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‘Aunt Dimity & the Lost Prince’ is the 18th book in Nancy Atherton’s Aunt Dimity series, but the first of her books that I have ever read, or truth be told, have even heard of. However, survey says … Atherton, my dear girl, it looks as though you may have found yourself a new Dimity fan.
The series is quaint, heart-warming and made richer by the deceased yet still present, paranormal character of Aunt Dimity. Sounds a bit too weird for you? A bit too odd? Yes, it is odd, and it is weird – this is a series where one of the titular characters is dead but somehow still speaking, albeit through a magical journal. How could such a premise be fun or interesting? Well, it is – it just really is. Plus, the other characters are alive, acceptably normal in the ‘we are all normal’ sense, and just trying to make it through another day in jolly old England.
Fine literature? Aunt Dimity and her cohorts are not. But if you are looking for light, easy, and slightly silly, then slither off with Dimity for an hour, get lost, and just accept the ridiculousness that is this silly little series.
RECOMMENDABILITY: 3 {out of 5} stars | ★★★☆☆
REPETITIVE READABILITY: 1 {out of 5} stars | ★☆☆☆☆
RATING: 4 {out of 5} stars | ★★★★☆
{This novel was gifted to Her Literary Salon by Penguin/Viking Books.}
Rayya Elias’s book is an autobiographical account of a life draped in drug abuse, hard partying and sexual exploration. The tale begins in Elias’s childhood home of Syria, and we travel to Detroit and then New York City, with Rayya as she learns who she is, who she isn’t and who she is going to become.
After completing this story, I found myself inspired by Rayya’s honesty, openness, and, although I myself have never suffered from addiction, I was inspired by her strength and determination to beat her addiction amidst relapse after relapse. Luckily, I was able to ask her a few questions spurred from the pure truth Rayya shares.
———
CAROLANN: I have never read such an honest and open biographical account. This is a no-holds barred, honest and totally open story. Nor do you hide or seem shamed by your past. Have you always had this type of open personality or has beating addiction allowed for you to become so very open?
RAYYA: I’m just learning not to use shame as a tool to beat myself up for the things from my past. Part of becoming comfortable in my own skin has been to be brutally honest with myself, that’s the only time real change happens. I was blunt and open before I got clean but honesty takes work. The first step was accepting my addiction and working to stay one step ahead of it, and only then could I start working becoming authentic.
CAROLANN: If your parents were still alive would you still be able to be so honest?
RAYYA: I’m not sure if I could have been this brutally direct if my parents were still alive. I have such a deep love and respect for my mom and dad, and even though they knew most of what was going on with me, it would’ve been very hard for them to see it on the page.
CAROLANN: Have you received negative or positive responses from friends and family for your honesty?
RAYYA: Yes, I absolutely have received negative feedback from both, which is why I wouldn’t let anyone read the manuscript until it was in the final stages of production. There is always going to be someone who gets upset about a memoir, but this is my journey and my experience–I take full responsibility.
I recommend this book to anyone who is feeling a little bit beaten by the world. And if you still aren’t sure you want to read this book, meet Rayya and she will change your mind – she did mine.
RECOMMENDABILITY: 4 {out of 5} stars | ★★★★☆
REPETITIVE READABILITY: 2 {out of 5} stars | ★★☆☆☆
RATING: 4 {out of 5} stars | ★★★★☆
{This novel was gifted to Her Literary Salon by Penguin/Viking Books.}
As you can guess from the title of this memoir, this book is about a mother on welfare. The book’s author, Barbara Morrison was raised in a family that abhorred the idea of welfare, and looked down in disgust upon those whom collected it. Additionally, Morrison is not the stereotypical ideal of a welfare mom being college-educated, raised in an affluent neighborhood, and having lived through a generally pleasant childhood. She was a women who fell in love, got married, got pregnant, and then got smacked in the face with reality. Her happily ever after came crashing down around her s Morrison’s husband left her with a newborn son, pregnant with a second child, unable to work, unable to find child care, and unwelcome by her affluent parents.
In ‘Innocent’, Morrison writes an open and candid account of her time as a welfare mother. Her account is blunt, and realistic, and without flowery language or excuses – she simply tells her truth as she lived it. Morrison speaks with a true mother’s love about her boys, Justin and Jeremy, and the hard decisions she made in order to care for those boys. In the end, this story was more a story of a mother’s love than of a mother on welfare, and the story was much more memorable due to that distinction.
When I first started this book I had very clear ideas on welfare – largely that I do not agree with welfare as it is utilized today. Since I am so personally against welfare as a tool for my own personal livelihood, I was that much more interested in Morrison’s first-hand account and the new perspective she could offer. And, although, as I read this novel I repeatedly argued with myself that I might make different decisions in order to remain off welfare, Morrison felt she had no other option but to apply for aid and illustrates her story with integrity and pride. While my opinions on the institution of welfare have not changed greatly, my feelings on the people who rely on welfare have been enlightened by Morrison’s honesty.
RECOMMENDABILITY: 3 {out of 5} stars | ★★★☆☆
REPETITIVE READABILITY: 1 {out of 5} stars | ★☆☆☆☆
RATING: 4 {out of 5} stars | ★★★★☆
{This novel was gifted to Her Literary Salon by the author, B. Morrison.}
Several months ago, I was given the opportunity to read Jojo Moyes’s newest book, ‘Me Before You.’ Today, I am so glad to be able to offer my blog friends the same chance – the chance to WIN this book and welcome this lovely story into your home and your heart. Enter today!
‘Jojo Moyes has written the perfect modern love story. You will be astonished at what you feel, and what you hope for when you are forced to face the possibility of your own dreams. It’s that good. Read it now.’ {author, Adriana Trigiani}
‘When I finished this novel, I didn’t want to review it: I wanted to reread it … Moyes’s story provokes tears that are redemptive, the opposite of gratuitous. Some situations, she forces the reader to recognize, really are worth crying over …’ {New York Times Book Review}
My review of Moyes’s book described this novel as, ‘not simply words on a page but more an experience. I loved every minute – through my tears, through my angst, and through my desire for Will Traynor to have a miraculous and unrealistic recovery. And for once, I was able to live with the unhappily ever after ending – and, in fact, be completely satisfied with it – for the story was rich, and real, and so much more than a fairytale.’
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