Blog Archives
Bravery of Women
Lottie Beauchamp’s War follows a woman searching for information on her great aunt who served in the Women’s Auxilary Air Force during WWII. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
Thank you for inviting me to interview. A few years ago I read about women serving in the Women’s Auxiliary Airforce (ATA) and found their stories fascinating. From there, I began to research other areas where women’s contributions were significant to Allied success in WW2. Their bravery can never be underestimated. It made me think how incredible it would have been to have worked with these women.
From these wonderful accounts, Lottie Beauchamp’s War began to evolve. I wanted to combine fiction with some fact and my research began.
Lottie’s life is fascinating, and you included so much detail readers will be able to experience life during WWII. What kind of research did you do for this novel to ensure you captured the essence of the story’s theme?
I read a lot of books and searched internet archives about the lives of the women. I also delved into as much detail as I needed for authenticity, for example, what transport was available, what certain streets looked like, the time the moon rose on a certain day in France, etc! It’s amazing just how much information is out there. I should stress, Lottie, her personal story, all dialogue and representation of the people who existed, is fiction but I’ve tried to make the story as authentic as possible within the historical setting.
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
To celebrate the astonishing bravery of women in WWII and highlight some of the inequality that existed in their roles.
What is the next story that you’re writing, and when will it be published?
I’m just beginning research on another area of history…
Author Links: GoodReads | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Amazon
Her great-niece, Charlotte Beauchamp, visits the care home where she’s spent her final years.
Despite the family connection, Charlotte’s never met her great aunt.
The manager tells Charlotte what little she knows about Lottie and gives her a box of belongings.
Charlotte feels compelled to find out more about the secret life of Lottie.
Your Identity in Christ
Your Identity in Christ is a devotional penned by the talented writer Robin Revis Pyke, Ph.D. This book is specifically crafted for women who aspire to flourish in their Christian lives by focusing on topics such as faith, redemption, forgiveness, and purpose. The author has skillfully incorporated a reflective moment after each section. This section includes thought-provoking questions that encourage readers to ponder their thoughts and actions while contemplating ways to serve their community.
The tone of the devotional is commendable, as the author delicately addresses complex issues, such as God’s expectations, without being judgmental or condemning towards readers. Throughout the book, readers are able to feel the author’s compassion and love for them. Additionally, the author touches upon contemporary culture and raises compelling points about how readers should follow their faith instead of current trends. This devotional covers several fundamental topics, making it an ideal read for those who are new to Christianity. However, readers who have a deeper understanding of the Bible may find the topics covered familiar. Despite this, the book contains several noteworthy points that are well-written and relatable to everyday life.
Your Identity in Christ is an insightful and well-crafted devotional addressing pertinent issues women face today. I highly recommend this book to women who are seeking to deepen their knowledge of Christianity or gain a better understanding of the Bible. In addition, I highly recommend this book for its engaging content and impressive writing style.
Pages: 104 | ASIN : B0C1HG1WG7
resilient
Katherine Turner’s resilient memoir is a powerful and candid account of her journey through a childhood marked by abuse, neglect, mental illness, addiction, and poverty. Turner’s story begins with her parents’ struggles with addiction and her father’s frequent absence from her life due to work. Tragically, her childhood was plagued with sexual abuse and emotional trauma, and she did not receive the love and care that she needed. Following her parents’ separation and her mother’s rehab, Turner and her sister were placed in foster care, and at a young age, Turner had to become a parent to her little sister while navigating her own trauma. Though her new home provided a stable and caring environment, Turner continued to struggle with the traumas of her past, loneliness, and difficult choices. In her efforts to cope, she turned to self-harm and addiction, ultimately realizing she was following in her biological parents’ footsteps.
resilient is a profoundly moving and candid memoir that captivated me from beginning to end. Turner’s vivid descriptions and raw vulnerability took me through a range of emotions as I followed her story of struggle and shame. Turner’s storytelling is both heart-wrenching and inspiring, highlighting the immense strength required to overcome one’s past and build a better future. This book is not an easy read, but it is important. Turner’s experiences shed light on the need to listen to abuse victims and provide support during difficult times. Her honesty and bravery in sharing her story are commendable, and her resolve is genuinely inspiring. resilient offers an unflinching look at the effects of abuse, neglect, and addiction on a person’s life and touches on themes of trauma, healing, growth, and resilience.
The memoir, resilient, is a touching and inspirational story about survival and overcoming the obstacles that life hands you. I highly recommend this book to anyone seeking a poignant and thought-provoking read that showcases the strength of the human spirit in overcoming adversity.
Pages: 525 | ASIN : B09BBPKFFZ
Where Have I Been All My Life
A memoir offers a unique perspective on a particular time in one’s life from the author’s point of view. In Where Have I Been All My Life, Lisa Benson shares her personal journey of self-discovery and transformation. The author candidly reflects on her life, admitting to making mistakes, and shares the valuable lessons she learned through therapy. This inspirational book is organized into four sections and thirty-four chapters, each addressing a specific challenge that Benson faced and the decisions she made to create a more fulfilling life. While the book may seem like a lengthy read at 300 pages, the language is clear and accessible, making it a smooth ride for readers. Benson’s experiences are thoughtfully sorted, labeled, and organized into neat units that are easy to follow.
One of the notable aspects of the book is the author’s artful use of flashbacks to provide context and history to the next area to be addressed. As Benson shares her story, she encourages readers to look back and evaluate their own experiences to gain insights and grow. Benson’s memoir serves as a guidebook, offering introspection and evaluation without being prescriptive. She recommends readers, particularly women, free themselves from behavior patterns that proved damaging in her own experience. The author identifies ways in which even seemingly positive habits could prove to be based on or create insecurities and pain.
Where Have I Been All My Life is a cautionary tale that readers can learn from. However, Benson’s journey of self-discovery and transformation offers valuable lessons on how to turn roadblocks into doorways for growth. It’s an informative read that anyone can benefit from.
Pages: 239 | ASIN : B0BKQR4WD3
Secrets of the Kashmir Valley
Secrets of the Kashmir Valley is a must-read for anyone who wants to understand the untold truths of the Kashmir Valley. Farhana Qazi does an excellent job of bringing to light the true stories of women in this region who have suffered immense pain, loss, and terror. The stories are not only filled with sadness but also with hope for a better future.
The author effectively conveys the reality of life in one of the most militarized zones in the world, where the Indian government has imposed strict control, making it difficult for the voices of the Kashmiris to be heard. Despite the constant fear of detention, curfew, and violent raids, the women of Kashmir continue to celebrate happy occasions, but always with the underlying fear of what might happen next.
This emotional book highlights the atrocities committed by the Indian army, including mass graves, restrictions on basic human rights, and the countless incidents of rape, even of women as young as 17 and as old as 80. The writing style is simple yet powerful, making the reader feel the pain and suffering of the women in the region.
Secrets of the Kasmir Valley is a moving and eye-opening account of the struggles faced by the people of Kashmir. These powerful stories bring awareness to this country and what the people endure. For those that want to learn more about this region and understand what it is like to live there as a woman, this informative and passionate look at life in the Kasmir Valley will shed light on the decades of suffering and the unstoppable desire for survival.
Pages: 186 | ASIN : B08D68Y5FL
The Possibility of Everywhere
Beth Harkins’s, The Possibility of Everywhere, is a must-read for every traveler or for anyone who one-day dreams of traveling. If you’re a seasoned traveler, you’ll find that this book will evoke memories and rekindle a sense of wanderlust. For those who dream of adventurous travel, this book will carry them on their journey to the places of their imagination and destinations they wish to visit.
Cindy Hollingsworth, the protagonist, brings readers on her travel chronicle across various countries, continents, and landscapes, documenting the stories of women along the way. The book is captivating, not just because of its vivid descriptions but the insightful characters within her journey. One of the key themes of this book is the protagonist’s journey to self-discovery and finding acceptance.
Cindy transforms from a self-doubting person who relies on others to build confidence to an empowered woman who embraces her feminine power. This transformation is a remarkable portrayal of personal growth and self-awareness as she gets in touch with the possibilities and capabilities within. The author wrote this book carefully, with each page marking a new chapter or adventure in Cindy’s life.
The Possibility of Everywhere: Casablanca to Oklahoma City, Kathmandu to Timbuktu represents a desire for new experiences and a search for one’s purpose. This book is a statement, or metaphor, for Cindy’s journey, as she experiences a range of emotions from bliss to loss and thrill to uncertainty. It’s an excellent book about those who seek the courage to find themselves and their purpose in life.
ASIN 1639887024 | Pages 318
No Unpaid Passengers
No Unpaid Passengers is an emotionally riveting collection of poems written by author Pam R. Johnson Davis. The collection is organized into six sections: I: Unpaid Pain, II: The Next Stop, III: Alone on the Night Train, IV: Love on the Ride, V: End of the Line, and VI: Afterword: Anybody Can Write a Poem (Or How Rejection Turned into a TED Talk). Serious themes such as racism, assault, divorce, and religion intermingle with themes of love, friendship, joy, home, and beauty to take readers on an incredibly raw and relatable journey.
Author Pam Johnson Davis does an incredible job of telling a story that touches everyone in some way. Davis plays into expectations with her use of slang and familiar language, using those devices to bring to life personal experiences and paint clear pictures of real-life situations that readers can relate to. Through those grounding narratives, Davis can so effectively tackle less tangible themes of love, loss, betrayal, grief, hope, and joy. Through her own experiences with marriage and divorce, Davis leads readers to question their ideas of relationships, commitment, and love. Through her experiences as a black person, a woman, and a member of the church, Davis brings up ideas about religion, trauma, sexism, racism, determination, optimism, and acceptance, both of self and others. Following this pattern, No Unpaid Passengers is able to operate as a book of revelation, showing readers the pervasive connectivity of the human experience: what you go through, someone else has gone through, and what you feel, someone else has felt.
I highly recommend this collection of raw beauty and vulnerability, in which Davis depicts her experiences. She writes not as an individual but as a representative of the human experience, providing an opportunity to connect both with the unfamiliar outside of ourselves and that which hides within.
No Unpaid Passengers is an emotional collection of poetry that takes readers on a journey through human experiences in a way that will stay with them long after they put the book down. These poems will leave readers feeling everything from one end of the spectrum to the other, a true representation of life, the joys, and the sorrows.
Pages: 90 | ASIN : B0BC5NXXXS
What’s Not True
In midst of a divorce from Mike, Kassie O’Callaghan reunites with her ex-lover Chris as they run away to Paris. But unfortunately, their plans are derailed repeatedly. First from her marketing career at Calibri marketing group, when she is offered a new position at her company’s Paris office. Second a sudden heart attack that drags her back home to Boston. While in Boston, Kassie has to deal with Mike’s fiancee, Karen, as she attempts to steal the rights to the business Kassie and Mike forged together. Things get more complicated during the legal battle between Kassie and Karen when DNA tests reveal shocking news that could change everything. What’s Not True; A Novel is a sequel to Valerie Taylor’s What’s Not Said.
When reading the novel, a reader might be caught off guard as the story picks up directly after What’s Not Said. However, after the first couple of chapters, the characters and their story become more apparent. Although not a required read, What’s Not Said offers much insight into the characters’ dynamics.
The reader is quickly sucked into a complicated love web. Author Valerie Taylor does a fantastic job with her character building. Each of her characters is endearing in their own way, despite their flaws. For example, although Mike’s character is questionable, the reader is still found rooting for him and his desires. Kassie struggles with finding her footing as a professional and in her romantic life. The situations Kassie ends up in are great catalysts for her character’s growth.
The book has a satisfying ending where many family secrets finally come to light, giving many characters clarity on their past. Readers will not feel like they are left hanging with questions and will actually find peace on many subjects that come in in the course of this entertaining novel.
What’s Not True is a heartwarming story that would make a great beach read, filled with plot twists and interesting characters. This captivating and romantic story that is anything but predictable.
Pages: 336 | ASIN : B08QZ8KR4Y
