|
A LITERARY
BLOG ABOUT BOOKS How they affect us. How they shape our lives.
Note: Postings
made when muses strike. Watch for blog alert notices via email, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook. "We read to know we are not alone." C.S. Lewis Copyright 2011-2018
Top
12 Reading Recommendations Please click a book image to purchase it on Amazon.
Novels, books, and musicals June has written and published: Click a book image to purchase it on www.amazon.com
"Meditations
for New Members is a beautifully written little book...a gem. The thoughts are striking and orginal--a
few are quite profound." --Fiona Hodgkin, author of The Tennis Player from Bermuda
Sponsored in part by Dani's Pantry Fine authentic Italian food. Cucina con Amore! https://amzn.to/2HdlA
B'Seti Pup Publishing Editorial
Services Proofreading, Editing, Rewites, Assistance with Self-publishing. "It's the write thing to do."
"I like what you've done with my
book. Makes me fall in love with it all over again." --Olajuwon Dare, author of Eleven Eleven
Contact
June at JuneJ@JuneJMcInerney.com on Facebook.com, or at www.BSetiPupPublising.com
Please support this Literary Blog by buying on Amazon. Thank you.
|
|
|
Thursday, December 28, 2017
The Library at the Edge of the World
If “home is where the
heart is”, how do you know where the heart is if you’re not sure of here home is? Or even how to begin finding
it? This is the dilemma of Hanna Casey who, in Felicity Hayes-McCoy’s debut novel, abandons a
posh London lifestyle and returns to her roots in the rural Irish town of Lissberg. After years of what turned out to be a
loveless marriage – her barrister husband is a liar and philanderer – and a nearly fruitful career as a researcher,
she finds herself managing the small local branch library and driving a bookmobile up and down the Finfarran peninsula from
isolated villagers to isolated villagers. What makes matters worse is that she is living with her nagging overbearing mother…
Not to mention having to copy with gossiping village residents… This makes for an interesting premise;
almost Dickensian. But The Library at the Edge of the World: A Novel (Finfarran Peninsula) wends its way through several saving graces. One of which is the small delipidated stone house overlooking the sea that
Hanna has inherited from her great-aunt. Restoring it is a chance, however slim, of her finding herself a home, a home in
her own life. But is it where she will find her heart and its home? For those of us who miss the great dearly
departed Maeve Binchy and her “slices out of real life” novels, Hayes-McCoy’s well-thought out and well-written
journey through the complex labyrinth of lives and loves in Lissberg neatly fits the bill. There are touches of intrigue,
mystery, and, of course, romance. And for those of us who are armchair travelers whose more adventurous exploits are through
the pages of novels, the stunning descriptions of Finfarran peninsula and the idyllic Irish seascape will more than tweak
the imagination. But while the seascape is idyllic and peaceful, the town of Lissberg and its sister peninsula
villages are not. As their very bucolic economy and way of life is threatened by greedy developers, the almost reclusive Hanna
steps into the fray and, amidst her own tumultuous efforts to restore her inherited home, manages to discover a way to, as
the saying goes, “save the day”. How she, with the help of her often quirky but delightful cohorts, do this is
the meat and potatoes of a most charming read. Primarily a non-fiction writer of memoirs, Hayes-McCoy brings
to her first fictional effort a stoical, sensible approach to her literary endeavors. While she is matter-of-fact, she is
also sensitive to the emotional needs of her characters; a trait, I surmise, that stems from her years as a successful actress
on both stage and screen. While driven to tie up all the loose ends of the multi-linear plot and sub-plots, she is cognizant
of providing an interesting, thought-provoking story that enlightens, educates, and entertains. In essence, as
Hanna in this author’s capable hands finally finds where home is for herself and her heart, each reader will find a
literary heartwarming home. Enjoy the read!
2:44 pm est
Monday, December 18, 2017
Middle Earth: From Script to Screen Sometimes
learning what happened behind the scenes is more interesting than the scenes themselves. Take, for example, the Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit
trilogies, the epic films of the early 2000s, based upon the Ring Trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien, that won 17 out of 30
total Academy Award nominations and captured the hearts of both adults and children [of all ages] alike, They certainly did
mine… I became an avid Tolkien fan in the
mid-1960s. Primarily because it was assigned “optional” reading in my Advance Placement English literature class.
What started out as almost confusing reads ended up emmeshing me into the depths of the world of Middle Earth, with its Hobbits,
Gnomes, Dwarves, Elves… and the dreaded Kingdom of Mordor; not to mention the convoluted, but intricate plot lines.
Once I got the hang of the author’s writing style, I was hooked and have, over the course of the past fifty years or
so, must have read the fantasies more than four or five times… And, of course, when the movies started hitting the
silver screen, I just had to see them all. And all through the marvelously produced and directed [by Peter Jackson] films, I kept on asking, “How did
they do that?” Well, thanks to my buddies at Harper Collins and their collaboration with Warner Bros. Consumer Products,
now I know. Between the handsomely green-bound pages
of Middle-earth from Script to Screen: Building the World of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, I learned that a whole, nearly functioning Hobbit Village was constructed on a large farm in Australia… It was
– and still is – so real that most of the actors during filming actually began to believe that they were actually
in The Shire. That Sauron’s Black Riders – the Ringwraiths – were not only human actors wearing over thirty
meters of carefully crafted fabric and gauntlets but also digitally animated riders. Many children of crew members were featured
during several of scenes, including ‘Old’ Gerontius Took’s flashback party in An Unexpected Journey.
And, do you know what Mathoms are? Flets? Palantíri? You’ll have to comb the 574 pages of this most wondrously
extravagant compendium of Hobbit knowledge – while marveling at the full-color illustrations and drawings – to
find out. What I particularly like about Middle-earth is not only the stories behind the scenes and stories, but the stories themselves. Carefully and assiduously written
by Daniel Falconer – with a forward by Peter Jackson – the complete gestalt of the Ring Trilogy is mapped out.
There are marvelous explanations – paraphrased from the pages of the original books – of how Bilbo originally
obtained the infamous Gold Ring and how he passed it on to Frodo to destory; the interconnections between Sauron and Saruman
the White; the back-stories of Frodo’s friends, who accompany him on his perilous journey… I could go on and
one, but I don’t want to spoil the fun for you. Besides, this book – yet another beautiful product of Harper Designs
– is not one you read from cover to cover in subsequent sittings, but one you dip into from time to time – absorbing
each little tidbit of fascinating information just as you would sip a well-aged mellow whiskey. Middle-earth – released just last month -- is a valuable and valued addition to any library. And would, in my mind, be
an especially appropriate Holiday gift for the avid movie-goer, film-ologist and/or connoisseur of all things Tolkien. Enjoy the read!
3:55 pm est
|
|
June
J. McInerney, the host of this Literary Blog, is
an author, poet, and librettist. Her currently published works include a novel, a book of spiritual inspirations,
two
volumes of poetry, stories
for children (of all ages) and
a variety of children's musicals. Her titles include: Miss Elmira's Secret Treasure:
A Novel of Phoenixville during the Early 1900s Colonial Theatre: A Novel of Phoenixville
during the Roarin' 20s Phoenix Hose, Hook & Ladder: A Novel of Phoenixville during
World War I Columbia Hotel: A Novel of Phoenixville during the Early 1900s the Schuylkill Monster: A Novel of Phoenixville in 1978
The Prisoner's
Portrait: A Novel of Phoenxville during World War II
Forty-Thirty Rainbow in the Sky Meditations for New Members
Adventures
of Oreigh Ogglefont The Basset Chronicles. Cats of Nine Tales Spinach
Water: A Collection of Poems Exodus Ending: A
Collection of More Spiritual Poems
We Three Kings Beauty and the Beast Bethlehem Noah's
Rainbow Peter, Wolf, and Red Riding
Hood
Originally from the New York metropolitan area, June currently lives near Valley Forge Park in Pennsylvania with her constant and loving companions, FrankieBernard and Sebastian Cat. She
is currently working on her sixth novel.
|