Self-Destructing/Southern Charm - Book Reviews

My reading list this month is long. In addition to the book I started 3 years ago and still have yet to finish, I had a twist on Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde as well as a Slavery perspective based on relatives in the author's life. Where to start? Well the quick read of book 1 in the Mr. Self-Destruct series, of course.

If you haven't gotten your hands on this book yet, it's for sale through the humorous writer himself, Mr. Joshua Peck. Basically a few years ago after joining an online writer's group I found myself laughing everyday when I'd spy a comment by this young man. In addition he was a self-publishing author and prolific with his work. I couldn't compete so I've sat back and just enjoyed his antics and body of work when I can afford it. Finally a week or two ago he asked little ol' me to give a book review on his work. I've read other stories, but to actually help out such an accomplished gentleman? Challenge accepted!

The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde is a story by Robert Louis Stevenson. If you remember from an earlier post I have a special tie to Mr. Stevenson's work. My step-father had the same name and at such a young age as five years old I thought I was about to move in with one of my favorite authors. I bragged at school about how cool my mother was to be marrying Treasure Island guy. The school librarian corrected me, but that didn't stop me from being a long time fan.

Jekyll and Hyde is twist on Beauty & the Beast and now you know how ingrained this tale is and near and dear to my heart. Mr. Self-Destruct starts off by deconstructing the mind of a socialpath with enough open flaws to be thrown away in mental health system for life. It took me on a roller coaster ride through the mindset that is often scary and deals with some dark and tortured subject matter for a single character. It's an original take and successful tackle of this fave story of mine so please stop by and enjoy today.

I'm also finally getting into Seeds of Magnolia by Bill Miller. This subject matter although very important history of people of color, specifically the black community, I find it hard to tackle not only for myself but in general. It spans an ugly time in American history. One that America is unwilling to apologize for today. It seems that especially the government would rather forget that slavery built America and that a lot of people got caught up in this practice without a way out and without knowing what true freedom means. Does slavery still exist today? Yes and that's a bigger problem than just ignoring and playing ignorant to what was happening in this country 200 to 150 years ago.

So how do I move on from slavery? I vote and I practice a religion that speaks to me on a spiritual level. I discuss my own issues from being a victim of sexual assault by writing characters who deal with the same thing. I hope that my writing speaks to other people and helps them with their day. Bill Miller's story is a good one but that mental minefield was already cracked wide open with me and this just adds another layer to consider, how my ancestors were treated back in their day. I'm a third of the way through and it's promise to be an enticing story that hooks a reader is there. I'm just weird about the subject matter so please don't let my progress stop you from grabbing up this amazing story.