Search Results for: blog did these fictional characters influence you

Chatting about Music, Romantic Suspense, and Pets: An Interview with Author JB Thompson

When I was on a panel at the Southern Festival of Books last month, author Jennie Bentley wasn’t the only one to accept my request for an interview. So did this next author, who moderated the panel. JB Thompson is the immediate past president of the Middle Tennessee Sisters in Crime and has always done nothing but welcome me with open arms and extraordinary graciousness every time I’ve participated in any SinC event. The funny thing is, every time I’m around her, I learn we have something else in common. For instance, on previous occasions I learned we both write … Continue reading →

The Water Horse (2007)

A legend has been had in Scotland about a mythical creature known as a water horse. While two tourists are traveling through the area of Loch Ness and stop in at a pub, coming come across a picture of a creature rising from the water, they’re willing to dismiss it as a fake until a man sitting in the corner motions them over to tell them the story behind the picture. During World War II, a young boy named Angus MacMorrow was clambering around the stones on the edge of the loch when he discovered a strange rock. He took … Continue reading →

Queen of the Summer Stars – Persia Woolley

“Queen of the Summer Stars” is the sequel to “Child of the Northern Spring,” reviewed here. Guinevere has now been married to King Arthur for a couple of years, and life at court is sweet to her. Her reservations about the union long gone, she loves her husband, but he doesn’t seem to share her emotions. He treats her as a friend and an ally, but he has never said he loves her. She badly wants to hear those words. Also causing her concern is the fact that she’s not yet pregnant. She wants to give Arthur an heir, but … Continue reading →

The Sword in the Stone (1963)

Most of us are familiar with the story of the young lad Arthur and how he pulled a sword out of a stone to prove his worthiness to become the king of England. In “The Sword in the Stone,” Disney takes the tale a step further with animated effects and great characterization. Arthur, otherwise known as The Wart, works as a scullery boy in the castle belonging to Sir Ector. Ector’s son, the slovenly Kay, will soon become a knight, and Arthur is assigned to squire for him. It’s an honor, to be sure, especially for someone of such low … Continue reading →

Barbie is a Movie Star?

We all know Barbie, the better-than-real-life woman made of plastic who can do anything, be anything, and have her makeup perfectly applied the entire time. An inspiration to girls since her invention and possibly the best-selling girls’ toy of all time, Barbie is an American icon that has surpassed the border and gone worldwide. She’s a toy, a game, a coloring book, a clothes label, and now, a movie star. Yes, that’s right – through the miracle of modern technology, Barbie is now a movie star. Computer animators have taken her likeness and transformed her into a walking, talking woman, … Continue reading →

The Return of Baby Jesus

Just in time for Christmas baby Jesus has been returned to his manger… make that 32 Jesuses. Call it a Christmas miracle, of sorts. Chicago homeowners whose statutes of baby Jesus were stolen from their outdoor nativity scenes have finally been reunited with their missing items. According to local police, dozens of plastic baby Jesus dolls were stolen last week from nativity scenes in people’s front yards. Then on Saturday morning a woman found all the missing Jesuses lined up along the fence on her lawn and called her local church. The pastor there told local news reporters that the … Continue reading →

More Holiday Grinches

Okay, it’s official—there are multiple grinches on the loose out there. In previous blogs I told you about the weirdo who stole a baby Jesus statute from a resident’s nativity set and replaced it with a can of beer and the wackos who tried to set fire to a giant straw goat–central Sweden’s official Christmas monument—but were foiled because it had been soaked with flame-resistant chemicals. Now, closer to home (within driving distance of my own backyard) some scrooge is chopping down Christmas trees in people’s yards. It’s hard to believe, but according to police, residents in Wisconsin are going … Continue reading →

Real Life Christmas Grinches Part 2

In a previous blog I lamented about the wackos who seemingly find great joy in dismantling, destroying, or stealing homeowners’ outdoor Christmas decorations, including the incident where someone stole a baby Jesus statute from a resident’s nativity set and replaced it with a can of beer. I questioned whether the events were isolated or if this holiday madness was a growing epidemic. After hearing about this next incident I think I have my answer. Christmas grinches have struck again. Not in South Carolina, Southern California or even Savannah, Georgia… this time they’ve gone global… all the way to central Sweden. … Continue reading →

“Santa” Gets Booted From Disney World

Call it a case of mistaken identity… or a case of holiday HUMBUG, either way the Scrooge-like actions of some people at Florida’s Walt Disney World got a Santa look-a-like booted from the “happiest place on earth.” According to news reports, the incident started when a group of excited children confused Florida resident and Dsiney visitor, 60-year-old J.D. Worley with jolly ol’ St. Nick. The plump, white bearded Worley graciously played along with the large group of kids UNTIL someone apparently complained to the Orlando theme park management that a man in a red shirt and blue jeans with a … Continue reading →

The Evolution Of Barbie

Is anyone in your family requesting a Barbie for Christmas? If so, he or she isn’t alone. In a recent survey of parents done by the National Retail Federation Barbie ranked as the top toy for girls this holiday season (TMX Elmo was first for boys). The news came as a surprise to some analysts who have been watching sales of the doll slump in recent years, as they did at the beginning of the women’s movement in early 1970s – when toy consultants say “girls weren’t supposed to just go to the prom and marry Ken.” I grew up … Continue reading →