Texas Books

This is an excellent book. As a 74 year old Jewish native Houstonian I could not put it down. I strongly recommend it to anyone interested in Texas history, even if they are not Jewish.

This is an excellent book for anyone who wants to know more about Texas than football & beer!

This book delves into a part of Texas history that has been ignored. Hollace wrote with a very interesting style that kept me totaly involved until I finished. It is one of those books that you feel you become one with and never want it to end.

Hollace Weiner's writing kept me enthralled. This book is the rare combination of careful and accurate research while the presentation is that of an enticing historical novel. It's loaded with all the goods - mystery, politics, romance and more, but all the accounts are true. I couldn't put this book down as every chapter had a fresh and intriguing draw. The facts themselves are fascinating. Written in Ms. Weiner's engaging style, this book is a big winner. I give lectures on small-town synagogues and Jewish communities and I have already used some of the great new research covered in her book.

It is a very well written book which documents the great impact these Jewish Rabbis had on the people of Texas in general.

I met Tom Dodge in 1980. He was the somber, bearded, denim-clad intellectual who collected and sold vintage books in his relaxed little store downstairs from my wholesale office in a restored 200 year-old jailhouse in Waxahachie, Texas -- a great place to work and to hang.

On balmy afternoons, when business was slow, I would venture downstairs, browse the bookshelves, drink some coffee, and swap a few stories. I did most of the talking. Our conversations would round many curves, some serious, many amusing, but none very invasive in a personal sense. When we laughed, I noticed that Tom's demonstration was subdued, as if a gnarled hand from deep in his soul had reached up, pained his features, and choked his laughter.

One day, I felt confident of his trust, so I asked him about his parents. He was forthright, but hesitating. He described his mother and her life in sparse detail. He tried to share some insight about the person whom he thought was his father. Finally, he confessed that he really did not know who his father was. I cannot recall our finishing that point, because I had to take a phone call upstairs. We continued our visits, Tom's justified preoccupation with a recently injured son diverted me from trying to "get into his head."

My company closed the Waxahachie office in 1984, and I relocated my work to Dallas. Although we did see each other occasionally, Tom and I really did not keep in touch until 1995. One afternoon, I gave him a call; he was talkative and enthusiastic, in the middle of writing another book -- a personal account, this time. By then, Tom was trying to "manage" his mother -- not only her home and finances, but also the aftermath of some of her bizarre behavior in and around town, the result of a diminishing mental capacity.

I found out that, while growing up, Tom had shoes, clothes, shelter, and food. And, he had the love of his mother's parents, who raised him. But, all through his life, he wanted -- needed -- to know who his father actually was. But, Tom's mother could not tell him -- especially as he grew to adulthood -- because he represented a shameful indiscretion with someone to whom she was not married. He tried to reach out to her, but she was running too fast, pursued by ghosts from her past. They never had a deep conversation; it was just too risky for her. Time was running out; Tom's mother would not be able to tell him, because she was losing her mind. One great day, however, Tom got his answer -- a simple, straight answer. His world changed after that.

Oedipus Road is an interesting book in which Tom Dodge deals with his frustrating journey into self-realization in a sensitive, but dignified, way. He does not try to pull the reader into a maelstrom of grief; Tom, himself, is too reserved. Rather, he takes you along on a sensitive, realistic tour of time and life in a couple of small towns in Texas; he guides us with reflection and awareness. Oedipus Road involves the reader through a captivating story and empathy for a man seeking significance.

I liked this book. I found it well written and very interesting. The tales of growing up in Cleburne, Texas are captivating, even more so since it's a world gone by. The chronicling of his mother's Alzheimer's Disease is heartbreaking and reminds us of what we all might be facing.

There is a hauntingly beautiful line in the movie "Shadowlands": "We read to know we are not alone." Every time I read Tom Dodge's OEDIPUS ROAD I feel its truth.

I had read Mr. Dodge's book of short essays and thoroughly loved it. I purchased this book at NorthLake College where I had the pleasure of hearing Mr. Dodge speak. My father died of colon cancer a year ago and spent a month in dementia at the end, and my mother has recently moved my 94 year old grandfather into her home. Due to these circumstances I could really appreciate Mr. Dodge's experiences dealing with his mother's situation - and understand the stress. But the beauty - and the mystery - of the story is his search for his father's identity. I kept turning pages because I couldn't wait to see what information he would discover - or extricate from his mother - next.

Oedipus Road by Tom Dodge is wonderfully engaging. I think I read it in three sittings. Normally I don't find mysteries my cup of tea, but when they are about birth rather than death and occur on a spiritual-emotional plane rather than a physical one, the drama changes entirely; this tea is just the right cup and just the right flavor.

The narrative's subtitle, "Searching for a Father in a Mother's Fading Memory," captures a basic irony of this tale with its classical allusions and provides the basis of its form. The author, stubbornly searching for his lost father in his mother's lost memory, begins each chapter with a candid recollection of his mother in her own voice -- setting the tone for her son who recalls his own childhood in parallels that oddly match his mother's memories on some level. However, Plato and Sophocles hover behind this story of small town life in Cleburne, Texas during the fifties with its insistence on knowledge, especially self-knowledge. In a sense, the author travels the long read that we all travel from the time we're old enough to question our identity. How can we make wise choices unless we know who we are? His mother, a victim of Alzheimer's disease, would seem to be little help on his path; however, the past is as vivid to her mind as the present is dim. Her lively language fairly vibrates off the page as she recalls her own childhood, evoking yet another generation, that of her beloved parents, in whose home the author is reared. We see life spanning generations, socially, politically, economically -- a history of the United States for three generations on a personal level.

As the author outlines his struggles with his mother's mental deterioration and his search for his father, we get not only only a book of changing times but one of morals and mores also. Unlike Jocasta, the author's mother knew who his father was, but as he says of his mother and gradmother: while they could bear any tragedy, scandal was indefensible. And thus never mentioned, ever. Dodge says he was the scarlet letter his mother refused to wear. It's not a bitter story, however. Despite the author's pain and ever-present anxiety, he recalls the pleasure of his small-town doings with nostalgia, great fondness and affection. And always there to guide him, like the chorus in ancient Greek plays, were his grandparents, his aunt Bernice and his mother's husband, kind beacons along the way.

Finally this mystery, aptly begun on Mother's Day, is solved, but it's a who-done-it until the very end. I was breathless by the end of one of the last chapters when the author has led the reader to believe that, if ever, it will be now, and his mother, like a character in a badly dubbed foreign movie, says the name for which so long he has searched. And oddly there is no blame. Because Dodge has allowed his mother to speak for herself, his story is her story too. Tragedy bequeaths itself only because it is inevitable, not because someone is to blame. Thus it is that Oedipus Road does what the best stories do: teaches us compassion and affirms life without ignoring its tragedy or folly.

Since Joe Coomer and I are distant relatives (cousins by marriage), I've been reading his books for about four years. I started with KENTUCKY LOVE because that's where his ancestors and mine began. What a book that was!

Then I read three more, in no particular order, so I'm wandering helter-skelter through his writing career ... and enjoying every moment of these fine reads.

Each book I read is so unique from the other, but each has common threads: warmth, love of family and friends, love of life, life lessons, smooth reading, realistic characters, etc.

I really looooooove the concept of ONE VACANT CHAIR, and appreciate finely-drawn characters who have unusual jobs in life.

Go, Joe!!! (And congratulations on the movie deal on THE LOOP. Can't wait to see the movie!)

This story has everything I look for in a book: excellent characters who evolve; a good, strong plot; romance; and humor.

Sarah is a fourty-something mother whose husband has betrayed her and whose grandmother has just died. She takes refuge with and also takes care of her grieving Aunt Edna, grandmother's caretaker for the last 20 some years.

The cast of characters includes a blind black man who repairs the chairs that Edna endlessly paints, the rest of the family who are quite quirky and a southern baptist minister with a bad toupee.

There's old family squabbles, new acquaintance mystery. And most of all, there's a big old life lesson - what you see is not always what you get. It's all in what you choose to see.

This is not quite a light read; it's a lot thicker than that. But it is utterly lovely.

(*)>

"We were two fat women, eighteen years apart, a chair artist and a designer of Christmas ornaments, who only knew we had troubles and a hot summer to get through," says Sarah. But as it turns out, there is a great deal more to quirky Aunt Edna's troubles than Sarah could possibly imagine. As the novel turns from the hot, oppressive heat of Texas to the misty beauty of Scotland, she learns of her aunt's remarkable secret life and comes to fully understand the fragile business of living, and even of dying.
My reviewing experience is minimal, but it would be remiss of me to not let you know how much I enjoyed this book. Joe Coomer's book "One Vacant Chair" is one of the most well-written stories that I have ever read. If you have the time this summer and you're looking for a great read, try this book. You won't be disappointed.
"It's where you sit down that determines everything in life."

This book works on so many different levels. It's a great read that's hard to put down once you start. It has wonderfully fleshed out characters who come to life on the page. The themes are compelling, and Coomer handles them with a strong sense of humor and sensitivity. The discussion of art technique adds another interesting dimension. All in all, I loved this book!

Friends and family have been phoned and emailed with the rave review I've given this book. Funny, touching, sweet, and spicy---it has everything you hope a book will have, and then some. Realistic characters, great dialog and a realistic plot kept me reading well into the night. Tell your friends...they'll thank you.

I had really almost decided to stop buying Junior League Cookbooks. They had all started to look about the same, recipe wise, with little if any regional feel to them. (and you guys in north dakota can just leave out the tex-mex, ok?) But I am extremely happy that I have this one. The book is a work of art in itself, with really nice design to it, and at least a hardback/spiral not a plastic comb (I know, some cookbooks could not afford to see the light of day without that)- but these recipes are terrific, very texan, and have for the most part left out the huge amounts of filler recipes that so many junior league cookbooks have started to have- like endless lasagna dishes, italian, etc. Well Done! I would have bought a few more for friends if I had any, IF they had left out more of the 'canned' sorts of things.... but there is not an overwhelming amount of that, like there was in the '60's.

South Texas women have always had a flair for entertaining. Nothing is ever ordinary! The book is filled with fresh ideas in a creative ensemble of South Texas cuisine. Recipes are easy to follow and offer a twist to the overly detailed companions. Your friends will delight in your cooking and be so ever inquisitive of the recipes, this I know from experience!

South Texas women have always had a flair for entertaining. Nothing is ever ordinary! The book is filled with fresh ideas in a creative ensemble of South Texas cuisine. Recipes are easy to follow and offer a twist to the overly detailed companions. Your friends will delight in your cooking and be so ever inquisitive of the recipes, this I know from experience!

This Cookbook has a lot of unique recepies that are very easy and and delicious. The variety also makes it easy to do a complete meal from the cook book.

This is a great cookbook! There are great recipes for casual entertaining with ingredients that are easy to find. I collect JL cookbooks from all over the US and this is one of my favorites. Maybe because there are lots of Tex-Mex and appetizers.

This book caused me to think of people and places I hadn't thought of for the past 30 years. I served with Delta company Sept. 1970 till July 1, 1971. Keith Nolan told a story that should have been told long ago. After reading Sappers in the Wire I was upset with some of the things that were said about Delta. But I now realize that not everyone will recall events in the same light. It has a lot to do with where you are at in the chain of command. This book caused me to get in touch with quite a few of my wartime brothers. It has also help me to remember things that were in the back of my mind, THANKS Keith for telling at least part of The Professionals story of 1970- 1971. I will re-read this book over and over, because each time it helps me remember more.
SFC Joseph H. Wolfe, Jr. US Army (Ret)
Charleston, SC

AASIGNED TO COMPANY "D" 1/46, 196 INF, I KNOW MR. NOLAN HAS TONS IF INTERVIEWS AND DOCUMENTS ON THE SUBJECT, FSB MARY ANN, I BELIEVE THAT VOLUMES COULD AND SHOULD BE WRITTEN, AS WELL AS, PHOTOS, NOT TO STOP SHORT OF A FEATURE FILM.....

This book helped me remember how lucky I am to be here to read it. I was amazed at how much detail he found in his research, best one Ive read on viet nam and what it was really like. Thanks mr. Nolan

The war was winding down but for the men of the 196th LIB home was just a distant dream. As a member of Charlie Company, I can attest to the accuracy and fairness the author treats the grunts of LZ MaryAnn. I only pray that we will never see a war like VN again.

AASIGNED TO COMPANY "D" 1/46, 196 INF, I KNOW MR. NOLAN HAS TONS IF INTERVIEWS AND DOCUMENTS ON THE SUBJECT, FSB MARY ANN, I BELIEVE THAT VOLUMES COULD AND SHOULD BE WRITTEN AS WELL AS PHOTS, NOT TO STOP SHORT OF A FEATURE FILM.....

Unlike most of the other reviewers, I grew up in Indiana but the Colt .45s were my team. When I first started following sports I wanted my own team, not the Yankees, Cubs or Reds so I picked Houston. Yes, I paid for it my entire life.

In a word, the book was amazing. I would have been the ideal subject for a Norman Rockwell painting, as I sat outside the local drugstore anxiously awaiting The Sporting News to get delivered so I could read everything about my Colts. The book filled in so many of the missing pieces for me especially on the planning before they took the field. The photographs brought to life a lot of what was only mental images of my youth.

I would highly, highly recommend this book. I know my Sixshooter Club card is around here somewhere.

An excellent and detailed history of the Colts and their origins in the planned Continental League, the National League expansion of 1961-62, and their colorful early days until they became the Astros. Lots of great photos of players, now-defunct ballparks, and memorabilia, and the real inside story of the name changes from Colts to Colt .45s to Astros. A winner all around.

Anyone who enjoys reading about the history of baseball will love this book whether one is a Houston fan or not. It is a history book and a human interest story all rolled into one.

One get's the feeling after reading this book a feeling of a little sorrow of not having the opportunity to have known some of the unusual personalities depicted in the book, especially pitcher Dick "Turk" Farrell whom obviously was an under rated but solid major league pitcher and a man of a thousand pratical jokes.

The power struggles between the men who helped bring major league baseball to Houston is a story that is almost too intriguing to be true yet is a story that is factual in every detail.

To the fan of the Houston Astros baseball franchise, this is the ultimate book on the history of the origin of the team.

Author Robert Reed definitely did his homework on this one.

I grew up and still reside in the Bayou City. I was born in 1967, two years after the Colt .45's moved from Colt Stadium into the Astrodome and changed their name to the Astros.


Even as a young child I remember having an almost mystical interest in the Colt .45's. It was a marvel to me that they could actually play basball outside in the summers in Houston. I clearly remember my little leauge days in Houston thinking about the heat and humidity and the glare of the sun.

There was never an abundance of information on the Colt .45's or pictures of the old stadium unless you heard it about it from older Houstonians or former players that still called Houston home. This book is truly the Bible of Houston baseball. It is comparitive to the Old Testament's GENISIS. I swear if you curl up on a lazy afternoon and let your mind flow with the book you will feel as though you have travelled back into yester-year and you are there at Colt Stadium, mosquitos, humidity and all.

Sadly baseball in Houston now is a joke. The Astros are the epitome of over-paid, grossly under achieving, lazy athletes. I grew up with the Dome and I would have glady gone to Colt Stadium to root on a near last place team. AT LEAST THEY TRIED AND MADE AN EFFORT. The new ballpark downtown I have nicknamed "The Coffin". With it's retractable roof "The Coffin" is either opened or closed depending on what day you drive by. Most every player inside the place is alrady dead or just going through the motions.

This book celebrates the effort, the entertainment and the energy that once exsisted in Astros history but no longer does. This is the written account of the genisis of major leauge baseball in Houston. It also includes INCREDIBLE photographs in color and black and white.

This book is NOT to be missed ! Read it !

I stumbled on this book at a bookstore in upstate NY, a far cry from the Houston area. As a baseball fan, it caught my eye although I had very little knowledge of Houston's MLB origins. What sold me-- at least during that quick perusal in the bookstore -- was its treatment of how Houston and NY both came into the league at the same time. After reading it, though, I'm astounded at the history and story of baseball's first major-league team in the south. The no-hitters, the futility, the tear-jerker about Jim Umbricht .... this story reeks of everything that baseball is -- good things, such as colorful characters, true fans, baseball as a game first and business second, and tragedy as well -- the real "Love of the Game" story, not that Kevin Costner tripe. Whether you know anything about Houston, the Colt 45s, or Texas, do yourself a favor and read this book. Heck, it's a human story, not just a sports story. The younger fan may not "get it," but those of us who grew up with those hot summer nights listening to baseball on transistor radios -- no matter were you lived of what team you claimed -- will enjoy the trip back.

Tammy Faye Messner is an inspirational lady and her book is a light along the shadowy path of the human condition. Tammy's mind is sharp and agile, and her voice of reason is soft with wisdom yet strong with courage. Every page has something positive to offer, and although the subject matter is mostly serious, Tammy manages to lighten the text with several amusing recollections. I particularly enjoyed pages 88 - 101, where Tammy mischievously recounts the famous 'Jim Bakker Roast' when the couple were at the height of their fame and influence. Following is a brief excerpt.

'Jim was excited but I had to say no because the roast was about to start. Jimmy Swaggart opened with a three-minute routine about the doghouse (he'd just been put there by his wife - again!), then Benny 'The Rug' Hinn told an off-colour joke about The Archbishop of Canterbury and a vacuum cleaner. Jim laughed so much he almost made MY mascara run! Joyce Meyer, never one to miss the spotlight, then asked Jerry Falwell to dance.
"Ballroom?" Joyce suggested.
"Honey," Jerry bellowed, "in these tight pants there ain't even room for loose change!"
I'd never heard Jim laugh so much, apart from the time he made a prank call to Oral Roberts pledging $5,000,000 on behalf of the Jehovah's Witnesses. I gotta tell you. These televangelists sure know how to put on a roast.'

If you haven't read Tammy's book, do yourself a favour.

What a life! Tammy certainly tells it her way! All of it! From growing up in International Falls, Minnesota to being the queen of the largest Christian television network to being the scorn of millions in and out of the Christian community. And all the steps inbetween. She candidly shares every detail (including some of her sex life!) of her rise and fall from power and her struggle to pick up the pieces of her life. Every struggle, every behind-the-scenes moment, every misconception and every mistake NOT widely known about!

Tammy definately had a life worth reading about. She sheds revealing backstage light on some of the biggest names in Christianity today - Paul and Jan Crouch, Pat Robertson, Jerry Falwell, etc. etc. etc. All with a genuine spirit of forgiveness.

Tammy is definately a beautiful soul and a beautiful person who deserves to be heard. In the book she says, "I believe that truth is truth. What happened happened and is now history. I just want history to be told correctly for my children's sake and for the sake of my grandchildren and generations to come." I think that we all should hear the truth from this woman whose ENTIRE life was devoted to openly sharing with people.

Whether you agree with her religion or not (for the record I don't but I still enjoyed every word and think she's fabulous) her general love for everybody, including those that hurt and betrayed her in a colossal manner, shines!

Don't judge a book by it's cover or a televangelist by her makeup!!!

Sidestep the profiteers trying to make a fast buck from Tammy Faye's recent death by selling this book for up to $2,000. I recently ordered an AUTOGRAPHED copy of the book from Tammy Faye's website for $25 plus shipping.

I love Tammy Faye and thank God for not only who she is, but for her love for a lost world. I'm so glad and encouraged personally that she has the guts to not only be herself, but also how she chooses to look or wear her makeup. Whoever wrote or said for her to get rid of her makeup is an IDIOT. I can't stand people like that.

The autographed copies once available at Tammy's site are all sold out. This is her best book.

This is the first Kelton book I have read and the first fiction novel that I have read in decades. I felt like it was real to life and forgot it was fiction. I live there-West Texas, Panhandle. Surely there is a sequel. He left it open to finish out the lives of the major people involved, in at least one more book but ended this one as he should.

Great book! Kelton shows us Charlie Flagg's country. You'll like it

This book is unlike any of Kelton's other works. The time setting is the 1950s and the seven-year drought we experienced during those years. The plot/theme is the end of the era of independence and freedom among cow men ... the time when they told themselves the drought forced them to sell themselves to the government to receive hay in return for their souls and their pasts.

I think of this book as a companion read to Abbey's, Brave Cowboy and McMurtry's, Hud (the book). All three writers were capturing a time and an attitude representing an end of an era when ranchers continued to curse the government out of habit while accepting welfare money as gracefully as the city poor they despised for doing so.

Kelton's book is as good as the other two, maybe better.

Being a Texan in Texas during the drought Elmer Kelton describes in The Time It Never Rained, he seems to write about it first hand. I remember the deluge that ended the drought, and it was the experience I remember. I worked at the San Angelo Standard-Times while Mr. Kelton did, and his day to day newspaper work was a preview to his books to come. He has West Texas nailed down to a T, and I love all his books. But this one especially strikes home.

Elmer Kelton was rightfully honored with a number of awards for this thoughtful piece of work originally published in 1973. While it is about ranchers trying to survive in one of those long droughts that seem to come more and more frequent to the West and particularly the Southwest it is much more than a story of survival. The nearest community in the book is called Rio Seco and while it only exists in our mind's eye Kelton describes it well enough that it could be one of thousands such communities scattered across Texas and the West. What came to my mind as he described it is the movie from a number of years ago called, "The Last Picture Show". The book is a beautiful study of evolving and conflicting cultures on so many levels. Kelton does a fine job of laying out the past and showing the future of changes between Angelo and Hispanic to include the continuing question of undocumented immigrants. Another is the "old school" way of looking at things rather than the new way. One of the focal points of the book is the role that government aid plays in changing groups such as ranchers forever. The "hero" (and I'm sure he never considered himself a hero of any kind) of the book, Charlie Flagg refuses the aid and thereby creates tension for himself and others around him. What's amazing, and something to which I consider an honor, is that I was reared in a time and community to have known men just like Charlie Flagg. This book has been re-published several times and I can understand why. Really much of what you read in "The Time It Never Rained" is timeless while other parts provide a beautiful look to the middle of the last century in Texas. While it's considered a western it's far from a "shoot'em up". Other of his books go there but that's for another review.

Pence's book, recalling the 1994 murder of Warren Bondurant's girlfriends best friend, was a good read but not up to the caliber of the author's other fine true crime books. While the story is full of many details, which obviously shows that Ms. Pence thoroughly researches the cases she writes about, this book seemed to be written fully in the view of Sandra Underhill who was Bondurant's want-ad lover. As stated in the book Underhill provided many hours of interviews with the author as the basis for the book and I think this is why it seems so "one-sided". (I could not get over the feeling that Underhill really told some half-truths and sometimes not the truth at all) However it is an entertaining read nevertheless. UPDATE: as of the writing of my review Warren Miles Bondurant still sets in a Texas prison at the age of 71. He is eligible for a parole hearing in 2021, at the age of 86.

I have been an avid reader of true crime for 30 years now, and would say that this book is a real gripper! The stars must have been in a real upheaval when Sandra Coburn Underhill was born -- the poor girl/woman had been beaten down (many times literally beaten) her entire life. What are the chances that just when she thought her she life was about to turn around and her dreams realized, that she would then put her faith and trust in Miles Bondurant, a wolf in sheep's clothing? I have always believed that answering an ad in the personals is dangerous -- now I KNOW it is. I couldn't put this book down.

Amazing tale! Someone gives a troubled woman a chance in life, and gives her some hope... little did she know the horrors she was about to face. And face them she did. I want to write more, but I do not want to give away the book. A good read. Easy to get into, and easier to keep reading to the end.

This is a very well-written book, and it made Irene Pence one of my new favorite authors. I have read all of her books since. She does an outstanding job of allowing the reader to really get to know all of the characters. Although some of the people in the book make choices that most of us would not (hopefully), by the time those choices are made, the reader understands why the person is the way he/she is. You feel the fear and frustration, and it made me incredibly angry to see that the murderer used innocent children to force his girl friend to do what he wanted her to do. It is a very sad story. I recommend this book to any true crime fan, and I strongly recommend any book written by Irene Pence.

Irene Pence is a fine True Crime investigator and writer. This reviewer thinks she's even better than Ann What's-Her-Name. Pence doesn't drool on an on about every interviewee being so "beautiful" "handsome" and "intelligent." Ms. Pence is so good at what she does that the reader forgets the writer's there - none of the over-written stuff that pulls the reader out of the story to focus on the raconteur - she artfully lets the Tale do the talking and her words don't get in the way.

This is a True Texas Tale about old Miles Bondurant, his vulnerable and gullible young quasi wife, and her true friend - a twisted lover's triangle in the Lone Star State. Reviewed by Tundra Vision

THIS IS SUCH A GOOD BOOK. I first picked up when I was in middle school (a very long time ago) and I try my hardest to read it again every few years. The characters are delightful and the entire book is a such a beautiful story. Highly Recommend It.

Although I read this book like 5 months ago I can still remember what it was about!! I can't even describe this book it was so amazing! To all readers out there: read this book you will fall in love with it!

This is a great book. It shows wonderful examples of joy, pain, love, friendship, and sorrow. Roxanne comes into Jesse's life and they become best friends. Roxanne is kind of the outcast of Ida. With her bubbly personality, giant coat, wild red hair, and Liberty Bell tattoo, people look at her as a definate outcast. Roxanne teaches jesse the magic of life and they bond. This is a wonderful book for all ages. a must!!!

I give Under The Mermaid Angel two thumbs up.
It is a good book to read if you'r feeling really down and depressed and you just want a really good book to read to so totally boost up you'r spirit.

I read this book when I was twelve. It is still my favorite book. And when I read it, I finished it in 2 days! I couldn't put the book down. It is not tons of adventure on every page but it is soo interesting. I felt connected to Jesse. Well, Jesse feels kinda in a rut in a very boring town (Ida). But when roxanne moves in she changes Jesses life. They become best friends even though the big age difference. I think the climax of the book was when Roxanne wanted to touch Frankenstiens hand at the church and she didn't. I thought it was so sad that she sat next to him but never said or did anything. And he never knew. And that she came all the way to Ida and sat next to him and never told him. Very sad. At the end of the book. I wished that it would go on. I wish Martha Moore would make a sequel. Because I want to know if Frankenstien ever found out about his mother.