As I continue my reading of books by authors who participated in our November workshop, I am pleased and proud of the quality of our Eastern Iowa writers.
Seeking Signs, by Staci Mercado has also been chosen for a Midwest Book Award. So often with family and personal history, all we hear about is the final outcome without the events and motivations that explain that outcome. Mercado became intrigued with the death of Minnie Seamer in the early 1900s in Clinton County, Iowa, which was deemed a suicide. Her book explores the possibility that Minnie's death was a murder, and she forms an explanation that fits the existing documents and newspaper accounts from the time.
That story is enriched with details from the eastern Iowa German farming community in the early part of the Twentieth Century. The county fair, social events, clothing, superstitions, and technology all play a part in weaving a compelling story. Mercado organizes the book around the instructions in a private investigation pamphlet from the time that might very well have intrigued a thirteen-year-old girl. Because the main character is Elsie Edens, Minnie's younger sister, who is unwilling to accept the coroner's verdict on Minnie's death. Elsie becomes the vehicle for raising questions and pursuing a solution.
That story is enriched with details from the eastern Iowa German farming community in the early part of the Twentieth Century. The county fair, social events, clothing, superstitions, and technology all play a part in weaving a compelling story. Mercado organizes the book around the instructions in a private investigation pamphlet from the time that might very well have intrigued a thirteen-year-old girl. Because the main character is Elsie Edens, Minnie's younger sister, who is unwilling to accept the coroner's verdict on Minnie's death. Elsie becomes the vehicle for raising questions and pursuing a solution.
This is definitely a page-turner, and beautifully written. It's a blend of true crime and historical fiction. Staci has also published work in Barely South Review and Our Iowa. She teaches Creative Writing and English language arts at Central DeWitt High School and youth workshops at the Iowa Writers’ House in Iowa City.
David Moore's book, I Still Run in My Dreams: A Physical and Spiritual Journey through Quadriplegia, is a personal memoir of the accident that left him a quadraplegic. His athletic experience, particularly in tennis, in high school, college, and after, led him to push himself in every way possible to regain the maximum use of his body, a journey that is still underway. He tells the story with humor and determination, interspersed with glimpses of other patients and caregivers that he meets along the way. The detail emphasizes how such a handicap changes, challenges, and molds every aspect of life. It is a great holiday read, filling the able-bodied reader with a new appreciation of their own good fortune as well as admiration for the possibilities of the human spirit.
David Moore grew up in Illinois where he played college tennis and qualified for Nationals. A couple of years later, he was battling to overcome spinal cord damage from a car accident. He went on to coach for 25 years and now enters half-and full marathons.
Pick up one or both of these for your holiday reading!
David Moore grew up in Illinois where he played college tennis and qualified for Nationals. A couple of years later, he was battling to overcome spinal cord damage from a car accident. He went on to coach for 25 years and now enters half-and full marathons.
Pick up one or both of these for your holiday reading!
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