Okay, you wanted to know about reviewing books

I think I’m like everyone else… I love to see reviews come out.

Well usually. I’ve run across writers who have said their writers got beaten up by newspaper reviewers. That’s a bad reference. Those folks, as professionals tend to put out reviews different than actual readers.

You know, everyday readers. Folks who kick back and actually read books for entertainment. It’s different that the average readers believe.

Don’t be discouraged when you are a writer.

I was at writing for something like 38 years.I started out in poetry and actually got it published. I learned a lot about our language and how it should help make readers feel certain ways.

I moved to short stories and journalism.

Eventually – about an hour of this originally – I helped writers improve their work as editor. When I say editor, I didn’t correct their technical parts. I worked as another kind of editor.

My wife Patricia and I would go through a book and provide the writers with suggestions on rewriting parts of their books. Patti and I have very different opinions on readership. We both tended to read entirely different kinds of books.

We marked up what we though needed help. We gave it back to the writer with two editions – one from each of us.

Patti and I worked very hard to come up with a suggestive letter to the writer. In all it was great to help more than 350 writers.

Bad as the reviews were from magazines, newspapers and floating around by pros I am going to run two interesting reviews by some critics. I’ll note that I’m running these wondering why I’d never been beat up by a pro. One is gay and the other is a pro.

Send it if you’ve seen a lousy review. Or want one to run in this place.





Review: Crimes Against Commerce by E.D. Easley
Title: Crimes Against Commerce
Publisher: Cloonfad Press
ISBN: 0-9769404-3-4
Pages: 243

E.D. Easley is a snarky guy. We belong to the same writer's group, but that isn't why I chose to review his latest book. No, that reason will only be known to you AFTER you've read the book.

Irreverant, insightful, and at times--brilliant! Where else can you find a Mafia hit man, an IRS agent, a cat that won't die, Satan, God, a beautiful woman, and an oozing monster, all in the same book? And then there's "Stretch Walker".

A fun, freaky, frolicking ride all the way through this farce! “Life is stranger than fiction”…this one is so off the wall that it could happen in real life. It just could! And sometimes…it just does.

Brought to you in the living color that is E.D.'s everyday vocabulary, "Shit happens. It just does."

If you’ve never been to hell and back, climb aboard for a round trip in hilarious fashion. Hate your ex? These characters can take care of that matter for you. Ever been audited by the IRS? Just ask for redemption here.

Written in everyman’s everyday language, this one is a fun read. Go ahead—get lost in the world of E.D. Easley’s characters. Build your world around them. They’ll take you for a ride in theirs.

From Mafia hitmen to Sho Rin Ku master Kow Pi, you’ll savor each personna Stretch meets on his way through life. Life—the way it should be.

Reviewer: Linda J. Hutchinson
www.lindajhutchinson.com





A Matter of Taste by E.D. Easley and Patricia Stively
Lesbian Book Reviews/Fiction


TITLE: A Matter of Taste
AUTHOR: E.D. Easley and Patricia Stively
ISBN: 9781413709483
PUBLISHER: PublishAmerica


BOOK BLURB:
When love hurts ...

No one ever promised love would be a simple thing. But what about falling in love with the wrong person, at the wrong time?

Sharon Jacobs was watching her marriage crumble ~ and in a way she was helping it evaporate. She’d found someone to fill the void her career-obsessed, hard-drinking husband left. The problem was her new lover was another woman.

In the Eighties, gay-bashing was okay ~ even chic. Coming out of the closet often meant giving up everything anyone held dearest in life. Her marriage was over. There was no doubt in her mind about that. In her new life, she was faced with a choice. Should she hide her feelings from the world and keep her love a secret ~ or should she take the risks of openness and honesty?

BOOK REVIEW:
When I first chose this book out of the queue of books to be reviewed, I thought it would be a love story, or a story about coming out. The publisher's summary mentioned nothing about Sharon's husband, Tom. I was shocked when I finally read this book because it's everything I didn't expect, and wowed beyond my expectations.

As lovely as the story is, this is a product review and the editing has to be taken into account. Thankfully, this didn't detract from my enjoyment of the book.

The plot is a little thin, but the events are connected. I feel like the book is focused more on personal growth, and each character's individual journey as a result of their failed marriage. I liked Tom since page one. He has drive and determination, but he's also shows vulnerability like any true human. Most of the time, he's sensible and it's painful to watch him do stupid things when he drinks. Maybe it's because of my blatant favoritism at work here, but Sharon's announcement that she's gay and her request for a divorce seemed to affect Tom more than it did Sharon. Nothing goes right for him, and I admire Tom for trudging forward despite that. I especially liked that even though Tom didn't understand homosexuality, and didn't understand the reason behind Sharon's decision, but he didn't judge and condemn her, or anyone else, for it. He was set on fixing their marriage and he'd feel that way regardless of Sharon's reasons for divorce.

Sharon is a little similar to Tom. She has that drive for success and a shrewd mind that allowed her to become a successful lawyer. But my first impression of her was not good and it never really picked up throughout the book. She's obviously made the decision to come out of the closet and it definitely will be for the good of both of them, but sometimes it feels like her attitude is a little condescending and arrogant. Other times it feels like she's rubbing salt on the wound. She presumes to know what's better for Tom but she lacks sensitivity to his feelings. When I read the part about Sharon and Julie's first meeting, it made my blood boil. Julie says, "Does he know?" and Sharon replies, "No ... he doesn't have a clue."

Julie follows that up with, "Do they ever?" then "Would you like to come out and play for a bit, little girl?" Their dismissive attitude about keeping something like this in the dark from Sharon's husband just struck me as cruel. By the time I read up to Sharon's plight and the discrimination against her, I just couldn't trudge up enough sympathy for her. But despite the fact that she doesn't appeal to me, she's real. Easley and Stively created stark, realistic characters.

Aside from the characterization, another thing that stood out to me was the authors' description of settings. The book begins with Tom cooking bacon, an American breakfast food and later Tom watching cartoons dubbed in German. Without even moving outside the apartment, I had a feel for the setting of the story. Easley and Stively are also good at dropping in pertinent (or not) little details. There was an observation made by Tom towards the end about how white men are most often given promotions in his line of work, and it was so effortless and effectively summed up how he got to be relatively well off.

A Matter of Taste is a wonderful book that I'd recommend to anyone. The characters are vivid and though I might not be crazy about all of them, they're painted as real people. I look forward to any future books by Easley and Stively.