Search results for: africa

Fun Facts Friday: Harriet Beecher Stowe
Fun Facts Friday , Latest Posts / June 15, 2012

Yesterday was the birthday of Harriet Beecher Stowe (14 June, 1811 – 1 July, 1896). Stowe is known mostly for her novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin but she was an avid writer all of her life. Picture from Nation’s history is embedded in portrait of a famous writer – boston.com Books by Harriet Beecher Stowe 1 ) Uncle Tom’s Cabin was originally slated to be a short series in an abolitionist magazine 2 ) Stowe was often criticized for not having firsthand knowledge of slavery. In response Stowe published A Key to Uncle Tom’s Cabin which revealed her sources. 3 ) After the American Civil War, Stowe bought a home in Florida and started schools for African American children. 4 ) It is said that Stowe danced in the streets when Lincoln announced the Emancipation Proclamation. 5 ) When Stowe met President Abraham Lincoln he reported to have said: “So you’re the little woman who wrote the book that made this great war!” 6 ) Uncle Tom’s Cabin sold 300,000 copies. 7 ) In 1853 Stowe was welcomed in England as a literary hero. 8 ) In November 1857 Stowe was one of the original contributors to The Atlantic along with Ralph Waldo…

Thoughts on: Guest of Honor by Deborah Davis
5 Stars , Latest Posts , Non-Fiction / May 21, 2012

In 1901 the country woke up to a shock, the previous day 16 October, President Theodore Roosevelt invited Booker T. Washington to have dinner at the executive mansion (known today as the White House) with the First Family. Not only black, but a former slave, the invitation created fodder for news papers, vile cartoons and vulgar songs.

Tightwad Tuesday — Free or Affordable eBooks – Non Fiction
Latest Posts , Tightwad Tuesday / May 15, 2012

Welcome to another edition of Tightwad Tuesday. While looking around for non-fiction books, I saw some really cool free ones and thought that you might like them as well. Authors: If you’d like your book to be featured on Tightwad Tuesdays please email me. For the Kindle: Thompson’s Lucky Star: The Story of a Stalag Survivor [Kindle Edition] by Tony Thompson, Brendan Gisby When Corporal George Thompson of The Buffs was walking to freedom from Stalag IVB after the camp’s liberation in April 1945, he most probably stopped for a moment, looked up at the sky and thanked his lucky star again. That star had kept him alive through five long years of war, the last eighteen brutal months of which he had spent as a prisoner-of-war. As he passed through the huge, intimidating gates of the camp for the last time, George carried with him some mementoes from his time in captivity, among them a very small, dog-eared notebook. The notebook was George’s prisoner-of-war diary, which he had begun the day after he was taken prisoner and in which he had made the final entry on the day of his liberation. Reproducing the actual diary entries and supplementing them…

Fun Facts Friday: King Solomon’s Mines
Fun Facts Friday , Latest Posts / March 30, 2012

Sometimes the story behind the book is more interesting than the book. King Solomon’s Mines (my thoughts) by H. Rider Haggard also has an interesting story behind the novel that inspired such characters as Indiana Jones. Buy this book in paper or FREE in elec­tronic format. More book by H. Rider Haggard 1 ) When the novel was first published in London, 1885, it was marketed “ The Most Amazing Book Ever Written” and became an immediate best seller 2 ) At the time explorations around the globe were major headlines, however Africa largely remained a mystery. King Solomon’s Mines was the first novel, published in English, to capture the public’s interest. 3 ) Haggard has traveled in Africa when he was 19 and witnessed the Anglo-Zulu War as well as the First Boer War. 4 ) Alan Quatermain is based largely on famed British white hunter and explorer Frederick Courteney Selous. 5) The part in the novel about Captain Good taking out his false teeth and terrifying the locals is based on a true story. Jospeh Thomson, a Scottish explorer, has documented this even in his book Through Masai Land where he scared Kenyan warriors taking out his false teeth and putting them back. Haggard was…

Book Review: Baking Cakes in Kigali by Gaile Parkin
5 Stars , Fiction , Latest Posts / February 27, 2012

About: “Baking Cakes in Kigali” by Gaile Parkin is a fictional story is about a woman named Angel Tungaraza, who herself is Tanzanian but is living in an International apartment complex in Rwanda due to her husband’s job. Angel and her husband are raising their five grandchildren after the lose of their children and are two people who are putting on a hopeful front for their sake. 336 pages Publisher: Bantam ISBN: 0385343442 My rating for Baking Cakes in Kigali – 5 Great price on this book in paper or elec­tronic for­mat through the Man of la Book Affil­i­ate Account Thoughts: Baking Cakes in Kigali by Gaile Parkin (website) was charming as well as easy to read. The stories are interesting, the humanity amazing and, best of all, I really liked the character of Angel Tungaraza. As many other people I know, the sum of my knowledge about Rwanda was the genocide a few years ago, I was expecting a distressing, if not upsetting novel and I got a triumphant and wonderful book. These everyday stories are amazing, even though they are told in a very relaxed manner (while order cakes for a celebration) they don’t sugar coat the horrible reality that many people in Africa live day-to-day. Not only the genocide, but also poverty, AIDS and other issues make an appearance. Yet, the hopeful theme stays. Synopsis: Angel bakes elaborate…

Black History Month Videos and Books
Latest Posts / February 23, 2012

Black History Month: The Storytelling Tradition Professor Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Alice Walker, Virginia Hamilton, and others speaking about the importance of storytelling in African American history: Muhammad Ali: The Man Behind the Myth: A look at Muhammad Ali (“the man behind the myth”) in a video interview with George Foreman, daughter Hana Ali, and biographer Thomas Hauser. Honoring Martin Luther King Jr.’s Legacy: Authors Remember the Civil Rights Movement Alice Walker and other authors speaking about their involvement in the Civil Rights movement Henry Louis Gates, Jr., on William Styron’s Controversial Novel: Professor Henry Louis Gates, Jr. on one of the twentieth century’s most jarring literary events.

Fun Facts Friday: Toni Morrison
Fun Facts Friday , Latest Posts / February 17, 2012

Tomorrow, February 18 we will celebrate the birthday of award winning author Toni Morrison. An author, speaker, professor, and mother, Ms. Morrison has accomplished a lot and deserves to be honored as one of American’s greatest living treasures.

Veterans Day Reading List

As those who follow this blog know that I love books about the military, fiction and non-fiction. In honor of Veterans Day I thought I’d post a list of books I enjoyed over the past year or two about this subject. I assume we all love to read about something which is close to our hearts, whether it’s a place, a feeling or an experience. I know I do. Non-Fiction: Citizen Soldiers by Stephen Ambrose A fas­ci­nat­ing book about the Euro­pean the­ater in World War II, as told by the men on the front lines, not a media hug­ging offi­cer or a dry his­to­rian. Ambrose cap­tures the sense of his­tory from both sides of the fence, sticks to the facts as we know them and keeps his com­ments to a minimum. Command Influence By Robert A. Shaines A cap­ti­vat­ing book in which Mr. Shaines recounts his mem­o­ries as a defend­ing lawyer in the case of The United States v. Lt. George C. Schreiber. Lt. Schreiber was the appointed scape­goat in a trial for the mur­der of a Korean man (whose real name was never found). Mr. Shaines, a mil­i­tary attor­ney on the Lieutenant’s defense team, was fight­ing a bat­tle which…

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