Secrets of Hallstead House

Reade, Amy M. Secrets of Hallstead House. New York: Kensington, 2014.

Macy Stoddard of New York City, recovering from the loss of her parents in an accident, takes a nursing job on an island in the St. Lawrence River at Summerplace, also known as Hallstead House. Her job is to provide care and therapy for Alexandria Hallstead who is recovering from a fall. Macy is afraid of the water as she leaves the mainland for the island as she has never learned to swim. She likes Pete, the local man who often works for Alexandria and took her by the island though which puts her more at ease than she expected. She is met with hostility by the housekeeper and her husband the handyman as well as Alexandria's nephew. Macy soon learns that Alexandria's only daughter had met her death by drowning and that Alexandria's husband had suffered a fatal fall. When Macy learns the real reason that Alexandria has invited her to the island, Macy isn't sure that she wants to stay. This story has many of the elements of the classic romantic suspense novel. Readers who enjoyed the works of Phyllis Whitney and Victoria Holt will find much to enjoy in the novel. It suffers a bit in the believability department in a few places, but the pleasure of finding a book that took me back to my early love of this genre more than made up for it. I received an advance e-galley for review by the publisher through NetGalley with the expectation that a review would be written.

Psalms and Prayers for Little Ones

Nolan, Allia Zobel. Psalms and Prayers for Little Ones. Illustrated by Tammie Lyon. Eugene, Ore.: Harvest House, 2014.

This little volume takes several of the Psalms and paraphrases them so younger children can more easily understand them. It then pairs them with a short prayer based on each Psalm. The illustrations are good but not the quality that would be found in a Caldecott medal or honor book. The paraphrases sometimes stray a bit too far from some of the mainstream versions for my own tastes. If that does not bother you as much, this might be a book for your child or grandchild. There are certainly some Scripture truths to be learned here. This review is based on an advance review e-galley provided by the publisher through NetGalley for review. I did find the "Review Copy" in black letters on each pair of pages to be of overkill. Perhaps the publisher needs to learn the art of watermarking the images so they are still readable but easily identified as review copies.

The Summer Wind

Monroe, Mary Alice. The Summer Wind. New York: Gallery Books, 2014.

Mamaw has convinced Carson, Dora, and Harper to spend the summer at Sea Breeze one final time before it is put on the market. Carson is the victim of downsizing and is seeking a job. Dora is in the midst of a divorce and has a child with Asperger's syndrome (Nate). Harper is well off financially but isn't very happy in New York City. Also present is Mamaw's longtime employee Lucille who is like family. Most off Monroe's books that I have read have an environmental aspect to them. In this particular installment, readers are made aware of dolphin rehabilitation groups through an incident involving Carson and Nate and a dolphin that became ensnared in a fishing line. Each character is dealing with hurt and each must be healed from the scars of his/her/its own situation. It's a good summer read, and Monroe has woven together a plot where all the threads compliment each other and create a multidimensional portrayal of what healing is. Although I loved all the characters and they are all well drawn, my favorite has to be Lucille. My only disappointment is that we really do not get to see the complete resolution for every situation. We do see progress. I suspect that Monroe will revisit one or more of the characters in a future book. I received an advance review copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley with the expectation that a review would be written. There were a couple of misspellings in the ARC which I hope are corrected in the official version.

A Long Way Home

Brierley, Saroo. A Long Way Home. New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons, 2014.

Saroo Brierley managed to get lost from his home in India by jumping aboard a train at the age of five. He traveled all the way to Calcutta with no identification, landing in an orphanage in that city. A couple from Australia adopted him. This is the story of his life and of his search for his family in India using the Internet, especially Google Earth and Facebook, to locate his home town. I don't want to provide spoilers so I'll simply say that the search illustrates how limited a five year old's vocabulary can sometimes be. Many memoirs can be rather boring and sometimes suffer from being poorly written but this one was a quick well-written read and managed to maintain my interest.  Persons interested in intercountry adoption or in locating birth parents will likely find it interesting. This review is based on an "Uncorrected Manuscript for Limited Distribution" received through LibraryThing's Early Reviewer program with the expectation that a review would be written.

The Late Starters Orchestra

Goldman, Ari L. The Late Starters Orchestra. Chapel Hill: Algonquin Books, 2014.

Goldman, a professor of journalism at Columbia and former New York Times writer, recounts his studies of the cello at a later age in life and his involvement with the Late Starters Orchestra. He also discusses his son's studies in a Suzuki program for cello. The book is interesting in places, but bogs down in others. I loved the illustrations at the beginning of each chapter. This book could be quite inspirational for older persons who have been contemplating studying a musical instrument. However, I suspect that many persons would be frustrated by the lack of opportunities in their geographic area. This review is based on an advance e-galley provided by the publisher through NetGalley.

The Greek Yogurt Kitchen

Amidor, Toby. The Greek Yogurt Kitchen. New York: Grand Central, 2014.

Toby Amidor has provided a lot of options for those interested in substituting Greek yogurt for some of the less healthy ingredients found in many recipes. There are recipes for breakfast foods, for breads, for main courses, for vegetables, and for desserts included in the pages. The author provides many helpful tips along the way. He also quotes from nutrition literature about the value of Greek yogurt in the diet. Most people will find at least a few recipes that sound interesting enough to try. The author used plain yogurt in some recipes and flavored ones in others. He also includes a recipe to make one's own Greek yogurt at home and tells what equipment would be needed. He includes some recipes for creating flavors in the yogurt. The index was unavailable for review in the the galley. This review is based on an e-galley provided by the publisher through NetGalley with the expectation that a review would be written.

Biography for Beginners

Bentley, E. C. Biography for Beginners. Illustrated by G. K. Chesterton. Mineola, N.Y.: Dover Publications 2014. (Reprint of 3rd ed., 1925)

Although this short book has been around for a long time, it is now being republished by Dover Publications. It consists of "biographies" of persons written in four lines of rhyming verse. The biographies generally focus on only one thing about each person. The illustrations are drawings done by G. K. Chesterton. Some of the rhymes are better than others. Some of the persons included are not likely to be recognized by a 21st century audience. The premise of the book is entertaining, and I'm certain that the audience at the time it was written laughed out loud at many of the rhymes. This review is based on an advance review copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley with the expectation that a review be written.

Beginning with the Word

Lundin, Roger. Beginning with the Word: Modern Literature and the Question of Belief. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2014.

Lundin takes a look at literature and compares it to theology. Several years ago while visiting a church with a family member, the Sunday School class was exploring poetry and other literature and comparing it to the Bible. I really enjoyed the approach that Sunday School teacher had taken and was really hoping that this treatment would be of a similar vein. Instead, this book focuses far more on a philosophical and theoretical approach to theology and literature and is full of jargon that bogs down the narrative. Instead of being something that is likely to get an undergraduate or lay person interested in the topic, it is probably something that only faculty in theology, philosophy, and literature would find interesting and perhaps some graduate students in those fields. The author appears to be enjoy Emily Dickinson's poetry quite a bit because the book includes quite a bit. There are sections where the advance review copy omits poems due to license restrictions. It is well-written, researched, and documenting. The indexing is fairly comprehensive. In addition to the end notes, there is also a works cited section. This review is based on an advance review copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley with the expectation that a review would be written.

The Sagebrush Singers

Kernecker, Herb. The Sagebrush Singers. Reno, Nev.: Humboldt American, 2014.

This is a retelling of the story of the Bremen Town Musicians with a southwestern American setting. A burro, a coyote, a skunk, and a crow head toward town to sing when they come across a band of rustlers. While I prefer the original story, this one should be entertaining for children. The illustrations are done by noted illustrator James Watts although they are not his best work. Although the book was released on May 15, the website advertised in the book has not been updated with the music and other features that were promised. Although the target audience is age 5 and up, I think  younger children would enjoy it. My review is based on an advance e-galley provided by the publisher through NetGalley with the expectation a review would be written.

Goodnight, June

Jio, Sarah. Goodnight, June. New York: Plume, 2014.

What a fun read! June Anderson is a New York banker specializing in foreclosures. Her work has created life-threatening stress for her which she refuses to acknowledge. Suddenly she inherits her aunt's bookstore for children back in Seattle. June plans to take a week off and close it down just as she has closed down so many businesses over the years, but the bookstore still holds power over here. She meets a restauranteur in the adjacent space. The two of them hit it off well. There's a lot of resolution of family matters. The big thread in the novel is the friendship between her aunt and Margaret Wise Brown, author of Goodnight Moon and other children's stories. The letters June finds among her aunt's books point to her aunt's influence in the creation of the much beloved children's book. Ironically, June discovers that the bookstore is in financial trouble and finds herself on the opposite end of her banking role. Can she save the bookstore? I loved this book. You can tell that the author loves children's literature and literature itself. It may not be the most plausible story. There are more famous names dropped than could possibly actually occur, but even in spite of that, I loved the book. It's a fun and creative fictional look at what might have been the inspiration of a classic. This review is based on an e-galley received from the publisher through NetGalley for review purposes.

The Tastemakers

Sax, David. The Tastemakers: Why We're Crazy for Cupcakes But Fed Up with Fondue. New York: Public Affairs Books, 2014.

Have you ever wondered how food trends begin and end? Author David Sax takes a look at how some food trends began, why some of them decreased in popularity, and how some will likely continue. He also takes a look at political and economic factors in the food industry. He includes a bibliography for each chapter at the end rather than utilizing footnotes in his narrative. From cupcakes to Indian cuisine, from food trucks to fondue, he takes a look at the culture of food in American society. I found the book interesting in places but bogging down in others. The review is based on an advance e-galley provided by the publisher through NetGalley for review purposes.

SNGF: Mother's Birthday

For this week's Saturday Night Genealogy Fun, Randy Seaver has challenged us with a set of questions regarding our mom's birthday.

1)  What day of the week was your Mother born? Tell us how you found out.

Mom was born Saturday, 30 August 1924. [1]

2) What has happened in recorded history on your Mother's birth date (day and month)? Tell us how you found out, and list five events.
 
August 30, 1682 - William Penn set sail from England to the New World. [2] 
August 30, 1850 - Honolulu becomes a city. [3]
August 30, 1862 - Confederates defeated the Union at the Second Battle of Bull Run. [4] 
August 30, 1945 - General MacArthur lands in Japan. [5]
August 30, 1967 - Thurgood Marshall is confirmed as the first African-American justice of the United States Supreme Court. [6]

3)  What famous people have been born on your Mother's birth date?  Tell us how you found out, and list five of them.

August 30, 1797 - Mary Shelley, author of Frankenstein [7]
August 30, 1818 - Emily Bronte [8] 
August 30, 1870 - Maria Montessori [9]
August 30, 1893 - Huey Long, governor or Louisiana [10] 
August 30, 1930 - Warren Buffett, businessman [11] 

4)  Put your responses in your own blog post, in a comment on this blog post, or in a status or comment on Facebook or Google+.

It's obvious that I'm putting them on my blog!


[1] InfoPlease Perpetual Calendar, online resource, InfoPlease (http://www.infoplease.com/calendar.php : 17 May 2014).
[2] "Historical Events on 30th August," HistoryOrb.com (http://www.historyorb.com/events/august/30 : 17 May 2014). 
[3] Ibid.
[4] "August 30," On this Day (http://www.on-this-day.com/onthisday/thedays/alldays/aug30.htm : 17 May 2014).
[5] "Historical Events on 30th August," HistoryOrb.com (http://www.historyorb.com/events/august/30 : 17 May 2014).
[6] "August 30," Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/August_30 : 17 May 2014), s.v. "Events." 
[7] Ibid., s.v. "Births." 
[9] "August 30," On this Day (http://www.on-this-day.com/onthisday/thedays/birthdays/aug30.htm : 17 May 2014), s.v. "Births."
[10] Ibid.
[11]  "August 30," Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/August_30 : 17 May 2014), s.v. "Events."

The Girl Who Came Home by Hazel Gaynor

Gaynor, Hazel. The Girl Who Came Home: A Novel of the Titanic. New York: William Morrow, 2014.

Maggie Murphy was one of fourteen from the village of Ballysheen, Ireland aboard the Titanic. She was heading to America to live with an aunt after her mother's death, leaving behind the love of her life, Seamus Doyle in the village as he cared for his sick father. The story alternates between 1912 and 1982 when Maggie finally tells her story to her great-granddaughter, a journalist. One of the heroes of the book is a steward by the name of Harry Walsh who ensures that Maggie gets safely on board a lifeboat. The published story, of course, receives much attention by the press and brings with it some touching moments. I loved the historic story of the TItanic, but the parallel story of the present between Maggie's great-granddaughter Grace and Jimmy didn't have the punch that was probably intended. Fortunately, that is a minor part of the overall book, so the book was quite enjoyable. The book was received through LibraryThing's Early Reviewer program with the expectation that a review would be written.

NGS Recap

Randy Seaver was lamenting (on Facebook) the lack of posts last week during the NGS conference. I really didn't have a chance to post much. I was using my iPad to access the Internet although I had the laptop with me also. The only time I pulled it out was when I was giving my presentation on Wednesday. That went well, by the way.

Favorite sessions that I attended:

• "Hell on the Home Front: War-Time Damages and the Claims They Generated" by Elizabeth Shown Mills
• "North Carolina Research" by Jeff Haines
• "Shootout at the Rhododendron Lodge: Reconstructing Life-Changing Events" by Judy Russell
• "DNA and the Golden Rule: The Law and Ethics of Genetic Genealogy" by Judy Russell
• "Working with Documents: The Importance of Context in Record Analysis" by Barbara Vines Little
• "South Carolina Research" by Jeff Haines

Socially this conference was a bit different than most. Usually genealogists tend to congregate in the lobby near the bar area in the evenings. Not this time! I think we were spread out over too many hotels for this to work. As a result, it was hard to make connections with people, and you saw a lot less of people than you often did. One person joked that we were just all getting too old.

Food: We tried several local restaurants. The worst food and service award goes to the Hilton Garden Inn's restaurant. On that evening, we had a group of seven. We were the only people in the restaurant, and they couldn't seem to get the orders right and the food was horrible. I ordered crab cakes. They were quite dry. They didn't give you remoulade sauce or anything to cut that dryness. The worst part was that part of the crab shell was in my crab cake. I probably left more than I ate. It was pretty much inedible. Another person had a burger which he had ordered medium rare. It was way past well done. It had taken so long to get the food we got that he didn't dare send it back. The waitress had forgotten to take my "side" order which was supposed to accompany my meal so I had to wait on that after I got the crab cakes. On the good side, my side order of fries was actually hot as opposed the ones the others had gotten. The Best Food award goes to a place we found through Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives. It was called "Dot's Back Inn." Burgers are their specialty. I had the one with the jerk seasonings, provolone cheese, and grilled onions. I think it was called the "Rasta." Jeff had the Greek one that had feta and tzatziki sauce. We both thought ours were great. We knew that they had a lot of burgers. We wished we'd tried it earlier because when we got there, we discovered that they had a menu of things on a hand-written board that were daily features. For example, there was a Moroccan-spiced swordfish with cilantro sauce. The fish of the day was shark that day. They had a shrimp and andouille sausage dish served on a bed of cheese grits that sounded quite yummy. They had blackened mahi and much more. They were also quite reasonably priced with most dishes being under $15. If we had not eaten at Mama J's (a soul food place near the convention center that was also quite good) at lunch, we might have tried one of the bigger meals instead of the burger that night. One of the highlights was a donut run we made with friends one evening. They were in search of a maple bacon donut at The Sugar Shack. They were out of that flavor, but we tried the Baby Ruth donut which was absolutely wonderful.

Exhibits: I didn't spend a lot of time in the exhibit hall except for my shift at the APG booth. It was small and crowded. I did manage to walk by most booths, but I just didn't spend money this time. My bank account thanks me although that is a bit odd for me not to purchase a little more than I did.

Hotel: The staff at the Marriott where I stayed was great. The valets who parked our cars were very service-oriented, making it a good experience every time I needed to get my car out.

All in all, it was a great conference!

They've Ruined My Easter Candy

When I was growing up, I always loved the variety of Easter candy that would appear in my basket. It usually consisted of jelly beans, chocolate eggs, the hard oval shaped eggs that were a bit hollow but had a marshmallow layer near the top, a few Cadbury eggs, a large chocolate Easter bunny, and malted milk eggs (aka Robin eggs). I must confess that the jelly beans were probably my least favorite because they were usually the cheap ones instead of a good variety such as Jelly Belly. I loved just about anything chocolate, although the bunnies did not usually have a good flavor. I always, however, enjoyed the malted milk eggs. I went to the store a day or two before Easter and purchased a bag of malted milk eggs. I didn't read the packaging very carefully, but when I tasted them, I realized there was some sort of flavor on the shell part. I really wanted plain malted milk eggs. I glanced at the package and still only saw the words "malted milk eggs." This week I was in another store and saw the Easter candy on clearance. I went over to the shopping cart that had malted milk eggs in it. To my disgust, the only variety they had were coconut flavored malted milk eggs. No regular ones at all! I came back home and took out my bag. There in tiny print were the words "ice cream flavor" down at the bottom of the bag. That explains the disgusting taste. I wish I'd just purchased a package of Reese's Cup eggs.

Georgia Courthouse Disasters

Graham, Paul K. Georgia Courthouse Disasters. Decatur, GA: The Genealogy Company, 2013.

Graham has researched and documented the disasters that affected various Georgia courthouses. He tells the stories of fires, tornadoes, hurricanes, floods, and other things which affected disasters and tells whether or not there was record loss, and if so, what was lost or remained. It's a very handy reference book for anyone doing genealogical work in the state by a well-respected Georgia genealogist.

Murder Comes Ashore

Lindsey, Julie Anne. Murder Comes Ashore. New York: Carina Press, 2014.

Patience finds some body parts that wash up on Chincoteague Island. The local law enforcement and FBI are on the case. Her parents land in jail. She is determined to clear their name. It's a dreadful read with a promising setting. I never connected with the main character or really with any of the others. The writing did not flow. If you are interested in the Chincoteague setting, you are better off remembering it with the classic children's book Misty of Chincoteague. If you are interested for the mystery aspect, there are many more mysteries out there which are far more engaging. This is based on an advance reader copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley.

Under Magnolia

Mayes, Frances. Under Magnolia: A Southern Memoir. New York: Crown, 2014.

Mayes recalls her childhood and youth in Georgia, her college days in Virginia and Florida, and a few moments from her recent return to the South. She has a way of describing place that is a true gift. We even see some glimpses of some of her poetry. While I prefer her works on Italy, this one does give you insights into what shaped her as a person and writer. She also draws comparisons between Italy and the Southern United States. The writing is elegant as one has come to expect in her works. This review is based on an e-galley received by the publisher through NetGalley with the expectation a review would be written.

The Homesick Texan's Family Table

Fain, Lisa. The Homesick Texan's Family Table: Lone Star Cooking from My Kitchen to Yours.  Berkeley: Ten Speed Press, 2014.

Lisa Fain grew up in Texas but currently resides in New York. In this volume, she takes Texas cuisine, much of it from her own family, and gives it a bit of a New York twist by adding or substituting other ingredients and by using Kosher salt instead of the salt that would be most commonly used in the Southern States. She has quite a few Tex-Mex inspired dishes as well as some with hints of barbecuing. Many of the traditional Southern desserts are also included. Each sections is prefaced by a family story. The dishes themselves either give a family story, information about an ingredient and its use in Texas, or another interesting tidbit for the reader. Recipes vary in the degree of difficulty and amount of time it would take to prepare.  Persons looking for a book that will provide pure Texas recipes will want to find a different cookbook. Those who like twists on family favorites will enjoy this one. This review is based on an e-galley provided by the publisher through NetGalley with the expectation of a review.

Murder Simply Brewed

Chapman, Vannetta. Murder Simply Brewed. (Amish Village Mystery ; 1). Grand Rapids, Mich.: Zondervan, 2014.

Amber Wright is the manager of an Amish Artisan Village in Indiana. When Ethan, the coffee shop manager, dies, it appears to be a simple health issue, but not everyone believes that. Amber makes Hannah Troyer her coffee shop manager. Hannah is observant and notes some things that seem a bit off and make her suspicious as well. With no cooperation from the local officers, Amber and Hannah must investigate on their own. This is a case of a book trying to be too many things. The author needs to decide whether she wants to write romance or a mystery. If she wants to write romance, she probably needs a bit more development of that in the plot. If she wants to write mystery, she needs much further development there. The whole thing seemed rather implausible. It simply was not well-developed. The presence of a boa constrictor in the plot nearly made me abandon the book entirely. If you don't mind suspending believability for awhile and really like Amish fiction, try this one. If you are a mystery lover, avoid this one. This review is based on an advance e-galley provided by the publisher through NetGalley.