No Ordinary Dog - Will Chesney

Cairo was a military working dog that was present on the mission where Osama bin Laden was taken out. This dog was special in a number of ways, and his handler, Will, tells us why. From the training to retirement, this is the life of a truly special dog.

I wasn't quite ready for the first third of the book to be about the human, but after reading the entire book, I think Cairo and Will are a package deal. This story needed both of them to be complete, so hearing the background of the handler is important, too. I also liked hearing about Will's temperament and how he would take responsibility for the dog's mistakes.

I was so worried there weren't going to be any pictures. I NEEDED pictures. Thank you, Mr. Chesney, for adding those at the end. After reading the sad part of the book, it was something that made me smile.

I wanted to point out a particular quote from the book, as the truth of it hit me pretty hard. "Someone once said that buying a dog is like buying a small tragedy. You know on the very first day how it all will turn out. But that's not the point, is it? It's the journey that counts, what you give the dog and what you get in return..." If you've ever had a dog, you'll know how true this is.

This book was really enjoyable. And not because it was happiness and roses all the time. Because the opposite is true. Both Will and Cairo are injured during their service, and they continue to pay for it even after they retire. I appreciate how open and honest Will was with his struggles and the journey he dealt with. 

For those with sensitivities, there is language and combat. Injuries are described, but I personally didn't have any issues with anything that was included. A Young Reader's Edition is also available, and I'm guessing these things are toned down a bit in that version if you find you want to read it but these things bother you. Good Book!

Sword of Destiny (The Witcher Saga #2) - Andrzej Sapkowski

I had a bit of backtracking to do, so this is me catching up with the Witcher Saga. In this book of short stories, I read about things like the golden dragon, something I'll call the black kestrel, Dudu, a tale of sacrifice, meeting Ciri, and helping Yurga.

Some of these tales I was a bit familiar with and others were completely new. I was happy to read about Dudu; I remembered that character. I also really liked the way this ended. Even though it's supposed to be short stories, they are connected for the most part.

I have to say that I really liked Yurga...mostly. Except for that one part where he's ready to give up his son, he was a pretty interesting character. Ciri was also pretty much what you would expect from a child her age, and I found it more realistic (can you say that in a fantasy series?) that she made mistakes and acted like a real child.

The thing that really struck me was how much emotion Geralt had in this book. Witchers are notorious for having zero emotion and being ruthless killers. In this book, you see that painting them all with that kind of broad brushstroke is unfair and untrue.

This book was really good, and one of my favorites so far. I'm looking forward to jumping back to where I was before and seeing if I can remember what was going on! ;)   Good Book!

Disconnect (Peaceful Piano) - APOC - Music

We're doing something a little different today. For a couple of reasons. First, I can't find a way to write a review of this album on Amazon, and I think it deserves one. Second, it's amazing.

As a bit of background, APOC is the drummer for a band called Smash Into Pieces. My daughter got me listening to them about a year ago, and then we all went to a concert together in Portland. That was great fun. We got to see three bands we all enjoy and spend some quality time together rocking out (yeah, I'm old). But sharing music with my girls is one of my greatest joys.

So anyway, last night, I had a major migraine. I hadn't had one of them for quite a while. My medicine wasn't working, so the lights were off, and all I had was music. I vaguely remembered seeing that APOC had done a "peaceful piano" version of the latest Smash Into Pieces album, Disconnect. I squinted my way onto YouTube and found the album after a bit of a hunt.

Art is subjective. What some people love, others won't. I love hard rock, but I also love soundtracks. What really appeals to me the most is brass, especially low brass...and piano. Not just any piano, but a certain type of piano. And this album is full of it. He uses the whole piano, but not just to pound all the keys. The lower registers are used at appropriate times as well as the upper notes. The songs aren't so elaborate that I can't tell what they are, but there's such beauty added to them.

My one qualm is the word "peaceful." I love ya, APOC, but I would argue that a more appropriate word would have been "passionate." I can feel the emotion coming through those keys, and I love it. I listened to it again this morning just to make sure my brain hadn't been playing tricks on me last night in its pained state, and the music was just as I remembered it. I immediately bought it and came here to write a review. I think it's beautiful, and I plan on listening to it a lot more in the future. If you love beautiful piano music, give this a listen. Great Album!

The Watchmakers - Harry and Scott Lenga

I borrowed this with my Amazon membership.

This book is written by Harry's son, Scott, but he uses his father's tone. He interviewed his father and had over thirty hours of material to work with. Harry was also very open about sharing his experience with the Holocaust or Shoah as it's referred to in this book. 

Harry and his two brothers end up in a few different concentration camps together, and they vow that's the way it's going to stay. They're either going to make it through the war together or they're going to die together. They are dedicated to this plan, and they take great risks to make sure it happens. They also use their skills as watchmakers to make themselves useful and get themselves out of a jam.

There are about 277 pages to Harry's story. After that are a few appendices with some background of the specific Jewish movement that influenced his family. I skimmed over those, but I did read Appendix E, which was the Testimony of Robert Persinger, the Army tank commander who was present at the liberation of Ebensee. Then there's a glossary, but for the most part, key words are explained when they come up in the text.

I was reading on a Paperwhite, so I was unable to see the maps and diagrams very well. It didn't bother me, I just wanted to mention it. I never realized how important being a watchmaker could be, but it was everything to these three men. And beyond that, their reliance on each other and dedication to staying together is something I admire.

Something that struck me and continued to stay with me as I read through the journey of these men was these words: "Pessimism is a terrible sickness. You destroy yourself. You have to have optimism all the time." The men in this book did experience low points, but they had the strength of their brothers to get them through. And they did. I highly recommend this book, and I'm not sure why it doesn't have more exposure. It's worth a read. Good Book!

The Time of Contempt (The Witcher Saga #4) - Andrzej Sapkowski

It's been a while since I posted a review. My girls were home from college for the holidays, so I spent a lot of time making the most of their visit. I always stress making the most of spending time with the people we love, and I learned how important that was last year. I hope I've taught my kids that lesson if nothing else in this life. No regerts (and yes, I spell it like that on purpose).

Anyway, on to the next book in the series. I was able to get most of this series when it was on sale, so my plan is to read through it as my fiction book for until I finish what I've got. I'm only missing the last book at the moment. I'm still going to read a nonfiction/memoir in between, I'll just focus on this series for a bit. I'm also not going to post these on Amazon. There's a zillion reviews, and I doubt I'll be adding anything to the conversation.

I have to admit I wasn't as focused on the book as I normally am. I couldn't tell you specifically what happened at certain points in the book, but I believe I remember the overall story well enough. Also, the last section of the book was pretty Ciri-centric, which I'm not saying is a bad thing, but the end was such a cliffhanger! I normally am not a fan and don't start these, but I'm invested now, so I'm all in. I also believe that I made the right call by saying that if too much time passed, I wouldn't be able to keep track of what was going on. This is definitely what I would call a continuous series.

I've already started my next memoir, and then I'll come back to The Witcher. It'll be a bit of backtracking since I was able to pick up the second set of short stories, so my next fiction title will end up being Sword of Destiny. Overall, even though it took me a long time to get through this book, it was through no fault of the story. I enjoyed the book and look forward to reading the next one. Good Book!