Author: Pearl Ada Pridham

I bought this novel on the ferry last month as my son and I began our vacation. It’s always nice to have something to read in between visiting and sightseeing and while waiting for transfers. This paperback was small enough to fit in my purse and a light enough story to easily pick up where I left off and read in bits and pieces.The protagonist initially seems to be stuck in a bland life in her late 30s, her dreams of the life she wanted having all but faded away. She is not ambitious to change anything but is becoming increasingly disenchanted with her boyfriend and her dead-end job. However, it’s not until disaster falls that she gets out of her situation.

Having finally had enough, she decides to take a vacation to England to watch the filming of a series called Bauchamp Hall. She has been fascinated by the polite and sensitive characters in the series, and the way that they behave and treat those they love. This in stark contrast to her boyfriend and others in her small redneck American hometown.

Is it only the way the series was written or is there a real place like this? Will she meet the kind of people who live life the way she wishes it could be?

Sometimes I want to give the protagonist a shake, as she seems so passive. It is interesting to me , though, to read about the makings of that kind of a British series, as I myself am a fan of some of them. I’m also tempted to take that kind of a vacation! Thanks for the insights, Danielle Steel!

Stephen Garrett writes a very personal account of his beloved brother’s six-year battle with cancer, from 2008 to 2015. This book was lent to my husband and I from friends who, like us, are also going through a cancer journey with a family member.

We found it helpful to read about the course of the journey for the Garrett family and in particular for Peter, the one who had the cancer. He led a healthy lifestyle and so was surprised to be diagnosed with cancer in his late 50s. It appeared as a lump in his groin, which at first he thought was probably fat because he had a similar fatty lump previously in the other leg. This one was cancerous and they treated it with radiation.

The radiation appeared to be successful and the cancer in remission, however Peter wasn’t bouncing back to his normal energy level. Stephen takes readers through the series of battles chronologically as the cancer re-emerges in different places and forms over the next six years. Peter tries various treatments from naturopathic to chemotherapy but sadly the cancer keeps progressing.

Each chapter ends with comments from family members and nurses about how they are feeling at that particular faze of the journey. They love Peter dearly but do not always agree with his decisions. Yet they come on board with him to support him right up to the end. The last two chapters tell about the way this family dealt with Peter’s death and cremation and later memorial service.

My husband having been diagnosed with cancer earlier this year, he was very grateful to read about how it went for Peter and his family. It helps to know how the treatments affected Peter. Is it better to go through harsh treatments and endure horrible side effects with hopes of a lengthy remission or to just alleviate symptoms and let nature take its course? It was also helpful to read about the end of life arrangements for the cremation and memorial service and prompted my husband to consider what he wants for himself when the time comes and to discuss it with me.

A walk on the seawall in Nanaimo, and seafood at a floating restaurant; my idea of a good time!  Last Sunday I had some time to myself so I took the dog for a long leisurely stroll, drinking in the restorative ocean breeze and the scenery of the bay and the islands.

Float planes come and go over yachts and rowboats. All kinds of people saunter by, many with delicious-looking ice cream cones in hand.  I took pictures of some of the beautiful flowers beside the lagoon and sat on a bench a while.

I walked some more and would have gone farther but my dog was done so I brought him back to the car and went to Trollers.  I had a hankering for their deep fried oysters! 

A good time to go at 2 pm when it’s not too busy.  Last time I went there it was suppertime and there was a long wait plus they ran out of the salmon that I had ordered.  But  they replaced a piece of the salmon with a deep fried oyster, and I remembered how delicious that was!  This time the wait was only about 10 minutes.  Five plump oysters, a bit of coleslaw and lots of fries with a bottle of Pure Leaf ice tea for $21. I was savouring my solitary meal and quietude when a couple of tourists joined me at the other end of the large table.  Before long another couple joined us as well.  The man, who had retired from a broadcasting career before they recently moved to Nanaimo, proceeded to interview the rest of us.  Well if it didn’t turn out that his wife and the other man had been classmates in Alberta when they were kids!  So they all knew a lot of people in common.  Already being in a melancholy reflective mood, it made me feel all the more alone, missing old friends 😪.  But it was nice listening to them. 

By the time I had downed the third oyster I was full but still enjoying the meal.  I had to leave the last few fries though, as I was on grease overload by then.  The talkative man didn’t want me to leave, but I was ready to go home to my husband, who would be glad to have me back after his own quiet rest time.

A biography of Twyla Ludwig, missionary to Kenya from 1927 to 1960, written by her son. This intriguing story gives insight not only into the personal life of Twyla Ludwig and her family, but into the history of Kenya and its people.

From the time she was a young girl, Twyla Ludwig always knew she would be a missionary. However, she married a farmer who was not even a believer at first. She prayed fervently for him. Finally when she had a severe illness and he feared he would lose her, he turned to God. She recovered and then prayed about missions. Her husband did not want to give up his farm, but finally put it up for sale for a high price, hoping it would not sell. However it sold immediately for full asking price. So the Ludwigs got some training and first pastored for several years in the United States before being sent to Kenya.

Charles was still a young boy at the time, and it is interesting to read about his own experiences living on this remote mission compound. Living conditions were extremely primitive. Water had to be brought on foot from a distance. There was an abundance of wildlife, from lizards, rats and insects in the house to leopards and lions outside. Most of the natives had no clothes. Men had several wives, who were like slaves to them, and it was expected that they beat them regularly to make them work harder. Witchdoctors were who the people went to for any kind of help, and they had all kinds of remedies, most of which made a sick person worse rather than better. For example cutting people all over their skin and then spitting on them. Women in childbirth were often beaten and scolded if the baby did not come out quickly.

Twyla Ludwig saw the dire need for the education of women in Kenya, and started schools for them first on their original compound, and later near Nairobi, working full-out non-stop until her death at the age of 70. She greatly influenced change in Kenya through her hard work and answers to prayer.

A five minute walk from our townhouse is one of our favourite places to go out for a light lunch on a warm sunny day.  The reason I say a warm sunny day is because we sit outside, and Sid gets the bowl of chilli from Tim Hortons and I get sushi from next door at Umai Sushi.

Then we meet at a little table on the sidewalk under the shade of a little tree. We share a cup of Japanese barley tea with our meal; mild and perfect with anything.

I like a little box of ready to take out California rolls and yam rolls if I’m not too hungry.  The meals on their menu are delicious too if you’re a bit hungrier, and the restaurant is cozy and nicely decorated.

The famous-in-Canada Tim Hortons chain started out mostly with coffee and donuts years ago. Now they serve all kinds of breakfast, lunch and snack foods over the counter. Donuts of all sorts and muffins, breakfast or lunch sandwiches on biscuits or croissants, soups and chilli that comes with a freshly baked bun.  The chilli is full of vegetables like green peppers, tomatoes and mushrooms along with ground beef and beans. 

A hearty lunch for only a few dollars  each!

Diane Bestwick lived and worked in China for nearly ten years.  She met and befriended many Chinese people and got to know their joys and sorrows and predicaments.  During the years she was there the government had a policy in place that each married couple was to only have one child.  This notion on first appearance may sound like a good idea for a country with a large population and many in poverty. 

In her novel Diane portrays what it was really like for those experiencing this situation.  More than the policy itself, it was the ways in which it was enforced that were so horrific.

The main character already has a son, and has had one abortion in order to follow the policy, but cannot bear to have another abortion.  The novel takes us through the dire straits she finds herself in as she courageously tries to make a way to save her baby.

Here in North America, where we do not face  such a lack of freedom, and political repercussions for things like that, most of us are blissfully unaware of the anguishes people are put through in some parts of the world.  Through reading novels like this we can begin to understand.

Although the protagonist in this book is married, as in my novel the pregnancy is not an acceptable situation in many ways.  Will she find a way to escape a forced abortion?  Also as in my novel, she prays for a solution and then puts her trust in God to guide and care for her and her baby.

An artist who designs quilts for display leaves behind her studio in town, along with her lawyer boyfriend who has become too high-pressured and scary, to return home to the farm and care for her grandmother.

She has always dreamt of living back on the family farm and practising her craft. However, in her dream she imagined being married to a farmer. Now she finds herself the primary caregiver for her aging grandmother who has a series of strokes.

Her aunt comes to help, but there is a bitter secret between the aunt and the grandmother. It turns out that the aunt was born out of wedlock. At this point in her life she finally wants to find out who her real father was, and embarks on a search.

Also the little old heritage church that the family attends is in danger of being demolished. Can it be saved? Who will help, and who is to be trusted?

I chose to read this book because, like the book I’m writing, it deals with family, a child born out of wedlock, and the protagonist going through her own soul-searching to sort out what is really important to her.