Paper Marriage

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If you are like me and enjoy a good romance every once in a while to escape everyday life, The Paper Marriage by Susan Kay Law is a great choice. Ann McCrary’s marriage has been on hold for 12 years after an automobile accident put her husband into a deep coma. Her life changes when Tom Nash moves in next door–a retired baseball player and a clueless single father of a teen aged girl. This is a story of love, loyalties and changing relationships with interesting characters–I really enjoyed it!

Lost in the Fog

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You all know by now that I am the queen of light-weight reading, so I’m sure you’ll wonder about me writing about a book about World War II, but I just couldn’t resist this book. Lost in the Fog is the story of Rachel Van Meers, an illegitimate child born in Belgium before World War II. Rachel started life in a difficult situation and it went downhill from there. Her mother was not exactly mother of the year, her grandmother was cranky, and she was about to experience the joys of enemy occupation. This is a great first-hand account of life in Belgium during the war. We are shown the atmosphere of distrust, the lack of food, and the under-the-table bargaining.

She had a tough life, but this book is never depressing. She tells her stories of oppression, but they are more than balanced by her strength, wit, and ability to laugh at the ridiculousness of the human condition.

Are you ready for some (fantasy) Football?

>Yes, it is that time again. The gridiron, the turf, the nachos, the sport that is American football. This can only mean one thing: Fantasy football players are getting ready to pick the players for their teams this year and the Manhattan Public Library has the resources to keep you on top of your game.

First is one awesome reference book: The ESPN pro football encyclopedia / edited by Pete Palmer, Ken Pullis, Sean Lahman, Tod foreword by Ron Jaworski.

This book has the stats for every player that was on a roster last year. An invaluable resource when trying to decide between picking Larry Johnson of the Kansas City Chiefs with the first pick in the draft, or LaDanian Tomlinson of the San Diego Chargers. (Personal Note: My first round pick will be Peyton Manning based on his numbers of the past 5 years.)

Second, we also have computers available for public use so you can update your roster if you cannot do so from home.

A really good online resource for all things Football is the National Football League webpage.

So sit back, grab the nachos, find the remote, and enjoy the game.

Tin-y Bub-bles!

>Believe it or not, I was in the military when I was younger. One of the things I appreciated the most about being in the Army was the camaraderie of being a soldier and the lifelong friendships that sprang forth from the shared experience.

There were some ups and downs, as with most things that are difficult, but there were also some really good times. One of my favorite moments was walking to graduation with my fellow soldiers and singing the cadence “Tiny Bubbles” as we marched by our families. Probably not a dry eye in the stands that day.

A book just came across the desk that instantly took me back to those days: Modern Military Cadence. Filled with some of my all-time favorites marching cadences/chants/songs and some new ones that I had never heard before. For those wanting to take a walk down military lane this book is just for you.

If anything it will remind you of what foot is your left….your military left.
1,2,3,4
1,2,
3,4!

Bygones by Kim Vogel Sawyer

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With life in its hectic state of summer schedules, my reading must be light and entertaining. A book like Bygones by Kim Vogel Sawyer is just the ticket. A favorite aunt dies leaving Marie’s daughter Beth her estate. Beth just wants to sell out and invest in an antique shop. The catch is Beth must live in the Mennonite community for 3 months before she can become the official heir. While Marie, raised in the community, adapts well to the lack of modern convenience, Beth struggles. Mysterious missing antiques cause the community to suspect Beth as the perpetrator. Marie battles for Beth’s innocence as well as the rising feelings for the beau she once loved.

Starting a Home-based business with help from the Library

>It is no secret that the library has a lot of books. We literally have shelves upon shelves of them. But did you know that the library has quite a few new books all about starting your own home-based business? I bet you did not.

So whether your goal is to set up a small lawn mowing business or to be the next Microsoft, check out these titles for the motivated self-starter:

What No One Ever Tells You About Starting your own Business

This book features real world examples from successful entrepreneurs from all over the business world. Heavy in practical advice and real world examples.

What’s Stopping You?

This book is all about busting the myths that surround starting your own small business, and offering those starting a new business a road map for navigating these myths.

The 200 Best Home Businesses

Now that you are ready to start a business what should the business be? Well, a glance through the 200 Best Homes Businesses should give you some idea of what will work for you.

The Small Business Bible

This volume on small business is all about the nuts and bolts of taxes, business plans, marketing, etc. Basically, the stuff that isn’t quite as fun as coming up with the idea. Not only does this book show you the ways to get started, but also how to keep growing your business.

Home-based Business for Dummies

The “For Dummies” series is one of my best friends. These books are always packed with lots of information, often times guiding the reader to valuable Internet resources. This book also contains the much dreaded exit strategy for when you decide that it is time to close up shop.

The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Starting a Home-Based Business

The second cousin to the “Dummies” series is the “Complete Idiot’s Guide” series. This volume offers the same style of advice as the “For Dummies” book, but where this one really stands out is in the back portion of the book that lists small business websites that can offer guidance for the particular type of business you decide to start.

So there you have it. All the resources you need to go out there and start making your own money. But remember, you read it here first. :)

Twenty Chickens for a Saddle: the story of an African childhood

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Non-fiction vs. Fiction

I find non-fiction at times to be more exciting and engrossing than fiction because it’s real, because it really happens and it’s really out there.

Twenty Chickens for a Saddle: the story of an African Childhood by Robyn Scott is a non-fiction book that I found fascinating. I’ve always wanted to know more about the mysterious continent of Africa. It draws me and repulses me at the same time. I’m intrigued by the unique people, ancient history, and incredible wildlife, and repulsed also by the frightening conflicts, devastating disease, and incredible wildlife.

Robyn Scott moved to Bostwana when she was seven with her very unusual family. Her flying doctor father and homeschooling mother were very loving but eccentric. Life was an adventure with their relaxed view of parenting. Most of their elementary education came by way of being read to and investigating on their own. They were free to explore this wild country and learn by doing. The African bush and it’s inhabitants were quite the education, as were the people they encountered at her father’s rural clinics many of which were dying from AIDS.

Robyn is twenty seven now and has completed a BSc in Bioinformatics at the University of Auckland. In 2004, she was awarded a Gates Scholarship to Cambridge University, where she read an MPhil in Bioscience Enterprise and studied trends in the pricing of medicines in developing countries. I’m looking forward to her next book which will be about a remarkable group of maximum security prisoners in South Africa who have adopted AIDS orphans.

Blood Trail by C.J. Box

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Blood Trail by C. J. Box
It’s elk season in the Rockies, but this year one hunter is stalking a different kind of prey. When the call comes in on the radio, Joe Pickett can hardly believe his ears: game wardens have found a hunter dead at a camp in the mountains—strung up, gutted, skinned, and beheaded, as if he were the elk he’d been pursuing. A spent cartridge and a poker chip lie next to his body.

Ripples of horror spread through the community, and with a possibly psychotic killer on the loose, the governor is forced to end hunting season early for the first time in state history—outraging hunters and potentially crippling the state’s income from the loss of hunting license revenue.

This is the eighth book about game warden, Joe Pickett. Game wardens are unique because they can legitimately be involved in just about every major event or situation that involves the outdoors and the rough edges of the rural new west. They’re trained and armed law enforcement officers.

Pickett is, in a way, the antithesis of many modern literary protagonists. He’s happily married with a growing family of daughters. He does not arrive with excess emotional baggage, or a dark past that haunts him. He works hard and tries, sincerely, to “do the right thing.” He doesn’t talk much. He’s human, and real, which means he sometimes screws up.

Bold, fast-paced, and sure to be controversial, Blood Trail is proof that C. J. Box never fails to keep the pages turning.

Disappearing Destinations

> For those readers of the Little Apple Bookworm blog who are heading out this summer on vacations to all sorts of exotic locations, I hereby dedicate this post to you.

Lately, I have been reading a book by Jared Diamond entitled “Collapse“, which seeks to illuminate why societies throughout history have failed to achieve sustainability and therefore collapsed. The book “Disappearing Destinations” by Kimberly Lisagor and Heather Hansen, could be considered a updated companion piece to Diamond’s book.

The authors take us on a tour of 37 endangered destinations and what is being done to retain and restore these locales to a more sustainable condition.

Two of my favorite dream vacation spots are listed in this book: Glacier National Park and Venice, Italy. It should come as no surprise that the future of both of these places is in jeopardy, due largely to increasing temperatures in North America and rising sea levels around the world.

Can you imagine a Glacier National Park without glaciers? Or Venice, Italy under so much water that it no longer becomes feasible to live and/or visit there?

So when you go out on the road this summer to your favorite vacation spot, think about what is being done to keep that spot sustainable and enjoyable for the generations that come after us.

"The Hearts of Horses," by Molly Gloss

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Martha Lessen is awkward and shy but also very determined and firm in her love for horses. She is the main character in “The Hearts of Horses,” by Molly Gloss. Martha rides into Elwha County in 1917 looking for “some work breaking horses.” Apparently this wasn’t an unusual situation at the time. Women took over much of the work on farms and ranches because so many young men had gone off to fight in WWI. Martha is dressed like a cowboy out of a Wild West show when she meets George and Louise Bliss. George is amused by her odd appearance and serious demeanor. He hires her to break two horses and introduces her to other ranchers in the area who are in need of a trainer.

Louise is concerned about Martha’s comfort and social life. Martha prefers to sleep in the tack room of the barn where she can read “Black Beauty” by lantern light. But Louise knows how to draw Martha into conversation, sharing their interest in reading and she encourages Martha to socialize at church and other events that often required young people to ride for miles to a dance or party. Martha works seven days a week, going to seven ranches, riding a circle, breaking horses, in her skilled and gentle way. She never has to “buck them out.” She uses light saddles, tin cans, feathers, and a soft voice. She develops a community of friends and we learn more about the lives of the people that live in the county, including their personal struggles with alcoholism, disease, prejudice, and loneliness. Over the winter Martha becomes a dear and indispensible neighbor, treating animals and humans with great kindness. Most of the story takes place over the season that Martha first comes to the county, but the short wrap-up at the end provides a warm and satisfactory ending to reassure us that Martha lived the happy life she wanted and deserved.

A Boy Named Shel

>A Boy Named Shel is an eye-opening look into the life of one of my favorite writers.

Growing up, one of my favorite things to do was read a book my parents had gotten for me called “Where the Sidewalk Ends.”

It was with this book that I first fell in love with the wit, humor, and downright silliness of Mr. Shel Silverstein. I am sure we all know the tale of Sarah Cynthia Sylvia Stout, and wondered “Why wouldn’t she take the garbage out?”

My parents at the time were also fans of Shel. Not only was he a successful cartoonist and poet, be he was also a very accomplished songwriter. Most people are unaware that Shel was the one who wrote the song “Cover of a Rolling Stone” made popular by Dr. Hook. So when I heard Dr. Hook singing Shel’s poems, I was instantly hooked on Dr. Hook. (sorry for the pun.)

Despite all of this success, Shel was at times quite insecure about his many talents. But he was the only one, young and old found humor and joy in his work. Shel was after all our ‘Missing Piece.’