Pg. 99: Henry K. Miller's "The First True Hitchcock"

Featured at the Page 99 Test: The First True Hitchcock: The Making of a Filmmaker by Henry K. Miller.

About the book, from the publisher:

Hitchcock’s previously untold origin story.

Alfred Hitchcock called The Lodger "the first true Hitchcock movie," the one that anticipated all the others. And yet the story of how The Lodger came to be made is shrouded in myth, often repeated and much embellished, even by Hitchcock himself. The First True Hitchcock focuses on the twelve-month period that encompassed The Lodger's production in 1926 and release in 1927, presenting a new picture of this pivotal year in Hitchcock's life and in the wider film world. Using fresh archival discoveries, Henry K. Miller situates Hitchcock's formation as a director against the backdrop of a continent shattered by war and confronted with the looming presence of a new superpower, the United States, and its most visible export—film. The previously untold story of The Lodger's making in the London fog—and attempted remaking in the Los Angeles sun—is the story of how Hitchcock became Hitchcock.

Follow Henry K. Miller on Twitter.

The Page 99 Test: The First True Hitchcock.

--Marshal Zeringue

Q&A with Luanne G. Smith

From my Q&A with Luanne G. Smith, author of The Raven Spell: A Novel:

How much work does your title do to take readers into the story?

The Raven Spell was the second title we came up with. It was originally called The Raven Sisters, which worked well but had already been used by another 47North author. Titles aren’t copyrighted, so we could have used the original, but it would have infringed on another in-house author’s previous claim to the title. The Raven Spell is a good second choice. It hints at shadowy, dark magic and the ultimate secret the sisters are hiding. The follow-up in the duology is titled The Raven Song, which gives a nice balance.

What’s in a name?

There wasn’t a ton of consideration that went into choosing my main characters’ names. I wanted something very Victorian, very English for the sisters, hence Edwina and Mary. The cadence of the names together also lended itself to borrowing a well-known nursery rhyme, which opens the novel: Edwina and Mary, quite contrary. And then there’s old Tom Hob the elf who is named after...[read on]

Visit Luanne G. Smith's website.

Q&A with Luanne G. Smith.

--Marshal Zeringue

Top ten buildings in fiction

David Annand has worked as an editor at Condé Nast Traveller and GQ. He has written for the FT, TLS, Telegraph, Literary Review, the New Statesman and Time Out.

Peterdown is his first book.

At the Guardian Annand tagged ten of his favorite buildings in fiction, including:

Pemberley in Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

It’s impossible, on a list such as this, to overlook Austen, with her keen eye for property and its central role in the British class system. Mansfield Park or Northanger Abbey, so “rich in gothic ornaments”, might have worked, but Darcy’s pad Pemberley gets the nod: “It was a large, handsome, stone building, standing well on rising ground, and backed by a ridge of high woody hills … Elizabeth was delighted.” And who wouldn’t be?

Read about another entry on the list.

Pride and Prejudice also appears on Off the Shelf's list of ten of the most fantastical (and sometimes fanatical) parties imaginable in novels, KT Sparks's seven best graceless literary exits, Lit Hub's list of twenty-five actually pretty happy couples in literature, Ellie Eaton's list of eight of literature's notable mean girls, Sarah Vaughan's list of nine fictional bad mothers in fiction, Jessica Francis Kane's top ten list of houseguests in fiction, O: The Oprah Magazine's twenty greatest ever romance novels, Cristina Merrill's list of eight of the sexiest curmudgeons in romance, Sarah Ward's ten top list of brothers and sisters in fiction, Tara Sonin's lists of fifty must-read regency romances and seven sweet and swoony romances for wedding season, Grant Ginder's top ten list of book characters we love to hate, Katy Guest's list of six of the best depictions of shyness in fiction, Garry Trudeau's six favorite books list, Ross Johnson's list of seven of the greatest rivalries in fiction, Helen Dunmore's six best books list, Jenny Kawecki's list of eight fictional characters who would make the best travel companions, Peter James's top ten list of works of fiction set in or around Brighton, Ellen McCarthy's list of six favorite books about weddings and marriage, the Telegraph's list of the ten greatest put-downs in literature, Rebecca Jane Stokes' list of ten fictional families you might enjoy more than the one you'll actually spend the holidays with, Melissa Albert's lists of five fictional characters who deserved better, [fifteen of the] romantic leads (and wannabes) of Austen’s brilliant books and recommended reading for eight villains, Molly Schoemann-McCann's list of ten fictional men who have ruined real live romance, Emma Donoghue's list of five favorite unconventional fictional families, Amelia Schonbek's list of five approachable must-read classics, Jane Stokes's top ten list of the hottest men in required reading, Gwyneth Rees's top ten list of books about siblings, the Observer's list of the ten best fictional mothers, Paula Byrne's list of the ten best Jane Austen characters, Robert McCrum's list of the top ten opening lines of novels in the English language, a top ten list of literary lessons in love, Simon Mason's top ten list of fictional families, Cathy Cassidy's top ten list of stories about sisters, Paul Murray's top ten list of wicked clerics, John Mullan's lists of ten of the best housekeepers in fiction, ten great novels with terrible original titles, and ten of the best visits to Brighton in literature, Luke Leitch's top ten list of the most successful literary sequels ever, and is one of the top ten works of literature according to Norman Mailer. Richard Price has never read it, but it is the book Mary Gordon cares most about sharing with her children.

The Page 99 Test: Pride and Prejudice.

--Marshal Zeringue

Pg. 99: Rebecca Dowd Geoffroy-Schwinden's "From Servant to Savant"

Featured at the Page 99 Test: From Servant to Savant: Musical Privilege, Property, and the French Revolution by Rebecca Dowd Geoffroy-Schwinden.

About the book, from the publisher:

Before the French Revolution, making music was an activity that required permission. After the Revolution, music was an object that could be possessed. Everyone seemingly hoped to gain something from owning music. Musicians claimed it as their unalienable personal expression while the French nation sought to enhance imperial ambitions by appropriating it as the collective product of cultural heritage and national industry. Musicians capitalized on these changes to protect their professionalization within new laws and institutions, while excluding those without credentials from their elite echelon.

From Servant to Savant demonstrates how the French Revolution set the stage for the emergence of so-called musical "Romanticism" and the legacies that continue to haunt musical institutions and industries. As musicians and the government negotiated the place of music in a reimagined French society, new epistemic and professional practices constituted three lasting values of musical production: the composer's sovereignty, the musical work's inviolability, and the nation's supremacy.

Learn more about From Servant to Savant at the Oxford University Press website.

The Page 99 Test: From Servant to Savant.

--Marshal Zeringue

Pg. 69: Leanne Kale Sparks's "The Wrong Woman"

Featured at the Page 69 Test: The Wrong Woman: A Novel by Leanne Kale Sparks.

About the book, from the publisher:

The past is never far behind, as a string of murders threatens to unleash long-buried secrets in this pulse-pounding thriller for fans of Melinda Leigh and T. R. Ragan.

The only survivor of Denver’s notorious “Reaper” serial murders, FBI Special Agent Kendall Beck grapples with the ghosts of her past by seeking justice for victims of abuse. She’s neck deep in a particularly ugly case involving the disappearance of five-year-old Emily Williams—but her investigation is derailed when her best friend and roommate, Gwen Tavich, turns up dead floating in a nearby lake.

Devastated by the news of Gwen’s death, Kendall teams up with Denver detective Adam Taylor to find the killer. Gwen’s fiancé, Ty Butler, is being evasive about the last time he saw Gwen, and as the evidence mounts against him, he’s arrested for the murder. With every new clue, Kendall questions how well she really knew her friend. And when Gwen’s dark secrets begin spilling out one by one, she begins to understand the devastating magnitude of her murder. The Reaper has returned to Denver—and he’s not stopping at just one victim.

As the trauma of Kendall’s past comes roaring back, she and Adam have no time to spare before more bodies start piling up. And then Kendall makes a shocking discovery that reveals the horrifying truth behind Emily Williams’s disappearance. Now, Kendall must confront her darkest fears as she and the Reaper face off one more time.

Visit Leanne Kale Sparks's website.

Coffee with a Canine: Leanne Kale Sparks & Zoe.

The Page 69 Test: The Wrong Woman.

--Marshal Zeringue

Ten sci-fi series for fans of "The Expanse"

At BookBub Jeff Somers tagged ten sci-fi series "like The Expanse that combine political intrigue, military sci-fi, and ancient mysteries," including:

Behind the Throne by K. B. Wagers

Although less sprawling than other series on this list, Wagers nails the complex political intrigue that fans of The Expanse love. Hail Bristol is renowned as one of the best smugglers working the galaxy, but she’s being pursued by a pair of bounty hunters for entirely different reasons: She’s secretly the heir to the Indranan Empire. When her sisters are murdered, she’s called back by her mother, the empress, to take her place in court — but Hail’s real reasons for obeying the call have everything to do with avenging the murders of her siblings. Tense, funny, and beautifully detailed, this is a space opera with a fierce sense of individuality shot through with dark drama.

Read about another entry on the list.

--Marshal Zeringue

Pg. 99: Yossi Alpher's "Death Tango"

Featured at the Page 99 Test: Death Tango: Ariel Sharon, Yasser Arafat, and Three Fateful Days in March by Yossi Alpher.

About the book, from the publisher:

Death Tango traces the Middle East dynamic back to the events of March 27–29, 2002. March 27, Passover Eve, witnessed the most bloody and traumatic Arab terrorist attack in Israel’s history, the Park Hotel bombing in Netanya. On March 28, an Arab League summit in Beirut adopted the Arab Peace Initiative, the most far-reaching Arab attempt to set parameters for ending the Israel-Arab conflict. The next day, Israel invaded and reoccupied the West Bank in Operation Defensive Shield.

Alpher illustrates the interaction between these three critical events and depicts the key personalities—politicians, generals, and a star journalist—involved on all sides. It moves from a suicide bombing to the deliberations of Arab leaders; from the Israel Prime Minister’s Office—where Ariel Sharon fulminated against Yasser Arafat—to Washington, where the United States fumbled and misunderstood the dynamics at work; and on to the Jenin refugee camp, where Israeli soldiers won a bloody military battle but Israel lost the media battle of public opinion.

Based on extensive interviews and his deep personal knowledge, Alpher analyzes the three days in late March 2002 as a catalyst of extensive change in the Middle East, concluding that Arabs and Israelis are dancing a kind of “death tango.”

Visit Yossi Alpher's website.

The Page 99 Test: Death Tango.

--Marshal Zeringue

What is Michael Mammay reading?

Featured at Writers Read: Michael Mammay, author of The Misfit Soldier (Misfits, 1).

His entry begins:

It probably won’t come as a surprise that I read a lot of science fiction. I should probably say consume, rather than read, since I always have an audio book going as well as the one I’m reading. I generally try to read stuff in the year that it’s published or right after, but I will work in a few classics that I’ve missed out on each year as well. So far this year, a lot of my reading includes books that aren’t out yet. One of the coolest secrets that nobody tells you about being a published author is that publishers will send you all the books you want before they even publish them.

I just finished reading Braking Day by Adam Oyebanji. I’m a sucker for a generation fleet story, and this one is a good one. The crew is over a century into the mission, and the world-building delves a lot into the internal politics of the ship and how it keeps things under control, and I...[read on]

About the book, from the publisher:

Ocean’s Eleven meets John Scalzi in this funny, action-filled, stand-alone sci-fi adventure from the author of Planetside, in which a small team of misfit soldiers takes on a mission that could change the entire galaxy.

Sergeant Gastovsky—Gas to everyone but his superior officers—never wanted to be a soldier. Far from it. But when a con goes wrong and he needs a place to lay low for a while, he finds himself wearing the power armor of the augmented infantry.

After three years on a six-year contract, Gas has found his groove running low-level cons and various illegal activities that make him good money on the side. He’s the guy who can get you what you need. But he’s always had his eye out for a big score—the one that might set him up for life after the military.

When one of his soldiers is left behind after a seemingly pointless battle, Gas sees his chance. He assembles a team of misfit soldiers that would push the term “ragtag” to its limits for a big con that leads them on a daring behind-the-lines mission, pitting him not only against enemy soldiers but against the top brass of his own organization.

If he pulls this off, not only will he save his squadmate, he might just become the legend he’s always considered himself. He might also change the way the entire galaxy looks at this war. But for any of that to happen, he has to live through this insane plan.

And charm rarely stops bullets.

Visit Michael Mammay's website.

Q&A with Michael Mammay.

Writers Read: Michael Mammay.

--Marshal Zeringue

Six of the best twist endings in contemporary fiction

New York Times bestseller Wendy Corsi Staub is the award-winning author of more than ninety novels, best known for the single title psychological suspense novels she writes under her own name. Those books and the women’s fiction written under the pseudonym Wendy Markham have also appeared on the USA Today, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Bookscan bestseller lists.

Her current standalone suspense novel, The Other Family, is about a picture-perfect family that that moves into a picture-perfect house. But not everything is as it seems, and the page-turner concludes “with a wallop of a twist,” according to #1 New York Times bestselling author Harlan Coben.

At CrimeReads Staub tagged six of "the best surprise endings in contemporary fiction," including:

Find Me by Alafair Burke

Newly released, Find Me centers around two strong heroines, friends whose deep bond goes back to an unsolved mystery in their past. Burke is a master at plotting and pacing, and doesn’t disappoint here. Not only is this book a true page-turner with an intricate story and well-rounded cast of characters, but it combines a couple of my favorite plot points—amnesia and missing persons—and leads to an exquisite eleventh-hour shocker.

Read about another entry on the list.

Q&A with Alafair Burke.

--Marshal Zeringue

Pg. 99: Tegan Kehoe's "Exploring American Healthcare through 50 Historic Treasures"

Featured at the Page 99 Test: Exploring American Healthcare through 50 Historic Treasures by Tegan Kehoe.

About the book, from the publisher:

Healthcare history is more than leeches and drilling holes in skulls. It is stories of scientific failures and triumphs.

Exploring American Healthcare through 50 Historic Treasures presents a visual and narrative history of health and medicine in the United States, tracing paradigm shifts such as the introduction of anesthesia, the adoption of germ theory, and advances in public health. In this book, museum artifacts are windows into both famous and ordinary people’s experiences with healthcare throughout American history, from patent medicines and faith healing to laboratory science.

With 50 vignette-like chapters and 50 color photographs, Exploring American Healthcare through 50 Historic Treasures showcases little-known objects that illustrate the complexities of our relationship with health, such as a bottle from the short period when the Schlitz beer company sold lager that was supposed to be high in vitamin D during the first vitamin craze. It also highlights famous moments in medicine, such as the discovery of penicillin, as illustrated by a mold-culturing pan. Each artifact tells some piece of the story of how its creators or users approached fundamental questions in health. Some of these questions are, “What causes sickness, and what causes health?” and “How much can everyone master the principles of health, and how much do laypeople need to rely on outside authorities?”

Exploring American Healthcare through 50 Historic Treasures describes the days when surgeons worked on patients without anesthesia and wiped their scalpels on their coats, and the day that EMTs raced to provide help when the Twin Towers were attacked in 2001. The book discusses social and cultural influences that have shaped healthcare, providing insight relevant to today’s problems and colorful anecdotes along the way.

Visit Tegan Kehoe's website.

The Page 99 Test: Exploring American Healthcare through 50 Historic Treasures.

--Marshal Zeringue

Pg. 69: Bonnie Kistler's "The Cage"

Featured at the Page 69 Test: The Cage: A Novel by Bonnie Kistler.

About the book, from the publisher:

Combining the propulsive narrative drive of The Firm with the psychological complexity of The Silent Patient, a gripping and original thriller about two professional women—colleagues at an international fashion conglomerate—who enter an elevator together ... but only one is alive when they reach the ground floor.

On a cold, misty Sunday night, two women are alone in the offices of fashion conglomerate Claudine de Martineau International. One is the company’s human resources director. Impeccably dressed and perfectly coiffed, she sits at her desk and stares somberly out the window. Down the hall, her colleague, one of the company’s lawyers, is buried under a pile of paperwork, frantically rushing to finish.

Leaving at the same time, the two women, each preoccupied by her own thoughts, enter the elevator that will take them down from the 30th floor.

When they arrive at the lobby, one of the women is dead. Was it murder or suicide?

An incredibly original novel that turns the office thriller on its head, The Cage is a wild ride that begins with a bang and picks up speed as it races to its dramatic end.

Visit Bonnie Kistler's website.

Q&A with Bonnie Kistler.

The Page 69 Test: The Cage.

--Marshal Zeringue

Seven novels where love and murder are in the cards

Leah Konen is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she studied journalism and English literature. She is the author of the new thriller, The Perfect Escape. Her debut thriller, All the Broken People was a Rolling Stone, Marie Claire, She Reads, and Charlotte Observer best summer book pick.

At Electric Lit, Konen tagged "seven scintillating thrillers about romances gone wrong," including:

A Good Marriage by Kimberly McCreight

McCreight’s gorgeous murder mystery is set against the backdrop of elite and moneyed Park Slope in Brooklyn, and follows Lizzie, a criminal defense attorney with a marriage on the rocks, as she attempts to defend a wealthy entrepreneur and former classmate, Zach, who’s been arrested for the murder of his wife. Combining multiple points of view and timelines and intercut with grand jury testimony, this spiderweb of a book shows us that marriages are so often not what they seem.

Read about another entry on the list.

--Marshal Zeringue

Pg. 99: Phi Hong Su's "The Border Within"

Featured at the Page 99 Test: The Border Within: Vietnamese Migrants Transforming Ethnic Nationalism in Berlin by Phi Hong Su.

About the book, from the publisher:

When the Berlin Wall fell, Germany united in a wave of euphoria and solidarity. Also caught in the current were Vietnamese border crossers who had left their homeland after its reunification in 1975. Unwilling to live under socialism, one group resettled in West Berlin as refugees. In the name of socialist solidarity, a second group arrived in East Berlin as contract workers. The Border Within paints a vivid portrait of these disparate Vietnamese migrants' encounters with each other in the post-socialist city of Berlin. Journalists, scholars, and Vietnamese border crossers themselves consider these groups that left their homes under vastly different conditions to be one people, linked by an unquestionable ethnic nationhood. Phi Hong Su's rigorous ethnography unpacks this intuition. In absorbing prose, Su reveals how these Cold War compatriots enact palpable social boundaries in everyday life. This book uncovers how 20th-century state formation and international migration—together, border crossings—generate enduring migrant classifications. In doing so, border crossings fracture shared ethnic, national, and religious identities in enduring ways.

Visit Phi Hong Su's website.

The Page 99 Test: The Border Within.

--Marshal Zeringue

Q&A with Bonnie Kistler

From my Q&A with Bonnie Kistler, author of The Cage: A Novel:

How much work does your title do to take readers into the story?

The cage in my title refers to three different things: (a) the elevator where the inciting event occurs, sometimes called a “car” but more accurately a “cage”; (b) the jail cell where Shay ends up; and (c) something I can’t disclose without spoiling the story.

Readers will immediately grasp the first reference and understand that something significant happens in that elevator. Later they’ll recognize the jail reference. And by the end I hope they’ll be surprised by the third reference. (Notice how “cagey” I am there?)

What's in a name?

The main character is Shay Lambert, a young lawyer who’s entirely a creature of her own invention. She’s climbed out of poverty and a squalid family life into the Ivy League and a Wall Street law firm. She’s ditched...[read on]

Visit Bonnie Kistler's website.

Q&A with Bonnie Kistler.

--Marshal Zeringue

Ten top sexy mysteries for Valentine’s weekend

Molly Odintz is the Senior Editor for CrimeReads. She grew up in Austin and worked as a bookseller at BookPeople for years before her move up to New York City for a life in crime. She likes cats, crime novels, and coffee.

At CrimeReads Odintz tagged ten "books, featuring lots of great sex and terrible relationships, [that] may make for perfect Valentine’s Weekend reading," including:

Temper by Layne Fargo

In this sultry drama thriller, an actress gets her first big break, but the tempestuous production and its harsh director threaten to destroy everyone involved. This one has the best use of “friends with benefits” on the list. Also, there are sexy scenes aplenty.

Read about another entry on the list.

Temper is among Amy Gentry's eleven thrillers set in toxic workplaces.

--Marshal Zeringue

Pg. 99: Guobin Yang's "The Wuhan Lockdown"

Featured at the Page 99 Test: The Wuhan Lockdown by Guobin Yang.

About the book, from the publisher:

A metropolis with a population of about 11 million, Wuhan sits at the crossroads of China. It was here that in the last days of 2019, the first reports of a mysterious new form of pneumonia emerged. Before long, an abrupt and unprecedented lockdown was declared—the first of many such responses to the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic around the world.

This book tells the dramatic story of the Wuhan lockdown in the voices of the city’s own people. Using a vast archive of more than 6,000 diaries, the sociologist Guobin Yang vividly depicts how the city coped during the crisis. He analyzes how the state managed—or mismanaged—the lockdown and explores how Wuhan’s residents responded by taking on increasingly active roles. Yang demonstrates that citizen engagement—whether public action or the civic inaction of staying at home—was essential in the effort to fight the pandemic. The book features compelling stories of citizens and civic groups in their struggle against COVID-19: physicians, patients, volunteers, government officials, feminist organizers, social media commentators, and even aunties loudly swearing at party officials. These snapshots from the lockdown capture China at a critical moment, revealing the intricacies of politics, citizenship, morality, community, and digital technology. Presenting the extraordinary experiences of ordinary people, The Wuhan Lockdown is an unparalleled account of the first moments of the crisis that would define the age.

Follow Guobin Yang on Twitter.

The Page 99 Test: Guobin Yang's The Red Guard Generation and Political Activism in China.

The Page 99 Test: The Wuhan Lockdown.

--Marshal Zeringue

Pg. 69: Gina Apostol's "Bibliolepsy"

Featured at the Page 69 Test: Bibliolepsy by Gina Apostol.

About the book, from the publisher:

Moving, sexy, and archly funny, Gina Apostol’s Philippine National Book Award-winning Bibliolepsy is a love letter to the written word and a brilliantly unorthodox look at the rebellion that brought down a dictatorship

Gina Apostol’s debut novel, available for the first time in the US, tells of a young woman caught between a lifelong desire to escape into books and a real-world revolution.

It is the mid-eighties, two decades into the kleptocratic, brutal rule of Ferdinand Marcos. The Philippine economy is in deep recession, and civil unrest is growing by the day. But Primi Peregrino has her own priorities: tracking down books and pursuing romantic connections with their authors.

For Primi, the nascent revolution means that writers are gathering more often, and with greater urgency, so that every poetry reading she attends presents a veritable “Justice League” of authors for her to choose among. As the Marcos dictatorship stands poised to topple, Primi remains true to her fantasy: that she, “a vagabond from history, a runaway from time,” can be saved by sex, love, and books.

Visit Gina Apostol's website.

Q&A with Gina Apostol.

The Page 69 Test: Bibliolepsy.

--Marshal Zeringue

Five novels about dangerous plants

Benjamin Percy is the author of six novels, the most recent among them The Unfamiliar Garden, the second book in the Comet Cycle.

At Lit Hub Percy writes:

The novels in the Comet Cycle are triggered by an age-old sci-fi concept: a comet comes streaking through the solar system, the planet spins through the debris field, and new elements are introduced to the world. These elements upend the laws of biology, geology, physics; they create chaos in the geopolitical theater; they shake up the energy and weapons sectors; and they—in a very Marvel-y sort of way—create a new dawn of heroes and villains.

Percy tagged five "stories—about dangerous plants—that seeded the growth" of The Unfamiliar Garden, including:

Victor LaValle, The Changeling (2018)

There is a maxim among writers. You want to create instant suspense? Put a kid in danger. That’s the hook of Victor LaValle’s brilliant and eerie urban fairy tale. A couple is struggling after having their first baby. Maybe post-partum depression is to blame. Or maybe the mother is right. Maybe this… thing… is not actually their child. Maybe it’s not human at all. To prove her theory, she shackles up her husband and forces him to watch as… well… we won’t get into that here. Let’s just call it an unspeakable act of violence that turns out to be entirely justified. Because their actual baby has been stolen and replaced by a root-tangled, mud-packed infant-shaped creature. A Changeling. The wheeling paranoia that leads to agonizing despair and then startling realization add up to one of the most powerfully staged sequences I have ever read. And the enchanted journey that follows is equally unforgettable.

Read about another entry on Percy's list.

The Changeling is among James Han Mattson's five top dark and disturbing reads, A.K. Larkwood's five tense books that blend sci-fi and horror, Leah Schnelbach's ten sci-fi and fantasy must-reads from the 2010s, T. Marie Vandelly's top ten suspenseful horror novels featuring domestic terrors and C.J. Tudor's six thrillers featuring missing, mistaken, or "changed" children.

--Marshal Zeringue

Pg. 99: Franklin Perkins's "Doing What You Really Want"

Featured at the Page 99 Test: Doing What You Really Want: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Mengzi by Franklin Perkins.

About the book, from the publisher:

For more than two thousand years, the writings of the Confucian philosopher Mengzi have been a source of guidance and inspiration for those set on doing something to improve the state of the world. In Doing What You Really Want, Franklin Perkins presents a coherent, systematic, and accessible explanation of Mengzi's philosophy. He covers everything from the place of human beings in nature, to human psychology and philosophy of emotions, to the various ways in which we can deliberately change and cultivate ourselves.

Mengzi was concerned not just with theory but also effective action. Perkins thus includes a collection of practical advice and a Confucian analysis of politics oriented toward how individuals can make a difference in the world. These topics are integrated around Mengzi's philosophy as a way of life dedicated to changing the world, providing an alternative approach for understanding the contemporary relevance of Confucianism. Mengzi offers theoretical and practical resources valuable for anyone concerned with integrating efforts to improve the world with personal fulfillment and a sense of belonging.

Rather than giving an overview, this is a focused work of philosophy that delves deeply into the most relevant themes of Mengzi's thought. The core philosophical system is drawn from Mengzi, but the book regularly incorporates other Confucian materials, making this volume a useful introduction to Confucian thought.

Learn more about Doing What You Really Want at the Oxford University Press website.

The Page 99 Test: Doing What You Really Want.

--Marshal Zeringue

Coffee with a canine: Leanne Kale Sparks & Zoe

Featured at Coffee with a Canine: Leanne Kale Sparks & Zoe.

The author, on how she and Zoe were united:

We lost our gorgeous white GSD, Patch, during the quarantine in 2020, and we knew we needed to have another dog. We opted for a breeder and picked Zoe up at the beginning of October 2020, and life has been hectic and entertaining...[read on]

About Leanne Kale Sparks's new novel The Wrong Woman, from the publisher:

The past is never far behind, as a string of murders threatens to unleash long-buried secrets in this pulse-pounding thriller for fans of Melinda Leigh and T. R. Ragan.

The only survivor of Denver’s notorious “Reaper” serial murders, FBI Special Agent Kendall Beck grapples with the ghosts of her past by seeking justice for victims of abuse. She’s neck deep in a particularly ugly case involving the disappearance of five-year-old Emily Williams—but her investigation is derailed when her best friend and roommate, Gwen Tavich, turns up dead floating in a nearby lake.

Devastated by the news of Gwen’s death, Kendall teams up with Denver detective Adam Taylor to find the killer. Gwen’s fiancé, Ty Butler, is being evasive about the last time he saw Gwen, and as the evidence mounts against him, he’s arrested for the murder. With every new clue, Kendall questions how well she really knew her friend. And when Gwen’s dark secrets begin spilling out one by one, she begins to understand the devastating magnitude of her murder. The Reaper has returned to Denver—and he’s not stopping at just one victim.

As the trauma of Kendall’s past comes roaring back, she and Adam have no time to spare before more bodies start piling up. And then Kendall makes a shocking discovery that reveals the horrifying truth behind Emily Williams’s disappearance. Now, Kendall must confront her darkest fears as she and the Reaper face off one more time.

Visit Leanne Kale Sparks's website.

Coffee with a Canine: Leanne Kale Sparks & Zoe.

--Marshal Zeringue