What do I think about The Muse?

"Not all of us receive the ends that we deserve. Many moments that change a life's course - a conversation with a stranger on a ship, for example - are pure luck. And yet no one writes you a letter, or chooses you as their confessor, without good reason. This is what she taught me: you have to be ready in order to be lucky. You have to put your pieces into play."

   

-From the opening page of The Muse by Jessie Burton, 2016        

 Last night I finished reading this good book that I just happened to find at the library. It was a shot in the dark, and within its pages I found a delightful story from two different time periods. One part of the story begins in 1967 in London, a story that involves the main character from Trinidad in the Caribbean, Odelle Bastien. We meet her best friend, Cynth, whom she shares a small flat with. The young women spend their days working in a shoe store, a plight that they see as very unsatisfying. As the story unfolds, Odelle meets a young man named Laurie who is smitten with her, but she isn't very interested in him in the beginning. She gets a job in an art studio as a typist and she feels that her luck is beginning to change. She becomes a good friend and confident to her boss, "Quick," an older woman who treats Odelle much like a daughter. The two become very interested in a painting that Laurie owns and the story behind the painting becomes very intriguing to them all (and to the reader!).

Then the story jumps back to people who were in Spain in about the year 1936, people who were brought together by civil war. We meet Olive, Teresa, Isaac, and Sarah, and we begin to see a commonality between this part of the story and the latter part. Art is also a focal part of this section of the story, and we find the characters trying to find fame and fortune in the art that they, themselves, create. But who actually painted these beautiful paintings? And what do the paintings mean? Who are those people in them? After I read this book for a while I could see how the two stories are interwoven. In the end you will see the relationship between characters in the 1960s and the people in the 1930s. Let's just say that there are characters who turn out to be related to each other, and the conclusion is full of surprises. If you like history or mysteries, you will enjoy this book. Burton does a great job of characterization and she has a very good way with words that makes the story flow smoothly and effortlessly.  But what else would you expect from someone who graduated from Oxford? Now I'm interested in reading Burton's other book, The Miniaturist. If it's as good as The Muse, it will be time well-spent.

In my last entry, "When I Look Into Your Eyes," I spoke about our sweet beagle-mix, Nilla. Just so you know, she's doing great except for her red, itchy skin, a problem she's had for about four years. She's currently taking two medications to help relieve this for a little while, and one of them tastes like chicken. No, I haven't actually tasted it myself, but the veterinarian assures me that it is so. And Nilla sure does gobble it up. That is proof enough.

The next book that I will read is a novel set in Ireland, and I'm eager to get going on it. In my next post I will discuss this book as well as a topic that I think you'll be interested in, travel. I won't divulge anything else at this time, so please stay tuned. I want to thank my readers in the UK, Germany, Alaska, France, Russia, and the U.S. for looking at my blog from time to time. Please continue reading, and leave me your thoughts. I enjoy hearing what you think, so in the comments section YOU get a chance to write too.

Until next time, be gentle to yourself...

Melissa Hill
Book Blogger
www.onegoodbookblog.blogspot.com

When I Look Into Your Eyes

"When the Man waked up he said, 'What is Wild Dog doing here?' And the Woman said, 'His name is not Wild Dog any more, but the First Friend, because he will be our friend for always and always and always.'"

-Rudyard Kipling, author of The Jungle Book (www.dogtime.com)

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When I look into Nilla's eyes, I see a pure soul. When I look into those big brown eyes, I see a faithful friend who is always the same. She is never moody or ungrateful. She is never rude, selfish, or mean-spirited. She is never complicated or disloyal or lazy. She is just Nilla, an 11-year old beagle-mix that we adopted when she was just a few months old through the stray fund of North Paw Animal Hospital here in Durham, North Carolina. She and the other puppies of her litter were found along the side of a nearby road, and the vet office quickly took them in and brought them back to health. When I look into her beautiful brown eyes, I see a soul who is thankful for every bite of food, every piece of raw hide, every treat, and every full bowl of clean water. In a word, Nilla is a 30-pound bundle of unconditional love.

We can learn a lot from our pets. They give us more than we give them, no doubt, and we know it. I know that my many walks with Nilla are good for me in many ways. I tell people that walking is my therapy, and being with Nilla makes it even more therapeutic. I've been having knee problems for the past three years, so my walks haven't been as long or as numerous, but I look forward to the time when I can again take my sweet beagle-mix up Bramble Drive and down Genesee with no effort. Everyone here in Willow Hill knows me by my dog. I'm having the dreaded knee replacement surgery on July 9, and then the rehabilitation can begin, so Nilla, don't give up on me!

Now onward to another one of my favorite topics, books. This week I read a fun book called
 A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles. I saw this book on a shelf at the library and thought it sounded pretty interesting. It was one of those books that you can only keep for one week so I read as often as I could and finished the book in just five days. It has been on the New York Times bestseller list so I knew it would be good. The book is about an aristocrat, Count Alexander Rostov, who is called an "unrepentant" aristocrat by a Bolshevik tribunal and is placed on house arrest for many, many years in a grand hotel in Moscow. Rostov lives out his days in a small attic room in the Metropol, a nice hotel that is right across the street from the Kremlin. The hotel is filled with interesting characters, and Rostov seems to befriend all of them, especially the regular employees that work throughout the building. He himself has never worked a day in his life, but he begins to work as a waiter in the hotel's lavish restaurant so that he will have something to do. Rostov seems to take his "imprisonment" as well as one can imagine, and he definitely makes the most of a difficult situation. There is an interesting conclusion to the plot, and I won't spoil it for you, but I do think you will enjoy this book for its humor as well as for the history that you will learn about Russia beginning in the 1920s.

A Gentleman in Moscow reminds me of a movie that I saw several years ago starring Tom Hanks. It was based on a true story and was a lot of fun to watch. The movie, "The Terminal," was about a man who didn't have the right papers to be able to leave the airport in New York, so he lived in there for many years. He meets interesting people there, and he begins to improve his English and find ways to get some money so that he can eat. If you are familiar with this story you will see its similarities with Towles' book.

I'm currently reading The Muse: A Novel by Jessie Burton. I've barely started the book but I think I'm going to enjoy it. Stay tuned for some thoughts about this book. I'd also like to read Survivors Club: The True Story of a Very Young Prisoner of Auschwitz by Michael Bornstein. I saw the author and two other survivors on the news this past week, and their remarkable story is one that I'd like to read about. This book is definitely on my "wish list." 

School is out for students here in N.C. now, so I will soon be on my summer break. I hope you have a great week...

Melissa Hill

Book Blogger

www.onegoodbookblog.blogspot.com

Ode to a Library

"Information helps you to see that you're not alone. That there's somebody in Mississippi and somebody in Tokyo who all have wept, who've all longed and lost, who've all been happy. So the library helps you to see, not only that you are not alone, but that you're not really any different from everyone else."

-Maya Angelou (brainyquote.com)

Durham County Public Library, North Durham Branch
(photo from library website)

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The library. A place of quiet solitude where you can get answers. A place where you can escape to another time and place. A place where you can enjoy classes such as Story Time for children, chess clubs, knitting classes, book clubs, and much more. And it's a great place to get in out of the heat or cold. Last week I told a Kindergarten student about public libraries and he acted like he had never heard of them. I said, "Carlos (not his real name), did you know you can go to a public library and get lots of books and movies? And you don't have to pay for them!" He promptly responded with, "OH MY GOSH!!" I love his raw enthusiasm and can't help but wonder if we take full advantage of the free resources that we can find at our local library. When I go on a long road trip alone, I head to the library first to get a book on cd. It helps pass the time and fills my mind with great stories. When I want to watch a movie, I might head to the large selection of free movies at the library. I remember when we checked out the movie, "Midnight in Paris," and we knew right away that we'd discovered a good one.  I enjoyed that movie so much - why didn't I hear about it years earlier? And what about the great programs for kids at libraries? When our son was about three years old in Endicott, New York, I got the children up early one day so that we could be first in line to sign up for his age-group's story hour. I had heard that the classes filled up quickly, and I didn't want to miss out. So we began going to every weekly class, and while our son was in his class I would read to our daughter, age 1. They also had some puzzles and toys that she enjoyed while we waited for her big brother. To this day, our kids both are readers and good writers, and so their lives, like mine, are much richer.

We had the privilege of being present at the ground-breaking ceremony for our library. About ten years ago our son's eighth grade band performed at the ceremony as the local dignitaries gathered around with their sparkling shovels and helmets. Under the direction of the band director, Candace Odell, the students played their music for the final time as middle-schoolers. The students may not have shown enthusiasm for the part they had in history, but it was special to me and the other adults who were present. You see, before we got this library, our North Durham branch was a small storefront library next to Kroger on Roxboro Road. It was adequate for us when the children were young, but it was so small that they couldn't offer many classes or computers. I don't remember being able to reserve books online as I do now, and the space was very cramped. So, it was fun to be there when they began to build the new library, and we eagerly anticipated its opening as we monitored the building of the walls and grounds. And it took forever for the new library to open! Or so it seemed. But it was worth the wait. Now, to make things even better, they've added a section of recent books that you can get right away, as long as you return them in just one week. I've checked these out a couple of times and I'll admit that there's a lot of pressure involved when you only have one week to read a book, but if the book is a good one, you won't have any problem finishing it quickly. At least in theory anyway.

Today I finished reading How the Irish Saved Civilization by Thomas Cahill. This book is a history of the earliest days of civilization in the land that we now know as Ireland. Cahill follows Irish history from the fall of Rome and spends a great deal of time discussing Patrick, religion, monasteries, Columbanus, Columcille, and Charlemagne. Honestly, I am very interested in history but I couldn't follow all of the details, so I'm trying to merely remember the high points. I think the most interesting part of this book for me was the information that I learned about Patrick, Patricius, a man most of us here in the U.S. know very little about other than the legends surrounding his life. I learned that Patrick was a slave who was captured and brought in chains to Ireland around the year 400. He became a religious leader and missionary, even though he was very poor and uneducated. He was a strong influence in the missionary movement throughout Europe as he exercised his religious zeal wherever he went.

This is one of the books that I read in preparation for our trip to Ireland and England in June, and it's helping me to make the most of our adventure. I rarely go somewhere new without first researching the area so that I can enjoy and learn as much as possible. I still want to learn more about James Joyce, Oscar Wilde, W.B. Yeats, Roddy Doyle, and other Irish writers, but for now, my head is full.

Several years ago I heard about the life of the Irishman, Frank McCourt, so I read three books that he wrote about his life. I read Angela's Ashes, 'Tis, and Teacher Man. The first one was made into a movie that seemed to be very true to the book. Angela's Ashes, named for his mother, covers the time in McCourt's life from his birth up until about the age of 17 when he stole some money to pay for his passage to America. He came alone and struggled for a long time until he was able to graduate from college and become a teacher. 'Tis covers the years from age 17 through the time when he became a teacher, and of course, Teacher Man covers his teaching career which began when he worked in a vocational school. Throughout McCourt's memoirs we see the life of a man who was deeply troubled for many years because of the severe poverty of his family. They were among the poorest of poor, so they rarely had enough to eat. McCourt's father was an alcoholic and most of his paychecks went to the bartender before he even got home. About fifteen years ago we had the opportunity to hear Frank McCourt speak here in Durham, and it was an experience that I'll never forget. He spoke for a few minutes and then gave the audience time to ask him questions. One lady asked, "Was the movie of Angela's Ashes true to what your life was really like?" He promptly responded with, "Do you know the scene where we come into the house running through knee-deep water? Well, we would never have done that because all we ever wanted was to be warm and dry, and to have enough to eat. So we never would have run into our house playfully as if we enjoyed that water!"

Read on and on...

Melissa Hill
Book Blogger
www.onegoodbookblog.blogspot.com

Sam James: From North Carolina to Vietnam and Beyond

Today I finished reading a book written by Sam James, a career missionary who spent many years in war-ravaged Vietnam. He shares part of his life story in his book, Servant on the Edge of History. He and his family also worked in Hong Kong, Macau, other countries as well. James is a North Carolina native who felt God's call on his life at a relatively young age, and he never stopped believing in his mission, God's mission, even in the midst of very troubling times in Vietnam. He and his wife, Rachel, have four children, and they all served on the mission field together. James is now 85 years old, and yet he still speaks with great energy and enthusiasm. One week ago I had the opportunity to hear him speak at The Summit Church, and his message was one of hope and the love of Christ. James is considered the founder of The Summit since he helped to begin it's "root" church, Homestead Heights Baptist Church, that later became The Summit. The Summit now has thousands of members at all of its various campuses. They have also sent out missionaries and are always looking for ways to reach the world. Recently I heard about the prison ministries that have begun as well. You can get more information about The Summit Church on their website, and you can even get the transcript of the pastor's messages (J.D. Greear).

Now I'll turn my attention to one of the books that I received for my April birthday from one of my faithful readers (yes, he's a relative!). He sent me two books, How the Irish Saved Civilization by Cahill, and Irish Language & Culture. I'm looking forward to reading these as I prepare for our special trip to Ireland and England this summer. I have a lot to learn about Irish culture, that's for sure, so I'm especially looking forward to reading the small pocket-sized book put out by Lonely Planet, Irish Language & Culture. Do you have any advice regarding getting around in Ireland, advice such as what we should eat, what we absolutely MUST see, and what we should NOT say or do in the presence of an Irishman? I learned a lot about the U.K. on our trip there a few years ago but I know very little about Ireland. Some of the things in the U.K. that I found to be "different" for me were some of the words and expressions that I heard, words like "queu" and "dine in or take away?" I eventually learned that I was being asked if I was eating in the restaurant or taking it with me, but they said it so darn fast that it took me a while to catch on. And why are restrooms so hard to find in the U.K.? And why do you often have to pay for the privilege of using a restroom?? If you have any advice about these sorts of things for Ireland, I'm all ears.



Finally, I'd like to thank all of you for reading my blog! I hope you are getting something out of it and that it somehow inspires you to read and write more. I'm sending a special thanks to all of my international readers who go to www.onegoodbookblog.blogspot each week. MANY THANKS TO ALL OF YOU!

-Melissa Hill
Book Blogger
www.onegoodbookblog.blogspot.com

What's on your summer reading list?

What's on your summer reading list? I must admit that I don't really have a "list," but I should have some books in a stack that I want to read. At least that would be some type of organization system and I could just work my way down through the stack. I tend to use the scatter method whereby I put books at the bottom of our stairs, on the dresser, in the car, or just about anywhere. And I always have one in my bag for work, just in case I have a minute at lunch when I can read. You may be wondering, "Where does she get all of her books?" Well, I get many of them from my mother in Kentucky, an avid reader herself. It's not unusual for her to get a bag full of books for Christmas, and after she reads them she's always willing to share them with us.  I get most of my books from the public library, so I rarely purchase a book. Although I don't spend money on books very often, I still like to wander through the aisles and see what is available so that I can search for them online at the library. 

"You are as close to us as breathing, yet

You are farther than the farthermost star."

-Gates of Prayer: The New Union Prayer Book (as quoted by Poliner) 

This weekend I will finish reading a novel by Elizabeth Poliner, As Close To Us As Breathing (2016). This would be a good book for summer because much of is takes place on a beach in Connecticut. The story takes place in a small part of Woodmont, Connecticut at "Bagel Beach," a Jewish community where a family has a cottage that they enjoy together for many years. The women and children spend the summers there, while the men come after work on Fridays to spend the weekends. Ada, Vivie, and Bec are the three sisters who are the backbone of the family after the death of their parents, and they enjoy their tradition of going to the cramped cottage for many years to come. But life isn't easy for them, and they struggle with career choices, marriages, guilt, grief, and forgiveness. But they always look forward to repeating the same traditions each and every summer because this is comforting to them. For example, the children enjoy buying ice cream every summer from the Good Humor man, so this is just part of what they do at the beach. Poliner does a nice job with her characterization. She depicts the characters as being like all of us, people who have great inner qualities but also have flaws. I think you'll enjoy this book this summer, so pick it up somewhere and read about Davy, Mort, Nelson, and Leo. You'll learn about Jewish traditions along the way and you'll enjoy the ride. 

Now I have a fun anecdote to share about something that happened to me yesterday at the school where I teach English as a Second Language. I was reading a skit with a group of second-graders. One of them read their part and it went something like this, "And the farmer brought 100 ears of corn to the feast." The kids started laughing and a flag immediately went up in my mind. I love it when they laugh (as long as it's "appropriate" laughter!) so I asked them, "Are you laughing at the phrase 'ears of corn'"? They admitted that it was funny to them because corn cannot have an ear! It was so cute, so funny...one of those cherished moments when I get to teach them something that we take for granted. I acted out how an ear of corn grows, how you shuck it, and how you cook it. Then I asked them what they like to put on their corn-on-the-cob and they said things like mayonnaise, crema, and cheese. Yes, they mixed in a little bit of Spanish but I knew what they meant. They definitely eat their corn a little differently than the way I eat it! And that, my friends, is why I LOVE TEACHING THESE CHILDREN. 

Happy Cinco de Mayo, and have a great weekend!

-Melissa Hill
Book Blogger
www.onegoodbookblog.blogspot.com

"The Circle" starring Emma Watson and Tom Hanks

 

"Having your book turned into a movie is like seeing your oxen turned into bouillon cubes."

-John le Carre, British writer, as quoted on www.brainquote.com
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The Circle, a novel by Dave Eggers, really makes me think. I read this book a couple of years ago as did most of the people in my family, and it makes me realize that perhaps we aren't that far away from living a transparent life, one in which everyone knows every inch of our lives, except for the three minutes that we are allowed to be in the restroom. This is exactly what happens to Mae, played by Emma Watson, after she volunteers to be the first employee at The Circle to become completely transparent. Her bosses, played by Tom Hanks and Patton Oswalt, make her into a sort of hero in the company, and at first this seems very exciting to her. 

Mae is a young woman who recently graduated from college. She is looking for a good job and soon realizes that it must really be a good-paying job because she wants to help her father pay for his M.S. treatments. When her friend, Annie, helps her get hired at The Circle, she is beyond excited and soon finds herself living within the walls of the company on most days. The company's campus has a restaurant, a gym, party events, and much more. It's a subculture for sure, and the employees all seem to be very young adults. The work attire is, of course, very casual, and this is attractive to the younger crowd. The Circle is a company that is sort of a Facebook gone mad, a place where communication is emphasized at all costs and Mae gets frequent "ratings" from customers all over the world who tell her what they think of her every move. Would you like to live in a world like this?? This is what is so frightening to me because I value my privacy and I don't say anything that comes to my mind on Facebook, or anywhere else for that matter. This book/movie is as frightening as any horror movie that I've ever seen. It's scary because I can see the world becoming like this in the not-so-distant future. Can't you imagine it too? 

I don't want to tell you how the movie ends, but it leaves me wondering where Mae is headed. In the rising action she begins to hate the transparency, but at the end of the movie it's unclear to me what she plans to do next. Will you see it? I think it's worth it, especially if you're familiar with the book. One writer, Mick LaSalle of the San Francisco Chronicle, said this movie is a "tale of technology run amok" (Durham Herald-Sun, April 28, 2017). Technology can be a very good thing, but it also can be a terrible, scary, and evil thing. Watch the movie and let me know what you think. 

I usually like the book better than the movie, but I do like to see the movie version as well. The earliest movie that I can remember that was based on a book was "The Wizard of Oz."  I knew that the movie came from the book by L. Frank Baum, but I saw the movie first. Back in the early 1970's there really wasn't much on T.V., and certainly not very many movies for children. I remember that "The Wizard of Oz" came on T.V. once a year, always on a Sunday night, and my parents let me stay home from church to watch it. To this day I'm a fan of the story, as you can see from the large framed prints that I hang in my house. I also have a curio cabinet dedicated to my collection of Oz mugs, figurines, a lunchbox, first edition books by Baum, and more. 

I've written about some of the books that I've read that have been made into movies, but I don't think I have discussed the movies that I think could become good movies. I think The Boys in the Boat would make a good film. I'd go see War Brides as well. The House at Sugar Beach by Helene Cooper is a memoir about the war in Liberia, and I think it would also make a good movie. And how about Edgar Sawtelle, The Poisonwood Bible, and Cutting for Stone...would you read them and then go see them on the big screen? I know I would.

Finally, I'd like to share that we are going to Ireland and England this summer. In Ireland we will go on a 5-day guided Trafalgar tour that starts in Dublin and ends in Shannon. Then we will go to London for another five days or so. This will be our second trip to London, but there is SO MUCH to see! Many of you are travelers, so do you have any advice for us about these areas? Our young adult children will be with us on this adventure, so it will be extra special. Our son has been in London since September working on an M.A. in Creative Writing, so he has already gotten a taste of British culture. What do you consider to be "must sees" in Ireland and London? 

 I hope your week is off to a good start on this MAY DAY. I can't believe that the last day pf the school year for children here is June 9. I will soon complete my eleventh year of teaching English as a Second Language.  I have the cutest and most loving students that I could ask for, so I am blessed. Have a good one...

-Melissa Cruse Hill
Book Blogger
www.onegoodbookblog.blogspot.com 

 Some things I will need for our Europe trip:

I found this London Fog carry-on at a consignment shop on Friday. What a steal!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I'm reading everything I can to make the most of the trip.

What happens when your brain is on fire?

"I have felt that odd whirr of wings in the head."

-Virginia Woolf, A Writer's Diary: Being Extracts from the Diary of Virginia Woolf 

(as quoted  in Brain on Fire by Susannah Cahalan, p.1)

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I read a good memoir last week about a successful newspaper reporter who went through a sort of mental and physical breakdown, and yet she found her way out of the darkness thanks to the love and support she received from her family and friends. She also gives credit to her amazing doctors who ran the right tests and provided the correct treatments to get her on the road to recovery after several months. 

Brain on Fire - My Month of Madness - by Susannah Cahalan is about a young woman who had everything going for her. She had a great job at a newspaper, a wonderful boyfriend, and a family who genuinely loved her.  But one day everything changed. She began having hallucinations, lost her balance repeatedly, lost her ability to speak correctly, and quit eating. At first, doctors thought she was an alcoholic and that this was the cause of her cognitive impairments. She essentially became a child again and grew incapable of taking care of herself. She grew paranoid and acquired many physical tics that seemed to come out whenever they felt like it, like constantly smacking her lips. Something was definitely wrong.

Eventually, Dr. Souhel Nazzar and others were able to diagnose the problem: Susannah had a disease called _anti-NMDA-receptor autoimmune incephalitis. They came to this diagnosis after a brain biopsy and numerous other tests, and she endured several treatments such as IVIG, and the she was released to her parents while being given treatments as an outpatient. She had to be watched constantly, and her parents made sure she didn't drive or do anything else that could be dangerous. Cahalan used her drawings, notes, and more to put together this book about her ordeal. She can even explain the science behind her form of incephalitis, and it's very complicated. If you're a science-type person, you might enjoy reading the precise explanation of this rare and dangerous disease. Not everyone who gets this can heal from it, so Calahan is clearly one of the fortunate ones. This book is based on her article for the New York Post where she has been an investigative reporter for the past ten years. It was the jumping off point for her memoir, and it has helped a lot of people who were also searching for answers regarding their similar symptoms. She clearly did a lot of research to better understand her disease and its effects, and she shares her knowledge with us in this little paperback.

I read that this book will be made into a motion picture in the near future, so you might want to look for it.

Yesterday we went to see the new Disneynature movie, "Born in China." This movie is a relaxing way to celebrate Earth Day, and I enjoyed all of the animals that were featured in another beautiful film put out by Disney. There are snow leopards, pandas, cranes, and other animals featured in this movie, and we got to see them in every season of the year as they brave the elements to find food, raise their young, and seek safety. The movie is less than 1 1/2 hours long, but it's a beautiful film that gives us a rare chance to see these animals up close. The pandas were by far my favorite. Baby pandas are about the size of a stick of butter when they are born, and to be able to see them develop, change, and eventually climb a tree alone is a beautiful thing. They are so cuddly and sweet, and the mothers know how to take care of their babies. This was, of course, an intrinsic characteristic of all of the animals featured - the moms all knew what they were suppose to do from the moment they gave birth.

Enjoy this last week of April, and I'll see you again next time.

-Melissa Hill
Book Blogger
www.onegoodbookblog.blogspot.com