With the Democratic candidates appearing on Wrestling last night, in advance of the interminably long wait for today’s primary, this picture (from David Dees, thanks Bob) echoes how ridiculous a lot of this campaign has become. Sure, presidential candidates need a sense of humor, but wrestling? How un-elitist! I’m ready for the primaries to be over, because I’m sure McCain and whomever will appear in an Mixed Martial Arts match.
5 stars: Robert Flynn’s writing is Texas
Most people think of Texas and think of Houston, Dallas, Austin, San Antonio. But the stories of Texas are really the tales of its small towns, how they started, how they grew, how they survived or died.
Robert Flynn’s Wanderer Springs is a masterfully written novel of one such town, told through the eyes of one of its products, one of its survivors, one of its storytellers.
The novel weaves together a vast cast of characters and generations of families, and its easy to get lost or confused between the Spruill family or the Slocum family or the Shipman family (a ten page who’s who is included for your reference pleasure). But these intertwining stories and familes are what makes a small Texas town what it is, and their tales are its history.
Mixed in with the history of the town and its families is the story of Will Callaghan, heading back to Wanderer Springs for the funeral connected to a tragic event from his long ago high school life. As he gets physically and mentally closer to Wanderer Springs, the stories of the town show their influence on his life, on his friends and on the decisions he made. A history teacher and writer by trade, Will Callaghan revists several “ghosts” from Wanderer Springs: townspeople, his loving wife, his father, past loves and friends.
Bob Flynn has won several awards for his writing, and, while I have been a long time reader and fan of his shory story work, this novel is one of the most authentic Texas works to ever grace my shelves. Highly reccommended.
5 stars: Great historical fiction of the Choctaw Indians
Never On My Knees is a riveting story of a clan of Choctaw Indians, from their time in Mississippi on the banks of the Yazoo River, through movement to the Indian Territory, up through the Civil War. The story follows the clan of Joseph Kiamichi, his sister Misty and various other relations and friends through these temultuous times, showing character through prejudice, war and forced movement.
Author John T. Webb has mixed excellent historical research (including places and people) with the ficticious Kiamichi clan to present a realistic picture of these struggles. The characters are strong and well developed, with a devotion to their Choctaw heritage even as their bloodlines become mixed and their nation becomes torn apart.
My family has Choctaw heritage somewhere in the past, and I highly recommend this story to anyone who is seeking a novel that gives a good representation of their times from 1830 (when the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek stated the Choctaw’s movement to the Indian Territory through the Trail of Tears) through to the Civil War, and the Choctaw’s decision to side with the Confederacy. This is also an excellent novel for historical fiction fans. My one regret with the novel is that it did not portray the trip through the Trail of Tears, choosing rather to portray the Kiamichi clan outside the government registration and movement program.
If the author or anyone associated with his publishing company reads this review, I would appreciate it if they would get in contact with me through this website.
3 stars: Great history, good story, uneven writing
Aztec Rage is the fourth in a series of Aztec Novels by Gary Jennings, including co-authors using Mr. Jennings’ outlines after his untimely death.
The history depicted in Aztec Rage is fantastic. From the descriptions of discoveries and meaning of ancient Mayan, Aztec and Olmec ruins, to the Spanish/French guerilla warfare, to the initiation of the Mexican revolution by Father Hidalgo in 1810, the book dances from novel to non-fiction history work. The depiction of the historical events in all of these arenas were by far my favorate part of the novel. (Note: personal prejudice in this area, as my own first novel includes Mayan culture as well and is an area of personal interest).
The story, revolving around the fictional character of Don Juan de Zavala, is intertwined with these fictional events. His life, changing from caballero of the ruling class until he is fighting with the Mexican revolutionaries, takes him to vantage points enabling him to participate and view history. While I did not find Juan a particularly sympathetic character, there were several other characters in the book (some fictional and some historical) that were well described and well presented, some that I will remember.
The life of the different peoples (indios, crillos, etc.) is also imaginatively portrayed.
My only complaint was that this was obviously a collaborative work, and the writing style and quality bounces. The initial chapters of the book were a struggle for me to complete; but once the story moved to Spain, the pace and caliber of the writing picked up dramatically, and the story drew me in more. Writing from a deceased authors outline and notes I would imagine is quite difficult, so I applaud the co-authors in this.
I look forward to reading the other books in this series.
