“There are old pilots and bold pilots, but there are no old, bold pilots.”
——From Women Fly

Women Fly: The Early Years 1978 to 1985, is an inspiring memoir by D. M. Dubay in which she shares her dreams of flying, a role that men usually occupied in that time period.

In 1971 the Dubay family—Bud, Darlene and their two young children, Adam and René —moved from Michigan to Alaska. Bud, a dentist, joined the U.S. Public Health Service as an Itinerant Dentist at the Alaska Native Medical Center in Anchorage. With the children in school, Darlene had time to do something for herself. She signed up for a ground school course at a military flying club at Fort Richardson. She was hooked with her very first flying lesson.

From the first chapter the author describes her tenuous start, starting ground school and flight lessons at the same time. As she advanced in knowledge and flying skills, she gained confidence, practicing the four fundamentals of flight: straight-and-level flight, turns, climbs, and descents.

As she gained experience, more opportunities presented themselves. She was eager to fly solo but suffered anxiety and dread. The day finally came and she experienced her first solo flight, and from there achieved accomplishments and advancements to a variety of aircraft. Her husband Bud also became a pilot, a convenient necessity for his now private dental practice to places only accessible by air.

In addition to more practical skills, Darlene also learned aerobatic flying, fulfilling an impractical, but thrilling dream. She advanced her skills and ratings to become an instructor and finally achieved Air Transport Pilot rating. In her rapid advancement, she observed that as a woman she was sometimes treated differently. She found it challenging to be a woman in what many believed was a man’s world and was at times disheartened with male pilots’ attitude toward her. Dubay rightfully asks “Why do women have to be better just to have an equal chance?” To Darlene’s credit, she stood up for herself and proved she was equal to meet the many challenges of a professional flyer.

Darlene steadily plowed through advancement courses, each level proving to herself—and others—that she was a serious, competent pilot. Throughout the years the Dubays acquired their own airplanes, opening opportunities to explore parts of Alaska accessible only by air.

Women Fly is an extraordinary memoir of courage and self-fulfillment. I was impressed with her determination to achieve many advancements. I also appreciated the three Appendixes detailing abbreviations and acronyms, glossary of aviation terms, and charts of Alaska Terminal Area Rules. I look forward to her next memoir, Blocks on the Rudder Pedals: A Flying Memoir.

“If you hear a voice within say you cannot do something, then by all means, do that thing, and that voice will be silenced.”
—Vincent van Gogh

The Secret Life Of Sunflowers by Marta Molnar is an inspiring novel based on the true story of Vincent van Gogh’s sister-in-law, and is the first in the author’s “Light & Life Series.” I love novels based on historical facts and The Secret Life of Sunflowers is right at the top of my favorites.

The novel alternates between Johanna van Gogh in the late 1800s in the Netherlands and France, and Emsley Wilson in contemporary times, New York.

In 1889, Amsterdam, Johanna Bonger married the love of her life, Theo van Gogh, the brother of a struggling painter, Vincent van Gogh. Theo and Vincent were very close and as young men pledged to always be supportive of each other. Johanna and Theo moved from Amsterdam to France, where Vincent’s artwork hung on their apartment walls. As Vincent started showing signs of mental illness, Theo helped him, both financially and emotionally. After Vincent took his own life, Theo tried to pick up the pieces, pay his bother’s debts and salvage Vincent’s paintings. He grew more distant to Johanna and their young son, and finally succumbed to mental illness and died in a sanatorium. Johanna, dedicated to her husband’s memory and his intentions toward his brother, took up his ambitious endeavor to promote Vincent van Gogh’s work, to introduce his legacy to the world.

Emsley Wilson, a present-day Hollywood auctioneer, rushes to her beloved grandmother’s bedside in New York. When her grandmother dies, Emsley is left with the job of cleaning out her grandmother’s New York 100 year-old, four-story brownstone. She comes across what she believes is her grandmother’s diary, but soon realizes it belongs to Johanna Bonger, Vincent van Gogh’s sister-in-law. What develops changes not only Emsley’s view of life, but life itself.

I loved The Secret Life Of Sunflowers. It has all the elements of a fine read: it is both lighthearted and heart breaking. Vincent van Gogh is a well-known name, but I loved learning more about his views on light and his dedication to sunflowers. Jumping to contemporary times, I enjoyed Emsley’s wry humor as she attempts to unravel not only the mysteries of her grandmother’s life, but also of the connection between Johanna van Gogh and her grandmother. The author, Marta Molnar, also has a pen-name, Dana Marton, which she uses when writing fantasy, romance and suspense.

The Book of Two Ways, a novel by Jodi Picoult, kept me guessing from start to finish. Picoult has become one of my favorite authors and this novel reaffirmed my opinion of this fine writer. The contemporary novel takes place in Egypt and Boston.

Dawn Edelstein, nearing her forties, is one of thirty-six passengers who survive a plane crash. The survivors are seen by a doctor, then offered transportation to wherever they want to go. Surprisingly, Dawn chooses not to return to her home in Boston, but rather to Egypt in search of Wyatt Armstrong, a man she last saw fifteen years ago.

Dawn’s decision to go to Egypt is contrary to what one might expect. At their home in Boston is her husband, Brian, a physicist, and their teenage daughter, Meret. Dawn has a successful career as a death doula, in which she helps clients ease the transition between life and death. She has an interesting background. Years earlier, before marriage, Dawn studied at Yale in an Egyptian archaeology and social anthropology program. While there she met Wyatt Armstrong, an arrogant upperclassman from England. Dawn was not impressed, though he was obviously knowledgeable in Egyptian archaeology. Later, she worked three seasons in a doctorate program in Bersha, located in the middle of Egypt, where Wyatt was her supervisor, and where she was able to use her expertise in hieroglyphics. Now, fifteen years later, Wyatt is the director of the Egyptology program in Egypt. Dawn and Wyatt’s relationship takes a romantic turn and they discover one another in a different light.

As the story unfolds, we see Dawn’s seemingly happy home life in Boston with her husband, Brian, and their daughter, Meret. Dawn’s dedication to her profession as a death doula is evident as she assists a dying woman face death. Although teenage Meret has self-image problems, she and her mother have a close relationship.

Now, again in Egypt, Dawn has an opportunity to see what her life might have been, to revisit her one-time sought-after career, and the man she once fiercely loved.

The Book of Two Ways is an interesting title. It’s taken from an earlier Egyptian title that is one of the earliest known “guides to the beyond,” offering a spiritual map intended to help the deceased navigate the afterlife.

I was impressed with this novel, and also with the author’s obvious knowledge of Egyptian archaeology and social anthropology, and also the interpretation of hieroglyphics. The storyline is sometimes a bit confusing, but on the whole I enjoyed the journey as well as the concept of taking a fresh look at decisions that impact the rest of our lives.

A Burnt-Out Case by Graham Greene (1904-1991) is a celebrated novel about a famous architect who has lost his zest for life.

Architect M. Querry is world-renowned for his magnificent churches. But he admits, the churches were not designed for the glory of God, but for the satisfaction of self. He suddenly finds himself indifferent to not only his work, but to life itself. He travels to a colony of lepers in the remote jungles of Africa to simply put in time, perhaps make himself useful in his final days.

Although at one time a religious man, Querry is now a disbeliever. He becomes friends with Doctor Colin, a fellow atheist, who encourages the famous architect to design a hospital for the lepers. Querry seeks no recognition for his work; in fact, avoids any fanfare at all. But greatness is hard to hide and once the word is out that he is in their midst, he is haunted by his own greatness. His life is further complicated by a local hypocritical plantation owner and his young, lonely and abused wife.

I very much enjoyed Graham Greene’s strong sense of place, which in this case was Africa. The author traveled some of the wildest and most volatile parts of the world allowing the reader to inhabit for a time the images he created. I consider this novel a classic and recommend it to anyone with an interest in the human spirit as well as a fascination with the mysteries of Africa.

Well of Deception by Cynthia Leal Massey, a spell-binding novel inspired by true events, encompasses the decades from the Great Depression to the devastating drought of the fifties.

Leta Becker, although married, is often lonely. Her husband, Amos, a farmer, is moody and non-communicative, except when he is raging over trivial things. They have no children. Amos and Leta had a long fifteen-year courtship due to her parents’ dependence on her. Leta was thirty-seven when they married, Amos forty-four.

Amos often rails about their neighbor, Maggie Schneider. He claims that she is too outspoken, and resents her success in raising turkeys. Three neighboring farms share a well, and Amos claims Maggie and her husband Sam use more than their share of water because of those turkeys. Texas has experienced a long drought and the lack of water directly affects farmers and their livelihood.

Maggie Schneider, Becker’s neighbor, is known for her success in raising prized White Holland turkeys. Her husband, Sam, several years older than Maggie, adores his wife, and they have been happily married for twenty-two years. Sam often worries about his younger sister, Leta, but has no regard for her husband, Amos.

While feeding her turkeys one morning, Maggie is shot in the chest and dies within minutes. Many people heard the loud “bang,” but there are no witnesses to the murder. Coincidently, Amos Becker goes missing. It seems obvious that Amos is the killer, but what would drive a man to do such a thing? And why? Water shortage wouldn’t be a reason for murder, would it? And where is he? Posses haven’t been able to find him—could he have gone to Mexico?

Cynthia Leal Massey has written an intricate true-crime story that involves extended families and their history of insanity, accidental deaths, suicides…and now murder. Family loyalties are evident, but sometimes there are feuds within a family, or with extended families. The author does a good job of showing hardships of the times, and the unforgiving harshness of the land. Well of Deception is a complex story of many layers, a tale of a community riddled with intrigue and deception.

Saving Her Prairie, a novel by Heidi M. Thomas, is a gripping, relevant story of a young woman’s fight to protect her generations-old family land from human and animal predators. The contemporary story takes place in ranch country, Montana.

Dede Hume, twenty-three, is suddenly in charge of her family’s Montana cattle ranch. Her great-grandparents homesteaded the ranch in 1911 and following generations have maintained it as a successful, viable way of life. Her father has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and her parents want to take a once-in-a-lifetime vacation before the disease makes it impossible to do so. It’s a huge responsibility for Dede, even with the help of her younger brother. Tommy, twenty, is capable and willing to help, but is yearning to mingle with friends.

Running a successful ranch is hard work, but added to that burden is a threat from the Western Wildlands Preserve (WWP), a conservation group who want to create a big wildlife refuge in the area. Their goal is to produce a wide stretch of land, a nature reserve with no fences where bison and other wild animals can roam freely. Their plan involves purchasing three million acres of public and private land, a territory larger than Yellowstone National Park.

Ranchers are fighting the movement. Their job for generations has been to feed the nation. For years, ranchers have worked with the Bureau of Land Management to establish best conservation practices by building fences, rotating pastures, reducing overgrazing, and building water systems that benefit both livestock and wildlife.

One of the greatest dangers of letting bison roam free is that they are known carriers of brucellosis, a disease that affects cattle, leading to significant reproductive issues such as abortion, retained placenta, and infertility. Brucellosis can also be transmitted to humans, posing a public health risk.

When the WWP buys a neighboring ranch, Dede’s worst nightmare comes true. She finds a bull buffalo has broken through an adjoining fence, grazing with the ranch’s cattle. As it happens, Dirk Winslow, the foreman on that neighboring ranch, has shown an interest in Dede. Although she’s attracted to him, he has associations with WWP, so a relationship with him is out of the question. Or is it?

How can individual ranches fight against this all-consuming force that threatens cattle ranchers and subsequently the nation?

Saving Her Prairie is not only a well-written story of one young woman’s struggle to save her family’s ranch, but also a struggle for Montana ranchers’ way of life and their job to feed the nation. This book was an eye-opener for me, and I suspect will be for many readers. It’s stark reality is a wake-up call for action.

Christmas Wishes, a novella by Carmen Peone, is related to the “Seven Tine Ranch Romance” series. The heart-warming contemporary story takes place in Eastern Washington on the Colville Indian Reservation.

Mandie Sellars, a single mom, dreams of becoming the Events Planner for the Seven Tine Ranch, a third-generation guest ranch. She is currently their head cook and is valued in that role. When her boss puts her in charge of a wedding, a last-minute Christmas Eve event, Mandie is elated to have the opportunity to prove herself worthy of the job. But there is a big problem—that’s when her own wedding was to take place.

Hudson Piccolo, Mandie’s fiancé, is everything Mandie wants…and needs. Her first husband left when he learned Mandie was pregnant with their daughter, Nona, now five years old. Hudson will be a wonderful husband to Mandie and a great, loving father to Nona.

But there is a hitch in their future plans. Hudson, an attorney, is dissatisfied with his current job of serving foreclosures. He has been offered a dream job at a lucrative environmental law firm in Seattle, a job that would deal with salmon protection in local lakes and streams. However, Mandie wants to live on the Reservation close to family. Living in a big city has no appeal to her; in fact, it frightens her.

Dealing with two weddings due to take place at the same time, and the possible change of jobs that would involve moving away from family and reservation life, has put a strain on Mandie and Hudson’s relationship.

Christmas Wishes is a fast-paced story about the value of faith and compromise, of having the courage to “let go and let God” guide their lives.

“There’s not any one of us who never had to face challenges. The difference is what you do about it.”—From Lasting Promise

Lasting Promise, a novel by Susanna Lane, the third book of the “Promise” series, takes place mostly in Dakota Territory, beginning 1879.

Gus Quaid has suffered the terrible loss of his wife. Ten years ago, she was taken by Brule Sioux during a raid at their ranch. As a way of searching for his wife, he works off and on as an Army scout, rounding up renegades. He longs to return to his horse ranch, but finding his beloved wife is of uppermost importance. When in a Fort Benton saloon, he eyes a fiery woman, a stunning beauty. Intrigued, he approaches her, but is soundly rejected.

Victoria (Tori) Barrett has been betrayed–twice–and is determined to not have that happen again. When she sees big, handsome Gus Quaid, she at first rebuffs him, but then sees a way out of her present situation. With Gus as her protector, she leaves Fort Benton bound for a destination far enough away that she can’t be found.

As Gus and Tori travel first by boat, then by train, they learn about one another, their desperation, fears, and weaknesses. They finally arrive in Ogallala, Nebraska and, to their surprise, they find common ground: two of Gus’s best friends, brothers, have a ranch there, and to Gus’s surprise the same ranch is owned by Tori’s family. But will her past catch up with her and ruin her future? Will Gus be able to overcome his terrible loss and have a life with Tori?

Lasting Promise is a story with many facets. Author Susanna Lane deals with the two diverse personalities with aplomb—Gus’s situation and heartbreak, and Tori’s fear and desperation. This story is captivating and at times gritty. Susanna Lane builds suspense while giving the reader a strong sense of place and attitudes of the times.

Lost and Broken Things, a novel by Linda Sandifer is a memorable account of loyalty and bravery set in Idaho’s vast back-country in the shadow of Blue Mountain, 1929.

Lily Statton, fourteen, and her brother Davy, eleven, have been tending sheep all summer. They camp out with Lily sleeping in the sheep wagon, Davy in a small tent. No one has brought them food for two weeks and they’re getting desperate. Lily and Davy aren’t actually brother and sister, they are both adopted. The two are loyal to each other though they really feel no loyalty from either their adoptive mother, or her latest husband, their so-called step-father.

Miranda Oakes, the kids’ adoptive mother, is preoccupied with running a sheep ranch, flirting with neighboring ranchers, and making one poor decision after another. One of her latest decisions was marrying Eddie, or Pretty Eddie as Lily and Davy call him. He is handsome, but mean, to them in particular, but also to animals and anyone who gets in his way. The only thing he really seems to care about is his sheep. Sheep mean money.

When the kids’ plight is brought to light, it becomes apparent that Miranda is missing. There are a few possibilities where she might be, but when Sheriff Jack Tanner is alerted of the situation, a search for her is organized.

Sheriff Jack Tanner has a deep sadness. While he was in France fighting World War I, his wife and baby died of influenza. He is attracted to Anne Blake, who served as a nurse in the War and later went back to school and became a doctor. But he can’t get over the loss of his wife and the baby he never saw.

Lost and Broken Things is an exceptionally fine story. The author describes with vivid detail the surrounding countryside. Conversations are realistic, heart-felt, and flow naturally. The story of the kids’ heart-rending plight, the meanness of their step-father, the selfishness of their adoptive mother, the heartache of the sheriff’s tragic loss, all meld into an inspiring novel of depth. I loved Lost and Broken Things and highly recommend it.

“We cannot control the situations that life presents us. We can only control how we respond to them.”—The Fossil Hunter

The Fossil Hunter, a novel by Irene Sandell, is a captivating story that takes place from years surrounding1905 and toggling to 2015, Texas.

In 2015, Meredith Bannon, 73, a flower child of the ‘60s, travels to Troubadour, Texas. It has been fifty years since she’s been there, years of highs and lows, mostly due to bad choices. Her grandmother Grace has passed away and has left the house on 200 acres to her. Meredith was raised in this house by her grandmother, which has left many unanswered questions about her own parents.

Meredith has mixed feelings when she sees the Victorian-style house with its tall white columns. It was already old when she lived there. But now she sees the home as an adult. Inside, it’s like a time-capsule, and memories come flooding back.

In 1905, Grace Freeman is ready for a change. She has taught in a one-room schoolhouse for eight years, and it’s time to move on. At the age of 24 she applies for secretarial school for young women in Fort Worth. She thrives on her new skills and sees the world opening up for her. After graduating, she accepts a position in Troubadour, Texas, working for an insurance company. She meets and falls in love with
a widower, Martin Durham, a barber and the town marshal. They move to the house where he’d lived with his wife, a large Victorian home. Martin is a kind, well respected man, but is adamant that a wife’s place is in the home, that a wife working outside the home is demeaning to her husband.

While both Meredith’s and her grandmother’s stories are unveiled, interesting discoveries of fossils are introduced: a fossil bed that is the largest in the world for Paleozoic fossils, estimated to be 298 million years old. In both women’s stories paleontologists work the fields where the fossils have been discovered.

I found The Fossil Hunter a story with meaningful messages. Times have changed but human needs remain basically the same. We need to be able to express ourselves, to learn, and to grow. There have been times when people can manage no more than survival. And it’s true that many people are content with just being, letting life play itself out. But to learn new things, to expand our knowledge and live up to our potential, that’s living life to the fullest. In The Fossil Hunter, we see both kinds of living. One, a life of poor choices, and the other of striving to learn, but chafing with restrictions. And along the way, we learn of fossils and the work of paleontologists. In The Fossil Hunter we experience the ancient, the old, and the new.