Well, I wasn't really a fan of the movie "The Notebook" (2004), but I did recognize the author's name immediately from the days when that movie was so big.  Hmm...  I see that this one was made into a movie, too: "The Longest Ride" (2015).  With Alan Alda!  Well, I missed that completely.  The Longest Ride is Nicholas Sparks' 17th romance novel, released in 2013.  They certainly didn't wait very long to make a movie version!  Well, the book was okay, even though I could see where it was going before I got to the half-way point.  The ending was still pretty clever, I guess.  It's just not really my style, is all.  Not that bull riding isn't relevant to my life.  I remember when momma used to say that I could marry anyone besides a bull rider.  Ha.  I don't have many guy friends, but one who comes to mind is Michael Dale, and he used to ride bulls in his younger days.  It seems like he turned out alright.  But also, I'm sort of involved in putting on Bullfest in Saint Jo on May 6.  I guess I'll be helping in the concessions stand?  I dunno, usually my job at these things is to make sure that there's enough toilet paper in the bathrooms.  And then usually I'm the last person there at 2:00 AM to make sure the lights get turned off and the gate gets locked.  Yup.  That's what bull riding is for me.  Very romantic, no? 

Eeesh - it has been over a year since I last posted.  You know, life and stuff...  I show up where I need to be, do my job, and go home.  That’s why I have gotten so behind on these book reviews.  Computer work isn't as fun as it used to be.

You Dropped A Blonde On Me, Dakota Cassidy, 2010

This one was mildly entertaining.  It told a pretty good story, but sometimes the foul language was distracting.  If I remember correctly, the main character was right around age 40, which was my age at the time when I was reading the story, so that is quite à propos.  But most of it I couldn't identify with too much.  Being a trophy wife.  Finding love.  Yeah, all of that good stuff.  Also, I'm pretty sure that the author is a red-head, and I can't say that she totally gets the essence of being blonde.  Ha.

Touched With Fire, John Tebbel, 1952

I do enjoy older books.  My copy didn't have the dust jacket shown here.  This book tells the fictional story of René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle (a/k/a LaSalle) and his voyage down the Mississippi River.  It's based on the real LaSalle's 1682 trip down the river, but it focuses on LaSalle's right-hand-man's perspective.  Can you imagine - 340 years ago on this continent??  It's not a romanticized version of how it might have been.  The constant struggles are what make this book.  Sometimes it was a little slow-paced, but I liked it alright.

Rebel With A Cause: Finally Comfortable Being Graham, Franklin Graham, 1995

So, a little backstory...  I think it was just last Summer (feels like ages ago) when my desk was so full of CRAP that I ended up paying some bills late because they disappeared in to the fray.  After that, I started answering every single begging letter that I'd been getting with "Please remove me from your mailing list!!!"  One of those was Samaritan’s Purse.  I have no problems with the work they do, and I have given to them in the past, but I had reached my limit in the junk mail department.  Franklin Graham answered my request for removal with a letter and this book.  It is worth noting that Mr. Graham's organization was the only one that acknowledged my request.  Pretty much all I knew about Franklin Graham was that he got kicked out of my alma mater, LeTourneau University.  I had heard stories about why he was expelled, so I was really looking forward to that part of the book.  Well, surprise, surprise...  The reason was NOT what the rumors had claimed.  I had heard something about how he had given the Flooders their name by being part of the flooding incident that gave them their name.  NOPE!  But I'm not going to tell you the real story.  You'll have to read the book!

I Could Pee on This Too: And More Poems By More Cats, Francesco Marciuliano, 2016

My co-worker Kim gave me this book.  I dunno if cats can write poems.  Speaking of cats, I currently have 8 of them:  Mattie Ross, Mrs. Brown, Punkin Head, Clifford, Frosty, Sparkles, Nikki, and Special Favorite (a/k/a Rosie).  It's kind of a lot.  I also found out that Chester, my original cat, is living at someone else's house a block away.  He'd rather be an only-cat-child, so I can't really blame him for abandoning me.  He never peed on my stuff the way Mrs. Brown does.

Can I Play Too? by Mo Willems, 2010

Co-worker Kim also found this book.  She picked it up at the Whaley UMC garage sale when I was looking for kids' books for Kylie's baby shower.  I have since passed the book on to my Uncle Doug for his grandchildren.  I thought that the story was really clever, and it didn't go the way I thought it was going to go.  The sarcasm really made me L.O.L.  And the baby shower in Tuttle, Oklahoma, was nice.  I picked a different book to give to the mother-to-be.  Kylie was our rodeo queen a few years back.

Hello again so soon!  I guess I'm getting tired of Netflix because I've been choosing to read more often than usual on these long winter days.  "Lament for a Father" (2021) by Marvin Olasky was a freebie that came in the mail since I'm a subscriber to WORLD magazine.  It seems that I identify more with Eli Olasky (Marvin's father) than I do with the author, specifically in the religious department.  Eli has grown cold and lost his motivation after his service in World War II.  As a Jew, he had to live with what he had seen at the concentration camps in Germany.  I've had no such life-changing experience, but somehow I seem to have ended up at the same place - unmotivated and short on faith in a loving God.  This book does not seek to condemn any of the characters, but I can't help but feel like I'm part of the wrong side - the German people, the Catholic people - all were hugely anti-Semitic.  I see it in myself sometimes.  But isn't it hard to accept an entire race that declares themselves to be declared special by the Creator of us all??  The Chosen People.  Why would God do such a thing?  Sure, it seems that later in New Testament times He decides to go with "there is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus." (Galatians 3:28, NIV)  Maybe he could have led with that idea??  Ehh, we're still not really ready to hear it.  My only problem with this book was how the author tried to use the present tense for things that happened in the past.  It worked in some places, but not throughout.  And I guess with a book like this, I should probably recognize my own father.  But I have no complaints about Bob Hess, so that is that.  Sometimes when he comes up with witty, barbed retorts, I can see where I got my dry humor.  Like with Marvin and his father, I suppose the appreciation tends to grow with time.  When I was little, I used to imagine a time when my parents would be gone.  I wasn't so much afraid of it, but I thought I was preparing my emotions to handle it.  I don't suppose that's possible at all.  I'll be lost, but it doesn't really feel like I can be more lost than I am now.  We shall see.
 

Yeow... It has certainly been awhile since I've checked in here. I won't ask if you've missed me... So this first book, Perfectly Yourself: Discovering God's Dream for You, by Matthew Kelly, wasn't really my cup of tea. I'm definitely no closer to determining His dream for me. I guess I got the book free from church, so that had to be several years ago. I'm not sure when I last went to church (other than a funeral or two). I do remember what happened that day. I went to Friendship Church in Saint Jo, and I didn't want to park across the street and have to say "good morning" to five crossing guards before I even got in the door, so I parked in the back. I thought I was being clever and parking out of everyone's way, but I ended up getting my car stuck in the mud. A couple of men-folk had to rescue me. It makes for a good story, I guess, but I didn't appreciate it so much. Post-COVID, I had been going to the cemetery on Sunday mornings to read my Bible and try to pray, but after one of those sessions I ran over Thomas the cat. Yeah, I know, it could have happened on any day surrounded by any activity, but since it came after my feeble attempt to seek the Lord, it really leaves a bitter taste, ya know? 

Both of these next two books sure like to dwell on RACE. The Woman at the Light (Joanna Brady) tells the story of forbidden love with a runaway slave. It's entertaining enough. I don't remember much else about it except that it took a long time for me to get through it.

And this last book, Picture Perfect (Jodi Picoult), is partially about a half-breed Indian trying to find his place in the world amid racial strife and partially about a woman who marries a movie star who turns out to be abusive. The end is way too neat and tidy, but most of the middle of the book isn't all that bad - if you can get past the slightly-confusing beginning when the main character has amnesia. And it also starts out with so much racial "blah-blah-blah" that I wasn't sure it was worth my time. But it was alright. Judging by the White Oak High School sticker, the book must've come from Momma G in Longview. Now there's a blast from the past.

Despite being 98% predictable, "The Jane Austen Marriage Manual" by Kim Izzo (2012) is not a bad book. I guess that I got it from Nancy. I can't remember. It's been a long time since I've seen her or her dogs. You know, usually I am on dog feeding duty every month or so when she goes on her trips, but the COVID-19 has left her home-bound since March. I really can't take much more of this 'Rona... But back to the book... I have to admit, I've never read a Jane Austen novel. Back in college, my friend Lynn would watch and re-watch the Jane Austen movies - Mansfield Park, Sense and Sensibility... I never knew what was going on other than some guy wants some girl but the girl wants a different guy... I dunno. Always about guys and girls and angst. Isn't there enough of that in real life? I guess that's what makes it relevant.

It's always fun to read a book by someone that you know. "Hepatitis C - Never Give Up Hope" (2016) was written by Cindy Bowles from Era, Texas. When I was a youngster in 4-H, we used to have playdays at her arena. The book tells the story of her husband Harold's battle with Hepatitis C including two liver transplants. The last time I talked to her in the Fall, they were waiting on a kidney. That is a lot for one family to deal with, but the book explains how their faith in God has carried them through the hard times. Harold and Cindy run Precious Memories Carriage Service, and they have helped out the Saint Jo Riding Club for several years by transporting our rodeo queens and grand marshals in our annual rodeo parade. They are a class act. I'm glad she wrote this book to share their story. I'd recommend it to anyone who is going through hard times.

I have been working my way through "Horse Owners Guide to Natural Hoof Care" by Jaime Jackson (2002) for what seems like a very long time. It's not the easiest reference book to read, and I had already been trimming my own horses hooves for at least a year when I started reading it, so the book mostly confirmed things that I already knew. Yes, I have been trimming for a couple of years now, and I wish that I had gotten started sooner, especially when I was younger and had more strength and stamina. I used to be able to trim all 4 of our horses' hooves in one day, but now I just limit myself to one horse per day. It's a monthly ritual, but it probably saves us at least $1,300 a year on farrier expenses. It also has helped me get more of a personal knowledge of how my horses move, and it keeps me more aware of their health. It's really a lot like clipping your own fingernails. I was worried at first about taking off too much, but I think I probably err on the side of taking off too little. And I did get kicked once, when I was trimming Casper and was using the nippers on his back toe. I'm not sure if I hurt him or just startled him, but he flailed his leg back and forth a couple times to shake me off, and he caught be in the leg. I didn't get hurt or anything, but of course it was a good lesson for me. Casper, the young one that kicked me, died on New Year's Day 2018. He broke his leg, maybe from the ice on the ground, maybe from a kick from another horse. I haven't been the same when it comes to horses since then. I guess God knows what He's doing when it comes to that kind of stuff. I haven't been the same when it comes to God stuff since then, either. Casper was only about 4 years old, and I had just started riding and training him, so I was expecting at least a good 15 years of having him be my riding horse. Now I just have two geriatric, used-up old farts, Apache and Lucky. Mom recently acquired a pretty good horse named Dolly, but that came after my best man-friend Tommy died. And I also trim my cousin's horse, Katt. So those are my 4 hoof wards - Apache, Lucky, Dolly, Katt. But I don't want to ride. Maybe someday. The last time I rode a horse was at the Forestburg Watermelon Festival in August. I was worried that the horse might collapse under my weight, but peer pressure got me in the saddle. It was not enjoyable. I guess I have lost my youth. And I know I'm still grieving and angry. Oh, wait, I did ride a horse once since then, in January at the Fort Worth Stock Show Parade, when we parked in the wrong place and had to hoof it a couple of miles to find the rest of our group. I was only supposed to be on groom duty that day, and I didn't ride in the actual parade, but I did ride back to the trailer. But anyway, I trim hooves now. I charge $10 if you're interested in my services. A professional probably charges about $30, but the only training I have is my 38 years of observation and this book.