The Procedure: Margaret Belle

I've shared before that I tend to download a lot of free Kindle books and that a lot of them are pretty terrible or trashy.  Recently, however, I discovered an awesome website called Book Bub which sends a daily email - customized based on your stated interests - sharing a few free or "on sale" e-book recommendations.  I get 4-5 books every day that I might like to download to my Kindle.  Let's just say I've been adding a lot of books to the queue that I haven't had time to read yet!  Best part?  I'm not spending a dime to do so.  I highly recommend you check it out.
No disclaimer needed - Book Bub has no flipping idea who I am so I can guarantee I won't get any special perks by recommending them.

One of the first books I downloaded based on a Book Bub recommendation was The Procedure by Margaret Belle.  The story focuses on a woman named Melanie who is volunteering some time working at a fertility clinic.  She has a long-standing relationship with the clinic - she and her sister were "products" of the doctor's fertility treatments and she is a single mom raising a son who was also born due to the work of the clinic.

The story quickly takes a weird turn.  In some ways, I believed it was a little too quick - there are definitely parts of this book that need to be better developed and plot lines that need more explanation.  That being said, it is rare that I read a medical suspense story that I don't get completely confused by.  This was an exception.

Like many of the other books I've read in recent years, The Procedure made me question the world we live in.  Have we taken such a moral downturn that it is just accepted that our bodies do not truly belong to us?  Are these medical advances really making the world a better place?  Is this a problem with specific individuals or is it more a commentary on our society as a whole?

If you're at all into medical mysteries, I suggest you check this one out.

Unknown Yet Immortal

Anyone who has taken a science course that talked about cell research has probably heard of HeLa.

Most of those people have never heard of Henrietta Lacks.

I read The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks as part of a commitment for work over a year ago and I have not stopped thinking of it since.  This book is mind-boggling to me.

It's the story of a woman who changed modern-day science in immeasurable ways, yet who is virtually unknown....  The story of people who weren't given all of the information... The story of multiple generations of a family who cannot afford healthcare - yet whose ancestor was the root of many of today's medical treatments.

Henrietta could not possibly have known that pieces of a cervical tumor - a tumor that ultimately killed her - were removed from her body in 1951 and would be used for groundbreaking medical research.  She could not have known that because of this caner, her cells would be the first to become immortal - that even though she would die young and poor, her cells would prove to be remarkably resilient and would populate a multi-billion dollar industry.

More amazing is that her family wouldn't know any of this for more than 20 years after her death.  They didn't find out until after scientists continued researching HeLa by doing procedures on her husband and children without their knowledge. 

Rebecca Sloot took the time to sort through the story, follow the clues and cluttered paper trail, and piece together a book that reads like a good mystery novel.  She manages to throw in enough science terminology and medical history to make even an educated person feel a little lost.  And yet, Sloot's book still dwells in sentimentality.  It brings up questions of race relations, healthcare costs, medical consent, personal ownership of your own body, and ethical treatment of research subjects.  It makes us question how much control we have over our body still today and wonder if this could still happen.

I said, I read this book over a year ago and I feel like it was just yesterday.  HeLa is no longer the only thing that is immortal.  Henrietta - as a woman, as a lesson, and as a story - will also go on forever for anyone who has read this book.

Favorite Things Friday (Pizza!)

Remember a few weeks ago when I did the ice cream edition of FTF?  Let's keep going with the food theme, shall we?

I love pizza... Even more so than ice cream.  All kinds of pizza.  In my world, Dominos, frozen pizza, Brooklyn style pizza, stuffed crust...... all different foods.  I could eat each of those in one day and not feel like I ate the same thing over and over again.  I probably eat pizza 6 days a week and I'm not even ashamed about that.  It's the perfect food in my opinion.

So here, because I know you were wondering, are my favorite pizzas, in no particular order.  Just writing this post makes me want to travel to all of the places that I am so lucky to have called home or to have visited.


Best Pizza in Minnesota - Pizza Luce

Picture taken straight from their website.  Such a familiar sign - a little piece of home.

By far, one of the things I miss most about not living in Minneapolis.  Pizza Luce's Seward location was my own personal place of heaven in college.  It's amazing what you can get done over a large plate of delicious cheese bread and a side Caesar salad.  I wrote many a final paper in one of their over-sized booths, watching the world walk down Franklin Ave.

Fast forward to 2am when you've been drinking beer all night with your friends.  Nothing beats their Garlic Mashed Potato pizza.  Nothing. 

And if it happens to be 2am downtown, when you're waiting for your friends who are bartenders to get off of work and you're freezing outside because it's December and Minnesota is obviously cold in December, the Pizza Luce downtown serves food until 3:30.  In a town where bars close at 2:00, that's a godsend.


Best Pizza in Green Bay - Sammy's Pizza
(I was lucky enough to have this just a few weeks ago!)
This delightful family place is literally across from my parents' house.  We've been eating there since I was a kid.  In fact, my sister and I both went to preschool with the children of one of the owners and my mom waited tables there when I was a kid.  While the service has left a little to be desired the last few times I was home, you cannot beat their food. 

I highly recommend the Classic Combo pizza - fresh mozzarella, the most delicious pepperoni you have ever tasted, onions, green peppers, Italian sausage (which I don't even like anywhere else!), and fresh mushrooms.  I am a girl that likes a lot of toppings piled on my pizza.  The best thing about Sammy's is that you can have a boatload of toppings and not feel overwhelmed.  If you're anything like me, however, you will probably drop at least one piece of pizza covered with boatloads of toppings in your lap.  I think I've only made it through one dinner there without staining whatever I was wearing at the time.  It's just that good.

Plus, because it's Green Bay, you can get a pretty great glass of Chianti for only a few dollars to go with your pizza.  Always a perk!

Perhaps my favorite thing about Sammy's is that, while we think of it as a Green Bay original, it really isn't.  One late night in college, I was discussing "back home" with a friend and we discovered that she too had grown up on Sammy's pizza - only she was from Northern Minnesota.  Turns out it was the same family - small world.  You can get the whole story here, but it was worth mentioning.


Best Pizza in Lexington - Goodfellas
(Had this for lunch this week!)

Like I mentioned above, in my world Brooklyn style pizza isn't even in the same food group as other kinds of pizza.  On my occasions than I should probably admit, I have eaten Goodfellas for lunch and order Dominos for dinner.  But I digress...

Goodfellas quite possibly has the best lunch deal available in Lexington.  Their pizza is always hot and fresh-enough and a slice is as big as my head.  Literally.  Their lunch deal includes a slice of pizza, a beverage, and a side - usually a breadstick that is half as tall as I am, but sometimes if I'm feeling "healthy" I get a salad instead.  Or a cannoli.  Yum.

As I said, Goodfellas is "fresh-enough" - it's typical, thin crust, Brooklyn style pizza that isn't always 100% piping hot but is always gooey, greasy, and downright delicious.  They always have creative toppings (spinach artichoke is a favorite of my coworkers) but I stick with the classics.  Hawaiian or plain old pepperoni or, if I'm lucky, pepperoni and mushroom.


Best Pizza that You Can Get Delivered Almost Anywhere for When  You Want to Cozy Up in Bed with After a Long Day, When it's Raining or When You're a Little Hungover... - Pizza Hut Stuffed Crust
For any of the above occasions, I usually load on the toppings - Green Pepper, Black Olives, Mushrooms, and Ham
Or When You Just Want Beer and Pizza... 
You can't beat Pizza Hut Stuffed Crust with loads of pepperoni and a six pack of Bud Light.  They were MADE FOR EACH OTHER.

Best Side of Cheesy Bread that You Can Get Delivered Almost Anywhere - Domino's Stuffed Cheesy Bread with Spinach and Feta
Have you tried it yet?  No.  Order some now.  It's delicious.  Too bad I don't particularly care for Domino's pizza.  

Favorite Things Friday (Living Alone)

Last Monday night, I was laying in bed relaxing when something totally freaked me out.

In fact, I was laying in bed, working on the blog post that follows (ironic, because this really was the topic) as well as one that will be published later about a book I recently read, snuggling with the cats,

when someone pounded on my door.

When you are a single girl who lives alone and isn't expecting company, that's a terrifying thing to happen.

When you are a single girl who lives alone, isn't expecting company, and are watching an episode of Cold Case that is about a serial rapist who attacks women who live alone, who he meets at book clubs, and have cats it might just give you a heart attack.

(For what it's worth, in case you missed the conclusion on Facebook, I think it was just the pizza delivery guy at the wrong apartment.  At least, that's what I'm still telling myself it was.  Because otherwise I still wouldn't be sleeping.)







Ok, on to the topic at hand.  Sometime living alone can be a bit too quiet or a bit freaky or just a bit boring.  But anyone who has ever lived alone knows there are some pretty great things about it too.  There's an episode of Sex and the City where the ladies discuss their secret single behavior and I know that all of my single girl friends (and guy friends I'm sure) know exactly what they mean.

I, for one, embrace my own weird single-girl who-lives-alone habits.  So today, I'd like to share some of my favorites.


Watching television shows mostly for the hot men - Criminal Minds may be my favorite show now but I am not afraid to admit that I started watching it specifically for this man, Shemar Moore:

Or more specifically, for his arms.  Because I definitely watch tv shows just because the men have great arms.  That's allowed when you live alone.  When my ex-boyfriend was around all the time, he didn't necessarily appreciate it.

Addition to watching television shows mostly for the hot men - Watching television shows in bed - I don't have a tv in my living room right now.  Why?  Because I am so tired at the end of the day anyway that all I want to do is snuggle up in bed and watch my shows (if I watch tv at all) so I just moved the big tv and dvr box into the bedroom.  At first I thought it was weird but I've decided it's fine.  It has to be, because it isn't going to change anytime soon.


Shower beers - I know for a fact that this is not something unique to single girls.  But it is something that I cannot even imagine doing if I had a roommate.  Because let's be real, you look weird taking a beer into the bathroom.  Except when you live alone and you're getting ready to go out it's not only necessary but not all that weird because there is no one there to judge.  Don't judge now.  Because if you haven't tried drinking a beer (or glass of wine or whatever you drink of choice is) in the shower either before you go out for the night or after you get home from a very long day, you're missing out.




Being able to eat just about anything you want - I'm not ashamed to admit I eat pizza pretty much every day.  And no one can tell me that's not ok.  (Stay tuned next week for the FTF pizza version!)


Being able to wear just about anything you want - I mean around the house, of course.  I can wear pretty dresses to do the dishes just because I want to (not that I'd ever do that of course............), or I can wear next to nothing because it's hot and I haven't turned on the AC, or I can change my clothes 4 or 5 (or 14 or 15) times before going out at night, or I can try on things just to plan out outfits for the next week.  There aren't any roommates to tell me it's weird or ugly or any of that.




Keeping weird hours - I have gotten some of my best house cleaning done at 4am.  Of course, with a roommate that would be rather annoying.  Honestly, the cats find it annoying too as every time I can't sleep and get up to accomplish something in the middle of the night, they burrow under the covers or hide in another room so that they can sleep even if I don't.





This is of course not a comprehensive list.  In fact, I've worked on this post for over a week off and on because trying to compile a list of things I love about living alone is actually pretty difficult.  Not because I don't have lots of things I love about it, but because it's hard to narrow down favorites.  Or to pinpoint what exactly is is that I love bout living alone in the first place.  It's just a feeling - a good feeling - of accomplishment, of freedom.


Update:  Linking up with Lauren at From my Grey Desk.  Her High Fives Friday is similar to what I do every Friday (it's obviously way cooler since I discovered her blog all of 5 minutes ago and am already obsessed) but the theme there is all the favorite things from the week but since my entire blog is basically giant high fives all the time, I'll stick with my FTF theme.

Book Review: The Witch Who Made Adjustments

As I (sorta) mentioned last month, I am a sucker for free Kindle books.  I'll read almost anything and on a limited budget, the last couple of months I've been stuck with trashy romance, Christian romance which are in no way trashy (Surprise!  You never see those coming!), and pretty bad suspense stories.  But considering I have over 100 books saved to my Kindle, and I'm back to reading about a book a day, I'm clearly surviving.

Before I get to the book review, I often get questions about how I find said free books.  Honestly, once a week or so I go through the "Best Sellers" and download anything free that sounds remotely interesting.  Anything not-free I save to a wish list until I'm ready to read it.  That's my secret to keeping the Kindle costs down.  I never pay for anything until I'm ready to read it, that way I'm not wasting money.

I digress...

I had a pretty rotten afternoon so I came home and picked up my Kindle and a glass of the aforementioned Trader Joe's red wine and sat on my porch until my toes got too cold.  The first "new item" at the top of my Mystery Suspense Horror collection* was a novella called The Witch Who Made Adjustments which sounded interesting.  I think it's technically a long children's story and honestly, it would be excellent to read with older children so that wouldn't be wrong.

The story is about a woman who enters a town and makes "adjustments" - basically switching products between the town's stores - and then seats herself in the middle of the town until Halloween.  The story follows a (presumably) young boy who works at one of the town's stores.  It's a simple enough story loaded with meaning.  I knew I was hooked from the first paragraph.

The witch came into town in the early days of autumn, when the first curling leaves fell from the maple boughs and the breath of the world cooled along the cobblestones.  She was exactly what a witch might look like, except she wasn't.  She was neither old, nor ugly or wart-nosed, or stooped over.  Neither did she wear grimy black clothing or a pointed hat.  But somehow everyone knew what she was, with her large, dark, bruised valise, and a sizeable aspen-wood walking stick. 

After a grouchy day, that paragraph was exactly what I needed.

The story continues in such a manner.  It really is simplistic.  Nothing about it is difficult but it still manages to explore some pretty incredible themes (friendship, longing, losing and finding, first impressions) and allows you to grow as a reader (perhaps as a person?) while enjoying the story.  The story is technically a "Halloween" story but since the weather has dropped sharply here from the early start of spring, that didn't bother me in the least.  I can't wait to read it out loud, snuggled next to a campfire, with a child on either side of me.

The book was free when I downloaded it but it's now available for less than $2.  It would be a great book club read for people who never have time to finish the book - my book club is the worst at this! - as it took me less than 30 minutes to read (probably an hour for the average reader).  There are so many things about this book that I would love to discuss.  Apparently I'm also able to lend it to someone for free so if you're interested let me know and I'll try sharing it with you.  If you don't have a Kindle, you can still read Kindle books online or using an app for your computer or phone.



*Am I the only one who names "collections" in such seemingly vague and weird ways?  You should see my Pandora station list.  I honestly have stations called "Hauntingly Beautiful," "Dad's Music," "Work Safe Rock," and "Late 1990s and Early 2000s Awesomeness."  That's what they are to me!

First Book Review in Forever!

I recently read two books that make such a delightful contrast that I have decided to write my first book review in a very long time.

The selection for my book club*  a few months ago was Stealing Mona Lisa.  The book is about the theft of the Mona Lisa (duh) and the conspiracy surrounding the events. The Mona Lisa really was stolen in 1911 and the book tells the story of what could have happened - or what did happen, according to some skeptical sources - and is a somewhat wild ride through the Paris art scene, underground art dealing, and forgery.  I enjoyed the book, although I was admittedly a little bored and had a very hard time keeping up with the all of the characters as they all had Parisian / Italian names that sounded the same.

Two weeks ago, I downloaded Telling Lies for free on my Kindle.  Unfortunately, it's not free anymore but for anyone looking for a good book club book, I highly recommend it.  This book is similar to Stealing Mona Lisa in that it deals with the art world - underground, secret, and complex.  The story focuses on a lovable (if not unbelievably stupid) woman named Laurel who, while vacationing with her boyfriend in Italy, bumps into a man who is believed to have died in the World Trade Center attacks on September 11.  At the time of his "death," the man was brokering the sale of a  priceless masterpiece between a CEO (who did indeed die in 9/11) and a billionaire Japanese man who wants his money.  Add in a private detective who gets herself into plenty of trouble, the Isreali Mossad, and all sorts of family drama and you get yourself a good read.

Prior to these books, I was never overly interested in books about the art world.  I have a hard time keeping up since I don't know much about art, artists, or museums.  However, both of these books peaked my interest.  They were similar enough for me to compare them but had nothing in common at the same time - different masterpieces, different time periods, completely different writing styles.  But both made me think.  What do we really know about the so-called masterpieces - there are so many questions about what is original, who actually created them, etc - both in creative arts and writing (think Shakespeare!)?  Add in a bit of espionage, mistaken or changed identity, and a decent writer and you have the stuff fit for a good flight... with all the traveling, that's where I've been doing my reading at least!

Honestly, they'd make good movies.  Too bad I'm not doing the film thing anymore.

*Any of you ladies in a book club?  If you aren't, you should be.  Ours meets once a month and we spend more time eating food and drinking wine than talking about the books.  But still.  It's one of the best nights of my month - even if my friends think that makes me sound like I'm 95 years old!

This Has Been a Wonderful Couple of Book Weeks

So I obviously posted this morning but it wasn't about anything I've read lately.  Honestly, I haven't had time to update in a while because I've been hurrying home to read more.  Fall is officially here (well, back at home winter is officially here but down here in Kentucky, I'm content with fall for now) and I've spent lots of nights laying on the couch with a fire going, a glass of wine in my hand, Lady Bug curled up on my feet and wonderful read spread out in front of me.  I know I mentioned that in one of my last real post but seriously.  I am so incredibly content with my life lately that it was worth mentioning again.

So in my post about The Thirteenth Tale, I went on and on about what a good book it was because I loved reading other people's stories.  That book, combined with some recommendations from friends and family, has gotten me a new genre trend - books about libraries or books.  I read three in a row that fit that bill and I loved each and every one of them. 

The first book after The Thirteenth Tale that I devoured (well, it was really brownies or cookies that I was devouring probably but the book was just as delicious in it's own way) was The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton.  Add it to the book club recommendations.  It's about a woman, Nell, and her granddaughter, Cassandra, and their separate journeys to discover who Nell really was.  As a child, Nell was discovered on a boat dock in Australia and brought up by a family that was not her own.  Life, and later death, intervened before she could solve her own mystery so her granddaughter picks up when she left off and ultimately discovers her family heritage after her grandmother's death.  The book does a wonderful job of telling the story from all of the perspectives and time periods involved and conjures up incredible images of stories that are waiting to be deciphered.  One of the only things that Nell has to help solve her mystery is a book of fairy tales that she arrived with in Australia.  The fairy tales themselves are a clue and tell the stories of lost princesses, scary old witches, homely but kind hearted crones... It gives me chills just thinking of how artfully these stories are crafted into this book.

After finishing that book cuddled in my bed on Saturday morning, I opened up The Shadow of the Wind, yet another book that tells the story of a mysterious book.  This story talks about a magical, if not sad, place that I wish really existed - the Cemetery of Forgotten Books.  I want a job someday guarding those books so they are not forgotten.  Seriously.  Anywho, the eerie tale that follows about a boy who "adopts" one of these forgotten books and subsequently goes on a quest to discover why it has all but disappeared is one that will suck you in on a rainy Saturday night and not let you out of its grasp until you reach the end and learn all of the gritty details sometime in the wee hours of the morning on Sunday.  I loved this book.  Very rarely do I read a book and think that I need to own it so that I can pass it along to everyone who is willing to read it, but this is one of those books.


Alright, that was sort of brief but it's 5:30 and I don't want to sit at my desk any longer.  Just wanted to mention a couple of wonderful reads for those of you who are going to be settling for the holidays and want something to read.

Oh yeah!  And I couple of movie recommendations too...

• 27 Dresses - So cute that I went out and bought a copy... 
• Avatar - I've been putting off seeing this because my tv isn't worthy.  Well I watched it last weekend anyway and hello, AMAZING.  I don't care who you are, watch it.  My mom even loved it and my mom is not a movie person.  That was the fastest 2.5 hours I've spent watching a movie in a long time.  Beautiful, political, and heartwarming all rolled into one.
• My Sisters Keeper - Yeah, no.  Not a bad movie if you haven't read the book but I am not surprised that Jodi Picoult hated it so much.  Terrible adaptation of a great story.  Skip the movie and read the book.
• The Queen - How did it take so long for me to see this movie?!  It was so royal, and British, and somehow comforting and uncomfortable all at once.  And I love Helen Mirren.  Wonderful.

Clearly I've been a busy lady lately.  Or a homebody... ha ha

Happy Thanksgiving friends!

Kristin Hannah Does it Again

I have found my new favorite "book club" author - that author who no matter what the title is, you know you will want to read it and then sit around drinking wine with your girlfriends to discuss it.  You might remember my earlier post about her book Firefly Lane, which I wil continue to dub as my favorite summer read.

Last week I discovered another book by here, True Colors, that talked about the jealousy between sisters instead of focusing on best friends.  As someone with two sisters, both who I have had good times and bad with, this book resonated loud and clear.

Their story couldn't be more different than ours, but the bottom line is that all sisters are sisters.  We have this weird bond with one another that cannot be broken.  No matter what happens in the end, no matter how long we go between fights or how many months we spend avoiding each other, we are sisters and that is something no one can take away.

It's wonderful to me that my little sister is also counted as one of my best friends.  This hasn't always been the case and we definitely fight plenty, but if I really need something, there are very few people who will come running as quickly as Abby will.

I can't help but think back to 5th grade, when I got the shit kicked out of me in the hallway.  I was sitting in the office, a giant goose egg on my head, and my headstrong little sister comes charging in fists flying.  She may have been 3 years younger than us, but she was ready to knock the snot out of anyone who messed with her big sister.

Ok, sappy post aside, my ladies need to read this book.  It's perfect for book clubs, like I've already mentioned, but it's also great for sitting in front of the fireplace while the wind whistles around your house or lounging on the deck on a sunny day or snuggling in bed for a lazy afternoon or pretty much anytime you want a good read.

A Post in Which I Get a Little Vulnerable

I had planned to write about the book I finished this morning when I got a chance to get on the internet, but I can’t right now.  It’s 12:06 on a Saturday night and I’m reading a book that has brought me to tears more than once.  It hits close to home and late night on a weekend when you haven’t spoken to a soul other than your cat and your mother is not the time you want to be reminded of your shortcomings.

The book, Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah, is about two girls who become best friends when they are fourteen. The book follows their lives thereafter.  Their friendship might not be the most realistic if you ask me, but the outright love that is portrayed through the book is.  And the  other central story of the book is more realistic than I care to admit.  One of the woman falls in love with a man who has fallen in love with the other woman.  Not to give anything away, because it’s pretty easy to see early on anyway, but the first woman ends up getting the man, marrying him and having his children.  Even so, she always feels like she was his second choice.

Now, I’m only half way through the book but it has cut me to the core.  Forgive me for getting too personal, too involved in a freaking paperback novel.  I’ve never fallen in love with a man who loves my best friend but I do know what it feels like to feel like the second choice.  What kills me is that men are so damn closed off that half the time we don’t know whether we really are the second choice or whether we just think that.  I don’t know that it matters.  Because what a woman feels and thinks are more powerful than what is real most of the time.  And just like the story in this book, where the man really truly does love his wife but is still half looking for what could have been with the other woman, men do that to us all the time without even realizing it.

Like I said, it’s after midnight on a Saturday night and I’m feeling lonely.  And this book isn’t helping.  It’s beautifully written and makes me long to be the other girl.  She’s free spirited, beautiful, even if she’s more vulnerable in the inside than she looks.  But at least she can hide it.  Instead of pretending I’m fine, I’m checking my phone obsessively for a text message that I know will never come, from a man who’s a lifetime (and time zone) away, writing about it in my blog.  But I couldn’t just let the night pass without mentioning this book.  Read it.  I dare you to open yourself up the possibility that friendship and love can both be this real.

John Grisham for Women

Ok, I promised a post about the great book I was reading last week.  House Rules, the newest book by Jodi Picoult - an author I discovered years before her My Sister's Keeper fame - was one of those books that I literally couldn't put down.  It was fantastic.  Truly remarkable.  Like all of her books, I felt myself truly feeling for the characters.  I cannot tell you how many times I've read one of her books on an airplane and had the lady next to me hand me a tissue or ask if I'm going to be ok.  She writes these stories that everyone can relate to but we all hope never to deal with... terminally ill family, school shootings, rapes and murders, general family issues.  All of her books have the added bonus of being very character-in-a-courtroom driven.  I've always called her John Grisham for woman and I'll stand by that.

I mean I love a good John Grisham, or John Grisham-like, novel but sometimes I can't bring myself to care for another boardroom executive who steals the companies money or murders someone in cold blood.  But a mother who is trying to protect her family?  That I can drawn into time and time again.

The thing with her novels is that she writes from so many different perspectives.  The very first book of hers I remember reading, Perfect Match, is about a woman who prosecutes sex offenders - until her young son gets molested himself.  The terrifying ordeal that follows tears apart her family, challenges her faith, and gives everyone new perspective on the court system in our country.  Never mind that Picoult writes multiple chapters from the perspective of the young boy as he sits on some man's lap.  We all know what is going on but she writes from the point of view of the child, who is much more oblivious than the enlightened adults who follow his story.  Her description of the boy sitting on a man's lap, petting the man's cat as the molester gives reason for the boy to trust him still haunts me today.  *shutters*

I could point out moments in almost every story of hers that stick with me.  Moments that made me look at my life a little differently and know that I would react exactly the same way, no matter how irrational the character seems.  Regardless of if a woman gets in trouble for shooting the man who hurt her family... wouldn't you do the same thing if you had the opportunity?  Wouldn't you want to protect the people you love no matter what?  I know that I would.

I remember when I was a young girl and someone beat me up in the 5th grade.  My little sister, a tough 2nd grade tomboy, stormed into the office out for blood.  She was prepared to beat the hell out of whoever had hurt me, no matter how much bigger or stronger he was.  I look at her now as she's preparing to move across the country with her boyfriend and someday soon build a family of her own and know that she would still do the same thing today.  We all would.  Because that's what families do.

Bottom line, read anything you can get your hands on by this wonderful woman.  Plus, look at her.  I want to be her friend... I want to sit down for coffee and pick her brain.  Her stories are those that I could only dream to write someday.  They are so involved and the authors intelligence is evident as each and every story unfolds.  But so is her compassion, her ability to empathize with a family's suffering.  I would love to see her interact with her own children on Christmas morning.  Because someone who writes this well must live a life we can only dream to build for ourselves some day.