Moon Of The Crusted Snow

 Waubgeshig Rice is the author of Moon Of The Crusted Snow. Do you know crusted snow? Where the icy layer of somewhat firm and the powdery snow is underneath. I once walked through a field of crusted snow with bare legs and cam out with tiny cuts bleeding down my leg. Would have been smarter to stick to the streets. In this dystopian novel the author writes about an Anishanaabi group in northern Canada. Some members of the group stick to the old ways of speaking the language and hunting for moose and deer and geese to eat. Others prefer playing video games. One day, before Thanksgiviing, the internet and cell phone and electricity go out in the area. Food supply dwindles. Band leadership tries hard but eventually looses control over the community. A skeezy white guy moves in to help or so he says. The author grew up north of Toronto and wrote a very moving yet horrible story about a fictional community struggling to survive.

 

 

Furiously Happy; A Funny Book About Horrible Things

Jenny Watson is the author of Furiously Happy; A Funny Book About Horrible Things. Jenny is quite open about her mental health. She has labels like anxiety, depression, and ADD. Her mother said she is just quirky and quirky is the right word.  ADD is very apparent in her writing. Sometimes she writes discussions she has with her husband. He is loving and tolerant. I have worked with people who have untreated ADD and I find it to be a real struggle. Also, her dad is a taxidermist. She is into taxidermy which is the reason the stuffed, furiously happy raccoon is on the cover.  She actually owns 2 stuffed raccoons and one bear head. This book is not for everyone. I enjoyed it but was not disappointed to come to the ending.

 

 

Happy May Day

 Today I attended the Winona Indivisible rally at Windom Park. Part of the reason I went is because they had a maypole. I always wanted to try a maypole. Unfortunately I walked .7 miles to get there and left my phone at home. I didn't have time to walk and come back. So I got no pictures of the maypole. I did do the maypole with another guy. Was it fun?  Yes, it was fun until the final three trips around the maypole when dizziness set in. I think I looked inebriated. They had a food drive for immigrants. A couple people running for office spoke. Another lady spoke who wasn't running for office and she was the best speaker. She was a teacher at Winona High School for many years. She became a union representative. She was part of the negotiation team. Once a group of Winona business men asked to meet with the negotiation team. All of the business owners were millionaires. All the negotiators salaries combined did not reach even one of those guy's salary. This happened when Tim Pawlenty was in office. Pawlenty liked slashing budgets and taxes. The negotiation they were working on was a two year negotiation. The businessmen asked the negotiators to stop asking for an increase in salary for two years. None of the businessmen were willing not to get a salary increase for two years. Anyway, the teachers got their salary increase with the help of the negotiators. I think there were about 100 people in attendance. I saw people of all ages. They had a drumming circle of 7 drummers which was fun to hear. They had popcorn and apples and candy. This was a good night. Here is one photo I snagged off their FB page.

 

 

A Spot Of Bother

Mark Haddon wrote A Spot Of Bother. He also wrote The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-time which I really loved. This book is good but not as good as the other one. The story revolves around a family living in London. George Hall is the father and a bit of a hypochondriac. The story is told from his view. He gets a bit of eczema on his thigh and totally freaks out. His wife is busy planning a wedding for her daughter, Katie, who is set to marry Ray. She is a single mother and really has no filter. She is quick to judge and quick to anger. George and his wife also have a son who is gay and just lost his best relationship through his own fault. George's anxiety builds up before the wedding. His panic attacks are coming fast and furious. By the morning of the wedding George has decided that giving a father of the bride speech is more than he can handle so he takes off walking. If this book were turned into a movie it would be slap stick comedy. 

 

 

A Family Matter

Claire Lynch is the author of the fiction book called A Family Matter. This book is about a broken family. This heart breaking story explores the social differences between the world of today and the world of 1980. A young mother has a daughter with her husband. When the girl is four the stay at home mother falls for another woman. The mother follows her heart. The husband has the law on his side. He raises the girl telling her her mother didn't want her anymore. This wasn't true. She asked for custody but the judge gave it to the father. The girl grew up to have children of her own. Only when his father was on his deathbed did he confess that he was the one who kept her from seeing her mother. The book was written beautifully.  

 

 

The Price Of Honey

Meg Waite Clayton is the author of the fiction book The Price Of Honey. Five young mothers start meeting at the park while their toddlers play at the playground. Frankie, Linda, Kath, Brett and Allie becomes friends and mentors to each other. The year is 1967 and the park is in Palo Alto, California.  They all share a love of literature. One is athletic, one is shy and secretive, one wears white gloves every day, one is brusk. Both moving and comedic, this story about female loyalty was a pleasure to read. 

 

 

The Lotus Shoes

The Lotus Shoes was written by Jane Vang. She writes about two girls. One of the girls is a servant and one is a member of a wealthy family. Although she is a servant Little Flower's mother decides to bind her feet to improve her status. Li Jing, the girl Little Flower is sold to be her maid does not have bound feet. Her father decides against bound feet because he does business with foreigners who do not approve of bound feet. Li Jing forces Little Flower to unbind her feet because she is jealous. When the fortune of Li Jing's family burns and crashes Li Jing and Little Flower must fend for themselves. At times the two girls are rivals and tentative friends. Little Flower grows up to be less of a push over. Li Jing grows up to be less cruel.