Featuring Your Next Weekend Read!
This year it’s been difficult trying to keep up with my book reviews. I simply can’t stay up to date. But here’s the highlights of the books I read in June & July. Click the book image to find the book on Amazon.com.
- Poetic Justice-A Rascal Todd Mystery Featuring Brody Thompson, Dan Antion & Willow Willers
- You Can Take The Girl From The Prairie: Stories about growing up on the Canadian prairies, Darlene Foster
- Tree Fairies and Their Short Stories, DL Finn
- Gratitude & No Fairy Tale: Just Her Poetry Book Three, DL Finn
- The Lighter Side of Military Life, by the Rochester Veterans Writing Group
Poetic Justice-A Rascal Todd Mystery Featuring Brody Thompson, Dan Antion & Willow Willers
I was excited to read this book. One reason was because I knew who the authors were. As readers, how often do we get to say that? The other reason was because my husband served during the Vietnam War. He has Agent Orange to thank for his disabilities.
The book blurb grabs you!
Trevor Barcroft enlists the help of crime and mystery writer Brody Thompson to help solve his father’s murder — a murder the police and the FBI have been ignoring for five years. Trevor is convinced he knows who killed his father. Brody doesn’t agree, but he becomes convinced that there is much more to the story than anyone is sharing. He takes a strong interest in the murder and a series of related crimes.
Rascal Todd wants to help, but her editor keeps her away from the story. Why? What was Wilson Barcroft doing at Gateway Park the night he was killed? Who is the mysterious Poet? What do the odd bits of poetry he has spread around tell us? Is the Poet still alive? Will he survive? Will Brody and Trevor find the answers—will they survive?
Join Rascal and her friends and coworkers as they try to help from the sidelines without becoming targets in an ever-growing list of deadly crimes. Real life turns out to be far more dangerous than any fiction Brody could create, as the history of a war long overcomes back to haunt the city of Pittsburgh.
Consistent with previous books by this author, this is a character-driven story with an ensemble cast. Some characters will be familiar to readers of Antion’s other novels. Some are new faces that you might just come to love. The addition of poetry by Willow Willers provides an interesting mechanism driving this story forward, and driving Brody Thomson into dangerous territory.
Brody Thompson, a best-selling author, agrees to help Trevor Barcroft figure out who killed his father, who had served in Vietnam. Shortly after their first meeting, Trevor is attacked. That tragedy causes Brody to deepen his conviction to find out what happened to Trevor’s dad.
Trevor’s mom is another wonderful character. She’s in hiding on an Alzheimer’s ward, holding on to her own dark secrets from the past. She assists Brody by providing some historical details Trevor didn’t know about.
When strange poems start showing up, Brody hears about the man called the Poet, who has been in hiding for years. Something happened years ago, and the truth is dying to come out!
The poetry, sprinkled throughout the book, is penned as messages from the character called “The Poet.” The poetry drew me into the mind of a man who carries the secret of how the soldiers were used as guinea pigs for the testing of Agent Orange during the Vietnam War. It’s a frightening proposition! Willow Willers did an amazing job with the poetic clues!
I liked the idea of a fiction author serving as a sleuth in a murder mystery. Brody found the truth to be stranger than fiction! This was a fabulous mystery. I thought I’d figured out who the killer was, but in the end I was totally surprised.
I think I gained weight reading this book!! One thing about Dan Antion’s books, the characters are always eating!
If you’re looking for an unusual (poetic) mystery, you will enjoy Poetic Justice.
Dan Antion Blog
Willow Willers Blog
You Can Take The Girl From The Prairie: Stories about growing up on the Canadian prairies, Darlene Foster
A collection of short stories inspired by growing up on a prairie farm in the fifties and sixties. Some of the stories are humorous and others sad, but all heartfelt. Stories about family life, cowboy wisdom, immigrant grandmothers, an inspiring teacher, and the arrival of a new sibling are part of this collection of tales from another time and another place. Proof that you can take the girl from the prairie but you can’t take the prairie from the girl.
Darlene and I share some unusual genealogy. We’re both descended from Volga Germans. These were Germans who settled along the Volga River in Russia by invitation of Catherine the Great. The Germans stayed for almost two hundred years, maintaining their German language and way of life. They never considered themselves to be Russians!
By the early 1900s, Darlene’s family immigrated to Canada, and my family immigrated to Kansas. We also share Grandmother’s names. She had two grandmothers named Katharina, and I had one named Kathrina, and another Great Grandmother named Katharina.
You Can Take the Girl from the Prairie is a collection of stories based on Darlene’s memories. The stories are filled with love and humor. I also enjoyed the photos because they helped me get a sense of life on the prairie when Darlene was growing up. This book is a delightful read, and I connected with so many of the characters.
Of course, one of my favorite stories is “A Tale of Two Kathrinas.” Darlene says, “I believe the strength of our ancestors does sustain us,” and I couldn’t agree more. We’re here today because of the strengths we inherited from our ancestors.
Look for the chapter, “Bambi at Home.” I don’t know another person who had an antelope for a pet, but Darlene’s family did!
I read this book in one night. By the end, I felt like I had been wrapped in a blanket of love and warmth.
Darlene Foster Blog
Tree Fairies and Their Short Stories, DL Finn
It’s 1969, and twelve-year-old Daniel Burns is camping in the redwood forest with his family. Danny wants to listen to his music and read, but his family has other plans. S’mores around the campfire and stories end their first day. The family is sleeping soundly in their secluded tent when Danny wakes up and finds his sister, Colette, is missing. Assuming she went to use the outhouse, he goes after her. When he finds his sister, they discover there is a thin veil between reality and fantasy. Two bonus short stories offer a glimpse into the magical world that finds Danny and Colette. These hidden beings not only share our world, but have a role in protecting their forest.
This book begins with two children, Daniel and Colette, on vacation in the redwood forest, where they meet a community of fairies, including the mystical tree fairies. As I read, I let my imagination run wild. I felt like a kid again!
The fairies have human characteristics, so kids will quickly connect with these magical beings. I know I did! There are several lessons to learn, such as taking care of our world, recycling, and how to show respect for nature. The stories emphasize the connectivity between nature and humans.
The world building made me feel like I could reach out and touch the magic in the forest. The dialogue will have you chuckling at the cleverness of the kids. This is a sweet tale for young children (and older Nana’s too).
D.L. Finn Blog
Gratitude & No Fairy Tale: Just Her Poetry Book Three, DL Finn
Explore D. L. Finn’s poetic journey, from her newest to earliest works. Part One immerses you in a combination of her photography and symbolic poems. Peaceful winter days, forests, and sunsets illuminate her search for the magic of life. Part Two retraces her journey from her first poems. Her life is revealed through free verse poems and photographs that were featured in her memoir, No Fairy Tale. She discovers gratitude on her path to happiness. Join her as she explores her reality through emotions and nature in this special collection.
This is the third poetry book in D.L. Finn’s “Just Her Poetry” series. I enjoy this author’s poetry and was thrilled to find several poems that were published in her memoir, “No Fairy Tale: The Reality of a Girl Who Wasn’t a Princess and Her Poetry,” a collection that is no longer available.
The first section, Gratitude Poetry and Photos, shares haiku/haiga and micro-poetry placed on photos of the area where the author has resided or visited. It’s a lovely road trip through her thoughts.
I enjoyed the freestyle poetry section titled “Poetry from No Fairy Tale.” There you will find poetry that speaks from the soul of the poet.
Look for the poem, “Welcome.” It speaks of the warmth of a soft bed on a cold winter night.
The poem, “Path” is a wonderful realization of the connectivity of all living things.
This was a contemplative read that helps you connect to the beauty of the world around you.
D.L. Finn Blog
The Lighter Side of Military Life, by the Rochester Veterans Writing Group
The Rochester Veterans Writing Group presents an anthology of U.S. military veterans, Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, and families who tell their stories about the lighter side of Service. Not necessarily hilarious, but showing how we all “got along,” or how we dealt with sometimes dire events that always come along with the Service life.
As a veteran, I strive to support other veteran writers. So when I heard that Sue Spitulnick’s writing group was publishing a book of veteran’s stories, I wanted to read the book. I know Sue from Carrot Ranch.com, where we wrote flash fiction together.
I had the honor of being a veteran, plus being the wife of a lifer. My husband served 24 years in the Air Force. By the time I read Sue Spitulnik’s story, “Hurry Up and Wait,” I totally related to her experiences. Veterans are a unique group. When we start talking we know what other veterans (and their wives or husbands) went through because we all have shared experiences.
“The Lighter Side of Military Life,” is the third book published from this group. What an accomplishment!
Be prepared for the military memoirs, peppered with photos, images of actual letters, newspaper articles, like Tank Talk, military cartoons, poetry, and plenty of GI humor.
The stories cover a broad range of years from WWII, the Vietnam Conflict, and onward to the more recent conflicts in the 2000s. One thing is certain, it didn’t matter what branch of service you served in, we were all part of the U.S. Military doing our job to protect the U.S. and our allies.
Some of the poetry is poignant like the poem, “The Screaming Summer of 2003,” by Lee Nelson.
Then, there’s the story about Toby Keith, that left me chuckling. Can you imagine putting on a concert with bombs dropping all around you? How would you react as an entertainer?
If you’re looking to connect or reconnect to your military roots, this book will remind you of some of the best and worst times of your military life—all presented with a touch of humor.
Rochester Veterans’ Writing Group on Facebook.com
Sue Spitulnik blog
The Evergreen Hedge 
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