Shooting an Albatross: 02/09/10

Albatross is another term for a double eagle. The derivation of the name is one of many interesting pieces of golfing lore tucked away in the WWII historical fiction, Shooting an Albatross by Steven R. Lundin.

It's 1943 and the PGA tour has been canceled for the year. The The 170th Field Artillery Battalion of the U.S. Army have taken over a golf course in Los Angeles while they're waiting to ship out. In their spare time the Army General and a Navy Admiral have decided to go head to head on a round of golf. There's just one problem: neither one of them plays. No problem; they'll train up their best men to play for them.

In the middle of the golf rivalry there is also a love triangle with a beautiful Angelino who lives with her father at the edge of the course. Although the course if formally closed she still likes to sneak in a round or two in her spare time.

The novel though beings in the present with a man set on revenge. Why he wants revenge is revealed slowly, piece by piece as the tale of this golf rivalry unfolds. I enjoyed the book, finding it a quick and compelling read. It brings together two of my favorite settings for fiction: the golf course and WWII.

I received my copy from the author and have since released it through BookCrossing.

Other posts and reviews:

• Blogging Authors
• Blogger News Network
• Dan's Journal
• Polka Dot Reviews
• PNN
• Shooting an Albatross website
• Women Talk Sports

books | Steven R. Lundin | fiction | 2009

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Teaser Tuesday: Swim to Me: 02/09/10

I'm up to my 5th week in participating in the Teaser Tuesday meme. For my teaser I'm picking Swim to Me by Betsy Carter.

The rules come from MizB of Should Be Reading.

• Grab your current read
  
• Open to a random page
  
• Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page
  
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn't give too much away! You don't want to ruin the book for others!)
  
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

My current read is Swim to Me by Betsy Carter (2007). It is set at the Weeki Wachee Springs in Florida.

The Summery from GoodReads

At two, Delores's mother dropped her into the shallow end of a lake, trusting instinct would teach her daughter to swim. From then on, the water is where Delores Walker feels most at home. Now, nearly seventeen, she's boarding a Greyhound bus leaving the Bronx for sunny Weeki Wachee Springs, a tacky roadside attraction in the shadow of Walt Disney's new Florida phenomenon.

With a hundred silver dollars left behind by her runaway dad, Delores is chasing her dream of being a mermaid with a group of other aquatic hopefuls—girls just as awkward and uncertain out of water as they are beautiful and graceful in it. And in this make-believe world of sequined tails and amphibious fantasy, Delores will learn some very real lessons about growing up and surviving in a world where everyone sometimes feels like a fish out of water.

The Teaser:

"You'll see," said Delores as she turned on the faucet. Her mother undressed in the bedroom, then tiptoed naked into the bathroom. As she slid into the warm bath, she sighed: "Ahh, my feet." (p. 44)

books | teaser tuesdays

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Henry the Sailor Cat: 02/08/10

Harriet loves cats. Whenever I'm at the library or I'm buying books for her, I'm looking for books about cats. Among my recent library finds was Henry the Sailor Cat by Mary Calhoun. It's the sixth book in a series of picture books featuring an adventurous Siamese cat.

Henry stows away on the sailboat while the Man is teaching the Boy how to sail. Henry is discovered too late to return to shore and is allowed to stay above deck as long as he doesn't get in the way. The cat spends the day learning along side the Boy. Later they will both need to put their new skills to the ultimate test.

I have known cats to love water and cats certainly have been on ships. I can't say I've ever known a water loving Siamese but that's besides the point. Henry's actions on the ship are plausible, albeit a bit extraordinary at times, and the pages are sumptuously illustrated.

Books in the series:

• Cross-Country Cat 1979
  
• Audubon Cat, 1981
  
• Hot-Air Henry 1981
  
• High-Wire Henry 1991
  
• Henry the Sailor Cat 1994
  
• Henry the Christmas Cat 2002

books | Mary Calhoun | childrens | 1994

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