“The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek”

There are probably a million things I could say about this book. However, I’m not sure I will say them correctly...trip over my own words. But, here goes:

My mom suggested this book, claiming it was relevant to today...and she was right. Richardson’s novel left me emotionally drained. The storyline saddened me, but it also gave me hope. Cussy’s life highlighted our nation’s current struggle with equality, no matter the color of ones skin. 

“I had no right telling you how you should feel. No right claiming knowledge on things I could and will never feel. I’ve never known harm or exile because of my skin. Nor felt the lash of leather whips or angry tongues because of it!” (252) White privilege? Empathy? Walk in someone else’s shoes?

When my youngest son got married, his wife spoke about the repeal of anti-miscegenation laws - quoting Loving vs. Virginia, the landmark Supreme Court Case. As a parent and a human being I am grateful...for without it my son would be without his soulmate. 

Ok, time to cry....

Book Review: “Answer in the Negative” by Henrietta Hamilton

The premise of this book looked intriguing...after researching the author, Henrietta Hamilton, I was even more curious. Unfortunately, the storyline didn’t hold water for me. The author overused the word “stuff.” Two murders, too many suspects, and too many small details (that only made sense if you were very familiar with English culture). Being written in 1959, the main characters, Johnny and Sally Heldar, were a product of their times. Too many red herrings had me wanting to put the story aside. However, I persevered to the end, but that didn’t bring the clarity that I hoped for. 

Book Review: “All American Boys” by Jason Reynolds & Brendan Kiely

My daughter-in-law, @sahiti_k, mentioned this book in an Instagram post...and here I am. Reynolds and Kiely’s novel left me with these thoughts:

• White privilege

• Police brutality

• Call to action

• “...my shield was that I was white.” (179)

• Communities coming together to address larger issues

• Protest vs. Riot

• Die-in “...pantomiming his death to remind the world he was alive.” (312)

• “...trying to stare so hard at my own two feet so I wouldn’t have to look up and see what was really going on. And while I’d been doing that I’d been walking in the wrong direction.” (184)

• Where to start?

• How to help affect change?

• What if you don’t know enough to jump in?

• How do you educate yourself?

• Not saying anything, so you don’t say the wrong thing.

• Seeing the pain on both sides

Starting the conversation. Continuing the conversation.

Book Review: “Lethal Remedies” by M. Louisa Locke

Lethal Remedies

By M. Louisa Locke

Reading this most recent installment of M. Louisa Locke’s “Victorian San Francisco Mystery Series” is like revisiting an old friend. You know the characters, you know their personality quirks, and you know what kind of trouble they are likely to find themselves. Kinda like a warm hug. Kinda.

Women doctors in San Francisco in the 1880s faced their own set of challenges. “Regular” doctors vs. homeopathic doctors, poison, and A LOT of hand washing with carbolic soap set the stage for a great mystery. As always Locke shows women breaking into new roles, blazing a path, and sharing their knowledge with other women. These same women had few rights and could not even vote, yet they worked tirelessly for what they believed. Reading this in 2020 amidst the Covid-19 pandemic made me think; it was true then, and it is true today, “...medical professionals are bravely risking their lives...to save patients.” (author's notes)

Book Review: “Wickett’s Remedy” by Myla Goldberg

I was looking for hopeful...and the premise of the book looked intriguing. Myla Goldberg touched on the United States entrance into WWI, the arrival of bottled soda to Boston, and the Spanish Flu Epidemic of 1918. I’m not sure she did any of those themes justice. Too many voices, too many plot lines, no cohesive ending to tie it all together. Her attempt to use primary sources only “muddied the waters” with print that was so small (in the e-book version) that I had a hard time reading it. I was hopeful that the main character, Lydia, would be the hero of the day...sadly that didn’t happen.