Reviewer: Sharon Brunner Sara Maurer’s A Good Animal offers an unforgettable story about the rural ways of life, the trials and tribulations of young love, and the joys and challenges of raising farm animals. It took place at a country setting outside of the city of Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan…
Reviewer: Sharon Brunner Kelly Peach’s The Whore: or of Bureaucracy an Adult Fable weaves a tale of satire, horror, and social critique while examining the human condition in an indifferent world. The story took place in northern Magritte and other fictional locations. Peach was born in Detroit, but he currently lives…
Review by Deborah K Frontiera This collection of poetry on Lake Superior has as more topics, emotions, styles of writing, forms of poetry, and descriptions of the lake itself than could possibly fit in a review. In his Foreword to Feet in the Waves: Poems of Lake Superior, editor Raymond…
Reviewer: Sharon Brunner Ed. Note, this is a comprehensive review of the initial trilogy of books. These picture books written by Leokadia George and illustrated by Maddy More includes: Trumpet the Miracle Wolf Pup Trumpet the Miracle Wolf Pup: Trumpet Grows Up Trumpet the Miracle Wolf Pup: Trumpet Finds Love…
Reviewer: Sharon Brunner Leslie Cieplechowicz’s Michigan Revealed: Exploring the Wilds of Upper Peninsula offers a historical and scenic view of the sparsely populated and heavily forested land north of the Mackinac Bridge. The author divided this book into four chapters covering the northeast, southeast, northwest and southwest regions of the…
Reviewer: Sharon Brunner Kelsey Matthews’ The Forgotten Ones offers a view of the exciting world of the supernatural. This book is the sequel to One of Them, which launched the series. The story takes place in Marquette, Michigan, a community in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula (U.P.), and in other places around…
Reviewer: Sharon Brunner Kelsey Matthews’ The One of Them is a story about good versus evil and the struggles of having supernatural gifts. The main character in the story is Robert Donoghue, who begins having terrifying nightmares. He fears he is losing his mind. Cody and Trista are his best…
Review by Tyler R. Tichelaar Sara Maurer’s debut novel, A Good Animal, perfectly reflects a writer following the advice of writing what you know, and what Maurer knows is something many of us will find unfamiliar and yet fascinating. In its barebone structure, the novel presents us with a fairly…
Review by Jon C. Stott In the early 1960s, Bob (“R.H.”) Miller, an instructor in the English Department of Michigan Tech, discovered the joys of fly fishing in the Upper Peninsula’s many trout streams. Now, his fishing days over, he has delved into what he calls a “creel full of…
Review by Deborah Frontiera Mikel Classen is well known for thorough and boots-on-the-ground research for his nonfiction books and Grand Island: Island of History and Mystery is no different. In this short volume, he combines historical facts and travel information. In each short segment, he also provides his reactions to…
Reviewer: Sharon Brunner Jim Bolone’s Zombie Seagulls: And 13 Other Bite-Sized Nightmares! offers spooky tales that will have any reader bracing for ultimate suspense and surprise. This book was meant for young readers. This collection of horror stories prepares even the less avid readers to embrace the written word, with…
Reviewer: Sharon Brunner Leokadia George shared a special story about a program called SAFE (Saving Animals From Extinction) and the importance of the pack mentality for wolves in her book Trumpet the Miracle Wolf Pup: Trumpet Becomes A Mom. George has been volunteering at the Wolf Conservation Center in New…
Reviewer: Sharon Brunner John Highlen’s Seeking Serenity offers an interesting view of the many natural wonders found in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan (U.P.) and Minnesota’s Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. We often face complications and the hustle and bustle of everyday life, and we do not take the time…
Reviewer: Sharon Brunner Edd Tury’s The Fall and Rise of Sierra Quinn offers a view of the difficulties in human relationships and the financial challenges faced by many businesses today. Divorce has served as a heartbreaking challenge for many people. Today’s farmers have been struggling with the high cost of…
Review by Jon C. Stott Sharon Brunner, a member of the Sault Ste Marie Tribe of Chippewa (Ojibwa) Indians, has been a social worker, professor, educational consultant, and author – and wise woman (and still is). A student of her people’s history and culture, she has participated in such traditional…
Reviewer: Sharon Brunner Elin Anna Labba’s The Home of the Drowned offered a story about a multigenerational struggle for Sámi women when they fought to hold onto their way of life. They were forced to endure the horrible actions of a powerful hydropower company and government officials while their summer…
Review by Deborah K Frontiera Visiting Mackinac: 150 Years of Tourism at Michigan’s Fabled Straits by Frank Boles is not a history of the community but a chronicle of the visitors to the island from the 1830s through 1990. What began as a military outpost, a hub for the fur…
Reviewer: Sharon Brunner Out of the Darkness: Classic Short Fiction from Sweden offers a splendid view of refuge, psychological mysteries and explores what makes life meaningful. The stories take place in Sweden, and authors from the 1880s to the 1950s tell a variety of stories. Some of the authors were…
