Friday, May 15, 2020

Dear Abby - On Height

Dear Friends,

I hope you are having a good week!  I am doing fine.  It is beautiful spring weather here, and I am enjoying walks these days.

My Uncle Dave sent me a funny meme to share with you this week.   It shows a dachshund on stilts:  "Quarantine Day 58: I built myself a Doberman." 

This meme made me think about height.  As most of you know, I am a rescue and traveled across country to live with my Momma.  When she first saw me she loved me and she also said, "she's so tall!"  I am, of course, not tall by dog standards, but I am tall by dachshund standards.  I am a proud dachshund - Jack Russell mix dog.  Momma says I am the height of a Jack Russell and the length of a dachshund.  That sounds about right.  You can see my height in this picture -- I am standing (ahem, rear view of me!) by my late, great brother Barney Fife.  He was a standard dachshund.


I am not allowed to walk stairs or to jump up and down, although I do climb onto the (low) bed in the bedroom I share with Momma.   Here is another picture I found of me from my early days.  I was about one year old here.


I hope all is well with you and your pups, whether they are long and low or tall!  And I wish you a happy weekend.

Love,

Abby xoxoxo


Book Review and Giveaway - Dali Summer by T.J. Brown

My Review
Dali Summer is a historical novel set in 1917 Cadaques, Spain.  It is the story of Dolors Posa, a quiet, reserved librarian who is living her life with tremendous caution.  Dolors was born out of wedlock and her mother committed suicide;  her grandmother, who raised her, instilled a sense of shame in Dolors. One summer Dolors' life changes as she meets a brother and sister who are "summer people" in Cadaques. The sister is a beautiful fortune teller and the brother is handsome, mysterious, and a bit more reserved. Dolors also meets a young painter (13 years old) on the beach named Salvador Dali.

I wanted to read this novel because the setting and characters sounded unique and interesting.  I love novels that feature art history and was intrigued by the Dali character.

This is a really unusual book.  Dolors became color-blind (she only sees black, white, and gray) as the result of a childhood accident. During the summer of 1917 she begins to have visions and headaches and sees vivid colors.  This is a big part of the story.  The visions add a bit of a magical realism element to the storytelling.

Dolors is a unique character.  She has such a strong sense of decorum that she is repressed and afraid to live.  Her grandmother is a thoroughly awful person who has treated Dolors badly all her life, and Dolors still lives her life according to her grandmother's wishes.  There are a couple of other characters in this book who are highly unsympathetic and who cause harm to Dolors (I won't say more, no spoilers) and I found some of these scenes difficult to read.

It was heartening to see Dolors break free of her grandmother's grip over the summer as the result of her new friendship with the summer people and a young Dali.  I enjoyed the book more as Dolors felt more freedom to live her life and pursue her own dreams.

The sense of time and place in Dali Summer is beautifully evoked by T.J. Brown.  I could really picture the small beach town from the author's description.

Dali Summer is a novel that will interest readers who are intrigued by art history and the early life of Salvador Dali, fans of historical fiction, and anyone who wants to spend some time in 1910's coastal Spain.

Book Synopsis
Her wild and vivid visions inspire an icon…
 
Nothing is more important to prim, colorblind Dolors Posa than family and living down the shame of her illegitimate birth, but when the sudden onset of fantastical visions threaten her sterling reputation, she must search for answers before the inhabitants of the tiny village of CadaquĆ©s brand her as demente– crazy like her mother. In a quest to stop her hallucinations, she befriends a beautiful, intoxicating fortune teller and her handsome anarchist brother, as well as becoming a reluctant muse for thirteen-year-old Salvador Dali. In a summer that changes everything, Dolors must choose between her family’s reputation and a life filled with adventure, friendship, rapturous color and the possibility of love.
 
Set against the political upheaval of 1917 Spain, Dali Summer captures the fierce spirit of Catalonia, the generosity and stubbornness of its people and the blossoming promise of a woman who thought life was bland and empty and had long ago had passed her by.



 

Purchase Links


Amazon | Barnes & Noble | IndieBound


Author Bio
Well behaved women rarely make history. Teri Brown lived that quote way before she ever even heard it. The two things she is most proud of, (besides her children), is that she jumped out of an airplane once and she beat the original Legend of Zelda video game. She is a novel writer, head banger, pet keeper, math hater, cocktail drinker, booty shaker, book reader, city slicker, food fixer, French kisser, rule breaker, wine sipper and word scribbler. She loves her husband, kitties and chocolate.
 
Find out more about Teri at her website, and connect with her on Facebook and Twitter.


Giveaway 
One lucky reader will win a copy of Dali Summer (your choice - print or eBook).  The winner will be chosen to Rafflecopter entry (see below).  Giveaway ends midnight, 5/21.  The winner will be notified by email and needs to respond within 48 hours or a new name will be drawn.  Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway