Monday, March 26, 2007

TRICIA GOYER BLOG TOUR


I am happy to host a blog tour for a great writer whose newest book is out.
Tricia Goyer has written Valley of Betrayal about the Spanish Civil War.
I was priveledged to read her novel, Dawn of a Thousand Nights, last year and the newest novel is book one of the Chronicles of The Spanish Civil War series. Tricia lives in MT, a place near and dear to my heart.

The Story Behind the Novel:

A few years ago when I was researching for my fourth World War II novel, Arms of Deliverance, I came across a unique autobiography. One B-17 crewmember I read about claimed to make it out of German-occupied Belgium after a plane crash due, in part, to his skills he picked up as a veteran of The Spanish Civil War. Reading that bit of information, I had to scratch my head. First of all, I had never heard of the war. And second, what was an American doing fighting in Spain in the late 1930s? Before I knew it, I uncovered a fascinating time in history—one that I soon discovered many people know little about. This is what I learned:
Nazi tanks rolled across the hillsides and German bombers roared overhead, dropping bombs on helpless citizens. Italian troops fought alongside the Germans, and their opponents attempted to stand strong—Americans, British, Irishmen, and others—in unison with other volunteers from many countries. And their battleground? The beautiful Spanish countryside.
From July 17, 1936-April 1, 1939, well before America was involved in World War II, another battle was fought on the hillsides of Spain. On one side were the Spanish Republicans, joined by the Soviet Union and The International Brigade—men and women from all over the world who have volunteered to fight Fascism. Opposing them, Franco and his Fascist military leaders, supported with troops, machinery, and weapons from Hitler and Mussolini. The Spanish Civil War, considered the “training ground” for the war to come, boasted of thousands of American volunteers who joined to fight on the Republican side, half of which never returned home.
Unlike World War II, there is no clear line between white and black, good and evil. Both sides committed atrocities. Both sides had deep convictions they felt worth fighting and dying for.
Loyalists—also know as the Republicans were aided by the Soviet Union, the Communist movement, and the International Brigades. If not for the weapons and volunteers from these sources their fight would have ended in weeks rather than years. While many men fought side by side, their political views included that of liberal democracy, communism and socialism. The Catholic Basque Country also sided with the Republic, mainly because it sought independence from the central government and was promised this by Republican leaders in Madrid.
Nationalists—or Francoists were aided mainly by Germany and Italy. The Nationalist opposed an independent Basque state. Their main supporters were those who believed in a monarchist state and fascist interests. The Nationalist wished for Spain to continue on as it had for years, with rich landowners, the military, and the church running the country. Most of the Roman Catholic clergy supported the Nationalists, except those in the Basque region.
During the Spanish Civil war, terror tactics against civilians were common. And while history books discuss the estimated one million people who lost their lives during the conflict, we must not forget that each of those who fought, who died, had their own tales. From visitors to Spain who found themselves caught in the conflict, to the communist supporters, Basque priests, and Nazi airmen . . . each saw this war in a different light. These are the stories behind A Valley of Betrayal.

If you'd like to read to read the first chapter click on the link below. http://triciagoyer.blogspot.com/2007/02/its-here-its-here.html

For Tricia's website, click here. http://triciagoyer.com/

Sunday, March 18, 2007

Step Into Spring

Don’t you just love springtime? Atlanta has been experiencing a taste of spring with cold nights but gradual warming during the day. Daffodils are nodding their yellow faces in the gusty breezes, and redbud trees have just started to pop out with pink blossoms, while the Bradford pear struts her white finery like a bride waiting for her groom. The South is a magnificent place to be this time of year with bright yellow forsythia bushes as bright as the sun, however, the best is yet to come –delicate dogwood and the many varieties of azaleas. This painting is one that I did a while back, but it makes me think of my mama. She loved flowers, and always had a small patch of brilliant red and yellow cannas and a myriad of other flowers in front of her tiny apartment in Gulfport, MS. She taught me a lot about nature, flowers and trees. She also loved growing vegetables in earlier years. My mama was a strong influence in my life, and was keenly intelligent. She could spot a fraud a mile away. She had little education but was able to express a deep sense of her love of nature, and was grateful that God had created such a beautiful world for us to live in. She inspired this painting. Since spring is Tuesday, I wanted to share it. This particular one hung in the gallery at Johnson Ferry Baptist Church along with the caption below. You can read more about the gallery, and view another of my paintings at this website. http://www.jfbc.org/glimpses_gallery/artgallery/with_flash/html/index.html

TITLE: My Peaceful Garden-As a child of an alcoholic father there were many times when my brothers, sisters and I weren’t sure of our future or even our next meal. My mother would open her Bible and read to us the scripture, Matthew 6:28, “…see the lilies of the field…” That verse has stayed with me throughout my life to trust our Heavenly Father for our needs, when we stay obedient to him.
TYPE OF WORK: Acrylic

SCRIPTURE: Matthew 6:28- “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all His splendor was dressed like one of these.”

Sunday, March 04, 2007

REMEBER TO FORGET

Deb Raney’s latest romance is aptly named for a heroine who must forget her previous life, and a hero’s struggle with the haunted memory of his wife and child. In true romantic style, Deb has written a sweet love story surrounded by delightful characters set in a small fictional town, but so very believable that you long to live there.
The town of Clayburn is filled with such comfortable peace and likeable citzens so strong in their faith, that Maggie glimpses what real happiness could be like, and is desperate to have. With a taste of suspense and mystery, Maggie stretches beyond herself to embrace faith, and a second chance at life and love. A touching story that will surely capture your heart, and you’ll find hard to forget that.