The Fallen Stones: Chasing Butterflies, Discovering Mayan Secrets and Looking for Hope Along the Way by Diana Marcum

 

"This climate anxiety, now, was a mirror of my personal grief on a global scale. But, why butterflies?

They are both ephemeral and eternal. Through time, across cultures, they have been symbols of hope, rebirth, resurrection, transitions, the human soul."

       -the author explaining her fascination with butterflies

While on vacation in Belize this Pulitzer-Prize winning journalist became infatuated with butterflies when she was able to visit the Fallen Stones Butterfly Farm, one of the largest butterfly breeders and exporters in the world. Later in England she met Clive Farrell, a wealthy Brit, sometimes called "Lord of the Butterflies," who developed several butterfly farms, including Stratford-upon-Avon, one the of largest in England, and the Fallen Stones in Belize, specializing in the startlingly beautiful blue morpho.

My curiosity was piqued by Marcum's attendance at the International Association of Butterfly Exhibitors, the IABE, conference in Orlando, Florida, the city where I live. She was there with @100 other "butterfly people" from around the globe. They took a field trip to Gainesville to visit the Florida Museum of Natural History which holds the McGuire Center for Lepidoptera, one of the largest exhibits in the world, with over 10 million species, many of them dead from a time when that was the accepted way to collect them. Sad to think! I have been there, and they also have a live enclosure---much, much more satisfying. The conferees also went to Butterfly Dan's in Kissimmee, right down the road from Orlando. I had never heard of Dan's but there's another idea for a field trip for a group I know!

After these three encounters, Marcum was convinced to relocate to Belize for a time, with partner Jack Moody, to learn more about the live butterfly trade and later, during COVID lockdowns, she would end up sharing her experiences in this book.

She and Jack had many exciting (some scary) adventures involving bats, scorpions, toucans, iguanas, howler monkeys, ants and snakes (Marcum's anathema). They had learning opportunities, as well---tons about butterflies but also Mayan culture since Fallen Stones was very near the ruins of Lubaantun in San Pedro Columbia, Belize.

I almost always like fiction over nonfiction. In reading this book, which one could call a travel memoir, I was disappointed until I met some of the very likeable and environmentally passionate characters like Sebastian Shol, the Fallen Stones farm manager and Manuel "Sammy" Cal, a dedicated and ambitious employee. Also, I started to enjoy the author's humor. I am a fan of butterflies and have always enjoyed visits to butterfly gardens, but this book may have taught me more than I wanted to know. The last part "How to Plant a Butterfly Garden" by Janet Sluis was interesting but does me no good since I live in a small condo.

In the end, I rated Fallen Stones... a 3 but in reviewing my highlights I appreciated it more and more. I think I'll go with 4 instead. If you're a nature lover, you'll like this one.

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Help Thanks Wow The Three Essential Prayers by Anne Lamott

 "Amazing things appear in our lives, almost out of nowhere---landscapes, seascapes forgiveness---they keep happening; so many vistas and so much healing to give thanks foe. Even when we don't cooperate, blessings return to our lives, even in the aftermath of tragedy."

          -Anne Lamott

This is a small book of barely 100 pages, but pretty inspiring. It reminded me of a devotional book just not divided with day-by-day selections. Author Anne Lamott's style is what I would call unconventional, almost more poetry than prose. She feels that most prayers, if not all, include Thanks, Wow, Help or a combination. Lamott elaborates on those 3 in as many parts plus a 4th part---Amen. 

The book was interesting, thought-provoking, even entertaining. My rating is 4.

Heaven's Keep by William Kent Krueger

 "May you learn the lesson in each leaf and rock. May you gain the strength and wisdom, not to be superior to your brother, but to be able to fight your greatest enemy, yourself. And may you be ready to come before Kitchimandidoo with clean hands and a straight eye."

            -Henry Meloux, an Ojibwe prayer for Stephen O'Connor

This is the ninth of the Cork O'Connor series and the former sheriff, now private investigator, has one of his biggest and most emotional challenges ever.

When the charter plane carrying Cork's wife, Jo, and several others disappears in a snowstorm in the Wyoming Rockies, extensive searches fail to find the wreckage and all passengers are assumed dead. Cork is devastated at losing the love of his life.

Six months later, two women come to Cork with the claim that the pilot blamed for the disaster was NOT the man everyone thought. Cork's decision to investigate necessitates a trip to Wyoming where he faces uncooperative law enforcement, suspicious local natives and even attempts on his life. In the course of his detective work, he finds hints that Jo may have survived the crash and, of course, this vague hope fuels his drive to find her.

This was another page-turner by Willliam Kent Krueger. I rate it a 5. I am now halfway through the series and looking forward to #10, Vermilion Drift.

Run, Rose, Run by Dolly Parton and James Patterson

 

"Everyone knows happiness

Everybody grieves

We all cry, we all smile

Everybody bleeds

Everybody has a past,

   things they want to hide

There's give, take, love,

  hate in each and every life."

            from "Dark Night, Bright Future" by Rose McCord

This book was wildly popular with its well-known authors, surprisingly matched. James Patterson, of course, is a prolific producer of thrillers and Dolly Parton, a much beloved country singer and philanthropist. I was curious when the novel was released but stifled the urge to buy and waited weeks to get an E-copy from the library.

As a big fan of country music, I especially enjoyed the mentions of well-known artists and songs, like Tracy Lawrence, Vince Gill, Willie Nelson and many more. I have visited Nashville and knew of some of the sites mentioned there. I liked the story although I found it a bit too predictable.

AnnieLee Keyes is running as fast as she can from a traumatic past and readers are left guessing what it was. Hitchhiking, she ends up in Nashville to try and make it as a country singer/songwriter. Sadly, she must keep looking over her shoulder as the ugly past tries to catch up.

She meets Ethan Blake in a bar where she has gotten a gig and they exchange barbs and insults.... until they don't. As good luck would have it, Ethan works for Ruthanna Ryder, a country music legend in her own time, now retired and wanting to take AnnieLee under her wing.

"Songbook" at the end of the novel includes the complete lyrics of the songs mentioned, ostensibly written by AnnieLee, Ruthanna and Ethan. (See quote) I can't help but wonder if the audio version of the book includes the music. That would be very cool!

As I mentioned, the plot was a bit formulaic which is why I rate it a 3. If you are a country music fan, you will like it!

Bookends: A Memoir of Love, Loss and Literature by Zibby Owens

 

"The cracking open of a book's spine has always been an exercise in self-discovery, healing, and fortification. That subtle whoosh when words spill out makes me salivate. Then the feel of the coarse pages under my fingertips delights my consciousness, the sudden sprinkling of syllables, the black-and-white letters in various patterns, coalescing to find their way directly to my heart. It's magic."

                  -from the memoir

I will rate this memoir a 3. It was interesting but not particularly entertaining. I may have been comparing it to Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine, a fiction I read recently that seemed similar to a memoir. Of the three nouns in the subtitle, I enjoyed the literature aspect and, to a lesser degree, the love, but there was too much angst in the loss portions. I did sympathize with the author in her grief, however.

Zibby Owens suffered anxiety from her youth, was rather introverted and read prolifically. Her love of literature continues throughout her life, as she eventually survives multiple losses, finds her soulmate and experiences success as a writer.

The thing I loved about the book was the frequent mention of book titles Zibby read. Many I had read, and I was reminded how much I enjoyed them.