Shanghai Dream

Shanghai Dream is a sad book.  It is well written and illustrated but because the story concerns Jews running away from Nazis, and then the Japanese, in order to save their lives.  It ends abrultly without a denouement and I feel the rest of the story should be told in a subsequent novel. Luckily, Shanghai Dream is Book One.

The publisher's summary:  

"A young German Jewish filmmaker escapes the Nazi threat in Shanghai, where he is forced to adapt to a new land and cope with familial loss through the magic of filmmaking.  In 1938 Berlin, aspiring filmmaker Bernard Hersch works at the UFA studios and dreams of one day directing the screenplay he and his wife Illo are writing. But as a Jew in Hitler's Germany, Bernard faces increasing danger and discrimination, and is soon forced to accept deportation to Japan as his only hope.  However, Illo, disconcerted at having to abandon her elderly father, leaves Bernard behind at the last minute and returns to Berlin, where she and her father are shot by Nazis.  Rerouted to China, a heartbroken Bernard struggles through grief and vows to bring his and Illo's screenplay to life as a tribute to her legacy. Along the way, he finds love in a city under siege."

I was spellbound by the storyline. It was an emotional roller-coaster to read how the family made one choice after another, all of them lose-lose choices. I fell in love with the Bernard and Illo characters and felt like I knew them, perhaps because I have friends who lived this reality. The writing was suspenseful. A fast pace increased the suspense but it was also written with a sense of dread as the family had to make decisions quickly if they were going to survive the antisemitism directed at them. 

The artwork was drawn in comic strip panels. Some pages were colored by Delf in sepia tones and others were in black and white. All of the pages that referenced the writing of Illo's screenplay were drawn in black and white. 

Shanghai Dream is an accurate retelling of a part of WWII history. I highly recommend it, especially for young people.  5 out of 5 stars!

Book Art

What is book art? Is it book spine poetry? Is it book folding?  What about a color coded personal library? It is all three and probably more. 

I first learned about book spine poetry in 2012 when Librarything hosted a book spine poetry contest. At the time I had over 2,000 books of my own to choose from. I still found it difficult to come up with a poem. This form of "poetry" was initially created in 1993 by Nina Katchadourian for her Sorted Books Project. She began collecting interesting titles from her own library and arranged them in piles to create a column of poetry.  

I discovered book folding when my church hosted an art project in 2014 using old hymnals. About 20 members participated. I did a basic page folding technique but others carved out parts of pages with an exacto knife to create a scene. A few members cut shapes out of the pages and put them together in a 3-D sculpture. 

My Pinterest page has several examples of how to organize your books on bookshelves so that you create a color scheme.  This one is my favorite.  However, I cannot see how a prolific reader can create this type of a scheme because we buy the books for reading purposes not the color of their spine.  A company called Books by the Foot sells books in any color scheme and on any subject. I doubt these customers are the type of readers who read for pleasure because they are only purchasing books to create a piece of art in their homes, albeit art on a bookshelf.

If you know of any additional forms of book art, please leave a comment.

Lockdown

Peter May is one of my favorite authors. He wrote this book fifteen years ago and couldn't get it published. Publishers told him the idea of a worldwide lockdown due to a pandemic was unrealistic. I will bet that they regret their decision today. Lockdown was recently published by Quercus on June 13, 2020.

The story opens with Detective Inspector Jack MacNeil investigating the discovery of human bones in Lambeth, approximately five months after a flu pandemic hits London killing 80% of the infected. A thumbprint found on a public transportation ticket near the bones gives the first clues.  MacNeil's girlfriend, forensic scientist Dr. Amy Wu, determines that the bones belonged to a ten year old asian female. Wu begins to build a facial reconstruction of the female from her skull and later believes that she could be the source of the pandemic. MacNeil is followed throughout his investigation by a killer named Pinkie. Pinkie has been hired by a Mr. Smith to watch the police investigation unfold and ensure that the bones don't lead the police anywhere.  

The Lockdown plot was not what I expected.  It was mainly about the relationship between MacNeil and Wu instead of about the pandemic.  Since we are currently in a coronavirus pandemic, following the story's pandemic seemed to me to be more significant than MacNeil and Wu's relationship. It may be that a pacing problem resulted in the plot becoming more about the relationship than the action needed to resolve the pandemic.  Did the author spend too much time with character interaction, thereby slowing down the action?

Lockdown was not Peter May's best work nor was it his worst. The characters marginally kept me interested in continuing to read. The main reason that I kept reading was the fact that Peter May was the author. When he is at his best, his books are a dream to read. 

This suspense thriller had no suspense or thrills. 3 out of 5 stars. 

Filmish

Filmish:  A Graphic Journey Through Film offers the reader a history of the film industry.  Drawn in black and white comic panels, author Edward Ross teaches readers about the biases that are built in to the movies that we watch.  He focuses on seven aspects of filmmaking. They are the eye, the body, sets and architecture, voice and language, time, ideology, and technology and a separate chapter addresses each of these topics. The information he gives is beefy enough to be a textbook on films. The words and writing style that he used are also typical of a textbook. I certainly see it this way. Knowing nothing about movies before reading Filmish, I have come away with a long list of movies that I need to watch in order to see more clearly what Ross is talking about in each chapter. 

The first films were only a few seconds long and were created by putting several photographs together. The human eye will see movement where there is none and a new type of entertainment was born. Subsequent filmmakers improved upon this technique with new technologies. One aspect of filmmaking that has never changed is "male gaze." In the early days of the movies, producers purposely used storylines that could be enhanced with female subjects in situations that men like to watch. While several films have been made recently showing male muscle and nudity so that women could have "women gaze," the author states that men primarily watch these films to determine what women want from them. Nothing has changed here in a hundred years of making movies. One interesting fact about the use of sets is that heroes are shown in natural environments and villains are shown in stark, monochromatic environments. I never noticed this before and can't wait to watch a movie to see this for myself. Censorship is an issue covered at length in Filmish. The author writes that filmmakers will sign a contract with the Pentagon agreeing to only show the military in a positive light in exchange for the use of their machinery in a film. Producers see this as a way to save money as they can be assured of making an "approved" movie that will not be banned by theaters. 

I have learned so much about films from reading this book. I can't recommend it more highly. Anyone who loves movies as well as students who concentrate on studying filmmaking should read this book. 5 out of 5 stars.

Favorite Historical Fiction Series

For the past couple of years I have been reading a lot of historical fiction.  While I prefer historical mysteries, there are several series and authors that I follow. They include:

C J. Sansom - Matthew Shardlake
Anna Castle - Francis Bacon Mysteries

Laura Morelli - Renaissance Artisan Series

Ariana Franklin - Mistress of the Art of Death

S. D. Sykes - Oswald de Lacy, Somershill Manor Series

C. De Melo - Medieval Mysteries

Ruth Downie - Medicus
Sharon Kay Penman
P. K. Adams
Conn Iggulden
Brenda Rickman Vantrease
Nancy Bilyeau
C. W. Gortner

Unfortunately, Ariana Franklin has passed away and there will not be any more novels coming from her. Anna Castle is currently working on the 7th Francis Bacon Mystery, Now and Then Stab, but also is writing another series that I am not that fond of. I loved Conn Iggulden's Conqueror series but have struggled with reading his other series. The Conqueror series concerns the lives of the Mongol warlords Ghengis and Kublai Khan. P. K. Adams is a fairly new author.  She has written three books. Two of them are a duology on the life of Hildegard and the last one is the beginning of a new series that takes place in Poland and Lithuania. Christine De Melo has published quite a few books and I have loved them all, with the exception of the last one which is not a historical fiction book.  Freelance is a spy romance based in Florence, Italy. Of course, anything C. W. Gortner and Nancy Bilyeau write are superb.

The medieval period is my favorite era. I would love to read about the Visigoths  though, but don't even know if anyone has tackled this era yet.  I have been having thoughts about writing one myself.  I would need to do alot research and am not sure that I am capable of writing historical fiction.  I have written some mystery short stories and feel much more confident about writing that genre. Anything is possible though.  

What are your favorite historical fiction series and authors?

My Favorite Cozy Mystery Serieses

While at one time I primarily read cozies, I currently only regularly read six cozy book authors. These authors write more contemporary cozies that are mysteries as well.

Cleo Coyle - Coffeehouse Mysteries
Susan Wittig Albert  - China Bayles
Laura Childs - Indigo Tea Shop
Julie Hyzy - White House Chef
Gary Corby - Athenian Mysteries
Ellen Crosby - Wine Country

The White House Chef series is over and I am not sure what is happening with Gary Corby's ancient Greece series.  He should have published another installment of the series in 2018 and 2019 but hasn't.  I used to read additional serieses but gave up on them. They are traditional cozies with more simple plot lines.

Joanna Carl - Chocoholic Mysteries
Leslie Meier - Lucy Johnson
Joanne Fluke - Hannah Swenson
Lillian Jackson Braun - Cat Who Loved Series
Dorothy Gilman - Mrs. Pollifax Series
Chris Cavender - Pizza Lover's Series
Margaret Frazer - Sister Frevisse Series

The latter four ended for various reasons. They may have not gotten their publisher's agreement to continue publishing the series or the author moved on with writing something different.  My favorites from this group are the Mrs. Pollifax and Sister Frevisse Novels.  I have been thinking lately about rereading them since I already know that they will be satisfying reads.  While caregiving for my mother twentysome years ago, we read many of the same books. She would read them first and then I would read them.  My mother loved the Mrs. Pollifax series too and we would talk about them, anxiously waiting for the next book to be published. This is one of my fond memories of that time period. Lillian Jackson Braun's series was another of her favorites. She did not read the other series that I have listed above but I know that she would have loved them. 

I have been searching for a new series to follow. Eileen Watkins' cat grooming series is enjoyable. There are only four books in that series to date and I have read three of them.  I also liked Molly MacRae's Last Wool and Testament, a haunted yarn shop mystery.  Since I am not fond of ghost stories I don't know whether this series will work for me. I did enjoy the fiber art aspect of the book though.

What cozy series do you read?

The Draper's Daughter

The Draper's Daughter is the first book by Ellin Carsta that I have read and I was pleased to find a new author that I like. Carsta is the pen name of German writer Petra Mattfeldt who writes a variety of genres. She has published thrillers, true crime, young adult and historical fiction. 

The story takes place in Cologne in 1351 with twins Elizabeth and Stephen Hardenstein working in their father's textile business. Stephen has no interest in pursuing the cloth trade, preferring idle joys to hard work. Elizabeth, on the other hand, desperately wants a career in the trade and hopes to continue working with and learning from her father.  When their father suddenly dies, Stephen abruptly changes his mind about the business. He takes over the ownership while trying to find a husband for Elizabeth to get her out of the way. However, Stephen makes poor decisions and the business loses money and gains significant debts. Elizabeth works in the background to try to save the family business.

The plot is typical for historical fiction. We have an intelligent female protagonist who is trying to begin a career and she has the usual male family member trying to subvert her efforts and marry her off.  I never get tired of these types of stories though. I loved the Elizabeth character.  She was focused on her ultimate goal and did not get sidelined by the problems her brother threw her way.  All women would do well to follow her path to success.  The brother, however, was the perfect villain.  He was lazy, drunk most of the time, and obnoxious.  His power over the family was only due to him being the only son who would inherit his father's business.  Elizabeth's mother Ellin was always sick and spent years in bed.  The physicians could not find anything wrong with her.  Ellin eventually gets better after Elizabeth hounds her to get up and help her save the business.  The work Ellin did helped her recover.  There is another message here: you cannot fix your problems by ignoring them. 

This was a perfect story in every way. The characters were compelling and the pace fast.  I highly recommend this one to historical fiction fans.  5 out of 5 stars.

The Bone Fire

I have been anxiously awaiting S. D. Sykes' latest installment of her Oswald de Lacy historical mystery series, not being aware that it was published almost one year ago.  This series takes place in the mid 1300s England with this installment taking place in 1361 when the plague was making its second round through England.

Our protagonist Oswald de Lacy is taking his family to a castle on the remote Isle of Eden where his friend Godfrey, Lord Eden, resides. Godfrey is sympathetic to the reformers and is housing several same thinking friends for the next six months to prevent them from being exposed to the plague.  Once the portcullis to the castle is raised up,  no one can leave the castle until the six months is up. Food has been hoarded and stored in a warehouse on site so they won't starve. The day after the de Lacys arrive, Lord Eden asks Oswald to visit him in his library to discuss a confidential matter. Upon meeting, Godfrey hands Oswald 2 sealed envelopes that Oswald should deliver if Godfrey dies. One letter is addressed to a reverend and the other is addressed to the Archbishop of Canterbury. He tells Oswald that he will be leaving the castle early the next day to pick up 2 more people but won't tell him where he is going or how he will get outside without lowering the portcullis. The next morning Godfrey is found dead. Godfrey's lazy, alcoholic brother Edwin becomes the new Lord of Eden and promises to find his brother's killer.  Knowing that Edwin is not capable of investigating, Oswald offers to help. He begins by interviewing all the occupants including a court Fool, an old priest who is Godfrey's uncle, a couple and their mute daughter, Edwin, two Dutchmen who are building an astronomical clock for Godfrey and a former soldier who is protecting the castle. 

This 4th installment of the series was an exciting read. It is a stand-alone novel but it would be helpful to read the series in order as there are some events from the past that are referred to here. It is a locked room mystery with a medieval twist. The  title comes comes from the history of plague survivors burning the bodies of those who died from the plague. The smell of burning bones had a distinct smell that everyone could identify. It is also where the word "bonfire" comes from.

5 out of 5 stars.

Hiding the Past

Hiding the Past is the first book in the Morton Farrier genealogical crime series by Nathan Goodwin.  I  became aware of the series after reading the author's short story "The Asylum."  This book is the first time that I have seen the genealogical mystery sub-genre and I love it.  

The story opens with Morton Farrier finding out that his client Peter Coldrick has died. Morton arouses the suspicion of the police as he was paid 50,000 GBP to get information about Coldrick's father and then received the same day a letter from Coldrick asking him to stop the research and keep the money. As a forensic geneologist, Morton feels  a responsibility to finish his research into the Coldrick family even though he only met with Coldrick once, for 6 hours the day before his death. Curiosity  compels him forward when he becomes stumped in his research into the family. Along the way Morton has to deal with quirky characters who work at various records centers where he does his work. He also runs into problems from locals who want the Coldrick family mystery to remain a mystery. A secondary plot addresses Morton's own family mystery-his adoption.

If you have ever done any genealogical research and experienced the thrill when new information is discovered, you will love this book. Every red herring and twist came from Morton's ongoing research. It was clever of the author to create this sub-genre. I cannot wait to read the rest of the books in this series. There are 7 subsequent novels, the last one published in 2018. 

5 out of 5 stars.

Book of the Month - August

My top book of the month for August 2020 is a graphic novel I Will Judge You by Your Bookshelf.  This book made me happy.  The silliness inside its pages brought enough laughter that I had to read it 3 times consecutively.  I read it a 4th time the next day and a 5th time one week later. It is a humorous glimpse at bookaholics and their issues with books  i.e., how to store them, write them, etc...

Stepping Stones

Stepping Stones is Lucy Knisley's newest graphic novel. It is the story of Jen, her mother and new boyfriend Walter who have moved to a farm in the country. Jen is unhappy there and wants to live with her father in the city.  However, her mother wants her to stay and become acclimated to this new environment. Jen is given enough chores to keep her busy all day while her mother and boyfriend always have excuses to bow out of the hardest work. A few weeks later, to make matters worse, Walter's two snobby daughters arrive for the summer. 

I felt sorry for Jen. She seemed to be used as a work horse. She was also mistreated by Walter who wouldn't even call her by her correct name. His daughters likewise mistreated her, calling her names and ridiculing her country clothes.  Over the summer they became friends though. The author's note at the conclusion of the book acknowledges that Jen is really Lucy Knisley who grew up on her mother's farm. I wondered about this when I began reading because the drawings of Jen are the same as drawings of Lucy in earlier books.  

The artistry was a little different than prior graphic novels by Knisley. The introduction to all of the chapters was done with a kid's handwriting on those old composition book pages. It didn't work for me but since Jen was a child, this approach matched the story. The remainder of the drawings were consistent with the author's style, colorful panels drawn in a primitive fashion.

4 out of 5 stars.

Something New

I have read all of Lucy Knisley's graphic  memoirs but missed this one. Something New: Tales of a Makeshift Bride is about Knisley's engagement and marriage to her long time boyfriend John.  It is a humorous look into the world of all things bridal, illustrated with colorful comic strips by Knisley herself.  

As an artist Knisley wanted a DIY wedding that reflected her and John's personality. Her mother is a retired caterer who insisted that she not only get married at home but that her mother would build a barn to hold the festivities in. Knisley and her mother had built many things together before and both of them thought the barn would be easy to accomplish.  It wasn't. Nor were all of the decisions that needed to be made on items such as linens, dresses, decor, and music.  Mom basically got her way though.  

Something New is a fabulous graphic memoir and I enjoyed the author's journey to adulthood. Especially recommended for the newly engaged woman. 5 out of 5 stars.

The Queen's Vow

I thought that I had read every book written by C. W. Gortner but I missed this one.  It did not disappoint.  I was engaged from the first page until the last and enjoyed every bit of the story.  

The publisher's summary:  

"Isabella is barely a teenager when she becomes an unwitting pawn in a plot to dethrone her half brother, King Enrique. Suspected of treason and held captive, she treads a perilous path, torn between loyalties, until at age seventeen she suddenly finds herself heiress of Castile, the largest kingdom in Spain.  Plunged into a deadly conflict to secure her crown, she is determined to wed the one man she loves yet who is forbidden to her - Fernando, prince of Aragon.  As they unite their two realms under "one crown, one country, one faith," Isabella and Fernando face an impoverished Spain beset by enemies.  With the future of her throne at stake, Isabella resists the zealous demands of the Inquisitor Torquemada even as she is seduced by the dreams of an enigmatic navigator named Columbus.  But when the Moors of the southern domain of Granada declare war, a violent, treacherous battle against an ancient adversary erupts, one that will test all of Isabella's resolve, her courage, and her tenacious belief in her destiny."

I did not know much about Isabella before reading this novel.  In the beginning she seemed to be a sympathetic character but her decisions later in life were guided by something other than what was good for Spain. Perhaps it was the pursuit of power, perhaps she did not know herself.  The author shows that her ultimate decision to allow the Inquisition to go forward was based on her desire to be faithful to her Catholic religion.  In my opinion, she did it to maintain personal power.  This is not exactly a glowing attribute.  Her earlier decisions were based on what was good for Spain. She and Fernando had just succeeded in uniting all of the Spanish realms into one country. With such a fantastic accomplishment one might think that they could settle in for awhile. Allowing the Inquisition was not good for Spain. It ruined an already ruined economy by expelling the money makers who had loaned her the money to fight the wars that united Spain. I can't imagine why she decided to expel them when she owed her success to them. It shows Isabella to be an unscrupulous woman.

The writing was smooth making the book a joy to read. I naturally expect this from C. W. Gortner as every book of his is written in a first person narrative. I think that's what makes the pace of a novel quick.  If there is any criticism of the book it would be that the mention of Christopher Columbus at the end of the story has nothing to do with the part of Isabella's life that Gortner has chosen to tell us. Columbus is a footnote.  Why is he in the book?

5 out of 5 stars.