This blog feature amusing and heartwarming stories about our late Leonberger dog Bronco, as well as other Leonbergers. It also has a lot of information about the Leonberger breed, the history, care, training, Leonberger organizations, etc. I also wrote a Leonberger book, which I am featuring in the sidebar.
This is a Leonberger blog but sometimes I post about books that I want to promote. This post is a review and a promotion of a very good wildlife and poetry book called Lion Scream: Syllabic Poetry About Southern African Wildlife Paperback – February 8, 2023 by Robbie Cheadle.
Front cover of the Lion Scream by Robbie Cheadle. Click on the image to go to the Amazon page for the paperback.
The paperback version of the Lion Scream, which is what I bought, is 163 pages, ISBN 979-8376647318, item weight 10.7 ounces, dimensions 6 x 0.39 x 9 inches. You can buy Lion Scream from Amazon, as a paperback or e-Book. The paperback version is currently $20.50 on Amazon. The Kindle version is $4.59 or free if you are part of Kindle Unlimited.
Wildlife, Poetry, Truth, and Art all Wrapped into a Powerful and Beautiful Book
The book opens up to colorful cake art depicting nature’s response to the sixth mass extinction and global warming. The cake art was created by the author. FYI the previous five mass extinctions happened 440 million years ago, 365 million years ago, 250 million years ago, 210 million years ago and 65 million years ago. This book is a celebration of wildlife and a plea to save it. It contains 99 color photos of wildlife from south Africa, rhinos, elephants, lions, zebras, buffaloes, leopards, cheetahs, warthogs, wildebeests, hippos, crocodiles, hyenas, jackals, marabou storks, gemsbok, antelopes, insects, birds and monkeys of various kinds and many other animals. It also features 31 YouTube videos featuring wildlife. I bought the paperback, so I had to type in the links. That wasn’t bad but the kindle version has the advantage of clickable links.
However, the main feature of the book is the double ennead syllabic poetry about wildlife and the beauty of the natural world. This poetry is passionate and beautiful as well as fun and engaging. There is also information about wildlife and the threats posed to wildlife as well as a poignant story about a girl, Irene, who internalizes the mass extinction, global warming crisis, and the catastrophe this is to wildlife and her generation. Her angst and pleads for action and her anger towards her parents is heart-rending, and originally being Swedish my thoughts went to Greta.
I felt that this book has so much to offer in terms of beauty and wisdom, the poetry, the photos, the videos, the information, that reading it was a real pleasure. It is a book that will stay with me. I highly recommend this book.
Back cover of Lion Scream.
If you would like to watch some of the other wildlife videos click on the links below
Award-winning, bestselling author, Robbie Cheadle, has published thirteen children’s book and two poetry books. Her work has also appeared in poetry and short story anthologies.
Robbie also has two novels published under the name of Roberta Eaton Cheadle and has horror, paranormal, and fantasy short stories featured in several anthologies under this name.
The ten Sir Chocolate children’s picture books, co-authored by Robbie and Michael Cheadle, are written in sweet, short rhymes which are easy for young children to follow and are illustrated with pictures of delicious cakes and cake decorations. Each book also includes simple recipes or biscuit art directions which children can make under adult supervision.
Robbie’s blog includes recipes, fondant and cake artwork, poetry, and book reviews.
This is the story of the ban of my five-star review for the book “The New Climate War: The Fight to Take Back Our Planet” and the warning I received from Amazon. I certainly ruffled some feathers just by paraphrasing some content from the book. I highly recommend the book by the way.
At the end of March, I received this email from Amazon:
Hello,
One or more of your posts were found to be outside our guidelines. In order to help our customers make informed choices, we encourage them to review the product and contribute information about it. However, Community content that violate our guidelines or Conditions of Use will be removed.
Please consider this a first warning.
Before submitting your next post, please refer to our Customer Guidelines:
At first, I had no clue what post they were talking about. Then I realized that they had removed one of my reviews, for the book “The New Climate War: The Fight to Take Back Our Planet”, after they had initially approved it and let it be displayed for a month. There are many ways to violate guidelines, and I did not understand what they were referring to. I got a warning, so this was fairly serious. So, I asked community help which guidelines were violated but I received no reply. After three attempts to no avail, I asked Amazon customer service the same question, explaining that I understood it is not their area of concern, but I wanted them to help me with getting an answer. They knew I was a very good long-time customer. They promised me that community help would return an answer within 24-48 hours as they are supposed to, but they didn’t.
After engaging Amazon customer service three more times community help finally got back to me telling me that I had violated community guidelines, which I already knew. After engaging Amazon customer service one more time and receiving an assurance of a reply they finally admitted/told me what the problem was. They considered my review to be very offensive and also warned me about posting something like it again. I did not understand why it was so offensive but at least I had received an answer, so I replied with a thank you and I gave them a good rating on the survey.
Me and my friends whom I shared the review with, could not see why the review was so offensive so it is still a bit of mystery. I am certainly not going to try to repost the review on Amazon, that’s like asking to be banned. However, no one can stop me from posting it here, or on Barnes & Noble.
I liked the book in question, that was not the problem. I think that the problem was that the book discussed the campaigns launched against Dr. Michael Mann and other scientists perpetrated by certain rightwing thinktanks and populist politicians, and I paraphrased some of this information in my review. These campaigns were multi-billion-dollar sized aggressive campaigns that aimed to misinform the public about the climate science, defame, lie about and harass climate scientists, and even make people hate them and threaten them and to prevent research from being done on the topic. You can’t mention the basic facts about these climate wars, as Dr. Michael Mann calls them, without upsetting some people, and I included some of that in my review of the book. I often include some of the content from non-fiction books in my reviews of them to help me remember the content. I did not think much about it. However, I guess, if the book is inflammatory in some people’s eyes, then a review paraphrasing the book will be too.
Before I present my review, I should mention that why some “climate-denier” forces attacked Dr. Michael Mann was because of his hockey-stick curve created in the mid 1990’s. It was already known that the recent sharp global warming not only was real but was caused mostly by greenhouse gases emitted by us. We knew that from the way the warming happened, how it was distributed, how it affected the atmosphere, etc. However, that’s a complicated thing to explain to the public. Dr. Michael Mann was the first scientist to create the hockey stick curve using proxy temperature data from the pre-industrial times (not direct temperature measurements), and this curve made it obvious even to the uninformed layman that the current warming was not natural. You could see that just by looking at the curve. This is why he was so intensely targeted. For your information I have included two examples of hockey stick curves below, and for more information, click here.
Hockey stick curve last 1,000 years, blue-Michael Mann’s original curve (proxy measurements such as tree rings), green-dots 30-year average, red temperature measurements.Global temperature going back twenty thousand years, a hockey stick graph. Notice the stable temperature during the last 10,000 years, coinciding with the development of human civilization, and then a sudden sharp increase at the end.
Some basic information about “The New Climate War: The Fight to Take Back Our Planet ” – May 10, 2022 by Dr. Michael Mann. The paperback dimensions are 5.5 x 1.4 x 8.25 inches, and the weight is 11.2 ounces, ISBN 978-1541758216, 400 pages, and it currently costs $15.99 on Amazon in the US. The kindle version is $12.99 and the hardcover $14.29.
Front cover of the book “The New Climate War: The Fight to Take Back Our Planet” by Dr. Michael Mann. Click on the image to go the Amazon page for the book.
Below is my banned review, exactly as posted:
The Climate Deniers Lost but the same People Are Back with New Tricks
First off, this is not a book about climate science despite the fact that the author is a climate scientist. This is a book about the new form that the climate wars have taken. It is yet another topic on which the author is an expert because of his grueling personal experiences.
For decades climate scientists were attacked, defamed, misrepresented, lied about, and threatened. There was climate science denial, misdirection, distortions, lies, and mockery. It was a well-funded war launched by political groups such as the Heartland Institute, right wing politicians, corrupt industry funded scientists, extremist rightwing media and fossil fuel industry front groups such as the competitive enterprise institute, and the Koch brothers, and many other rightwing billionaires, etc. It was a war against scientists who were trying to find the truth, and a war against those telling us what was already known about the science, and a war against those who dared to speak up for the environment and future generations. Dishonest denialist bloggers, such as Anthony Watts, rose to fame as a result of the war. It was ugly and Dr. Michael Mann was in the middle of it. In the first chapter of this book, he describes what happened in the past and he describes his experiences. He was called a fraud and he was viciously attacked for his research that led to the Hockey Stick curve, a curve which is now established fact.
About a decade ago I believed myself that Dr. Michael Mann was a fraud and that his Hockey Stick curve was bogus. I had my doubts about the climate science. That’s because at the time I read and listened mostly to rightwing media. Then I took the time to understand as much as I could about the science, and I came to realize that I had been hoodwinked. Dr. Michael Mann and the other climate scientists were undoubtedly right. Well, that climate war is mostly over. Climate change deniers, or global warming deniers, whatever you call them (they were never skeptics), aren’t taken seriously anymore. However, the dark forces who launched the climate wars against the science didn’t disappear, they changed tactics. Instead of outright denial, the new tactic is downplaying, deflection, dividing, delaying and lastr but not least doomism. He refers to these bad actors as inactivists. Remarkably, many climate activists and environmentalists are naively doing the bidding of the inactivists and in this book Dr. Mann explains how.
Placing the responsibility of climate change on consumers and climate activists is an example of deflection. We need systemic change. Individual behavior needs to change as well but without systemic change, adjusting individual behavior is not only difficult but not very impactful and also associated with unnecessary guilt, which is exactly what the deflectors want. In addition, a solitary focus on voluntary action may undermine support for governmental policies to hold carbon polluters accountable.
The division tactics seek to polarize and divide the environmental movement and those who care about climate by using misinformation. One example is the misleading Cowspiracy so-called documentary. The dividers made sure Donald Trump won the 2016 election with the help of armies of Russian bots and Trolls poisoning on-line discussions. Among the division tactics he mentions making progressive/leftist climate advocates reject the most effective climate solutions such as a carbon price. Dividers have also succeeded in convincing the leftwing of the climate movement that deconstructing capitalism is necessary to solve the climate crisis, which is false and will scare away the moderates and conservatives needed onboard for achieving climate solutions.
Inactivists have many other cards under their sleeve, such as trying to discredit renewables, presenting non solutions as the best solutions, presenting insufficient solutions as all we need (planting trees, adaptation), misinforming the public in all sorts of ways, etc. However, the one very effective tool to prevent climate action is doomism, presenting the entire cause as hopeless, thus making action on climate seem pointless. People across the political spectrum, perhaps especially the left, have fallen victim to doomism. Dr. Mann is stressing that the situation is bad but that there is nothing hopeless about it. We will not fall off a cliff, but the size of the future damage depends on our actions. Doomism is not coming from the climate scientists and it is not coming from the IPCC. Doomism is a false belief that has spread like a wildfire with the help of bots and trolls. It also creates an opportunity for inactivists to attack climate scientists by falsely claiming that they are the ones spreading the despair and fear.
Dr. Mann brings speaks very warmly about carbon fee and dividend, my favorite climate policy and he mentions Citizens Climate Lobby three times and speaks favorably about them, which also warms my heart since I am a CCL volunteer. I think he was a bit harsh on Bill Gates and Ken Caldeira and I think he underestimated nuclear power a bit. I’ve read some of Ken Caldeira’s papers and we were Facebook friends for a while. His geoengineering research is done so that we would know something about the topic if we are forced to use it. It is absolutely not as a substitute for climate action, something Bill Gates makes very clear in his book.
Above all, this is a very important book that everyone interested in the climate crisis should read. We have powerful enemies who are trying to confuse us, disengage us and divide us and turn people against us. It is important to understand how climate action is being prevented and discouraged now a day. The war has changed, and the lies are now different and less obvious. It is also an important book for those who do not care about the climate crisis. Why don’t you care? Could it be that you have been misled/bamboozled? Why don’t you find out? I can add that it is a very well written and well-organized book that is very engaging no matter what you believe.
Back cover of the book “The New Climate War” by Dr. Michael Mann.
This is a Leonberger blog but sometimes I post about books that I want to promote. This post is a review and a promotion of a very good children’s book called Tina Lost in a Crowd Paperback – April 15, 2021 by Miriam Hurdle and illustrated by Victoria Skakandi.
I bought this book for friends of ours who have young children, but I read it first. I found it to be a very good and useful book, which is why I mailed it to them. Your child getting lost is one of the many nightmares’ parents must suffer. Yet it is such a common occurrence that your nightmare is bound to come true at some point. Would your children know what to do?
Front cover of the Tina Lost in a Crowd Paperback. Click on the image to go to the Amazon page for the paperback.
The paperback version of the Tina Lost in a Crowd, which is what I bought, is 46 pages, ISBN 978-1974340019, item weight 5.4 ounces, dimensions 8 x 0.11 x 10 inches. You can buy Tina Lost in a Crowd from Amazon, as a paperback or e-Book. The paperback version is currently $8.99 on Amazon. The Kindle version is $2.99 or free if you are part of Kindle Unlimited.
Entertaining Preparation for Events Featuring Crowds
I bought this book for friends of ours who have young children. Before I mailed it, I checked out the book to make sure it was good, and I ended up reading the whole book. It is a good story! Fun for children and entertaining for adults too. Tina’s parents are taking Tina and her friend Erica to a concert. Unfortunately, the parents make a quite common mistake, a classic as far as losing your children goes, and the girls end up finding themselves lost. Luckily the girls do what Tina’s mom told them to do in case they get lost and all ends well.
I think most of us parents at some point make a mistake that will render our children lost. No matter how much precaution you take, at some point someone will make a mistake. However, it is good to know about a few typical ways this happens, and more importantly it is great if the children know what to do when it happens. Therefore, this book is quite helpful to both adults and children. The author is a brilliant writer who was able to tell the story in an entertaining way that is easy to understand. I believe the story is based on a real-life event, at least it seemed so. The illustrations were very colorful and very well done. They covered the entire page throughout the book with the text inside white blurbs. I highly recommend this children’s book.
Back cover of the Tina Lost in a Crowd.
About the Author
Miriam Hurdle is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI). She published four children’s books at twenty-six years old. Her poetry collection received the Solo “Medalist Winner” for the New Apple Summer eBook Award and achieved bestseller status on Amazon. She has a Doctorate of Education from the University of La Verne in California.
Sometimes I make posts not directly related to Leonberger dogs, especially if I want to promote a good book. Today I am announcing that a book written by my on-line friend Alex Diaz-Granados has been improved in various ways. The story is the same, but it has been edited a second time with input from Alex’ journalism professor. It has a new cover, there’s a title page, a copywrite page, a list of content, an improved page layout in the paperback version, and page numbering. If you have not bought the book before, now is the time to do so. I bought it a second time myself.
First some basic facts about the book. The title is Reunion: A Story Paperback – July 2, 2018 by Alex J Diaz-Granados (recently revised). The paperback version is 51 pages. The dimensions are 6 x 0.13 x 9 inches, and the weight is 3.21 ounces, ISBN: 978-1722120474, and it currently costs $7.99 on Amazon in the US, but it can be bought elsewhere, for example, Barnes & Noble (same price). The kindle version (ASIN: B07F4SL6NQ) is $3.99 or free if you have Kindle unlimited.
About the Author
Alex Diaz-Granados (1963-) began writing movie reviews as a staff writer and Entertainment Editor for his high school newspaper in the early 1980s and was the Diversions editor for Catalyst, Miami-Dade Community College, South Campus’ student newspaper for one semester.
Using his experiences in those publications, Alex has been raving and ranting about the movies online since 2003 at various websites, including Amazon, ciao and Epinions. In 2012, Alex published his first book, Save Me the Aisle Seat: The Good, the Bad and the Really Bad Movies: Selected by an Online Film Reviewer through CreateSpace.
Reunion: A Story, is Alex’s first work of fiction. In addition to writing reviews, Alex has collaborated with actor-director Juan Carlos Hernandez on several short films, including A Simple Ad (2019), Clown 345 (2019), and Ronnie and the Pursuit of the Elusive Bliss. You can find his reviews and essays on his blog, A Certain Point of View, Too.
About the Book
It is June 1983. Jim Garraty is a senior at South Miami Senior High. He’s a staff writer for the school paper, a college-bound scholar who plans to become a historian and author of books on military history. He’s well-liked by his peers and teachers, and his future looks bright. But as commencement draws near for the Class of 1983, Jim must deal with unfinished business. The girl he loves from afar is also graduating, and rumor has it that she is going away for the summer before starting college in the fall. Worse still, Marty doesn’t know how deeply Jim’s feelings for her are – unless he tells her. But when an opportunity arises on the last day of classes at South Miami High, Jim hesitates…and the window of opportunity closes. Now, 15 years later, James Garraty is an up-and-coming history professor whose literary career is on the rise. Respected by his fellow faculty professors and recipient of popular and critical acclaim, Jim seems to have it all. Except for one thing. True love.
In the photo below I laid out the two books, old version and new version side by side, the front cover up. The old version is to the left and the new version to the right. The two books are laying on top of our kitchen counter.
Old front cover versus new front cover. Click on the image to go to the Amazon page for the paperback version.Old back cover (left) versus new back cover (right).This is the cover for the e-Book version of Reunion: A Story. Click on the image to go to the Amazon.com E-Book version of the book.
I also thought I include the first page of the old book (left) and the new book (right) to demonstrate the improved page layout / book design (see photo below).
Old page design to the left. New page design to the right.
Finally, a brief review
This book is about a “what if” scenario, about regret, and what could have been. Once you start reading the book you simply must find out what will happen, which is why I could not put it down and therefore I read it in one sitting. It is a sad but timeless love story that is very engaging. It is about life, friendship, and love. I think the story highlights how differently a teenager and an adult view life and what the consequences can be. The author describes the feelings and the thoughts of the characters in a manner that is realistic and easy to relate to. It was emotional but not too sentimental. The book has a message, especially for young people. The book is easy and quick to read, and it is one of the best short stories I’ve ever read. I highly recommend it.
Sometimes I make posts not directly related to Leonberger dogs, especially if I want to promote a good book. Today I am making a cover reveal post for one of the books written by a talented author and an on-line friend by the name Alex Diaz-Granados.
New front cover for Reunion: A Story. Click on the image to go to the Amazon.com page for the book.This is the cover for the e-Book version of Reunion: A Story. Click on the image to go to the Amazon.com E-Book version of the book.
About the Author
Alex Diaz-Granados (1963-) began writing movie reviews as a staff writer and Entertainment Editor for his high school newspaper in the early 1980s and was the Diversions editor for Catalyst, Miami-Dade Community College, South Campus’ student newspaper for one semester.
Using his experiences in those publications, Alex has been raving and ranting about the movies online since 2003 at various websites, including Amazon, ciao and Epinions. In 2012, Alex published his first book, Save Me the Aisle Seat: The Good, the Bad and the Really Bad Movies: Selected by an Online Film Reviewer through CreateSpace.
Reunion: A Story, is Alex’s first work of fiction. In addition to writing reviews, Alex has collaborated with actor-director Juan Carlos Hernandez on several short films, including A Simple Ad (2019), Clown 345 (2019), and Ronnie and the Pursuit of the Elusive Bliss. You can find his reviews and essays on his blog, A Certain Point of View, Too.
About the Book
It is June 1983. Jim Garraty is a senior at South Miami Senior High. He’s a staff writer for the school paper, a college-bound scholar who plans to become a historian and author of books on military history. He’s well-liked by his peers and teachers, and his future looks bright. But as commencement draws near for the Class of 1983, Jim must deal with unfinished business. The girl he loves from afar is also graduating, and rumor has it that she is going away for the summer before starting college in the fall. Worse still, Marty doesn’t know how deeply Jim’s feelings for her are – unless he tells her. But when an opportunity arises on the last day of classes at South Miami High, Jim hesitates…and the window of opportunity closes. Now, 15 years later, James Garraty is an up-and-coming history professor whose literary career is on the rise. Respected by his fellow faculty professors and recipient of popular and critical acclaim, Jim seems to have it all. Except for one thing. True love.
Reunion: A Story Paperback – July 2, 2018, by Alex Diaz-Granados can be purchased from Amazon or Barnes & Noble. The paperback version is currently $6.99 on both Amazon or Barnes & Noble. It is 51 pages, ISBN 978-1722120474, item weight 3.2 ounces, dimensions 6 x 0.13 x 9 inches. The e-Book version, ASIN B07F4SL6NQ, is $3.99 on Amazon, or free if you have Kindle unlimited.
A brief review
This book is about a “what if” scenario, about regret, and what could have been. Once you start reading the book you simply must find out what will happen, which is why I could not put it down and therefore I read it in one sitting. It is a sad but timeless love story that is very engaging. It is about life, friendship, and love. I think the story highlights how differently a teenager and an adult view life and what the consequences can be. The author describes the feelings and the thoughts of the characters in a manner that is realistic and easy to relate to. It was emotional but not too sentimental. The book has a message, especially for young people. It is an easy and quick reading, and it is one of the best short stories I’ve ever read. I highly recommend it.
This blog is primarily about Leonbergers. I review Leonberger books, but I also review books that are not about Leonbergers but that I love, and I want to promote. This post is one of those. I am reviewing Secrets in the Blood Kindle Edition, August 1, 2013 – by Unity Hayes. The book is 225 pages, ASIN : B00E50JO3A, it currently cost $2.99.
Unity is the author of Secrets in the Blood (mystery/romance – August 1, 2013). She has been writing since the age of 15 and has always dreamed of telling stories through the craft of writing. Unity is a Registered Nurse that enjoys small town living, antiquing, and spending time with her family.
Secrets have been buried in a steel town for many years, but someone is about to blow the lid off them and rock this little town. Cassidy loves her life just the way it is. But when mysterious and good looking West arrives, her world is turned upside-down. West carries the secrets of the steel town. Cassidy is attracted to the stranger but a relationship seems impossible as West’s accusations make him appear crazy and bodies start to pile up. No one wants to believe West; can Cassidy let her feelings go and trust him? Who is the killer? How many bodies will pile up before the biggest secret of all is revealed?
Cover for the book Secrets of the Blood. Click on the image to go to the Amazon location for the book.
My review below (to see my Amazon review click here)
An Action-Packed Romantic Thriller with Mystery and Captivating Drama
I normally don’t read books in the romance category. However, this book is so much more than a romance book. It is more than anything a mystery, a thriller, a captivating drama and a fast paced adventure. The romance is an added bonus for those who like that. What I found so intriguing about this book were the thick mysteries as well as the fast-paced action. There were surprises on almost every page. It is one of the best thrillers I’ve ever read.
The setting, a replica of an 1880’s old wild west town called the Watering Hole, appealed to me, perhaps because we’ve stayed in such a place in Arizona. It was a tourist trap of course, but it was fun. The book brought back memories from that trip and the descriptions of the town in the book felt real to me. If the Watering Hole was real, I would take my family there, well assuming that there were no murders or other strange things happening.
There’s danger, death, and a string of violent or strange events. Every page made me wonder what was going on and what was going to happen next. As I was reading my mind went to the girl with dragon tattoo, but that is a different story. This is a very good and unique story, the drama and the dialogue are brilliant, and the character development is good. The author is a registered nurse, which certainly benefitted the descriptions of injuries and the healing processes of the victims. I think realism is an important advantage. I highly recommend this fun and exciting thriller.
This is a Leonberger blog but sometimes I post about books that I want to promote. This post is a review and a promotion of a very good and important book called “The Winding Road: A Journey of Survival” Paperback – July 30, 2022 by Miriam Hurdle.
Click on the image above to go to the paperback version of her book on Amazon
The paperback version of the Winding Road, which is what I bought, is 148 pages, ISBN 979-8842330812, item weight 9.9 ounces, dimensions 6 x 0.34 x 9 inches. You can buy The Winding Road from Amazon, as a paperback, hardback or e-Book. The paperback version is currently $6.99 on Amazon, and the hardback is $25.28. The Kindle version is $1.99 or free if you are part of Kindle Unlimited.
About the Author
Miriam Hurdle is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI). She published four children’s books at twenty-six years old. Her poetry collection received the Solo “Medalist Winner” for the New Apple Summer eBook Award and achieved bestseller status on Amazon. She has a Doctorate of Education from the University of La Verne in California.
This book is the gripping story of Miriam Hurdle’s fight to survive an aggressive cancer. She is an accomplished author, and therefore she was able to tell her traumatic story with intelligence, clarity and honesty. The organization of the book, the storytelling, book design, editing, it is all very professional at the same as the story is personal and deeply touching.
During a hysterectomy in the summer of 2008 a mass was discovered, and it turned out to be melanoma. Melanoma is an aggressive skin cancer that usually does not appear in internal organs, at least not initially. This made the situation both unusual and quite dangerous. In 2007, melanoma in the female organ had less than 300 cases reported worldwide.
Survival was not the only thing that Miriam had to fight for. There were also insurance issues, her work situation, finances, etc., that weighed heavily on her mind and the minds of her family. Add to that the brutal but necessary treatment. She fought courageously with a lot of resolve, and her family and her community gave her a lot of support. The book makes it clear how important this is in this kind of situation. The people around you can make a big difference making sure you don’t lose hope.
I can add that my mother was diagnosed with multiple myeloma, another aggressive cancer, and it was not discovered early. She died at the age of 56. Miriam’s story resonated with me because I recognized a lot of things from her story even though her and my mother’s cancer were not the same. For example, I’ve seen the brutal effects of chemotherapy. What Miriam went though is extremely difficult. I am originally from Sweden, which has national healthcare, so unlike Miriam we were spared from having to deal with insurance issues.
This book is about the power of resilience, courage, hope, community and faith in the face of a cruel disease, which unfortunately many of us will face during our lifetimes. Miriam is a great writer whose genuine and lucid writing could serve as a guide for all of us as we prepare to face unknown traumatic situations. I highly recommend this book to everyone. We should all learn something about the journey before we face it.
This blog is primarily about Leonbergers, especially our late Leonberger Bronco, or as his full name was, Le Bronco von der Löwenhöhle. I also review Leonberger books and sometimes I review books that are not about Leonbergers, books I love and want to promote. This is one of those posts. Today I am reviewing Vampire of The Midnight Sun – January 28, 2023 by Priscilla Bettis. It exists as a Kindle edition with a print length of 55 pages, ASIN B0BS9N5VR1. It is $2.99 on Amazon.
Priscilla Bettis (embedded from Amazon author page)
Even though I am not the traditional vampire aficionado, because of the implausible vampire mythology surrounding vampires, for example, they burn up in sunlight, they turn into bats, all their victims also turn into vampires. It seems silly and evokes questions. I should say I still prefer traditional vampires over zombies. Zombies are boring. However, Priscillas vampire tale is not a traditional vampire story, it is a lot more plausible and modern.
I should say that I have some connection to vampires. That’s because I went to Transylvania with my son and the water polo team, he was part of. Together with another parent, Jim, I was a chaperone. The coach was a native of Transylvania and he decided to make the trip about Dracula, or as his real name was Vlad II Dracul or Vlad II Tepes the Impaler. We visited Dracula’s grave on Snagov island, his birthplace in Sighisoara, the Bran Castle, and the Poienari Castle. I can add that the Bran Castle is the most famous castle and a tourist trap, but there’s no evidence he was ever there. The Poienari Castle on the other hand, was a castle he restored and lived in.
When we visited the Snagov island and the Snagov monastery Dracula’s monk decided to initiate me and my son into Dracula’s covenant. We drank water from Dracula’s well and participated in a ritual and voila, here we are protectors of Dracula. Therefore, I might as well launch into my review of Priscilla’s horror stories.
Two engrossing horror stories that you’ll never forget
Can vampires live under the sun, the midnight sun? Can vampires be blood thirsty but not evil? The first story in Priscilla Bettis “Vampire of the Midnight Sun” story collection certainly implies this and it makes vampires a lot more plausible and interesting than the helpless and evil vampires who are poff-gone under the slightest ray from the sun.
Two friends, Billy and Frasier, are river rafting in Alaska. They end up in the cold river water and have to hike back to safety, wet and without provisions. That’s how a very difficult but interesting hike begins. However, unbeknownst to Frasier, Billy is not a normal mortal. Billy’s special condition turns out to be an advantage to both of them but also the cause of confusion and mounting tension and a gruesome surprise. You don’t need evil for horror, you just need what is otherworldly and bizarre. I found Billy to be quite fascinating and more believable than all the vampires that I’ve come across in other stories. The story was captivating, and the unique narrative was refreshing, and the descriptions of the surrounding beautiful scenery was breathtaking.
“Vampire of the Midnight Sun” also contain a second short story called “the fire witch and the cowboy”. It takes place in an old wild west town called Dusty Bend in Texas during the wildfire season. The town has a secret. There are dark old sins to atone for and as a result there’s wild fire, lots of fire, fire from hell arising from supernatural forces. In the story there are cowards and heroes, witches, ghosts, revenge and death. It is a spellbinding horror story that gave me goosebumps.
I highly recommend this collection of two great horror stories.
In this post I am reviewing Leonberger Dog: Amazing Knowledge About Dog Breed: Leonberger Dog Information Paperback – January 6, 2022 by Stabler Wanda. This paperback is 57 pages, ISBN 979-8796787175, item weight 5 ounces, dimensions 6 x 0.13 x 9 inches. You can buy it from Amazon, as a paperback, or e-Book. The paperback version is currently $6.99 on Amazon, and the Kindle version is $2.99 unless you have Kindle unlimited then it is free.
Front cover of the book Leonberger Dog, Amazing Knowledge About Dog Breed. Click on the image to go to the Amazon location for the book.
Below I am posting my Amazon review of the book Leonberger Dog, Amazing Knowledge About Dog Breed. Click here to see my original Amazon review. BTW I gave the book four stars.
Concise and short but helpful Leonberger book with a few inaccuracies
This is probably the best short Leonberger book I’ve come across. With short I mean less than 60 maybe 70 pages. It is specifically about Leonbergers and not a generic dog book with a couple of pages of Leonberger information. The author is able to pack a lot of helpful Leonberger information into this book without making it dense. The book feature Leonberger information such as temperament, personality, appearance, and Leonberger history, as well as how to care for, train and feed a Leonberger. The book also explores how to get a Leonberger, and if you should get a Leonberger, the cost, the breeders, and Leonberger health.
The book is well written, well edited, the layout/book design looks nice, and it contains 17 beautiful Leonberger photographs (in black and white). I especially enjoyed the chapter on caring for a Leonberger. One thing I found distracting was that the book focused on Leonbergers in the UK and then it focused on North America when discussing how to choose a breeder without having the same discussion for the UK. I didn’t mind too much since I live in the US, but the UK readers may have missed something. I also reacted to the statement that Leonbergers live 6-8 years. That’s an outdated number. Now a day Leonbergers live 8-10 years and our Leonberger lived 13 years, which is exceptional. Thank the Leonberger Health Foundation International for that improvement.
Unfortunately, in the chapter on Leonberger history the book contains some information that is incorrect. The author claims that Heinrich Essig, the creator of the Leonberger breed, was the mayor of the town of Leonberg. Heinrich Essig was a prominent citizen of the town, and he was a successful businessman, farmer, innkeeper, horse and dog trader, large-dog enthusiast, dog breeder, and town councilman, but he was never the mayor of Leonberg.
The author claims that only five Leonbergers survived World War I. It is true that World War I was tough on the breed, but it was not quite that bad. After the war, Karl Stadelmann and Otto Josenhans, worked hard to save the breed, and they were able to find twenty-five Leonbergers whose owners were willing to cooperate in reestablishing the breed. Of these, only five were suitable for breeding. That’s where that info originates, but that’s a little different from saying that only five Leonbergers survived the war.
The author also claims that only eight Leonbergers survived World War II. However, that is once again an exaggeration. There was indeed a “genetic bottleneck” of Leonbergers in the 1940s. This was largely because people repeatedly bred the dogs, they thought were the best specimens in a misguided attempt to improve the breed. Scientific pedigree analyses demonstrate that the Leonberger has twenty-two founder animals, or animal ancestors unrelated to one another (ten males and twelve females). Again, that is a little bit different from “only 8 survived”.
I spent most of my review complaining about incorrect statements that I found, but in truth these incorrect statements are not many and not important. This is still a very good book for being a short book. I give it a four-star rating and I recommend it to anyone interested in the breed who wants a quick but helpful read.
Back cover of the book Leonberger Dog, Amazing Knowledge About Dog Breed.
This blog is primarily about Leonbergers, especially our late Leonberger Bronco, or Le Bronco von der Löwenhöhle, which was his full name. I also review Leonberger books and sometimes I review books that are not about Leonbergers but that I love and want to promote. This post is one of those. I am reviewing The Winding Road: A Journey of Survival Paperback – July 30, 2022 by Miriam Hurdle. This paperback is 148 pages, ISBN 979-8842330812, item weight 9.9 ounces, dimensions 6 x 0.34 x 9 inches. You can buy it from Amazon, as a paperback, hardback or e-Book. The paperback version is currently $6.99 on Amazon, and the hardback is $25.26. The Kindle version is $1.99 or free if you are part of Kindle Unlimited.
This book is a gripping story of Miriam Hurdle’s fight to survive an aggressive cancer. She is a skilled author, and she was able to tell her traumatic story with clarity and honesty.
Front cover of the book The Winding Road: A Journey of Survival by Miriam Hurdle. Click on the image to go to the Amazon location for the book.
One Woman’s Encounter with Aggressive Cancer Told with Intelligence, Clarity and Honesty
This book describes the journey of survival of a woman, Miriam Hurdle, who was diagnosed with Melanoma in an internal organ. Melanoma is an aggressive skin cancer that usually does not appear in internal organs, at least not initially. This made the situation both unusual and quite dangerous. The cancer was discovered by chance during a hysterectomy.
Survival was not the only thing that she had to fight for. There was insurance, her work situation, finances, etc., that weighed heavily on her mind and the minds of her family. Add to that the brutal but necessary treatment. Luckily things worked out for her, and her family and her community gave her a lot of support. The book makes it clear how important this is in this kind of situation. The people around you can make a big difference making sure you don’t lose hope.
My mother got multiple myeloma and it was not discovered early, and she died at the age of 56. So, Miriam’s story resonated with me because I recognized a lot things from her story even though their cancers were not the same and the outcome was not the same. What Miriam went though is extremely difficult. I am originally from Sweden, which has national healthcare. Insurance is an additional burden that every American cancer patient must deal with that we were spared from. So, in that regard our journey was easier. Unfortunately, it did not end well for us.
Miriam is a great writer who writes with clarity, intelligence, and honesty about a very traumatic situation. I think this book can serve as a great help to anyone who may face this situation. In fact, cancer is so common that we are all likely to be touched by it at some point. Therefore, I highly recommend this book to everyone in order for all of us to learn something about the journey before facing it.
Back cover of the book The Winding Road: A Journey of Survival by Miriam Hurdle.
Leonberger Life 