Susie Finkbeiner

Dear Readers,

Okay I am trying to write a review for a book that I really liked, A Cup of Dust by Susie Finkbeiner, and I am having a terrible time of it.  I feel like the only way I can talk about this book in an intelligent way is to tell the whole story line and then go on from there.

Don't worry, I am not going to do that as I hate reviews with spoilers.  It is very disappointing to me when that happens and I work very hard not to do that in my reviews.  I have started this review over more than once because I keep drifting into the spoiler area.  To me that is sign of a really well written story.  You can't talk about one part of the story without talking about all of the story.  It all flows together and you can't have the beginning without the end.  

Set in the Dust Bowl of 1934, A Cup of Dust is written about Pearl who is 10 years old and doesn't always understand what the adults are talking about, why her sister is the way she is, or why God has decided to curse Red River, Pearl's home town.  But she does know that Eddie, one of the hobos that jumped off the train, gives her the creeps.  

That is about as far as I dare to go for fear of giving more away.  What I mentioned here is actually on the back of the book and I figured that was safe to at least let you know a bit more about the story.  I went into this with the thought that I never really liked books that are about the depression.  But after reading "Dust" I realize that even though this is one of the most difficult times in US history, it may also have been some of our finest times.  

People lost everything, were struggling to keep family together and feed them and yet they shared with each other what they had. They looked out for each other and helped each other when they could.  It might have been so small a thing as a piece of bread or cup of water, but it was given freely.  Susie includes this in her story. Yes there are bad guys, but she doesn't dwell on the negative, she makes sure we see the positive of what is happening during this very difficult time.  

She reminds us through a story of a little girl why we call them our greatest generation.  

Read this book and be reminded of that, but also to learn the story of Pearl, the little girl who will win your heart because somewhere in all of us is a child just like her.  Someone just wishing they understood all that is going on but secure in the love of our Daddy. 

Happy Reading, 

Susie Finkbeiner

Dear Readers,

I am ashamed to admit that I did not read My Mother’s Chamomile by Suzie Finkbeiner when it first came out.  I really can’t remember why, but then it got pushed to the bottom of the TBR list and I just never got around to it. (Sorry Susie!)  Until now.  Simply put, I am sorry I waited this long to read it.  If you haven’t read it, go out and buy a copy right now and read it. 

Chamomile is a beautifully written story of a family who runs the only funeral home in the little town of Middle Main, Michigan.  I see several small towns represented in Middle Main, mostly because they all have some things in common.  Everyone is in everyone else’s business.  What might seem like a town gossip is someone who will be the first to lend a helping hand.  A day off to the big city is a reminder why you live in that little town and have no urge to live anywhere else.

The Eliot family has, for over 50 years, helped local families through one of the toughest times a family can face: the loss of a loved one.  Whether because of a tragic accident or disease or old age, they have stood quietly by the sides of any and all who have come.  It has also caused a toll on the family, the grandkids find it difficult to make friends and no one has been on a vacation in years, but they are very good at what they do. 

The story is told through the eyes of Olga, the matriarch of the family and Evelyn, one of Olga’s granddaughters.   These are two very different perspectives and that in and of itself helps make this story so very special.  With Olga you have the perspective of someone who loves her family and is very secure in what they do for a living.  She married into the funeral business and has no problem ministering to the town, though she would probably like a little more uninterrupted time with her husband over the years.   

With Evelyn you get the perspective of what it was like to be born into a family business that can be a bit scary for other kids in town.   This was something I never would have thought of.  I think that is what struck me so much about this book, is what it made me think about.   Not only what was it like to have a family business like the Eliot’s, but also relationships and what it means to walk to the end with someone.  I don’t want to say too much more about this book as I am afraid to give something away, but know that this little book is well worth the stop by.  

I was worried about finding a book that would make me cry for my book challenge, well I don’t have to look any farther.  Not out loud weeping, but a few tears running down my face?  Yes, and several moments of choking up.  That is a rare thing for me and yet it is one of the things that made me love this book even more. 

Happy Reading,

Susie Finkbeiner

Dear Readers,

Paint Chips by Susie Finkbeiner was written for those that say “that doesn’t happen in my home town.”  Susie takes on the issue of human sex trafficking.   She sets it in the town I work in and I have heard more than one person say they are glad that doesn’t happen here.   On a side note, the week after I read this book a local newspaper ran a series of articles on prostitution that is still going on in the area despite comments and thoughts that it had gone away.

This is a story of a mother and a daughter caught in very different (yet the same) ways in the sex trafficking world.  Cora is brought into the cycle by her own father and Dot is brought in by choices made by herself and circumstances in her life. 

Cora came from an abusive home.  Her father gets a job helping the local ‘godfather’ and he gets involved with the strip club/bar/casino that the man runs.  He sells one of his daughters to the owner of the strip club to pay off his debt and then continues working for the man.  In the meantime Cora dreams of the day she will be able to leave. 

Dot was born into a loving family.  Both her parents loved her and wanted the best for her.  Her mother hid a horrible secret from everyone, but it really didn’t seem to affect the family much.  Her mother loved to bake and take care of Dot and her brother, that is until something awful happened and destroyed their family for good. 

What follows is the story of why most of the girls and women get into that lifestyle.  It is also a story of a woman called Lola who is working hard to share God’s love with these women and to get them out of the vicious cycle that is their life.  Some she can help and some she can’t. 

This is not an easy topic, but Susie handles it well.  I think one of the things that struck me the most was the way the men in charge or pimping these woman out do not think of them as human.  They are just objects to be used and then when they are done with them the women are throwaways.   Susie makes sure we know these girls and women are not throwaways, but hurt people that need our help, prayers and protection.  This is a serious problem worldwide, one that does not have an easy answer, but one that we are all called to fight against.  Whether it is the trafficking of women from other counties lured here with the promise of a better life or a teenage runaway that does whatever she can to survive. 

Happy Reading

P.S  We are hosting a release party here at the store on April 22 at 7:00 p.m. Please come join us in celebrating with Susie with the launch of her book.