All That She Carried by Tiya Miles

 

All That She Carried 

by

Tiya Miles

Tiya Miles has written a master piece.  Her new book, "All That She Carried", is one you won't want to miss.  It is the non fiction story of a family heirloom that was handed down for a few generations, lost,  found in a flea market in a bag of rags, and now is on display at the Smithsonian Institute.  A cotton seed sack.  Here is a picture of the sack. 

When I read the words embroidered on the sack the hair stands up on my arms.  The words  "It be filled with my Love" brings tears to the eyes.  In fact the author explains the museum has a staff member stand near the display area of Ashley's sack with a box of Kleenex because it strongly affects so many people.  After reading this book, I have a whole new perspective on textile arts that women have historically created.  After reading this book, I will never look at a pecan in quite in the same way again.  In fact, this book is one of those books that profoundly changes a person's perspective.  Instead of trying to recapture what the author has written I am going to share two videos of the author for you to enjoy.  Please watch them.  And please follow the links by clicking on the book title and author's name above.  There is also one link imbedded into the text above to click on and follow for more information.  Most of all,  read the book.  If you don't, you are missing out.  

 

The Orphan Collector by Ellen Marie Wiseman

 

The Orphan Collector

by

Ellen Marie Wiseman

One of my Christmas gifts was a kindle edition of The Orphan Collector by Ellen Marie Wiseman.  I whizzed through it during my vacation.  It is one of those stories that holds a person's attention.  It is about the 1918 flu in Philadelphia which is, of course, very timely with today's issues.  It is the story of a young girl and how it affected her and her family.  She loses both parents and then loses track of her infant twin brothers when she comes down with the flu herself.  Although she survives the virus, she ends up in an orphanage and then the remainder of the book is spent with her looking for her brothers.  I was almost ashamed of myself for liking the book so much because it is filled with so much tragedy.  But it is a really good book and I highly recommend it.  The novel is fiction and would make a great book group selection.   Please click on the book title and author above to follow links to more information and enjoy the video that follows. 

My Ten Best Reads of 2021

 

My Ten Best Reads Of 2021

My reading list was very short this year.  I only read 15 books.  But here are my favorite ten of those that I got through.  I need to read more in 2022! I did finish a book on 1/1/22 so I could not include it in this list although it will certainly make next years top ten.  I also find that instead of listening to audio books as much, I tend to listen to podcasts because my commute is shorter than it used to be. My bedtime reading on my kindle has decreased with hubs working less overtime as I am awake when he gets home.   Click on the titles to follow the link to the blog book review I wrote on each title. 

#10  The Town by Conrad Richter

#9 Say Nothing by Patrick Radden Keith 

#8 The High Girders by John Prebble

#7 The Tide Between Us by Olive Collins

#6 Never Caught by Erica Armstrong Dunbar 

#5 The President's Kitchen Cabinet by Adrian Miller

#4 The Woman's Hour by Elaine Wiess 

#3 The Weaver's Legacy by Olive Collins 

#2 Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Bobbitt

#1 The Weight Of Ink by Rachel Kadish