Thursday, December 26, 2013

The Whiskey Bottle in the Wall (Vol. 1) - Friday 56 and Book Beginnings

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I've just started reading The Whiskey Bottle in the Wall (Vol. 1) and I'm already enthralled by the characters. This collection of short stories by Kathleen Valentine brings to life the inhabitants of small-town Marienstadt, Pennsylvania, and paints a vivid picture of the quirky characters' lives.

 Just the names of the tales are enough to intrigue me!

 *  Peeper Baumgratz and the Sister's
    Snowplow
*  The Great Dumpling War and Dance
    Competition
*  The Whiskey Bottle in the Wall

It’s no surprise that “The Whiskey Bottle in the Wall” was named Best Short Story in the 2013 eFestival of Words. Kathleen's stories are told with wit and warmth, and I'm looking forward to reading all three volumes in the series. FYI: The series can be purchased in one omnibus edition here: Whiskey Bottle Omnibus

 Here's the BOOK BEGINNING from the first story:
      Henry Werner knew that being the Chief of Police in Marienstadt, Pennsylvania, was an easy job but any day that started out with a visit from Sister Adelaide, the Prioress of St. Joseph's Convent, and which was followed by a call from the State Police, was off to an unpromising start. Despite the fact that he was close to forty and had been a policeman ever since he left the Marines, one withering stare from Sister Adelaid could reduce him to a single throbbing nerve. The worst part was, she knew it.

 And here are a couple of sentences from 56% on my Kindle:
      "You have a good idea there, Padre, and God forbid that any of these old gals should get hit by a bus and their recipes die with them, so we have to be sneaky. Luckily, you came to the right guy for that. The way you go about this, y'see, is to appeal to their vanity."

 Genre: Fiction / Folklore / Humor
Number of Pages: 156
Amazon Link: The Whiskey Bottle in the Wall (Vol. 1)
Other Books by Kathleen Valentine: Amazon Author Link

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36 comments:

  1. fredamansDecember 26, 2013 at 9:50 PM

    Wouldn't want to lose those recipes now... lol

    Happy weekend!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sandra NachlingerDecember 27, 2013 at 8:15 AM

      The stories are filled with that kind of humor. I loved this book and will read the others in the series.

      Delete
    2. UnknownDecember 27, 2013 at 9:42 AM

      Hi, thanks for your comments. Those recipes are an important part of cultural heritage!!! Heaven forbid that anyone get them wrong!

      Delete
  2. VonnieDecember 27, 2013 at 12:32 AM

    I like the sound of this book. The titles are really cute!

    My post

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    Replies
    1. Sandra NachlingerDecember 27, 2013 at 8:16 AM

      The titles do draw you in, don't they? The stories are as good as they sound, too.

      Delete
    2. UnknownDecember 27, 2013 at 9:43 AM

      Thank you. I hope you'll give it a try--some stories are funny but some are also quite serious. All of them are filled with characters I love.

      Delete
  3. HarveeDecember 27, 2013 at 2:56 AM

    Does sound cute and folksy. Enjoy the stories!
    Book Dilettante, Book Beginnings

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    Replies
    1. UnknownDecember 27, 2013 at 9:44 AM

      Thank you! Lots of folklore woven into the stories, too.

      Delete
  4. jacquieDecember 27, 2013 at 3:51 AM

    Might be the right time for me t get back into short stories... :)

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    Replies
    1. UnknownDecember 27, 2013 at 9:45 AM

      The stories are short but they also build to a conclusion. The last three stories in the collection tie up a lot of threads throughout all the stories. hanks for commenting.

      Delete
  5. JC JonesDecember 27, 2013 at 7:29 AM

    I love that opening. I never read short stories until recently. Now I love that I can finish one at one setting.

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    Replies
    1. Sandra NachlingerDecember 27, 2013 at 8:17 AM

      That's what I had in mind. But after I read the first story, I was so interested in the characters that I went right into the second one and read the whole book.

      Delete
    2. UnknownDecember 27, 2013 at 9:46 AM

      As I said above, the stories stand alone but they also build to a conclusion. I hope you'll give it a try.

      Delete
  6. BeaDecember 27, 2013 at 8:33 AM

    This sounds like a fun story. Mustn't lose those recipes, lol.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sandra NachlingerDecember 27, 2013 at 9:02 AM

      There's lots of drama surrounding the compilation of a cookbook. Some of those ladies just didn't want to reveal their secrets!

      Delete
    2. UnknownDecember 27, 2013 at 9:47 AM

      Thank you. Family recipes are a big deal in some communities. Ladies have been known to leave out a key ingredient when passing them on!

      Delete
  7. AnonymousDecember 27, 2013 at 8:42 AM

    I really love both these quotes, this sounds like a lot of fun! Might have to put this one on my TBR list!

    ReplyDelete
  8. ElizabethDecember 27, 2013 at 8:43 AM

    I "had" to stop by to see what this title was about. :) THANKS for sharing and for stopping by my blog earlier.

    ENJOY your day.

    Elizabeth
    Silver's Reviews
    My Book Beginnings

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sandra NachlingerDecember 27, 2013 at 9:03 AM

      The title grabbed me too. These were delightful stories.

      Delete
    2. UnknownDecember 27, 2013 at 9:49 AM

      Thanks for the nice words. I hope you'll give the stories a try!

      Delete
  9. Laurel-Rain SnowDecember 27, 2013 at 8:54 AM

    Oh, even the title and cover would grab me, but now I'm really intrigued. Thanks for sharing...and for visiting my blog. Happy holidays!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sandra NachlingerDecember 27, 2013 at 9:03 AM

      I've enjoyed other books by this author, so I knew I'd like this one too... and I wasn't disappointed.

      Delete
    2. UnknownDecember 27, 2013 at 9:49 AM

      Thank you very much. I hope you enjoy them.

      Delete
  10. proseandkahnDecember 27, 2013 at 9:06 AM

    Hahaha! I can think of one or two nuns from my Catholic school who could do that! Thanks for stopping by my Friday Memes.

    brenda

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. UnknownDecember 27, 2013 at 9:51 AM

      I grew up with nuns and they were amazing women--one of the nuns in my home town earned money for the convent by running a backhoe and digging ditches with it!

      Delete
  11. Sandra NachlingerDecember 27, 2013 at 10:29 AM

    Many thanks to the author, Kathleen Valentine, for stopping by to reply to comments.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Gilion at Rose City ReaderDecember 27, 2013 at 11:37 AM

    That's a great beginning and sounds like a charming set of stories!

    Thanks for participating in BBOF! Here's to another new year of good books and happy reading!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sandra NachlingerDecember 27, 2013 at 1:50 PM

      I've enjoyed being a part of this group. The only problem is that my Kindle is bulging with books that participants have featured.

      Delete
    2. UnknownDecember 27, 2013 at 2:37 PM

      Thanks, I hoe you'll give them a try!

      Delete
  13. LadyD PianoDecember 27, 2013 at 12:42 PM

    Wow, the cover art is so beautiful and some of the story tales have killer titles. Fiction, folklore and humor is a winning combination. Great post!

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    1. UnknownDecember 27, 2013 at 2:38 PM

      Thank you for the kind words about the cover. I love it--especially the Mountain Laurel which is Pennsylvania's State Flower.

      Delete
  14. YvonneDecember 27, 2013 at 1:19 PM

    Sounds good and I really love the cover.

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    1. UnknownDecember 27, 2013 at 2:39 PM

      Thank you. I love the cover, too. It is very much n keeping with the stories inside!

      Delete
  15. UnknownDecember 27, 2013 at 4:23 PM

    I can't resist a charming and mysterious book cover and I'm lovin the quirky titles. Sounds like I should check this out.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Julie December 28, 2013 at 5:16 AM

    This one definitely sounds fun! Thanks for sharing!

    ReplyDelete

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