Book Synopsis
Whole minutes passed when I didn’t think of my man and the swimming
lesson set up for the next day, if no one was murdered before then, or
the cars stopped, or a bomb go off somewhere…
On a hot, humid Monday afternoon in July 1919, Maeve Curragh watches as a
blimp plunges from the sky and smashes into a downtown Chicago bank
building. It is the first of ten extraordinary days in Chicago history
that will forever change the course of her life.
Racial tensions mount as soldiers return from the battlefields of Europe
and the Great Migration brings new faces to the city, culminating in
violent race riots.
Each day the young Irish immigrant, a catalogue order clerk for the
Chicago Magic Company, devours the news of a metropolis where cultural
pressures are every bit as febrile as the weather. But her interest in
the headlines wanes when she catches the eye of a charming streetcar
conductor.
Maeve’s singular voice captures the spirit of a young woman living
through one of Chicago’s most turbulent periods. Seamlessly blending
fact with fiction, Mary Burns weaves an evocative tale of how an
ordinary life can become inextricably linked with history.
My Review
The Reason for Time is a unique historical novel. It tells the story of Maeve Curragh, a young woman who works as a clerk at a magic novelty company in Chicago, 1919. Maeve witnesses a blimp (the Wingfoot Air Express) crashing into a bank building. In the panicky days following, she begins a flirtation with a handsome streetcar conductor named Desmond Molloy, and then watches as the city experiences frightening race riots.
The novel is told in first person with a rambling style. It is told in Irish dialect and includes some politically incorrect language (that was in use in the 1910's). The dialect adds immediacy and detail, although it slowed the reading down a bit.
The historical details are exceptional. Between the first person narration, the details, and the day by day narrative structure, the reader has a sense of being in Chicago during a very tumultuous time in 1919.
Maeve is a well developed character. I wanted her to find happiness and cringed when she made some very bad decisions. I liked the epilogue that caught readers up with the rest of her life after this period in 1919.
The Reason for Time will be of interest for historical fiction readers, as well as anyone who has an interest in Chicago history or early 1900's immigrant history.
Author Bio
A former journalist and documentary filmmaker, Mary Burns is the author
of four novels, two short-story collections, a non-fiction book about
snow geese, and several radio and stage plays. She grew up near Chicago
and now lives just north of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. For
more information, visit her website, www.maryburns.ca
I received a copy of this book from Allium Press.
Book Synopsis
Based on Maja Säfström’s delightful book The Illustrated Compendium of
Amazing Animal Facts, this collection of 50 collectible postcards is the
perfect way for animal lovers and art lovers to share and collect
Maja’s charming illustrations.
Housed in a keepsake box and
arranged, much like a recipe box or card catalog, in tabbed sections
(air, forest, sea, etc) this postcard box lets the user share all the
curious knowledge and amazing artwork that makes Maja’s book so special.
From the Otters (they hold hands when they sleep in the water so they
don’t float away from each other!) to the elephant (mother elephant
pregnanices last two years!) each postcard presents a unique look at the
animal kingdom that will delight and astound. 50 postcards; 25 designs
repeating, printed on toothy uncoated stock, with the animal’s
biological classifcation on the back.
My Review
Amazing Animal Facts Postcards is such a lovely and unique box of animal postcards to color! I loved this postcard set from first look. It is a well made box, designed with a top that opens up like an old fashioned recipe box. Inside there are dividers: Sea, Forest, Field, Jungle, and Sky. There are animal postcards in each section (50 postcards in 25 designs). The postcards are a nice heavy cardstock, with a charming illustration and information about the animal on the front, and place to write a message and address the card on the back. For instance, the Sea section includes: Blue Whales, Penguins, Starfish, Turtles and Tortoises, Sharks.
I love the the beauty of the illustrations by Maja Säfström. The only thing I wish is that there was less black in the illustrations and more open spaces for coloring. Some of the cards have quite a bit to color, and others have very little because of the heavy amounts of black shading.
The little animal facts are informative and fun as well. For instance, I had no idea that Blue Whales have belly buttons!
This would make a fun set for a child or classroom as well as for an adult to color, stamp, and send. I also think it would be a fun and creative gift.
Author Bio
MAJA SÄFSTRÖM is a Stockholm-based illustrator and architect, and the
author of The Illustrated Compendium of Amazing Animal Facts. Follow her
on Instagram at @majasbok.
I received this postcard set from Blogging for Books.
Dear friends,
I hope you are having a good week. We had a lot of rain yesterday. This meant that Momma had to put on a raincoat and rain boots and carry me outside so I could potty VERY QUICKLY and then be carried back into the house. I do not like rain! I am hoping we will have sunny days for a while now.
One of my good friends has stopped by today. Angela has a wonderful pet family, including my pal Gizmo. (He is a dachshund - Jack Russell mix dog, just like me.) Angela runs the Doxieposse on Facebook and Twitter. She has visited before, to introduce my buddy Gizmo and his family, to remember Gizmo's mother, Princess Poo, and also to mourn the loss of Gizmo's brother Teddy.
Abby: Angela, thank you so much for visiting! I love the dachshund treasures you brought to show my friends. Please tell us about them.
Angela: This is my little collection. I have several other stuffed dachshunds, but they are in storage at the moment. Gym members where I work started giving me doxie related items and the collection has grown through the years.
First picture, I have my 3 doxie tops. A friend gave me the "my wiener does tricks" shirt. The other 2 I ordered from Etsy.
The second picture includes some of my doxie collection. It's my 2 Buddy's from the movie The Secret Life of Pets. A doxie floor decoration, a doxie bookend and a doxie salt shaker my parents gave me just last weekend.
The third picture are my doxie ornaments. I've collected them through the years. If I find one, I buy it. I think I may be missing one, but these are some of them.
3 more doxie stuffies. A doxie bag, doxie socks and a
doxie bag. They are all lying on a doxie blanket my friend got me for
Christmas.
Abby: Thank you so much, Angela! I really love your collection. All your treasures are so neat, and I especially love the dachshund blanket and festive Christmas doxies! I can't resist posting a photo of your special boy Gizmo while you are here. Thank you again for your visit!
 |
| Gizmo |
Friends, if you would like to leave a message for Angela, you can do so in the comments, below. If you would like to share a pet related collection, please let me know that too (including your email).
Thank you for visiting today! Have a good weekend.
Love,
Abby xoxoxo
Book Synopsis
From the multiple-award-winning, critically acclaimed author of The Hummingbird and The Curiosity
comes a dazzling novel of World War II—a shimmering tale of courage,
determination, optimism, and the resilience of the human spirit, set in a
small Normandy village on the eve of D-Day.
On June 5, 1944, as dawn rises over a small town on the Normandy
coast of France, Emmanuelle is making the bread that has sustained her
fellow villagers in the dark days since the Germans invaded her country.
Only twenty-two, Emma learned to bake at the side of a master, Ezra
Kuchen, the village baker since before she was born. Apprenticed to Ezra
at thirteen, Emma watched with shame and anger as her kind mentor was
forced to wear the six-pointed yellow star on his clothing. She was
likewise powerless to help when they pulled Ezra from his shop at
gunpoint, the first of many villagers stolen away and never seen again.
In the years that her sleepy coastal village has suffered under the
enemy, Emma has silently, stealthily fought back. Each day, she receives
an extra ration of flour to bake a dozen baguettes for the occupying
troops. And each day, she mixes that precious flour with ground straw to
create enough dough for two extra loaves—contraband bread she shares
with the hungry villagers. Under the cold, watchful eyes of armed
soldiers, she builds a clandestine network of barter and trade that she
and the villagers use to thwart their occupiers.
But her gift to the village is more than these few crusty loaves.
Emma gives the people a taste of hope—the faith that one day the Allies
will arrive to save them.
Purchase Links
My Review
The Baker's Secret is such an unusual novel. It is historical fiction that blends poetic lyricism with harrowing images - and ultimately with hope as well.
This historical novel is set in 1944 in a small village near the Normandy coast in France. Emmanuelle (Emma) is a baker. When her teacher, baker Ezra, is taken away by the Nazis, Emma's life changes. She is ordered to bake 12 loaves of bread each day for the Nazis who occupy the village. Instead, she bakes 14 by grinding straw into the recipe. She shares the extra loaves with people in the village who need food. And as a result of this, there is a series of small acts of defiance that get bigger over time, acts of resistance and ultimately of hope.
This is my first read by Stephen P. Kiernan, but I will seek out his other novels. The Baker's Secret is beautifully written. For instance, the book begins with a description of the village of Vergers and their enjoyment of food: "Delectable breakfast morsels with steaming coffee as dark as mud, calming lunches in the shade when haste is the enemy and cheese is the dessert, dinners luxurious, candlelit, and lasting hours - such was the rhythm of their days. Who has a story to tell, and shall we place some flowers on the table?" (p. 3).
As Emma travels around the village distributing bread and eggs and sharing provisions, she realizes: "It was a circle of want. Emma pondered on these things as she wandered the village and missed her Philippe. Like a sad song, walking sharpened her sorrow, yet soothed it as well" (p. 78).
Emma is a brave, strong woman, an ordinary person who finds courage in extraordinary times. I found her story compelling as I read on long after bedtime, wanting Emma - and the villagers - to find safety somehow.
The Baker's Secret is an exceptional historical novel that captures another time and place vividly, and also tells a truly memorable story. I cannot recommend it highly enough.
Author Bio
Stephen P. Kiernan is a graduate of Middlebury College, Johns Hopkins
University, and the University of Iowa Writers’ Workshop. During his
more than twenty years as a journalist, he has won numerous awards,
including the Brechner Center’s Freedom of Information Award, the
Scripps Howard Award for Distinguished Service to the First Amendment,
and the George Polk Award. He is the author of The Curiosity, his first novel, and two nonfiction books. He lives in Vermont with his two sons.
Find out more about Stephen at his website and connect with him on Facebook and Twitter.
I received a copy of this book from HarperCollins and TLC Book Tours.
Book Synopsis
The streets of Chicago in 1886 are full of turmoil. Striking workers
clash with police…illness and injury lurk around every corner…and
twelve-year-old Addie must find her way through it all. Torn between her
gruff Papa—who owns a hat shop and thinks the workers should be content
with their American lives—and her beloved Uncle Chaim—who is active in
the protests for the eight-hour day—Addie struggles to understand her
topsy-turvy world, while also keeping her family intact. Set in a Jewish
neighborhood of Chicago during the days surrounding the Haymarket
Affair, this novel vividly portrays one immigrant family’s experience,
while also eloquently depicting the timeless conflict between the haves
and the have-nots.
My Review
City of Grit and Gold tells the story of a 12 year old girl named Addie, who lives in Chicago in the 1880's. Addie lives with her family in a Jewish neighborhood. Her father, a German immigrant, owns a small hat store. When Addie's Uncle Chaim becomes involved in the Haymarket Affair protests, Addie's life changes.
This is a beautifully written historical novel set during a period that I knew very little about. I found the setting (a Jewish neighborhood in Chicago, 1886) and the historical events (the Haymarket Affair) fascinating. City of Grit and Gold is a middle grade novel, and it is a fine read for young readers who want to combine a compelling story as well as interesting historical details.
This is also the story of immigrants, and the message is powerful. "Oh, Mama, this country is like a puzzle with all the right pieces but they can't be arranged correctly. . . . The laws allow people to vote and speak freely but then the companies have more power because they can give and take jobs. People must be able to work to feed their families. If you're hungry, what use is it to speak freely?" (p. 73).
The descriptions are so evocative and vivid: "Addie had seen the contents of the hatbox only once, when Mama was rifling through it to find a paper with the stamp of Bohemia on it. There were folded papers, a few old photographs of people Addie didn't recognize, and a collection of hair ribbons that she and Miriam had worn as little girls back in the old country. The silk was frayed and colors fading, but Mama stored them as though they were precious coins to be used in a time of need" (p. 85). As well as the historical setting, I found the details of everyday life for Addie and her family very interesting.
Addie is a strong and brave girl who dreams of being a doctor someday. She is torn between family loyalty and sorting out what she feels is right; she wants to help her Uncle Chaim and also be loyal to her parents. I cared about what happened to her and to her family, and found this an engrossing read.
I recommend City of Grit and Gold highly for school libraries, for homeschooling families, and for anyone who has an interest in this fascinating period in American history.
Author Bio
Maud Macrory Powell comes from a family of writers. She was born and
raised in Washington, DC. She studied comparative religion in college
and environmental studies in graduate school. She now lives in rural
Oregon with her family, where they run an organic farm and she teaches
at Oregon State University. Her essay “The Fruits of My Labor” was
published in the anthology Greenhorns: The Next Generation of American
Farmers. This is her debut novel.
I received a copy of this book from Allium Press.
