Harding Hits Hard For Busy People - But Still Provides His Lyrical Prose in 8 Novels! Fantastic! Part I of a two-part Review

Originally the inmates were somewhat
trusted with inmate labor...That inaugural
rendition of Savone Correctional was a
few buildings that housed the men...the
free labor didn't sit well with local miners.
...forced the State to retreat from its
attempt at a job training program ala 1870.
The inmates stopped mining and built the
wall instead. In short order, two thousand of
their closest friends moved in and the prison
became the largest maximum security
facility...

The wall is thirty feet high and ten feet thick. It
surrounds Savone Correctional Facility, a maximum
security prison where I live. Its presence creates a
solid atmosphere of stone and white cement that
separates my world from another.

The Cats of Savone:
 8 Short Novels for Busy People

By David-Michael Harding

In those early days an inmate cemetery took shape out of necessity...This proved real convenient when a nightstick came down too hard and skulls cracked like dry wood. The walls broad back blocked any witnesses except for men already in chains and no one was going to listen to them anyway...

The title story in David-Michael Harding Anthology was, admittedly, one of my favorites, so I know you're not surprised... What you will be surprised about is that it is not the inclusion of the cats, per se, but rather Harding's unforgettable story of the life in prison...

Perversion of normal ferments inside and slips through the hands of sanity scarcely under control. Outside spins the causal chaos of life. Intimidation is the only shared definition visible from either side. For Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard, and a dozen others, prison walls are memories bent to rhymes. The lyrics play tricks and hide the poet's pain. Mind seldom pause to wonder if the words had been gleaned from skid bids, short stays in county lack-up, or from scars that still bleed, after aching years of blind-hard state time...Either way, the sentiments are as accurate as can be compressed in the space of a song. Telling the whole story would fill volumes no one would or could read. Page after page would be totally voice of the titillating drama and violence of Hollywood or real-life prison. Instead, you would find it inked with the painful boredom of high anxiety, symbolized by blank pages running to empty chapters on to entire books void of letters, words, motion, or even thought. This is the reality on my side of the wall...

~~~

Harding put out a poll to seek feedback for which stories would do well as full novels. I did vote, but on retrospect, I'm not so sure that any of them could be improved by expansion. Take for instance, The Cats of Savone--You can almost guess, without reading the story, what happened, so I don't think I'm giving anything away... Cats founds their way into Savone... [Recognize that these pics don't come close to

When Gretchen appeared back on the court there was a
huge sign of relief from prisoners and guards. In the days that followed things in the yards settled in as if nothing had happened. Several weeks later however, it became clear that something indeed had. Gretchen was pregnant.
"Pregnant, huh?" Doc G said with the look of a disapproving father. "Are you certain, Charles?"
"I'm sure. Look at her. She's getting wider than the broadside of a barn."
Gretchen strutted around atop the box as if on stage.
"Damn!" Frankie said excitedly. "Gretch got hers, man!"
Mickey petter her affectionately, but had a cross look on his face as she spoke. "Where the hell's the father?"
Frankie Laughed. "That boy is gone! Did the deed and jetted, man!"...
~~~

the descriptions in the book...]

 It was just a female, looking for some place safe to have her kits... 

As, I gather, in most prisons, cliques were formed

 and those were the people you hung with... Of course there were also the ghosts of those who had made it as far out as the cemetery and that added some distraction from the daily monotony... So when one group found the cat in a box of what was considered their outside territory, they immediately worked to ensure her presence was kept quiet... Soon Gretchen was right at home with all of them, probably enjoying better meals than ever before since she'd come from the streets!

Charlie Dennis had identified his spot 23 years ago and even had it fixed up so that they were able to cook chicken and other things outside. Charlie was, in fact, a nice guy who kept that fact hidden mostly, but did have some credibility with the guards... even though some of his crew might have been...questionable...

 

But soon, knowledge of the cat got out, especially when her kittens came

 

Well, you know what happened. Soon everybody...no, that's not right...almost everybody were enjoying the additions to the community...

Except for one man...

I loved this story...

our

"My Boo Radley"

 Mrs. Talada, my junior high school English teacher, assigned To Kill A Mockingbirg. I never read it. Instead, on test day my wandering hazel eyes became practical periscopes and searched the papers of my nearby friends and returned to me with a seventy something...

Do we all have a Boo Radley in our lives through one person or another? Some children can be cruel while others are so very willing to take other people as they are and accept them as friends.

Sometimes it happens through a mutual interest...

Mine was a second-cousin that, while, not being able to speak clearly, was quite able to interact with anybody who was willing to do that with a mentally retarded boy...

This is a heartwarming story that, also, didn't require too much to think about what would be happening. But we all know that, more than likely, every "Boo Radley" is going to be different and each story will be unique... And we will learn just a little more about interacting with those around us.

"The Jazz Bridge" was quite a different story--of a city's downtown... 

So what do you do to ensure that you keep the downtown areas in good condition and facilities available and used by the town people... Add a little jazz and find out!

To Be Continued Tomorrow!

Related articles

• Harding Hits Hard For Busy People - But Still Provides His Lyrical Prose in 8 Novels! Fantastic! Part I of a two-part Review
• The Cats of Savone by David-Michael Harding

Beautiful Literary Fiction, One Hundred Names by cecelia ahern, a Dublin Author, Delivers Heartwarming Story

Katherine had finally forced herself to visit Constance in the hospital. She had been ashamed to face her. Constance had hired her on the team at Etcetera, a unique, different type of magazine with Constance at the head... She had more or less let Katherine pick and choose what she would write about...

Now she was used to being told what to write and, her writing in itself had changed...but she didn't realize it...

Some people say that you shouldn't operate from a place of fear, Constance went on, but if there is no fear, how is there a challenge? Often that is when I've done my best work, because I have embraced the fear and challenged myself. I saw this young girl who was afraid she wouldn't fly and I thought--aha--she is the girl for us. And that is what Etcetera is about. Sure, we covers politics but we cover the people behind the politics. We want them for their emotional journeys, not just so we can hear their policies but so we can hear the reason for their  policies. What happened to make them believe in this, what happened to make them feel this way?... We are all about people, about feeling, about emotions. We may sell fewer but we mean more, though that is merely my opinion, of course.

Constance also counseled Katherine about what had happened, but assured her that she had not lost her job at Etcetera. During that conversation, Katherine had asked her if she had one story that she still wanted to write. In response, Constance sent her to her home to a certain file, and told her to bring it back and that they would talk about it and maybe work on it together...

Constance died before she came back to the hospital...

One Hundred Names

By cecelia ahern

The lack of capital letters for this author's name will tell you about her--and her novel. It is such a lovely piece of literature. You can trust that this will make a perfect gift for any adult at any time. It is a precious story that is both memorable as well as a reality that few of us stop to consider. We have a story to tell...

The reality at the start of the novel for Katherine, though, was that she was in a major professional "jam" and, unfortunately, she couldn't get out of it. She had written a story, accusing a man of child abuse, and even, fathering a baby...and it was based solely on the word of the two teenagers involved...and it was run on television! Of course, she was fired, and the company was sued for big bucks! Whoa, the worst type of situation--for everybody!

Is there something you want to get off your chest,
Steve?
I came by to make sure that you were feeling okay
about the trial tomorrow, but the more you talk,
the more I can's help but not feel sorry for you.
You accused a well-respected PE teacher, who is
married, with a young family, of sexually abusing
two students and fathering a child. On television.
In front of the entire country. And you were wrong.
...I know all of this, I know what I did, she said more
confidently than she felt.
And are you sorry?
Of course I'm bloody sorry, she exploded. My
career is destroyed. Absolutely nobody will ever
hire me again. I've cost the network who knows
what, if he wins his case, which he probably will,
and God knows how much in legal fees, and their
reputation. I'm over...
You see, this is what bugs me, Kitty.
What?
Your tone, you're so...flippant about it all...
~~~

If you are an individual that thinks today's news people are going too far to create and exploit sensationalism, you may be happy to hear this--and not like Katherine. This is the intriguing part, because she had to have it drilled into her as to how she had changed, just by going into another type of media... Katherine was just as much a part of the overall story as were the individuals she began to meet...

Other than Constance, her boss and mentor, he oldest and best friend Steve, spent time trying to help her see what had changed about her. After the story on the false abuse had run, she was branded, hunted, haunted...but she was most concerned about herself...

Steve tried to explain that it wasn't about her--it was about the man whose career had been ruined by the story...

But she couldn't hear him at the time...

And probably many of us would not--so concerned and scared about their own career and future...

Interestingly, the new manager that had been filling in for Constance was the "Do it" type of boss that she had just had, but Katherine was not quite as willing to just listen and act. And then with Constance's death, there was much discussion about how to best honor her...

Finally, her husband was willing to listen to Katherine, who had by now started writing under Kitty, to try to allow people to forget...and she brought the file that Constance had asked for. There was nothing in the file but a hundred names... Kitty got the assignment contrary to what the manager wanted... Now she had to figure out what the list was about...how the people were connected...why they were placed on the list, plus get their stories! All within the time before the memorial edition which would run in the next issue...

This book reminded me somewhat of Pat Bertram's Daughter Am I, although without the humor. Still there was attention to the details of the lives Kitty began to gather and told in such a way that it allowed both readers and the characters themselves to be inspired by what was happening! That makes for a very cool book in my opinion! This book is all about the readers being placed in Kitty's position of meeting new people, working to find their secrets--mainly, at that point, to figure out how they were connected--and then, as the writer, to find "the angle" for their personal story...

I found every single one of those interviewed to have such sensitive stories to share. But I think

Do you know where Bridget lives?
We lived next door to each other for forty years. She's a
great woman. A bunch of selfish good-for-nothings her
children turned out to be. To hear them talk you'd think
they think they're royalty. Far from how they were reared,
I'll tell you that. She had a fall is all, she said angrily.
She tripped. Who doesn't take a tumble now and then.
But, oh no, it was off to the nursing home for poor Birdie
just so that lot could sell that house and spend the money
on another skiing holiday. She grumbled to herself, her
mouth moving up and down angrily, her false teeth
sloshing around inside...
~~~

the first one, a woman who was in a nursing home, with little attention from her family, who had made a bet many years ago, that she would never live until 85... She was very ill at the time and really wasn't expected to live... I guess she showed her personal strength to everyone, didn't she? 

Would you believe the business was still open?! Sadly, the man, who apparently had been an admirer, had already died. But that's not the end of that story...and all the other ones!

Given the time of year, I think the story of the gift-giver was very special as well--although this book won't be out by then! In essence, she would be hired to find the perfect gift for someone to give to another individual. In order to do it, she went to stay with the individual to whom the gift was to be given! I have to say that not very many people would have the "heart" to discover these beautiful gifts... Kitty even got one!

Kitty was immediately intrigued, both by Eva's philosophy and by her earnestness. 
I invest a lot of my time into my clients, Kitts, Eva smiled. I need to know that they care about who they're giving a gift to, or else how can I possibly care? I'm sure it's like you writing a story. If you don't care, how can the reader?...
I'm probably not the person you need for this, Eva said, which surprised Kitty. He was willing to pay her anything and she was turning it down....I'm sorry, George, this job isn't for me. Eva smiled and stood...
...So why did you say no to the job, exactly? Kitty asked.
...I was wondering, can you remember the first gift, really memorable gift, that you received that really meant something to you, that perhaps sparked something inside you? Perhaps it sparked this...this desire you have to buy people the perfect gift...

Eva lied to Kitty and told her "My Little Pony..." But she told her the truth before the book was over!

!!!

Sometimes you just need a "feel-good" book for yourself. One that you can sit back, enjoy... but eventful and insightful enough for you to stop and ponder to yourself. Am I like Katherine? Am I like Mr. Webb for whom Eva refused to work? And, more importantly, do I have a story to tell about my life? 

The only thing I wondered was whether, if you had an assignment, maybe even to yourself, would you make the effort to find those 100 names of people about whom you want to get to know better. The magazine Etcetera decided to continue this on an ongoing basis. I'm not sure it would work for another book, but with this writer, and her imagination needed to create such characters for this first one, hey, I'd look for the sequel...It definitely is a book to share with others. I've never been in a book club, but this one, it seems to me, would be a perfect selection. I'd like to talk about this book and all the memorable stories and why they were all so special...

Highly recommended--for those who recognize this is a book for your TBR list, just from reading my review!

GABixlerReviews

ABOUT CECELIA

Before embarking on her writing career, Cecelia Ahern completed a degree in Journalism and Media Communications. At twenty-one years old, she wrote her first novel,  PS, I Love You which instantly became an international bestseller and was adapted into a major motion picture starring Hilary Swank. Her subsequent novels, Where Rainbows End, If You Could See Me Now, A Place Called Here, Thanks for the Memories,  The Gift and  The Book of Tomorrow were also bestsellers along with her collection of short stories, Girl in the Mirror. 

Cecelia co-created the ABC Emmy Award winning TV comedy Samantha Who?, Hallmark’s Three Wise Women, and adapted her own novella, Mrs Whippy, for the stage. Cecelia’s books are published in forty-six countries and have collectively sold over 13 million copies. She lives in Dublin with her family. 

Jack Savage Shares His Memories With Readers in Latest Book!

"I have memories that go way back about movies I saw at the theater when I was a kid. I also seem to remember that I went to these movies by myself, and was trying to figure out life, in particular the lives that adults were living, through the movies. Anyway, there was this one film in black and white, and it was kind of funny. It was also a love story and had to do with a beautiful young girl who hadn't been around for quite a while and then had returned all grown up...

but it didn't matter--I got it and I loved the ending..."

The High Sky of Winter's Shadows

By W. Jack Savage

This is the fourth book I've read by Jack Savage--Will it be his last? You know, when a writer decides to write his autobiography, that is sometimes when he is ready to put up his...pen, or computer... But I'm not placing any bets on it, even if I were a betting person, which I'm not... You see his autobiography is made up of short clips from his life--from which he's learned something, or enjoyed a moment, or maybe even was irritated by an organization! Now, tell me, does that sound like an autobiography?

But one thing is positive, I believe, you must be Jack's age, and mine, to have learned some of the things he shares... And he openly admits that he is quite different from the risk-taking man he once was... Young readers could certainly learn from this short book, but is it possible to use something in another's life to help with your own? I think so. In fact, I read many self-help books when I was young and, in many ways, this book is more self-help than autobiographic. But I did learn much about the author's opinions.

In fact, the man who wrote this latest book... He and I could be friends... He's a talker; I'm a great listener (and reader!). I tend to recognize that I choose to remember what I want and calmly forget about anything else. He wonders why he doesn't remember actually walking back and forth to grade school..."Come on Jack", I would say, having heard (or read) him say that. Then I would respond, "What difference does that make?" I figure the reason why he wrote that short skit was to get somebody to respond to him... Sooo, I'll be doing that for you Jack! LOL

Jack even wrote one for me about a subject that concerned me... As an aside, there are a number of articles about athletics, games, etc., but the one about an individual who was convicted of sexual abuse at a major higher education institution showed me that even if a fan of sports, this writer also felt there was no way to justify what happened! Thanks Jack for being willing to speak out about this sensitive topic in your book...

It is always harder to review a book with multiple topics, short stories, in essence. I normally choose my most favorite topics and spotlight them, even though I realize that others will find the articles, such as on sports, of greater interest. Thing was, though, I was tagging just too many stories to comment on! For instance, Jack explained his book title in his Foreword. I appreciated that! Too many titles that come to me may mean something to the writer, but if you don't share it, the reader is wondering throughout the book--what does it mean???

Then he started talking about the Kennedy's

"There's clearly a pattern here: crime can't be seen to pay."
~~~

assassination, as sooooo many people still are doing! Was that when we started not to trust???

"Not everything needs to be questioned. But I see sequential, three-act storylines happening all the time that I could write as fiction and accurately predict the outcome. For those in my generation, after John Kennedy was assassinated, came the quick arrest of Lee Harvey Oswald. Two days later Oswalk was murdered on national television by this night club owner, Jack Ruby... Once the shock of the whole thing went away, everybody smelled a rat..."
                                                    ~~~

Readers, I think, will enjoy all of the stories about his life in radio, acting, etc. admitting that, for instance, "Fast Eddie Felson" in The Hustler was one of his role models...

"I remember one of my first role models or guys I wanted to grow up to be like, was Pete Dawkins, the last Heisman Trophy winner from West Point, and a Rhodes Scholar. Not long after that, I wanted to be like pool shart Fast Eddie Felson in the movie The Hustler. I saw no real conflict between the two, because as much as I admired the accomplishments of Pete Dawkins, I'd have probably traded them for Paul Newman's looks without hesitation..."

~~~

And then there are the one-liners, or zingers, that were thrown in to end a story, like, "If you're really going somewhere, you'll need to know who is full of shit and who is not." It's interesting how some people can throw out a lot of knowledge in such a finale...don't you think?

"I was in love with a girl once. I knew nothing would ever come of it but I liked the feeling anyway--to love from afar. Women like that do exist and I lived as if my life was a movie, so I knew how to act and how to feel...I felt like James Stewart following Kim Novak around in Hitchcock's Vertigo..."

Ok, I'm never going to write anything like an autobiography, so I might as well take this opportunity to share that my role model was none other than Kim Novak...wonder why... Oh well, I never met Jimmy Stewart though my first boyfriend was named Jimmy Stevenson, does that count...of course, that's when I was in 1st grade...LOL... Sorry Jack, but it's your memories that are creating my flashbacks!

And that's one of the reasons that people like to read about others, isn't it? We get a vicarious thrill when we find that other's thoughts are similar to ours and/or exactly opposite, so that we have a reaction--a need to connect with that person and discuss those topics with him or her...

Even frustration feels better if you're hearing it from another...Such as when Jack applied for Medicare online. Failed. Tried their automated telephone system... and then the punch line! "They want you to have a stroke and die during the process. I'm not kidding. If you die during the process but nowhere near completing it, they're off the hook..." Oh, my, did I enjoy this one!

And then there was our mutual love of the Globetrotters... And his willingness to share about Vietnam...

Of course you realize that I haven't even touched on so many of Jack's stories! But that's all right because if you have an interest in the era in which the mentioned events took place, then I think you will find that this writer has given readers a stimulating and inspiring look at his own life and the times in which he has lived. Some are funny, some are sad--some you'll agree with and some you won't. But you will have had the opportunity to read another's personal opinion about many of the "great times and events" during the past 50 years or so... Jack I loved this one! Tell your family to hold on to copies, because they are going to cherish this book some day in the future!


GABixlerReviews

W.Jack Savage is a retired broadcaster, artist and educator. He is Vietnam Veteran and graduate of The University of Minnesota, Mankato and received his Master's Degree from California State University, Los Angeles. Jack has now authored six books: three novels, two short story collections and the autobiographical The High Sky of Winter's Shadows. To date, thirty-eight of Jack's short stories have been published in various online and print magazines. This includes all of them from his two short story collections, Bumping and Other Stories and The Petorik Thesis and Tales of the Global West. He has also designed the covers of his books using his original art work. These include his three novels: More With Cal and Uncle Bill, State Champions and The Children Shall Be Blameless. Jack's art has been featured in numerous publications as well. Jack and his wife Kathy live in Monrovia, California.

Suil Kang Shares Short Stories in Anthology of Korean Village Life!

Pagoda Park

"March First Movement: A nationwide mass protest that began on March 1, 1919, against the Japanese colonization of Korea. It began with a recital of the Declaration of Independence for Korea in Pagoda Park in Seoul and last several months. The Japanese responded with severe reprisals and killings: their accounts report that 553 Koreans were killed and that 12,000 Koreans were arrested. Korean sources report that 7,500 Koreans were killed and that 45,000 were arrested..."

~~~

"Korean Independence Day: Korea became independent on August 15, 1945, following Japan's surrender to the Allies in World War II.

~~~

"Korean War: The war between North and South Koreas. It started on the early morning of June 25, 1950. One source estimates that 1.5 million people were killed, while 3.6 million people were injured.

~~~

"April 19th Revolution: A nationwide protest that followed the elections held on March 15, 1960 and reached its peak on April 19, 1960, when the police and military killed hundreds and injured thousands of civilians. It ended the reign of South Korea's first president, Rhee Seungman. He was airlifted to Hawaii on April 29, 1960; his henchman Prime Minister Yi Kiboong was killed by his own son.

Park Junghee

"May 16th Coup D'etat: A coup led by Colonel Park Junghee in 1961. It overthrew the civilian government that rose after the April Nineteenth Revolution and began the reign of President Park.

President Park was in office during the time period covered in this book...

Sungbook: 

A Collection of 

Korean Short Stories

By Suil Kang

Author Suil Kang included the above events at the end of her anthology... I thought that was very significant, because, as it is all over the world, it is the people in the country, the small villages, towns, and even cities that are, at the same time, most and least affected by war... During her stories she might mention the President as it relates to the effects to daily life. Because, of course, that is also usual--decisions are made, regardless of how they affect the people... The stories Suil Kang shares is about the country in which she lived prior to her adoption--near Seoul, Korea. They are not all happy stories but they resonate with the honesty, the guilt, the pain...and the love that each individual experiences, trying to live, to possibly succeed, and to look toward a future life...

Kyonghee was a leader among her friends, "not only because she was the oldest, the tallest, and the strongest, but also because she was fair and had a generous mind." Her father had left her mother and three sisters to be with a new wife. She did not like her father, who acted as if he loved her, but had, after all, left them. 

I laughed when, one day, the children had gone for a walk up in the woods and heard music, saw women in traditional dresses, their hair in tight buns... Kyonghee explained she'd heard her aunties talking about it. President Park and his men came often! Although the vid included is for a recent talent show, I could not resist showing the potential "geisha" playing for us!

There are nine fairly long stories, plus an appendix with Korean Words, names, events and practices as included in the stories. Most are easily read, even with some Korean words, which will add greatly to the reading pleasure of Korean-Americans.

The most outrageous story for me was "Mr. Song's House." With my facilities management background, I cringed on Mr. Song's behalf! You see, he decided to build a "western" house, with all the assumed advantages we Americans have--which, of course, most do not have...LOL Ayoung, a young girl that is in several of the stories, had watched...and dreamed as the house was built

He built and completed his home, only to have it demolished...He built a second one, less grand...It was demolished...Finally, the last one was allowed to stand...

"Ayoung could have kept on watching Mr. Song and his family,
except for the uneasy feeling she had, which told her she was
intruding. It was rude to keep on watching them, which or
not all was done in full view of any passersby. Ayoung
pretended that she had a forgotten errand and picked up her
pace towards the next hill. She would climb the ridge to the
point of the soldiers guarding the Blue House
  [the President's Home]. She would then
return home, making a large circuit...
~~~ 

During this story, Ayoung also garnered my attention when she was walking one day--she did not want to disturb Mr. Song... During her walk, she enjoyed the beauty of her country, including the sky...

"High up in the blue expanse, cotton clouds drew fantastic pictures: birds with beaks miles long... scanning the sky to see Jesus and God the Father as Minister Jang had told her long ago...Could she see the fact of her father? Would he be up there? Ayoung searched. She remember. Only Christians, only Christians would be high up in heaven...
"However gentle he had been, he would not be up there. Only Christians said the minister. That was not fair, was it? What about her grandparents? If her father had chosen to disbelieve--for he had surely heard of Jesus--how about her grandparents, who may have not heard of Him? Was it
fair to burn them forever and ever?...Would a just God burn them in an everlasting fire? Minister Jang must have meant to add something else. Where was he? Would he have told her what happened to someone like her great,
great grandparents once he had returned home? Closing her eyes, Ayoung prayed and resume the walk..."
                                        ~~~

My thought? How cruel and insensitive we Christians can be!

Readers will come to know the culture, the customs of those who lived much simpler lives in Korea, before western wealth apparently was envied, by some, and decisions by government officials and those with money made decision that affected so many others through the country!

One other story that caught my attention is about Miran and Minkyu, a young boy and girl who became friends in high school. They had fallen in love. He came from a rich family, she a poor family. When his mother put an envelope of money down on a table and left, she was stunned--"Miran had believed in fairy tales!"

Miran kept the money, it would be used for Chul to attend school, just as all extra money was used to support his education...

But by the time Chul entered school, away from his mother and Miran who had always put him first, he decided he could not do it--"I did not wish to go on pretending the the professors were teaching me something and that I was learning something. I did not have it in me to figure things out on my own either... He had joined with other student activists...

I wondered, as I closed the book, whether Chul had been one of those killed during a revolution, coup, or war... As with all of life, we come full circle to the death from those killing, seeking something more...

Park Geun-hye

The editor, Adolfo Caso, of Branden Books, might have been the one who wrote on the back cover, that "Suil writes about her old country, showing a keen perception and with human understanding of her native country and its people." Indeed! Also on the back is a short blurb for each of the short stories Kang has shared. I noticed something from these stories, although I could be wrong, but it seemed to me that the women of this country are very strong. Their first priority is family and nothing else matters, especially in the support of the men in the family. Perhaps with the first female President of South Korea, Park Geun-hye, there will be an opportunity to use that familial strength for the good of the country and a more liberal role for the women, who learned so much from living in the small villages, dreaming of a time when they might have the chance to succeed...

I enjoyed spending time in Korea with Suil Kang, learning, and thank Suil Kang for sharing the stories that wonderfully speak of her beautiful homeland... Highly recommended...


GABixlerReviews

About the Author: Born in Seoul, Korea, Suil Kang was adopted by an American father and sent to Bossier City, Lousiana in 1977 to start her high school years. She graduated from Valdosta High School in Georgia. Having studied electrical engineering at Georgia Institute of Technology and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, she worked as an integrated circuit designer. She then studied law at New York University and worked as a patent attorney.

She now lives in College Station, Texas, with her husband and a daughter, a few blocks from her mother and sister. In this first book, Suit writes about her old country, showing a keen perception and with human understanding of her native country and its people.

Anthology on Fate Surprises, Amuses, Encourages...

Bas relief of Atropos. Greek Goddess,
 cutting the thread of life.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atropos

"Coincidence is God's Way or remaining anonymous.--Albert Einstein


The Mystery of Fate:


Common Coincidence
 Or Divine Intervention?


Edited by Arlene Uslander
 and Brenda Warneka




No matter how learned you become, there are certain things that continue to happen in life for which, sometimes, there is just no answer to the "Why?" When you add the "How?" it becomes even more a question that seems to have no answer. Sometimes the questions remain unanswered. Sometimes people say that what happened was just a coincidence...

But for many of us, we just can't accept that... especially when you hear or read stories about incidents that have occurred in the lives of people we know. Arlene Uslander and Brenda Warneka have had incidents in their own lives. Not only did it affect each of them, but it led to their agreeing to gather true stories from others  that may not have been similar in content, but ultimately always led to the question of "coincidence or Intervention." Personally, I'm quite willing to state I believe in Divine Intervention. But if you don't, I challenge you to read these stories and provide a valid explanation. Oh, and in my opinion, coincidence is not really a valid response...although I do believe in the word, coincidence, for many events...just not those where you can clearly see that an intervention must have taken place...


The cover is a beautiful photo collage representing some of the stories you'll find in this excellent book. If you're like me, I chose to read the book over a series of days, reading one or two stories, responding to them, admittedly many times in an emotional amazement of wonder. But for this review, I thought I'd spotlight the individual who initiated the planning for this anthology...Arlene Uslander.

And what better way to share her own stories is through a taste of her own words, first, from God Writes Straight Lines in Crooked Letters:

"My mother used the expression 'God writes straight lines in crooked letters.' often when I was a child, only I never knew what it meant. I think I do now.


"It all started with a rock--an ordinary, flat rock. My husband and I, both Chicagoans, were in Arizona visiting our friends Brenda and Dick Warneka. Little did I realize that God was going to lead me along a path (literally) that eventually would save, or at the very least, prolong, my life..." (p. 125)

From Some Kind of Miracle..."I saw Callie at the end of the hall, a look of amazement on her face. 'It's some kind of miracle!...Your mother's eyes are open!'


"Hurrying into my mother's bedroom, I was shocked to see that her eyes were open. She was propped up in the rented hospital bed, staring straight ahead. At first I thought she was dead, and my heart started racing. But then she shifted her gaze and looked straight at me. She had a puzzled, questioning look on her face, as if to ask 'Where am I?" Or perhaps 'Where am I going?'...


"I held her frail body gently and spoke to her softly, telling her how much I loved her. And then I could feel and see that she was gone..."  Thinking about...[everything that had just happened] I suspect that Callie was right. It was some kind of miracle." (p. 199)

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:
Humpback_whale.jpg

I marked so many of the stories as I read...nearly all held my attention to ponder...and, yes, comfort me... but my personal favorite was called The Guide by Mary-Alice Boulter who shares a story that happened to her father and his friend in 1954, about getting lost in the fog, at sea and being saved...by a whale...

"Now, old feller," Paul said to the giant quietly floating just ahead of the boat. "You're the navigator." He saluted loosely. "I'll follow you."

"The great creature's carnacle-spotted body began to move slowly into the fog. Paul started the engine once again and pushed open the throttle enough to match the whale's speed. He glanced at the compass. The needle was still swinging erratically, useless...

"Together, the whale and the small craft advanced into the thick shroud of fog. Paul thought they must look like a toy following along..." (p.102)

It's interesting that the editors gathered stories through writers' sites...Just imagine the number of tales they might have received had they been able to solicit responses more broadly. These "Real Stories ~ Real People" are wonderful to read. Admittedly, we still have no answer as to why there are not stories such as these in everybody's lives. That is, indeed, the Mystery of Fate.


Highly recommended for those seeking answers or those who enjoy reading personal stories that amaze and thrill!

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Newly Expanded Edition of Water and Life Now Available!

Water and Life:


Photos and Poems
in English and Italian


By Adolph Caso






Followers of my blog will already know that I am a great fan of Adolfo Caso's photography and poetry. With his camera, he captures snippets of God's beautiful world and the people inhabiting it. With this poetry, he stirs our memories and our passions. One thing he doesn't do is leave you wanting for something "new" from him to enjoy!

The fifth edition of Water and Life has just come out and bookstores may not even have it available yet, so I've included a link to his publishing site. By the way, while testing this link, I watched a track on the latest course Adolfo is teaching for Dante University! And you'll also see another of his latest books, God and Evolution, which I've already recommended to readers... This energetic, experienced writer, poet, photographer and yes, professor is certain to keep you thinking and learning!  I keep telling him I'm retired but obviously that just means to him that I have even more time to read and learn...

So, I know you will not be surprised that this fifth edition includes some of his older poems but many of his new ones and more beautiful color photography!

Please note that the book includes poetry in both English and Italian. (Can't read Italian? Did you know that Caso also created the Kaso English to Italian Dictionary?)

I was intrigued enough by one of those poems to launch a brief internet search. I found that "Sonetto Semplice--Morte Li Luigina" was  in English "Sonnet Simple--Death Of Luigina."  You, see, I had been interested because the poem was just one word, repeated over and over... I had to know what it meant.  


...Sola...
      sola...
      sola!


The translation: 


Alone...
  Alone...
  Alone! 


I found myself weeping...


So, I thought I would try for another translation on the site--the Title Aprile, I felt, would be April...But I found that the words did not translate the same when duplicated. Then I clicked to have the words spoken. They were cold, lifeless...and I knew that the language could not be adequately shared by computer, no matter how wonderful they are. But for our Italian Americans, this is a wonderful addition, providing a touch of their heritage or home...


Adolfo's love poems are so wonderful to read. Let me share just a few lines from one of his longer ones:


I have loved you
with all my heart and soul
more
    than you could ever imagine,                        and then continuing with  


Love is not a word
not a fantasy.
It is there--
                   here!                                                     and ending


I want to love you
more than you can ever imagine
And when I do
and you are there
the words of love will explode
like volcanoes at sea
thrusting islands
into
                  the
                                     skies.

Caso speaks just as passionately about war, death...living! He takes you into a topic about which he strongly feels and forces you to share his thoughts, his opinions. Quoting just the first few lines of "Suicide Through Murder"

Blood

I will give

as water

enough to invigorate a boxer

for another round

Suicide

                through

                                   murder!

Or he shares the simplest of life's pleasures and makes them meaningful, such as in "Three M & Ms":

...

She  put her little hand into the bag,

And,

Withdrawing three M & Ms,

She placed them gently into my receptive hand.

...

Catching the moments of his life, Adolfo willingly shares them with all of us! It's an interesting thing about a book of poetry. You can read it one time and find words that mean something very special...

Then the next time you read that same book, some other words, new and vibrant, shout out at you...

This review presents just a sample of what is available in the latest, Fifth Edition of Water and Life: Photos and Poems in English and Italian.

Highly recommended to poetry lovers and even more so to those who measure life by the pleasures we find in our daily living...presented by Adolfo Caso...to family and friends...

Book provided

by Publisher

GABixlerReviews