Monday Morning Musings

Some time ago I wrote a review of a book that had been sent to me by an author I'd met in an online writer's group. It wasn't a rave review, nor was it a scathing review, but I did point out that there were some problems with the plot and some of the writing was less than stellar. I also pointed out what I liked about the story and what I thought had been handled well in the writing.

I've been a reviewer for a long time. Long before Al Gore gave us the Internet and long before Amazon started dominating the book business. When my reviews appeared in newspapers, a short bio always appeared at the end, as most reviews still do in newspapers. So the day I posted my review on Amazon, I thought it would give my comments credibility if I included the bio, which simply read: Maryann Miller, author of suspense and mystery including One Small Victory.

Apparently not.

The Amazon Police, as I have come to think of people who scour forums and reviews and other public places on Amazon to find some author breaking the commandment that Thou Shalt Not Promote Thy Book on Amazon, found my review and my bio. They promptly left comments on how tacky that was for me to plug my own book under the guise of writing a review. Guise? What exactly did they think all those words that preceded the short bio were? Then the infraction was called to the attention of somebody at Amazon and the review was taken down.

That was too bad. Not for me, but for the author who now has one less review to help promote his book on Amazon.

What boggles my mind about all this is why the people who visit Amazon to buy books, are so rabid about an author not being able to even include a title of his or her book in a comment or anywhere else. Aren't they there to find out about new titles and new authors?

Yes, I know there are a few authors who have abused the process and spammed every forum on Amazon when forums first started, but the majority of authors are not that prone to gorilla marketing. If there is a good discussion going in a forum about plot and character and good writing, it is nice to know if some of those making comments are writers and what they have written. If the comment is particularly interesting and well thought out, I just might even check out the book. What a concept.

On another note... Please come back on Wednesday when Nancy Cohen, author of the  Bad Hair Day cozy mystery series will be the guest here. The series features hairdresser Marla Shore, who solves crimes with wit and style under the sultry Florida sun. Her latest book, and tenth in her mystery series, is Shear Murder from Five Star Cengage/Gale 

Nancy is currently on a blog tour for her latest release. Leave a comment during the blog tour and enter to win a set of Paua shell jewelry and a signed copy of Shear Murder.

Guest Post from John Desjarlais

Please help me welcome John Desjarlais as she shares his experience with getting to know and understand a female character who is Latina. Sometimes it's hard enough for a man to understand any woman, but what a challenge it must have been to understand a woman of another culture.

When I first began to gather material for Viper, I knew that Selena De La Cruz, the strong-willed Latina insurance agent who was a minor character in Bleeder would be the protagonist. Not only was she a forceful character on her own, but her Mexican-American identity was important to the story, based on a premise regarding the All Souls Day ‘Book of the Dead’ that Catholic churches have and its proximity to the Mexican holiday, ‘The Day of the Dead.’

Lacking experience as a Latina (being an Anglo man) I immersed myself in the experiences of Latin women vicariously in many ways. There are many new books in circulation by Latinas about managing Old-World expectations placed upon women while trying to fit into New-World American society. I subscribed to Latina magazine for fashion, beauty, relationship and lifestyle issues. I browsed Latinas’ blogs and web sites to see what everyone talked about, especially with regard to living with a bi-cultural identity. Just like the Dad says in the movie Selena, “We've gotta be more Mexican than the Mexicans and more American than the Americans both at the same time. It's exhausting!" 

This tension is felt early in a Latina’s life, as in this vignette from Selena’s childhood in Chicago:

When Selena wheeled the Charger onto 18th Street in Chicago’s Pilsen neighborhood, the throaty rumble of the big engine turned the heads of young men in tilted White Sox caps. In the air, Norteño bands playing plaintive corridos on button accordions competed with the thump-thump of quebradita, a blend of North Mexican banda and Aztec punk rockers singing in Spanglish. Like Julia Alvarez once said in a poem, Selena felt her Spanish blood beating.

She crossed herself and kissed her thumb and forefinger held together when she passed Saint Adalbert’s Elementary in the shadow of the church’s skyline-dominating steeple. In the sixth grade, Sister Mary Beatrice -- who every kid called Sister Mary BattleAxe -- caught Selena speaking Spanish in the back row. She was asking Gloria García for an eraser. Sister pulled Selena by the ear into the corner.
 
“You’re in America now,” the Polish nun had reprimanded, her milky finger in Selena’s mocha face. “We speak English here. If you want to be an American, speak American. If you want to speak Spanish, then go back to Mexico.”
 
Selena asked if there was a difference between speaking English and speaking American.
 
Sister Beatrice kept her after school for talking back.
 
“Ay, you don’t talk back,” her mother chided her when she got home. Mamí’s high Zapotec cheekbones colored like the red hot lava of Mount Popocatépetl and the obsidian-black bun on top of her head, Selena could have sworn, was spinning.
 
“Muchachitas bien criadas, girls brought up well, don’t mouth off,” her mother said, wringing the dishtowel. “Do you want to called habladora? A big mouth that talks too much? Is that what you want?”
 
“Mamí, all I did was ask a question.”
 
“En boca cerrada no entran moscas,” her mother said, tapping her lips with a finger. Flies cannot enter a closed mouth. “You must be quiet, and keep your eyes low in respeto, like La Virgen de Guadalupe.”

Living in two cultures at once poses many everyday challenges, as in this brief example where the teen-aged Selena brings home an Anglo date to meet the familia:

In high school she brought home an Anglo boy, Jerry, to meet the family. She feared Papá would interrogate him like a cop drilling a suspect and the family, one by one, would corner him with stories of Mexico even if they couldn’t speak English and Mamí would serve tripe soup with chiles colorados to test his mettle – but she brought home the Anglo boy anyway. A crowd of Mamí, Papá, her three brothers, all her cousins, uncles and aunts, including Comadre María with all the curious, chattering neighbors greeted him. Jerry shook hands with Papá and her three brothers and smiled at everyone else – not knowing he was expected to meet everyone personally with a handshake and a warm verbal greeting. She should have told him. Later, Mamí called him muy frío, very cold, mal educado, ill mannered. Is this how we raised you – to find a gringo for a boyfriend who is so bent on dishonoring us, who has no respeto for our familia?
 
"He doesn’t know our ways," Selena cried. "He is Americano."

"And what are you?" Mamí asked.

And Selena realized fully for the first time she was in two worlds at once.

A Latina translator who helped me with the Spanish and reviewed the work-in-progress said at one point, “I am SO into Selena!” The character’s experiences were matching her own.

~~~~~~~~~~~~
I thank John for contributing today. If you want to know more about him or about some of his other books, visit his website   His other books are :  Relics and The  Throne ofTara

Guest Blogger Tomorrow

There will be no book review today, but I will say I am reading Double Cross by James Patterson and enjoying it. I recently started reading his books again after reading I, Alex a year or so ago, and I admire his ability to keep a reader engaged. It's true that Alex Cross is a bit over the top sometimes, but so is James Bond. They are fictional super-heroes so they have to be bigger than life.

Whoops, this is almost a review isn't it.

What I intended to do this morning was introduce you to John Desjarlais, a fellow mystery author. Granted he is not as well-known as James Patterson, but he weaves a good tale. John is the author of Bleeder and Viper, both books of mystery that blend  Aztec myth and Mexican Catholicism. He will share a bit about how he studied to get the characterization of the Latina protagonist in Viper just right.
         
A former producer with Wisconsin Public Radio, Desjarlais teaches journalism and English at Kishwaukee College in Malta, Ill. A member of Mystery Writers of America, Desjarlais is listed in Who’s Who in Entertainment and Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers.


About the Book:

            On All Souls Day, Selena De La Cruz’s name is entered in her parish church's “Book of the Deceased.” The problem is, she's not dead. And someone thinks she should be.

            John Desjarlais’ latest mystery, Viper, the sequel to 2009’s Bleeder, brings back fiery Latina insurance agent Selena De La Cruz. Working against time, prejudice, and her own Latino community’s suspicions, she reluctantly re-joins her old DEA colleagues to hunt a deadly drug dealer who is out of jail and systematically killing everyone who ever crossed him. Can they stop him before he reaches her name on the gruesome hit list?

            As in  the first book, Desjarlais sets the tale in the colorful small-town settings of “Sinnissippi County” of northern Illinois, this time expanding to Chicago to explore issues of immigration and bi-cultural identity against a rich backdrop of Aztec mythology and Mexican Catholicism.

            His historical novels and mysteries are available at Amazon.com.

                   For more information, visit www.johndesjarlais.com

Book signings can be fun

The business part of my trip was almost as much fun as the personal part. It is always great to meet new bookstore staff and spend time sharing what kinds of books we like to read and why. Sometimes I am even tempted to buy a book the staff recommends and expand my reading habits.

At The Book Rack in Moline, IL, I had a chance to visit with some customers who enjoy mysteries and had a pleasant afternoon. The store specializes in used books and only carries a few new ones. It works much like Half-Price Books and is a good way to recycle paperbacks when you run out of room on your bookshelves.

Our daughter, Dany, took her role as my assistant seriously and helped get tables set up at each store. She also took books and flyers to other stores in the strip mall in Moline, to generate some interest in my appearance. She talked one man who was putting up a sign for a new business into coming in to buy a book.

In Cadillac, MI at Horizon Books, the staff welcomed me for my third visit to the store and were very gracious. I got a complimentary scone and coffee from their coffee shop, and both were delicious. The store is very busy on Saturdays, so I got to meet a lot of people. One lady bought one of my books, then told me about a book she had just read that she loved. Copies happened to be on the table right next to mine, so she handed me one. The title is Thrift Store Saints, Meeting Jesus 25c at a Time, and was written by Jane Knuth, who had spent years working at a St. Vincent de Paul thrift store in Kalamazoo MI.

I bought the book for several reasons. First because the writing was engaging.  Second because I thought it would be a nice gift for my husband, who had spend a number of years working in a St. Vincent de Paul thrift store in Omaha NE. And lastly because it was published by Loyola Press, a Jesuit Ministry. I have a special affinity for the Jesuits and anything they endorse is good for me.

In Ann Arbor, MI, I got to visit Aunt Agatha's Mystery Bookstore. I had heard about the store for a long time and always wanted to visit. Who wouldn't want to see a store that shares a name with the awesome Agatha Christie. I didn't have an event scheduled there, but, Jamie, one of the owners, had ordered some copies of my book for me to stop by and sign. That's called a drive-by signing, which is much nicer than the other kind of drive-by's we read about.

The next stop was in Bloomington, IN at Howard's Books, located in the square around the Monroe County Courthouse. It was a slow night at the store the Thursday I was there, but we had fun meeting the cats. There is something about bookstores and cats. I know a number of store owners who have cats that wander freely at the stores, and some cats even live there.

Joie Canada, the owner of Howard's, said that since cats don't like to be moved from place to place, her cats stay at the store. People stopped in that night just to visit the cats, and I wasn't sure if I should be insulted, or just join in the fun.

There was Merlin, above, who Joie guessed was about 22 years old, and Lulu, who is much younger. Lulu was quite fascinated with my books and then she discovered the kitty that travels with me to every signing event. Lulu decided that the kitty would be good to eat, and even tried to get it out of my bag when I put it away.

There were no cats at Davis-Kidd Bookstores in Memphis, but I enjoyed meeting the staff there when I did another drive-by signing. The girls who assisted me were very gracious, and if I closed my eyes I could pretend I was Sue Grafton being given the royal treatment. No, wait, there would have been a line a mile long to meet her.

But, I have never measured the success of events by the number of books sold. Good thing, too, says my husband who reminds me that I never come out ahead when you figure all the expense of a book tour. What makes it a success for me is meeting new readers and new store owners and staff, which down the road may lead to more sales. 

As expected, I did come home with a lot of books that I had purchased, but my husband didn't complain too much since most of them were for him.

Book Review - The Innocent Woman by Parnell Hall

 Another review from Carl Brookins. This one is short and sweet. Thanks, Carl.

The Innocent Woman
By Parnell Hall
E-book
B0050W9HD4

A Steve Winslow zinger.

Here's an author who can write! Parnell Hall  has enough novels out you'd expect that, right? This was my first Steve Winslow mystery. It won't be my last.

Fine, distinct interesting characters. Limited cast. A creative defense attorney hard at work for a surprisingly uncooperative client. First she's fired after accusations of theft from her employer, then one of the owners of the firm is shot to death and Winslow's client is arrested.

Watching this lawyer both in and out of court is a real treat.

The dialog crackles, the pace is next to pell mell and the explanations are precise. There is a good deal of detail, especially at the end. I would have preferred a more succinct closing to the novel with less sniping between attorneys, but it was a small price to pay for a fast, well done story.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Carl Brookins
www.carlbrookins.com, www.agora2.blogspot.com Case of the Greedy Lawyer, Devils Island,
Bloody Halls, more at Kindle & Smashwords!

FTC Disclaimer - I don't know if Carl bought this book or it was sent to him, or if he gained any compensation for writing his review. I only know the author probably will, as I am sorely tempted  to buy his book.