Stopping to see an old friend en route to California on horseback, the protagonist of Saddle Tramp (1950), a folksy ranch hand played by Joel McCrea, announces that he’s “just passing through.” The same could often be said of the film’s Argentine-born director, Hugo Fregonese, who spent his professional life in a near-constant state of […]
Original source: https://www.nybooks.com/online/2022/09/12/clinging-to-hollywoods-underbelly-fregonese/
A small-town business district glides across the screen in grainy 1960s Technicolor. The shot shows a pawn shop, a drug store, and advertisements for cottage cheese and white potatoes. The town is passing itself off as Anywhere, USA, but something is amiss. The brightly colored façades are fabricated and flimsy. Atop the liquor store, a […]
Original source: https://www.nybooks.com/online/2022/09/16/riotsville-theater-of-state-panic/
In our September 22, 2022, issue, Eric Foner reviews Donald Yacovone’s Teaching White Supremacy, an account of history education in America that examines textbooks published between the early nineteenth century and the 1980s. Over the centuries, Yacovone writes, in the United States racism and pedagogy have gone hand in hand. Both subjects are familiar to […]
Original source: https://www.nybooks.com/online/2022/09/17/light-under-bushel-eric-foner/
Welcome to The New York Review of Books’s inaugural art newsletter, which will appear periodically and focus on the art—illustrations, spots, caricatures, photographs, and more—in the magazine. I’m Leanne Shapton, the Review’s first Art Editor. Each newsletter will appear alongside a series of paintings made from wherever I happen to be while reading, commissioning, or […]
Original source: https://www.nybooks.com/online/2022/09/20/divining-process-leanne-shapton/
For eighteen days this June, thousands of Ecuadorians participated in a national strike that blocked highways across the country, paralyzed the capital city of Quito, and obstructed oil wells and mining sites from the northern Amazon to the southern Andes. Led by the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (CONAIE), an umbrella group of Indigenous […]
Original source: https://www.nybooks.com/online/2022/10/05/ecuador-historic-strike/
Sophia Rose is here with a review of The Good-bye Girls by Juliet Domvile a quirky, small-town debut novel you’ll want to check out.
The Good-bye Girls
by Juliet Domvile
Genres: Women’s Fiction
Source: Publisher
Purchase*: Amazon *affiliate
Rating: 
The first client for two newbie funeral planners is a murdered biker. What could go wrong?
When millennial Aislin Fitzgerald’s professional life implodes, she does the only thing she can think of—she bolts for home. But, for Aislin, home is complicated. Her relationship with her grandmother Letty—her sole relative—is awkward and confrontational, and her hometown is filled with memories and people she has been avoiding her entire adult life.
It’s not all bad, though. A chance meeting with Aislin’s former best friend, Sarah, leads to a niche business opportunity. Noticing how entertained Letty is by attending funerals, they form a funeral planning business, the Goodbye Girls. But things get off to a rocky start when their first gig is for a murdered member of the local biker club, and the prime suspect disappears. While bodies stack up, tensions rise and drinks flow; Aislin and Sarah find themselves leagues out of their comfort zones.
As Aislin learns to navigate living under the same roof as her irascible and, as it turns out, lustful grandmother, she also learns to unclench, trust, and accept love in all shapes and sizes. The Goodbye Girls takes you on an entertaining adventure through the trials of friendship and love—and will have you putting the fun in funeral.
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It was cover curiosity that struck me from the first and then the blurb that sealed the deal. Funeral event-planning besties? I’m game. Blending quirky small town, family, friends, and finding oneself, this debut book offered up a lot.
The Goodbye Girls begins with Aislynn returning to her small town after going away to university and a big city journalism job that kept her away for years. She had no intentions of returning, but that was before a mistake destroyed it all. A complicated relationship with the grandmother who raised her after her parents died, her habit of keeping people at a distance, and pushing off issues that need addressing all come to a head. While starting up a quirky style of event planning business, for funerals, no less, with her childhood best friend, Aislynn must face down it all while figuring out her present let alone her future. It’s complicated seems to be struggling Aislynn’s motto.
I knew what I was getting into when the blurb stated Aislynn was a millennial coming home to figure things out. I did get the impression there might be something of a mystery or excitement with the first client, a biker club burying a murdered member and the killer at large, but mostly this is a far flung personal journey with relationships story that is prevalent in women’s fiction. I can’t say that I could relate well with Aislyn, but she was a mess in the beginning and vulnerable so I wanted to see her get a bit of her own back. She had a good heart when she discovered her former roommate was being abused and it was a tough situation that older, mature people could have easily stepped wrong as far as I’m concerned, but it was more than that which had her flailing. She did prefer to leave issues lay rather than face them which, did eventually bite her in the butt.
There are lots of moving parts in this one and it tends to sprawl rather than stick to a tidy plotline. It made for a meandering story that I could put down easily, but there was also an endearing quality where I still wanted to keep picking it back up and see Aislynn come into her own. It was missing the crispness to the plot that would make it a fab book, but there was still so much to love in the small town quirks and heartwarming moments. Pet turtle, funeral event antics, and oddities for characters were highlights. Those who enjoy gently-paced, character-driven plots against small town setting should check this one out.
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The Good-bye Girls by Juliet Domvile is filled with small town quirks and heartwarming moments #SophiaRose #bookreview #womensfiction
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Sophia is a quiet though curious gal who dabbles in cooking, book reviewing, and gardening. Encouraged and supported by an incredible man and loving family. A Northern Californian transplant to the Great Lakes Region of the US. Lover of Jane Austen, Baseball, Cats, Scooby Doo, and Chocolate.
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Original source: https://caffeinatedbookreviewer.com/2022/10/the-good-bye-girls-by-juliet-domvile%ef%bf%bc.html
September 11 is a date that sends a shiver through many peoples’ bodies. The World Trade Center attack is one of the most disastrous terrorist attacks in the world. And while everyone sympathizes with the victims and their families, there are multiple impacts of the attack that are often overlooked. In his book Did We Learn anything from WTC Tower collapse? Critical Review of Final NIST Reports and More, author Gregory Szuladzinski critically analyzes the effects of the attack, the security measures that have been taken since then, how life changed for most and the government’s role in protecting its citizens from attacks of this nature.
Just like the title suggests, this book poses questions not just to authorities, but everyone responsible. Is the United States prepared to handle disasters? What is the long term damages and what can we learn from the reports by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)? The book is all-inclusive as the author has compiled real stats and data to back his analysis. Gregory Szuladzinski is factual and only writes about what he can prove from his experience in aircraft construction, aerospace, and engineering.
The book starts on a solemn note; the damage the WTC attacks caused were devastating. Some people are still suffering from the terror two decades later. The author breaks down every part of the investigation with precision and facts. The author starts by giving a general introduction of the topic and later moves on to discussing the accident investigation and explosions, shedding more light on explosions, structural models, aircraft impact modeling, and other things. As a reader, you are able to look at the towers from an engineering standpoint as you follow this scrutiny.
The language used in this illuminating book is technical, but also comprehensive. The author uses hi-tech terms to expound on the investigation and discuss the towers, their construction style and the planes. As a reader, you get the full picture as the author includes both real images from the crime scene and drawn illustrations. There are pictures after every few pages, drawn clearly to help the reader picture what the author is writing about. The author has added more than just the report done by NIST. The author’s findings are more thorough and share vital information. The book brings closure to those indirectly and directly affected, while also informing readers about the engineering aspect of the WTC. Reading this enlightening book will help readers understand what caused the collapse, the timing of the falls, controversies, and the crucial information missing from NIST reports.
Pages: 191 | ASIN: B0B8TR43F5
Original source: https://literarytitan.com/2022/10/05/did-we-learn-anything-from-wtc-towers-collapse/
A memoir that speaks through scars and helps transform trauma into wisdom.
Trauma f*ucking sucks! There is nothing gentle, pretty, or rosy about it! Its painful, dark, and lonely. Rooted HEIR is a vivid and transparent memoir that takes you on one woman’s journey of suffering, self-discovery, and forgiveness.
In a span of three days the illusion bubble burst. Christina finds herself sitting in a dark room feeling so small and insignificant. She has a choice to make, more of the same or change. After more than two decades of avoiding the painful truth, running from herself, and pretending it was time to drop the shackles of shame.
Have you ever asked yourself, who am I, when you strip away the titles and roles that you’ve been defined by? Well, she did, and she didn’t have a clue. She needed to hold up the mirror, grab the shovel, and start unearthing the traumas that held her freedom. But where do you start? …At the beginning.
In her own words Christina reveals the most intimate parts of her life from the childhood abuses to her own self-destructive ways, and the lessons she has learned along the way. Rooted HEIR is a courageous story filled with the voice of brutal honesty. Her voice that was silenced so many times now can be heard in hopes that others will know they too can speak. Let’s heal, be empowered, be inspired, and redefine our lives. THE TIME IS NOW!
Original source: https://literarytitan.com/2022/10/05/rooted-heir-book-trailer/
Heidi, the Sumatran turtle, is excited for the day ahead. Today is the first day of the Sumatran Games, and this is the first time she gets to attend. Heidi moves as quickly as she can, given her short turtle legs, but she falls behind the other animals. Finally, a kind, friendly elephant named Jose stops and asks if she needs help. When she explains she is trying to get to the games, Jose picks her up and carries her the rest of the way. Once at the games, the two new friends watch the events, and Heidi becomes sad watching all the things she can not do. Eventually, Jose also grows sad because of Heidi’s morose attitude. Once Heidi realizes her lousy attitude has upset her new friends, she comes up with a plan to make them both feel better about the skills they do possess. While her plan doesn’t work out exactly as they hoped, they learn a valuable lesson about teamwork.
Hooray for Heidi! written by Emma Sandford and illustrated by Olena Osadcha is a beautiful picture book about teamwork and appreciating the unique skills that everyone has. Not everyone in life is strong, fast, or flexible, but that does not mean that they do not have value. This children’s book highlights that kids often feel self-conscious when watching others that have better skills or abilities than themselves. It can be challenging to overcome those feelings and feel valuable.
Emma has written this fantastic book showing that everyone can contribute and be a valued member of the team. With a focus on teamwork, kids will learn how helping others and working together brings its own rewards, even if it is not the trophy they were after. The other focus in this whimsical picture book is friendship. For example, an elephant and a turtle become great friends despite being so different from one another. This is an excellent example for young children to look past the physical differences in each other and value people for who they are inside.
Hooray for Heidi! is a beautifully written picture book that teaches children the value of friendship and teamwork. This would be a wonderful book for preschool and kindergarten classrooms to help kids learn how to work together to achieve a common goal. There is also the message that sometimes things do not go as planned, which is okay too!
Pages: 30 | ASIN : B0BFNT32T1
Original source: https://literarytitan.com/2022/10/05/hooray-for-heidi-the-sumatran-trilogy/
Iris Du targets leaders in all capacities in her book Great Leadership Starts With You: Be the Leader You Want to Be. The author writes hoping that her knowledge will benefit CEOs, managers, supervisors, youth group leaders, church leaders, and even leaders at home and in schools. The author extensively writes on what it entails to be a leader, how to make people appreciate and respect your position, and how to link with those you are governing. Iris Du uses solid illustrations to give additional details about leadership qualities and further explains how a leader should conduct themselves.
One of the most significant things you need to take note of as a leader is how to communicate. I like that the author started by explaining that great leadership begins with you. You establish yourself by leading from within before you guide others. The author continues to write about communication and how it influences excellent leadership. As an individual, you are taught how to be courteous, live by your values, and communicate what you feel in a modest way. One of the biggest lessons I learned in the book is that leaders are not born but made. You can learn how to be a leader.
In every chapter, the author focuses on one or two subjects that she writes about in detail. For example, the chapter on communication was incredible, and so were the rest of the chapters that discussed gratitude, manifestation, self-awareness, self-discipline, and self-mastery. These chapters have gems of knowledge and are written in an engaging and organized manner. Every chapter in the book starts with a quote from a famous person. She then proceeds to discuss the subject matter and includes quality questions and exercises in every chapter. I appreciate the questions and exercises, as they are vital to helping one self-reflect and change one’s leadership method.
Great Leadership Starts With You: Be The Leader You Want To Be is an eye-opening look at what it takes to become a successful leader in all areas of life, not just the corporate business world. With sound advice backed by case studies and actionable items, readers will be able to transform their leadership style into a more efficient approach that highlights not only their strength but their teams.
Pages: 202 | ASIN : B09HM2SG15
Original source: https://literarytitan.com/2022/10/05/great-leadership-starts-with-you/