Book Four

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Several years ago DC rebooted their entire time line again. I quit counting how many times they’ve done this. However the 52 storyline introduced my new favorite DC comic character not created by Neil Gaiman. 52 gave us Batwoman, an out lesbian who is also Jewish with a strong military background. It was like a salve to a soul that had seen too much rebooting and whatnot in comics. 52 actually got me back in to them.

So I present Batwoman Elegy as my fourth installment of this ten book undertaking. It’s her first solo book and it’s written by Greg Rucka and illustrated by JH Williams. I have fallen in love with both.

 

20180701_194638Life intruded for a day. My apologies.

 

Be safe.

Book Three

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I really could not decide on this one. I have had a love for Neil Gaiman since I picked up my first Sandman comic 150 years ago, or the early 90’s if you want to be closer to accurate. One of my most prized possessions is an autographed Sandman trade paperback. I lost the full run, a few busts and statues and a framed Death print in Katrina. My wife found a copy of the first trade that collected the first several issues and gave it to me as a present. That’s what I have signed. It’s one of the first things on my list to pack if we need to evacuate.

Gaiman has a way of speaking to the soul. His writing is both wry and serious. He can insert humor in the most unlikely places, and every time I read something of his, I learn something. If I could be half the writer he is, I would be more than I can dream.

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Book Two

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The second book is very much a favorite and one I try to reread every couple of years. Sometimes I’ll start with The Hobbit, but mostly I just start at chapter one and read through the complete Lord of the Rings. I know technically it’s considered three books, but Tolkien had written it as one and I read it that way. After all, who can read just The Two Towers without the other two? I certainly can’t. Even though LOTR is a gateway drug to fantasy and further to science fiction, I still need to keep it around.

Tolkien created a world I love to get lost in. I love everything about it, but don’t ask me to pronounce Elvish. I can’t do that very well. I used to have more editions and prettier ones than what’s pictured below (next to one of the two college textbooks I have remaining), but as long as I’m able to read it, I’m happy.

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Book One

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These are in no particular order, but since last month was PRIDE, I figured I would start with one that means a lot to the kinda scared, closeted kid I was when I first read it.

I first read Fried Green Tomatoes in the early to mid 90’s or about the time the movie came out. It was pretty eye opening for someone from a small town in Mississippi during the birth of Grunge. This book gave me Idgie and though there’s not a lot that we have in common, there are a few big things we share: disdain for women’s clothing and a love for Ruth being the two most prominent. It was amazing and the first time I had anything close to a real role model in print.

Fannie Flagg has grown a lot as a writer, but this book remains a favorite. It’s about friendship, love, and barbecue and it’s written in a nonlinear style. At 20 or thereabouts, it was everything I could have wanted in a book.

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10 Books

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There’s this thing going around Facebook where people are listing so many books that personally touched them. I’ve really liked those posts as it’s very interesting to see what books friends have chosen. I decided to pick ten and share them here. As a constant reader as well as a writer, I appreciate the books that have left their marks on people, even if I didn’t always like them myself.

There are books that we love, that we visit again and again and these are the books I plan on listing. I have a separate list for scholarly books, books that I read through the course of school and still have feel the lingering effects of them. It’s the difference between best and favorite.

Starting tomorrow I’ll detail the list of favorite books. I’ll try to include pictures from my personal library when applicable. Some I no longer have due to natural disasters and moving and other events.

Be safe.

New Release

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Two years ago the drought broke and I started writing again. I had not written in a long time, at least not consistently. In that time period, I’ve managed to finish three novels. I’ve just published the first to Amazon.

I had published three already, ones that I had written several years ago. I really did not care to much if they did well or not. I was testing the water mostly. This one though, I feel as if I just sent my baby off into the world. I’ll have very few ways of knowing if people like it. I feel almost the same as when I walked my daughter in for her first day of school.

Anyway, available now is Murders at the Lille Mansion. It’s a mystery. I have a sequel planned. Actually I have several parts to the sequel written, I just stopped it for Nanowrimo and finally finished that project. It’s now in final beta.

Be safe everyone.

One star review

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I recently got a one star review on Goodreads and I’ll be honest, it hurt my feelings a little. Then I thought back over the lesbian romances I had recently read and regretted and I was ok. I had to remember that not everything appeals to everyone. I’ve hated books that friends and family raved about.

So I’ve decided to put more effort into crafting a good story with strong characters and less about slapping some words down and being done with it.

I don’t know you, Ms. One Star, bit I really do thank you. Thank you for taking the time to read and leave feedback. Writers need comments like we need food, even the ones we find unpalatable.

Have fun and Be Safe.