not-so-favorable) review in The Guardian, the plot was difficult to follow at times. Actually, "plot" seems too strong; there was very little action. But there were two deaths, a birth, a little bit of sex, and a whole lot of backstory. So let's call this a story.

And in the story, I found characters to love. OK, one character: Mary Treat. AND SHE'S REAL! (I love it when that happens. She studied all sorts of plants and insects, and several species of ants are named after her. Um. Did I mention this isn't really a book review site?) Treat's correspondence with Charles Darwin from the "utopian" society of Vineland, NJ could have stood alone. But it actually worked quite nicely as scaffolding for the story, so I read on. Plus, there is Kingsolver's habit of turning out great - GREAT - sentences.

As The Guardian's Benjamin Evans points out in his (favorable) review, "Kingsolver powerfully evokes the eeriness of living through times of social turmoil."

Indeed.

Somehow in 400-odd pages she manages to weave bits of our modern world (Trump, Education, Corruption, Climate Change) into the broader canvas of life (greed, snobbery, love, kindness, evolution, death) and turn it into a story.

Not bad. Except sometimes it feels like a kick in the head. But, being a good writer that doesn't want to alienate her readers, she includes enough hilarious Greek curses to make us laugh. With apologies to anyone who understands, "Putana thalasa pouse gamoun ta psaria." (Something about the whore ocean where all the fish...never mind, it probably loses a lot in translation.)

She also includes some tantalizing prose to keep us reading. To wit, this nugget that encapsulates that oh-so-funny feeling when realize your tiresome, tyrannical father in law was once just as unbelievably hot as your husband -

"She'd kindly offered no judgment on Willa for failing to see the resemblance, the evergreen human crime of denying the past and seeing oneself as an original." 

 So, even though I'm out of Kingsolver fiction, I'll keep reading. I haven't read picked up Animal Vegetable Mineral yet, and I know its time is coming. But what about novels? Who can recommend some great new fiction?

Please tell me what you're reading and what I should check out at the library!

*What do you mean this isn't a book review site?

Funny you should ask. I started this blog about a hundred years ago because I wanted 1- some blogging practice and 2- a way to keep track of what I read, liked, didn't, wanted to read, would recommend to friends, and why. Also, I was hopeful that my reading friends would chime in and add their own seat-of-the-pants reviews. Or blathering diatribes on what they were reading. And here we are. If you'd like to submit a review, or un-review, please, do!

Get in touch via my Facebook Page or website. Thanks for reading!

The President is Missing, But Not For Long

Well, I finished The President is Missing, just shy of deadline.

Our local library offers the most popular new titles as "Lucky Day" books, available for a non-renewable 7 day loan.

Have you read it?

James Patterson Book #1

This was the first of James Patterson's books that I've read. Go figure. 

According to the most reliable source I have (the book jacket) Patterson holds the Guinness World Record for the most #1 NYT best sellers. 

Clearly, I was feeling optimistic on that trip to the library:  in addition to The President is Missing I snagged 5 other books, including Zoo and The Store, also by Patterson. 

Having digested the very engaging but somewhat formulaic Missing, I'm willing to crack open those other two novels, but I have to admit I'm a bit disappointed. Based on Patterson's reputation and obvious success, I'd hoped to find him a suitable replacement for Michael Creighton. Alas, he is not.

James Patterson Book # 2

Stay tuned... and as always, I welcome guest posts on this blog. If you'd like to review your favorite James Patterson book, or argue that he really is equal to or better than Michael Creighton, reach out here in the comments or connect with me through my Dumb Facebook Page devoted to dogs and books and other things I can't live without. 

Here's to Happy Endings! 

 

Ohio Authors, Reading Labels, and Ramblings

So imagine my excitement when I realized acclaimed MG/YA author Shelley Pearsall will be seated just a few tables away at the Buckeye Book Fair next month! I have to admit I didn't realize Pearsall was an Ohio author. It was a nice surprise, especially given my youngest has read a few of her titles. (Which, not surprisingly, means that I have too.)

Most recently we've read The Seventh Most Important Thing, the much-acclaimed book about redemption and anger, two things most teens struggle with - though thankfully not to the extent of the main character.

Labels, Labels

Having done some research into "reluctant" readers in the past, I was a bit surprised to find The Seventh Most Important Thing was labeled for "them." It made me wonder, how do we determine who is a reluctant reader in 2016? Goodness, it's hard to concentrate when you're 13 and have a cell phone in your hand (or back pocket) and all your friends are watching (or making) YouTube videos.

Also, I've been perplexed about the "reluctant" label because both my kids, who read and comprehend above grade level and score high for vocabulary could be, I think, labeled as reluctant readers. And yet both go through spurts of serious reading. And, when they find a book they like, both are nearly over-zealous in recommending it.

If any reading teachers would like to explain, I WELCOME YOUR HELP!

(Want to guest blog here? Please get in touch!!)

Trouble Don't Last

The next Pearsall book on my 2R list is Trouble Don't Last. Confession: it's been on my 2R list for a lonnnnnnnnng time. I may have to move it up my list just because I'll have a chance to meet the author soon. But, in case I don't get a round tuit, maybe you'd like to review it?

If your answer is yes, please contact me in comments here, through my website, or slap a message on my Facebook Page about dogs and essays and writing and life and other stuff I don't understand.

Yay! Ohio Authors!
Buckeye Book Fair 2016

In case you'd like to meet Shelley Pearsall, or me, or any of 98 other Ohio authors who published books in 2015 or early 2016, you just might have to go to the Buckeye Book Fair, held Saturday November 5 on the Wooster College campus.

Cleveland's favorite Man of Mystery, Les Roberts, will be there, as will super sports writers and commentators like Terry Pluto and Dan Coughlin, Tom Batiuk, Ohio's funkiest cartoonist, me, and a couple of guys who are really serious about mushrooms.

Hope to see you there! (Download the brochure here.)

Keep reading, my friends. 

The Art of Biography and A Journalist's Dismay

After reading about The Art of Biography in The Paris Review (don't be impressed, a much better educated friend suggested I Google it; so I did) I find I'm dismayed all over again with "creative" writing. 

More: http://www.theparisreview.org/about/

I admit I lack a certain artistic flair - but truly, I feel a lot of biography (and possibly all autobiography - ha!) is far more fiction than we want to believe. To be fair, I should note that Edel points out "biographers...are not allowed to imagine facts." 

An excerpt is below. (Emphasis added by a certain snarky blogger.) If you dig this, good news: it is taken from a five-part series and each piece is quite long. Enjoy.

INTERVIEWER

I want to come back to something you said earlier. Is biography really an art or is it, in fact, a structural piecing together of fragments—a form of carpentry?

EDEL

There is carpentry involved, of course, but what I was doing was finding a form to suit my materials as I went along, having from the first given myself a large design. The moment you start shaping a biography, it becomes more than a mere assemblage of facts, mere use of lumber and nails—you are creating a work of art. I think I was performing like a dramatist when I planted my pistols ahead of time, and like a novelist when I did a flashback—incorporating retrospective chapters as I moved from theme to theme, character to character, showing the hero making mistakes and correcting them, facing adversity and learning from experience, growing older and having his particular kind of artistic and intellectual adventures, writing novels applauded in England and decried in America or being attacked in England amid the cheers of his countrymen back home. I had James’s Europe as my scene, and his bold way of annexing foreign territory to his American subjects. Above all, I was working toward what would be the climax of my serialization—those five intense years of dramatic writing, when he failed miserably, and then pulled himself together to write his last novels. All this required what I like to call the biographical imagination, the imagination of form. As biographers, we are not allowed to imagine our facts.

INTERVIEWER

How would you describe the nature of the biographical art beyond the technique of narrative?

EDEL

I believe the secret of biography resides in finding the link between talent and achievement. A biography seems irrelevant if it doesn’t discover the overlap between what the individual did and the life that made this possible. Without discovering that, you have shapeless happenings and gossip. The difference between one kind of biographer and another may be measured by the quantity of poetry infused into the narrative of life and doing—the poetry of existence, of trial and error, initiation and discovery, rites of passage and development, the inevitabilities of aging, or the truncated lives—Keats, Byron and others—who died young and yet somehow burned like bright flames. This kind of writing requires patience, assiduity, also enthusiasm, feeling, and certainly a sense of the biographer’s participation. The biographer is a presence in life-writing, in charge of handling the material, establishing order, explaining and analyzing the ambiguities and anomalies. Biography is dull if it’s just dates and facts: it has for too long ignored the entire province of psychology and the emotions. Ultimately, there must be a sense of the inwardness of human beings as well as outwardness: the ways in which we make dreams into realities, the way fantasies become plays and novels and poems—or the general who fights a great battle, Nelson and Trafalgar, Wellington and Waterloo, Washington and Valley Forge, the defeated Napoleon and his Waterloo—the strivings and the failings. It involves finding the links between the body and the spirit or soul in which human beings seem to rise above weakness and struggle.
# #

Do Edel's comments cause you to reconsider any biographies you've read and loved over the years? I haven't given it a great deal of thought yet, but so far, at least, it has given me new appreciation for great historical fiction, much of which could pass for fictionalized biographies. I'm sure I will give this some more thought in the future. In the meantime, if you'd like to share your thoughts, please do! Guest bloggers are always welcome here! 

Books, Dogs, and Over-population

So many books, too little time. I'm in complete agreement with that t-shirt slogan. So why in the world would I bring another book - two, even! - into this world? Mhmmm. Well, you do have a point.

I'll admit that the absurdity of it hit me like a lead thesaurus while I was editing my second book in a coffee shop. In the rather fashionable (quaint-but-practical) custom of so many coffee shops, the walls in my favorite refueling spot (hello, Scribbles!) are lined with books.

Books without homes.

They are books with fine pedigrees, too - Michael Creighton's works stand next to spines bearing names like James Joyce and John Green and other folks you've heard of. Folks you've read or will read, when you have time.

And that brings me to my point. See, I really do have one!

Hoards of abandoned books can languish on shelves, or even in boxes, for years - each one will be revived and spring forth with new life the minute a loving owner picks it up.

That's not how it works for abandoned dogs. Or cats. Or any animal. So please, please, please - if you're any kind of human at all - spay and neuter your pets. Never, ever, ever, ever dump an animal.

Once you've mastered that, well then, you're ready to pass along your books to other readers who will pick them up and love them. ;)

~Diane Stresing

The Fault in Our Stars

John Green’s most recent novel, The Fault in Our Stars, follows Hazel Lancaster through a year in her life – a life that’s bound to be too short. Hazel has cancer.

Green uses a fictitious novel (how's that?!) to add a dimension to the story. She and her boyfriend - who is in remission; they met through a support group - ultimately travel to Amsterdam to meet Peter Van Houton, the author of An Imperial Affliction. 

And he's a jerk.

It's just one of many ways Green illustrates the fact that life ain't fair.

When  Hazel and dreamy boyfriend Augustus arrive to meet the over-esteemed Peter Van Houton, the author is not only rude, he threatens to throw them out of his house. 

Hazel and Gus cope almost too well with that, and it's a good thing - because the author's unpleasantness isn't the worst thing that happens on the trip.

Hazel also learns that Augustus has had a relapse.

Interestingly, when she delivers her eulogy for Augustus (whoops - spoiler alert: Gus doesn't make it) Hazel quotes the author who so disappointed her, explaining that she learned from him that “some infinities are bigger than other infinities.”

Fortunately, Green's book is quite a bit bigger than I've probably made it sound; and it's right on target for YA readers - particularly girls.

~Diane Stresing

The Invention of Wings - coming soon!

If Sue Monk Kidd's Secret Life of Bees or The Mermaid Chair is on your to-read list, you're officially on notice: you've got six months until her next (sure to be a bestseller) novel is published.

This one  definitely lands on my what2read list.

Ahem. Now, if you'll excuse me please ... I have a couple of books to read!

BTW and obviously, I learned this good news on Twitter, where you'll find my reviews are much shorter.

< Didja know Kidd (and her kid) wrote a memoir? Traveling with Pomegranates, not surprisingly, explores mother-daughter relationships.  

Why Book Reviews Matter

I like to get confessions out of the way first, so here goes: I loved book reports when I was in school. When I found out people got paid to review books, I was all over that. I could read, and write book reviews, all day!

I could also read book reviews all day. 

Do they matter? Oh, please. I've had shouting matches with people who say reading is a waste of time; we're not going to start that about reviews, are we? Ask Amazon, Goodreads, The NYT, Christian Science Monitor, your local paper, or check out the crowd at almost any library.

Obviously, book reviews matter a great deal to authors and publishers. So why do book reviews matter to the rest of us? Because we all need to feed our brains, and books do that. And just like food preferences and allergies vary from person to person, our tastes in reading material run the gamut, too.

(As I'm writing this, Duck Commander Family and Proof of Heaven are both on The New York Times non-fiction bestsellers list.)

Online book reviews are like a buffet - you can go grab a sample of anything. It's a great way to find out if you'd like more of a particular author's cooking. On the other end of the spectrum, discerning book review editors are like master chefs who study the freshest ingredients, take note of new tools, skillful preparation, unusual  treatments, and offer up only the most delicious, tantalizing combinations of all of those.

Book reviews matter because that classic t-shirt was right: So many books, so little time. The most avid reader will never, ever, ever be able to read all that he or she wants to. Book reviews help us discover books we "must" read that we might have missed, and they help us whittle down our (embarrassingly long) to-read lists.

They also provide countless conversation starters. You don't even have to read the book to use them, just the review! Try these, for example:

Have you read the new book on Scientology?
What do you think about that female author who rewrote one of Hemingway's books?
Forget The Good Wife;  have you heard about The Good Nurse?! 

Toss one of those out at your next cocktail party or agonizingly long elevator ride, and let me know what happens.

Do You Stick with Certain Authors, or do they stick with you?

A while back I began compiling a list of some of the books that have stuck with me. The process is harder, the list longer, and my memory worse than I expected.

But little victories are sweet. I recently had the great pleasure of "matchmaking," that is, making the just-right recommendation to a friend about a book. In this case, when Patty and I were talking about (what else) books, I felt like I knew just the sort of read she was looking for. And Michael Creighton was her man.

A week later, she (almost giddily) told me she had ordered the book.

Gulp! Ordered it, and not from a library? Made a commitment like that just on recommendation? Naturally, I was nervous. What if it didn't work out? Imagine my relief when, a few days later, she told me she'd considered skipping that day's workout to spend some more time with Michael.

Whew.

The book: Timeline, a delightful forensic/time-traveling < 500-page adventure published in 2003. I can't take full credit for this particular match, however - my friend John recommended the book to me several years ago.

Regardless, Patty's happy, I'm happy, and  - here's a really cool thing about this type of matchmaking - I can keep setting my friends up with Michael.* 

In addition to Michael Creighton, Barbara Kingsolver is another author I'll stick with (and recommend, virtually anytime). What about you?

* Yes, that Michael: the author Jurassic Park, among others. Airframe was the first title I read of his - for what it's worth, I've heard that it hit just a little too close to home for certain airline industry execs. Prey is tied (with Timeline) for my "favorite" Creighton book. And - while my hubby disagrees - I didn't think The Andromeda Strain was all that.

Funny thing about matchmaking: there's really no accounting for taste. ;D

Does Goodreads Know What UR Reading?

I'll admit I didn't see this coming. In the past couple of years, it seems Goodreads has put its algorithms to good use.  In fact it's going so good* that Goodreads' recommendations rival Amazon's for believability and translate into (gasp) sales. Mmm, mmm, good. I read it in the I read it in the NYT this morning.

 *Sorry, grammar nuts; I had to.

~Diane Stresing

Hear Our Voice: A Guest Post from Janie Reinart

One glance at a book and you hear the voice of another person . . . To read is to voyage through time. ~Carl Sagan

My dear friend Katherine presented me with a gift, a small 5” x 7” book published in 1918. When I opened the package my eyes filled with tears. I want to share the first entry with you from Mrs. Leila Atwood Foust’s book, With God and the Colors: A Mother’s Prayers for Her Soldier Boy. 

I too am a mother of a soldier. I had the honor of collecting stories from other mothers of soldiers telling how we made it through our children’s deployments. The result was the book, Love You More Than You Know: Mothers’ StoriesAbout Sending Their Sons and Daughters to War (Gray and Co., Publishers, 2009, eBook 2012).

The title of the book came from a letter my son sent me. He was in Iraq for six months and had six more to go. His letter asked questions: Will I make it back? Will I be the same? Will I be happy? He said, “ All I know that is certain is you, and I rely on that fact alone to get me through the sweltering reality I live in.“ He signed his letter; I love you deeply, more than you know. Your son, Joe.

Our stories are a living history. When you read our book, you will hear our voice.

Wendy Anderson wrote the chapter entitled, “The Christmas Miracle.”

I have a very special mouse, given to me by my mother as a Christmas present when I left home, and moved into my first apartment. He is also special to Derek. The mouse is smaller than a pea, made of glass, and although he is over 30 years old, not chipped or cracked. The mouse is still perfect. And he only comes out at Christmas.

Every year as a child, when we would unwrap ornaments and his brothers would grab the biggest, brightest decorations, Derek would look for that mouse. Derek would take him gently out of his cotton ball and marvel at it. “How can this be, Mom? We lose our jackets, our shoes and our car keys, but we have never lost this mouse. And he is so small!”  “ I don’t know,” I would say. “It’s a Christmas miracle.”

When Christmas came and Derek was in Iraq that is what I sent him. I know a man his age doesn’t need a glass mouse. But he did need a piece of home. My husband was afraid for me. He told me I would never see that mouse again. I put the mouse in his cotton ball, and sent him overseas.

Celeste Hicks wrote “Army Strong—A Family Affair.”  Not only are five of her children serving our country, they all married military spouses. Sometimes in order for a mother’s voice to be heard, she has to remain anonymous for the security and protection of her son.

I am the mother of a U. S. Navy SEAL, and he is living his dream with the best of the best. We were recently with him at a public event where military were asked to stand and be recognized for their service. Our son simply sat quietly and applauded the others. That is the way of a SEAL. You will rarely read about the medals and awards that SEALs receive, and there will be no articles in the newspaper about their deployment or return home. You won’t see them in uniform at an airport. You may never know when one is in your midst.  

My son has asked that I not use his name, or mine, in this story. You will not see our picture. Instead, he told me that I should create a pen name for myself. In his honor, there is really only one way that I can sign this story because I love him more than he will ever know.

         ~ “The proud mother of a U.S. Navy SEAL”

As the mothers shared our stories in Love You More Than You Know, we bonded together and felt less alone. I feel that same bond with Leila Atwood Foust when I heard her voice calling out. Ninety-four years later the prayers from mothers for their soldiers are the same. Love You More Than You Know holds 45 powerful tales of love, faith, and courage, reminding our readers that our children stand in front of our flag, risking their lives so that we can live ours. Hear our voice. 

-  -   -  - - - ---- -

I'm adding a note of thanks to Janie Reinart for offering this insight into her inspiring collection of stories from 45 very strong and loving families. Love You More Than You Know makes a thoughtful gift anytime. 

I'd also like to add a plea to, whenever and however you can, let our service men and women (and their families) know that you appreciate their almost unimaginable commitment to upholding this country's ideals. ~ Diane

Twits and old friends

I've thoroughly enjoyed some "old" books so far this summer, all of which were new to me. I wonder how many parents have introduced their elementary-school age offspring to The Twits?

Almost certainly best-known for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Roald Dahl's whole list is worth reading, and I encourage you to look beyond the titles that have made it to the big screen.

Dahl's unique take on things is at least amusing for young readers and at times quite insightful for parents reading along. The Magic Finger and The Twits are my current favorites. (The Twits, detailing worms in spaghetti and other revolting but hilarious antics of the disgusting couple, would likely appeal to many reluctant readers.)

What old books have become your new favorites to recommend this summer?

Which ones do you plan to read with your kids before they go back to school?

Several Shades Better

You want to be like everybody else? Carry 50 Shades of Grey to the pool this summer. If you want to read a really good book - albeit one that might qualify for a chick-lit label - heft Diana Gabaldon's Outlander wherever you go. The author's storytelling skills guarantee a great deal of escape, and an equally well-written bit of smut only adds to the adventure.

Apparently, Outlander was a bit of escape for the author, who began writing it while she was a university professor. Degrees in zoology, marine biology, and ecology notwithstanding, Gabaldon managed to weave a tale that takes us on a time-travel jaunt from post-WWII England to the Scottish Highlands, circa 1743. Aye, and it's a bonny journey!

I highly recommend this book and won't spoil your enjoyment by going into plot details. In a nutshell, if you like adventure, romance, and botany, this is going to be one of your favorite books. If you'd like a well-crafted description of what a very strong female lead finds under an even stronger Scotsman's kilt, well, what are you waiting for? Go get Outlander. And read it quickly, without remorse -- there's a series of seven books waiting for you, with an eighth expected early in 2013. 

And you know all those silly typos and redundancies in Shades of Grey? You won't find 'em here. Enjoy!
__________________________________

Better than #ShadesofGrey

Thoughts on "the curse" of self-published books

Kirkus Reviews has long offered self-published authors the chance to have their works reviewed by the very well-respected publication. A few even receive stars. Here's what you, dear reader, need to know: self-published authors pay a reasonable fee of several hundred dollars to get those reviews, and no, they can't buy a good one.

Kirkus clearly identifies those reviews as "Indie" works, and with a few clicks, curious readers can find out that the reviewed works weren't selected by Kirkus editorial personnel, they were submitted, with payment, in order to obtain those reviews.

Kirkus has a pretty demanding list of qualifications for its reviewers - for all of its reviewers, "even" the indie reviewers - and it aims to enlist critics who take seriously the works of the authors, regardless of how those works are published.

I happen to know a number of self-published authors. One even got a starred review from Kirkus (yay, Charlie!). I also review a fair number of self-published works - but not all - because, well, you know what the bumper sticker says, right? "So many books...so little time."

Look, it's about time we realized - we, meaning readers and writers - that there's room in the publishing world for many different business models. I've read some dogs published by THE GREAT, BIG PUBLISHING HOUSES and I've enjoyed some high quality works from self-published authors.

Regardless of how the book comes to print, the good ones have some things in common. Like cohesiveness. Evidence a deft editing job has been done. Few if any typos. The only illustrations they include add something to the book (other than just another page).

Why bring this up?

I recently responded to an author who was clearly upset by my review of her second book. Her comments included several personal insults as well as the opinion that I viewed her book as sub-par simply because it was self published. She deemed it "the curse of self-publishing." I heartily disagreed.

Authors can wait forever - literally - for a response from publishing houses. It's a terribly frustrating business and yet another example of how life just ain't fair. Oodles and oodles of books (at least) never make it to print. Oodles and oodles of good ones do - many because their authors quit waiting and published those books on their own.

Look, I can't take on the failings of the publishing industry and the shortcomings and misconceptions of self-publishing in a single blog post, or a hundred. Obviously, the industry has changed dramatically in recent years. So I'll sum it up thusly:

Readers, don't judge a book by its cover or publisher. 

Writers, don't publish your work until it's really, really ready. And when you publish too soon, or without the help of an editor, don't take it out on the reviewer. She's just doing her job.

_______________________
Want to recommend an excellent editing service? Got a self-published title that deserves some praise? What R U Reading? welcomes your comments and reader reviews. 

The Beaded Moccasins: Thought-provoking, YA or not

Lynda Durrant's The Beaded Moccasins: The Story of Mary Campbell, classified YA (young adult) historical fiction, certainly makes a dandy diversion for young female readers - say, 10 and up - and a lovely choice for parents (ok, Moms) to read aloud to their daughters. But if you like US Colonial history, or wish to think deeply about what family is and what that means, don't look for a preteen excuse to read this book. March right up to the library shelf and grab it.


The story in a nutshell
Taken captive on her 12th birthday, the book follows Mary as she walks from Eastern Pennsylvania to the banks of the Cuyahoga River with the Delaware tribe who planned to make her one of their own. Along the way - for more than a year - Mary struggles with what family is, and what it means to be who she is. The author carefully tells a tale of assimilation and growing up, brilliantly blended into the historical backdrop of colonial expansion. The story is gripping and well-told; the author's excellent research provides an accurate setting and many exquisite details.


Field Trip with the Author!
Lynda Durrant will be on hand to chat with hikers, historians, writers, and just plain ol' fans at Mary Campbell Cave, in Gorge Metropark on Saturday, October 22. We'll meet at 11am at the marker to the cave, and once we're all talked out, I plan to hike the park's namesake trail - it's a beauty. Won't you come, too?  Don't miss your chance to get even more insight into Mary Campbell's experience, a fascinating era in US history, and a little exercise on one of NE Ohio's prettiest trails.

_________________________
Attention book clubs: I've always thought this title would be the perfect selection for mothers and daughters to read together; it's certainly ideal for moms, in general, and it offers a great historical perspective on parenting.