Review: Beyond a Reasonable Doubt ed. by Larry King

This book was a gift from a local attorney whose daughter used to work at our office. He passed out copies to all of the attorneys in our office, and what a gift! This book was WONDERFUL. It is one of the few books that I really think everyone should read. I finished it last night, completing it in a couple of weeks, which is quite an accomplishment for me, especially when talking about a non-fiction read.

One of the things I've learned in my years as a criminal defense attorney (and teacher) is how little the average citizen understands about the Constitutional rights we all share. The requirement of proof beyond a reasonable doubt is often considered one of those rights, but it does not actually exist anywhere in our Constitution. The essays in this collection highlight the need for the average joe to really understand that standard of proof, and to apply the mandate in every criminal case. The Casey Anthony trial, and the media circus that attended it, are a fine example of the rush to judgment that most people experience when they hear of someone accused of a heinous crime. The law, ironically enough, requires us to do the opposite: presume the accused innocent, unless the government proves BEYOND and TO THE EXCLUSION of EVERY reasonable doubt that the accused is guilty. That is a high bar, but not many folks understand just how high. And the reason behind that is that a person's liberty (and, in Florida, sometimes his life) is at stake.

This book is a celebration of our criminal justice system in all its glory. The book is divided up into several sections. The first section is titled "Beyond a Reasonable Doubt" and features attorneys, judges, and other players in the criminal justice system discussing the venerable standard of proof in criminal cases. The second section, "Equal Justice," is harder to pinpoint. I'd say the overarching theme is that all people are entitled to the same presumptions, regardless of their position. The third section, entitled "Quest for Truth," diverges a bit from the criminal justice system to explore more about the civil court system. This section was a bit boring for me, as I have never practiced civil law (and have no desire to do so). I'll admit that this section is where things got a bit muddy for me. I thought the whole book was about the criminal justice system, but this section was where it started to feel like Larry King just contacted a bunch of lawyers, said "reasonable doubt," and had them write an essay about whatever came to mind. The fourth section, called "Media and the Justice System," is exactly what it sounds like: an exploration of how the media can affect the outcome of a trial, especially in high-profile trials (like my Casey Anthony example, above) or trials of the rich and famous (OJ, Robert Blake, etc.) The fifth section, "Protect Victims," was geared primarily toward prosecutors, but I slogged through it. Sometimes it's a good idea to try to understand what makes the other side tick... The next section was called "Punishment in America" and focused on what comes after the trial - the punishment aspect. There were some interesting essays by those who were already convicted, as well as essays by those who call for reform of the punishment system to focus more on rehabilitation. The next section is "A Matter of Life and Death" - essays arguing for and against the death penalty. And finally, "What I Believe" - personal final thoughts for the book.

As I said, I LOVED this book, for the most part. It had its ups and downs, but overall I highly recommend it. I would give this book a five out of five Whatevers. I quoted so many passages to Facebook while I was reading. I also intend to go back to the first few essays to steal some ideas for my jury selections. It was a phenomenal reflection on the rights we all take too often for granted.

2012-10

Review: Justice Hall by Laurie R. King

I believe I Mooched this book, because it's a former library book, and not from any library I've ever been to. I've read the first five books in the series already, and it was time for number six!

In this installment, Holmes and Mary have just returned home to Sussex from the events in The Moor (the events of which took place two books ago, since the last book took place in Palestine, within the timeline of events in the first book in the series...got that?). They receive a knock on the door and who should stand there but Ali Hazr...although dressed as a slightly out of date English gentleman. Holmes and Russell come to find out that the men they knew in Palestine as Mahmoud and Ali Hazr, are actually cousins Alistair and Marsh Hughenfort, from one of England's premier families. Marsh's elder brother and young nephew have both died, leaving him the heir to the Hughenfort dukedom, which suits Marsh not at all, as he would much rather be cruising the Palestinian desert than entertaining royals. Ali is seeking the help of Holmes and Russell to find a way to get Marsh out of the dukedom.

So Holmes and Russell travel to Justice Hall, ancient seat of the Hughenfort family. They begin to investigate the death of Marsh's young nephew Gabriel, who would have been the heir had he lived. He was killed in action in World War I...or was he? As the pair look deeper into what happened to Gabriel Hughenfort, they find a potential plot to knock off the would-be heirs, to clear the way for...who?

I really liked this book, because it brought back some much-beloved characters in Marsh and Alistair (Mahmoud and Ali) and introduced some new favorites, as well (Iris Sutherland). I loved the setting; Justice Hall herself was a great character. This book, more than any of the others, really brought out the character of the Roaring Twenties that we are mostly familiar with. Flappers, women wearing pants and flying planes, an Egypt/King Tut themed party...so many great 1920's elements. But the book also managed to tie in the sadness and destruction still being felt after the end of WWI, especially through the journals and story of Gabriel Hughenfort.

Four and a half out of five Whatevers. One of the best in the series. Recommended, as usual, for Holmes lovers, for those looking for a wonderful portrayal of strong women in the early 20th century, for people who just want a darn good mystery (although I figured it out - or maybe guessed it - early on).

2012-9

Review: Truly, Madly by Heather Webber

This book was sent to me through LibraryThing's Early Reviewer program. I'm about two years behind in my review books, and MAN do I wish I'd gotten to this one sooner. So cute!

The book is a paranormal mystery/romance. Lucy Valentine is the black sheep of her family. Her father's side of the family can see auras, and her father has made tons of money with a matchmaking service (secretly) based on that ability. Lucy, however, had her ability to see auras converted by an electric shock at the age of 14. She can now only find lost items - not people, not pets, just things. She's bopped around aimlessly from job to job until her father's heart attack forces her to take over the matchmaking business.

Her first new client provides the mystery: when she shakes his hand, she gets a vision of a dead body, wearing the engagement ring he never got back from his first disastrous love. She teams with the handsome private investigator-in-training upstairs from her father's business to discover where the body is, who it is, and what happened.

Most of the book was pretty predictable, from the whodunnit to the various romances floating around, but I liked it anyway. It was a light read, what I would call "fluff," but it was also fast-paced and held my attention. And that's what everyone needs once in a while. Having just come off the Read-a-Thon, where I read the same long historical fiction the whole time, this was the perfect palate cleanser. I've already bought the second and third books in the series (one real book and one for Kindle), and I look forward to more adventures with Lucy, Sean, and the gang. Four out of five Whatevers...a point off for a couple of seriously grating grammatical errors that really set my teeth on edge (but I was reading an ARC, so I hope those were fixed before the book went to press). If you like romance or cozy mysteries or light paranormal, pick this one up. I was so glad I did.

2012-8

Spring 2012 RAT: Wrap Up

Well, the hubster gave in shortly after my last post, and I followed him not too long after that. However, I did get some more reading in...I keep holding out hope that some day I will complete the whole thing, but in order to do that, I probably should have started Read-a-Thoning a lot younger. My old bones can no longer stay up so late.

Title of book(s) read since last update: The Valley of Horses; Truly, Madly
Number of books read since you started: one and part of a second
Pages read since last update: 24
Running total of pages read since you started: 474
Amount of time spent reading since last update: 60 minutes
Running total of time spent reading since you started: 777 minutes
Mini-challenges completed: Introduction meme; Turn to a Page; E-Reader Survey; Mid-Event Survey
Other participants you’ve visited: Foxears; Courtney at Abducted by Books; Mandy at Adventures in Borkdom; Denise at Flamingo House Happenings; Memory at Stella Matutina; Jenn at Jenn's Bookshelves; Melissa at 1lbr; Christa at Hooked on Books (although I'm not sure she's Read-a-Thoning); Rebecca at Kindle Fever (ditto); Ariel at The Librarian's Bookshelf (not RAT'ing); Christina at Ardent Reader; Brianna at For the Love of Books (not RAT'ing); Lindsey at Sparks' Notes (not RAT'ing); Ronnica at The Ignorant Historian; Amudes at Amused by Books; Jade at Sort of Beautiful; Jen at At Random; Stacy and Anneliese at Book Psmith; Reeder at Reeder Reads; Sheery at Sheery's Place (not RAT'ing); Teresa at Shelf Love; Jessica at Cryptographic Romance; Roxanne Kade; The Brain Lair (not RAT'ing); Tara at Hobbitsies (not RAT'ing); Kyle at A Reader's Pensieve; Kimberly at On the Wings of Books; Capricious Reader; Deb Nance at Readerbuzz; Abigail at The Story Factory Reading Zone; Dusky Literati (not RAT'ing); Kirsten M. at We Be Reading; Lisa at Lit and Life; Kanaye at Kanaye Speaks; Kate at Epic(Chocolate); Hillary at Adventures in Never Never Land; Noumena12; and Olivia at Down the Rabbit Hole
What I've eaten/drunk: cinnamon raisin toast and a Diet Mt. Dew; some Screamin' Dill Pickle Pringles and a bottle of water; some pretzel M&M's stolen from the hubster; potato skins for lunch; some fruit flavored Tootsie Rolls; a Throwback Pepsi; a bowl of beef barley vegetable soup; two gummi bears from the hubby; a bottle of water; some more Screamin' Dill Pickle Pringles; leftover Easter candy; water with lime; turkey, bacon and cheese sub from Alphonso's (SO freakin' good, I've eaten it like three times this week); Diet Mt. Dew; gummi bears; another bottle of water; the rest of the Screamin' Dill Pickle Pringles; and part of another Throwback Pepsi

And now here's the End of Event meme:


1.Which hour was most daunting for you? Hour Whenever I Went to Bed (17?)
2.Could you list a few high-interest books that you think could keep a Reader engaged for next year? The Clan of the Cave Bear series is pretty good. I was never impatient to finish book 2, and I read it for almost the whole Read-a-Thon.
3.Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year? More random reader and cheerleader prize drawings. It's the Read-a-Thon, not the Mini-Challenge-a-Thon.
4.What do you think worked really well in this year’s Read-a-thon? Pretty much everything, as usual.
5.How many books did you read? One and part of a second.
6.What were the names of the books you read? The Valley of Horses by Jean M. Auel and Truly, Madly by Heather Webber
7.Which book did you enjoy most? The Valley of Horses
8.Which did you enjoy least? By default, Truly, Madly, since I only got about ten pages into it.
9.If you were a Cheerleader, do you have any advice for next year’s Cheerleaders? N/A
10.How likely are you to participate in the Read-a-thon again? What role would you be likely to take next time? Oh, I will absolutely participate again. I LOVE the Read-a-Thon! And I will still be a reader.

Thank you to everyone who helped make this event so great. This is always my favorite time of year (for the last eight Read-a-Thons, anyway).

Review: The Valley of Horses by Jean M. Auel

I read the first novel in this series, The Clan of the Cave Bear, a month or two ago. I can't say I loved it, but I can say that I kept thinking about it after I had finished it. The world that Auel created, the world of early man, was one that captured my imagination. This second book in the series I believe I Mooched, back when I was collecting all of the books. And this one I liked even better than the first.

SPOILER ALERT!!! If you haven't read The Clan of the Cave Bear yet, and you intend to, you might not want to read my description of this book, as it talks about some of the events of the first novel. Ayla has been cast out by the Clan, a death curse upon her, and she begins to wander. She is trying to find her own people, the Others, and find a mate among them. At the beginning of this book, she is wandering, wondering when she will meet up with all of the Others whom Iza told her lived to the North. Winter is coming on, and she is wondering what she will do for food and shelter through the rough cold season, when she comes across a cave in a valley. The cave would make good shelter and the valley would provide enough in provisions to allow her to stay the winter. Eventually, Ayla makes a nice life for herself in the Valley of Horses, but she is lonely. The second storyline of the book follows a man of the Others, Jondalar, and his brother Thonolan, as they make a Journey east from their home. When the two paths overlap, will Ayla finally find the family she's been looking for?

I really liked this book, much better than the first. In fact, I found this one very hard to put down. I was glad that Ayla was away from the Clan. All the Clan names started to run together for me, and I often got confused about who was who. But in this book, Ayla spends most of her time alone, so we get a better idea of who she is without the constraints of the Clan rules and customs. She really comes into her own in this book.

I give it four and three quarters out of five Whatevers. Recommended for those who like great detail in their historical fiction (I feel like I could knap flint, make medicines, and hunt prehistoric game after reading this book), for those who like strong female protagonists (Ayla is completely kick ass), and for those who like some dirty sex thrown in with their casual reading (yes, there are some steamy scenes). Since I like all of the above, this one was a winner for me!

2012-7

Spring 2012 RAT: Hour Sixteen

Wow. I'm so close to finishing my book! I definitely want to finish it and start a new one, but I'm getting tired, too. I think I'll try to get myself pumped up, but if I finish my current read, I might let myself go to sleep. So much for Hour 20, right? But we shall see. Perhaps a second wind is right around the corner.

Title of book(s) read since last update: The Valley of Horses
Number of books read since you started: part of one
Pages read since last update: 66
Running total of pages read since you started: 450
Amount of time spent reading since last update: 90 minutes
Running total of time spent reading since you started: 717 minutes
Mini-challenges completed: Introduction meme; Turn to a Page; E-Reader Survey; Mid-Event Survey
Other participants you’ve visited: Foxears; Courtney at Abducted by Books; Mandy at Adventures in Borkdom; Denise at Flamingo House Happenings; Memory at Stella Matutina; Jenn at Jenn's Bookshelves; Melissa at 1lbr; Christa at Hooked on Books (although I'm not sure she's Read-a-Thoning); Rebecca at Kindle Fever (ditto); Ariel at The Librarian's Bookshelf (not RAT'ing); Christina at Ardent Reader; Brianna at For the Love of Books (not RAT'ing); Lindsey at Sparks' Notes (not RAT'ing); Ronnica at The Ignorant Historian; Amudes at Amused by Books; Jade at Sort of Beautiful; Jen at At Random; Stacy and Anneliese at Book Psmith; Reeder at Reeder Reads; Sheery at Sheery's Place (not RAT'ing); Teresa at Shelf Love; Jessica at Cryptographic Romance; Roxanne Kade; The Brain Lair (not RAT'ing); Tara at Hobbitsies (not RAT'ing); Kyle at A Reader's Pensieve; Kimberly at On the Wings of Books; Capricious Reader; Deb Nance at Readerbuzz; Abigail at The Story Factory Reading Zone; Dusky Literati (not RAT'ing); Kirsten M. at We Be Reading; Lisa at Lit and Life
What I've eaten/drunk: cinnamon raisin toast and a Diet Mt. Dew; some Screamin' Dill Pickle Pringles and a bottle of water; some pretzel M&M's stolen from the hubster; potato skins for lunch; some fruit flavored Tootsie Rolls; a Throwback Pepsi; a bowl of beef barley vegetable soup; two gummi bears from the hubby; a bottle of water; some more Screamin' Dill Pickle Pringles; leftover Easter candy; water with lime; turkey, bacon and cheese sub from Alphonso's (SO freakin' good, I've eaten it like three times this week); Diet Mt. Dew; gummi bears; another bottle of water

Maybe it's time to haul out another soda? Plug on to the end of the book! Only about 14 pages to go!

Spring 2012 RAT: Hour Fourteen

What? Only ten more hours to go? I'm starting to get a little sleepy, so I'm drinking another Diet Mt. Dew, but I might have to add some sugar into the mix in order to get that rush to keep me going. Here's the latest update:

Title of book(s) read since last update: The Valley of Horses
Number of books read since you started: part of one
Pages read since last update: 42
Running total of pages read since you started: 384
Amount of time spent reading since last update: 90 minutes
Running total of time spent reading since you started: 627 minutes
Mini-challenges completed: Introduction meme; Turn to a Page; E-Reader Survey; Mid-Event Survey
Other participants you’ve visited: Foxears; Courtney at Abducted by Books; Mandy at Adventures in Borkdom; Denise at Flamingo House Happenings; Memory at Stella Matutina; Jenn at Jenn's Bookshelves; Melissa at 1lbr; Christa at Hooked on Books (although I'm not sure she's Read-a-Thoning); Rebecca at Kindle Fever (ditto); Ariel at The Librarian's Bookshelf (not RAT'ing); Christina at Ardent Reader; Brianna at For the Love of Books (not RAT'ing); Lindsey at Sparks' Notes (not RAT'ing); Ronnica at The Ignorant Historian; Amudes at Amused by Books; Jade at Sort of Beautiful; Jen at At Random; Stacy and Anneliese at Book Psmith; Reeder at Reeder Reads; Sheery at Sheery's Place (not RAT'ing); Teresa at Shelf Love; Jessica at Cryptographic Romance; Roxanne Kade; The Brain Lair (not RAT'ing); Tara at Hobbitsies (not RAT'ing); Kyle at A Reader's Pensieve
What I've eaten/drunk: cinnamon raisin toast and a Diet Mt. Dew; some Screamin' Dill Pickle Pringles and a bottle of water; some pretzel M&M's stolen from the hubster; potato skins for lunch; some fruit flavored Tootsie Rolls; a Throwback Pepsi; a bowl of beef barley vegetable soup; two gummie bears from the hubby; a bottle of water; some more Screamin' Dill Pickle Pringles; leftover Easter candy; water with lime; turkey, bacon and cheese sub from Alphonso's (SO freakin' good, I've eaten it like three times this week); Diet Mt. Dew

Okay. Time to get up and do some jumping jacks, then eat some candy to get that sugar rush. I can definitely make it another two hours. Longer? Hope so. I'd love to make it 20 hours this time. I think 17 is the longest I've ever done...