My Favorite Reads of 2014 & A Year-End Wrap-up

It does not seem possible that today is the last day of 2014. The calendar pages really seemed to turn quickly for me this year. Did you find that too?

I had quite a successful year of reading. I read 106 books this year. This is actually the most I've read since the first year I blogged. In 2008 I read 112. It's a pretty big accomplishment for me considering how many non-fiction books I've read this year--they always take me a little longer to read than fiction.

But here are the statistical breakdowns, for those who might be interested.

Total books read: 106
Number of different authors read: 102
Number of new-to-me authors: 70
Number of debuts: 12
Number of audiobooks: 35
Number of fiction works: 85
Number of non-fiction works: 21
Number of male authors: 72
Number of female authors: 37
(note: the overlap in gender numbers comes from books with multiple authors)

I've enjoyed the variety of books I've read and my year-end list surely reflects it. While I often feel like there's a lot I'm missing, I know it isn't realistic to think I can read it all. I'm quite content reading what makes me happy, though. My approach will probably go in a similar direction for 2015 but you never can tell what interesting twists may arise. In the mean time, a look at my favorite reads of 2014.

A drumroll please....

10. Things Half in Shadow by Alan Finn - I started to include this one on my debut list, but since it's not really a debut, just the first book under the pen name, I opted not to include it there--that's kind of like cheating, right? But it's been awhile since a historical novel grabbed me the way this one did. My review of it will be forthcoming (after it appears in Shelf Awareness) but it snuck in under the wire with a Dec. 30th release date. I enjoyed the blending of genres, the characters and the mystical element of the book. Boy, you don't hear me say that often, do you?

9.   All Day and a Night by Alafair Burke - I'm kind of running out of stuff to say about Alafair Burke's work without repeating myself, since she shows up on this list year after year. The areas I praise her in she only improves with each book. This is--in my opinion--her best work to date. She keeps it fresh, fun, fast and engaging (did you think I'd use another f-word there?).  As you can see from my stats, I read a large number of books by authors who are new to me each year, so I don't end up reading a lot of the same people continually. But Alafair Burke is one of the few I anxiously anticipate and make time for, regardless.

8.   All the Truth is Out by Matt Bai - I found this book to be so vital to the understanding of our consumption of news in this era. We're so caught up in things that don't actually matter or only searching out the things we want to hear or even manipulating the truth so it becomes what we want it to be. Eye opening, honest and challenging. Bai did his homework and delivers it superbly. This is really an important issue and one we'd all benefit from examining a little closer.

7.   Roosevelt's Beast by Louis Bayard - First of all, Louis Bayard used one of my favorite words in this book -- Bwana. I've christened him Bwana Bayard and it's a perfect fit. This book is smart, funny, brilliantly constructed. Not many people can plop you into the South American jungles with a monster and make it enjoyable. Reading a book by Louis Bayard always ends up being a sweet treat, Roosevelt's Beast was no exception.

6.   Morgue Drawer: Do Not Enter by Jutta Profijt - Really I have to say all three of Profijt's books should be included here. I chose Do Not Enter because it's the book that was published this year in the U.S. but I just feel as though I've discovered secret treasure with this series. Of course, it was secret to me, but now I've unearthed it and that makes me very happy. Don't worry, a gushing review of all three books is forthcoming, I promise!

5.   The Global War on Morris by Steve Israel - Somehow I completely missed this book as a debut--I should have included in yesterday's list as well, but when Israel decides to hang up his political hat, he's got a real future in publishing. Heck, he doesn't even need to give up the day job, I guess. In this case his insider perspective helped as The Global War on Morris is a political satire. This is another under the wire December 30th publication and my review is forthcoming. Rapier wit, intelligent argument and an absurd reality.

4.  Hand to Mouth by Linda Tirado - Linda Tirado blew me away. She's smart, witty, brutally honest and this book is a scary reminder for us all of how close we are to poverty. More than that, it's a wake-up call to the fact that we are not better or more deserving than the working poor...or those in deep poverty for that matter. Tirado has written in such a way as to let us walk in her shoes for awhile. And they're rather uncomfortable. Tirado has an important message to share but she also has a gift with writing. I hope there will be more from her in the future.

3.   Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson - With the year's national headlines related to race issues in our country, this book was even more powerful than anyone really could have anticipated. Just Mercy emphasizes the massive miscarriages of justice that happen every day that never make those headlines, the ones many people remain happily ignorant to. It's startling, mortifying and it's something every single person in this country needs to be aware of. It's beautifully written and reads like fiction. If only it were.

2.   Wait for Signs by Craig Johnson - I adore Craig Johnson's full-length novels, but I chose the collection of shorts because I was reminded while reading them how endearing, touching, humorous and so densely packed with wonderfulness each one is. It's a small package, but boy howdy is it a priceless gem.

1.   A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Brackman - I gushed over this book yesterday, so you probably don't need me to do so again today. I'll simply say that if you haven't checked this one out yet, I highly recommend you do. There's simply so much to love in it--everyone needs an Ove!

And there you have it. My favorite reads of 2014. It was certainly a great year for reading. How about you? What knocked your socks off this year?

Also, a last little correction for yesterday. I included The Secret Wisdom of the Earth on my favorite debuts list and it IS in fact one of my favorite debuts. However, it doesn't officially come out until 2015. I read it in advance to cover it for Shelf Awareness and lost track of its publication date--January 2015. It's a wonderful book but it isn't a 2014 debut. Sorry!

2014 Favorite Audiobooks and Favorite Debuts

2014 brought about my entry into reviewing audiobooks for Audiofile Magazine. My organization--or rather lack thereof--for this year has been the main obstacle for me getting those reviews here on the blog. The reviews for Audiofile focus on the production and not the story, so I have wanted to add additional information into the reviews to cover my reactions to the stories as well. I am hoping to do better in 2015 in this area so I can include those reviews here as well. In the meantime, those audios listed below that I haven't reviewed here, but have appeared at Audiofile will be linked to their pages on the Audiofile site. I hope you'll visit the site if you don't already.

My choices for favorite audiobooks--from the 35 I listened to this year--are based solely on the audio production, so some of the books listed below may not be (in my opinion) the greatest stories but they were stellar performances. They were enjoyable to listen to. So if the story wasn't that great then the narrator was extra wonderful in order to overcome that disadvantage and keep me engaged for the entire book.

FAVORITE AUDIOBOOKS OF 2014 ARE:
 
5. Midwinterblood (written by Marcus Sedgwick; narrated by Julian Rhind-Tutt): this is a YA book, but can certainly be enjoyed by any listener. A strong atmosphere and Rhind-Tutt does a magical job with the irregular structure of this book. It's a collection of interconnected stories and he keeps the reader firmly entwined in that connecting thread. (Listening Library)

4. The Intern's Handbook (written by Shane Kuhn; narrated by Pete Simonelli): this particular book is showing up all over my lists this year. It's a wonderful, complete package. Simonelli didn't try to force drama into this book, he kept his reading dry to match the concept of the handbook--who's ever read a dramatic handbook?  This may at first seem like the audiobook would be a boring listen, but quite the contrary. His approach enhanced the sarcastic humor and the suspense of the genius plot. (Simon & Schuster Audio)

3. Wait for Signs (written by Craig Johnson; narrated by George
Guidall): I'm utterly convinced that there is nothing Guidall can't do when it comes to narration, but he still continues to amaze me in his depiction of Craig Johnson's world of Absaroka County. Johnson's short stories are especially powerful with huge helpings of passion and meaning in small packages. Guidall made the opening of these packages a joyous occasion. He juggles the spiritual, the humorous, the respectful and the heartfelt without dropping a single ball. Sometimes he has to perform a magic trick and juggle them so they merge and then reappear as separate entities. He does it all without breaking a sweat--or at least without letting us hear he's breaking a sweat. He also shows up the individual who reads the introduction to this collection...the person who couldn't be bothered to find out how to pronounce Absaroka even though it appears half a dozen times in the text. How lame!  (Recorded Books)

2. The Midnight Plan of the Repo Man (written by W. Bruce Cameron; narrated by George K. Wilson): This is a book I may very well have turned away from had I been reading it in print.  It deals with a ghost trapped in the main character's head. Not my normal fare, but the presentation was simply so engaging and fun I was disappointed when the book ended.  (Macmillan Audio)

1. The Morgue Drawer series (written by Jutta Profijt; translated by Erik J. Macki; narrated by Macleod Andrews): This is the only series this year that I started and HAD to continue to listen to--one right after the other. Unfortunately I wasn't able to get my  hands on the second book, so I'll still be anticipating that one. I listened to the first book, Morgue Drawer Four, then the fourth, Morgue Drawer: Do Not Enter!, then the third, Morgue Drawer for Rent. They were absolutely wonderful even out of order. I'll have a full review for you soon, but suffice it to say these blew me away. The story concept is fabulous; the translation is brilliant--there's tons of slang and made-up words and Macki did an incredible job taking them from the original German to English; finally at the delivery Macleod Andrews was astounding. His timing, his attitude, his energy and intensity, they were all award-worthy. I love this series and the audiobooks are pure gold. (Brilliance Audio)

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Debuts. I only read 11 debuts this year. I read books by 70 authors who were new to me, but only 11 of those were people writing their first books. So I'm leaving this list at only 3, which is still a large percentage of the total debuts, but I think these three deserve the kudos...and one you will see again tomorrow.

FAVORITE DEBUTS:

  

3. The Secret Wisdom of the Earth by Christopher Scotton. A stunning portrayal of the Appalachian region, beautiful writing and a wonderful coming of age story. I look forward to more from Scotton in the coming years.

2. The Intern's Handbook by Shane Kuhn. Geez, this book is like a bad penny, right? It keeps showing up everywhere. It's getting harder and harder to wow me with creative approaches to crime stories so when someone does, I celebrate it. Loved this book!

1. A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman. It continues to astound me that this book is a debut. I have recommended it to more people than any other this year and have had more people contact me about it than any other this year. It is beautifully written, funny, smart, heart-felt and it transcends time and place. It's set in Sweden but is relevant to anyone, anywhere, anytime. A Man Called Ove embodies why I love reading and love books.

2014 Favorite Covers & First Lines

Well, it's hard to believe it, but it's that time of year again. Time to sum up the year in reading with my favorites lists. For those who may be new to the blog this year end, I have foregone the use of the term "best" because the connotation indicates there is a standard or rubric that makes the selection objective, when in reality all of these lists--no matter who they are compiled by--are completely subjective and dependent on the choosers' tastes and interests. So my lists are "favorite lists."

I had hoped to integrate some stats from what blog readers also liked this year, but the responses were too few to offer anything up in that realm. Maybe next year?

As for my favorites in the categories of covers and first lines, here are those that rocked my reading world for 2014:

FAVORITE COVERS

5.  A Better World (Marcus Sakey): I think you'll notice a running theme of simplicity in my favorite covers. In addition to A Better World's cover having a connection with the first in the trilogy, it screams a big meaning in a subtle use of art. The only thing that would have improved this cover is a more subtle use of the blurb--preferably moving it to the back cover.

4. Roosevelt's Beast (Louis Bayard): The rich layered approach of Bayard's writing is epitomized in the dimension of this cover. His atmosphere and setting are nailed.  The minimalistic use of color gives each hue strength in the overall arrangement. The font choice for the title builds the suspense before readers even crack the cover. And the wording is limited to the title and author--how wonderfully refreshing.

3. Conquest (John Connolly & Jennie Redyard): I absolutely love the use of shape and light in this cover. It exudes so many elements of the novel: the blending of cultures, the sci-fi genre, they mysterious and unknown, as well as the strong connection to basics of the planet. Again, I think the simplistic color scheme adds strength to each shade and highlight.

2. The Global War on Morris (Steve Israel): This is a very late entry for 2014. The book comes out tomorrow and you'll hear more about it after my review runs in Shelf Awareness, but this cover has a less subtle use of color which is perfect for this political satire. The stark contrast between the elements in this composition are bold and loud and funny, just like the points Israel makes inside the book.

1. The Intern's Handbook (Shane Kuhn): I listened to this audiobook for Audiofile Magazine and much like The Global War on Morris, the colors of this cover are minimal but they are bold and jump out at the viewer. The composition of the cover is brilliant and intricately tied to the plot. I can't help but love a cover that makes a concerted effort to accurately tie into the novel it's representing.  Kudos to Simon and Schuster on this beauty!

FAVORITE FIRST LINES:

5.  Talk by Michael Smerconish: "Fire, tits and sharks are TV gold."

4. Horrorstör by Grady Hendrix: "It was dawn, and the zombies were stumbling through the parking lot, streaming toward the massive beige box at the far end."

3. Don't Look Back by Gregg Hurwitz: "Terror came as a vibration, a plucked-wire note more felt than heard, primary to the deadening heat, to the flick of unseen insects against her face, to the oppressive night humidity that pressed into her pores."

2. Those Who Wish Me Dead by Michael Koryta: "On the last day of Jace Wilson's life, the thirteen-year-old stood on a quarry ledge staring at cool, still water and finally understood something his mother had told him years before: Trouble might come for you when you showed fear, but trouble doubled-down when you lied about it."

1. The Happiest People in the World by Brock Clarke: "The moose head was fixed to the wall, the microphone in its mouth was broken, but the camera in its left eye was working just fine, and as far as the moose head could see, this was just another Friday night in the Lumber Lodge!"

What covers and first lines tickled your fancy this year? Share with us in the comments, we'd love to know. Tomorrow I'll have my favorite debuts and favorite audiobooks for 2014. See you then!

Footsteps in the Snow - Charles Lachman

My review of Footsteps in the Snow first appeared in Shelf Awareness for Readers. I am posting it on the blog today with their permission.

First line: "It was an ordinary night in a small town very few Americans outside its boundaries even knew existed."

Maria Ridulph disappeared on a snowy December evening in 1957. She was playing outside with a friend when a stranger approached offering piggyback rides. Maria’s friend ran home to fetch her mittens; upon returning there was no trace of Maria or the stranger. Despite the determination of her community, national attention, and FBI involvement, no one was charged with Maria’s disappearance. Her body wouldn’t be discovered until the following April; her killer wouldn’t be arrested and tried for over half a century.

Footsteps in the Snow details the oldest cold case ever brought to trial in the United States. Charles Lachman, Inside Edition executive producer and author of A Secret Life, guides readers through the lives of those closest to the case using his meticulous examination of case evidence, historical records and his own interviews.

The murderer’s identity is clear to the reader early on, so this true crime book reads less like a murder mystery and more like a thriller as law enforcement agents throughout the five decades Maria’s case is open struggle to uncover the truth. Events are at times almost unbelievable, like a deathbed confession, and at other times disheartening, such as investigators neglecting to show the lone witness a picture of the killer--and original suspect--in 1958.

While extremely well researched, the account becomes at times weighed down with unnecessary detail and may leave readers with some unanswered questions. Even so, overall it maintains a high level of suspense and quick pace. True crime and crime fiction fans alike should devour this one.

Footsteps in the Snow is available in paperback (ISBN: 9780425272886) from Berkley.

Just Mercy - Bryan Stevenson

My review of Just Mercy first ran as a starred review in Shelf Awareness for Readers. I am posting it today with their permission.

First line: "I wasn't prepared to meet a condemned man."

With all the suspense of a Grisham legal thriller, attorney Bryan Stevenson, director of the Equal Justice Initiative (EJI) in Montgomery, Alabama, offers up a true narrative about his work with the people most desperately in need of legal assistance.

Just Mercy centers on the story of Walter McMillian, a young, black entrepreneur who was convicted of a murder he insisted he didn’t commit. The evidence supporting McMillian’s claim was overwhelming, yet he was sentenced to die in the electric chair. When Stevenson takes on McMillian’s cause he discovers a case steeped in conspiracy, misconduct, racism, even adultery, proving that fact can often be more harrowing than fiction. The tale also involves a disturbing element of irony—the 1986 murder took place in Monroeville, Alabama, childhood home of Harper Lee and the basis for her setting in To Kill a Mockingbird.

Interspersed with McMillian’s tragedy are short vignettes of other cases Stevenson and the EJI undertake: children sentenced to life in prison, thirteen and fourteen-year-olds placed in adult correctional facilities, the mentally ill on Death Row. Stevenson never discounts the actions of his clients that lead them to their circumstances, but he does present the whole individual and reminds readers, “each of us is more than the worst thing we’ve ever done.”

Stevenson’s deft story-telling skills will keep readers engrossed in McMillian’s fate, and his passionate dedication to the men, women and children he represents will illustrate a heart-wrenching side of the American penal system that is too often and too easily ignored.

Just Mercy is available in hardcover (ISBN: 9780812994520) from Spiegel & Grau. There is also an unabridged audio version (ISBN: 978-0553550603), narrated by the author, from Random House Audio.

A Few Friday Tidbits

Good golly, the Friday before Christmas. If you're celebrating I hope you're more ready than I. I always start early planning and prep, but still somehow manage to end up behind as the big day approaches.

To give you a sense of the content for the final weeks of the year, I'll be posting mostly reviews next week to catch up a little and then I'll wrap up with my traditional favorites lists. I'll let you know what my favorite audiobooks were, my favorite debuts, my favorite book covers, my favorite first lines and my overall favorite books for 2014.

But I'd like to add a new element to the year end lists and that's YOUR favorite books of 2014 so I have a quick (and hopefully painless) form for you to submit your favorite titles. Then I'll include the outcomes in my final posts of the year:



Since it's Friday, we should take a look at some contests you can enter, right?

Book Riot has a chance for you to win a Kobo Aura ereader.
Friday Reads has a musical array of books you should check out.
Criminal Element has the Yule Be Sorry sweepstakes.
You can peruse through Read it Forward's various giveaways here.

I wanted to throw a couple more last minute book gift recommendations out for you. You know, if you're like me, you're still finishing up...*sigh*

First is a book I just think is stunning and would be loved by ANY Neil Gaiman fan.  The Art of Neil Gaiman by Haley Campbell is a book to soak in bit by beautiful bit. It's a full color collection of art, previously unseen materials, and an exploration of the creative genius. This is a book you keep for the ages, it really is. If you have a Gaiman fan on your gift list and he/she does not have this book, they will treasure it. But hey, if YOU'RE a Gaiman fan and you don't have this book, get yourself a copy.

The Art of Neil Gaiman (ISBN: 9780062248565) is available from Harper Design.

And let me just extend my Gaiman love a little further because I owe my discovery of his work to my good friend Rhonda who introduced me to The Graveyard Book. And when I saw the publication of graphic novel version earlier this year, I drooled. It's target audience is the young...but I think the young at heart qualify as well. There is also a full cast recording of the audiobook that came out this year. I listened to the audiobook narrated entirely by Gaiman and gosh was it beautiful. I still have to try the full cast version, though.

The Graveyard Book graphic novel (Vol I) (ISBN:  9780062194817) is available from HarperCollins. And the full cast audiobook (ISBN: 9780062364463) is also available from HarperCollins.

And finally, a little bookish fun I saw the other day and liked--plus is handy this time of year when all the colds and flus are raging--a book tissue box cover.

Coffee Table Gems

To continue with the gift ideas for your loved ones this holiday season, I have two beautiful coffee table books that I reviewed for Shelf Awareness this year. One is perfect for your nature-lover or photography lover, the other for your pop culture junkie. Take a look.

Crown of the Continent: The Wildest Rockies
by Steven Gnam

In this stunning homage to the expanse of Rocky Mountains between Missoula, Montana and Banff, Alberta, photographer Steven Gnam captures the Crown of the Continent in all of its colors, seasons and life while locals offer essays on the importance of this exceptional geographic stretch and the need to increase wildlife corridors.

Gnam preserves the vast plant and animal life in breath-taking colors and textures. All the images--taken at ground level, and in some cases below water--emphasize the miraculous expanse of this region, especially in relation to man.

The essays weaved into the collection are as mesmerizing as the images. Crown of the Continent was conceived as a way to educate people to the vital importance of connecting protected islands of wilderness. Each essay, with a passion mirroring the photographs, contributes to the enlightenment through anecdotes, data and insight.

Contributor Michael Jamison says, "There is no separating the human from the wild. Our species has not seceded from nature." Readers will feel this connection acutely in Crown of the Continent.

Crown of the Continent (ISBN: 9781594857720) is available from Mountaineers Books.

Retronaut: The Photographic Time Machine
by Chris Wild

With the chance discovery of an old book of photographs, Chris Wild realized the mental image he had of history was inaccurate. He set out to find other photographs that would transform his "low resolution version" into "a new colorful past of high resolution, high contrast, low noise--and lots and lots of detail."

Wild took the acquisitions of his quest to the Internet and created a blog he called "Retronaut" to mean "someone who travels back." Retronaut: The Photographic Time Machine brings a slice of the virtual collection into a captivating print compilation of photos, posters, advertisements and other curiosities that enhance the detail of bygone times.

The organization of the images combined with riveting quotes and thorough captions will mesmerize readers as they view snapshots of the world through Wild's retronaut goggles.

Sure to be a great conversation starter, Retronaut is a perfect coffee table book. Teachers may find it a fresh springboard for projects. And fans of the unusual will rejoice.

Retronaut (ISBN: 9781426213830) is available from National Geographic.

Five on Friday - James W. Hall

Happy Friday my friends. I'm on the road so my usual chit chat will be a little brief today. I didn't want to miss out on sharing our Five on Friday, though, so let me get right to introducing our wonderful guest.

James W. Hall is a professor, a poet and a thriller writer. Oh yeah, he writes non-fiction and short stories, too. But his most recent release is the fourteenth book in his Thorn thriller series, THE BIG FINISH, which came out December 2nd. He's an Edgar and John D. Macdonald Award-winner, was a Fulbright professor in Spain and founded the creative writing program at Florida International University. Whew! Pretty impressive resume, don't ya think? But I have to admit I'm rather fascinated by the fact that he once dug post holes and built a fence for Robert Redford.

I'm very excited to have him on the blog today, so let me turn it over to James W. Hall:

James W. Hall from his "first, and hopefully not last, trip to Venice."

If I could tell my 16-year-old self one piece of advice, knowing what I know now, it would be: Use your floss and sunscreen, and don’t fret so much about making every sentence sound so damn poetic.

The best gift I ever received was: a British racing green MG Midget for my 18th birthday. My dad was having an unusually good year in the real estate business, bless his heart.

A skill I’ve always wanted to have, but don’t is: Tuning a carburetor.

If I won the lottery tomorrow, the first thing I would do would be: Fire my parsimonious financial planner.

The #1 item on my bucket list right now is: Win a couple of rounds in a 65 and older tennis tournament.

Well an MG Midget IS a pretty great gift, I'd say! And we'll keep an eye out for that tennis win. Many thanks to James Hall for this fun peek into his life. Be sure to catch up with him on Facebook and Twitter. And you can learn more about him, his books, and his book tours at his website.

Stocking Stuffer gift ideas

The next post in my gift ideas series is a couple of ideas for your book lover's stocking gifts.

The first one is especially good if your book lover enjoys writing letters. I've had several books this year from Quirk Books that have really tickled my fancy and this pair of books of postcards does as well.

Hugs and Misses and Stars and Swipes both include 30 mailable postscards with humorous silhouette art from Wilhelm Staehle.

First I have to share the bio for Staehle on the inside flap of the binding. This will give you an idea of the tickling humor found on the cards themselves:

"Wilhelm Staehle is a horribly disfigured gentleman who often frightens small children when passing by. He divides his free time between sporting for fox hunters and dressing his broad collection of taxidermy. He also finds time to craft silhouettes. He begs you to enjoy them. Or at the very least to refrain from informing him if you do not."

Stars and Swipes is a collection of Americana images blended with pop culture to create wacky, laugh out loud scenarios like this one featuring Lady Liberty:

Text reads: "100 years with my arm raised in New York and still no cab."

I can envision these being great little greetings during hot political campaigns or just for your book lover who takes a special pride in his/her American-ness.

Hugs and Misses is summed up by Quirk as: "full of lovelorn ladies and roguish gentlemen suffering through painful encounters, indecent proposals, tasteless pick-up lines and failed attempts at charm. The postcards feature the truths about love and relationships that we're not permitted to say aloud (lest we find ourselves sleeping upon the couch)." Here's one of my favorites:

The text reads: (woman) "I'm allergic to mussels." (man) "That's fantastic I don't work out."

Both books of postcards are made from a nice, heavy stock and each card needs only a stamp--and your pithy message--to be ready for posting.

The other stocking stuffer gift idea I have to share with you is this humorous gag gift: Collected Works of Literary Lites. They are available on Etsy and are perfect for your book lover who has a "stinky" sense of humor.

And let's hear from you all. What other fun stocking stuffer ideas have you found for book lovers on your gift list?

The Secret Wisdom of the Earth - Christopher Scotton

My review of The Secret Wisdom of the Earth first appeared as a Maximum Shelf issue at Shelf Awareness. I am posting it today for non-crime Monday with their permission. You can also check out my interview with Christopher Scotton here.

First line: "The Appalachian Mountains rise a darker blue on the washed horizon if you're driving east from Indiana in the morning."

Making his fiction debut with an ambitious coming of age novel, Christopher Scotton paints the Appalachian region and its people with a reverential brush. Using their flaws and charms to highlight and shadow the work, Scotton produces a masterpiece in The Secret Wisdom of the Earth.

Leaving Indiana for Medgar, Kentucky, fourteen-year-old Kevin Gillooly and his mother try to escape the horror of an accident that took the life of Kevin's younger brother. His mother is non-functional with guilt, and Kevin is battling his own trauma plus the weight of blame from his father.

Medgar offers Kevin a freedom he hasn't known before and one he desperately needs to survive the suffocation his family's loss is creating. He wanders the countryside with his new friend Buzzy Fink, discovering both the beauty and the hostility of a land that means everything to his grandfather, Arthur "Pops" Peebles. As adult Kevin narrates the story he fondly recalls, "Off we'd go, breaknecking the hills and plundering the hollows where the compounded guilt and grief I felt would fall away like original sin at a baptismal."

Through this small backwoods town in Kentucky, Scotton sketches a rainbow of humanity. Using natural--and often humorous--dialogue, vivid descriptions and authentic behaviors, he populates Medgar with a colorful cast Kevin meets as he assumes the role of assistant to his large animal vet grandfather. While most in Medgar are poor, this is the least of what defines them. For example, "'The Finks are poor, but they're proud poor. Esmer runs the hollow hard. Kids stay in school; they truck their garbage out once a week. These are solid people.'" Contrast them to the Budgets who "'generally don't go to school past the tenth grade; they live off the land, get handouts, and work the mines and odd jobs to make up the rest. They've been living in this hollow for almost one hundred years, marrying each other and having each other's babies. The gene pool is getting a bit shallow.'"

And with the diversity of people comes a diversity of issues: racism, hate crimes, poverty and the issue that symbolizes them all, mountaintop removal.

Coal mining has been a way of life in Medgar for many years, but instead of tunneling into the earth, the coal companies now remove the tops of mountains through explosions, leaving the landscape ripped open and scarred. For part of Medgar's residents, including Pops and Paul Pierce, this is a travesty that must stop. It's not only erasing the physical land but the history of Medgar's people: the acid rain created from coal dust erodes the headstones in the graveyards.

One Medgar resident bemoans, "'We are talking about mountains that have been here for ten thousand years. Mountains that have defined us for generations... and now three are gone.... they are not coming back.... Ever.'" And Pops points out "'People don't care about experts; they care about Betty Dodger being a widow.... They care about black water coming out of the faucets up in Corbin Hollow. They care about their neighbors getting sick from all this crap in the water.'"

As dark as Scotton daubs mountaintop removal into his picture of Appalachia, Kevin's narrative reveals the other side as well: the struggling families who have no other way of making a living in the harsh, elevated landscape. Their mineral rights and land ownership are all they can leverage. Still, Pops and Paul work to rally the Medgar citizens against the mining companies and the decimation of Kentucky's mountains.

The division between the factions intensifies during that summer of 1985. A series of violent crimes rock the town with more force than one of the mountaintop explosions and as the investigation stalls for lack of evidence, Kevin learns the hard truth in Pop's words, "'Evil doesn't have to be loud, son. In fact, it reserves that for the merely boorish. Evil is quiet, stealthy--it sneaks up on you, smiles, and pats you on the back while pissing down your leg.'"

The death of Kevin's brother, the wounding of nature and the crimes that happen in Medgar are all brutally dark and ugly, yet The Secret Wisdom of the Earth is splendid and hopeful. Scotton's undeniable love and awe of this region shine through as he painstakingly portrays strokes of beauty in man and nature.

While camping Pops teaches Kevin about the "courtesy pile" of firewood. And when Kevin wants to know what if people don't do their part, Pops' response is "'Well, somebody's gotta be first, don't you think? Just imagine what would happen if we all left a place a little better than we found it.'" This advice carries a multitude of meanings in the book, but it also reflects what Scotton has done with his debut novel. He's left the literary world a little better than he found it.

The Secret Wisdom of the Earth will be available from Grand Central Publishing January 6th in hardcover (ISBN: 9781455551927). There will also be an unabridged audio (ISBN: 9781478986874), narrated by Robert Petkoff, available from Hatchette Audio and Blackstone Audio

Five on Friday - Lesley Kagen

Happy Friday and my apologies for a quiet week. The days are just zipping past me lately and I have a bunch of stuff I need to be sharing with you. I'm going to do my very best to get back on track this weekend, starting with my holiday recommendation post that was supposed to be yesterday. I'll get that up for you tomorrow, it's a fun one for sure.

I also have to take a little minute here to do a celebration dance of sorts. If you've ever actually seen me dance you might suspect I've been badly injured and try to call an ambulance, so let's just pretend dance, o.k? This is my 1500th blog post. Good gracious! Who knew I had it in me? Next month will mark 7 years of this blog. SEVEN YEARS! Craziness! Thanks for being along for the ride. Making new friends has been the best part.

O.k. that's enough pretend dancing. On to other things...

Contests. What's going on with contests. Let's see:

My wonderful friends at TLC Book Tours have a contest going on on their Facebook page...a bunch of delectable bookish loot in this one.

Friday Reads has a great giveaway for Civil War/history buffs. It's a photography book called Houses of Civil War America. It sounds pretty fascinating to me, actually.

Criminal Element has a "What is War Good For" sweepstakes package you can win. I'm sensing a war theme here...kind of odd for the holiday season. Hmmmmm....

Well thank goodness for Lesa! She's a bit more in the holiday spirit with a Cleo Coyle Holiday Giveaway this week.

And our special guest today has a contest going on to win a copy of her new book AND an iPad Mini. So don't miss this one.

And now it's time to introduce an incredibly talented woman I'm delighted is joining us today. Lesley Kagen had an amazing path to her writing career. She worked in radio, in tv and restaurants! Oh and her most important job, of course, is mother. It wasn't until her children left that she began seriously writing.

Her debut novel, Whistling in the Dark, took a little while to find an agent who loved it, but now it's in its sixteenth printing. Whistling introduced her much loved O'Malley sisters, Sally and Troo. And this month brings the publication of Lesley's sixth novel, The Resurrection of Tess Blessing. If you're familiar with Lesley's work, you're likely as excited as I am for this new book. If you haven't read her work before, I encourage you to check it out. I especially adored the audiobook of Good Graces that Lesley narrated herself.

Because I am fortunate to worth with Lesley through her website, I know how busy she is with this book release and it's unpredictability. So I'm ever so grateful she could take some time out for a Five on Friday chat. Ladies and gentlemen, Ms. Lesley Kagen!

1. The # 1 item on my bucket list right now is taking my g-babies to Disney World. Nothing quite as wonderful and hilarious as the look on their little faces when they bump into Mickey for the first time.

2. The best gift I ever received, other than my children, was my first horse. I fainted.

3. One thing that I have no tolerance for is entitled folk. I can barely stop myself from punching them in the bread box.

4. If I won the lottery tomorrow, the first thing I would do is start planning how I would go about surprising the hell out of deserving people with gifts. (I have this fantasy to be John Beresford Tipton from The Millionaire.) How fun would that be!

5. The most daring thing I've done to date is move to Hollywood without a job when I was in my mid-twenties. I had this foolish idea that I'd be "discovered" like Lana Turner, even though I do not fill out a sweater the way she did. The only discovering that was done was that the ice cream at Schwab's Drugstore was awesome.

I think I would volunteer to help Lesley on her Millionaire re-enactment! You can learn a little more about Lesley in this interview at Huffington Post that ran the other day. Plus, as I know, you can check out her website, her Facebook Page and her Twitter account. Lesley's also been blogging, so you can follow along with her at her Yellow Umbrella blog as well.

Many, many thanks to the wonderful Lesley and to everyone for stopping by today. Have a grand weekend and happy reading!