Every year in the Ouachita region, we start to stockpile a stack of diversions for the miserably hot days ahead. Once again, I have several suggestions that will bring excitement without leaving the comfort of your air conditioner.
I am honored to be a member of a launch team for a great new historical novel that releases on July 1. “Where Dandelions Bloom” is set during the Civil War, and tells the story of a young woman who actually poses as a man to fight as a soldier. As a member of the launch team, I will be reading and reviewing this exciting book. Based on my enjoyment of this author’s first book, “Engraved on the Heart” I know that this one will be equally as good. Watch my website and my Facebook page and check all of your normal sources for great fiction. Tara Johnson is a very gifted local author, and I am sure you won’t be disappointed. Also, after you have read this book, don’t forget to leave a review to tell others what you think.
While we’re talking about Civil War fiction, another favorite author, Tamera Alexander has recently created a new series set at the Carnton Plantation in Tennessee. I started with a novella, “Christmas at Carnton.” The holiday setting attracted me, and I always recommend reading a cold weather novel during the miserably hot Arkansas summer. This story is an inspirational account of a young widow who must rebuild her life in the midst of a terrible national struggle. It introduces the setting for the next novel, “With This Pledge”. This one vividly describes what life was like when the war literally landed on a family’s front doorstep. Our heroine is the nanny and teacher to the children in the home, but she soon is forced into a new role as nurse and doctor’s assistant, and eventually back again to teacher. Her transformation through the heat of battle is amazing, and captivating indeed. Ms. Alexander’s books are always memorable, and the Carnton books add to her legacy.
Changing genres completely, I want to mention a totally fascinating book based on a real-life event that happened during the Vietnam War era. Christine Kohler’s “No Surrender Soldier” tells the story of a teenaged boy in Guam who discovers an old man hiding in the island jungle. Not a typical homeless man, he was actually a former Japanese soldier who has been in hiding in a cave since the Second World War. It is a remarkable tale about a young man who is just discovering who he will be and what he will do in his life, and an older man who has been afraid to go home because he thinks his family will be disappointed and ashamed of him. With tropical temperatures outside, you can easily plunge yourself into the jungles of Guam. Give it a try! 
From the tropical heat, we next travel to another location known for warm temperatures. But it’s a dry heat! “The Copper Box” is a mystery novel set in beautiful Sedona. Arizona. And the author is Suzanne Bratcher from right here in Hot Springs Village, Arkansas! The story starts when the heroine reconnects with her grandmother, who has been out of the young woman’s life for many years. When curiosity about life before her adoption leads the successful designer to her grandmother’s home in Arizona, she finds that her grandmother has been the victim of a murder. Now, the young woman must try to determine who she should trust in the quirky touristy town. Ms. Bratcher weaves a fascinating tale of self-discovery and long with-held emotions.
Hopefully, your To Be Read stack has increased enough to get your summer started. If you like reading these annual suggestions, and have enjoyed my monthly column here in Ouachita Life for the past several years, I have one more book to recommend. “Turn, Turn, Turn” is a compilation of the columns that I have shared with you in the past. Available in paperback and in e-reader format, I hope that it provides a moment of cool calm in the middle of your busy summertime activities. My reviewers call it comforting and nostalgic. Nothing too profound, just happy observations directly from my happy life. Visit my website, www.jennycarlisle.com, or look it up on Amazon.com. I would very much appreciate a review when you are finished. There may be a second book in our future, and your recommendation of the first one will help immensely.
Have a great summer and enjoy your summer reading. But I recommend taking a break when you enjoy a popsicle or a slice of watermelon on the porch. You wouldn’t want anything to drip on the pages.
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