I've known Edward Ahern for a couple of years now, and I was pleased to pick up his new collection of short stories, Capricious Visions. A mixture of fantasy and horror stories, the writing is at times fun and other times macabre, but the stories always held my interest from start to finish. I've written a more in-depth review at Bewildering Stories, which you can read here. I hope you enjoy the collection as much as I did!
Into the charged atmosphere of the lead-up to the U.S. election comes Gary Beck's new collection of poetry. Perceptions is unapologetically political, examining hot button topics that don't shy away from modern concerns, but rather examines them head-on in a straightforward, narrative style. Mr. Beck's message is seldom hidden, but is presented at the forefront of each poem--these are words meant to inform, to awaken.
There's a full review of the book at Bewildering Stories. I hope you enjoy reading the collection! I've often enjoyed reading the anthologies by Third Flatiron, often edited by publisher Juliana Rew. In fact, I had a story published by them a couple years ago in Abbreviated Epics. So I started to read their new anthology, Hyperpowers, with anticipation. It was guest edited by Bascomb James, and the theme of the book was space opera and military SF stories, genres I've enjoyed since reading Heinlein when I was a kid.
I have a full review of the anthology published at Bewildering Stories magazine. There are some books that are hard to put down, and Piece of Mind, by Michelle Adelman, is on that list for me. Written in a conversational style, the prose is simple, yet filled with touches of humor. If I can't go to sleep because I have to turn the page and find out what happens next, I'd call the book a success.
I've written a full review at Bewildering Stories. I hope you pick up the book and enjoy it as much as I did! My kitchen renovation is in full swing right now, which means that I've been pretty inactive on my website - however, I've still managed to squeeze in reading a book or two. One I read recently was Too Many Cooks by Dana Bate, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. In tone, her writing reminds me of one of my favorite romance authors, Kristan Higgins. I've written a full review for Bewildering Stories magazine, which you can read here. I hope that you enjoy reading it as much as I did!
This seems to be a chronic state for me lately - I'm behind on my postings again. But I recently reviewed Catherine Onyemelukwe's memoir, Nigeria Revisited: My Life and Loves Abroad, for Bewildering Stories. I thought it was a unique and fascinating narrative about her experience as a foreigner in Nigeria - you can read a full review here. I hope you enjoy reading it.
I'm a bit behind on my postings, since the kids and I have been sick for the past week. I recently reviewed James Graham's poetry collection, Becoming a Tree: Poems 2007-2015 for Bewildering Stories, which came out this past Monday. I thought it was a very thoughtful and beautiful collection of poetry - you can see the full review here. I hope you enjoy reading it.
I was feeling in the mood for something a bit lighter in tone, so I picked up Copper Beach by Jayne Ann Krentz. A few words to sum it up: paranormal romance, mystery and adventure. A quick read.
If you read my blog, you'll know that I had a baby in November and that she is not my first child – she's my third. So I feel like I pretty much have this mom thing down – or as down as I'm going to get, haha. So when my husband's co-worker gave me as a baby present Sippy Cups are Not For Chardonnay and Other Things I had to Learn as a New Mom by Stefanie Wilder-Taylor, I was bad enough to dismiss it without reading it. "Just another self-help new mom book," I thought, despite the title being a bit funny. So I added it to the unread stack of books on my bookshelf and thought I'd get to it sometime – or, honestly, perhaps never.
Well, the book finally caught up to me, since my husband invited his co-worker over to our house for a Walking Dead season finale party. At the time, it was three weeks away. "Have you even touched that book she gave you?" he asked me. The answer being no, he told me, "Well, you better get cracking." Really, I had no excuse anymore. My baby was sleeping through the night (mostly), and I was almost back to my normal writing/reading schedule. So I reluctantly picked up the book and started reading. I was nodding my head at page one: "Oh, yeah, that's totally true! That is soooo me." And laughing by page two. And eagerly flipping through the book after that to find out what silly thing was on the next page and the next. Let me tell you, this isn't a self-help book for new moms. Not even close. This is one woman's account of what it felt like to be a new mom – or a stranger in a strange land. While some of it is filler, to be honest, most of it is very straightforward about the new cult of motherhood. And, yes, it is a cult! If you don't join in, you feel like a leper. This book spoke to me, since I am not one of the moms who chooses their child's preschool when still pregnant, and I don't believe that my kids are the boss of me and that I should let them get away with murder. There are parts I disagree with - I make my kids' own baby food not because, as the book asserts, I'm an insane mom who watches everything their child eats like a hawk and insists others do the same. Nah, it's because it's cheaper to make my own food than buy insanely small and overpriced containers of jarred baby food. All of my kids were big eaters as babies, so I would be feeding them 3+ jars of baby food in one sitting, which could really add up. But I digress. Exaggeration = comedy, of course, and Ms. Wilder-Taylor is hilarious. Her writing style and humor are unvarnished. She has the ability to get right to the heart of the absurd myths and beliefs about parenthood and expose them to the light of reason. She tackles serious subjects, such as postpartum depression, with an honesty and humor that are refreshing. So I want to say to my husband's co-worker - I apologize for dismissing the book. I will never doubt your taste in literature again. :) If you're a new mom - or even an old hand at it, like me - this is a great book to relieve a little parenting stress. So why not take the book up on its title? Pour yourself a glass of Chardonnay (albeit NOT in a sippy cup - you'll need a bigger glass than that, haha) and get reading. I just finished reading Resonance, a poetry collection by Gary Beck. You can find a full review for it at the ezine Bewildering Stories by clicking here. I hope you enjoy reading both the review and Mr. Beck's poetry!
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Book ReviewsI read a lot - depending on my writing schedule, I can usually read about a book a day. Some of the books are fantastic and I would love to recommend to everyone - some, not so much. Either way, I thought I would share a few thoughts on what I'm reading at the moment. Categories
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