Reviews with TLC

The Green Gourmet Perfect Cup of Tea Book by Lori Jane Stewart is a nice appetizer for tea time. Stewart whets the appetite for a delightful cup of tea any time of the day. She explains some of the history of tea, tea's influence around the world, and how make a cup of tea. It was a quick and interesting read that left me wanting to know more about the tea I drink several cups of a day.

I read Four O'Clock Sizzle: A Rebecca Mayfield Mystery by Joanne Pence while travelling. It's an easy, light, fun read. Pence likes to blur the lines between procedural and cozy mystery in this series in a way that makes Rebecca Mayfield sometimes do things it's hard to imagine a police officer doing yet Pence gives her believable if flawed reasons for making the decisions she makes. The chemistry between Rebecca and Richie Amalfi has the reader both cheering for them and wondering what each of them is thinking at different times throughout the book. And, then there's the police investigation where Rebecca is torn between her feelings for Richie and her concerns that the rumors about Richie might hold more truth than she wants to believe. She struggles to reconcile the Richie she spends time with and the Richie of his reputation. As her investigation continues, Rebecca finds she needs Richie to solve the crime and she needs to protect him from danger for her own pers...

The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood made me squirm because Atwood creates a world that feels like it would be all too easy to slip into without truly noticing until it was too late. Atwood's ability to create characters who feel real made me identify with the characters even when I didn't want to. I felt the pain, the fears, and the hidden desires and joys of the characters as they traversed a world that would be a nightmare for most of us. In fact, The Handmaid's Tale stayed with me as I went about my day and popped into my dreams on a few occasions. Atwood deftly brings together elements of society and belief systems that continue to divide us by exploring a potential outcome that I don't think anyone wants. The Handmaid's Tale pushed me to think about my place in the world and my role in protecting the rights that matter to me. I couldn't help but think about what I would do if I faced a world like the one Atwood creates in The Handmaid's Tale ...

When I bought White Trash: The 400-Year Untold History of Class in America by Nancy Isenberg, I thought I knew what the book would contain. I thought I understood the class history of America. Isenberg presents a history that makes so much more sense that the romanticized version of history I was taught in high school. She argues effectively for the idea that we've always had a class system in America and that we all buy into that class system even while proclaiming we are a classless society. Isenberg presents factual elements and references historical documents to support her supposition that America has always been a country with a class system. Her expansive discussion of indentured servitude and other poor people shipped to America in our early history is enlightening. She discusses how our class system affects everything from the economy to politics. I felt uncomfortable at times because I really wanted to resist parts of the book that didn't resonate with what I wante...

I read The Complete Collected Poems of Maya Angelou  several years ago and loved it so much that I often pull it off my shelf and peruse the contents. Sometimes I open it randomly and read whatever page I land on. Other times, I seek out a poem that has taken root in my thoughts for one reason or another.  The Complete Collected Poems of Maya Angelou has become a book I turn to for inspiration, encouragement, enlightenment, and education. Angelou's poems speak to the existence we all share on this planet and her words resonate across the artificial barriers we draw between us. When she writes about us all being part of the "Human Family", she pushes us to see beyond the stereotypes and see how much we all have in common. When she writes about being a "Phenomenal Woman", she reminds us all that we have the power to embrace our own phenomenal selves. The Complete Collected Poems of Maya Angelou includes many poems that speak to her life experience and her obse...