Edge Of Eternity by Ken Follett

Edge Of Eternity

by

Ken Follett

When ever I read or listen to a novel by Ken Follett he never disappoints me.  Edge Of Eternity is no exception.  It is the third book in his Century Trilogy and all three are wonderful.  The first book begins with WWI and the third book ends with the coming down  of the Berlin Wall.  What is especially interesting to me about the third book is that it starts in about 1951 and since I was born a few years later much of what the book is about I remember.  It covers a great deal of the cold war,  the Cuban missile crisis,  the civil rights struggle,  and the Berlin wall goes up and comes down.  Bobby Kennedy,  JFK and Martin Luther King are all assassinated.  I was surprised that Princess Diana was not mentioned.  Watergate and rock and roll are very well covered.  The civil rights movement is handled really well.  It starts out with the bus freedom rides and ends with the epilogue of the book quoting some of President Obama's speech at the end of the election fall 2008.   All three books clearly describe the differences between fiscal conservatives,  social democrats and communists and the development of all three groups is explained.  It is a fantastic third book of an outstanding trilogy.  No one should miss out on reading it.  Be sure and click on the book title and author's name above to follow the links to more information.  And enjoy the video that follows.  

The Children's Blizzard by David Laskin

The Children's Blizzard

by

David Laskin

Non fiction is not my genre but a couple times a year I seem to end up reading a non fiction selection.  The Children's Blizzard by David Laskin is the library's book club selection of the Columbia City, Indiana book group for February.  And while I no longer live there I still read along with the group sometimes.  I am very glad to have been exposed to this book.  I never would have picked it out of a list and it was a very informative read.  One of my hobbies is genealogy and this book does a beautiful job of explaining the wave of immigration that occurred in the US in the late 1800s and the settlement of the great northern plains.  It makes the every day life of these pioneers come to focus not only in Europe and their travel to arrive in the New World but the make up of their days on the prairie is clearly depicted.  The book mixes history and science as it clearly explains what made the huge weather front of January 1888 develop and why it was not predicted.  The description of our governments weather service at the time was very interesting.  The fact that so many of these pioneer children were stranded in one room school houses when the blizzard hit and many died trying to get home was a horrifying concept.  I was not aware that this event took place although I knew that bad weather including large snow storms did take place on the great northern plains.   I highly recommend this book.  It is very informative and written in an interesting manner.  David Laskin does a great job in making complex concepts understandable and interesting.  Please click on the book title and author's  name above to follow links to more information.  And follow the link below to enjoy the video.

The Children's Blizzard

Saturday Night At The Movies

Last night after we returned home from a concert we watched a movie on television.  I enjoyed it.  I would have liked a happy ending but the way it ended was probably more realistic.

The Language Of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh

The Language Of Flowers

by

Vanessa Diffenbaugh

The Columbia City, Indiana public library book club selection for January is The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh.  Although I no longer live there so can't attend their meetings I try to read along with them at least part of the time.  I wasn't sure if I wanted to this month as I was fearful that the selection would be a depressing title and typically it is wise for me to avoid downer type in put in January and February.  But I was pleasantly surprised.  It is not a negative or depressing novel.  I did struggle a bit with a few pages in the part right after the birth of a baby a little past half way through the book but other than that short section I really found the book delightful.  Being familiar with herbs and flowers and tones of scent as I worked with making home made potpourri several years ago,  I was very much aware of the use of Tussie Mussie's as center pieces at wedding receptions and the meanings assigned to flowers in various cultures.  But far from being an old hat subject,  it is a topic that is near and dear to me.  So  one of the main themes of the book I found appealing.  She also handled the foster care theme in a way that was not too negative although the short comings of the system were not ignored.  She discusses something called attachment disorder which I think I had heard of but never thought much about.  There are some  outcomes in the book that I thought were not realistic.  For example,  what are the odds that a homeless woman just out of a life time of foster care is able to launch a successful florist business?  And what are the odds she would run into a man like Grant?  For that matter does a man like that even exist?  But it is the fairy tale quality of these happy outcomes that makes the book even more delightful.  It is even storybook like that the main character's name is Victoria since most of the flower meanings grew out of the Victorian age.  The book also brings forth the power of friendships between women and the magic of the mentoring that takes place informally in that context.  There are several strong women who help Victoria grow and develop.  My favorite person in the book is Elizabeth.  She is the goal all should embrace as an example of what it is to be a mom.   I would encourage everyone to read this book.  It is a great choice for a book group because of the questions it will bring up about parenting and relationships.  Another neat thing about this book is that an organization to help foster kids transition to independence has grown out of it and can be found HERE.   Please click on the title and the author's name to follow links for more information.  Also there are a couple of links you can click on in the text above to find more information.  And don't forget to enjoy the video that follows.

Saturday Night At The Movies

We watched 12 Years A Slave this evening.  I have wanted to watch it for a long time and was not disappointed. If you have not watched it don't miss out any longer.

Last Monday Afternoon At The Movies

I had a great visit with my daughter and son-in-law last Sunday evening/Monday and on Monday afternoon we watched Maleficent.  I had not yet seen it and I have to say I think it out does Frozen by a long shot.  Frozen was okay but Maleficent was excellent.  Enjoy the trailer.

Fairchild by Jaima Fixsen

Fairchild

by

Jaima Fixsen

Sometimes. at the beginning of the month,  I check out the free list of 100 "best sellers" on amazon kindle.  I have quite a few books on my kindle that I have obtained that way but since I have so many books on my wish list that I want to read I don't get around to knocking out a free one very often.  My original plan was to read one I paid for alternating with a free one to save money.  But several of the free ones were predictable and mediocre so I have gotten away from my original idea.  Yet for some reason I downloaded Fairchild  by Jaima Fixsen this past August and for some unknown reason I decided to read it last night.  It is a historical novel, which is my genre of choice,  but it is a romance. While I like a little romance in my historical novels,  I am not big on love stories with a little history thrown in.  But I have to say that this book had me from page one and I read the entire almost 300 pages before going to bed.  It takes place in one of my favorite time periods - the late 1700s.  It's setting is England.  And it is about an illegitimate child of an English lord.  She has a lot of moxie and is just a likable character.  Jamie Fixsen is a new author.  She lives in Canada and is a mother of three.  She also is a Mormon if that matters to anyone.  I think she has done a great job with this little book and found it to be a real page turner.  Please click on the authors name and title above to follow links to more information.  And enjoy the video below.  It is of the country side in the area of the books setting.  I can just see Sophie riding her father's horse and being thrown in this country side and dislocating her shoulder.

My Top Ten Favorite Books I Read in 2014

10.  Sarah's Key by Titiana De Rosnay

9.    The Royal Road To Fotheringhay/ The Captive Queen by Jean Plaidy

8.    House Rules by Jodi Picoult

7.    Eye Of The Needle by Ken Follett

6.   The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver

5.   Disposable People by Kevin Bales

4.  The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

3.   A Walk In The Woods by Bill Bryson

2.   Winter Of The World by Ken Follett

1.   Written In My Hearts Own Blood by Diana Gabaldon


Click on the titles of the books to follow the links to my reviews of them over the past year.

When The Heavens Fell by JE Rohrer

When The Heavens Fell

by

JE Rohrer

It has been almost a week ago that I finished my brother's third novella in his series "An Apocalyptic Adventure" but with the holidays and a bad cold I am late in getting a blog written about it.  I always get a special kick out of my brother's books.  The characters are not supposed to be any one who is real but I see traits of people I know in them.  And the situations they get themselves  into amuse me.The series is about a small town in Wisconsin and how the towns people are dealing with the apocalypse.  In this part of the series there are various communities with various types of organizations arising in the new world.  The one the main characters of the story are forming is one similar to ones that were formed in Pennsylvania in the 1700s.  And it is not a community that is liked by some.  So they have conflicts with near by communities to deal with and conflicts to solve within their own community.  They also have a meteor shower and an attack by acid spitting grasshoppers.  I of course think every one should read my brother's books.  They are a quick read and entertaining and not expensive.   Please click on the title and author's name above to follow the link to find the books my brother has written.  And enjoy the video that follows about a real life grasshopper attack that happened in Nebraska.