Zane's Trace: A Book Blurb

ZANE'S TRACE

by Allan Wolf

The Blurb 
 

Zane Guesswind is running from one death straight toward another -- his own. Taking off in a stolen 1969 Plymouth Barracuda, armed with his brother's driver's license, a six-pack of Mountain Dew, a jumbo pack of Sharpies, and a loaded gun in the trunk, he's headed for Zanesville, Ohio -- to kill himself at his mother's gravesite. He's got no rearview mirror and no more worries.

But when Zane picks up Libba, a hitchhiker also on her way to Zanesville, he gets a lot more than a girl who wants the last word in any argument. With each mile marker that he passes, Zane gets farther from the life he knows and closer to figuring out who he is. This suspenseful novel is a fast-moving read with a supernatural twist -- and an insightful look at families and how we can only escape them when we accept the way they are.

The First Lines

I-70 West: Mile Marker 82
* 334 Miles to Zanesville  

When I die
I want to come back
as a 1969 Plymouth Barracuda
midnight blue with black-tape accents,
twin dummy hood scoops,
and a 440 big-block engine
stuffed between the fenders.
An engine so big they had to install it
with a shoehorn and a hammer. 

Why I Decided to Take on the Read

Present to me a book with handwriting scribbles on its cover and I wouldn't take a second chance in grabbing it. That's what happened to Zane's Trace. I love seeing handwritten scribbles on books. On torn pieces of paper. On receipts. Anywhere. There's something personal about them -- they're like the remnants of the soul, like the faint white smoke that lingers when you blow the fire from the candlewick. This book has an air of eerieness in it and this draw me onto reading on the front cover. The story seems interesting a boy who was about to abandon his suicide plan. This book ought to have some good lessons about life. And.. This book is unique as it doesn't have chapters only summary of thoughts on each mile marker. Handwritten notes and unique way of storytelling. Got me.

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Under the Covers and Between the Sheets: A Book Blurb

UNDER THE COVERS AND BETWEEN THE SHEETS

The inside story behind classic characters, authors, unforgettable phrases, and unexpected endings

by C. Alan Joyce & Sarah Janssen

The Blurb 

GET THE INSIDE STORY

Did you know that Stephen King's wife rescued the manuscript for the best seller Carrie from the trash? Or that journalist Dorothy Parker left her entire estate to Martin Luther King Jr.? Hundreds of surprising little-known flaws, foibles, and feuds of the literary world will draw you into the pages of Under the Covers and between the Sheets...

DOWN AND OUT

Long before she became Bill Clinton's inaugural poet, Maya Angelou had stints working as a fry cook, a nightclub "shake dancer", and the first black streetcar conductor in San Francisco. 

PEN PALS

Mark Twain wasn't a lover of all literature. He once wrote of Jane Austen, "Every time I read Pride and Prejudice I want to dig her up and beat her over the skull with her own shin-bone."

A MONSTER IN THE FAMILY

Maurice Sendak's Where the Wild Things Are was meant to feature wild horses -- but when they proved too difficult to draw, he replaced them with monsters modeled on his aunts and uncles. 

The First Lines

Admit it: Even though you're a ravenous reader today, you probably still wince and shudder when someone mentions The Scarlet Letter, and you are overcome by memories of that high school English teacher who slowly squeezed the life out of what technically should have been a fun read for a 16-year-old. Seriously: It's got sin, adultery, revenge, self-flagellation, mysterious astronomical portents... what's not to like?

Why I Decided to Take on the Read

If you have been stalking me, you would've known that I am a ravenous reader poser. At least I think so. Though I have the thick and sticky desire and lust to read on books the whole afternoon, I cannot do so. Blame my work, frisbee, alcohol, the internet and him. But, I swear, if my God permits me, I would read all the important classics, especially those written by Fitzgerald. When I came upon this book, imagine my ecstasy. This would be my ultimate weapon against my literary friends. This would make me sound like a genius who seem to have touched all the pages of the books that are mentioned in this book. Aside from the juicy trivia that this book will feed me, this would guide me on what books to pick up. I really need a Kindle Fire this time. Also, I am overjoyed everytime I can relate to what the authors are pointing out or when they quote lines from books that I have already read. I'm like, Oh, I know that already with matching hand drop gesture. And it's really contemporary. They talk about the latest authors and books like Harry Potter and J.K. Rowling so it's timely and that makes this book enjoyable. This is not my review by the way, but it sounds like a review since I am halfway through the read so I am just gonna stop here.

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