Poem No.10 by Sonia Sanchez

You keep saying you were there
Waiting for me to see you.
             You said that once
On the wings of  a pale green butterfly
You rode across san francisco's hills
And touched my hair as i caressed
A child militancy
You keep saying you were always there
Holding my small hand
                           As i walked
Unbending indiana streets i could not see around
And you grew a black mountain
Of curves ane i turned
And became soft again
You keep saying you were always there
Repeating my name softly
                        As i slept in
Slow pittsburgh blues and you made me
Sweat nite dreams that danced
And danced  until the morning
Rained yo/ red delirium
You keep saying you were always there
You keep saying you were always there
Will yoy stay love
Now that i am here

Quote

A book is a dream that you hold in your hand
Neil Gaiman

Poem no.8 by Sonia Sanchez

I've been a woman
With my legs stretched by the wind
Rushing the day
Thinking I heard your voice
While it was only the nite
Moving over
Making room for the dawn

Book review :How Does One Dress to Buy Dragonfruit:True Stories of Expat Women edited by Shannon Young

 

 

 

 

 

 

According to Usatoday.com there are 71, 493 Americans living in mainland China today.  The first
rule of thumb for expats do not drive.  Car accidents are the leading cause of death for people ages
15-39.  In a country where taking a cab is preferable why do so many want to live here.Why are so many willing to leave everything that they know and love to relocate here.

    By reading How Does One Dress to Buy Dragonfruit: True Stories of Expat Women In Asia
I began to catch glimpsesas to the why. What is an expat(expatriate)? By definition it means to withdraw oneself from residence in or allegiance to one's native country.  Here in our story we find an unusual Kalediscope of women  living  in Asia for reasons as diverse as the women themselves.

     Some were seeking adventure, for another identity -a sense of belonging ,and quite a few found
love.  I really enjoyed reading this book.  Each author brought their unique ,passionate, and colorful style to their stories.  I really had a tough time choosing one essay as my favorite they really were very strong poignant and vey well told.  I would recommend this collections of essays if you were looking for something beyond a tourist guide through Asia.  I gave it 5 out of 5 stars.


Sources:

merriam-webster.com
expatarrivals.com
usatoday.com
internations.org
expatguideasia.com

Real Murder:A Lovers in Crime Mystery by Lauren Carr

On occasion I like to take a break from contemporary and world lit to something relaxing and etertaining this book certainly fit the bill for me.  I hadn't read a good mystery in awhile ,and I was a little surprised at how much I missed this genre until I read this book.

    I was very impressed with the plot and the subplot, how both murders, the one from the past and the current tied into each other seamlessly. I liked the Cameron Gates character. Very fiesty, workaholic,determined etc.. She was going to get her suspect even if it meant jumping out of a second floor to do it.(Dont worry the perp broke her fall).  I love it when characters have quirks and flaws that make them relatable. Have I caught crook and locked him up in jail?
Of course not. Have I had to struggle to understand the people in my life or just pray we can get along better? Definitely.Joshua and Cameron are newlyweds trying to pick up the pieces after both being widows for so long.  Cameron doesn't have kids, but Joshua has four and it's always an adjustment bring someone new into your life, and oh yeah got to solve these pesky murders.

    I was a little concerned about the Prolgue. After chapter 2 I could see the benefit from it but this in no way takes away from the story.  NOthing I hate more than a story that just doesn't make sense at the end or just implausible. This is not the case here( no pun intended) I found Ms Carr's writing style to be fresh,complex and rich.  If you like mysteries then I think you will enjoy it as much as I did,I finished within two days and I only do that if I really like a book.  I gave this book 5 out of 5 stars.

Note:I do not recieve money for these reviews.I just really love to read:)

Quote

Autumn carries more gold its pocket than any other season
Jim Bishop

Poem:The World by George Herbert

Love built a stately
House where Fortune came
And spinning fancies
She was heard to say
That her fine cobwebs
Did support the frame
Whereas they were
Supported by the same;
But Wisdom quickly swept
Them all away

Book Review First Force Series by Cindy McDonald

Jack Haliday is on the brink of losing everything:peace of mind and

the secure life he has worked hard for,safety for his wife and

child. 5 years ago Jack went undercover to infiltrate the street

gang know as the Nomands.Even though Gunner has managed to escape

arrest he lives in the shadows waiting for the day to seek out

revenge.

     Let me start by saying I know how diffcult it is to create a

story that readers would be interested in.It takes courage to create

fictious world and hope someone can relate to the story and the

characters in them. Writers work with dilegence to "breathe life

into" these characters.  I did like that the author kept the action

going. However I did have a few problems with the story and I'dlike

this one by one.

     Problem #1:Lack of connection

The main characters felt like stereotypes:The long suffering wife,

the cute adorable curly haired child, and the ultra male cop who

can't show emotion beyond anger.It's something you see play out in a

movie in a novel I expect more physica descriptions of the characters,

behaviors that show their motives,and the thoughts that go on in

their minds as the story unfolds.  Without this I had a hard time

connecting to these characters, with the exception of Rayne she

seemed more real to me than the others.  She was stuggling to regain

identity and peace of mind after a traumatic experience.  This isn't

to say that every character needed to be traumatized to become more

real.I just would've like to  see more complexity in the rest of the

characters.

   Problem#2:Plausibilty

Would a CIA agent tell his cop neighbor that he is a ex- CIA agent

when he is still an active CIA agent? Why not say he's manager at

shoe store or something nowhere near the perimenter of being an

agent.  Let's say I believe this CIA agent does live across the

street ,I find it less plausible  that he would just happen to be

home on the BIG INCIDENT.(I don't want to give away this part of the

story because it's crucial so I will refer to it as THE BIG

INCIDENT)  This same CIA agent just happens to have a safe house

separate from the government and instead of taking Jack and injured

person to a hospital you take them to the safe house , which also

a doctor,Rayne, the CIA agent's niece.  If that's not enough to chew

on one of the female cops in Jack's precint is dating Gunner and

leaking info to Gunner.  I had the toughest time swallowing this

because there wasn't much explanation as to how they got together

and that this precint didn't catch on to it until it was almost too

late.  I felt like I was trying to find something on the bottom of a

murky pond.  Here and there I may catch a glimpse of something and

then I wouldn't.

Problem #3 Tension

I am aware that it is a challenge to let a new audience in things

that happened in a previous series.  That said I felt like the

Flashback scenes were way to long.   This slowed down the tension

that was buiding at first.   This is a smaller complaint because

once you get out of Chapter 1 the tension does pick back up again.

Overall I thought the idea for the premise was good it just wasn't

excuted well.  I would give this book  2 & 1/2 stars.

NOTE: I do not get paid for my opinons of this book or any kind of

monetary compensation