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Reality Shot Thursday #4

October 20, 2011 at 12:30 am by Claudia

Hello, welcome to Reality Shot Thursday #4. It’s just a slice of reality – not a pretty, staged shot – but the reality behind the scenes. (I want to mention that I have 2 posts today. If you scroll down, you will see a book review for TLC Book tours, as well.)

We’re back to the kitchen table. Unfortunately, it remains in it’s cluttered state. This time, we have the addition of paint, stain, sandpaper and all the things I use when working with my dollhouse and miniatures. The box on the right is the box the dollhouse wallpaper came in. I’m saving it because I like it’s shape. Why I haven’t put it away by now, I cannot say. Next to the box are the dreaded medical bills. I keep staring at them, willing some manna to drop from the heavens. The Target bag is my husband’s. I don’t know what’s in there. Then on the left, some cough drops, some mail, my husband’s glasses…and we’re back to the paint. And the pretty McCoy jardiniere is still holding the same stuff it did last time I took a photo of the table.

Let me know if you want to continue Reality Shot Thursday. I know there are a lot of memes out there and that we are all pressed for time. Last week, the number of participants dropped. I don’t care about big numbers or anything and if you want to continue, I will.

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Book Review: Motor City Shakedown

October 20, 2011 at 12:00 am by Claudia

I have two posts today, this book review and Reality Shot Thursday, so make sure you see them both!

Today I am reviewing Motor City Shakedown by D. E. Johnson for TLC Book Tours. As always, I am provided with a copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.

Motor City Shakedown is a fascinating story. Part noir mystery, part historical novel, this novel takes place in Detroit in 1911. Detroit had just begun making the cars which would later define the city’s industrial complex. Unions were trying to move in. Mobs were jockeying for position. The protagonist, Will Anderson, becomes a murder suspect. He is determined to find the real killer. At the same time, he gets caught up in a web of dirty cops, union organizers, bribes and the mobs that are trying to help the Teamsters take over his father’s electric car company. Anderson, who is fighting a morphine addiction due to a terrible injury to his hand, must find an answer before his family and loved ones are killed.

The story is told using both real and historical characters. For instance, the protagonist, Will Anderson is the son of the owner of Detroit Electric (a maker of electric cars.) In fact, the character of Will’s father was a real person but had no son. His close friend is Edsel Ford, son of Henry Ford, who also appears, as do the founders of the big three car manufacturers andThomas Edison.

I was drawn to this novel because I was born in Detroit, raised in Dearborn (headquarters of the Ford Motor Company and where my high school was named after Edsel Ford) and then lived for several years in Detroit in my young adult years. I was immersed in the car culture – it was a part of our everyday life. So, I found the references fascinating. Streets I know well, buildings I remember clearly; some still standing and some long gone, all of the detail helped to create the Detroit I never knew. I enjoyed getting to experience this slice of early 20th century Detroit, the Detroit my grandparents lived in. (My paternal grandfather helped build radiators for the automotive industry.)

One thing I sometimes find with historical fiction is that the wealth of detail sometimes overshadows the story. It must be a tricky balance. It happens occasionally in this book. That’s not really a complaint, just an observation. D. E. Johnson’s research is impeccable and he paints a vivid picture of Detroit, its people and its industry in 1911.

I really enjoyed Motor City Shakedown. The story is compelling and very well written. And, by the way, it is the second in a series. I haven’t read the first one yet. It is entitled The Detroit Electric Scheme. I know you’ll enjoy this wonderful mystery.

If you’d like to win an autographed copy of this novel, visit the author’s website and enter!

About the author:

D. E. (Dan) Johnson, a graduate of Central Michigan University, is a history buff who has been writing fiction since childhood but had to hit his midlife crisis to get serious about it. His first novel, a historical mystery entitled The Detroit Electric Scheme, was published in September 2010 by St. Martin’s Minotaur Books. The Detroit Electric Scheme has garnered excellent reviews (including being named one of Booklist’s Top Ten First Crime Novels of the year) and also won a 2011 Michigan Notable Book Award.

Motor City Shakedown, the first sequel to The Detroit Electric Scheme, will be published by St. Martin’s in September 2011. Dan is married, has three daughters, and lives near Kalamazoo, Michigan.

Bed Makers & Non-Bed Makers – Which Are You?

October 19, 2011 at 5:00 am by Claudia

As I was washing the sheets today, I pondered bed making. Do you think, as I do, that people are divided into two groups: those who make their beds every day and those who don’t? I know people who never make their beds. They change and wash sheets, of course, and perhaps for a few hours the bed is freshly made, but for the most part it isn’t. And it doesn’t seem to concern them one bit.

I have a sneaking suspicion that Don, for example, would never make his bed if he hadn’t met me. After 17 years together, I’ve trained him well enough that even when I am out of town he will make the bed. Maybe not as early in the day as I would, but he’ll get around to it.

You can surely tell that I am a staunch and true member of the Bed Makers Club. The bed has to be made. End of discussion. I don’t necessarily like the process of bed making, but I love the end result. When Don was sick a few weeks back, he stayed in bed for 2 days. It killed me. I desperately wanted to make that bed. The only time I really don’t care about whether the bed gets made or not is when I’m really sick. When I had my surgery this past summer, for a few days I cared not a whit about the bed. Then, for a period of a month, per doctor’s orders, all I could do was pull the covers up. No lifting of the mattress. No tucking.

Didn’t like.

I’m curious about those who spend a fortune on expensive sheets and pillows and dust ruffles and never make their beds. I’d like to have a little chat with them and find out what makes them tick. They, in turn, might examine my need to make the bed and conclude that I am a wee bit anal.

I can’t help it. I love the look of a freshly made bed. It satisfies me. Even if I never get back in the bedroom until it’s time to go to bed, I know the bed looks nice. There are the rare occasions when I am so caught up in events or errands that I forget to make the bed. When I innocently walk upstairs later in the day and see it in all its unmade-ness, I gasp. I’m not kidding. Ask my husband.

So, even though I know we need a new mattress, that we need a king size rather than a queen size bed, that I’d like a new blanket, I can ignore all that if the bed looks crisp and pretty.

By the way, when I was in Wisconsin this summer, I was informed that Tempur-Pedic had donated lots of their beds to the theater and that I would have one in my apartment. I had my doubts about whether I would like it (“it’s a foam mattress” kept running through my brain) but I have doubts no longer. Oh my goodness, I loved that mattress. No more sore hip if I stayed in one position too long, no sore lower back from sleeping on my back. Hey, I’m in my fifties; I need more cushioning. The whole memory foam thing is true. It really does shape to your body. Alas, they’re pretty expensive and must remain on my ‘someday’ list. I know that mattresses are highly personal choices but if you get a chance to try a Tempur-Pedic, you should. And no, I’m not getting compensated for this, I just really miss sleeping on that mattress!

But, as usual, I digress. Back to my question. Are you a bed maker or are you a non-bed maker? Tell me. Share your thoughts on the subject. I’m conducting an unofficial poll.

Reality Shot Thursday #4

Book Review: Motor City Shakedown

Bed Makers & Non-Bed Makers – Which Are You?

Lambs Like to Party

A Note

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