Ann's Blog
Ann McCauley is a Pennsylvania women's literature author, who wrote the books Runaway Grandma and Mother Love, both available for sale at Amazon and Barnes and Noble.
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March 2020
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03/24/20
March Blog
Filed under: General
Posted by: Ann @ 5:05 pm
What a difference a month can make! Before the Shelter-in-Place orders from the government, I drove in town nearly everyday. Tomorrow will only be day 5 of our quarantine, it feels longer. We are fortunate to have wonderful neighbors who did my banking and post office run this week. We had stocked up on most everything we could, but we will need more fresh bananas by the end of the week. Never before did buying bananas seem like an important task! 


Last Friday, we picked up our van from the repair shop, (see last month’s blog about our accident), and returned the rental SUV we’d been driving. The van looks brand new. (Woohoo!) We stopped at the grocery store, bought a few things and ordered Fish Fries to go. We were waiting for our order when I suddenly had to cough, I carefully coughed into the sleeve of my sweater. No one said. “Bless you”. But everyone took a step away from me and glared at me maliciously. I don’t blame them. It is a nuisance residual dry cough from a bad cold I had a few weeks ago.



Each day I tackle another neglected corner of our home, and even spent a couple days reorganizing files on my computer. If this Shelter-in-Place lasts long enough, I might have everything organized the way I only dreamed it would be someday! I am also making good progress on Willow Lane book 3, 
so far untitled. 



We’ve only seen one movie worth mentioning this month, from Netflicks, “A Million Little Pieces“. It is a very well done movie about addiction. We were quite impressed with it, we’d both worked with addicts before we retired from health care. Interestingly, it is based on the novel by James Frey, he’d wanted to fiction, (based loosely on his own life.) His publishers insisted it be listed as a memoir, and Oprah chose it for her book of the month. Then she famously trashed his book on national tv for not being a true memoir! It is a very good movie about addiction, not for children or the weak of heart. 



I’ve read a few interesting books this month: 
Songcatcher by Sharon McCrumb. Penquin, 2012. Historical Fiction. It is a fascinating story of the of the Scots settlers and their own special music passed down form one generation to generation in southern Appalachia, from 1700s through 2000s. There is suspense, great characters and surprise plot twists. I like historical fiction because its educational as well as entertaining. Ms. McCrumb holds the honor of telling the tales of these fiercely private mountain people in the many books she’s written over the last 20 plus years. I’ve read several and they never disappoint me.



Americanah, by Chimamanda Ngozi Adiche. Knopf. 2013. Fiction. This novel was chosen as one of the Best Books of the Year by NY Times, Washington Post, & Chicago Tribune. Winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award.
Its written with raw honesty, wit and heart-wrenching agony, deals with poverty, middle class  and wealth, reflecting the immigrant’s American experience, leaving Nigeria ’s middle class and returning twenty years later. The protagonist, Ifemelu’s and Obinze’s struggles, are universal. It is a powerful novel, well worth reading.    



The Last Letter From Your Lover, by Jo Jo Moyes. Penquin. 2010. Fiction.This novel begins in 1960, moves ahead to 2010, and back again. Jo Jo Moyes always has the year at the beginning of the chapter when the year changes. This  helps readers stay with the story when she move back and forth. It has plenty of the wit and realistic dialogue that Moyes fans expect. Characters are well-developed and the plot is full of surprises. I loved it!



The Girl You Left Behind, by JoJo Moyes. Penquin. 2012. Historical Fiction. Another Moyes book! I can’t help it, I love her books! When I bought it at B&N on vacation, I didn’t realize I’d read it when it first came out. There are so many twists and turns to this plot that I loved it even more the second reading. The research is spot-on and the characters are wonderful. It starts out in German occupied France during WW1. And ends in London in 2012. Two sisters survive under duress while their husbands are off in the French army. Stolen French art, wartime sacrifices, orphaned children, widowhood are weaved together with empathy and skill by this gifted writer.


Till next month, keep reading my friends and stay well. 

Later, 
Ann

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