Jane is deeply unhappy. At 24, just starting out in life, she feels as though she has come to the end of the road. She lives with a smothering boyfriend in Atlanta, a city she dislikes, putting her dreams of being an author on hold just to make ends meet. She exists, but she does not live, no matter how hard she tries or prays for some kind of sign. No one answers. Things disintegrate further when she looses her job. With only a few hundred dollars in her bank account and feeling lost, she heads north to a cabin in the Smoky Mountains to regroup and get her life back on track. One wet, rainy day, she stops at a mountain outlook, thinking that if God is anywhere, surely she will find Him here. But the silence is louder than ever. Enraged and frightened, she pleads, screams, and threatens whatever is out there until a chance misstep sends her crashing onto the stony outcrop.
Waking with a large, throbbing lump, Jane is at first frightened and then bewildered to find that she has developed an interesting gift: she can understand the speech of animals and plants. Soon, a guide arrives: a tough and capable but compassionate stray mutt who calls himself Max. With Max as her companion, Jane slowly learns about the power that has always existed within her to change, to choose, and to fill her life with meaning. Together they wander the mountains, speaking with ancient trees, animals, and insects who share their purpose and wisdom with the two strays.
Jeanne Webster, a certified life coach, has written a narrative that is both a novel and a guide for those of us seeking our own passion and authenticity as human beings. Based around Native American stories she heard as a child, the plot is heavily focused on Jane’s, and by extension the reader’s, inner journey. As Jane finds her truth through the wisdom of the natural world, we begin to believe that such a transformation is possible for us as well. Readers will be particularly charmed by the sweet and lovable Max, a familiar figure of wisdom and grace to any friend of dogs.
Check this title’s availability in the UNC-Chapel Hill Library catalog.
Labor Day is approaching, and Oyster Bay, North Carolina, is bustling in preparation for a busy extended weekend. A popular tourist destination, the quaint village needs a spree of burglaries about as much as it needs a hurricane. Unfortunately, both are making their presence known. When the burglaries turn deadly, Olivia Limoges springs into action. A wealthy woman who owns about half of the town and genuinely cares for its citizens, she does not want Oyster Bay to get the reputation of being unsafe (even if it does weather the occasional storm). As a friend, fellow member of the Bayside Book Writers, and potential love interest of Sawyer Rawlings, Oyster Bay’s chief of police, Olivia has an inside source to the details of murders and robberies. Enlisting the help of her fellow writers and beloved poodle, Captain Haviland, Olivia realizes that the perpetrators leave clues in the form of clichés. Her quick wit will come in handy when she comes face-to-face with the criminals.