Search Results for: blog the journal of patrick seamus flaherty ellen emerson white

What is that New-Skin Stuff, Anyway?

I happen to have a number of cuts on my hand at the moment (I’ve been taking classes at a glass studio in Portland and was especially clumsy yesterday) and had the opportunity to try that “New-Skin” stuff — it’s part of the first aid supplies they keep on hand. New-Skin (and other liquid bandages) brush on and dry quickly, forming a flexible, waterproof covering for cuts, scrapes, skin cracks, and blisters. The original New-Skin brand product was invented more than a hundred years ago and got its first trademark in 1901. Several different companies make and market liquid bandages, … Continue reading →

The Shakeress – Kimberley Heuston

It is the beginning of the 1800’s. Naomi, her older brother Ben, and her younger siblings Eli and Glory have been left orphaned by a house fire that claimed not only their parents’ lives, but that of the baby as well. They have been sent to live with Aunt Thankful, a woman who does not live up to her name but instead takes everything on herself as a burden and a curse. Rather than being grateful that the four children survived the fire, she complains about the extra work and expense of raising them, and she informs Naomi that she … Continue reading →

Why Didn’t You Get Me Out? – Frank Anton

Frank Anton was serving his country as a soldier in the Vietnam conflict. He was taken captive by the Vietcong and held captive in a jungle camp for years before finally being taken up to the Hanoi Hilton, a march of half a year. Just shortly after his arrival in Hanoi, he and the other POWs were released and brought home to the United States, emaciated, sick, and suffering any number of physical and psychological scars. “Why Didn’t You Get Me Out?” is Anton’s story, told in his own words, of the things he endured as a POW. This book … Continue reading →

The Journal of Patrick Seamus Flaherty – Ellen Emerson White

“The Journal of Patrick Seamus Flaherty” is one book in a series entitled “My Name is America,” which takes incidents in history and dramatizes them to make them more accessible to a younger reader. I’ve had the chance to read several volumes in this series and found each of them to be well-researched, touching, and educational without being heavy-handed. This installment of the series tells us about a young man who enlists in the Vietnam War shortly after his graduation from high school. His father gives him a journal to take with him, and asks him to keep a record … Continue reading →