CSI Crime Scene Investigation, The Burning Season By Jeff Marriotte

 
This book reads like a script for the TV show CSI.  If you like the TV show you will love the book.  You find characters you already know immersed in fast paced action.
I happen to like the TV show CSI so I was predisposed to like the book.    I was not disappointed.  I think that someone who isn't familiar with the show might have a little difficulty because there is not a lot of background data on the characters. 

There are multiple scenarios running simultaneously.  The author sets a good pace and the book is an easy read.

I recommend the book.

Body of work of Jeff Marriotte

Web Site: http://www.jeffmariotte.com/main.htm

Blind Your Ponies by Stanley Gordon West

I don’t gush much in my writing.   This is one of the best books I have ever read.   How’s that for gushing?  I am well read, several books a week for 60 years or so.   That doesn’t make me an expert or a critic, I just “calls them the way I see them”.   This book isn’t about ponies, or Montana and it isn’t just a “feel good” book that was disparagingly ascribed to it in one review.   It is a book about the indomitable, unquenchable human spirit and revolves around a tiny, down on it’s luck, in the middle of nowhere small town and it’s basketball team.  

The author has successfully captured the feelings and motivations of a small town.   I grew up in a small town and it was way bigger than Willow Creek, the town in the book.  I taught school in a small, impoverished coal town, similar in size to Willow Creek.   Growing up in Western Pennsylvania, I saw the impact that sports had on out of work steel workers and their often frustrating lives.   I suspect my own history has honed the poiguient aspects of this books impact.   

People need to have faith and hope, sometimes athletics can provide both.   The characters in this book all had their own very personal pain and showed how depending on others can free one to be strong and independent as a result.

I highly recommend the book and strongly suggest that if you have any feelings for the underdog you DO NOT want to miss reading this book. 

Body of work of Stanley Gordon West

Web Site: http://www.americanwaymag.com/stanley-gordon-west-algonquin

Happy New Year!

In spite of the economy, we all need to be optimistic about the future. If you expect the bird of paradise to crap on your head, more than likely it will. If you anticipate being rejected, most likely you will. However if you approach the New Year with anticipation, with hope and with courage, you will probably find yourself having a good year.

It may simply mean that you are impacting the world around you rather than just letting the world impact you. Our world is frequently how we see it. My name is not Pollyandy! I truly believe that perseverance, hard work, optimism and for want of a better description, positive thinking make a difference. I was the first person in my family to get a college education. My high school counselor told me that I was never going to get into college. Hmm, with a master’s degree and most of a doctorate, I wonder what happen. I had an accountant tell me one time to close the doors on my business and declare bankruptcy. Instead I just worked harder and 20 plus years later sold the business to retire. My point here is not how good am I but how good do you think you are.

Do not accept doom saying. Do not roll over just because someone says the sky is falling. Appreciate what you have, who you are and make your own luck. We have a new year ahead of us. This New Year means new opportunities, new friends and new successes. Don’t just hope for a happy New Year, make a HAPPY NEW YEAR!