Make Your Contribution Count

Make Your Contribution count for you me we, is a portrait of courage not only of the remarkable women whose stories are highlighted, but also of the author, Suzanne F. Stevens, who travelled, interviewed, learned, and taught, over a number of years.
While the overall tone seems ‘Women’ centred, it quickly becomes clear that men are an integral part of “You Me We” making contributions count. This book honours women BUT at the same time does not dishonour men. Suzanne’s primary team of herself and her husband/partner Michael demonstrate the strength in TEAM.
Suzanne’s scholarship program detailing successes and challenges is inspiring. (there is a reason I keep going to that word!)
This book contains surprises, unknown to most, but essential in becoming most effective in our contributions.
What can I tell you from my pretty ordinary perspective?
This is a book about Inspiration, Pay it Forward, and always be grateful.
The women are current leaders, teachers, and business women.
No journey is solitary. No success is singular.

Book Review. Dark Sacred Night by Michael Connelly

Dark Sacred Night (Renée Ballard, #2; Harry Bosch, #21; Harry Bosch Universe, #31) 
by Michael Connelly (Goodreads Author), 

Christine Gingerich‘s review 

Jan 09, 2019  ·  

Some folk are put off by prolific writers as they often glaringly writing to a recipe, tried and true. This is not the case with Connelly. I first encountered Harry Bosch briefly when I was introduced to the Lincoln Lawyer, first as a movie, then the book.
There is a reality in the lives of Michael Connelly’s characters which guarantees no ‘happy ever after’, but which brings to life people you find yourself thinking about through out the day. Struggle, progress, success, failure, mistakes, humanness. All these things interwoven. 
Bosch forms a somewhat casual partnership with Ballard to solve another Cold Case. Justice for the long dead becomes an honorable venture.
Bosch’s relationships with past partners and associates, and family weaves a strong tapestry through each and every book, and they show up here and there, just like real life.
When I pick up a new Bosch book, it is with great anticipation, not just of a current adventure but wondering who will wander in with ties to a past story. Cisco, Lourdes, Mickey? Everything is connected and therein lies the deliciousness.

Junkie by Robert P. French

Book Review

Junkie
Robert P. French

Junkie is the first book in a series about Cal Rogan. I admit to some reluctance to read a book where our hero was in fact a Junkie. Encouraged by my friend Judith Baxter I turned to the first page and was hooked.

What’s makes Cal our true hero is the clear crisp writing, realistic and believable, without any of the self pity and whining and moaning often associated with first person addiction stories.

His path from functioning valued member of society to loss, homelessness, and recovery of sorts, whilst solving obvious and less obvious mysteries makes this a story difficult to put down.

His love/hate relationship with himself and those around him, particularly Roy, and his dead best friend whose relationship with him may or may not have been what he interpreted it as, strikes a chord of the reality we live with every day.

French puts a human face to a population in the shadows. Successes, failures, and in this case mysterious deaths.

The easy path to substance addiction is chilling and leaves one with a ..there but for the Grace of God…type of reaction, and an awareness that all that can change in a moment.

His relationship with his daughter and ex, his desire to be more, to be better is woven through out, partnered with the inability to succeed.

This is a story about perseverance, struggle, being right, being wrong, succeeding and failing. Failing is not the end of the story. This story is more than anything, about HOPE. The thing that drives all of us.

The humanness of the tale, and the characters, the truths both recognized and not recognized are the the truths of our own lives.

French is an excellent story teller, weaving suspense and surprise twists in a delicious fashion that is sublime.