Summer Reading 2017 Venturess (Mechanica #2)

In Mechanica we were introduced to a complex world with the kingdoms of Faerie and Esting so different from each other and so intriguing. The folk from the Faerie kingdom are re-imagined in a way that shows them as distinctly nonhuman, however humanoid their appearance can be. The magic of Faerie and the mechanical, gear-driven inventions of Esting are as unlike as their creators. And there is Nicolette, our heroine - intelligent, inventive, and so lonely and mistreated since the deaths of her parents. Our hearts can't help but long for her success and happiness.

Now we have Venturess, the second of Nicolette's adventures. After the events in Mechanica, Nick moves from her childhood home and into the city. She lives near her friends Fin and Caro and has a workshop of her own to make her inventions and sell them. When Fin's father agrees to an attempt to negotiate a peace with Faerie, Nick and Caro climb aboard the airship with Fin and set off for the land across the sea. Incredible sights await them, along with discoveries about Nick's past, but so do danger, treachery, and battle. Can their love and friendship see them through all these hazards and into a future where the two realms are at peace?

The wonderment of all the mechanical gadgets (clockwork and otherwise), and the magic of Faerie will dazzle the imaginations of readers. Familiar characters from the first novel such as Fitz, Bex, Lord Alming, and Mr. Candery appear, along with our trio of heroes and Nick's trusty steed Jules. New personalities include the airship's crew, its captain (Wheelock), and the Faerie ruler Talis. Questions of loyalty, duty, love, friendship, and the meaning of family are all addressed by Nick and her companions, and readers will ponder them as they enjoy the story. After all, every good fairy tale has something to teach us.

I highly recommend this for anyone who enjoys fairy tale reworkings, mixtures of magic and mechanics, and young adults who are brave enough to reach for their dreams.

The publisher was kind enough to supply a galley for me to read and review.

Summer Reading 2017 Jefferson's America: The President, the Purchase, and the Explorers Who Transformed a Nation

Did you ever have to write a report on a president when you were in school? I remember writing about Thomas Jefferson when I was in third grade. I was impressed with all his accomplishments, and had a hard time figuring out the pronunciation of Monticello. But the only sources back then were the biographies in the school library, or the family edition of World Book Encyclopedia. Those books barely mentioned the explorers he sent out to map the Louisiana Territory, mostly just their names and the dates of their expeditions. If you had the same experience, there is now a cure for our lack of information - Jefferson's America by Julie M. Fenster.

In her book, Fenster traces the events and world politics that led up to the Louisiana Purchase. She explains the personalities involved - Jefferson, Napoleon, Carlos IV, Talleyrand, Godoy, Grenville - and the posturing and empire building they were attempting in North America. Mixed in with the international scene, there were also the internal politics of the United States. Jefferson's service under Washington, his own presidency, the famous Burr-Hamilton duel, and other events and relationships are painted in as the backdrop of the action along the western frontier. 

It seems amazing that so many people had so many different schemes and personal agendas. When we look back at the times of the founding fathers, we tend to imagine that everyone was pulling together for the good of our fledgling nation. We are surprised to hear that the government was run by human beings rather than saints, and that they played power games and backed pet projects just as politicians do today. And it may seem callous to us that Jefferson would send men out to explore when he knew that the other nations with territories outside the U.S. borders might kill them on sight. But each man who answered his call "was hungrier than all those he left behind to see the New World of his generation - the American West."

Jefferson's explorers were successful to varying degrees, and they received varying amounts of fame and recognition for their efforts. Some became household names, like Lewis & Clark. Others, such as Thomas Freeman, tend to be forgotten outside of history classrooms. They were not just filling in blank spaces on a map, or meeting native tribes and establishing lines of communication. These men were helping the president to "bring forward in place of his words the color of the rock, the words of the chiefs, the direction of the water, and the fact that the American mind had met its frontier." Jefferson needed to appease the critics who disagreed with the money spent on the territory, as well as feed the popular curiosity about what the west was like. 

The text of the book does a wonderful job of making the personalities of these historical figures come alive, and to toggle back and forth between the various expeditions to give a sense of how much was going on in so many different directions at once. It is easy to see why some details were left out of the World Book articles. Most parents wouldn't approve of their children learning about the reputation Sacajawea's husband had for "interfering with underage girls." And Ellicott's ploy of bringing his own "harlot" on a surveying mission by passing her off as his washerwoman wouldn't really be a fact to include in an elementary school report.

Along with all the details about the explorers and what they found, the author also puts the whole situation into a context that modern minds can appreciate. Yes, these men risked their lives to travel where few Europeans or their descendants had gone, but it was more than that. As Fenster puts it, this was a cold war of the early nineteenth century. "In the last part of the twentieth century,the entry into space served the same purpose in a climate just as tense between the United States and the Soviet Union." A-ha, now we get it.

Anyone interested in general U.S. history, early American heroes, or the Jefferson presidency will enjoy this thoughtfully written text. Some readers who do not normally turn to nonfiction may find themselves absorbed in the tales of pirogue portages (say that three times quickly), log jams, and grizzly bears.

There is more information about the author and the book available on the publisher's website. The hardback copy came out last spring. The books is now available in a paperback edition.

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.

Summer Reading 2017 The Hidden Machinery

Author Margot Livesey shares the lessons she has learned about being a writer in this essay collection. Each section begins with a quote from a famous author such as Robert Louis Stevenson, Epicurus, or George Herbert. She also uses examples from well-known pieces of literature to illustrate her points. Other writers might have chosen to only use their own work as the examples, but Livesey has chosen to refer to works that are widely known and often considered classics as well as pulling from her own writing. It makes an interesting balance and shows how the principles of writing apply across generations of writing past and present. 

There is humor and honest self criticism. Talking about a novel she attempted to write and the problems she encountered, Livesey identifies one issue as her "failure to understand that irrelevance is a sin." She compares Aristotle's claim that "All human happiness and misery takes the form of action," with the advice "Show don't tell." Everything from dialogue, setting, characters, plot - any of the pieces that go together to create a piece of writing that speaks to readers - are discussed and examples are shown and analyzed. 

A useful book to read for any aspiring writer or anyone interested in the craft from the perspective of an informed reader. I read an e-book provided by the publisher through NetGalley.

Summer Reading 2017 Alice Paul and the Fight for Women's Rights

We've all heard of Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Susan B. Anthony and Emmeline Pankhurst and their efforts on behalf of suffrage for women. But in the rush to cover all the topics in the history curriculum standards, they may be the only figures that are introduced in class. The new biography of Alice Paul will expand library collections and offer those interested in the suffragettes a new heroine to learn about. From her first introduction to the topic in a lecture by Christabel Pankhurst, to details on the hunger strikes and other tactics Miss Paul used to gain attention and support for the cause, the details of her years leading the fight for woman suffrage are a fascinating tale. Reading of the infighting and friction between Paul and the National American Woman Suffrage Association and between the NAWSA and the National Woman's Party is a big surprise. It seems so strange that the two groups wanted the same results, but couldn't cooperate with each other.

Anyone interested in the work that went into the national right to vote for women and how that crusade also fed into the push for the Equal Rights Amendment, should read this book. Paul was a determined, tenacious, and intelligent adversary to those who opposed her goals. Delving into all the obstacles she conquered, the hardships she endured, and the solutions she devised, will impress readers and earn their respect.

I received an advance copy for review purposes from the publisher.

Summer Reading 2017 Solo

Kwame Alexander's first YA novel blends his style of novels in verse with teenage angst and a journey of self-discovery. Blade Morrison is salutatorian at his high school, all set to head off to college in the fall. He plans to do that with his girlfriend Chapel, although her parents have forbidden them to see each other. The reason? Blade's father is a rock star who is frequently in and out of rehab and the tabloid headlines. When his father publicly embarrasses him once again, Blade sets off to find his roots. So he heads from Hollywood to Ghana.

The story unfolds through a mix of song lyrics Blade writes, texts between the characters (Blade, Chapel, Blade's sister and father), and poetic narrative stretches. Along with the usual teenage search for identity and independence, the story also deals with themes of betrayal, loss, love, forgiveness, celebrity lifestyles, and what makes a family.

Although it has such meaningful content, it is a quick read due to the way the verse carries you along. Meant for YA and too mature for younger readers, Solo is another masterpiece by Alexander. Readers who are music buffs will enjoy the references to musicians and particular songs that are scattered throughout the book. (They may also wince over the fate of a certain Eddie Van Halen Frankenstrat.)

I read an e-book provided by the publisher through NetGalley.

Summer Reading 2017 Jeopardy in July (Jamie Quinn Mystery #5)

Jamie Quinn is back in action and things don't slow down for the entire story. When she visits an assisted living home to meet some prospective clients, she never imagines she will wind up in a murder investigation. (Of course, knowing Jamie, we are not surprised.) It's a good thing that she is an insomniac because there are not enough hours in the day to deal with everything that is going on. Someone seems to be killing off residents at the home, a friend asks her to look into a forged piece of art his father purchased thinking it was real since it had a certificate of authenticity with it, she's hired to do legal seminars, she's invited to a birthday party of 8-year-old girls, her best friend Grace is dating her frenemy Nick, her boyfriend Nick is still in Australia saving the wombats, and her father is still waiting for his visa to be approved so he can come to the United States. How can one girl fit it all in? Jamie manages to squeeze everything into her busy days, and she has some help from friends like PI Duke Broussard.

Readers of earlier adventures will recognize the trademark way that trouble always seems to find Jamie and suck her in. Her klutziness and scatterbrained ways haven't changed, nor has her relationship with her mother's cat Mr. Paws (aka Mr. Pain in the Ass). We can laugh at her antics, worry over her safety as she tries to track down a killer, and ache for her loneliness while Kip is out of the country. Fast-paced and fun, this is an enjoyable mystery.

I received a copy from the author for review purposes.

Spring Reading 2017 The Power of Meaning: Crafting a Life that Matters

What creates meaning in our lives? How do we know that our lives matter? These are questions that many people wonder about at some time in their years here on Earth. Great thinkers throughout the ages have pondered these ideals and offered the truth as they perceived it. And many are still trying to find the answer today, or turning to despair when they feel there is no meaning to be had. Smith begins in the way this search does fro each of us, with her own experiences. From memories of her childhood time around Sufi darvishes, reading great thinkers like Aristotle and Freud, to visits with speakers from The Moth, she pulls out threads from each source and weaves them together to form a complete picture - a tapestry of what makes a meaningful life. 

In her presentation, she describes four pillars of meaning: belonging, purpose, storytelling, and transcendence. She gives multiple examples of how each pillar manifests itself, with quotes from sources such as researchers, artists, and authors. These exemplars are not only from past masterworks of literature or science, but from contemporary groups and individuals who are pursuing meaning in their own lives and trying to help others find it, too. And then she goes on to explain how finding these pillars and strengthening them can lead to personal growth and a way to improve the world around us. Whether it is the soul searching of Holocaust survivors like Frankl, or terminally ill patients in modern medical trials, the stories are honest and poignant.

Whether you are curious about what makes a life matter, or enjoy philosophical discussions of a meaningful existence, this book offers many different viewpoints and paths to take. Some may resonate more with one read than they do with others, but there is plenty to think about. And a little soul-searching is a good way to start this journey.

Visit the publisher's website for more information about the book or the author. You may also find her on Twitter and Facebook.

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.