The Age of Will

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Gabriel Du Pré is a Métis, an ethnicity I’d never heard of. The book says French, Cree, Chippewa. Wikipedia says “The Métis are descendants of marriages of Cree, Ojibway, Algonquin, Saulteaux, and Menominee aboriginals to Europeans, and are one of three recognized Aboriginal peoples in Canada” Du Pré , however, lives in Montana, as his people have for several generations. He is a brand inspector, apparently someone who makes sure that the cattle sold are all branded as owned by the seller.
In [Wolf, No Wolf][bookdetail], Du Pré is investigating the murder of two “kids” who cut fences and shot cattle, apparently in an attempt to return Montana to its wild state. In addition, several other murders or accidents happen, all of which are connected. There is much discussion of ranchers’ rights and how returning the wolf to Montana is a bad idea, along with other political and/or social agendas. Even with the preaching, the environment, combined with some history of the Métis , was enough to make the story worth reading. The murders are not solved satisfactorily, which is so often the case in real life. The story jumps months, however, which was disconcerting. Nonetheless, I am curious enough about Du Pré to want to read the first novels with him, to see how the character developed.
[bookdetail]: http://books.clubreading.com/book/bookdetail/book_id/1530
[author]: http://books.clubreading.com/book/browsebook/pagenum/1/author/Peter%20Bowen

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[bookdetail]: http://books.clubreading.com/book/bookdetail/book_id/2668
They say opposites attract. It was certainly true for the two protagonists in “The Duet.”

• Gerrit Appledorn is a dairy farmer in the Dutch community of Van Dalen, Washington.  Joan Horton is a professor of musicology at the world-famous Gaylord School of Music in New York.
• He is retired by doctor’s orders because of a heart condition.  His son now owns and operates the fourth generation family dairy farm.  She is taking a one-year sabbatical in part to allow her son to live in her Long Island home while she is away.  She is giving piano lessons to beginning students in Van Dalen.
• He is a member of the First Dutch Reformed Church.  She is a member of the Nazarene Church.
• He believes in predestination…God is responsible for whatever happens and when it happens.  She believes in choice…you reap what you show.
• The only thing they have in common is they are both widowed.

The story is interesting.  However, the writing style is a little different…rather clipped…matter-of-fact.  I wonder if it is because the author is a man.

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Dani Ross is a beautiful, intelligent seminary student intending to go to Africa as a missionary. The story quickly gets into two problems she is facing.
The first is a life-long battle for Dani–constantly fighting off men. I really have no sympathy for her . . . just can’t relate to such a terrible problem!
Secondly, Dani has to leave seminary unexpectedly. Her father has asked her to come home . . . for just a few weeks . . . to take over the family private investigation agency while he recovers from triple bypass surgery. Of course, she is willing to help out her Dad.
Dani is a little over-confident and under-careful and learns some lessons the hard way . . . sound familiar? I notice she doesn’t really learn this lesson, but she is confronted over and over with the fact that she is obviously a feminist. Dani thinks she is a well-rounded (no pun intended) person perfectly capable of thinking and acting objectively in all situations.
As Dani uncovers clues in a case she is working on, the author presents the underlying message of One by One–that we all have our own private ghosts we have to overcome. We get a glimpse into the past of each of the characters involved in the case. I’m sure the author hopes the readers will recognize the source of their own private ghosts and be encouraged to overcome them with God’s help and get on with life . . . be productive.
If you like mysteries, you will enjoy One by One, but don’t plan on solving the mystery yourself. This is one of those where the author doesn’t give you all of the information until he is ready for you to know “who done it.” All in all, it is an excellent book. I recommend it.
[bookdetail]: http://books.clubreading.com/book/bookdetail/book_id/36
[author]: http://books.clubreading.com/book/browsebook/pagenum/1/author/Gilbert%20Morris

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If you have read Anne Perry, you know about William Monk. A former police inspector in Victorian London, Mr. Monk suffered a head injury which resulted in amnesia. He has rebuilt his life since then, and has become a private detective, taking cases for which his skill in investigation are much needed. In this book, Mr. Monk takes a case looking for a woman who was engaged to be married, but who ran away for some unexplained reason. Unfortunately, the coachman who drove her was found dead, and she was accused of his murder.
The book gets very complicated from there. Not while reading it, of course, but to explain would be almost impossible. As usual, Anne Perry draws the characters with such deep conviction that I can still see them. I have two small quibbles with this book. It moved more slowly in the beginning than her books generally do. And for the first time, I knew who the murderer was before she revealed it. If you have read Anne Perry, you know all her murderers are twisted (to borrow a phrase from the title of the book). Although I guessed the murderer correctly, I had no idea why the murders were committed, and that, of course, is the mystery!
All in all a very satisfying little mystery, with the expected twist at the end.
[bookdetail]: http://books.clubreading.com/book/bookdetail/book_id/35

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[Gods Go Begging][bookdetail] is a wonderful novel about Jesse Pasadoble, a Vietnam veteran, now working as a defense attorney in San Francisco. A couple of current cases draw Jesse into a remarkable world of coincidence and ties to the past.
This book has a great story, full of twists and turns, a cacophony of emotion. Amplifying these amazing images, Alfredo Vea’s writing style is strong, poetic, lyrical, and at times magical. The struggles of the main character and his dealing with extraordinary events in his past lead us into weaving, dreamlike worlds.
The author sets the stage in one of the most memorable book openings I’ve ever read:
> For a time, they both held on to their lives, gasping softly, whispering feverishly, and bleeding profusely, their two minds far, far away from the cruel, burrowing bullets that had left them mere seconds away from death. Face to face, they spoke their last words in crimson-colored breaths. Theirs was a withering language, one for which there are no living speakers.
> Then, like warriors abandoned on the field, they lay in unearthly calm as the things of life deserted them. They had seen the mad commotion boiling in the air above them. In bemused silence, they heard the alarms, the screams, and the growing wail of sirens.
> Pronounced dead on a cold city sidewalk, they held on to each other as the gurney rolled from the cement to asphalt and into a waiting ambulance for a long, anonymous ride. In the end it was clear to every onlooker that neither dying woman would ever let go of the other. Leaves of lemon grass had drifted to the ground from the dress pocket of one of the women, marking their trail to the ambulance. Some of the sprigs and blades were bloodstained, adding spice to the liquid life that had trickled away.
I was very intrigued by the books dramatic portrayal of people dealing with such complex and unforgettable pasts. It’s more than that, though. How do we incorporate the different lives we lead into the present? The Vietnam veteran whose mind is vividly separated by 30 years and thousands of miles. Dealing with living in both the present and living in a war, on a hill, so far in the past, but still very much part of the present.
To a lesser degree, I think many of us struggle with this. How many of us are partly stuck in some distant past? Are you still partly living in High School? That song on the radio that transports you back to the High School lunch room. Or an old car . . . or a smell in the air that suddenly takes you back to a particular beach in Puerto Rico.
And how often have we projected ourselves into the future . . . steadfastly stating that, ‘I will never be like my parents!’ – ‘I’ll not make those mistakes when I’m grown’. Then you hit 35 or 40 or 45 and suddenly, you see your father in the mirror, or your mother’s voice comes out of your mouth in a moment of frustration. Then it hits you . . . we are more than the sum of our corporal parts.
I think everyone, has the memory of a moment, where they knew for certain that there was more to them than just this body, this pile of chemicals, this present . . . this now.
Maybe standing on the beach, waiting for the sun to rise. Then that magical moment when the sun leaps from the horizon in an explosion of color – as we spread our arms to capture every amazing bit of that moment, we are also spreading our wings on an ethereal world, feeling the splendor of another sun.
Is that why we seek out books and movies and music that move us? Are we ‘pan-consciously’ feeling our way through multiple times? Multiple lives? Each with an array of ‘brothers’ and ‘sisters’. Other souls that are also bound across distance and through years. Each of us linked to that same place, that same time.
Well, who knows. But occasionally finding a book that makes me stop and think about who I am and where I am . . . is why I read in the first place. If you are like me and seek out beautifully written, emotionally challenging books – don’t miss this one.
From the dedication page:
> It is easy to know the beauty of inhuman things, sea,
storm and mountain; it is their soul and their
meaning.
Humanity has its lesser beauty, impure and painful; we
have to harden our hearts to bear it.
> I have hardened my heart only a little; I have learned
that happiness is important, but pain gives
importance.
The use of tragedy: Lear becomes as tall as the storm he
crawls in; and a tortured Jew became God.
> — Robinson Jeffers, The World’s Wonders
[bookdetail]: http://books.clubreading.com/book/bookdetail/book_id/34

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This is the first in a series concerning Discworld by [Pratchett][author]. I had never read the Discworld series, but picked this up because I liked [Good Omens][go] so much.
In fact, the sense of humor is the same, but not as obvious in [Good Omens][go]. The story is set on Discworld, which is really flat and it is possible to fall off the edge. The gods on Discworld are interesting creatures, and literally play games with the inhabitants, much as the ancient Greek tales tell about the gods playing with the humans. Except here, the gods literally play chess with the inhabitants.
What begins as a typical day for a failed mage turns into a most interesting and intriguing adventure. The mage is Rincewind, and the hook that captures his attention is a sentient piece of luggage. I know it sounds impossible, but I believe on Discworld almost anything is possible. The author periodically makes snide remarks about universes with less imagination, but more logic. I suppose that’s us. All in all, this was a quick, enjoyable read, but not the type of material that I would hunt out. Then again, it’s really not my type of humor. It is very British type of humor, and it is possible that I missed many of the funny bits.
[bookdetail]: http://books.clubreading.com/book/bookdetail/book_id/31
[author]: http://books.clubreading.com/book/browsebook/pagenum/1/author/Terry%20Pratchett
[go]: http://books.clubreading.com/book/bookdetail/book_id/24