Where The Rivers Merge

 Mary Alice Munroe is the author of the historical fiction novel entitled Where The Rivers Merge. The author lives in South Carolina and is a conservationist. Her facts about the birds, the plants, and the animals make her conservation work very apparent. The Mayfair estate grows rice and horses. The mother and father have three children. The middle child is a girl named Eliza and she is a tomboy. She would rather be outside riding horses than do any of the womanly work inside. She is a disappointment to her mother but a big help to her father. She pushes back against societal norms. The book starts out in 1908 and ends in 1998 when Eliza is 80 years old. I really enjoyed this book.

American Melody

After lunch I walked through Levee Park on my way to the public library. I saw the American Melody parked and passengers were getting on and off. This ship took off from St. Louis, Missouri and was on it's way to Saint Paul. Just as I walked to the end of the ship I saw an elderly couple. The man used a walker. Just then the American Cruise bus went by and KERPLOW!!!! blew a tire right next to me. The noise was so loud. I could see a 3 inch gash in the sidewall of the tire. I jumped. The man with the walker starting tipping over. I thought he was going to fall but he didn't. My adrenaline was through the roof. Yikes. The ship was still there on my way back from the library a few hours later but it eventually pulled away and headed up river again.

Bird Club

 Tonight I went to my first meeting of the Winona bird club. Our speaker was a woman who is an expert on Prairie Island. She told us where to find which birds. She has seen 67 species of warblers. She told us about the nature trail. Now I want to go down there and walk that trail. There is a lake called Hunter Lake.  There, in the spring, the lake thaws before the river and you can find a large variety of green winged teal, canvas backs, and ruddy ducks. She told us which birds nest on the island. The city of Winona has partnered with the Minnesota Land Trust and will develop a plan to restore the island and remove the invasive species. I look forward to the next meeting. This is a fun group.

The Book Of Lost Sould

 In this delightful historical fiction story we switch the story between 1875 and 1988. Lisa Wingate is the author of The Book of Lost Souls. In 1875 little Hannie watched from the plantation in Mississippi as her mother and siblings are sold away. Lavinia Gossett is the daughter of the plantation owner. Juneau Jane is the plantation owner's daughter with a Creole woman in New Orleans. Together the three girls take off looking for the plantation owner in Texas. While recovering from illness they hide out in a church for a week. On the walls of the church are newspaper articles of former slaves looking for their relatives. Juneau Jane knows how to read and write so she starts collecting information from other people missing relatives and writes the book of lost soles. Juneau Jane teaches Hannie how to read and write. On the other end of the timeline first year teacher Benny Silva comes to Livingston, Alabama. She needs to work off her student loans. The school is shockingly empty of books and teaching materials. She finds a huge library of books in an empty farmhouse behind the one she is renting. She gets permission from the owner to bring the books to school. With her students they begin to do research on the people who lived in this area. Eventually they come to find out that this is where Hannie, Lavinia, and Juneau Jane once lived.

The Female Persuasion

Meg Wolitzer is the author of The Female Persuasion. This novel follows the life of Greer and Cody. Greer met Cody when she was 8 years old. He moved to her neighborhood and now they are in the same grade in school. Both Greer and Cody are the smartest kids in their class. After graduation they were meant to go to Yale together. Greer's parents are not the best. They don't seem to care about her. They both smoke weed in the basement. Greer's father said he would fill out the financial questions on her application for scholarships but he didn't. Now Greer is angry because she has to go to Ryland college. Cody will go to Princeton. In college a friend named Zee convinces Greer to hear Faith Frank, a famous feminist, speak. Greer is so impressed by Faith that they follow her into the bathroom. Faith gives Greer her card and asks her to keep in touch. After graduating from Ryland Greer gets a job with Faith's company. Cody ends up working in the Philippines. He gets a call one day that rocks his world. His mother was backing out the car and accidentally runs over his little brother, Alby, who was lying in the driveway studying his turtle. Cody goes home. After the funeral his father returns to his native Portugal, never to return. Cody's mother is rightfully depressed. Cody stays home to care for her. This delightful book is about wanting to be seen.