βIn the Land of the Feathered Serpentβ by Richard C. Brusca.
Richard C. Brusca and QuetzalcΓ³atl Press. $14.95 paperback; $4.99 Kindle.
This reader gets intrigued when the central character of a novel decides to write a memoir that shares the novelβs title. When invertebrate biologist Dr. Odel Bernini, for example, the central character in this novel written by invertebrate biologist Dr. Richard C. Brusca, begins to write a memoir called βIn the Land of the Feathered Serpentβ you could wonder how much of the novelist has shown up in the character.
Research money for marine biologist Odel Berniniβs Central American research has just about dried up when heβs offered a nice stipend for a simple job: when heβs in Nicaragua or Guatemala collecting sea creatures, just make a little side trip into the country and report back to a CIA agent what he observes. Nothing, naturally, is simple with the CIA, especially in the early β80s, when this book is set. The U.S.-backed Contras are corrupting Nicaragua, and the military is massacring the Maya Indian population. Odelβs time there becomes a journey of self-discovery (with characters named Circe and Penelope, some adventurously sensual temptresses, and a big one-eyed guy out to kill him, Brusca is clearly injecting some Homer into the narrative.) Add to that special tea and mushrooms and QuetzalcΓ³atl, the Aztec serpent god, and the rational scientist opens his spiritual side.
The setting for this novel is fertile and fruitful: With βfacts, places, and most characters β¦real,β (but immediate characters βfictionalβ), Brusca provides a sobering history of Central American countries, informed explanation of the archeology of the area, and appreciative, rich descriptions of the cities and lush countryside.
β Christine Wald-Hopkins
βThe Lost and Foundβ by Jami Ober Gan.
Jami Ober Gan. $16.99 paperback.
Thereβs nothing like a lying, cheating, two-timing, double-dealing fiancΓ© (apologies to Patty Loveless) to drive a girl out of L.A. toward Santa Fe. And thereβs nothing like the Arizona desert to break down a Jeep and strand someone at a Tucson ranch for the emotionally fragile. In βThe Lost and Foundβ a debut romance by Tucsonan Jami Ober Gan β central character Jadeβs Jeep packs up outside Tucson. As the car canβt be repaired for a few days, Jade accepts accommodations at the Lost and Found Ranch. Sheβs asked only to lend a hand around the place. Turns out that the hand Jade can lend is by jumping rope and playing with Lilly, the 12-year-old alter personality of traumatized, middle-aged Diana, the ranchβs owner. Once the compassionate, generous foster mother of many troubled children, Diana is now being cared for by a collection of once-broken adults β several of them her former foster children. While initially anxious to get back on the road, Jade finds herself drawn to the nurturing, back-to-nature life of the βranchers.β It shouldnβt be a spoiler to mention thereβs a handsome sax-playing wounded vet on the premises. And it shouldnβt be a spoiler to observe that the Lost and Found Ranch can offer touching journeys home.
β Christine Wald-Hopkins
βThe Lightest Object in the Universeβ by Kimi Eisele.
Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill. $26.95 hardcover. $12.99 e-book.
When someone who has previously written about the U.S. βcultural and economic imperialismβ and the military-industrial complex debuts a work of fiction, you might well fear reading a political screed disguised as story. Fortunately, in Kimi Eiseleβs case, youβd be amiss. In her βThe Lightest Object in the Universe,β the apocalypse has come about. As a result of world economic collapse, deadly flu, and failure of the electrical grid, transportation and communications are destroyed, institutions have imploded, and society has descended into chaos. Some hungry, lost, hopeless folks look for easy relief, and flock to a charismatic charlatan Jonathon Blue, who promises an unrealistic Edenic solution somewhere in Wyoming. Others need to learn to be resourceful.
Into this situation Eisele places Carson, a high school principal in the East; Beatrix, a political activist in the West; and Rosie, a teenager who lives with her Jonathon Blue-convert grandmother in Beatrixβs house. To escape disease and violence in the city β and to connect with Beatrix β Carson sets off to walk across the country. Thwarted in her effort to join friends on a farm in the north, Beatrix puts her activist/organizer skills into finding food and securing safety for her neighborhood. And Rosie? She just wants a boyfriend and protection from Blueβs cult. Each of them hits snags.
Interwoven points of view tighten and focus the action in this affecting book. The principals are nuanced, and Eiseleβs prose shimmers. If you want to read into the novel points about economic disparity or social and environmental responsibility, you can. Or, you could enjoy this story about surviving the apocalypse through cooperation and simplicity.
β Christine Wald-Hopkins
βForever Todayβ By Katie J. Douglas.
Independently Published. $16.99 print; $2.99 Kindle.
A summertime encounter in Patagonia blossoms into romance for Charlotte and Wyatt, but there are thunderheads on the horizon of their perfect happiness. She is on the run from the menacing home situation created by her addicted mother; he is a ranch hand planning to shake the dust of Arizona come autumn. That they found each other was not accidental, says Charlotteβs lively and affectionate Aunt Rose, a professional psychic who knows a thing or two about past lives. Rose recognizes that her niece shares her psychic gifts and nurtures them by including Charlotte in the readings she does for clients. But a little bit of knowledge creates a lot of turmoil when Charlotte realizes that the quiet messages that come to her unbidden may presage a future in which true love does not equal destiny. Southern Arizona native Katie J. Douglas, who does a fine job evoking the Sonoran Desert summer, has filled her debut novel with a cast of engaging characters and lively dialog; her cliffhanger ending will leave readers eagerly anticipating the planned sequel.
β Helene Woodhams
βKilling for Power and Profit: Remembering the Victimsβ By H.G. Willms.
Archway Publishing. $33.95 hdcvr, $15.99 pbk, $8.99 Kindle.
Author H.G. Willms is a veteran who has spent time in VA waiting rooms and had ample opportunity to observe lives that have been wrecked by warfare. Who, he wondered, benefits from armed conflict? Certainly not enlisted men with little stake in the power struggle for which they may die, nor do the luckless inhabitants of war zones who lose their homes and often their lives. They are, rather, the victims of wars started by powerful individuals maneuvering to gain greater wealth and influence. The realization prompted him to write this compelling historical and political overview of military struggles spanning the past 100 years, and to conclude that the perpetrators of wars that destroyed countless millions of lives were guilty of crimes against humanity for which they have never been called to account.
Willms begins his commentary with the depredations wrought in the Congo under Leopold II of Belgium, then moves on to WWI, a war of attrition in which young men were mere cannon fodder. As he makes his way through a century of conflict, Willms observes how expert public relations based on lies and spin justified the unjustifiable in the public mind. The corruption of power continues to endanger us, and being well-informed is critically important; to that end, Willms provides a bibliography of books that informed his thinking. A library administrator and book store owner, Willms lives in Tucson.
β Helene Woodhams
βA Visit from Lizzieβ By Anita Tendick and Sophia Patch.
Self Publishing Book Services. $7.99; $3.99 Kindle.
βAnother Big Adventure for Smokee the Catβ
By Anita Tendick and Sophia Patch.
University of Arizona Libraries. $7.99; $3.99 Kindle.
Kindness counts and friendships bring joy. These are concepts that even the youngest reader can embrace, and they are recurring themes for Anita Tendick and Sophia Patch, who together have produced nine picture books. Their most recent, βA Visit from Lizzie,β is the sequel to βA Lovely Lizard Love Story.β It celebrates the happy reunion of Lizzie, a stylish lizard and Kay, the little girl who gave Lizzie a home when she was in need. In this latest outing, Kay welcomes her old friendβs new family and builds a little house into which they happily move. Tendickβs rhyming narrative and Patchβs charmingly rendered illustrations make this affirming book a fun read-aloud.
Kindness is also the theme of the duoβs recently published βAnother Big Adventure for Smokee the Cat.β It focuses on the unlikely friendship of a house cat and his coyote companion and their rescue of an injured bird during a free-wheeling escapade in the city. Both books conclude with interesting animal facts and activities. Tendick lives in Oro Valley; Patch attends the University of Arizona where she studies art and illustration.
βHelene Woodhams
βWhat Was He Drinking? The Saga of Wayne Zingβ By L. V. Jagnow.
CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform. $12.99.
Wayne Zing wants to be a writer, but success eludes him despite the long years heβs spent honing his craft. His exasperated, soon-to-be-ex-wife may be on to something when she observes βI never see what you mean, and quite frankly I think it carries over to your writing.β He dreams bigβ his goal is to write the great American novel β but poor Wayne canβt find his niche. Literary fiction? Mystery? Spy thriller? Nothing seems to be a good fit. But savvy readers will understand that Wayne should give humor a shot, and he could do this by simply writing about his personal experiences. From his nearly-feral writerβs group, to his off-kilter in-laws, to the inexplicably weird acquaintances he makes as he bounces from city to city, Wayneβs life is a hoot. In L.V. Jagnowβs capably comedic hands, Wayneβs writerly trials and tribulations are guaranteed to amuse. This is Jagnowβs third book. The retired hospital system executive lives in Tucson.
β Helene Woodhams
