Author: ekkarn

Green-Eyed Lady – Chuck Greaves

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Green-Eyed Lady –  Chuck Graves – Jack MacTaggart No 2

 

Green-Eyed Lady from Chuck Greaves has a great opening. Liberal Democratic candidate for the Senate in California Warren Burkett three weeks before the election, encounters a damsel in distress. The young lady’s pursue and keys have been stolen by an unknown assailant. Burkett offers to give the beautiful green-eyed lady a ride back to her mansion. Reminiscent of another Democrat, this one was elected President, Burkett’s libido doesn’t stop. He believes he has hit the mother lode with this young woman! So much so, he helps break into her mansion (remember her keys were in her purse, which was stolen!) But when the door to her bedroom bangs open,  where a lust-filled Burkett  lies in wait for a thankful young woman to repay her debt it’s not the damsel who enters the room, but the police. They had responded the break-in at the mansion! When the dust settles, the green-eyed lady is gone along with a 2 million dollar plus painting and  maybe Burkett’s hopes of winning the election!

In steps attorney Jack MacTaggart,, who is hired to defend Burkett and unravel the mystery! When the painting surfaces in a most unusual place, the election is rocked again! And it appears that MacTaggart has stepped into some deep, you now what, as he takes on not one but two swarmy politicians, a mobster, and an urban artist! This tale has lots of twists and turns and it’s hard to tell who the good guys are. Hint it may not be the politicians!!

I started this book early in the month and liked it, but I set aside, and I raced through both Alex Kava’s Breaking Creed and Parnell Hall’s Safari.When  I came back to the book, within a few pages of where I had left off, Greaves hooked me and he didn’t let go until the final pieces of the puzzle f ell into place! Douglas Preston says this about the book…..

“GREEN-EYED LADY by Chuck Greaves is the wickedest read of the year, smart, real, vivid as hell, and so plausible it could be in the Times. Greaves is a master of the language. I loved this book.”

Green-Eyed Lady is the second book in the Jack MacTaggart series. Book One is Hush Money which may soon be on its way to me from my library!!  Hush Money won the Southwest Writers International Writing Contest and was named a finalist for several national honors including the Rocky Award from Left Coast Crime, the Reviewers Choice Award from RT Book Reviews and the Audie Award from the Audio Publishers Association.

Bottom Line: Green-Eyed Lady was definitely a 4 star out of 5 book for me. I really enjoyed Jack MacTaggart and his associates. The story was well-crafted with lots of twists and turns and you really didn’t know who was responsible for the various murders, and there are a few. Mr. Greaves who was a trial lawyer for 25 years certainly knows both his stuff – both the law and writing!..So here I go again with another series to follow and one of the few that features a lawyer!!

Breaking Creed -Alex Kava

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Breaking Creed – Ryder Creed #1 – Alex Kava

Alex Kava has been one of my favorite authors ever since I read A Perfect Evil, the debut Maggie O’Dell novel. That was one helluva way to start a series. Over the years, Kava wrote 10 more Maggie O’Dell books, each one a wild ride.

In Breaking Creed, Kava introduces a brand-new character to her fans: Ryder Creed. Like Maggie’s debut, Ryder’s first outing is a gripping, well-crafted thriller that pulls you in from the start.

Introducing Ryder Creed

Ryder Creed is a retired Marine who rescues homeless dogs and trains them to sniff out contraband and track down criminals. In this case, Ryder is called to search the Choque Azul, a ship suspected of carrying drugs. Working with his fearless Jack Russell Terrier, Grace, Ryder searches the hold beneath the ship’s fish catch. What he finds isn’t drugs — it’s something far worse: children being trafficked. The discovery upends Creed’s life and puts him in the crosshairs of dangerous people.

Enter Maggie O’Dell

Meanwhile, Maggie and the FBI receive a gruesome package: a body floating in the Potomac, accompanied by a promise of more to come. When Ryder is called in to help Maggie locate the murder scene, sparks fly — both professionally and personally.

The pairing of Maggie O’Dell and Ryder Creed feels natural, much like Karin Slaughter blending her Grant County and Will Trent series. The chemistry between the two suggests this won’t be their only case together — and fans will be glad for that.

Why It Works

One of Kava’s trademarks is giving her characters unique, high-stakes challenges — from Ebola exposure (years before the 2014 outbreak) to tangling with violent cartels. That carries over here, with Creed and O’Dell facing off against ruthless criminals while relying on the specialized skills of Creed’s dogs. Grace, in particular, is a standout character you can’t help but root for.

The Bottom Line

Breaking Creed earns 4 stars from me. Ryder Creed is a welcome addition to the thriller genre — a memorable, compelling character with a unique skill set. As author Gayle Lynds put it:

“Creed is special, a memorable character — he trains homeless dogs to sniff out contraband and hunt criminals. When he teams up with Kava’s iconic FBI forensics specialist Maggie O’Dell, you’ll discover the most exciting crime-solving duo of the year.”

And with Grace at his side, he’s even harder to beat. So check them out — this is the start of something special.

Book 11 of 2015015

 

 

 

 

 

Safari – Parnell Hall Stanley Hastings (Book #19)

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Safari (Book #19) is the first Stanley Hastings mystery set outside the United States. Most of the series takes place in New York City, where Stanley works as a private investigator for negligence attorney Richard Rosenberg, much to the annoyance of NYPD Sergeant MacAullif.

The only other book set away from New York was appropriately titled Cozy, in which Stanley and Alice vacation at a bed and breakfast in New England.

The Story

In Safari, Stanley and his wife Alice are finally on the trip she’s dreamed about forever — a safari in Zambia. Stanley, of course, is less enthusiastic. They book with Clemson Safaris, a budget outfit led by the gung-ho great white hunter Clemson. The tour offers up-close encounters with elephants, lions, hyenas, and other wild animals. But soon, a spotter working for Clemson is found dead — supposedly from a falling fruit from the sausage tree. Then a tourist dies in her sleep. Both deaths are soon determined to be murder, and Stanley is called upon to solve the case… though as usual, he doesn’t have a clue!

What Makes It Work

Parnell Hall’s strength has always been dialogue — witty, funny, and full of wordplay. Marilyn Stasio of the New York Times Book Review noted:

“The Stanley Hastings mysteries depend on subversively sly wordplay. In the violent verbal world he inhabits, Stanley would be happy just to win an argument.”

The San Diego Union wrote:

“A light-hearted romp, drolly told, and made pleasant by its deprecating, much put-upon and wholly charming hero.”

And when reviewing Stakeout, Booklist observed:

“Stanley, who seems to have more in common with Barney Fife than Sam Spade, is actually a pretty fair detective, and, more important, his narration is witty, self-deprecating, and observant. The plot is logical in a convoluted sort of way, and the resolution is satisfying. Stakeout continues the Hastings tradition of murder with a wink and a smile.”

Bottom Line

Safari was a three-star book for me. I enjoyed it, but I don’t think it was one of Hall’s very best. Still, it’s a cozy, light, quick, fun mystery — and fans of Janet Evanovich and other humorous authors will definitely enjoy it

Author’s Website
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Parnel Hall - author of Stanley Hastings and Puzzle Lady novels

About Parnell Hall

If you like a little humor in your books….

You might enjoy these authors:

Tim Dorsey
Janet Evanovich
Christopher Moore

Whether you’re solving crosswords with Cora or running from the mob with Stephanie Plum, these authors prove that a good mystery is always better with a side of laughter.

Reading Challenge Update and March Reads

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March Reading Challenge Update and Current Reads

 

So I finished book 8 of the year The Things Carried on February 27 and Book 9 Hard Rain by Barry Eisler on March 2nd. Both of those books were from my TBR pile and they bring the total number of books I have read in 2015 from my TBR pile to six. Since The Things They Carried is about the Vietnam War,it is historical fiction and the first book I have read this year that counts toward that challenge! While Hard Rain is a cloak & dagger book and brings the total in that challenge to 5! So here is where I stand now on my various challenges!

Reading Challenge From TBR Pile Buy/Library Total Goal %complete
2015 Nonfiction Reading Challenge 0 1 1 11 9%
2015 Cloak & Dagger Reading Challenge 4 1 5 23 22%
2015 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge 1 0 1 5 20%
2015 Science Fiction/Fantasy Challenge 1 1 2 12 17%
Totals 6 3 9 51 18%

 

Now as for what am I planning to read in March.Well I’m still reading The President’s War about the six presidents who were still alive during the Civil War and what five of them thought of the actions of the sitting President Lincoln’s actions, along with Breaking Creed and Crown of Midnight. However, other night when I was reviewing the new books arriving in March, I came across a new Stanley Hastings mystery Safari from Parnell Hall!! I love the Hastings series so I checked the library and it was available,so I requested it I picked it up on Friday. I have to read it, So I put Green-Eyed Lady on hold.  The good thing though is that Hall’s books are usually fast reads! While I was at the library, I also picked up When Gods Die by C.S. Harris. It is the second book in the Sebastian St.Cyr series. Set in England in 1811, the book goes towards my historical fiction challenge!! Si if you excuse me I have some reading to do!!

Currently Reading Challenge From Page Total %complete
The President’s War – Chris DeRose Nonfiction Library 130 316 41%
Breaking Creed – Alex Kava Cloak & Dagger Library 14 310 5%
When Gods Die – C.S. Harris Historical Fiction Library 30 336 9%
Crown of Midnight – Sarah J Maas Fantasy Library 86 418 21%
Safari – Parnell Hall Cloak & Dagger Library 20 261 8%

 

Hard Rain – Barry Eisler (John Rain # 2)

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Hard Rain – Barry Eisler – Book 9 for 2015

 

It’s been a while since I visited Japan and the world of assassin John Rain. In fact it’s been so long that I have forgotten most of what happened in Rain Fall, Book 1 of the Barry Eisler series, when I started Hard Rain Book 2 in the series. What I didn’t forget was that the half-American, half Japanese Rain was a killer and a good one. What he is particularly good at is making his hits look like the victim died of  “natural causes” I also remembered that he has rules, no children, no one else is involved except rain and his client, and the victim has to be a principal, someone of importance!

When Hard Rain opens John Rain has left his Tokyo home for Osaka and is considering getting out of the business. But a former nemesis from the Japanese FBI, Tatsu doesn’t want him to retire, in fact, Tatsu has a job for him. The hit is on an assassin at large, who unlike Rain has no rules and kills indiscriminately.  Before Rain will take the job though, he goes to Tokyo to determine how difficult the hit will be. When Rain arrives in Tokyo he meets with his friend, a hacker, named Harry. Harry has a new girlfriend that seems way out of Harry’s league and that doesn’t sit well with Rain. Rain’s first assumption is that someone is setting Harry up, as he investigates he discovers Harry is also being followed,,,,,, soon Rain is sucked back into the world of violent criminals, and US government officials. The hit may be the most difficult  that Rain had ever faced and the deadliest!!!

John Rain is one of those characters that I would never like in real life, but hey, when he is going up against the Japanese underworld, and shifty CIA agents I’m going to root for the guy! He’s loyal to his few friends and he knows his job, as does Barry Eisler. Eisler does a great job of making Tokyo come alive and the descriptions of Japanese culture, the fights and surveillance tactics were great. The one thing that did bother me  was that Rain dispatched more people than I thought necessary, Not that they didn’t need it!

Bottom Line: Hard Rain is a solid four stars (really liked it). I like John Rain and will continue to read the series, which is now up to book 8. I book 6 Requiem for an Assassin is on my TBR shelves but I do think I will try to read the books in order! I  also hope I can shorten the time between visits with Mr. Rain!

ADD and Blogging – Not Perfect Together!!

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So my ADD and I have delayed writing anything today for about as long as I can. I was supposed to babysit Oliver today, but the icy road conditions this morning necessitated a change of plans, so I will be babysitting him tomorrow and Zoe on Wednesday, both for full days! Which is why today I exercised this morning and tonight!! So how did I delay writing today?  Well this morning I decided to go through some piles of papers and magazines and then vacuum the room where I spend most of my time. Couple that with finishing up some laundry from yesterday and reading some in Hard Rain and before I knew, it was lunchtime! My afternoon and evening were spent finishing Hard Rain, a trip to Target and dinner, after which I still hadn’t written anything!!

I did listen to some music though throughout the day. This morning while I was straightening up and cleaning it was some blues from Tinsley Ellis and his new album Tough Love, and the soundtrack for my reading was the jazz trumpet of Eddie Henderson and his latest Collective Portrait and the Jason Marsalis Vibes Quartet’s The 21st Century Trad Band. All three of the albums have been in my music rotation for a while but I haven’t written about any of them yet! This afternoon on my trip to Target I  listened to Robert Earl Keen‘s new release Happy Prisoner full of songs that feature murders and prisons and all that good time bluegrass stuff!  I also listened to a little of the new release from Rhiannon Giddens of the Carolina Chocolate Drops and her solo release Tomorrow Is My Turn.

Additionally, this morning I read that on this date in 1998  Images from the American spacecraft Galileo indicated that the Jupiter moon Europa has a liquid ocean and a source of interior heat. I did a search at Google that sent me to an article at Space.com – Jupiter’s Icy Moon Europa: Best Bet for Alien Life?, which II read along with another article at Space.com, concerning the best bets for finding life in our solar system.

Oh yeah, while I was checking out things that happened on this date at Wikipedia I spotted this under Did You Know…

… that the engineer Willie Hobbs Moore, credited with expanding Japanese manufacturing practices at Ford Motor Company, was the first African-American woman to receive a PhD in physics?

….since I didn’t. I had to go and read about Ms. Hobbs Moore , but then at the bottom of Willie Moore’s page there was a link to an article at The Star Garden about Women in Science which was extremely interesting! I think I’ll try to put together a post about Willie Moore and some of the other women scientists of the 20th century!!

So you can see that today was an ADD day, a little exercising, reading both on the Web and Barry Eisler;s Hard Rain and some music listening. Oh and I worked on my blog Finding Out! transferring it so that it will be a subdomain of this blog!! And now as midnight approaches I better stop and post this or I will have posted nothing today!! Good Night and Good Day!!

 

New Releases for March 2015

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New Releases from Four of My Favorite Authors

 

Ok so now I have to put my reading into high-gear! Why you ask? Well after briefly reading The Big Thrill on-line magazine I discovered that there will be new releases from four of my favorite authors in March,.Here’s a little about those new releases…..

Endangerd - C J BoxEndangered – C J Box – Joe Pickett No 15

From Amazon

She was gone. Joe Pickett had good reason to dislike Dallas Cates, even if he was a rodeo champion, and now he has even more—Joe’s eighteen-year-old ward, April, has run off with him.

And then comes even worse news: The body of a girl has been found in a ditch along the highway—alive, but just barely, the victim of blunt force trauma. It is April, and the doctors aren’t sure if she’ll recover. Cates denies having anything to do with it—says she ran away from him, too—and there’s evidence that points to another man. But Joe knows in his gut who’s responsible. What he doesn’t know is the kind of danger he’s about to encounter. Cates is bad enough, but Cates’s family is like none Joe has ever met before. More

One thing that I have loved about the Joe Pickett series from C.J. Box has been the development of the characters from novel to novel and it appears that this new release will continue the tradition! I can’t wait!

The Patriot Threat - Steve BerryThe Patriot Threat – Steve Berry – Cotton Malone # 10

From Amazon:

The 16th Amendment to the Constitution is why Americans pay income taxes. But what if there were problems associated with that amendment? Secrets that call into question decades of tax collecting? In fact, there is a surprising truth to this hidden possibility.

Cotton Malone, once a member of an elite intelligence division within the Justice Department known as the Magellan Billet, is now retired and owns an old bookshop in Denmark. But when his former-boss, Stephanie Nelle, asks him to track a rogue North Korean who may have acquired some top secret Treasury Department files–the kind that could bring the United States to its knees–Malone is vaulted into a harrowing twenty-four hour chase that begins on the canals in Venice and ends in the remote highlands of Croatia.More

I am a little behind on this series, but since I haven’t read all of the books in order anyway, I may just read this new release now, because it sounds really good!!

 

Inspector of the Dead

Inspector of the Dead – David Morrell

From  Amazon

The year is 1855. The Crimean War is raging. The incompetence of British commanders causes the fall of the English government. The Empire teeters. Amid this crisis comes opium-eater Thomas De Quincey, one of the most notorious and brilliant personalities of Victorian England. Along with his irrepressible daughter, Emily, and their Scotland Yard companions, Ryan and Becker, De Quincey finds himself confronted by an adversary who threatens the heart of the nation. More

I loved  David Morrell’s Murder as a Fine Art, which was the first of Morrell’s books to feature Thomas De Quincey.I was hoping for this new release, when I finished Murder as a Fine Art! Once again I can;t wait!!

The Strangers = Harlan Coben

The Stranger – Harlan Coben

From Amazon:

The Stranger appears out of nowhere, perhaps in a bar, or a parking lot, or at the grocery store. His identity is unknown. His motives are unclear. His information is undeniable. Then he whispers a few words in your ear and disappears, leaving you picking up the pieces of your shattered world.More

As  I read this introduction to this new release from Harlan Coben, it seems like it’s just about like every other book he has written some small thing comes out of the past and shatters the protagonist of the novel’s world. With that said, I know I will be totally engrossed in the story Harlan writes and will love the book!!

Like i said at the beginning of this post with these new releases coming in March I better get cracking on the books that I am currently reading. Here are my current reads…..

1. The President’s War – Chris DeRose

2. Green-Eyed Lady – Chuck Greaves

3. Crown of Midnight – Sarah J Maas

4. Hard Rain – Barry Eisler

The one I am the closest to finishing is Hard Rain, which is really getting good! So I’m off to read that one and pine for these new releases

The Things They Carried – Tim O’Brien

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The Things They Carried  – Tim O’Brien (Book 8 of 2015)

 

For those of us who like me, were lucky enough to have a high draft number, (mine was 306), and escaped the war in Vietnam, Tim O’Brien has shown us slices  of  life in it,  in his novel The Things They Carried. And it’s everything that we thought it was, everything that we protested to end.

About The Things They Carried

The Things They Carried is a collection of short stories, several of which were published prior to being incorporated into the book, that paints a vivid picture of the Vietnam experience, which for the most part it wasn’t pretty. The book follows the exploits of the men that Tim O’Brien served with the one’s who died like: Curt Lemon, Ted Lavender, and Kiowa and those who made it through, alive, but changed forever like: Lt Jimmy Cross, Norman Bowker, and the narrator who has been writing about the war, since it ended, hoping some how that the stories will save him.

While all of the stories were amazing little slices of life in Vietnam, the one that got me was Chapter Four “On the Rainy River” where Tim is confronted with the being drafted to fight in a war that he really didn’t support and contemplates going to Canada. As I mentioned previously, I was lucky enough not to have to face that dilemma, but through the years, I have wonder what I would have done. In my mind, I always go to Canada, but in reality I don’t think that would have happened. I really don’t know how I could have handle even a tenth a hundredth of what Tim describes in The Things They Carried. At best maybe I could have been a Radar O’Reilly, I know wrong war, but you get the picture. My heart goes out to all those who lost their lives either in Vietnam or after they returned.

After I finished the book I thought, you know, the book really had no plot, no hook that catches you and keeps you reading. But then I leafed through the book, and realized that you can reread any story and get something from it, and that is wonderful. Each story provides a slice of life in Vietnam, some sad, while others just fascinating.

I read through the quotes about the book and this one from the Richmond Times Dispatch comes the closest to how I feel about the book….

“The Things They Carried is more than “another” book about Vietnam….It is a master stroke of form and imagery…. The Things They Carried is about life, about men who fought and die, about buddies, and about a lost innocence that might be recaptured through the memory of stories. O’Brien tells us these stories because he must. He tells them a they have never been told before…. If Cacciato was the book about Vietnam, then this is the book about surviving it”

Bottom Line

: The Things They Carried is an A++ book. I guess that is why the book won the prestigious French Prix du Meilleur Livre Erranger award and was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Award! huh! Everyone who wants to know more about the Vietnam War or life in general should read it!!

 

February Reading Update with Some Music, too!

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Cross-Posted from Book-Ed

As the month comes to an end it’s time for a reading recap and update. Yesterday I finished reading Tim O’Brien’s The Things They Carried which is the fourth book I’ve finished in February. Previously I finished The Promise of a Pencil, Throne of Glass and Revelation Space. The Things They Carried had been on my TBR pile so it counts toward my goal on the TBR Pile Challenge and since it is about the Vietnam War it counts toward the 2015 Historical Fiction Challenge. Here is a current update on my Reading Challenges…..

Reading Challenge From TBR Pile Buy/Library Total Goal % of Goal
2015 Nonfiction Reading Challenge 0 1 1 11 9%
2015 Cloak & Dagger Reading Challenge 3 1 4 23 17%
2015 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge 1 0 1 5 20%
2015 Science Fiction/Fantasy Challenge 1 1 2 12 17%
Totals 5 3 8 51 16%

 

I am not doing too badly after the first two months of the year. I will try to write a review of The Things They Carried,, which by the way was really, really good Guess that’s why it was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Award!

Early this week I added to my new daily routine The Music and Reading Hour, of course, I did for it for the first to days of the week and then came babysitting Oliver and Zoe and work at Target and  two Reading Hours were all that happened. Next week I hope to do better. Anyway, what I did was I selected a genre  of music that goes well with reading, Monday it was jazz and the other day it was New Age and created a 60 minute playlist at Spotify. Then I gathered the four books that I am currently reading, set the timer for 15 minutes, and spent that time on each of the four books. It was a nice hour! The genre for the second Music and Reading Hour was New Age.Here are the artists and albums included and the album;’s position of the December 2014 Zone Music Reporter Chart.

No Album Artist
1 Spirits Erik Scott
5 Midnight Rhumba Johannes Linstead
8 Whispers in the Winter Snow* Dan Chadburn
10 Gymnosperm: Song of the Rose Jordan de la Sierra
* initially listened to Nocturnes

 

It was a nice way to read and also listen to some new music! I have even used the Jordan de la Sierra track for meditating and Midnight Rhumba has been in my music rotation and you’ll read more about that album soon!!

 

The Music and Reading Hour……

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Music and Books Perfect Together

 

The other day I decided to get a little more organized in both my reading and music listening, I decided what I will  do is to try to set aside an hour a day to read and listen to music together. The music genres that I prefer to listen to if I am reading are: new age, jazz, classical or progressive rock.I figured I will create a 60 minute playlists containing a few tracks from several artists, that I am unfamiliar with,  in whatever genre I pick. My first music and reading hour was last Friday and the genre that I chose was jazz. To start, I reviewed the JazzWeek Charts and found five artists that I was unfamiliar with, which was not hard at all.  Then I went to Spotify, to create the playlist.

Here are the five artists and their albums with the position of the album on the JazzWeek Chart.

No Artist Album
1 Justin Kauflin Dedication
11 Joe Alterman Georgia Sunset
12 Charles McPherson The Journey
13 Sam Most New Jazz Standards
16 Dave Bass NYC Sessions

 

Music and Reading Hour Musicians..…

 

Justin Kauflin,

, Justin Kauflin is an Award-winning jazz pianist who began performing at the age of six,  in concerts, nursing homes and weddings, eventually becoming concertmaster for several orchestras.He then lost his eyesight due to a rare disease, but he never gave up.and…

…..In 2004, Justin graduated in the top 1% of Salem High School alongside his sighted peers, and valedictorian at the Governor’s School, receiving a Presidential scholarship to attend William Paterson University in New Jersey.  At WPU, he was taken under the wings of legendary trumpeter, Clark Terry and performed in the Clark Terry Ensemble.  He also had the tremendous privilege of learning from his hero, the late Mulgrew Miller, as well as Harold Mabern and the late James Williams. He graduated summa cum laude with an Honor’s degree in Music.

….Dedication is his second release and is now number 1 on the JazzWeek Charts….. more,

Joe Alterman from his website…..

In a recent feature on Joe Alterman in the Wall Street Journal, legendary writer Nat Hentoff wrote, “’Talk about the joy of jazz!…It’s a pleasure to hear this music’…You’ve got it!”

Born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia, Alterman moved to New York in the fall of 2007 to study music at New York University, where he earned both his Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees in Music. While there, he had the opportunity to study with greats including Don Friedman, Joe Lovano and John Scofield. More

Dave Bass’s story is also one of stick-to-it-ness…..

‘In the 70s and 80s Dave Bass

…. supported his growing family as a full time musician. Immersed in the vibrant San Francisco jazz and Latin music scene, he led his own group playing often with friends Bobby McFerrin, drummerBabatunde Lea, jazz vocalist Jackie Ryan and others at the legendary Keystone Kornerand other well known venues on the scene. In 1981…..

.In the mid-80s, after a random slip and fall on the way to a gig caused a seriously damaging wrist fracture, doctors did not offer a promising prognosis for him to ever play piano again. With his beloved music career no longer an option, and with a wife and young daughter to support, Dave enrolled at the University of California, Irvine, graduatingPhi Beta Kappa and Summa Cum Laude. He moved on to UCLA School of Law becoming an Editor of the UCLA Law Review and began his legal career in 1992 with a prestigious commercial firm. Dave is now a California Deputy Attorney General in Civil Rights Enforcement, and was honored with the 2009 Attorney General’s Award for Outstanding Achievement.

then……

….In 2005, after a twenty-year absence from the music scene, Dave’s long-forgotten dreams of playing and composing jazz were re-kindled when his own self-discovery coincided with an invitation to play some impromptu solo piano during a private party while the band took a break. The guests clamored for more and the band invited him to sit in for the rest of the night.

Dave continued on from there and since then has released to albums Gone and his current release NYC Sessions both have been very well received climbing high on the JazzWeek Charts.

Sam Most From Wikipedia.

Samuel “Sam” Most was an American jazz flautist and tenor saxophonist, based in Los Angeles. He was “probably the first great jazz flutist,” according to jazz historian Leonard Feather. Read More

Charles McPherson From Wikipedia

Charles McPherson is a jazz alto saxophonist born in Joplin, Missouri, and raised in Detroit, Michigan, most notable for his work from 1960 to 1972 with Charles Mingus…..

So I set the timer on my phone for 15 minutes and then read from these four books as I listened to the above musicians!!!

Music and Reading Hour Books

 

The Things They Carried – Tim O’Brien

Crown of Midnight – Sharon J Maas

Hard Rain – Barry Eisler

Green-Eyed Lady – Chuck Greaves

It was a successful experiment and a very pleasant morning, soon to be followed by more playlists and music!!