The American Wife by Taya Kyle (TLC Book Tours review)

The American Wife
Author:  Taya Kyle
Published:  May 2015
Publisher:  William Morrow
Pages:  304
Genre:  memoir
Source:  a complimentary copy was provided by the publisher and TLC Book Tours in exchange for an honest review.

The widow of “American Sniper” Chris Kyle shares her private story: an unforgettable testament to the power of love and faith in the face of war and unimaginable loss--and a moving tribute to a man whose true heroism ran even deeper than the legend.

In early 2013, Taya Kyle and her husband Chris were the happiest they ever had been. Their decade-long marriage had survived years of war that took Chris, a U.S. Navy SEAL, away from Taya and their two children for agonizingly long stretches while he put his life on the line in nearly every major battle of the Iraq War. After struggling to readjust to life out of the military, Chris had found new purpose in redirecting his lifelong dedication to service to supporting veterans and their families. Their love had deepened, and, most special of all, their family was whole, finally.

Then, the unthinkable. On February 2, 2013, Chris was killed while attempting to help a troubled vet. The life they fought so hard to build together was shattered. In an instant, Taya became a single parent of two. A widow. A young woman facing the rest of her life without the man she loved.

Chris and Taya’s remarkable story has captivated millions through Clint Eastwood’s blockbuster, Academy Award-nominated film American Sniper, starring Bradley Cooper as Chris and Sienna Miller as Taya, and because of Chris’s bestselling memoir, in which Taya contributed passages that formed the book’s emotional core. Now, with trusted collaborator Jim DeFelice, Taya writes in never-before-told detail about the hours, days, and months after his shocking death when grief threatened to overwhelm her. Then there were wearying battles to protect her husband’s legacy and reputation.

And yet throughout, friendship, family, and a deepening faith were lifelines that sustained her and the kids when the sorrow became too much. Two years after her husband’s death, Taya has found renewed meaning and connection to Chris by advancing their shared mission of “serving those who serve others,” particularly military and first-responder families. She and the children now are embracing a new future, one that honors the past but also looks forward with hope, gratitude, and joy.

American Wife is one of the most remarkable memoirs of the year -- a universal chronicle of love and heartbreak, service and sacrifice, faith and purpose that will inspire every reader.

Purchase Links

Amazon | IndieBound | Barnes & Noble

First there was the bestseller American Sniper written by Chris Kyle.  Chris Kyle served as a sniper in the U.S Navy Seals.  He earned a reputation for being cool under fire and for his incredible marksmanship.  Tragically, Chris was killed by a fellow returned vet at a gun range.  His legacy lives on with his wife and two children.  The American Wife is Chris' wife Taya's story.

The American Wife, written with the assistance of Jim DeFelice, chronicles Taya's and Chris' life together as a married couple madly in love.  Taya shares the days of their courtship, marriage and parenthood.  The struggles of being the one left at home while her spouse served overseas are real and relatable.  Through two pregnancies for which Chris miraculously was home to support her through childbirth, Taya writes of months being home alone.  Pregnancy, raising children alone for months at a time, all unfathomable to me but Taya, like so many other military wives, did it.  

Chris rarely spoke about his missions to Taya while he was serving in the Seals.  The horrors he faced, the lives he defended, the people he saved were things he kept to himself while he was gone.  It wasn't until he left the Navy Seals that Taya learned what it was really like out there.  Of course he wasn't alone as a returned "soldier of war" and this is where Chris found a new purpose at home, serving other returned vets.  Sadly, one day one of those vets would be so scarred, not only from war, that he took Chris' life at a gun range.

Left alone, a widow and mother of two, Taya struggled to live on.  The love of her life had ironically lost his life at home while trying to help another vet.  Taya shares her sorrows, her grief, and the road to learning to live her new life without Chris.  The pain is palpable, and the reader feels it keenly as we share her experiences.  Her struggle back to living and finding a new purpose is encouraging and courageous and certainly an example of strength and perseverance.  

Taya's story is one of love and faith and endurance.   She is a modern day example of strength under adversity. American Wife is an encouraging read for women everywhere.

About the author:

Taya Kyle founded the Chris Kyle Frog Foundation in honor of her late husband Chris Kyle, legendary U.S. Navy SEAL and author of the bestsellers American Sniper and American Gun. The foundation is devoted to strengthening the marriages of veterans and first responders. An active public speaker, Taya Kyle makes frequent appearances at fund-raisers and other events, inspiring others to find strength and persevere through struggles. She and her two children live in Texas.

Memory Card Full by Liz Weber (review)

Memory Card Full

Author:  Liz Weber

Publisher: Greenpoint Press (indie publisher)

Published:  September 2014

Pages: 256

ISBN 9780988696877

Genre:  memoir

Source:  a complimentary copy was provided by the publisher and TLC book tours in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

bn.com, Amazon.com

A book for anyone who has loved and lost and found the space in that loss to become the person they were meant to be.

When Rufus, Liz Weber’s oddly proportioned but adorable dog dies of old age, her life begins to unravel. She is forced to let go of the one constant in her life and move forward. Memory Card Full is a memoir of her life as a bartender, model and aspiring writer in Manhattan before and after Rufus. Without him, she is alone and broken-hearted and her life spirals downward while her friends and family struggle to understand what she is going through.

Prior to Rufus’s death, Liz Weber’s life was far from dull. Whether serving drinks to a gaggle of quirky regulars at a bar or walking around in her skivvies for extra cash as a lingerie model, she fought hard to remain a self-proclaimed “professional free spirit” and aspiring writer, even it meant enduring a lush for a manager or a cranky, Israeli-folk-music-loving boss. None of it really mattered as long as she had Rufus, who taught her about unconditional love in an untraditional way.

Memory Card Full is the story of Liz’s journey through grief, which leads to an  unexpected encounter with the long unheard voice of the woman inside of her. On water skis at an adult sleepaway camp, Liz realizes that there are important things in life that Rufus’ love had caused her to avoid. Embracing her power and strength, she is finally able to accept that letting go of him is the best way to go on and find love for herself and others.

Frank, funny, and deeply moving, Memory Card Full is a memoir for anyone who has loved and lost and found the space in that loss to become the person they were meant to be.

My thoughts:

A shattered mirror was the beginning of a difficult and painful journey for Liz Weber as her senior canine companion's health declined.  Liz would have to put him to rest, euthanizing her precious companion who had always been her constant through bad employers, bad jobs, and poor boyfriends.

Now alone and on vacation in Mexico, the message Memory Card Full displayed on her camera becomes a minor catalyst in her life.  As Liz reviews the photos, determining what can be deleted so she can take more pictures; fond memories flood back as photos of Rufus dominate the screen.  She must delete some old memories to make room for the new.  This is painful but it is done and Liz moves forward....a metaphor for her life.

I don't believe Rufus really held Liz back but it is evident that her acceptance of the loss of this beloved family member was a long time in coming.  Life was difficult but when Liz realizes how her life has become stagnant, she give herself permission to grieve but move forward.  She does so by taking a class, dating and doing what she has always longed to do...write.

Memory Card Full is a sometimes humorous and touching memoir written by a likable woman who finally finds her destiny.  It's an easy and fast read and extremely touching.  Having dogs myself, these precious members of the family are wonderful monikers of endless love and compassion.  To say goodbye is never easy and Liz felt it keenly.  Her pain is evident but her ability to turn her life forward with purpose is an example to us all.  

“Sometimes things have to fall apart in order for us to put them back together again.” (Memory Card Full)

Liz Weber is a freelance writer living in Brooklyn. Her work has appeared online at Narratively, and Apartment Therapy. When she is not contributing to lifestyle websites, including Citypath and Bored and Thirsty or doling out dating advice to the urban female set on the popular website The Fat White Guy, she’s blogging about her past as a children’s party performer (she makes a mean balloon sword) and the time she drove her moped through a souvenir stand in Mexico. Her short story about working in a male strip club for women was featured in the 2009 Staten Island Arts Festival.

Visit Liz at her website.

The Mockingbird Next Door: Life With Harper Lee by Marja Mills - book review

The Mockingbird Next Door

Life With Harper Lee

Author:  Marja Mills

Published: 2014

Publisher:  Penguin Group

ISBN 9781594205194

Pages: 178

Genre:  Memoir
Includes an insert of a few select photographs.

Source:  borrowed

To Kill a Mockingbird is one of the best loved novels of the twentieth century. But for the last fifty years, the novel’s celebrated author, Harper Lee, known to her friends as Nelle, has said almost nothing on the record. Journalists have trekked to her hometown of Monroeville, Alabama, where she has lived part of the year with her sister Alice for decades, trying and failing to get an interview with the author. But in 2001, the Lee sisters opened their door to Chicago Tribune journalist Marja Mills. It was the beginning of a long conversation—and a wonderful friendship.

In 2004, with the Lees’ blessing, Mills moved into the house next door to the sisters. She spent the next eighteen months there, sharing coffee at McDonalds and trips to the Laundromat with Nelle, feeding the ducks and going out for catfish supper with the sisters, and exploring all over lower Alabama with the Lees and their inner circle of friends.

Nelle shared her love of history, literature, and the Southern way of life with Mills, as well as her keen sense of how journalism should be practiced. As the sisters decided to let Mills tell their stories, Nelle helped make sure she was getting that—and the South—right. Alice, the keeper of the Lee family history, shared the stories of their family. The Mockingbird Next Door is the story of Mills’s friendship with the Lee sisters. It is also a testament to the great intelligence, sharp wit, and tremendous storytelling power of these two women.

Mills was given a rare opportunity to know Nelle, to be part of the Lees’ life in Alabama, and to hear them reflect on their upbringing, their corner of the Deep South, how To Kill a Mockingbird affected their lives, and the reasons Nelle Harper Lee chose to never write another novel.

My thoughts:

Many journalists and would-be biographers have sought long and hard to interview Harper Lee and many have been declined.  In fact, Ms. Lee kept a fairly low profile for years, attending few events. Marja Mills was one of the fortunate few to have impressed Harper's sister, Alice when she approached her about Nelle and subsequently  wrote a lengthy newspaper article about Chicago selecting To Kill a Mockingbird as a book that everyone must read. (See One Book, One Chicago).  For Marja, this was only the beginning of a friendship that would later find her living next door to Harper, preferably called Nelle, and her sister Alice.

Marja Mills and the Lee sisters grew very close and over a period of 18 months, Marja met and interviewed Nelle's close friends at Nelle's invitation.  Their relationship, the outings, the glimpses into the past are laid out for the reader to enjoy and we get to know Nelle as Marja did.

Nelle shares the reasons why she never wrote another book, though she had at first wanted to.  She discusses her relationship with Truman Capote who grew up next door to Nelle and Alice. We read that Nelle was very happy with the film version of To Kill a Mockingbird and remained close friends with Gregory Peck until his death.  Nelle allows Marja into her inner sanctum, sharing what she wishes and we feel there's more that we want to know but Nelle never did write an autobiography.  The Mockingbird Next Door is the closest one will get.

In the news of late, there is discussion that Nelle denies giving permission for this book to be published.  She refutes it, even though there is nothing here that would discredit her or her family or friends.  This memoir is like a long visit with a long lost friend, written from the perspective of someone who has respect for the boundaries upon that friendship and for Nelle, her friends, family and town.  It must be noted that Nelle suffered a stroke in 2007 which left her bound to a wheelchair and a continuing decline in memory ensued.  Both she and her sister Alice, as of this writing, reside in separate long-term care facilities.

The Mockingbird Next Door: Life With Harper Lee is a small peek into the southern town wherein resides one spunky Nelle Harper Lee and her lawyer sister Alice Lee.  The context for To Kill a Mockingbird is drawn from Nelle's life in this town, from her family and a great deal from her imagination.  She wrote a classic that never tires, nor grows weary, and always, with few exceptions, leaves the reader better off for having known it.  Getting to know Nelle just a little from The Mockingbird Next Door, makes me feel a little better off for having known second hand a little bit about this spunky reclusive author who has earned her rightful place among the most influential authors...ever.  Though I yearn for more, I am satisfied to have had this opportunity.

See my review of To Kill a Mockingbird here.

Read Marja’s original 2002 Chicago Tribune story, “A life apart: Harper Lee, the complex woman behind ‘a delicious mystery,’” that was the basis for The Mockingbird Next Door. Link here.

Meet the author:

Marja Mills is a former reporter and feature writer for the Chicago Tribune, where she was a member of the staff that won a Pulitzer Prize for a 2001 series about O’Hare Airport entitled “Gateway to Gridlock.” The Mockingbird Next Door is her first book.

Mills was born and raised in Madison, Wisconsin.  She is a 1985 graduate of Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service; a lifelong interest in other cultures led to studies in Paraguay, Spain and Sweden.  Mills lives in downtown Chicago and often spends time in Madison and her father’s hometown of Black River Falls, Wisconsin, pop. 3,500.

Movie Trailer for Cheryl Strayed's "Wild" Now Available

See my review of the memoir "Wild" here:  http://shirley-mybookshelf.blogspot.ca/2013/08/found-in-wild-review-of-wild-by-cheryl.html

Short Leash by Janice Gary

Short Leash
Author:  Janice Gary
Published:  August 2013
Publisher:  Michigan State University Press
Pages:  246
Format/edition:  Trade paperback
Genre:  Memoir

Source: A complimentary copy was provided in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.  Receipt thereof bears no influence on my opinion nor this review.

Author's website: janicegary.com

It’s hard to believe that a walk in the park can change a life – let alone two – but for Janice Gary and her dog Barney, that’s exactly what happened.

Gary always walked with a big dog by her side and had ever since being attacked on the streets of Berkley as a young woman. For years, she relied on her beloved Husky to help her navigate the world on her own. Then he succumbed to canine cancer, leaving Janice alone and vulnerable once again. Enter Barney: a goofy, gangly stray Gary discovers wandering loose in a Piggly Wiggly parking lot. With biscuit-sized paws and a big, blocky head, the pup promises to grow into her biggest protector yet. And he does – but after an attack by a vicious dog, Barney becomes overly protective and barely manageable. Walking him anywhere becomes almost impossible; but walking without him is unthinkable.

It’s only when Gary risks bringing Barney to a local park on the Chesapeake Bay that both their lives change forever. There, Janice faces her deepest fears and discovers the grace of the natural world, the power of love and the potency of her own strengths. And Barney loses the leash of his own fears. Beautifully written, Short Leash is a moving tale of love and loss, the journey of a broken soul finding its way toward wholeness.

My thoughts:

We have two little dogs, so little they think their rightful place is on your lap.  They are accepting, loving, forgiving, quick to snuggle and give kisses.  They perform tricks, "protect" their people, keep the bed warm and our hearts full.  They're ecstatic to go for walks but just as happy to lounge with you as you curl up with a blanket and a book.  They are in turn hilarious as they play with their food, bring a shoe in greeting, or take flying leaps to greet you.  I love them to bits.

Short Leash is the story of one such love, a mutual admiration society consisting of a petite lady and her large lab/rottweiler cross whose delight in the simple pleasures of life can teach so many of us a valuable lesson.  

At nineteen Janice is attacked on a dark street.  Years later foggy nights, footsteps behind her, the rustle of leaves, the dark, or being alone on a street terrifies her.  Justifiably so.  She still feels a victim.  She's tried therapy but the best therapist she finds is a large black dog with an eternal grin and a penchant to explore.

Our relationships with our pets aren't just that of master and servant, owner and owned.  They are very much a part of the family and, in most cases, are our best friends, our confidants, and our most loyal companions who will never let us down.  For Janice, Barney is all that.  Their daily walks, on a short leash because Barney has issues with other dogs, allow Barney the much desired adventures and slowly pull Janice beyond her comfort zones.  She explores new trails, reluctantly at first, with Barney in the lead.  As he explores sights and scents, Janice notices the changing hues in the leaves, the new berries and flowers, the beauty in the sky overhead.  She begins to see things differently and the short leash she has self-imposed upon herself slowly lengthens.  Where fear once was, peace now resides.

Gary's writing flows like liquid gold, spilling over the pages in an illustrious fashion.  The imagery of her words and phrases conjure up the scenes and transport you to her side.  You are with her on the walks, you travel back in time as she recalls scenes from her past, tragic and pleasant, allowing you to get to know the whole person she was and is.  As Gary grows through her experiences and situations, you can feel it as tangible as the soft fur of a puppy. She truly has a gift.

When you look upon the photo of the two of them below, Janice Gary and her beloved Barney, the love and adoration is so very evident.  That's what dogs do for you.  That's the face of peace and true happiness.  Barney was instrumental in bringing that face forward.  Together they found their paths.

http://www.amazon.com/Short-Leash-Memoir-Walking-Deliverance/dp/1611860725

Meet the author: 

Janice Gary is the author of Short Leash: A Memoir of Dog Walking and Deliverance, which was chosen as a “Groundbreaking memoir” by Independent Publisher and a New Pages “Editor’s Pick”.  She is the recipient of the Christine White Award for Memoir and the Ames Award for Personal Essay. As a writing coach, she helps others writers find their unique voice and stories. In between her work and appearances for Short Leash, she blogs at janicegary.com.

This is the Story of a Happy Marriage by Ann Patchett

This is the Story of a Happy Marriage
Author:  Ann Patchett
Published:  November 2013
Publisher:  Harper
Genre:  memoir
ARC
Source:  A complimentary ARC was provided for the purpose of preparing this review.  Receipt thereof bears no influence on my opinion nor this review.

This Is the Story of a Happy Marriage is both wide-ranging and deeply personal, overflowing with close observation and emotional wisdom. Stretching from her tumultuous childhood, from a disastrous early marriage and a later happy one, she charts the hard work and joy of writing, and the unexpected thrill of opening a bookstore. Patchett shares stories of the people, places, ideals, and art to which she has remained indelibly committed. Brimming with thoughtful advice and emotional wisdom, this collection brings into focus the large experiences and small moments that have shaped her as a daughter, wife, writer, and friend.

An irresistible blend of literature and memoir, This Is the Story of a Happy Marriage is a unique examination of the heart, mind, and soul of one of our most revered and gifted writers.

My thoughts:

Ann Patchett, in This is the Story of a Happy Marriage, reveals through a compilation of essays, her inner workings and imaginations as she pursued that dream which she was predisposed to fulfill at the tender young age of six or earlier, as memory fails to ascertain just how early destiny revealed itself to her.  Of course, this memoir is not only about the writing process, it is about life and those things precious, learned and understood. It is about a young Catholic girl who reconciled a dislike for the expectations of Christmas when she house sat a big old home with an enormous fireplace which required her constant attention during Christmas break.  Alone and left to her own devices and a supreme collection of books, Patchett was able to let go of Christmas past, keeping the story her father read to her over the phone many Christmases previous, the story of an orphan who gave up her one present of coloured pencils to a gypsy girl who had not a single gift.  It's a gift without physical record yet the memory remains indelible in her mind.

Patchett continues to share bits and pieces of her life, like how her earlier distain for motorhomes became a love for the big rambling homes on wheels and the time she decided to write about the police of LA by training for admission to the police academy.  The biggest obstacle, a six foot wall, which she conquered!  Marriage, her best friend the abandoned dog she fell in love with, to her grandmother.... all shared through the pages of this memoir allow us a peak into her life and her soul while keeping a theme of writing and book love on the perimeter and scattered throughout.

I adore this book for the advice, the bird's eye view of this fabulous author and her career and the satisfactory exploration of her literary prowess.  I feel I know her rather better and admire her ability to jump with both feet forward, taking on a challenge or two and embracing all that life offers.  You don't have to be an aspiring author to appreciate all This is the Story of a Happy Marriage has to offer as a metaphor for living, loving, and being; you just have to enjoy a good story.

Ann Patchett is the author of six novels: the New York Times bestselling State of Wonder and Run; The Patron Saint of Liars, which was a New York Times Notable Book of the Year; Taft, which won the Janet Heidinger Kafka Prize; The Magician’s Assistant; and Bel Canto, which won the PEN/Faulkner Award, the Orange Prize, the BookSense Book of the Year, and was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award. She is also the author of two works of nonfiction: the New York Times bestselling Truth & Beautyand What now? Patchett has written for many publications, including the Atlantic Monthly, Harper’s Magazine,Gourmet, the New York Times, Vogue, and the Washington Post. She lives in Nashville, Tennessee.

Find out more about Ann on her website and follow her bookstore, Parnassus Books, on Twitter.

Review: Mind Without a Home by Kristina Morgan

Mind Without A Home

A Memoir of Schizophrenia

Author:  Kristina Morgan

Published:  August 2013

Publisher:  Hazelden

Pages:  260

Contains a DSM-IV Criteria for Schizophrenia

Edition:  ARC

Source:  A complimentary copy was provided by TLC Book Tours and the publisher in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.  Receipt thereof bears no influence over my opinion nor this review.

Experience the inner world of a woman with schizophrenia in this brutally honest, lyrical memoir. Kristina Morgan takes us inside her head to experience the chaos of the schizophrenic mind. With the intimacy of private journal-like entries and the language of a poet, she carries us from her childhood to her teen years when hallucinations began to hijack her mind and into adulthood where she began abusing alcohol to temper the punishing voices that only she could here. This is no formulaic tale of tragedy and triumph: We feel Kristina’s hope as she pursues an education, career and builds friendships—and her devastation as the insistent voices convince her to throw it all away. Woven through the pages of her life are stories of recovery from alcoholism and her journey to live a fulfilling life.

My Thoughts:

Mind Without a Home is a memoir that reads like a journal.  Sometimes disjointed and ragged, often emotionally jarring; Morgan opens her heart and pours it all out on the page allowing the reader personal insight into the disturbing elements of a disease that is so often misunderstood.

Imagine hearing voices that aren't there, seeing figures no one else does, feeling so alone and depressed.  To share what Morgan really hears and sees takes years and several attempts at suicide before she finally admits to herself that she is ill, mentally ill, and needs medication to help her.  For years this very thought and the fear of it thwarted any attempts to help her.

"Men are everywhere.  Their ears attach to the walls.  Their eyes to knobs.  Their palms to grass.  I think all this and it makes sense to me.....

I was not happy with the outcome.  I didn't think I needed to be here.  It didn't matter that the other realities were confusing me, or that I was being berated by voices.  There were common occurrences in my life that I was learning to live with.  However, I hadn't slept for days.  The voices were keeping me up, and in my tiredness, I was having a hard time of fighting back." (pgs 172-173 ARC)

It is amazing how she did manage to cope despite the months in hospital, the alcoholism, the catatonic states.  Morgan enrolled in a creative writing program during which her talent for poetry emerged and it is evident in her writing.

Mind Without a Home is not an easy read due to the subject matter and the manner in which it is written.  But the very nature of Morgan's illness becomes so much a parallel to the manner in which this memoir reads.  How better to form an idea of what she must have gone through and what she still battles to this day.  Mind Without a Home is naked, transparent, and disturbing in its blatant reality.  A true eye-opener.

Meet the Author:

Kristina Morgan is a first-time author. She is currently married, working, and managing her co-occurring disorders, schizophrenia and alcoholism with the Twelve Step recovery. She lives in Arizona.

Visit Kristina’s blog at MindWithoutAHome.com.

Visit other reviews in this tour here.

Found in the Wild - a Review of Wild by Cheryl Strayed

Wild
From Lost to Found on the Pacific Coast Trail
Author:  Cheryl Strayed
Published:  2012
Publisher:  Alfred A. Knopf
Pages: 319 (including a list of books, "a note about the author," and acknowledgments)
Format:  Hardcover
Source:  borrowed

Author's website:  http://www.cherylstrayed.com/wild_108676.html

At twenty-two, Cheryl Strayed thought she had lost everything. In the wake of her mother’s death, her family scattered and her own marriage was soon destroyed. Four years later, with nothing more to lose, she made the most impulsive decision of her life. With no experience or training, driven only by blind will, she would hike more than a thousand miles of the Pacific Crest Trail from the Mojave Desert through California and Oregon to Washington State—and she would do it alone. Told with suspense and style, sparkling with warmth and humor, Wild powerfully captures the terrors and pleasures of one young woman forging ahead against all odds on a journey that maddened, strengthened, and ultimately healed her.

My review:  

If Cheryl and I met today we might be friends.  The woman she was at twenty-two, not so much so.  Emerging from a childhood with an abusive father, Cheryl married young and then her world really turned upside down when her mother, whom she adored, was diagnosed with cancer.  Seven short weeks later, her mother succumbed to the disease, and Cheryl's life was altered.  Realizing she couldn't cope, let alone remain in her marriage, Cheryl rebelled at life.  Men and heroin were her drugs of choice, trying to drown the pain.  But she couldn't escape and when she recognized four years later that her life was a mess, she decided to escape.

The Pacific Coast Trail offered Cheryl the journey she needed to find herself and her life.  With an oversized pack so heavy she struggled beneath its weight; not even able to lift it a cm, she managed to struggle her arms through and hitch it up on her back.  Burdened physically, emotionally and mentally, she embraced the opportunity and persevered.  The woman who emerged has come full circle with new perspectives and hope and a belief in herself that has made her a powerful writer and highly sought after public speaker.

I've given myself a day to muddle through my thoughts and emotional response to Wild.  There are aspects I didn't really enjoy but who am I to argue with a memoir?  Wild is like an inspirational travel log with a very personal insight into a life altering experience.  

My one question though, when did she lose the boot and was she barefoot when she finished the trail?  Hmm.....

still from a YouTube Video

About the author:

Cheryl Strayed is the author of Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love and Life From Dear Sugar, Torch and Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Coast Trail.  She is an inspirational speaker, columnist, feminist activist, and writing workshop coach.  She is married with two children and resides in Portland, Oregon.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheryl_Strayed

Review: Margaret Fuller - A New American Life by Megan Marshall

Margaret Fuller
A New American Life
Author:  Megan Marshall
Published: March 2013
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Pages: 496
Category:  Biography
Format: Trade paperback (Advanced Reader's Copy)
ISBN 9780547195605

Thank you to the publisher and to TLC Book Tours for a complimentary copy of Margaret Fuller - A New American Life.  Receipt of such did not influence my opinion nor this review.

From an early age, Margaret Fuller dazzled New England’s intelligent elite. Her famous Conversations changed women’s sense of how they could think and live; her editorship of the Dial shaped American Romanticism. Now, Megan Marshall, whose acclaimed The Peabody Sisters “discovered” three fascinating women, has done it again: no biography of Fuller has made her ideas so alive or her life so moving.

Marshall tells the story of how Fuller, tired of Boston, accepted Horace Greeley’s offer to be the New York Tribune’s front-page columnist. The move unleashed a crusading concern for the urban poor and the plight of prostitutes, and a hunger for passionate experience. In Italy as a foreign correspondent, Fuller took a secret lover; wrote dispatches on the brutal 1849 Siege of Rome; and gave birth to a son.

When all three died in a shipwreck off Fire Island shortly after Fuller’s 40th birthday, the sense and passion of her life’s work were eclipsed by tragedy and scandal. Marshall’s inspired account brings an American heroine back to indelible life. (summary from TLC Book Tour site)

My Thoughts:

Megan Marshall's Margaret Fuller - A New American Life is a well researched and written biography of a rare lady, writer and early feminist.  Through correspondence and diaries amongst other sources, Margaret Fuller's extraordinary childhood and development to womanhood and beyond is written with meticulous attention to historical facts while giving life to the story of a woman who was amongst the trailblazers of her time.

Though her life was cut short at 40, Margaret found much success and helped pave the way for women everywhere in the work force.  A wife, mother, writer and genius; Margaret Fuller did find herself after struggling to find her own identity and remains an example to women everywhere to be and do what their heart desires.  

For lovers of memoirs, influential women in history, and/or inspirational biographies, Margaret Fuller - A New American Life is highly recommended.

MEGAN MARSHALL is the author of The Peabody Sisters, a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. Her work has appeared in The New Yorker, Atlantic, New York Times Book Review, and Slate. A recipient of Guggenheim and NEH fellowships, Marshall teaches in the MFA program at Emerson College.

Favourite Books I Read in 2012

Favourite Mystery:

Annie Darling has planned another exciting event, this time aboard a ship cruising in the waters near Broward Rock, South Carolina. (fictional island). Annie is pleased to see so many in costumes of popular book sleuths and all is going well when there's a scream and someone is overboard. Is it a suicide or murder? Within days, the body count grows as shortly thereafter another murder occurs, a car is missing and a wealthy senior is dead, presumably another suicide. Things just don't seem to be so cut and dry to Annie who proceeds, with the enlistment of her husband and some local friends, to uncover the mystery of these occurrences and find the murderer before he/she strikes again.  

http://shirley-mybookshelf.blogspot.ca/2012/11/murder-walks-plank-by-carolyn-hart-book.html

Favourite Memoir:

The End of Your Life Book Club is touching, thoughtful, inspirational and most definitely my favourite book of 2012.  If you are looking for a book that will touch your heart and soul and linger in your thoughts long after you closed the cover, this is the book for you.  Better still, give a copy to your loved ones.  It's just that good!

http://shirley-mybookshelf.blogspot.ca/2012/11/the-end-of-your-life-book-club-by-will.html

Favourite Business:

As children, we were all curious and full of questions.  The favourite word for a five year old is usually "why?"  Not because they are trying to be difficult, but because they really want to know.  Over the years spent in the educational system children are discouraged from being disruptive, the fear of failure grows and children are less inclined/discouraged to ask questions.  Amanda Lang's theory of The Power of Whyencourages that childlike wonderment, the curiosity, the lack of fear of failure, and a desire to learn.  By allowing ourselves, our employees, our co-workers, our family members to think laterally, to embrace the challenges, and to respectfully question, we unleash the power of innovation and creative solutions.  
http://shirley-mybookshelf.blogspot.ca/2012/12/the-power-of-why-by-amanda-lang.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed:+blogspot/FVabo+(My+Bookshelf)

Favourite Children's 

I squealed with glee!  Yes, I did!  A co-worker showed me The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore today and I was thrilled to see this new release in children's books!  I saw the animated Acadamy Award winning feature a while ago and fell in love.  Needless to say, when I found this book upon which the animated featurette was based, I just had to have it.  I read it....devoured it in minutes, and then returned to the beginning to appreciate the artwork!  As you can see from the sample pages above and below, this book is a feast for the eyes.  The way William Joyce wrote it, in a tale with messages that reveal themselves with the maturity of the reader, intermingled with terrific illustrations done by Joe Blum, it is a treasure!  

http://shirley-mybookshelf.blogspot.ca/2012/06/fantastic-flying-books-of-mr-morris.html

Favourite Fiction:

State of Wonder is definitely one of the very best books I've read...ever!  When I first introduced this novel, I had barely begun the journey that I will not soon forget.  Here's what I said, "Now I know what all the fuss is about! This book is phenomenal! It had me wiping away the tears in the first chapter, sitting at the edge of my seat, feeling astounded by elements of the story, and mesmerized by the entirety of it all!" (GoodReads and My Bookshelf)

http://shirley-mybookshelf.blogspot.ca/2012/06/state-of-wonder-by-ann-patchett-review.html

Clara and Mr. Tiffany is a story with wide appeal.  For the history buff, the lover of art, a supporter of feminism, a fan of love stories, triumph over trials....it's all here.  Susan has fleshed out each character and the ensuing relationships, allowing the individuals to live and breathe as vividly as if the reader knew them personally. 

http://shirley-mybookshelf.blogspot.ca/2012/05/clara-and-mr-tiffany-by-susan-vreeland.html

I loved this novel. for within the pages of Falling Together, I found true heart, real love, and soul.    If you are looking for a book of substance and humour to warm those chilly days and nights, you simply must give this one a read.  Falling Together is definitely a good thing!

http://shirley-mybookshelf.blogspot.ca/2012/10/falling-together-by-marisa-de-los-santos.html

Favourite Christmas:

The accomplishments of the power of infinite love, through various trials and triumphs,   are the perfect examples of love, courage, and fine humanity we wish the world would embrace.  Kris Kringle may not be perfect in his efforts but he means well and in the end he shines as beautifully and fantastic as a fairy tale Prince Charming.  Strong messages of charity and love abound in this short novel which reinforce the message of Christmas:  to love one another.

Highly recommended as a family read for Christmas.  Kris Kringle's Magic is sure to be a welcome tradition in your home!

http://shirley-mybookshelf.blogspot.ca/2012/11/kris-kringles-magic-by-diane-tolley.html

Favourite YA:

I wholeheartedly admit to LOVING this book!!  I read it on the transit to and from work, during my breaks, including my lunch breaks.  I was so involved in the story that I longed for lunch time just so I could pick up the book again!  It's been a while since I've read a book of this magnitude!  I am just sorry it took so long for me to discover The Hunger Games.  The plot is unique, the characters well-fleshed out and realistic, their emotions and thought processes genuine.  It's an "on the edge of your seat" kind of read. One that stays with you and makes you long incessantly for the next book in the series, which is Catching Fire.  

http://shirley-mybookshelf.blogspot.ca/2012/02/book-review-hunger-games-by-suzanne.html

Suzanne Collins authors another powerful novel in Catching Fire, the second book in The Hunger Games series.  She manipulates the environment, the mood, the plot masterfully, weaving in subplots and new characters while maintaining the hold she has on the readers' attention.  It is hard to put down, though not so difficult as The Hunger Games was (probably because The Hunger Gameswas so action-packed).  Catching Fire ends with a lovely little cliffhanger, just to keep the reader excited and eager to read the next book in the series, Mockingjay.  

http://shirley-mybookshelf.blogspot.ca/2012/02/catching-fire-author-collins-published.html

 I was 257 pages into Mockingjay when I just knew I had to buy the entire series.  I had originally borrowed each book in turn but by book 2, I knew it was a buyer!  I didn't finish reading the original borrowed copy, but rather returned it and bought the set for myself and finished reading from my own copy.  I know my daughter will like it too!

Mockingjay is a roller coaster ride of events, danger, joy, sadness, thrills, edge of your seat reading.  In conclusion, Mockingjay sings!

http://shirley-mybookshelf.blogspot.ca/2012/02/mockingjay-by-suzanne-collins-ya-book.html

I loved this book!  I know, my readers know I don't read much Young Adult Fiction but this one is definitely worth every second of your time!!  I was mesmerized as I read of this society, captivated by the story, drawn into Lena's life.  I laughed. I cried. I cheered.  Not necessarily in that order.  

Do I recommend it?  Wholeheartedly!!  Am I following author Lauren Oliver's blog?  You bet!!!  Am I anxious and excited for the second book in the series?  That is an automatic and enthusiastic yes!! 

http://shirley-mybookshelf.blogspot.ca/2012/01/delirium-is-contagious.html

Pandemonium finds Lena vulnerable, afraid and weak from her injuries.  Time heals her physical wounds and the emotional despair lessens and Lena finds herself acting as a spy.  She is in New York, spying on the son of the DFA leader, pretending to be one of them, acting cured and in favour of the cause to eradicate the disease called love.  But in all this, Lena finds herself in physical and emotional danger... danger of falling in love...again.  Where does this all lead her?  From vulnerable to resistance fighter, from sorrow to hope, and possibly to love.  But then, in the last few paragraphs, a twist is unveiled that leaves the reader hanging.....

http://shirley-mybookshelf.blogspot.ca/2012/03/pandemonium-by-lauren-oliver-2nd-in.html

From the first chapter, I was taken in by Cinder's story.  Cinder is a strong protagonist who battles herself as much as she battles the environment of the day.  I love the unique angle on what was once a favourite fairy tale.  With a twist here and there, Cinder sweeps you along until the last chapter where you are left dangling, hoping the second book will answer the questions of the cliffhanger ending.

http://shirley-mybookshelf.blogspot.ca/2012/01/cinder-by-marissa-meyer-ya-book-review.html