I’ve been reading more than I’ve been writing this month. Sometimes that happens. I need to recharge. Such as it is now, during the early onset days of summer. I find myself sitting in a chair, staring through a window at the vines taking over my back fence, a book held loosely in my lap. And that’s OK.

I’ll get busy again. For now, however, I ruminate over other authors’ words and feel their sweetness in my mouth. Damn, that’s good, I think. And no jealousy- you might think we’re jealous of one another- but no, we wish, however, we could gather up those words the way an ink-well collector accumulates antique ink pots, to look at them and treasure them at will.

Enemy Women by Paulette Jiles

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Absolutely divine book. I didn’t know anything about the events described in Jiles’ well-researched historical fiction novel set during the Civil War. I admire her writing style and even more so, her strong woman characters.

Well-paced, interesting, and stick-to-your-bones good writing.