Mountain Writer

When readers talk about famous people’s book clubs, they tend to focus on the biggest name in the game- Oprah, of course.  But for me, the name I have been following is that sneaky little Southerner, Reese Witherspoon.  This Legally Blonde actress went from a gal starring in Rom-Coms to a producing genius whose company Hello Sunshine has, according to an article from The Hollywood Reporter , “tentacles in television, film, podcasts and publishing, with an online book club poised to one day rival Oprah's,” (Rose, 2019).  It is one thing to have a celebrity book club, lots of celebrities do, and Instagram about it as this Bookstr article espouses.  However, Reese is a different animal.  She has turned her Hello Sunshine book club into a producing engine of new and acclaimed Hollywood film and TV shows.  The first three books turned movies/shows: Gone Girl, Wild, and Big Little Lies opened the door for Witherspoon into what is now a thriving and functi...

Blackfish City by Sam J. Miller Published April 17th 2018 by Ecco ISBN 0062684825 Hardcover, 328 pages Synopsis In a postapocalyptic future where the rising sea waters have led to the breakdown of international governments and climate wars a floating city in the Artic called Qaanaaq, “Built by an unruly alignment of Thai-Chinese-Swedish corporations and government entities,” (p. 5) is the home to many citizens who live crammed together in squalor on the lower levels of the City’s arms where they have geothermal heat, but not much else. A handful of elite Shareholders control the wealth, and the daily functioning of the world.  Until a woman comes to Qaanaaq in a skiff with a polar bear in chains and an orca swimming beside her.  An eerie viral broadcast called City Without A Map already has citizens on edge, but what could this strange woman want, surely nothing good. This brilliantly built world weaves together characters who have important parts to p...

Who doesn’t love a good horror movie?   A thrill or two, a jump scare, and a bump in the night?   Do you love watching Stephen King’s IT orginal and reboot?  How about IT Chapter 2,  The Haunting of Hill House , and Rosemary’s Baby ?   They were Hollywood classics, and blockbuster box office hits, and they are scary good fun.  If you enjoy the movies, w hy not try the books? Hollywood got all their good ideas from somewhere- and a lot of times that was from a book!     With integrated advisory, I would set up a display in the fall with new and classic horror books and their movie and/or TV versions next to each other to encourage cross-style checkouts.   Additionally- I would offer nonfiction companion books about horror movies such as Wes Craven: The Man and his Nightmares by John Wooley, and The Satanic Screen by Nikolas Schreck.   I would also make a complementary audiobook and e-book list that could be t...

In a parallel future America, there is a cosmetic surgical procedure that can change the color of your skin, making it possible for anyone with enough money to achieve the perfect white complexion that society desires.   But what sort of implications does this have when you are making these choices not only for yourself, but also for your child? In We Cast a Shadow the debut satire from author Maurice Carlos Ruffins, an unnamed black narrator progresses through his daily life   in a Southern City with his white wife and young light-skinned son.   He practices law, and is hoping to secure a promotion that will afford his son a surgery to remove, “the birthmark colored from wheat to sienna to umber,” marring his son’s otherwise perfect olive complexion.   However, this is easier said than done in this version of the world, where black people are monitored in their homes by the City Police with, “Infrared devices that could look into the deepest r...