In 1926, at thirteen years of age, Sanford Clark was given away by his mother to his uncle, Gordon Stewart Northcott. Northcott took the boy from Canada and illegally brought him into the United States where he was used as slave labor on a chicken ranch and sexually abused. Northcott also brought other boys to the chicken ranch to sexually abuse and murder. He forced Sanford to help him dispose of some of the boys. He used that and the fact that the boy was in the US illegally to keep Sanford from reporting Northcott for his crimes. While Sanford was held captive on the chicken ranch he was not allowed to go to school or play with local children. His only escape was in reading books in secret.

The abuse finally ended when a visit from Sanford’s sister scared Northcott into fleeing. Once the police found out about the murders, they captured Northcott and after his trial he was executed. Sanford was sent to Whittier Boys School and then released at age seventeen. He went back to Canada and lived a normal life.

Due to the title, I expected more of the book to be about Sanford’s life after his uncle was caught, but the bulk of the book deals with his time spent with his uncle on the chicken ranch. I was quite impressed that Sanford managed to make a good life for himself despite all he had gone through. One often hears about criminals claiming that childhood abuse is the reason why they are criminals. Sanford proves that this does not have to be true. It depends on the person. He was an amazing person to be able to have such a good productive life after the torture and abuse he endured.

Flacco writes a riveting recounting of the horrors endured by Sanford Clark as his uncle’s captive and his recovery and adult life. It is also an uplifing tale in that Sanford had the strength of character to shape his own life rather than allow his uncle’s abuses to shape him. A well written book, I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys reading true crime books.

Before reading this book, I had no idea that California produced so much of the wine enjoyed in the US. I also had no idea of the amount of wine they produced overall. The statistics mentioned at the beginning of the book were enlightening. I found out that almost 70 percent of the wine consumed in the US is from California. This book really opened my eyes to the amount and quality of wines from California.

The book contained many helpful features. The cheat sheet located in the front of the book was loaded with good information. One section that I found most helpful was the pronunciation guide. I was unfamiliar with some of the wines so this section should help me avoid embarrasing pronunciation errors when trying a new wine. Another great feature was the inclusion of websites for locating availability and prices of wines. The definitions of regulated terms and explanations of unregulated terms and other information found on wine labels helps one to understand the language of wine labels.

After decoding the wine label, the authors include a short history of wine making in California. Descriptions were given of the major wine regions in California. They even include information about visiting California wineries, such as information on winery tours and local accomodations and restaurants. Descriptions of varietals and listings of the author’s recommended wines to try is another helpful feature.

McCarthy and Ewing-Mulligan explain everything clearly while not being condescending. I enjoyed reading this book and enjoyed putting my new knowledge to work the next time I bought wine. The authors credentials in the wine field gave me confidence in their writing. The authors also give websites for locating availability and prices of wines. Overall, I thought it was a fairly comprehensive first guide to California wines. It is quite a lot of information in one book and a great place to start for people that want to learn more about California wines.

I would recommend this book for anyone that is interested in learning more about California wines.

Not Another Bad Date continues a series comprised of: Sex, Lies and Online Dating (2006), I’m In No Mood for Love (2006), and Tangled Up In You (2007). The books are about the romances of a group of friends. However, this book works fine as a stand alone novel.

The story is set in small town Texas where Adele Harris, a science fiction and fantasy writer, goes to help out her sister. While there she meets up with Zach Zamaitis, a former pro football player, now a high school football coach. Adele and Zach have lives full of responsibilities and difficulties. Zach has a teenage daughter from his marriage and Adele is looking after her niece during her sister’s hospital stay for a difficult pregnancy. The two girls become friends and this leads to Adele and Zach spending time together.

They have a history together. Fourteen years ago they dated in college. They broke up when a previous girlfriend of Zach’s found out she was pregnant. Zach married the pregnant ex-girlfriend, but now she has been dead for three years. Zach and Adele are still attracted to each other but their romance does not go smoothly. Zach’s late wife tries to keep them apart from the afterlife. Her actions tend to have consequences she did not intend. Her part of the story is amusing as her plans keep going awry.

The characters are believable and likable. I liked the small town Texas setting and I found the book enjoyable. Overall a very good contemporary romance with some paranormal elements mixed in.

Laugh out loud funny.

I have read the first two stories and the humans are kicking alien butt!

The rest of the stories are similar. The smart humans outwit the dim aliens. These stories were first published in scifi magazines in the fifties and sixties.