Category: reading

books, read around the world, reading

Year End Review

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As this year draws to an end, I reflect back on what I have read and what I have experienced. This year was a difficult one in terms of meeting my goals. With the significant shift in the workload at the office, I spent much more time listening to books in the car as my commute doubled. My once happily reading slant to old fashion books was, for the first time ever, over 60% listened to! This, in light of the fact I have only been listening to books for about three years, I was blown away.

Over this year, I have been working on my at home travel log, as well as the Goodread’s Horizons, where a different part of the world was chosen for each month. As I previously reported, I have now completed my tour of the United States, and I am over half my way through the 100 countries I have identified. As I was stretching myself geographically, I also expanded my reading horizons to include more memoirs (11), and essays (5). My two favorite memoirs this year included An Odyssey: a father and son by Daniel Mendelson and We should all be feminists by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. These were thought provoking and brought me to action, even if in different ways.

As I mentioned earlier, this year has been a difficult one. I selected some titles that I would not usually in order to expand my horizons. The President’s Garden by Muhsin Al-Ramli, Chronicle of a last summer: a novel of Egypt by Yasmine El Rashidi, and In the time of butterflies by Julia Alvarez were all fiction based upon the realities of political horrors in Iraq, Egypt and the Dominican Republic. Each show the consequences of being honest in a society that is not open. Powerful in their own ways, each are a testament to those that survived the brutality and confusion.

Other authors take the horrors and stand them on their head. Examples of these include A woman in Jerusalem by A.B. Yehoshua, Death with Interruptions by Jose Saramago, and Death is Hard Work by Khaled Khalifa. In each, death is what starts everything. As assumptions on what should be and who should care, the absurdities of a corpse being arresting in Syria, or detained in Russia, can not be minimized. But when it is Death sending engraved letters that she is coming soon, that takes a whole new level. These were even more poignant to me as I face aging parents, and friends who are experiencing deaths that are way too early to have to face.

I have learned about the history of Mormons, the tranquility of Hawaii’s royal family, the breadth and depth of the Ojibwe, the brains of Hedy Lamar and the lengths men go to deny beautiful women, and that a fictional rock band can feel all too real. In the end, I feel that I have learned much more about people of my world, and hope that I can extend empathy towards others. I fear there is too little of this currently. I hope to bring more tolerance to others through what I have learned from these books.

Happy reading in 2020.

books, read around the world, reading

At Home Travel Log of US Update

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As the year draws to a close, I have focused these last few months to completing my 50 states of reading. With New Mexico and Hawaii bring up the rear, I should be able to finish the last state by year end. Going through the list, now, I am amazed at the breadth of what is available for reading just here in my own country.

From pure fiction in Alaska (Michael Chabon’s The Yiddish Policeman’s Union) to fiction based on political beliefs (The Cider House Rules by John Irving) in 1950’s Maine, I have traversed the settings of the country. Interestingly, the memoirs and non-fiction I have read (a total of 10), these are mostly focused from the West Coast to the Mid-west of the country. The time frame of the books covers the late 1800s (Hawai’i, Wyoming, and Texas) through times of trouble (Cold Mountain, East of Eden, Snow Falling on Cedars, To Kill a Mockingbird) and faced the changing reality of our world (The Help, Eleanor & Park).

While the era, settings and circumstances were location specific, each of these stories, both fiction and non-fiction, had a similar thread. Each brought us closer to understanding the humanity that we have. These books open our eyes to ourselves, and to others. The Bell Jar shows the need to care for your mental welAs the year draws to a close, I have focused these last few months to completing my 50 states of reading. With New Mexico and Hawaii bring up the rear, I should be able to finish the last state by year end. Going through the list, now, I am amazed at the breadth of what is available for reading just here in my own country.

From pure fiction in Alaska (Michael Chabon’s The Yiddish Policeman’s Union) to fiction based on political beliefs (The Cider House Rules by John Irving) in 1950’s Maine, I have traversed the settings of the country. Interestingly, the memoirs and non-fiction I have read (a total of 10), these are mostly focused from the West Coast to the Mid-west of the country. The time frame of the books covers the late 1800s (Hawai’i, Wyoming, and Texas) through times of trouble (Cold Mountain, East of Eden, Snow Falling on Cedars, To Kill a Mockingbird) and faced the changing reality of our world (The Help, Eleanor & Park).

While the era, settings and circumstances were location specific, each of these stories, both fiction and non-fiction, had a similar thread. Each brought us closer to understanding the humanity that we have. These books open our eyes to ourselves, and to others. The Bell Jar shows the need to care for your mental well being, as does The Virgin Suicides. The Lovely Bones shows how to watch out for yourself, as does The Color Purple. Throughout all, it is our job to take the lessons from each book, learn from it and extract wisdom to help us be better people. These books are a part of the author’s humanity, and we need to be open to having it touch ours. Thus the reason I love to experience different worlds, cultures and times through books.

book-review, books, literature, Middle Eastern, read around the world, reading

Chronicle of a last summer

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As the summer of 2019 draws to an end, there is much in the world that has not changed in the last 30 years, and yet there is also much that has changed.  One place where this is most evident is in the Middle East.  Conflicts there go back millenniums.  In the cradle of civilization – Egypt – there is a long history of rulers and those that overthrow them.  The monuments built to honor these rulers are a never ending source of fascination and discovery.

Modern Egypt, however, has had its own struggles.  Since the British came to install a monarchy there have been struggles between those in power and those that are not.  If you have not read The Palace Walk by Mahfouz, you truly need to.  His descriptions of the household take me back to those that Henry James wrote in his novels – with the position of the shades helping to illustrate the manners of those that inhabit the home.

In this month’s Horizon’s challenge to read something from Egypt, I therefore picked Chronicles of a Past Summer by Yasmine El Rashidi. An Egyptian author, this is another book that was translated to English. Although at times I felt that the translation was a bit flat in tone, the story was so compelling that I remained dwelling on this for days.  The story is told by a woman who grows up through the book.  You are never given her name.  At the start she is 6 years old and Sadat had just been murdered.  Her father has disappeared, and her mother sits on the phone talking in foreign languages so she doesn’t understand what is being said.  The girl sits with her mother in front of the TV with 3 channels, all muted.  There is only state run programs, and they are only available for parts of the day.  The power is cut off for at least one hour a day, and the summer has been hotter than she has ever experienced.  She is living in the home her mother grew up in, with her grandmother and aunt (Nesma) living downstairs.  Nesma has downs syndrome and must be cared for. She was hidden away in the house and the family did not speak of her much.  Her grandmother, however, had people streaming in and out of the apartment, which was filled with food, conversation and debates.  This is a metaphor for the country.  While there are people invited in to celebrate all that is good, there remains parts of the country that are closed off to others who must speak the proper language to get what they need or want. It appears that the mother’s family was connected to Sadat, and when the Brotherhood murders him, there is great turmoil in who will take over.  The girl, however, does not ask questions or understands much, and simply goes with the flow of the tide.

After a time we return to the girl, now in college.  The downstairs part of the house has been closed off, as the grandmother and Nesma have died – the old and innocent ways are now gone.  She begins to see things around her. Her cousin Dido meets with her often, speaking of politics and trying to get the girl to write a book about what is happening.  She is not as convinced, since she is still learning what her voice is. They drift apart as he becomes more strident in his protests against the government. He wants the overthrow of President Mubarak.  There is now tv that runs all day long, but there are still cutoffs happening to the power.  There are discussions on how Nasser – the first revolutionary in modern times, was idealistic, but made mistakes by promising to give away things. That sapped the desire to work, and corrupted others into just hustling to not pay for anything.

More time goes, and the girl is now in Graduate School.  She has lost touch with Dido because she was not as passionate about speaking out as he is. Her father returns home with no explanation. She begins to film documentaries. As she spends more time with her father, he begins to explain that the more things change the more they stay the same.  Another leader promising better futures, and the delivery of those promises are not achievable, or can even be detrimental. Anything to move them forward. The power cuts still come, but now for about one hour a day. Dido is in jail and will pay the full price for his dissidence.

In the last section of the book, the girl, now older again, has come to the conclusion that there is a cycle of hope and disillusionment that they are caught up in. It keeps circling and repeating itself. It will not stop if you are silent, nor if you speak. We just keep the record playing until there is a scratch that does not allow for the same thing to continue.  That typically means another revolution is on its way.

 

 

 

 

book-review, books, literature, mystery, reading

Mystery, the old fashion way, with a twist

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I just finished reading The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton.  The writing reminded me of Agatha Christie.  To start the book, the central character awakes yelling “Anna” as he hears someone running in the forest and a shot, not knowing who or where he is.  Thus starts the mystery of finding out the answer of who kills Evelyn at 11:00pm that day.  Each day, however, the main character awakes in a different body of a guest at the house.  He has eight days to solve the mystery, or the loop starts again.

Throughout the story’s twists and turns, you learn about the people in the body as well as the person that is jumping between them. In the end, the choices you make based upon who you are, and what you become, are all that is left you.  Memories of what made you can take you in different directions, and you can learn from being forced to make other choices.  We are all a collection of the choices we make.  Once we remain true to our most real self making those choices, we will find out way in life.

 

book-review, books, literature, Middle Eastern, read around the world, reading

There is no place like home

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I have been reading many books that have been translated this year.  I have found that my reactions to the translation can impact the experience of the book.  I find that especially on books translated from middle eastern languages.  With this in mind, I started reading Homesick by Eshkol Nevo.

This book was designed to switch from perspective to perspective, with no indication of the point of view until you read the words.  The characters here represent different sections of Israeli society.  The community that the story is focused on is made up of Jewish immigrants from Kurdistan that settled there after the war of 1948, when the Arabs living there abandoned the village. Moshe and Sima are a couple that struggles with the pressure of being religious Jews.  Yotam lost his older brother in the conflicts, and his parents are lost in grief.  Noa and Avram have travelled around the world in search of themselves.  As each of these families go about struggling through their lives, unaware that they are settled where a village used to be.  Saddiq, who’s family owned the land for centuries under Turkish rule, is now working in the village building a new house.

Throughout this, Avram’s friend is writing him, talking of love, adventure and more. As the story concludes, the community that is built helps define what it means to be home, with all its various meanings.

Even with the translation, the language is compelling and thought provoking.  I recommended this book.

book-review, books, memoir, Non-Fiction, reading

Odyssey – the epic that keeps teaching us about ourselves

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When I saw a book [An Odyssey:  A father, a son and an epic] about a father taking his son’s college level seminar on the Odyssey, I was intrigued.  Daniel Mendelson’s story, entwined with the epic itself, takes the opportunity to teach us parts of the classic story while mirroring what he is teaching.  The poem tells you what will happen at the beginning, in the first lines of the poem.  That is also done in this story.  As the circles of the poem are wrapped around us, Mendelson does the same, going back and forth in time, as the epic does.  It is so well done, and even though I know what happens, when I got to the end, I burst into sobs – not just tears.  He had made this epic of his life, his own journey to find his father, that I was caught up with him.  As I take the lessons taught in this book, I am thankful for the truth of knowing my parents.  I had time with them when both my sisters were off at college.  During that time we were able to forge a special relationship, able to build more adult relationships.  I pray that I am able to do the same with my children.  They taught me well.

book-review, books, Family Drama, literature, Middle Eastern, read around the world, reading

Does peace have a chance?

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The topic of death is as old as we are. Death can be quite, loud, soft or hard. It is especially hard when it comes in the aftermath of a battle or war.  Eras are defined then by what is said about them when it is all done. The scars are deep, and as always, the artists and writers are the ones that are able to communicate the worlds of before, during and after.  I have explored this before, but I return to this after I read Death is Hard Work by Khaled Khalifa.

The plot of the book is simple enough:  a father dies after extracting a promise from his eldest son. That promise is that the son, known as Bolbol, will take his father to be buried in his home town, next to his sister.  In normal times this would not be a large request.  Difficulties abound in Damascus, where Abdel Latif died of old age amid the chaos of the dead from the Syrian civil war.  Bolbol enlists his siblings, Hussein and Fatima to help. From the outset there was reluctance to do this, because it could be fatal to attempt, but they grudgingly come together.  They are forced to take the body from the morgue and transport it via Hussein’s minibus because there was no other way. As the three children come together, we begin to learn their personal stories, as well as the father’s.

There are many ways to interpret the story and the characters.  The body of the idealistic, harsh, and dead father is the death of the ideals of what war was based upon. The condition of the body, and the absurdity that it goes through can only be a statement on the beliefs of any group.  As time wages on, the idealism falls to power grabs and pure greed, with the ideals rotting from within. The same is true of the body – and all that come near are assaulted by the smell, but let it pass.  It is before it begins to decay that the military try to arrest the dead man.

The two brother’s stories were sad in that each tried their own way, and each ended up alone. One went out to find riches and power, and became a glorified runner for a gang.  The other was too afraid to search for riches, so lived his life to keep others away, living in a world of his own making in his mind. Both were trying to be on their own outside the family, but being drawn back in as they got closer to Anabiya.  Their sister, Fatima, was the least drawn out character. Her Aunt Layla wanted to continue to learn, but was promised in marriage instead. She warned them that she would rather set herself on fire than marry, and she did set herself aflame on the roof just before the marriage was to take place. She was buried alone and was a stain on the family’s name. Fatima came on the journey and was mistreated by Hussein, ignored when she fretted over the condition of the body, and ultimately rendered mute by the end of the journey. The statement that this makes on the journey of women is overwhelming. We have gone from being ignored of what we say and having that be a stigma on the family name, to not even being able to speak.  This is underlined in the book that the closer they got to the family home, the more she was asked to cover up.  So much so that Abdel Latif is ultimately not buried next to his sister because others felt she should be forgotten, even when she was not.

The concept of revenge means that the anger is never done – the blood will continue to flow.  Just as the rabid dogs try to get the decaying body, those rabid followers of the ideas will never stop now that they have tasted blood.

As a statement on the possibility of peace, this story is not one that I enjoyed. It was, I believe, an indictment on the state that the Middle East, and other areas of the world. Until the need for revenge and the taste of blood is not needed, this absurdity will continue.

Asian Culture, book-review, books, Family Drama, Historical Fiction, humor, literature, mystery, reading, romance

Catching my writing up with my reading

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The last month has been a flurry of activity for me.  The end of school / start of summer; building a new infrastructure at work / ensuring the work doesn’t get missed; packing, cleaning, sorting, training, and all the jumble that goes with this all.

Throughout, however, I have been reading.  I haven’t made the time to write, but I have been reading.  Seven books since my last post.  Here they are, with some context and reactions, in order of my favorites (please note, however, I would recommend any of these):

The Golden Son by Shilpi Somaya Gowda.  The story follows the eldest son of a farmer who becomes the first in his family to attend college.   Anil understands he is to become a doctor, and spends his youth working toward this.  As he begins his residency in Dallas, Texas, he is torn between the old world and the new. Anil needs to find his way in both medicine and in his family as his worldview has changed.  Alongside this is the story of his childhood pal Leena, travelling the road to marriage as was expected.  Again, expectations are not reality.  At times a bit slow, but fascinating at the same time.

The Only Woman in the Room by Marie Benedict: Starting with the stage debut of Hedy Kiesler, a Jewish girl in Austria is courted and won over by a powerful arms dealer that will protect her and her family from Nazi persecution. As Hedy learns of her husband’s true nature, she flees to England, and then Hollywood.  There she becomes Hedy Lamarr, screen star.  Tormented by what she had witnessed in her husband’s home, she develops and patents new technology to help the war effort. This technology, was rejected by the Navy, but the patent was classified as top secret. The technology, no longer classified, is the basis of how all cell phone technology we use currently is based.  To think what we owe this woman, yet she was never able to see what her work has led to. She just believed she was not able to help anyone with her knowledge.

Young Jane Young by Gabrielle Zevin: A college co-ed has an affair with the Florida congressman she has an internship with, and ends up in all the papers as “the other woman.” Her mother has not had contact with her in years. Over ten years later, Jane Young, an event planner in Maine, decides to run for mayor. This single mom has secrets that her daughter discovers, as she flees to Florida to find the answers.

The Turner House by Angela Flournoy:  A black family watches as Detroit disintegrates, just as the family does. Being from Detroit, I knew of all the places that were referenced, and the history of what helped the city’s fall.  The roles of the family members, the real focus of the book, are shown by different parts and times in the city’s history.

Standard Deviation by Katherine Heiny.  I admit I selected this one because of the title – I am a nerd at heart.  The deviation tracked within the book, however, is not what you would expect.  The protagonist, Graham, is examining the differences between his first and second wives – two polar opposite personalities that he loved dearly at some point in his life.  Interesting view of what we need and what we want at different points in our lives.

Call me by your name by Andre Aciman: A seventeen year old boy’s journey on discovery of himself and his sexuality. The openness of the language and passion can be overwhelming at times in its intensity. The typical first love flaws, but more connectedness than expected.

The Storm Sister by Lucinda Riley: The second in the series, this follows Ali to discover her love and her birth family in Greece and Norway.

book-review, books, literature, Middle Eastern, read around the world, reading

Humanity seen through A Woman in Jerusalem by A.B. Yehoshua

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A woman is killed in Jerusalem by a terrorist attack.

No one comes forward that someone was missing.

A paystub was found, and a journalist contacted the business owner to question his humanity.

The owner – in his 80s, became enraged that his humanity was questioned. He demands his Human Resource Manager find out who she was.

He is told to cancel on taking care of his daughter, as promised to his ex-wife that night.  The Office Manager is sent instead.

The HR Manager goes to his office, demanding his secretary come back to the office to help find the paperwork on the person. She is forced to bring her baby, which the HR Manager cares for while she searches.

The personnel file is found. The HR Manager had written notes. She was an electrical engineer in her home country but wanted to work. She was brought on as a cleaner who requested the night shift for extra pay.

Was the task done? No.  Off they march to the bakery to speak with the supervisor.

Turns out that after being accused by the secretary and questioned by the HR Manager, the initial story of her being fired but mistakenly left on the payroll was found untrue. The supervisor admits that he had lusted for this woman, who was too smart and beautiful to be near him or in this type of job. He sent her home while still being paid, so he didn’t have to be tempted by her. Thus no one realized she had not come to work, because she was not expected

When the HR Manager reports to the Owner all this, it appears that he has been told everything. He then asks the HR Manager to take the woman back to her son and mother in the old country to be buried. The trials that they go through, including almost poisoning himself to death, get him to the woman’s home town, only to be questioned why the woman had not been buried in Jerusalem where she had moved to.

The parallels to the Israeli society here are too obvious to miss.  One woman unclaimed meant no one had any humanity. When investigating, they find that she was not the woman they thought she was – not just a cleaning woman but a mother, daughter, lover, and engineer.  She may not have been Jewish, but the orthodox family that gave her housing also gave her a Hebrew name. And through all of these twists, it appears the old man seems to be aware of all these pieces as the HR Manager just discovers it.

The humanity of Israeli society is being questioned daily, both internally and in the press.  Every person, be them Jewish or not, has a reason for wanting to be “going home” to Jerusalem, as the woman’s mother states.  To assume that they would not want to die there and stay is foolhardy. We each need to cleanse ourselves fully to realize this folly – our humanity must always guide us and cannot just be apologized away. Until there is a way found back for all, we should all be questioning our humanity/

books, literature, reading

Books everyone should read

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One great thing that happens when people know you are a reader is they ask for recommendations.  I am always THRILLED to help people find books that they will connect with. As I have mentioned before, my co-workers think it’s funny to keep track of my target numbers, but most times they just chuckle and walk away with their heads shaking.  So this week, I was over the moon when I was asked to help suggest book titles for a teen reader, and then I got THE QUESTION.  What books do you say are the SHOULD BE READ BY EVERYONE?  There are so many lists out there for this type of thing.  Everyone has their own take on the Classics, but each of us come to these stories with life experience and beliefs that change how we react to the story as we read this at different points in our life.  For example – I loved the Little House books.  I have fond memories of these books and how they transported me to a different time and place when I was young.  When I read them aloud to my daughter, however, I realized that the language was much more passive and I was less engaged. It was still fun to watch my daughter be transported, but I was focusing on many different aspects of the story now that I had more life experience to measure it against.

So I approached this question by only looking at the books that I have read – how can I opine on something that I have not actually read?  Then the struggle over a book that I loved, but do I think that everyone should read this?  Most times yes, but not always.  Then I noticed that many of the books I have selected are focused on the struggles of women – such a shock because it is something I relate to!  Are those all required reading for men? Many should be.  So I kept paring down my list – until I reached the smallish number of 103 titles.  Because – why not?

Then I set to describe why I chose the titles.  After doing this, I got down to 64. I kept at it, until, after a number of times walking away, I came to the nice round number of 15.  These are the titles that I currently believe everyone should read, and why.

The Red Tent by Anita Diamant

An alternative narrative to the matriarchs of the three largest religions in the world, this takes a blank story – the women’s lives are not illuminated in the Bible – and provides a full rich life for them.  Sets the story of our religion on more even ground than without them. Beautifully written, completely believable.

The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver

Taking religion on the road, and trying to convert “savages” in their own lands takes a certain amount of arrogance and strength of will. This is the story of a man that has both in large quantities, and he takes his wife and daughters along for the ride.  How he is received by the tribe he is bent to convert, and how the tribe shapes his family’s views, are a revelation in international relations, the folly of those unwilling to learn, as well as human frailty.

Fall of Giants by Ken Follet (one of a trilogy, this first was the best, in my opinion)

This is a novel that takes the intricacies of the world in the early 1900s, and explains very well how the world fell into the Great War, and the cost paid by a generation for the arrogance of men. If we don’t learn from mistakes, we are bound to repeat them.  The facts are so well integrated to the story, you don’t realize how much you are learning while engaged with compelling narrative of well written characters.

Night by Eli Weisel

A first-hand account of surviving the death camps of Adolph Hitler. A slim volume that will paint a picture you will never forget. That is the point – don’t forget.

Catch-22 by Joseph Heller

Set in the middle of WWII, this is an indictment on the absurdity of war. The easily manipulated reality that is discovered when playing with those in charge. Rules are made to be broken, officers to be subverted, all in order to stay alive.

The Cellist of Sarajevo by Steven Galloway

In my last title set in war, I believe this is the most compelling and sensitive one I have read on the atrocities of war.  The war here was just as savage as WWII, with ethnic cleansing a goal. You need to know about that to understand the subtleties of the writing. The goal of the cellist, and the lengths that each side will go to either stop or protect him, are an allegory for what each stands for. Never letting go of what makes us human is what will keep us all alive in the long run.

The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett

A story of neglect and forgiveness, this traces how three children find themselves in the gardens of life, and bring to life those around them. The richness of the garden versus the starkness of the house continue to reveal more layers of depth as I grow to see the parallels to people’s lives.

Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery

When a girl shows up at the farm when they wanted a boy, she shows that while bringing different skills, they are just as important to people looking to live a full life.  Dreaming can bring about both calamity and celebration, both which keep you wanting to move forward.

Alanna: The First Adventure by Tamara Pierce

With so many action adventures led by boys, it was high time a girl took over the role of Hero.  In this series, launched by this first book, Alanna proves she is just as good, if not better, than the boys in their own games, and she has more to give too.

A Yellow Raft in Blue Water by Michael Dorris

The story of three Native American women, three generations of a family, and how they each experienced their own lives and challenges to make them connected.  It brings each generation’s story their own voice, while seeing the difference between their reality and other’s impression of what that is.

Chronicle of a Death Foretold by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

Shorter then his typical epics, this story is what it says – the same story told from different people’s view. Each time, even though you know how it will end, you expect a different outcome. Fresh and well written, it underlines the reality that the story is in the eyes of the beholder.

The Most Beautiful Book in the World: Eight Novellas by Aric-Emmanuel Schmitt

Eight novellas, each focused on a different view of what is beauty. As with Marquez and Dorris, this is in the eye of the beholder, but this helps open them where you may have overlooked.

Wonder by R.J. Palacia

The story of children and adults that learn the lesson of being open to all – the wonder of life can be shown to you by anyone.

The Pearl by John Steinbeck

With so many of his novels being so good, I chose this one because the lesson is one that the current fame obsessed world should remember.  Be careful what you ask for, it may take you further from where you want to be.

Inherit the Wind by Jerome Lawrence

A reflection on the US at a period in time, this is a fictional telling of the Scopes Monkey Trial.  Thought provoking, still relevant as the struggle between faith and science continues. My favorite quote of all time comes from this:  “God created man, and man returned the favor.”  I used it last week.

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

Another reflection on the US at a period in time, this a story based upon the actual events in Ferguson. A black man is killed by a white cop. The man was unarmed, stopped at a traffic light. His friend, Starr, was in the car. How the community, police, and family react are all highlighted here with raw emotion and real conflict of doing right by your community while doing right for yourself.

Hope you enjoy them as much as I did!