Meet Florence Osmund, an author whose books you know are quality because they have Awesome Indies Approval. Her books would suit people who like fiction that gets to the nitty gritty of life. You can be assured of something with depth as well as a strong plot, because books don't get approved by the Awesome Indies reviewers unless they have all the elements of a good novel in place. Florence's most recent book is called Living with Markus and it's about a young man who is forced to choose between cultivating a satisfying life for himself and rescuing his dysfunctional family members from their certain demise. Painful soul-searching and late-night talks with the captivating tenant downstairs guide him to an unexpected decision and discovery of his true purpose in life. I asked Florence a few questions recently, and them and her answers are below. Tell us a bit about yourself and why you write. After a long career working in a variety of administrative management … [Read more...]
WWW #17 The Publisher’s Brush-off
This post is part of 'WORLDS WITHIN WORLDS', a series of writings about Prunella (Ella) Smith, author, editor & reviewer, and the many worlds she inhabits: her physical reality; her online world where disgruntled author Dita stalks; the worlds of the books she edits; her dream world, and the world beneath the veil of her ordinary reality. Click here for the previous offerings in reverse order, or here for links to them in order. The Publisher's Brush-off Downward Dog is a strange name for an arrangement of the body. Bum up, head down, arms and legs straight. Imagine someone lifting up your hips ….Ssttrreeeettcchh. Ahhhh. It feels goood. I bring myself upright, stretch my spine up and arch backwards. Three times and I’m done. Pain is a great discipliner. If I don’t do my daily exercises, my back soon reminds me. So I do what the physio told me to, I strengthen my core muscles in a regime I attend to more religiously than my meditation. I walk from my studio—polished … [Read more...]
Thought-provoking and entertaining: Review of ‘Thump’ by Avraham Azrieli
'Thump' by Avraham Azrieli is a thought-provoking and entertaining novel about gender and racial stereotyping and prejudice. Thump, an Afro-American working in a predominately white business, thumps his female boss and any female client his boss sends his way. In return, she supports his career. When Thump asks his girlfriend to marry him, she asks him for a vow of exclusivity and he agrees, but when he says ‘no’ and ‘not any more’ to his boss, things start to unravel. The more I reflect on it, the more wonderful the book seems. The author boldly raises a number of questions. At what point does exchanging sex for steps up the corporate ladder become sexual abuse? Can sex ever be truly consensual when one member holds power over the other? Can a woman rape a man? Does stereotyping encourage the negative behaviours they describe? Does the fact that someone is unaware that they're being abused make it any the less abuse. These are just some of the issues we encounter in this story. It’s … [Read more...]
A truly stunning book: Kaleidoscope by Kevin Berry
Sometimes you can tell from the beginning that a book is going to be awesome. Kaleidoscope by Kevin Berry was one of them, and it was primarily due to the strength of the author's voice. Chloe leapt off the very first page like the vibrant and delightfully individual character that she is, and her unwavering honesty and cheerful acceptance of her various 'conditions' made her highly endearing. This book follows on from STIM, but you don't need to have read it first. The central character in STIM is Robert, Chloe's boyfriend, and near the end of that book, they experience the earthquake that shocked Christchurch, New Zealand, in September 2010. Kaleidoscope is narrated by Chloe, a bipolar Aspie (person with Asperger's syndrome), and near the beginning of this book, she and Robert experience the more disastrous February 2011 Earthquake that demolished Christchurch's central business district and killed over 100 people. The earthquake and the difficulties it imposes on the people of … [Read more...]
Gritty reality and magical fantasy: Along the Watchtower by David Litwack
Along the Watchtower is a combination of fantasy and contemporary fiction that tells the story of an Iraqi war veteran's physical and emotional healing. Parallel to the story of Frank defeating his inner demons in a hospital in America is that of a dauphin's trials in a fantasy world. Prince Frederick must pass a series of mystical trials before he can become King, and if he fails, the Kingdom will loose its protective magic and fall to the enemy. In the fantasy world, magic is real, but Frederick does not have any to help him; he must overcome his trials - which cannot be won by sword or dagger - by himself and not fall prey to the assassin who thrives on despair. Frank does not have magic either, but he has Becky, the physical therapist with the magic hands and cheerful, ever-hopeful personality. Frank has a similar goddess to help him; his is in the form of the gardener. The mysteries that Frederick must solve are metaphors for Frank's psychological conundrum, so when Prince … [Read more...]
Lessons Learned from Broken Characters: Discover Laurie Boris
Meet Awesome Indies author Laurie Boris. I've heard that her books are really good. I’m a bit different from some authors. Instead of outlining and building a character from scratch, I let one fall into my head. I follow him or her around as we find the story together. So sometimes (oh, who am I kidding; it happens nearly all the time) I get to work with characters who are a little broken, a little damaged, or who don’t always make the choices I want them to. This means I often hear the same comment from my early readers: I wanted to SLAP her! If it’s any consolation to them, sometimes I want to slap her, too. Yet to write a book any other way, for me, would feel wrong. It would feel like I’m forcing a character to do something contrary to his or her nature. Readers can sense this. It can make the characters’ journeys feel fake, like the author is moving them around on a chessboard to suit the needs of the plot. When Sarah Cohen popped into my head for Sliding Past Vertical, oh … [Read more...]
Memoirs of a strip tease artist: ‘Celestial Bodies in Orbit’ by Eve Littlepage
The two must important things when writing a true story are that the story is interesting, and that the writer tells it in an interesting way. This is undoubtedly an interesting story, but unfortunately, it is not told in an interesting way, as least for me. Eve's life includes abuse, strip tease and drugs, all juicy stuff, and if you are happy to hear the memoirs of a strip tease artist as if you're listening to the main character tell their story in a formal interview, then the book will be perfectly fine for you. The characters come across clearly and I felt I had a real sense of what made Eve tick. The friendly, respectful atmosphere in the interview gave the book a kind of cosy feel that I think would help people who may have difficulty with the material to see it in the same matter-of-fact way as Eve does as she tells her tale. Eve says that she doesn't tell people that she is a stripper, not because she is ashamed of it, but because people have preconceptions about … [Read more...]
Moving & thought-provoking women’s fiction: ‘The Widows To Do List’ by Stephanie Zia
The Widows To Do List is a moving, thought-provoking and occasionally funny story about a recently widowed woman in her fifties as she tries to come to terms with her new status. Sally comes across as very real, which makes her easy to relate to. She mothered two children--now grown and left home--and loved her husband, but an accident took him away and left her grief stricken. The majority of the story takes place one year after Dom's death. Sally is managing by making a list of things to achieve, as suggested by a book on being a widow, and slowly working towards achieving each thing on the list. But Sally's old friend Ramone, thinks the list is ridiculous and suggests some alternatives, one is to have sex as soon as possible, because a widow, having been with one man for so long, is somewhat like a virgin. It's so long since she dated anyone that it's like starting at the beginning again. Sally doesn't like being alone, but she doesn't want to date anyone either until someone … [Read more...]
Intense moving literary fiction: I Run by E.L Farris
I Run is the story of a woman battling the demons of her childhood, an addictive personality and an injured body in an attempt to get her inner life together. I always thought that running was a healthy thing, but for Sally it's much more complex than that. She uses running to run from her feelings and to punish herself because she feels worthless - the legacy of a childhood of abuse. She also knows that she's f***ed up and that she won't be healed until she faces the past. But facing the past is painful. Everything in this book is painful because author El Farris writes excellent and passionate prose that makes you really feel the character's anguish and turmoil. So, this is not a book I enjoyed. How can you enjoy someone's pain? It's not an entertaining read; it's a painful read, because you're reading about someone's pain. That doesn't mean that it's not a good read, on the contrary, it is a very good read if you want to get inside the head of someone like Sally. In fact, it's a … [Read more...]
Simply excellent YA literary fiction: ‘Scratches on the Surface’ by Aaron Smibert
Scratches on the surface is an excellent book. The beginning is riveting. A group of teenage boys give Derek a severe bashing and leave him bleeding in a field, but one of the boys, overcome with guilt, returns to help him. Thus begins the story of Derek, the self-harming homosexual, and Taylor, the devout Christian. Derek is a confronting personality, a difficult and not particularly likeable character - at least on the surface - but he sees the world with a deeper perception than many and his honestly forces Taylor to confront his own homosexuality. This is a painful process for Taylor, particularly in light of the Christian outlook on homosexuality. The book documents his journey as he comes to terms with his feelings for Derek and discovers the truth about Kenny, a man who mentored him in the Scouts. Taylor is a beautiful character. He has an endearing honesty and purity about him that makes him a powerful character. His faith is strong too. Rather than reject God, as he could … [Read more...]
