![]() ![]() ![]() I was at work one day and my cousin sent me a photo of a flier that said Betsy Schow was coming to one of the Barnes and Noble near me for a book signing for Spelled. (I do realize how corny I sound, but it’s my blog so I’m keep the corn.) ![]() ![]() Oh my Grimm and Holy Spell!!! This books was amazing! I didn’t think I would like this book this much but, I’d be darned, this book knocked my socks off. Trying to fix her prince problem by wishing on a (cursed) star royally backfires, leaving the kingdom in chaos and her parents stuck in some place called “Kansas.” Now it’s up to Dorthea and her pixed off prince to find the mysterious Wizard of Oz and undo the curse…before it releases the wickedest witch of all and spells The End for the world of Story.” But a forced marriage to the not-so-charming prince Kato is so not what Dorthea had in mind for her enchanted future. Sure being the crown princess of Emerald has its perks―like Glenda Original ball gowns and Hans Christian Louboutin heels. “Fairy Tale Survival Rule #32: If you find yourself at the mercy of a wicked witch, sing a romantic ballad and wait for your Prince Charming to save the day. ![]()
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![]() In his book, Immerwahr traces US expansion from the days of Daniel Boone to our modern network of military bases, showing how the United States has always and in a variety of ways been an empire. ![]() ![]() This is for one central reason: We omit the millions of people and large territorial holdings outside of the mainland that have, since the founding of the country, also had a claim to the flag. Immerwahr posits that, for the vast majority of people living in the contiguous United States, our understanding of our own country is fundamentally flawed. What do we think of when we think about the United States and the country’s history? This seemingly simple question rests at the heart of Northwestern University Professor Daniel Immerwahr’s new book, How To Hide An Empire. Bridey Heing | Longreads | March 2019 | 13 minutes (3,528 words) ![]() ![]() In the 1980s is Evelyn, a woman who is losing her identity, her sense of purpose and even potentially her marriage now her children have moved out of home. Jumping back and forth through time, and told through little vignettes and articles, the novel is a sweeping story of a small town and the people in it through the Depression and World War II. ![]() “Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe” is a novel by Fannie Flagg that spans from the 1920s to the 1980s in Alabama, USA. There’s no pricetag on it so maybe it was a donation? Either way, it turned out that my bestie and I were reading the same book at the same time, so we thought we’d make it an extravaganza and watch the film together as well. ![]() Somehow it just manifested itself on my bookshelf. I’m not quite sure where I got my copy of this book from. Turns out I was on the money, so I decided to actually go and read the book. This seems like perhaps it’s a lesbian romance. I then came across the film, and I remember watching it and thinking, huh. I remember first hearing about this story a long time ago watching the Simpsons. ![]() ![]() He thinks you’re cooperating with me-and trying to trick him with those photos.” He’s going to take one look at the security footage from your building and think you left with me. Will I ever see it again? Feel his lips on mine? Hear his laughter? ![]() That look in his eyes he gets right before he kisses me. “My husband is going to kill you when he sees those photos you took of me,” I spit out at him. “Don’t you look pretty all tied up.” That familiar Irish brogue washes over me and I’m immediately infuriated. It slowly softens, until his lips are curved into the faintest smile. He stands over me, his hands on his hips, his scowl aimed right at me. Like an ominous cloud, filling up the space. Larger than life, tall and imposing and so, so dark. Without warning, the door swings open and in walks Seamus. He hates Seamus with every fiber of his being, as well he should. If he sent those photos to my husband, Perry will kill him when he finds us. Nothing is going to stop me from being with her.Ī shiver steals through me at the thought. And when Charlotte is taken from me, I launch into action, determined to rescue her. What started out as a relationship in name only has evolved into something much more. Don’t they realize that nothing will keep me apart from Charlotte? Not my family. Our marriage may look like a fairytale, but outside forces threaten to tear us apart. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Michael has written more than one hundred books for children and won the Whitbread Award, the Smarties Award, the Circle of Gold Award, the Children’s Book Award and has been short-listed for the Carnegie Medal four times. Explore friendship, love, revenge, life and death in these tales from the master storyteller behind An Eagle in the Snow, Listen to the Moon, Private Peaceful, and An Elephant in the Garden. Included in this collection of short stories is a poignant tale about civil war, wherein a young girl hides from enemy soldiers in a public toilet a haunting story of a little girl swept out to sea while collecting cowrie shells and the moving account of two brothers, who, over the years, create a mental picture of their absent father. A spell-binding collection of short stories from War Horse author and former Children's Laureate, Michael Morpurgo. ![]() ![]() ![]()
![]() ![]() The Latin name for sweetgrass is "hierchloe odorata" which translates literally as "sacred grass" and is found both in Europe and America. ![]() Interestingly, it was noticed that dogs loved to find patches of sweetgrass and roll around in it and this was used to the advantage of the person seeking the plant, much like pigs were used in Europe to hunt truffles. Infusions of sweetgrass were drunk as well as being applied topically for different health reasons. This compound is a strong anti-coagulant and is used to prevent bloodclots in susceptible persons - used in excess, however, it can damage the liver. The active ingredient in sweetgrass that makes it smell so wholesomely wonderful is coumarin. This healing herb has a prominent place in daily ritual and prayer as well as a place in aboriginal medicine. We have a great article and video on How to Light a Sweetgrass Braid for Smudging. The dried and prepared braids of sweetgrass have been a trade item on the Northern Plains for millennia. ![]() ![]() ![]() While I enjoyed the ending, it makes a few leaps I don’t feel are logical. ![]() ![]() I had hoped to see much more of Dorian than what we got, and one of my favorite characters isn’t in this book at all. Some characters’ story lines left me wanting more.I LOVED her in the novellas and the first two books, was a little annoyed with her in book three, and have quite a few qualms about her decisions in books four and five. I’m not as fond of the main character as I used to be.There are also several very vivid adult scenes. Strong language and suggestive comments are prevalent. I do not think the tone is consistent with the first four books in the series or with the YA genre in general.The ending…It did not disappoint!!! There is big payoff from previous books as well as from behind-the-scenes parts in this book.I like seeing several characters from the Assassin’s Blade novellas pop up in this book.There are two particular characters this happens with in this installment, and it was fun to get to know them better! I enjoy watching secondary characters weave into the overall story arc and become important pieces of the narrative. I love how Maas introduces characters in one book and then brings them to the forefront in the next installment.I like the development achieved in some characters, especially Manon and Elide.Since it was hard to pin down the overall rating initially, I decided to do a likes/dislikes list, just like I did for A Court of Misty and Fury: ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() With exquisite writing sharpened by a surprising vein of wit and sly humour, Thien has crafted unforgettable characters who are by turns flinty and headstrong, dreamy and tender, foolish and wise. With the ease and skill of a master storyteller, Thien takes us inside an extended family in China, showing us the lives of two successive generations-those who lived through Mao's Cultural Revolution in the mid-twentieth century and the children of the survivors, who became the students protesting in Tiananmen Square in 1989, in one of the most important political moments of the past century. Madeleine Thien's new novel is breathtaking in scope and ambition even as it is hauntingly intimate. "An extraordinary novel set in China before, during and after the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989-the breakout book we've been waiting for from a bestselling, Amazon.ca First Novel Award winner. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Here are the bare-boned facts of Peggy’s life: Born in Albany, the morning of September 19 th, 1758, Margarita was a mere 13 months younger than the famous Eliza, who was 18 months younger than the oldest Schuyler sister, Angelica. And who could be more tantalizing than that younger sister, Peggy, mentioned but then omitted by necessity in the musical’s second half? (Miranda managed to condense and include an astounding amount of history, but something had to give!) My first bit of fishing pulled in the family lore that Peggy had bravely rushed into the fray of an attempted kidnapping of her father to save her baby sister. I also knew I should focus on less-explored personas. All else is plausible and even likely, given what is known of historic events and what can be gleaned about the “characters” from their own writings and from biographies like Ron Chernow’s Hamilton, Nathaniel Philbrick’s Valiant Ambitions, and Don Gerlach’s on Philip Schuyler. So let me say at the get-go: The vast majority of Hamilton and Peggy: A Revolutionary Friendship is fact. When my editor, Katherine Tegen, suggested a novel about Alexander Hamilton’s circle- (given the national hunger to know more spawned by Lin Manuel Miranda’s brilliant musical)-I knew I was diving into a sea of expectations and the most stringent of scrutiny by diehard fans. ![]() |