Stacy Mitchell

What a lovely story of lost love and second chances. Author, Stacy Mitchell just tugged at my heart strings with this story. Dani and Ean were great. I loved that the only way that they interacted with one another in the beginning was through text. While, this form of communication is now being know as more "informal" in Dani and Ean's case it allowed them to open up with one another more freely.

The fact that they both experienced loss so fresh; allowed them to really relate to the other's situation and tap into their feelings. Again, I was in for the long haul from start, middle, and ending. Speaking of the ending, it was a joyous one. It left me with a smile. I look forward to reading more books by this author.… (mere)

It can be hard to say one enjoys a book as disturbing as this one. But ultimately, it is filled with valuable information that can arm you for any friend of yours who attacks you with the constant refrain of "You have to shop at Wal-Mart because [fill in favorite argument of your friends here]". The tactics of the big-box stores are well researched and the impact of the new form of marketing on the life of a community is explored. Although I am not a big fan of the argument that you can't present a problem without also presenting the solution, I will say that the author does do that here. She discusses various things communities can do to fight back, and gives examples from a number of communities that have successfully restored the vibrancy of their downtown (or protected an already vibrant downtown) and staved of the invasion of the big boxes. For this most part, this is not a cheery story, but the author writes in such an easy to read style, you almost don't notice all the statistics she includes; however, those statistics are a valuable part of the story. This should be read by every city councilman in every city, town, or village large enough to be attractive to big-box stores.… (mere)