The Trajectory of Today’s Topics

• Posthumously published stories coming in October

• What would you do if your best friend was possessed?

• A nostalgic tour through children’s books

• Exclusive short story coming soon

Hot Off The Press

New material from author of To Kill a Mockingbird

Nearly all of us have read To Kill a Mockingbird, either we willingly took it on, or we were forced by evil English and Literature teachers in school. If you haven’t read it or watched the old black and white movie, the story follows Atticus Finch, through the eyes of his young daughter, Scout. He is a lawyer in the Depression-Era South where he defends a black man wrongly accused of raping a young white girl. There’s a lot to unpack in the relatively short book, and it hits on a number of unfair social injustices. 

Unfortunately, more amazing titles from the author weren’t on the horizon. The author, Harper Lee, was 31 when she submitted the book, and like many authors, wasn’t expecting much. But the book became an instant success and won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. It was also voted "Best Novel of the Century" in a poll by the Library Journal. You’d think with such acclaim and praise, Lee would start pumping out more, but she only published one other book, Go Set a Watchman, some 55 years later, in 2015. The novel was hit hard by critics and was a source of controversy. 

To Kill a Mockingbird was supposed to be a trilogy. Some said the manuscript was nothing more than a first draft very similar to Mockingbird, while others stated that the book was a sequel to Mockingbird, part two of a planned three. We’ll probably never really know what the plan was because a year later, Lee passed away. 

Posthumous stories will be released this year. Now, a new collection of essays and short stories from Harper Lee will be released in October. The Land of Sweet Forever: Stories and Essays is a posthumous collection of writings Lee created before she really focused on To Kill a Mockingbird. Keep an eye out for it if you enjoyed her flagship book. 

Other authors who only published one great book. With so many prolific authors such as James Patterson, Dean Koontz, Janet Evanovich, and Stephen King, who seem to pump out multiple books a year, I wondered about authors who only wrote a single book throughout their lifetime. There are actually quite a few who told their one, often remarkable story, and then retired from the literary world for whatever reason. Here are a few that most of us have heard of:

• Margaret Mitchell - Gone With the Wind: It’s reported that she suffered such anxiety over the book (taking over 10 years to write it) that she didn’t want to experience that ever again. 

• Anna Sewell - Black Beauty: She was very ill and mostly bedridden when she wrote her one novel. She died five months later. 

• Emily Brontë - Wuthering Heights: The sister of literary family, Charlotte and Anne, only finished one book before she passed away. She was working on another book, but tragically, she didn’t finish it. 

• J.D. Salinger - The Catcher in the Rye: He wrote many more works after publishing his one novel, but he was an intensely private person and seemed to shun the literary world and fame especially. Because of this, it’s reported he didn’t want to publish any other works.

• Arthur Golden - Memoirs of a Geisha: After the book was published, he was hit with a defamation and breach of contract lawsuit that was settled privately. Speculation suggests that the lawsuit and a desire to live away from the spotlight keeps Golden from publishing more.  

The TBR Files

It's a thrilling paranormal ride through the best decade.

I LOVE the cover! I have to admit that this cover sold me before I even read what the book was about. Being a child of the 80s and 90s, the VHS looking cover with vintage artwork sent my nostalgia into the stratosphere. I snatched it up and took it home, if I didn’t like the book, at least I had a nice piece of art I could add to my collection. 

I may have judged the cover, but I wasn’t disappointed. I really enjoyed My Best Friend’s Exorcism! It’s set in 1988 and it centers around best friends Abby Rivers and Gretchen Lang, who have been friends since they were 10 years old. Now, sophomores in high school, the friends join a few more girls at a lake house for the weekend. After trying an illicit substance, Gretchen disappears, but returns several hours later completely changed and nearly incoherent. As the days stretch on, Gretchen’s behavior becomes increasingly more bizarre and frightening. Abby begins to suspect her best friend has been possessed. 

The problem is, no one believes her. In fact, some of the strange and criminal happenings start causing authorities and her parents to believe that Abby is the one committing these atrocities. The writing reflects the time, with drugs and satanism being keywords associated with the youth. Acting up at home? They’re on drugs. Having trouble in school? They’re worshipping satan. Listening to pop or metal music? They’re on drugs AND worshipping the devil. 

Heathers meets the Exorcist. I read this in a review and it definitely boils it down. Anyway, the book is in the horror genre, but it was not an awfully frightening book. It definitely kept me guessing, and glued to the pages as I needed to know what was happening with Gretchen, and how Abby (basically working on her own) would save her friend’s soul. It was dark, thrilling, sometimes darkly humorous, and a fun ride; especially if you miss those decades. Grady Hendrix is quickly becoming a new favorite author as I’ve read several of his books already and have not been disappointed. If you’re into thrillers, horror, nostalgia, and nail-biting tension, My Best Friend’s Exorcism is right up your alley; it even had me a little emotional at the end. That doesn’t happen very often… 

…And Then This Happened

Collecting a set of cute animals dealing with moral issues.

Since I learned to read, I’ve loved books. Some of my fondest memories have often centered around them. Finding something new and exciting to read, checking out new bookstores, reading books to my daughter and how much she loved it, and now, writing my own stories. One set of books from my childhood have held a very special place in my heart. These books were introduced to me by my older sister. The Serendipity books by Stephen Cosgrove and Robin James. 

I still remember them decades later. I don’t think she had the entire collection, as there are 70 books total, but I remember several with acute clarity. The illustrations are beyond comparison. The characters are sickeningly cute, and the tales all center around moral issues and each one has a short piece of advice at the end. As I grew up, those books disappeared, but when I had my daughter, I knew she would enjoy them as much as I did. 

“Gotta catch ‘em all!” I started collecting them and reading them to her. While she had plenty of other favorite books, especially Dr. Seuss books, Skippy Jon Jones, and other standalones such as the Paper Bag Princess, and Strega Nona, she would often go back to the Serendipity series. Whenever I would see these books at yard sales or thrift stores, I would immediately snatch them up. Unfortunately, they’re getting harder to find. I can still find used ones on Amazon and Ebay, and occasionally I’ll get a few. Eventually I’ll have the entire collection. 📚

I hope to pass them along to more generations. Though my daughter is grown now, and I don’t get to read them to her anymore, there are grandchildren in the picture now! While they’re still a little young to sit still for a story, I can’t wait until I get to pass along these stories to them as well. What books or series stir your emotions? Are there any from your childhood that you remember? Leave me a comment below.