(Originally posted in this Blog on September 21, 2020) If, like me, you’re feeling a wee bit “witchy” as Halloween comes around again, here’s a piece of witchcraft history to ponder on. For instance, did you know that it was on September 22nd in 1692, 328 years ago, that the last eight witches in Salem were […]
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Val’s Book Reviews They Don’t Pay Me To Say No: my life in film and television props by Dean Goodine Victoria: FriesenPress Publishing, 2022 $24.99 / 9781039144316 If you were asked what a “property master” does for a living, you would most likely assume the job was connected to real estate in some way. Such
In Canada, traditional observance of Thanksgiving Day has only been in existence since 1879. In America the tradition of giving thanks dates back to 1621 when the Pilgrim’s Fall Harvest that year was so plentiful, but not until 1817 did the state of New York officially adopt Thanksgiving Day as an annual custom, and in
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The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah Back to Val’s Book Club Main Page All of Hannah’s books make for exceptional reading but this one stands out for me. Set in the depression years in 1930’s Texas, this is the story of a strong woman on an incredible journey of courage who escapes the devastating Dust
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The Silent Wife by Kerry Fisher Back to Val’s Book Club Main Page The combination of an Italian family, two very different brothers, a doting husband, two wives and an over-bearing mother-in-law provides a mixture of family secrets, intrigue and lies. Fisher weaves these ingredients into a fascinating tale.
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The Pact by Jodi Picoult Back to Val’s Book Club Main Page This is a heart-wrenching story of two families whose friendship is torn apart because of the relationship of their children and the death of one of them. Picoult knows well how to pull at your heart strings and leave you guessing until the
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Val’s Book Reviews Loss, wisdom, bereavement Minerva’s Owl: The Bereavement Phase of My Marriage by Carol Matthews Calgary: Freehand Books, 2021 (first published by Oolichan Books, 2017) $17.95 / 9780889823259 Carol Matthews’ memoir Minerva’s Owl is not a happy book, but it is one full of hope and tenderness told with the author’s beautiful prose
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This month, schools, colleges and universities around the world are now back in session. This made me think about education in general as I delve into research for my current “work in progress.” How did education first start in Canada? By the 1600’s, a system called petites ecoles had been established by French settlers early
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Val’s Book Reviews Ticket to Ride (Volume 4 of the Jason Davey Mysteries) by Winona Kent Winona Kent and St Ives, UK: Blue Devil Books, 2022 $19.99 / 9781777329433 I must admit that I was not expecting to enjoy Winona Kent’s book Ticket to Ride as much as I did. A story about a touring
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Val’s Book Reviews The Rooming House: The West Coast in the Seventies by Michael Kluckner Vancouver: Midtown Press, 2022 $19.95 / 9781988242460 Michael Kluckner has skillfully managed to capture the free spirit, free love era of the late sixties and early seventies in this captivating story of lost youth trying to find their paths
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