WEST WITH GIRAFFES

by LYNDA RUTLEDGE

…and so, the journey continues, in the Fall of 1938, for Wild Boy and Wild Girl, two East African giraffes who miraculously survived a killer hurricane on their sea voyage to New York. They traveled aboard a freighter from (present day) Kenya, arriving in New York harbor in a sorry state!! WEST WITH GIRAFFES is based on a true story, with some fiction filling in the blanks.

After spending some time in quarantine, Boy’s and Girl’s cross-country road trip to the San Diego Zoo commenced, as evidenced by all the press coverage along the way.

This is one of those books that’s different and a bit quirky…but one that touches your heart with it’s wit and charm. Woodrow Wilson Nickel (Woody,) age 105, feels his life ebbing away when he hears a television report about the possible extinction of giraffes. He has a story that he feels MUST be told! He offers…”I could’ve lived my entire life in the shadow of Dust Bowl miseries and Hitler horrors. Instead, such times hold less pain because of two animals I once knew.” “Few true friends have I known and two were giraffes…” And so began his story…

The animal lover in me delighted in this story about Old Man , Woody Nickel, and Red, as they struggled across the U.S.A. to deliver two of nature’s most beautiful, fragile, and at that time…rare creatures 3200 miles in a flimsy rig, to their ultimate destination…the San Diego Zoo. (It’s hard to imagine a time when most people had never seen a giraffe other than in pictures.) Woody, a 17 year old orphaned teenager who’d had a tough life thus far, convinced Old Man (Riley Jones) to let him drive the rig transporting the two tall guests across the multiple thousand miles. Red, a dreamy-eyed girl and would-be photographer/reporter, became part of the group as she followed, uninvited, to get the story for LIFE Magazine …her ambitious goal. They struggled over the mountains, across Dust Bowl territory, overcoming daunting obstacles like hairpin turns, single lane unpaved pothole-ridden roads, underpasses, tunnels, dust storms, floods and encounters with scoundrels.

This was a lovely, emotion-filled story combining history, fiction and love for animals. Inspired by true events, WEST WITH GIRAFFES explores what it means to be changed by the grace of animals, respect for all life, the kindness of strangers, the passing of time and a story told before it’s too late. It’s a true testament to the beauty of animals and human nature…and the bonds between man and animal.

Highly recommended…especially if you’re an animal lover!

In view of the historically, unspeakably tragic depopulation of our First Nation men, women and children that unfolded after 1492, the survival of Indigenous people is truly extraordinary and speaks loudly to their strengths and innate knowledge of the land and meaning of community. However, even today the legacy of invasion, conquest, inhumanity and colonialism continues to exact a terrible human toll. This is what’s recently been discovered in Canada…

Sadly, this abuse and inhumane genocide continues to happen throughout the world…as well as in these United States. It’s very difficult to imagine, as these people, some dear friends of mine, are hanging on to their traditions and cultural ways for dear life, lest they lose who they are…who they’re meant to be and all they can teach the rest of the world of their proven, effective pathways. They’re soldiers…each and every one of them. But it would be wonderful if we all could just live our lives, side by side with one another…in community, welcoming one another with open arms and hearts, ready to share and exchange knowledge that will help our 7th generation grow and prosper. I pray this will come to pass…as the alternative is too terrifying to contemplate!

BE OUTRAGED!!!

THE MAGDALENE DECEPTION

by Gary McAvoy

A mythical legend, the resurrection of Jesus, Holocaust Jewish gold, the French Resistance, Nazis, Croatian fascists/terrorists (the Ustasha,) Vatican intrigue, high tech, action…and possible romance…what more could you ask for in a novel? THE MAGDALENE DECEPTION has it all in a masterful blend of real history and ‘what if’ present day!

Gary McAvoy, a superb historical researcher, has skillfully woven a tale that began thousands of years ago and continues into this millennium. There were two plots in this novel, merged into one outstanding story. The first plot explores the Magdalene and Rennes le Chateau in France…the second explores the Vatican involvement in the escape of Nazi war criminals and the long kept gold and money that the Vatican stored for the Nazi government. Much of the story is based on true events, but the author has also used his imagination to reveal what conspiracy theorists suspect is the truth about the Magdalene…a truth that, if revealed (and proven,) would devastate the Catholic Church and Christianity as we know it.

The story concerns a young priest who’s working at the Vatican as a digital archivist. His discovery of a hidden ancient document sends him journeying to research the document further. Concurrently, a young female journalist is working on tracing gold that the Nazis stole from the Jews (and others) as well as the banks that helped them…and the possible Vatican connections. Happily, the two truth-seekers end up working together.

McAvoy includes the right amount of history throughout the story to make the mystery plausible. He also includes descriptions of the inner workings of the Vatican, its political intrigue and behind-the-scenes manipulations. Too, there’s a hint of romance showing the temptations and inner struggles that priests face to maintain their vows.

THE MAGDALENE DECEPTION is a well-researched thrill ride that I highly recommend.

Sunset and the plane

Sandwiched between cloud layers…

Orange, up and down

Traveling is one of the best ways to enhance personal growth and broaden your horizons. It enables you to do things different from your routine activities. When you travel, you step out of your comfort zone to a different environment that urges you become more responsible and gives you a sense of independence. You become a more compassionate person. You view different lifestyles, customs, food, scenery…develop an appreciation for the recent and ancient past… and meet people like you as well as those very different from you, all with a like heart. We all want the same things in life, no matter where our journeys may take us and who we happen to meet along the way.

I’ve documented (with my photos) some of my most thrilling moments encountered in my travels…for me to remember and cherish as well as to inspire you…

ROLL IT…

Real contentment is

Getting lost around the world

Then finding YOURSELF.

Spring snow is not so unusual in Central New York, but unfortunately, it doesn’t last long. We’ve even had snow in the merry month of May!! Here’s my nod to April 2021’s beautifully heavy snowfall…that was gone by day’s end.

Morning snow falling…

Below, roots stir quietly

With Spring’s rhythm.

HAPPY SPRING 2021!

HAPPY SPRING, EVERYONE!

THE VENICE SKETCHBOOK by Rhys Bowen

Rhys Bowen brings Venice to vibrant life in this dual-timeline, historical fiction novel. Filled with intrigue, secrets, history, love lost and found…and enchanting glimpses of evocative Venice. As I have been fortunate to visit Venice many times, I was swept away by the familiar descriptions of places, food, art…like being there…unlike anywhere else! It was a love letter to this fabulous island.

We follow art teacher, Lettie, to the City of Canals” just prior to WWII …and then, her great niece Caroline, who visits in 2001 (on the heels of 9/11) to scatter her great aunt Lettie’s ashes in her most beloved place. Further, upon her death, Lettie left Caroline with a last request, gifting her three mysterious keys, her sketchbook and a single whispered word, “VENICE.”

The unraveling of this puzzling bequest takes us on a gentle (but page-turning) roller coaster ride through different historical times and the lives of both Lettie and Caroline.

I loved every moment of this book and happily give it a RAVE REVIEW!!

THE LADY and the UNICORN by Tracy Chevalier

Tracy Chevalier’s story of “The Lady and the Unicorn” is woven around the 6 famous tapestries (now housed in their own space in Paris’s Musee de Moyen Age.) Considered to be the greatest masterpiece of the medieval ages, they portray the seduction of a unicorn by a series of noblewomen.

The senses- sight, hearing, taste and smell are depicted in the first 5 weavings…the 6th depicts desire. Chevalier’s imaginative and inspiring story, (previously unknown,) weaves fact and fiction to help unfold how, why and for whom these tapestries were created…filling in a background that has sadly been lost to history “The Lady and the Unicorn,” takes place in 1490.

There are actually a few known facts about this group of weavings, thought to have been commissioned by a member of the Le Viste family… French nobility. Designed by a Parisian painter, Nicholas des Innocents, there are, pressed within its folds, the desires, loves and frustrations of all those involved in their production. Artists, cartoonists, dyers, weavers, seamstresses and financiers were all part of the series. The novel tells the story of two families…one, a noble family in Paris and the other, the family of weavers in Brussels, Belgium (then, Flanders, where the finest weaving of the time was performed.) Nicholas and the tapestries are the connection between the two families.

The author’s research on the history of tapestries was all-encompassing. Everything was very well documented …from exactly how a tapestry was made to the usual way a Belgian workshop was organized and run. Chevalier creates and shapes a sense of the lives and relationships lived by a handful of not-so simple people in a snapshot of time! The sections of the book most interesting to me were the descriptions of the Belgian family who wove the tapestries…from the design cartoons (enlargements from original paintings) that guided their art, the way they set up and used the looms, the importance of the guilds in setting and enforcing the standards for their craft to the way they lived among the looms and threads used in their work. Every chapter of the book was a perspective of a different character so you felt what each person involved was feeling…knew what they were thinking.

In “The Lady and the Unicorn,” Tracy Chevalier’s gift as a wordsmith tells a beautiful, timeless and intriguing literary tapestry proving that she’s more than just a good writer but also a good weaver of medieval tales with historical significance. LOVED IT!!!

I’ve been working on some challenge pieces of digital art for Digital Whisper (digitalwhisper.blogspot.com) whose theme was a throwback to my childhood…little red wagon…

…and for Flicker’s DIGITALMANIA, (https://flicker.com/groups/digitalmania,) we met artist GREG HANSON (www.galleriagreg.com/collage-quilts.html) who’s an artist specializing in collage and assemblage…challenging and sooo much fun!

Short and sweet…that’s it for this posting. Hope you’re reawakening with the promise of spring and summer ahead. Enjoy the longer days and the warmer sunshine. I know I will!

Until the next…

Big Hugs,

abbyj

“THE LAST STORY OF MINA LEE”

by Nancy Jooyoun Kim

“WOMAN of GOD”

by JAMES PATTERSON & MAXINE PAETRO

“WOMAN of GOD” follows the life of Brigid Fitzgerald, a woman who survived a difficult childhood with drug addicted parents, as she becomes a doctor, serving on the front lines of war-torn Sudan. I was immersed in her MASH world where hopelessly understaffed, undersupplied, underfunded clinics fought the evil ravages of man and disease. With many twists and turns, Brigid loses several close family members and friends. A series of trials and locations test her faith at every turn and she struggles to maintain her faith in God every step of the way.

As I met the people in Brigid’s life, her story expanded in every direction and I was swept into a drama that focused a harsh spotlight on today’s events while providing a vision of a possible future. Brigid’s story drew attention to aspects of the world that people often overlook…civil war and what little help victims are receiving, coping with horrible family tragedies… and women in the church.

There’s an inescapable authenticity to Brigid Fitzgerald that propels the story forward…along with very short chapters…(not that you’ll WANT to put the book down! ) James Patterson and Maxine Paetro have given readers a tale of perseverance that’s not their usual fare. It will entertain some and irritate others, but it will give all readers something to think about. A gentle thriller with a contemporary feel, I can only hope that there’s a sequel in the works…there’s so much more to this journey for Brigid and her daughter.

A highly recommended read!