Great Read

Brown Paper Fine Tooth Comb

Families are complicated, so can be friendships. Ask anyone: everyone has their stories. In A Brown Paper Bag and a Fine Tooth Comb, author Claudette Carrida Jeffrey has created authentically idiosyncratic characters navigating universal plots and subplots and it is this combination of the universal and the idiosyncratic that puts this novel in the highest echelon of classic literary fiction. Black or white, male or female, straight or gay, old or young, religious or agnostic, readers who care for others and truly believe in the social values of equality and inclusion are going to applaud this excellent, moving novel. Claire Soublet is an extremely smart, thoughtful girl who was taught to read at the age of three by a now dead aunt and has ambitions to get a college education and see the world. She is moved to anger by people who discriminate on the basis of race or gender. She is moved to compassion by people who are victims of discrimination or ignored when they need and deserve to be acknowledged and assisted. She is also moved to anger when she fears she is about to be abandoned and/or betrayed in some way. She's had a history that predisposes her to this defensiveness. And she begins to suspect the mysterious life histories of other people she meets, most importantly an old white woman who takes her in after her grandmother dies. The undeclared but deeply felt love that grows between Claire and the mysterious Sera is the focal point of the novel. Revolving around this important relationship over the years as Claire grows into, through and out of adolescence, we meet several young men who are enamored of her for various reasons, some good, some not so good. It is through her eyes that we see what women of that time were up against, what people of color in that region were up against, the kinds of expectations that restricted their dreams, their aspirations, their relationships. The best books take the reader to the time and place, when and where the story is set. Think Wuthering Heights, Yorkshire Moors in an earlier century. Brown Paper Bag definitely takes readers to the world of New Orleans in the forties and fifties. Readers who have been to New Orleans will recognize it. Readers who have never been there will feel like they have. This book does more than tell a story, it gives the gift of experience. It leaves us hopeful for Claire's future and eager for a sequel that will divulge the details of that future as well as Sera's intriguing past. Highly recommended!

Get your Brown Paper Fine Tooth Comb Now!

The Happy Campers

Coleman 17 Foot 10 Foot 8 Person Modified

Purchased this tent and the day I got it, wife and I did a practice run of putting the tent up in our back yard. Took less than 45 minutes the first time.

I sprayed the rain fly seams and tent seams with a can of "Kiwi Camp Dry, Heavy Duty Water Repellent 12 oz". We let it dry than rolled it back up and put it back in its bag.

Got it out two weeks ago for our 3 day camping trip. We went with a couple who purchased a big Ozark Trail tent from Walmart. They raved about how there Ozark Trail Tent was 50 dollars less then what we paid for but just as big as our tent....the first two days.

Day three around 5:30 in the morning we had rain for the first time...and when I say rain, I mean a torrential downpour for at least 90 minutes straight.

Needless to say the inside of our tent was dry as a bone. The Ozarks Trail Tent was leaking all over the place, they were soaked, and had an inch of water in the tent. I actually had to tip there tent up and help them pour the water out.

Needless to say, they were not so happy about saving 50 dollars on a junk tent.

Glad I made this purchase! My family was dry, and we had a great camping trip.

BTW, Second time my wife and I put tent up we had it up in about 10-15 minutes.

Great Tent.

Get your Coleman 17 Foot 10 Foot 8 Person Modified Now!

Great Book

House Hardings World Romance ebook

Face it, laptop bags aren't exactly the most exciting thing on earth, but if you pack a laptop around, they are essential to protect your expensive piece of equipment. They aren't all created equally though!

I've had a number of laptop bags over the years, including the traditional black leather look, a backpack, and a messenger bag. The messenger bag was a huge favorite, it just seemed to work easier and take up less space when it wasn't in use. The Timbuk2 bag manages to take the messenger bag style up a step by adding some great features, such as the luggage pass through, the TSA speedy access, and great organization. It doesn't hurt that it is put into a package with some seriously sturdy fabric and weather protection either.

There really aren't any "cons" to this bag, other than the fact that it isn't the cheapest one on the market. About all I can say about that is that we tend to get what we pay for. I've had cheap bags, and they consistently have poor quality workmanship resulting in failure in seams or hardware. I have no worries about that with this bag--I think I'll see it outlive a number of laptops, actually.

The workmanship is top notch, the materials are the same high quality. If you are looking for a quality bag for commuting or traveling with your laptop and other electronic gadgets, this is the answer. It holds a lot and packs it with an eye to both quality and capacity. Sure it isn't going to rate as "trendy" and it won't hold your chihuahua, but it will hold what it's supposed to!

Get your House Hardings World Romance ebook Now!

Best bag of any kind I have owned (black, medium bag review)

Timbuk2 Commute TSA Friendly Messenger Bag

Face it, laptop bags aren't exactly the most exciting thing on earth, but if you pack a laptop around, they are essential to protect your expensive piece of equipment. They aren't all created equally though!

I've had a number of laptop bags over the years, including the traditional black leather look, a backpack, and a messenger bag. The messenger bag was a huge favorite, it just seemed to work easier and take up less space when it wasn't in use. The Timbuk2 bag manages to take the messenger bag style up a step by adding some great features, such as the luggage pass through, the TSA speedy access, and great organization. It doesn't hurt that it is put into a package with some seriously sturdy fabric and weather protection either.

There really aren't any "cons" to this bag, other than the fact that it isn't the cheapest one on the market. About all I can say about that is that we tend to get what we pay for. I've had cheap bags, and they consistently have poor quality workmanship resulting in failure in seams or hardware. I have no worries about that with this bag--I think I'll see it outlive a number of laptops, actually.

The workmanship is top notch, the materials are the same high quality. If you are looking for a quality bag for commuting or traveling with your laptop and other electronic gadgets, this is the answer. It holds a lot and packs it with an eye to both quality and capacity. Sure it isn't going to rate as "trendy" and it won't hold your chihuahua, but it will hold what it's supposed to!

Get your Timbuk2 Commute TSA Friendly Messenger Bag Now!

Simply Gorgeous

MICHAEL Michael Kors Monogram Signature

Life for Laura Warren is punctuated by the methodical: a radiographic technician, her work at a prestigious hospital on the Maine coast requires her to look at cancer every day, unearthing the answers to patients' most fearsome question and yet not being in a station to share what she knows. Keeping her thoughts to herself is something she's familiar with at home, too. Her husband, Dan, has become increasingly embittered by the loss of his job, effectively driving a wedge further into their already fractured relationship. The bright lights in Laura's life, her children, are living full lives of their own - creative, talented Ben away at college and savvy Sally in her final year of high school. Laura never really entertains escape, but when she finds herself at a weekend conference in Boston her world is turned upside down when she chances into conversation with another guest at the hotel. Richard has all the looks of a stuffy insurance salesman in his fifties, but no sooner have they engaged in a passing conversation when they realize they've both stumbled upon something profound, maybe even life-changing.

Douglas Kennedy's eleventh novel, Five Days, is a luxurious work that spins several unpleasant topics into a rich literary experience. It's a love story that explores both the rampant ecstasy and wrenching sadness with a scope so broad it will leave the reader rather breathless. As the title suggests, the story is divided into five days amid Laura's life, documenting the unhappiness of her every day, the tentative thrill of discovering something new, and the frightening elation at the prospect of changing her life for the better. Perhaps what I connected most with in the book was the difficulty - and triumph - in Laura's plight to recreate her life; Kennedy focuses the novel on her first-person narration, which allows the reader to become fully acquainted with this remarkable character. Initially, I felt that I couldn't quite relate with Laura, that her tone was rather depressing, but the beauty of Kennedy's work is in the power he maintains over his own writing. His timing is excellent. As Laura frees herself from the confines of her depressing life and embarks on a life-changing relationship with another man, she allows herself to open up to the reader, to drop her guard. But it was after what happened later - when changes she had never expected began to take shape - that I found her at her most empowering.

Kennedy's use of language is superb, and his detailing creates a beautiful, almost dreamlike literary world that's tinged ever slightly with melancholy. Richard and Laura are both pragmatic and romantic, two fascinatingly smart, well-read, engaged people. Their connect is so that Kennedy manages to set them more or less above every other character in the book - which, as they together share in their delight of obscure artistic references and an all-too-encompassing interest in synonyms - could make the reader feel either connected or slightly detached. Their intellect being the chief source of their chemistry, I found it fascinating to follow along and see the sparks ignite on the page. Overall, I found Five Days to be a thought-provoking look at the power of love to build up, destroy, and change our lives as we know it, and how we as humans deal with the magnitude of it.

(Review � Casee Marie, originally published on April 30, 2013 at LiteraryInklings.com. I received a copy of the book for the purpose of review.)

Get your MICHAEL Michael Kors Monogram Signature Now!

Excellent

Five Days Novel Douglas Kennedy

Life for Laura Warren is punctuated by the methodical: a radiographic technician, her work at a prestigious hospital on the Maine coast requires her to look at cancer every day, unearthing the answers to patients' most fearsome question and yet not being in a station to share what she knows. Keeping her thoughts to herself is something she's familiar with at home, too. Her husband, Dan, has become increasingly embittered by the loss of his job, effectively driving a wedge further into their already fractured relationship. The bright lights in Laura's life, her children, are living full lives of their own - creative, talented Ben away at college and savvy Sally in her final year of high school. Laura never really entertains escape, but when she finds herself at a weekend conference in Boston her world is turned upside down when she chances into conversation with another guest at the hotel. Richard has all the looks of a stuffy insurance salesman in his fifties, but no sooner have they engaged in a passing conversation when they realize they've both stumbled upon something profound, maybe even life-changing.

Douglas Kennedy's eleventh novel, Five Days, is a luxurious work that spins several unpleasant topics into a rich literary experience. It's a love story that explores both the rampant ecstasy and wrenching sadness with a scope so broad it will leave the reader rather breathless. As the title suggests, the story is divided into five days amid Laura's life, documenting the unhappiness of her every day, the tentative thrill of discovering something new, and the frightening elation at the prospect of changing her life for the better. Perhaps what I connected most with in the book was the difficulty - and triumph - in Laura's plight to recreate her life; Kennedy focuses the novel on her first-person narration, which allows the reader to become fully acquainted with this remarkable character. Initially, I felt that I couldn't quite relate with Laura, that her tone was rather depressing, but the beauty of Kennedy's work is in the power he maintains over his own writing. His timing is excellent. As Laura frees herself from the confines of her depressing life and embarks on a life-changing relationship with another man, she allows herself to open up to the reader, to drop her guard. But it was after what happened later - when changes she had never expected began to take shape - that I found her at her most empowering.

Kennedy's use of language is superb, and his detailing creates a beautiful, almost dreamlike literary world that's tinged ever slightly with melancholy. Richard and Laura are both pragmatic and romantic, two fascinatingly smart, well-read, engaged people. Their connect is so that Kennedy manages to set them more or less above every other character in the book - which, as they together share in their delight of obscure artistic references and an all-too-encompassing interest in synonyms - could make the reader feel either connected or slightly detached. Their intellect being the chief source of their chemistry, I found it fascinating to follow along and see the sparks ignite on the page. Overall, I found Five Days to be a thought-provoking look at the power of love to build up, destroy, and change our lives as we know it, and how we as humans deal with the magnitude of it.

(Review � Casee Marie, originally published on April 30, 2013 at LiteraryInklings.com. I received a copy of the book for the purpose of review.)

Get your Five Days Novel Douglas Kennedy Now!

Fun, Funny, Audacious, Naughty and Very Entertaining

250 Pick Up Lines ebook

This exceptionally well-made bag is a little taller than your average crossbody bag, and the shoulder strap is wider, with a bit longer drop. The extra height means I can fit in not only my wallet, keys, shades, phone and various small essentials, but I can also slide in my iPad Mini (and still zip the bag)! It's as if the bag were designed with an iPad Mini in mind.

The two front pockets are nice and deep, but I'm not sure what I'll use them for since anything other than a piece of paper will cause them to bulge. They're also not secure enough for anything as valuable as a smartphone. The back zipper pocket is nice and deep. I'm using that for my iPhone, headphones and a small, collapsible phone stand -- all of which fits with only the slightest bulge. Even when full, the bag keeps a flat-ish silhouette and sits fairly close to the body.

The leather is butter-soft, the stitching very secure, and the hardware nice and solid. The lining is thick satin, pale yellow with the Piazza logo in brown. Altogether well-designed and well-built!

Get your 250 Pick Up Lines ebook Now!