Book Reviews for TBR Pile Have Moved!

Hi all!

In the upcoming weeks/months, there will be changes coming to this site. It'll be more of an official author website and less of a blog.  I do, however, intend to continue my TBR Pile book reviews, just on a different site.  If you'd like to continue following my reviews, they are now being hosted on The Never-Ending TBR Pile blog that I've created.  You can also find my reviews on various books on my Goodreads' account.

I wish everyone a Happy Friday and hope you have a weekend filled with amazing books!

Teaser Tuesday: Ten Big Ones

Welcome to Teaser Tuesday, the weekly Meme, hosted by The Purple Booker, that wants you to add books to your TBR! You can also just share what you are currently reading. We make it very easy to play along, it is as easy as 1, 2, 3!
1: Grab your current read
2: Open to a random page
3: 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! Everyone loves Teaser Tuesday.

I feel like the week has flown by, but then most of my weeks feel that way! I got a couple of chapters written in the latest Galactic Dynasty novel that I co-author with my hubby and muse. I finished reading one novel, The Shop on Blossom Street, and you can check out my 3-star review if you like. And I managed to get more work done on my crochet and cross-stitch projects, plus a lot more stuff thrown in that I'm not remembering right now! Two teasers are below for your enjoyment, one from the book I'm currently reading and one from a novel I've written! I hope everyone's week went well and wish everyone a happy Teaser Tuesday!

Ten Big Ones (Stephanie Plum #10) by Janet Evanovich

The way I see it, life is a jelly doughnut. You don't really know what it's about until you bite into it. And then, just when you decide it's good, you drop a big glob of jelly on your best T-shirt.

These books never cease to make me laugh and are the ones I turn to when I'm needing a good rollicking read! So if you haven't tried this series yet, give it a whirl. I have no doubt you'll enjoy them. Oh, and beware Grandma Masur... that character will make you pee your pants from laughing so hard! LOL

 Starward (Galactic Dynasty #1) by E. M. Lohr and Wendy Lohr

Knock, knock, knock. Startled, I rolled over only to fall onto the hard floor with a grunt, tangled in a scratchy blanket. My mind was in utter confusion as I looked around bleary-eyed for a moment and tried to remember where I was.

Galactic Dynasty is a sci-fi/adventure series that follows Rosa and the crew of Starward on a diplomatic mission to other planets within the galaxy. This particular excerpt is from her first day at the training facility and the chaos and confusion that ensues only increases as she's ushered from one place to the next on the island compound. There are currently four books in this series and the fifth one is being written now, hopefully to be published in the next few months! So, if you haven't heard about this series yet, pop on over to the series page on this website and find out more!

I hope you've enjoyed these teasers and I look forward to visiting your sites soon to see what everyone is reading! Just be sure to leave a link in the comments below!

Happy Reading!

TBR Pile #8: The Shop on Blossom Street

*This review can also be found on my Goodreads account.


Hope. Relationships. Courage.

These themes are at the core of this feel good novel. Hope in the present and hope in the future played a large part in each woman's reaction and approach to various situations going on in her life. Relationships played an active role in each woman's life as well, whether it be a start of a new relationship, recapturing a lost desire for the person one was with, or establishing new bonds with a family member where those bonds seemed impossible before. And courage arose in each woman to take the chances necessary to achieve the happiness they each desired in different ways.

This book follows the lives of four different women from different backgrounds and ages. The only character I truly connected with was Alix and she turned out to be the one that bound the others together in friendship. None of the characters were perfect and they each made a lot of mistakes along the way, but then that's life. No one gets it perfect the first time around!

The reason I couldn't rate this book any higher was I felt like the development of the characters was lacking and the development of their bond of friendship almost non-existent. It went from them being strangers to great friends in a matter of a couple of months, but none of the interactions between the four women gave any indication they were becoming more than acquaintances.

I also didn't like the fact that each woman's predicament and subsequent solution was all too familiar and predictable. The author dropped such a healthy (unhealthy?) dose of foreshadowing for each character, that I was able to pretty much see what was going to happen long before it happened. And I found that disappointing and boring. Not much originality in the individual story lines at all.

This is a feel good book with happy endings all around. So if you're looking for that type of novel to curl up with on a cold winter's night or a sunny day at the beach, then definitely give this book a try. But if you're looking for more complex characters and situations, writing that has a lot of layers, then this might not be the right kind of book for you.

I probably won't continue this series as I feel like it was enough of an ending for me. I'm not interested enough to know what happens next for any of them and just prefer to assume they all live happily ever after.

TBR Pile #7: Who in the World is Carmen Sandiego?

*This review can also be found on my Goodreads account.

Adventure, capers, and crime. Even though this is a relatively short book, it was packed full of these three things! And as skeptical as I was at first about reading this, I was surprised at how much I actually enjoyed it.

I will be the first to admit that even though I grew up at the time when Carmen Sandiego was first making her appearance in our world, I didn't have any interest in following her exploits or trying to find her. I had other interests as I entered middle and high school, but I was aware of the Carmen Sandiego phenomenon. So receiving this book for Christmas one year had me slightly puzzled and I just shrugged and stuck it on my TBR Pile to read at a later date.

Now, two years later, I'm finally getting around to it and kind of regret I waited so long to see what the hype was all about! This book actually is Carmen's origin story and explains where she's from and how she was raised to believe that stealing was a good thing, a fun and exciting game that she wanted to be the best at. And it was hard not to be fondly amused at her antics to be the best little thief in the world, but it was also kind of sad that she was doing it as a way to be close to her quirky 'family' of master thieves.

As the story progresses, it's revealed how she manages to escape (the first time) the island she's called home her entire life, only to learn what her 'family' is really all about. And that lesson is a hard one for her to swallow. But, after being retrieved and taken back to the island, she realizes what she needs to do and, with the help of a voice on the other end of a stolen cell phone that goes by the name of Player, she slowly discovers that she actually can put her criminal talents to good use.

It's a thrill-seeking, fast-paced novel that kept me turning the pages to find out what was going to happen next. The only reason I didn't rate it higher (and the reason is more personal than anything to do with the storyline) is that it is written at a more basic reading level. The book is really meant for a younger audience of readers, but is definitely a fun read for adults as well. I just believe that most young readers would not have had any trouble if it had been written at a bit higher level. But this is just a personal opinion and by no means should detract from anyone wanting to read this book!

In all, a great, fun, and thrilling read for any age. I know this is now a Netflix series and after reading this book, I'll definitely have to check it out! So, whether you were a Carmen Sandiego fan when you were a kid, never followed her, or are just discovering her, this is a great book to check out if you're even the least bit curious!

Teaser Tuesday - Who in the World is Carmen Sandiego?

Welcome to Teaser Tuesday, the weekly Meme, hosted by The Purple Booker, that wants you to add books to your TBR! You can also just share what you are currently reading. We make it very easy to play along, it is as easy as 1, 2, 3!
1: Grab your current read
2: Open to a random page
3: 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! Everyone loves Teaser Tuesday.

It has been quite a long time since I last participated in Teaser Tuesday. So long, that it took me a while to find who was hosting now as I used to connect with MizB's blog, Should Be Reading. lol Anyway, I'm back and thought I'd join back in on the fun and add a little extra to my teaser, submitting an excerpt from the book I'm currently reading as well as an excerpt from one of the books I've written. This is, after all, my author website, so I do have to occasionally put in a shameless plug! ;)

First teaser from Who in the World is Carmen Sandiego? by Rebecca Tinker:

From up here, I could see the entire island. Students were making their way across the quad. Some were practicing their criminal skills and training together; others were playing games and gossiping.

I should be through with this book and have a review up later this week as part of my ongoing TBR Pile Reviews. So be sure to stop back by and read what I thought about this book!

For the second teaser, I'm heading back to my very first book to be published! It's part of a mystery series for ages 10 and up, following the adventures of two high school friends, Leyla and Lucien, as they stumble into various mysteries!  I'll provide the link to Goodreads for anyone wanting to add this to their TBR pile, but you can also find more info about this book and others on my website in the tabs above!

Spanish Intrigue (The L & L Mysteries #1) by Wendy Lohr:

Forcing his mind back to the present, Lucien remembered why he was at the lake and pulled the napkin out of his pocket. As he squirted the lemon juice on the napkin and watched in amazement, numbers and Roman numerals began to appear. Opening the sketchbook to a clean page, it took him several minutes to carefully copy what was on the napkin.


Let me know what you think of these teasers and add your Teaser Tuesday links in the comments below. I'll be sure to visit your site in return!

Happy Reading!

TBR Pile #6: The Arabian Nights

*This review can also be found on my Goodreads account.

Rich. Lavish. Elegant.

The Arabian Nights has been on my list to read for a long time now and as I finish my first read of it, I have to ask myself 'Self... why did it take you so long to read this?!' lol And the answer is probably because I was intimidated by the sheer size of this collection of stories. But I finally took the time to sit down and read it, from cover to cover, and I have no doubt I'll be reading it again in the future!

I don't typically read forewards of books, just preferring to dive straight into the good stuff. But I took the time to read this one and am glad I did. It prepared me in a way that allowed me to enjoy the stories even more, giving me a cultural and historical context that provided more richness to each individual tale as well as the over-arching framework.

As each tale unfolds, glimpses into a society, culture, and religion bring these tales to life. Before reading this, I had very little knowledge of ancient Islamic/Arabic society norms and practices. And I'm not saying this is a perfect history of that society and culture. In fact, it actually makes me want to learn more about that history in order to see how close to realism these stories presented of the times. The tales are rich in details pertaining to that culture and society, allowing the reader to envision what might have been everyday norms during that point in history and I look forward to diving into more research just to see how much of it came close to reality!

As for the supernatural, the fantastical, the adventures and romance, it's all in here! And every tale appears to have some sort of lesson or morality to impart to the reader. But there is so much more to take away from each tale than just a life lesson and each reader may take away something different.

There aren't many words to describe how much I truly enjoyed reading each and every story in this collection. And I can't recommend it enough to those who truly love tales of fantasy and adventure, love and tragedy, heroism and villainy, triumph and despair. Every imaginable aspect of story-telling is embraced in this collection of stories and is imparted in such a way to keep the reader turning the page to the very end.

So, if you are looking for something that, at first glance, seems to be a challenge, but with each turning page dissolves into one of the most enjoyable reads you'll find, then definitely give this book a chance.

Monthly TBR Pile Update: December 2019

I'm excited to share that I've finished several books on my TBR pile this month. Below are the list of books finished and links to their reviews as well as their star rating. If you've read anything of these, let me know in the comments below what you thought of them. And if you haven't, maybe some of them will be added to your TBR Pile!

IT by Stephen King
5-Stars

House at the End of the Street by Lily Blake
2-Stars

Curiouser and Curiouser by Melanie Karsak
4-Stars

New Mexico Book of the Undead: Goblin & Ghoul Folklore
by Ray John de Aragón
4-Stars

2019 is almost over

Wow, what a year 2019 has been! It's been an odd one for me as I explored new hobbies and continued ones I'd begun a couple of years ago. The biggest thing I noticed throughout the year was that I never seemed to have enough time to do all the things I wanted to do. But then, that's pretty much every year! lol

Looking back on this year, I did manage to get one book published: Peregrinate (Annals of Ellie #3).

This book was a lot of fun to write, but also a challenge since I was writing about a part of the world I've never visited (Australia and New Zealand). But the story was about Ellie more than her surroundings, so it didn't turn out as bad as I was fearing.

Once I got that book published, I turned my focus to the next book in the Galactic Dynasty series that I'm co-authoring with my hubby and muse. We're still working on that manuscript, but I hope to have it published early in the coming year.

For the most part, though, I've been traveling and crafting this year. I'm still working on the afghan that I started a year or so ago as well as a cross-stitch that was also started more than a year ago. I'm steadily working my way through sewing classes and am now in the middle of sewing my first sundress! So excited to see how it turns out! I'll be sure to post pics on here when it's done. I've also crocheted Christmas presents (a slouchy hat and fingerless gloves) for my bestie, completed a paint-by-number for my hubby, and cross-stitched a little tree ornament stocking for my aunt and uncle.

As for traveling, I've been to San Diego and back, taking a month to travel with the hubby in our RV. That was back in January-February timeframe. I've been back and forth to Kentucky several times to visit my bestie. And I've been to Alabama and back to visit my aunt and uncle. There's also been trips to book festivals and a couple of house-hunting trips that ended up telling me that I wanted to stay right where we were instead of moving!

In all, it's been an active year. Not so much on the writing side of the house, but hopefully that will pick up again with the new year. I'm hoping to have the next Galactic Dynasty book out as well as possibly the next Annals of Ellie book out in the coming year, crossing my fingers and toes that my brain can recapture my love of writing that seems to have faded in the last year or so. I also intend to continue my book reviews of books I have on my TBR shelves. You can find a page called TBR Pile on my site which lists all of my books I've yet to read and follow the links to the ones I've already reviewed. 

As for crafting, I plan to hopefully have the afghan crocheted, the cross-stitch done, and my sewing classes completed within the next year. And who knows? There will probably be all kinds of other things I'll be experiencing and crafting and writing throughout the year.

So, no doubt 2020 will be just as busy as this year has been. But I don't think I'd want it any other way. Life is short and I believe that we should try to make the most of it while we can. And since all of these things are activities I love to do, that just makes life all the sweeter!

I hope everyone has an amazing 2020 and have a safe and fun time celebrating the passing of another year!

Review: Gardening for Beginners

*This review can also be found on my Goodreads account.
**This is not part of my TBR Pile as I got it for Christmas!

A great introduction for beginners who want to learn how to garden but don't know exactly what they want to grow. It gives overviews of what you need, how to prepare the site (whether in ground, raised beds, or containers), and provides some really good links to resources for further exploration/information gathering depending on what you want to learn more about.

There were also some sections that talked about the multiple uses of both flowers and vegetables. Everything from medicinal to color dyes and paints was covered. Again, briefly as the book's not that big. But it was enough to get the imagination stirring as to what all these plants can be used for. And there were some great links to further explore about these ideas as well.

The only negatives I have for this book, and they are minor but they prevented me from giving it 5-stars, was that all of the images in the book were black and white. And gardens of any variety are in color, so it made it hard to even distinguish what they were trying to show. The images were grainy as well as being black and white, so I feel the book would have been better off without them or using colored imagery. Also, the charts and tables used were in a grainy black and white and were reduced in size to fit the page. So, unless you have amazing eyesight or a magnifying glass, you're not going to be able to read the information in the charts.

In all, a good beginners guide and one I'll be referencing in the future depending on what I decide to grow and how I want to use it.

TBR Pile #5: New Mexico Book of the Undead: Goblin & Ghoul Folklore

*This review can also be found on my Goodreads account.

Folklore, myths, legends... there are so many out there, some seen in multiple cultures and some unique to one particular culture. This book focuses on New Mexico and the Spaniards that settled there in the sixteenth century up until today.

Everything from La Llorona to Bloody Mary is explored in this story collection. And I liked how the author wove Spanish and English throughout, providing some verses in Spanish before giving the English translation. There is also a nice mix of New Mexico history provided to give a backdrop to the stories and superstitions.

The only negative is I would have liked a little more historical/cultural background for some of the stories in this book. He did that well with some and not with others. And the layout was a little confusing, but not enough to deter from the individual stories.

Overall, a great introduction to New Mexico and Spanish folklore. If you're looking for something more detailed, this isn't it. But this book gives enough to whet the appetite to do more research on particular stories that intrigue the reader most.

TBR Pile #4: Curiouser and Curiouser

*This review can also be found on my Goodreads' account.

Teapots, flamingos, whimsy, and chaos... it's all in this book that is a kind of retelling of the classic Alice in Wonderland but with many differences that assist in making it it's own story. All of the beloved characters make an appearance in some form or fashion and Alice is recreated to be a strong heroine that is intelligent and resourceful, but makes mistakes.

This is a story of adventure, love lost, hope, redemption, love found, and of course, madness. And it's backdrop is that of steampunk London. I loved that the elements of steampunk were woven throughout without being the focal point. And the wonderland that was created was just as whimsical as the original telling yet given many realism's that made me feel as if I could step right into that world and feel at home.

The only reason I wasn't able to give this a full 5-star treatment was the style of writing this story was told in. It was too jarring for me and actually detracted from the flow of the narrative. This might turn some people off and others may not have a problem with it. But I believe I would have enjoyed this even more if the flow of narration had been a lot smoother.

Overall, a great book for fans of the classic as there are a lot of nods to the Lewis Carroll original (including a lot of head rolling thanks to the villainous Queen ;)). But it's also a great read for those that love a good steampunk setting and a bit of whimsy in their fantasy worlds!

Another Chapter Done!

With all the chaos that has been my life the last few months, not much has been done on the manuscript I'm currently writing.  But I am happy to say that I finally got another chapter written and am almost to the halfway mark in the story!  As with everything I write, I have no doubt that there will be rewrites and massages when I go back through later, but it's a relief and an exciting feeling to have one more chapter written.

So, as I continue to plug away at this manuscript, for anyone who hasn't read this series yet, I hope you'll take the opportunity to get caught up with the first four books.  You can find synopses, book covers, and links on the Galactic Dynasty page of this website.  And I'd love to hear from those of you who have read these books.  Let me know what you think of them in the comments section!

I hope everyone is having as stress-free a holiday season as is humanly possible.  And if you need a break from all the chaos and hustle of this time of year, be sure to check out my various novels.  You might find something new to curl up with and escape the madness for a while!

TBR Pile #3: House at the End of the Street

*This review can also be found on my Goodreads account.

I'm not even sure what to write. The plot was uninspiring, the characters underdeveloped, and the climax underwhelming. I found the main character annoying and her relationship with her mother so full of teen angst it was unrealistic. I kept reading just to see what the deal was with Ryan, but I'm more disappointed than anything. This book just didn't do it for me.

TBR Pile #2: IT

*This review can also be found on my Goodreads account.

So, this was my first time reading this book. I've been slowly trying to work my way through Stephen King's massive array of novels and since IT was just remade and both Chapters are now out, I felt it was time to pick this book up and see how different it was from the movies.

As always, Hollywood didn't come close to capturing the entire essence of the novel, but I will admit they did a fair job of getting closer than some adaptations they've done of King's novels in the past. I fell in love with Mike Hanlon's character and actually wished I could have read more from his perspective alone. But all of the characters had their unique perspectives to lend to the story and they were all fascinating in their own respects.

One of the things I wasn't sure I'd like but actually found to be a perfect way to tell this story was the back and forth between the years 1957-58 and 1984-85. It was done in such a way that didn't give me heartburn trying to keep up and it was laid out to complement what happened in the past to what they were remembering and what was happening in the present. So if this is something that normally bothers you, give it a chance as it really does make sense the way it's told and how various events are revealed.

As always, every time I read a Stephen King novel, I'm amazed at the depth of character that he creates. He truly knows the human condition better than most authors I've read and is able to capture the innocence of youth, the pangs of adolescence, the struggles, hopes, fears, triumphs, and failures that make us human. And the amount of details woven in to create the scenes, the atmosphere, the cultures of the time periods... all of this makes for a well-developed, truly immersive experience.

As for IT... I actually wish Hollywood would have stuck with the novel so the audience could see the true terror this being could create. The various shapes it took, calling on the imaginations and fears of the children, were so varied and grotesque, it would have made for some amazing scenes within the movies. And then the hold IT had on Derry itself... how the adults responded to the spikes in violence and tragedies, was scary in and of itself. But, I guess they had to be selective and of course, make their own changes.

In all, the book was amazing, the characters so real, and the descriptions so vivid, that I felt as though I was right alongside them as they triumphed, failed, and triumphed again in their struggles not just with IT but with their every day lives. If you haven't had a chance to read this yet, I would highly recommend it!

Author Struggles

Happy December!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving with family and friends.  I believe we ate way too much food, but I guess that's expected around this time of year!

Just a head's up, this is kind of a rambling post.  So, bear with me.

For the last couple of years, I've found myself struggling with my writing.  My characters seem to want to take weeks' long breaks and finding the magic that is normally there for me has been difficult, putting it mildly.  I've tried taking sabbaticals, I've tried forcing the words to come out, I've tried turning my focus to other creative outlets (sewing, crocheting, cross-stitching, paint-by-numbers), but not much has been working.  In essence, I believe all I was doing was finding new ways to distract myself from the core problem... where has my love for words gone?

In fact, for the last few months, I've been concerned that the joy and awesomeness of writing just isn't with me anymore.  I don't lay awake at night mulling over scenes in my head.  I don't seek out my computer to get my jumbled thoughts out or else I'll implode.  In a lot of ways, writing has become a chore lately and I don't like that.

I've been trying to figure out how to get myself out of whatever this funk is.  I've tried keeping a writing journal, using writing prompts, even going back to writing my thoughts on the various books I've been reading.  Not so much a full-on book reviews like I used to do on a book review blog I had, but more my thoughts on whether I liked it or not and why.

None of these things have seemed to help much, but last night I lay awake for almost three hours while my current characters (Commander Vorsky, Rosa, and Daemos in particular) decided to act out a couple of different scenes that will be coming up in the manuscript I'm writing.  I was tired and wanted to sleep, but they were determined.  And since this is the first time in about a year since this has happened, I let them have at it.  I'm glad I did, as I feel as though I might actually be seeing a light at the end of this dark chasm of struggle I've been dealing with.

Sorry for the ramblings, but I felt I needed to get this out into the electronic world.  Maybe there's someone who visits this blog and has been having the same struggles as me.  I just want to leave this post with encouraging words of don't give up hope just yet.  I've loved writing for as long as I can remember and that love doesn't go away.  It just sometimes takes a vacation, usually when you least expect it.  But it will come back and when it does, be prepared. 

I'm off now to finish up the latest chapter so I can give it to my co-author for his input and suggested changes.  And hopefully, fingers crossed, I'll have the passionate spark once more to move forward with this particular manuscript so I can see it through to the end!

TBR Pile #1 - Great Paintings

So, I'm trying something a little different here.  I want to add reviews of books on this site from time to time, sharing my thoughts about the various books that adorn my shelves.  These reviews will also be posted on Goodreads. So here's the first book off my To Be Read shelves:

 Great Paintings: The World's Masterpieces Explored and Explained

Published by DK Publishing

This is a great introductory book to the many styles/genres of art as well as artists throughout the centuries or it could be a great quick reference book. I liked the tidbits of information about each artist, about the paintings themselves, and the analysis of each painting. And the paintings themselves are well-presented in the high-res photographs provided for analysis. There was just enough information to have piqued my curiosity about several artists I was unfamiliar with before reading this as well as some of the greats that I've always admired. So I'll be looking for books that relate to those individual artists and their works to satisfy my growing curiosity!

Writing Prompt #9

Feeling the love with this Writing Prompt.  This and other writing prompts can be found at Writers Write.

You know that loving feeling... hearing a favorite song, tasting a favorite food, curling up with your favorite book!  It's what we live for, to generate that feeling through as many outlets as possible.  It feels good to love, so why limit ourselves to just loving a person or a pet?  Love books, love songs, love food, love life!  And if you have a loved one to share all that with, so much the better!

Writing Prompt #8

A bit of an apocalyptic theme this time for the Writing Prompt.  This and other writing prompts can be found at Writers Write.

The third world war has just ended and devastation spreads as far as the eye can see.  Instead of victorious cheers and dancing in the streets, people shuffle about in a daze.  All is chaos and no one knows what will happen next.

Infrastructure is non-existent and all the ways we once kept in touch with our fellow human beings no longer function.  It is as if someone has thrown a switch and we have all been transported back to the Dark Age.

Survival is all anyone can think about.  Where to get the next bite of food.  Where to find the next drink of water.  Where to find shelter and safety in a world gone mad.

It will be some time before any semblance of order reemerges and no doubt it will resemble days of feudal reign.  But for now, we are all just surviving one minute at a time.



Copyright © 2019 by Wendy Lohr

Writing Prompt #7

After a brief hiatus in which I took a trip to Erie, PA with my hubby and muse to celebrate our 16th wedding anniversary, I'm back to join in on the latest Writing Prompt.  This and other writing prompts can be found at Writers Write.

At the bus stop, I fidget nervously.  It is the first day back to school and the familiar routine of last year feels so foreign now.  Of course, that might have something to do with the fact that I was attending a new school this year.

New state.  New town.  New house.  New bus stop.

As unfamiliar kids begin to join me, I check out each one cautiously from the corner of my eye.  Would they become friends? Enemies?  I was worried they would ignore me and at the same time, I was worried they would see me.

Then a curly red-haired girl stood next to me and offered, "You can sit with me, if you want."

And suddenly, my nervousness turned into hope that maybe this move and the new school and even the new bus stop wouldn't be quite so bad.

Copyright © 2019 by Wendy Lohr

Writing Prompt #6

Careful what you eat when camping in the woods! Today's Daily Writing Prompt and others can be found at Writers Write.

They found him after seventeen days, straddling the log of an ancient Redwood.  He was completely naked and tapping his heels into the sides of the fallen tree, urging it "Onward ho!"

After convincing him he'd arrived at his destination (the town of Deadwood), paramedics ushered him to an awaiting ambulance and on to the hospital.  Several series of tests later revealed he'd gotten hold of hallucinogenic mushrooms while out on his three-day camping trip and had been wandering the forests while eating the mushrooms.

It was several days before he was finally released from the hospital and his husband declared, "You are never going camping without me again!"

Copyright © 2019 by Wendy Lohr