Morning Meanderings… Sleeping In Church(es)

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)16 Comments

Good morning.  😀

It was nice sleeping at home last night – in my own bed.  When I serve for our week with the homeless we stay overnight in a church.  The Sunday school rooms are converted to bedrooms for the families, and for the host overnighters.  On Tuesday night I was the host overnighter.  Usually there are always two of us that stay overnight as hosts, which is fun as that becomes catch up times with friends while we hang out before we sleep.  This time however, there is one lady in the program with her 4 month old baby girl and I stayed alone.

I would have never dreamed that I would sleep in a church and now it has become this inside joke as that is the taboo thing to do, fall asleep in church.  I can tell people proudly – I have never slept in my own church( due to our buildings layout we are not able to host there) …. however there are four others in our area that I can say that I have.  😛

We sleep on cots that travel in a trailer from church to church.  It isn’t that bad other than the fact they are super narrow and when guys stay over night I can imagine they must be really uncomfortable.  One couple that serves brings their own air mattress when they stay overnight.  Probably not a bad idea…

Anyway…

that is where I was on Tuesday and then in the morning I drove the guests to the day center where they go seven days a week from 8 am – 4:30 to do laundry, shower, and work on finding affordable housing and jobs if they are not currently working.  It really is an amazing program and has a 92% success rate in our community that once people are back on their feet and in homes with jobs that they remain that way and do not fall back into homelessness.

Our group serves once a quarter and after this week I think our next time is in July.

 

Today will be nice, I have work and then a  workout and then HOME.  Yes…. that’s it… no meetings tonight… and that feels good 😀

I will leave you this morning with this discovery I found at Barnes and Noble on-line… Rachel Ray reading Green Eggs and Ham:

 

Home Safe by Elizabeth Berg

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)25 Comments

Helen Ames was a beloved wife and a prolific author.

Was.

Since her husband Dan died she no longer feels that she is either.  Unable to move on from his death, Helen is not sure how to do life without him.  Her writing is non existent and a particularity disastrous speaking engagement leaves her wondering what purpose she serves without the titles “wife” and “author”.

Meanwhile, Helen’s 27 year old daughter Tessa is losing patience with her now seemingly helpless and smothering mother.  Tessa longs for branching out into her own life but feels anchored down by her mom’s overbearing neediness.  Tessa is constantly being called upon by Helen to help with the household tasks that used to belong to Dan.

Then Helen discovers that the finances that she never paid much attention too as Dan told her never to worry as there was plenty for her to live on and then some…. these very finances have had a significant withdrawal, made by Dan before he died.  Suddenly Helen has a new set of worries…. what did Dan do with all that money?  How will she now provide for herself when her accountant tells her she needs to be careful financially but seems to have no skills or ambition to learn anything new?


My adventures with Berg continue.  😀

Out of everything I have read/listened to by Elizabeth Berg this one may have been the biggest stretch for me.  And the reason for that is silly.  It’s Helen.

Helen has qualities I just don’t like.  She is co dependent.  Needy and unsure of herself in every way and for some reason these characteristics…..

bug me.

I know that is ridiculous and I wonder what I find in myself that makes me want women, fiction and not, to be strong, independent, and able to stand on their own two feet.

Ok… that said, I did enjoy listening to this on audio and applaud Elizabeth Berg for not only being an amazing prolific writer, but also reader.  I have really come to enjoy her audios and when she reads them herself – even better.  I can not say that about every author I have listened to on audio that has read their own work.

While Helen is this character that is not sure which way to turn  – I am quite sure she is exactly the character that Elizabeth Berg meant her to be.  You can hear it is Elizabeth’s (as the narrator) voice and I wish I had a couple examples in my head right now of that dialogue that Helen would have as she pretty much questioned every step she took.  Unfortunately, one of the down falls of audio is that I do not have the pages to flip back through to make that perfect quote so you can go “oh yeah…. I see what you mean.”

As the story line continues you see that Helen does start to find her own way and her relationship with Tessa is very realistic as Tessa tries hard to be patient with her mom while at the same time trying to get her mom to be responsible for her own life and making things happen.  One of the things I really enjoyed in this audio was how often Tessa came to this point:

“Mom.  Mom.  Mom.  MOM.”

I think I may have loved this even more because it is said in a dead pan voice.

Final thoughts:  I did enjoy this audio.  It was not a favorite from this author mainly because some of the plot created many unanswered questions… I did however still appreciate the diversity in writing that I have come to enjoy in Elizabeth Berg’s work.

Amazon Rating

The 2011 WHERE Are You Reading Map has been updated to include Safely Home


This audio was rented from my local library

Morning Meanderings… Death of a Laptop… or not….

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)30 Comments

Morning….

Why why why why am I so tired?

I had a whole weekend of leisurely writing and yes don’t tell my husband who believes I worked like a fiend writing all weekend, but I napped too!  SO why on this Wednesday morning am I feeling like I am coming off a 20 hour work shift?

Last night I stayed in town as it is our serving week to stay with the homeless.  There is no reason why I should not have had some good quality reading of blog time as from 8 pm on I was alone, just me and Laptop (yes – LAPTOP, I will get to that in a minute…. ) but when I tried to read through some of the Monday Meme posts…. I was just ….

tired.

As for Laptop…. if you have been around this weekend you know he died on Sunday afternoon.  Yup.  Would not turn on.  I have had some opportunities the last couple weeks with Laptop and I think I know his issue…. even took pictures of the broken wires (very CSI of me!) to show how he died.  I even… and this is harsh so be warned…

I even pulled his plug.

Then…

Tuesday evening as I was preparing dinner I sat at the table and pushed his power button, just like old times… and

a message came on the previously blank screen:

Plug In – Your Battery Is Dangerously Low

So – well…. wow!  I ran for the plug-in and when hubby and Chance got to the table I told them do not look directly at it…. but look…. Laptop is BREATHING!

It’s a March Miracle!

I realize I am still probably on borrowed time so my plans to invest in a new one are still in place and I have now emailed myself all important documents off this one so I can no longer say “yup…. there went my book.”

I have another busy evening tonight but Thursday is looking promisingly uneventful and I do plan to read the Monday posts as I am in need of my book fix. 🙂

LISTEN by Rene Gutteridge

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)25 Comments

Marlo is normally a quiet, peaceful town.  Yet recently a website has popped up called Listentoyourself and it contains residents of Marlo’s most private conversations… conversations that were held in the privacy of their homes with people they trusted.  Soon accusations are flying and the local police force has its hands full trying to sort it all out.

Damien Underwood has been a journalist most of his life.  He has been the creator of the Marlo Sentinal’s crossword puzzle until as of recent he has been offered a chance to do a bit of reporting as well.  Damien along with his best friend Police Officer Frank Merrit are surprised by the sudden popularity of this website that is ripping the town apart.

And Damien has his own home to be concerned with as well, his wife Kay is struggling to fit in with the Cheer Mom’s, his daughter Jenna, normally sweet and easy-going has become sullen and in trouble at school for hitting another girl, his son Hunter is spending too much time in his room on the computer and Damien is concerned with what he may be looking at.

What is happening in Marlo?

This is the first Rene Gutteridge book I have experienced.  A few weeks back, Hannah at Wordlily celebrated a whole week of Rene Gutteridge and I was curious….

As “the power of words” is the theme of this post, Hannah used the power of her words to influence me to give this author that I honestly do not think I have ever heard of, a try.  I am so glad that I did.  And now I am going to use the power of my words to tell you why.  😀

LISTEN is a book surrounded all around the one question.  How responsible are we for our words when we think no one is listening?  What author Rene Gutteridge shows through this book is something I have always believed, words are powerful tools.  Words can lift someone up and they can tear someone down.

In Marlo, neighbor literally turns against neighbor.  While the website Listentoyourself does not mention names – the conversations written out for all to see is word for word of what was said.  People are hurt, in some cases they wrongfully believe some of the writing is about them, even more so, they decide who said it and react to it.

I really enjoyed that while the website is much of this book, it is not the only storyline that Rene Gutteridge has weaved within the pages regarding the power of words.  While Damien is working the website angle, his wife Kay is involved in the words that people say about each other – gossip.  As she tries to fit in with the Cheer Moms and they point the finger at one mom in particular Kay becomes part of the vicious circle of spreading words that hurt.  And a third story line comes in with Jenna and the mean girls (oh wow – they are MEAN) at school.

Every Monday evening I am in a small group that meets and discusses a study that we are doing and last night we touched on the subject of the power of words.  I smiled as it reminded me of this book.

While the book is not without flaws, there were a couple unresolved items and I was left with a few questions, I thoroughly enjoyed this book.  It is a book I did not want to put down and enjoyed the reminder of the power of words, as well as the power of truly listening.   I will most definitely read more of Rene Gutterridge.

Amazon Rating

The 2011 WHERE Are You Reading map has been updated to include LISTEN

I borrowed this book from my library

Morning Meanderings… Feb Recap and winners

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)29 Comments

Good morning!

This year I started the WHERE Are You Reading Challenge and I have already been having a lot of fun with it.  The idea was to just read what you are planning to read anyway – and just see where in the world you are reading.  I offered prizes as you got to the end of the year if you were able to read in each of the 50 states, and bonus entries and prizes for those who read outside the states.  You can find all details here.

Each month, I would like to recap where we have been and how this challenge is going for us.  Here is where I am for the month of January 2011:

In February I have read 13 books and 4 audio ( 11 books so far in January, and 6 audio).  On my Reading Map they have landed: (Jan and Feb combined)

Georgia

North Carolina

New York (2)

Minnesota (3)

Vermont

California (2)

Mississippi

New Jersey

Maine (2)

Illinois (2)

Connecticut

Washington

Missouri

Massachusetts (2)

Utah

Oregon

Pennsylvania

South Dakota

Washington

Iowa

One unknown (Clementine – friend Of The Week!)

Saudi Arabia

Australia

Singapore

I am having so much fun this and love seeing where I am reading! 

For those of you participating in the WHERE Are you reading challenge, please feel free to create a monthly wrap-up post and link it here if you would like.  I plan to do this each month.  For those of you who are not connected to this challenge, it is not too late to start your map and join in!  Challenge details here.

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As for the February comment winners –

My randomly drawn winner of a book out of the “Reading Cafe” (Yes, I changed the name…. more themed for me 😛 )is:

Rural View – Views From The Countryside

 

And the winner for the most comments in February and the $20 Amazon gift card is:

Hannah from Wordlily

 

Thanks everyone – I so appreciate your visits and love discussing books with all of you.  The March contest – starts today 😀

 

I have been having some lap top “opportunities” so please bear with me while I get this all straightened out.  I am missing my blog visiting time and will be back to visiting soon.  😀

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)96 Comments

 

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading, is where we gather to share what we have read this past week and what we plan to read this week.  It is a great way to network with other bloggers, see some wonderful blogs, and put new titles on your reading list.
 

 I love being a part of this and I hope you do too!  As part of this weekly meme I love to encourage you all to go and visit the others participating in this meme.  I offer a weekly contest for those who visit 10 or more of the Monday Meme participants and leave a comment.  You receive one entry for every 10 comments, just come back here and tell me how many in the comment area.

   Last weeks winner:

Kristen from Bookworming In The 21st Century

Congratulations!  Please choose an item out of the PRIZE BOX and email me your choice with your mailing address as well!   journeythroughbooks@gmail.com

     

Whew!  What a week!  I have been busy and well…. the usual.  😀  Pre posting and planning on the weekend does have its benefits 😉  Here is what this past week looked like:

     

Skipping A Beat by Sarah Pekkanen (Oh sooooooo good!) 

 Author Chat with Sarah Pekkanen – Author Of Skipping a Beat!    SQQQQQUUUEEEEEE 😛 

 

Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout (Bonus Bookies read and food fest…. oh the food!)

The Fifth Servant by Kenneth Wishnia ( A deep read that I wish I would have had more time to dig into)

Water Wars by Cameron Stracher (Hmmmm…. great topic but didnt quite make it for me)

YUMMY The Last Days of A South Side Shorty (True story told in graphic novel style… wow!  This book won a Cybil award)

Certain Women By Madeleine L’Engle (Our Faith ‘n Fiction read)

 

All that – plus I finished another two books and two audios that I have yet to review.  (Driving 3+ hours to the cabin each way this weekend really gave me a little audio time 😀 )

 

As for this week…. looking at my schedule I do not have a lot of evening meetings this week which helps me plan out my reading…. so here is what I will have on the plan:

 

 

The true story of Courtney Miles’ rescue of over 300 people in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. While government officials posed for cameras, a boy from the projects with no driver’s license stepped up and showed what “drive” is all about. LAST BUS OUT tells how Courtney Miles stole a bus, charged past a police roadblock, and argued with a National Guardsman who threatened to lock him in the makeshift jail at the Greyhound Bus Station. Sick with worry about his missing grandmother, he drove his passengers to safety, then went back into the city at midnight to help others. His adventure would ultimately lead to starting his life over on the opposite end of the country, far away from the three women he loves – the mother who abused him, the grandmother who taught him to survive, and the girlfriend who would betray him. LAST BUT OUT chronicles Courtney’s life alone while his mother was repeatedly jailed for selling drugs. At seven he woke up on Christmas Eve with a gun in his face. At thirteen he witnessed the murder of a man three feet in front of him. As a high school junior he lived alone in an empty house without electricity or water. Courted by gangs who knew he was hungry, “Streets”, as he was nicknamed for his solitary life on the streets, lived apart and kept his record clean – until the day he risked his freedom to save his neighbors.

 

 

 A PUPPET IS CROWNED. THE TRUE HEIR REMAINS HIDDEN. A ROGUE’S SECRET COULD CHANGE EVERYTHING.
War has come to Melengar. To save her kingdom, Princess Arista runs a desperate gamble when she defies her brother and hires Royce and Hadrian for a dangerous mission. As the power of the Nyphron Empire grows, so does Royce’s suspicion that the wizard Esrahaddon is using the thieves as pawns in his own game. To find the truth, he must unravel the secret of Hadrian’s past–what he discovers could change the future for all of Elan.

 

I received this series last year and totally dropped the ball on finishing it.  The series is good and with this third book I plan on doing all three reviews together. 




 As the reader is guided through the author’s libraryAhis “Magic Kingdom”Avarious books, manuscripts and mementos become the stimulus for meditations about Christian faith and about the people who have touched his life. We read at length about the folly of writing a novel about Jesus; to do so, the ordained minister writes, “would be to cheapen and somehow dishonor the bond between us.” We see the author’s fatherAwho committed suicide at the age of 38Anot only as a distant figure, alcoholic and adulterous (“the empty place at [the] center” of Buechner’s childhood), but as a charismatic Princeton alumnus who once seemed so full of promise. The memoir’s penultimate chapter is a tribute to the author’s beloved brother, Jamie, who died as Buechner was finishing the bookAhe had called and said he had “incurable cancer of virtually everything and didn’t intend to be around for more than two weeks if he could possibly help it.” Such a momentAa pitch-perfect blend of tenderness and sardonic lyricismAtypifies the poetic intensity of the memoir. Also of note is the second chapter, about Buechner’s friend, the late poet James Merrill, who appears in the author’s dreams: “and it is always goodbye that we are saying again as if to make up for never having had the chance to say it properly.”



I have a couple audios I am starting as well but this post has been a real “opportunity”.  First my lap top appears to have moved on to greener pastures.  Using my husband’s lap top tp put this post together in Internet Explorer has turned out to be an evening of formating and missing pictures…. and well…..  at this point I am just trying to get it posted.  😀

I am excited to see what you are reading so please remember to link up your “What Are You Reading” post below where it says “click here”.  😀

  

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YUMMY the last days of a southside shorty by Neri. Duburke

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)23 Comments

Robert “Yummy” Sandifer was a real person.  He was born in 1983 and lived in the Roseland area of Chicago.  He received his nickname “yummy” because he loved his sweets.

Yummy, at just eleven years old, became a poster child for youth gang related violence.  A series of tragic events led to his appearance of the cover of TIME magazine in September 1994.

Eventually….

this same series of events…

also led to his death.

 

 

I am not a big reader of graphic novels, but occasionally one will catch my eye, much like this one did.  Based on the true story of Robert “Yummy’s” life, this story is told with a fictional character Roger, who tells the story through his eyes of how Yummy became initiated into a gang called the Black Disciples, how we killed a girl, and how eventually he was killed as well.

When I think of a story like this – I do not think of it as a graphic novel.  But it is.  And in this case, it works.  Following Yummy’s story through the pictures was much like there and illustrator Randy DeBurke creates emotion and feeling through his illustrations of Yummy as well as the extended family and the gang members. Author G. Neri writes with great feeling as well and together – this book won in the Cybils.


Yummy’s dad was in prison for drug possession.  Yummy’s mom was in and out of jail – 42 times on convictions for drug use and prostitution.  Yummy was left in the care of his grandmother who at times had up to twenty of her grandchildren staying with her.   It was easy for Yummy to sneak out to the troubled streets of Chicago for days at a time and not even be noticed as missing.

What is frightening about what I have just described is that this is a common occurrence in many areas of our world.  Kids looking for a play – for a way – to belong.  I have seen this when I have traveled to Honduras – the gangs are even greater and more dangerous now then when I went for the first time in 2004.  Currently they have 14 murders a day in the main city of Tegucigalpa.  But I am not taking only of a third world country problem…. no… this is all too common in the Unites States as well.  New York, California, Florida, and of course Chicago – Yummy’s area, just to name a few.


What I did not know is that the laws at the time of this book were that young criminals would go to Juvenile Facilities and then be out once they turned 21… this is why gangs liked to recruit young kids to do the crime, as if they were caught – it was not a life sentence.  The fact that the gangs found this “loop-hole” in the system floors me… who thinks this way?

What is apparent in this book is that Yummy is a kid that wants to belong.  Unfortunately he finds that acceptance through the gangs.  As you read through this book you will see Yummy as this tough mean-spirited kid trying to make an impression…. and at other times you can find him in front of the tv with his teddy bear.

Who was the real Yummy?  In and out of trouble for years, he was desensitized from authority.  What can be done about these gang crimes and especially saving the young ones like Yummy?

Photo out of Time Magazine

While this book was an emotional read, I am so glad I did read it.  I finished this book on Friday and have not been able to stop thinking about it.  When you look at all the circumstances that played into Yummy’s life… all the pieces that were missing in his life (love, family stability, a safe home, a positive adult influence, security…) Honestly?  It makes me want to hug my kids and tell them how much I love them.

Amazon Rating

The 2011 WHERE Are You reading map has been updated to include YUMMY


 

I borrowed this book from my library

Certain Women by Madeleine L’Engle

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)23 Comments

David Wheaton is on his death bed.  From his boat in the Pacific Ocean, he shares his life memories – hopes and regrets with his daughter Emma who has come to be with him these last days.  Having had 9 wives and eleven children, David has had quite a life.  As an actor, there is one role he had always hoped to play and now regrets deeply he never had the chance to do so – and that was the role of King David. Emma’s husband had struggled writing a play for David Wheaton to create the much coveted role for him.

While Emma works to gather the family for David’s final moments on earth,as readers we see the parallels between the two David’s – in some cases even hitting a little close to home for the Wheaton family.

Luke 24:22:  Certain women made us astonished

I read this book as our first read of 2011 with the Faith N Fiction group.   Madelaine L’ Engle is most known for her work with children’s books, probably mostly known for writing A Wrinkle In Time (a book I have never read).

I thought this would be a book I could read within a couple of days and be done in plenty of time for our discussion that started in early February.  This turned out not to be the case.   I spent much time getting to know the characters as tends to happen for me when a book is loaded with characters such as this.  I back track and try to capture who each person is as they are introduced.  That fact, as well as just a busy time of life caused me to pop in late to the discuss points of what was an interesting read.

A theme that was brought up that I personally enjoyed was how as David recalls his marriages (all eight of them!) as they often reflected the life and wives of the Biblical David.  You could almost hear the whispers of the Biblical David’s wives coming from between the lines.  Written with a witty and lyrical pen, I found L’Engle’s writing to be just what I would have expected from a family such as David’s who was deeply embedded in the arts of acting, producing, and such.

If anything, I found, as well as a few in our group discussion that the parallels between the two David’s became a bit much.  Not so much the parallel itself, but the fact that the author had a habit of pointing out that this was a parallel with things like “…. much like the David of the Bible….” I prefer to figure these things out for myself more than feeling like I am led by the hand through a read.

Another part of our group discussion was a heavier topic in the book that I do not wish to give away but unfortunately is a topic that is all to real for many of us.  Some felt it was tiring to constantly see this come up, while other found it as I mentioned here – something that is real.  (Hope I was not too cryptic here but trying  hard not to give anything away.) 😀

A well-rounded read that covered many topics.   David has really had the life and Certain Women, being told in a reflective manner is a brilliant way to write this particular story.

I found the book descriptive and while more work to read than I had planned for, I am glad I had the opportunity to read and discuss this book.

For me personally I recall the part where David (Wheaton) reflects on how badly he has screwed it all up and how he wishes he could change the way he handled many things in his life.  David in The Bible also lived with much regret, and this reminds me of how God used those of us who are broke, damaged, vessels and fills us up.  A reminder, that we all are human – we are going to screw this thing up, and God will still be able to use is if we only let Him.

Please stop by and see what the other Faith N Fiction Participants have to say:

Amy at My Friend Amy

Hannah at Wordlily

Heather at Book Addiction

Carrie at Books and Movie

Julie at Book Hooked Blog

Jennifer at Crazy for Books

Ronnica at Ignorant Historian

Nicole at Linus’s Blanket

Thomas at My Random Thoughts

Liz at Roving Reads

Sherry at Semicolon

Florinda at The 3 R’s Blog

Tina at Tina’s Book Reviews

Brooks at Victorious Cafe

I purchased my book from Amazon

Morning Meanderings… From The North Shore

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)32 Comments

Ok….

First off brrrr….

I started my car this morning to drive into town from the cabin for internet service and it was -13.  That’s a negative.

But – I am here…

and that’s a positive.

Last time I was at the cabin was the first weekend of November when we had a girls baking and crafting weekend here.  I made it to the cabin yesterday around 3:00 pm…. got settled and watched a little tv. set up my paperwork, read a little…. and promptly fell asleep.  😯

Ok… so much for day one.

However today is a new day and I am excited to get started.  I am in a little cafe in Silver Bay Minnesota.  There is a table of 4 older men… and another table of a family.  I am the only one with a laptop…. much as it has been any time that I have come in here for internet.  Even the internet is mine… we have Verizon so I get internet wherever I have phone service.

There is a new sign in the cafe.  It reads:

“No Work Boots Allowed In This Dining Room!”

If I ever do write that fictional story in my head – that line above has to go in it somewhere.   😛

Today when I go back to the cabin I will be writing the day away.  I am ready.

Tomorrow morning I need to head back home early as it is our week serving the homeless and I have to help set up at noon.  I plan to be on the road about 7 am.

But – I still have today.  😀

For my picture today for Alice’s Saturday Snapshot I leave you with this:

 

Ahhhh….. the North Shore.  😉

 

Water Wars by Cameron Stracher

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)29 Comments

Vera and her older brother Will live in a futuristic world where Water is the new money.  As the kids help their father take care of their ill mother the search for water is a daily task and forever on their minds.  Vera’s friend Kai and his dad have a rare wealth due to Kai’s dad being a  water driller.  When Kai fails to show up one day, Vera and Will discover that Kai has been abducted.

The search for their friend will take them beyond their republic of Illinowa and through the republic of Minnesota and Canada.  As they travel they are befriended by pirates and at one point even taken hostage by terrorists.  Eventually making their way to Bluewater, the area that has the monopoly on the water desalinization process.  This is where they find Kai and his father and a whole world of trouble beyond what they could have ever imagined.


Water Wars was a fast read of dystopian fiction that hits on a topic all too close to home.  With talks of real life water shortages in the world’s future I found this book to be a look into a possible reality which for me, hit real close to the scary mark.  I could picture the people fighting for water and the look of them from the lack of it.  I really had to take a long hard look at my own water waste in my life (Ie… running the water to hot before stepping into the shower… letting a faucet run while I grab the phone or take out the garbage…)

I have to talk cover:  Awesome awesomeness!!!  I love it!  Very eye catching.

Cameron Stracher writes a novel that I think will appeal to YA readers who don’t dive too deeply into the read and discover the lack of character development or the conflict details.  I felt as though this book left something to be desired in the middle but in the end pulls together a good finale.

Just because this book did not fit me, doesn’t mean it will not fit someone else.  I have an additional advanced copy of this book for someone who would like to give it a try.  Let me know in the comments if you would be interested in reading this book and I will choose one commenter at the end of the week using random.org to mail this to.

Amazon Rating

I have updated the 2011 WHERE Are You Reading map to include Water Wars


 

I picked this book up from the publisher