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by kate
Comments Off on Kate’s 2¢: “The body in question” by Jill Ciment
Kate’s 2¢: “The body in question” by Jill Ciment
“The body in question” by Jill Ciment
I enjoyed this story, but I didn’t agree with the jury’s verdict. I suspect the pretty twin pressured the Autistic twin to do the deed. She needed mental health counseling, not incarceration.
I like the ironic ending of the jurors’ elderly husband leaving his body to science, although a bit creepy that the widow’s lover would be doing the anatomy lesson with his medical students.
Hillary Huber did a good job of reading this for us.
A few take-aways:
—-She explained the difference between the beautiful and the sublime: the stars are beautiful diamonds, twinkles, something you can wish upon. The space inbetween the stars is the sublime, cold, black, and infinite. Something that inspires awe and fear.
–The ancient Greeks believed the body was a wooden flute, the soul was the breath as it reverberated within the instrument and the spirit was the music released from the wood.
Bing found these results
Jill Ciment was born in Montreal, Canada. She is the author of three novels, The Tattoo Artist, Teeth of the Dog, and The Law of Falling Bodies; a collection of short stories, Small Claims; and a memoir, Half a Life. Ciment is a professor of English at the University of Florida. She lives in Gainesville, Florida.
From NLS/BARD/LOC:
The body in question DB95856
Ciment, Jill. Reading time: 5 hours, 28 minutes.
Read by Hillary Huber.
Human Relations
Psychological Fiction
Legal Fiction
During the sensational Florida murder trial of a wealthy teenager accused of murdering her toddler brother, two sequestered jurors have an affair, but never discuss the case. When they finally realize they are on opposite sides, the woman’s “one last dalliance” has profound personal and moral consequences. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2019.
Downloaded: April 25, 2024
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by kate
Comments Off on Kate’s 2¢: “Molly: the true story of the amazing dog who rescues cats” by Colin Butcher
Kate’s 2¢: “Molly: the true story of the amazing dog who rescues cats” by Colin Butcher
“Molly: the true story of the amazing dog who rescues cats” by Colin Butcher
I enjoyed this story. Butcher did a good job of reading his own story. So many ‘pets’ are a lot smarter than their owners think. Then, there are the dogs with a talent, like Molly, and my guide dogs.
A few take-aways:
–In order for a good idea to work, you first need the know how, then you need to know who.
–An animals love, thrust and loyalty, aren’t given freely. They have to be earned.
WWW.COLINJBUTCHER.COM
Colin J. Butcher was born on 10th June 1960 in Fareham maternity hospital, Hampshire, growing up in Jahor Bahru, Malaysia and Sembawang, Singapore. Upon his return to England in the early 70s, he lived in Bishops Cleeve near Cheltenham in the Cotswolds before moving back to Fareham.
His father, Geoff, was an engineering officer with the Royal Navy and his mother, Margery, was a secretary for a local construction company. Colin was one of four children. His brother, David, was diagnosed with Leukaemia at the age of 13 and died just short of his 21st birthday. He has a younger sister, Lynn, and a brother, Rian.
Growing up on the edge of a tropical rain forest, a young Colin would spend hours beneath the vast emerald green canopy exploring with David. ”I was a total animal nut. Every day we would see something new; there were insects and reptiles everywhere. I was bitten, scratched and stung more times than I can possibly remember and it was usually my fault. I just had to learn how to approach animals in a way that didn’t make them feel threatened.” Colin’s knowledge and experience in handling animals would one day come in handy: in his role as a Pet Detective.
About Colin Butcher Author
Colin joined the Royal Navy at the age of 16 and was drafted to HMS Antelope; a ship later sunk during the Falklands conflict. In 1983 he trained as aircrew for the Royal Navy’s Anti-submarine Seeking Helicopters and on completing the necessary 18 months’ flying instruction received his wings and, being the top student on his course, was awarded the Colin Vickers Trophy. ”These were amazing years,” he later said. ”Flying with the military is an incredibly exhilarating experience and one I shall never forget.”
In 1988, following his Royal Navy service, Colin joined Surrey Police as a detective. After five years’ service in drugs enforcement, he was promoted to Detective Inspector of the ‘serious crimes’ division, investigating cases of armed robbery, kidnapping and homicide.
Colin left the Police in 2003 to set up his own London-based Private Detective Agency, Complete Investigations, and in 2005 formed a second company, United Kingdom Pet Detectives (U.K.P.D.). ”I always knew I would end up working with animals. It just took me a few years to discover the right profession.”
With over 30 years’ investigative experience under his belt, Colin is a leading authority on pet crime across the UK and has worked with police forces across England, Scotland and Wales. His research into cat behaviour — specifically why they migrate away from their homes — was the subject of the BBC’s Horizon documentary ‘The Secret Life of The Cat’. Speaking of the project, Colin explains: ”We needed to develop a better understanding of why so many cats abandoned their homes. So, we set up a cat tracking project in our local village of Shamley Green. I was absolutely thrilled when the BBC Horizon team approached me and asked to join [it].”
Leading on from his work with the BBC, in 2004 Colin embarked on a second — slightly more ambitious — project: investigating whether it was possible to train a dog to locate lost cats by their unique scent (pheromone) signature. ”We recorded hundreds of hours of video footage during the cat tracking project and when we reviewed it, we discovered just how important scent marking is to cats,” Colin recounts of the time. ”It was evident that cats build an incredibly detailed odour map of their territories and, through careful examination of other cats’ pheromone signatures, can identify age, gender, health and social status.”
One of Colin and his team’s most significant findings was the discovery that when a cat leaves its territory — whether due to foraging, exploration or being forced out by a more aggressive cat — it quickly becomes disorientated and in many cases is unable to find its way home. As Colin explains: ”If you imagine driving at night through a country you have never visited before and suddenly your sat-nav fails, then you can begin to understand just how disorientating it must be for a cat.”
Sadly, the use of a dog’s incredible sense of smell to search for a cat’s pheromone signature, was rejected by every single dog trainer Colin approached with his idea. Some trainers were rude and unhelpful, some simply failed to respond to his emails and phone calls, and — most dishearteningly — the majority dismissed it as fanciful and pointless. Undeterred, he pressed on with the project: ”I knew it could be done because I had worked with so many different search dogs while in the police – it was just a case of finding the right people with the right attitude.”
Colin’s breakthrough came just over a year later when he was introduced to the team at groundbreaking canine charity Medical Detection Dogs; specialists in training dogs to identify human disease by odour. Their CEO Dr Claire Guest agreed to help and in December 2016 the country’s first Cat Detection Dog — a rescue spaniel named Molly — graduated from the M.D.D. Academy to begin field trials with Colin.
Three months later, Molly and Colin located their first missing cat, recovering 32 more in 2017 and a further 46 the following year. ”It has been an incredible journey,” he describes. ”It was tough going at times, with numerous setbacks along the way, but I had some great people working with me and every time Molly finds another missing cat my heart leaps with joy.”
Molly is now a fully qualified Pet Detective and important member of the U.K.P.D. team. In addition to her cat finding skills she has helped to locate both missing and trapped dogs and stolen jewellery and often accompanies Colin on his Private Eye investigations.
Colin’s passion for writing began as a child in Singapore, where at the age of seven his school essay on fire ants received the award for best story and most improved handwriting. ”I strutted around my school as if I had won the Nobel Prize in Literature as opposed to a handwriting competition,” he recalls of the experience. ”It really was a pivotal moment for me; having my work recognised at such a young age had such a big impact. From then on, I recorded field notes on all the interesting adventures I had with my brother and read every book I could get my hands on.”
He continued writing during his time in the Royal Navy and Police service, and whilst a Detective Sergeant, and in 1998 he co-wrote the first police training manual for the investigation of criminal cases for Surrey CID officers. He proceeded to publish three further CID training manuals on the investigation of serious crime and homicide. He was also awarded the prestigious Chief Constable’s Commendation for his work.
In 2004, Colin received his first paid commission; a training a manual for the investigation of major incidents and serious injuries for BP. Several other paid commissions within the shipping and logistic industries followed, but even so, ”It wasn’t until 2010 that I actually thought of myself as a writer. By then I was running my own Blog, drafting all sorts of articles on the investigation of crimes against animals and often received emails from journalists asking for contributions to features and news items.”
Colin’s first book, ‘The Owner’s Handbook on Preventing Dog Theft’, was released in 2014, and two years later he started work on ‘Molly The Pet Detective Dog’. In 2017, extracts from Colin’s work in progress were published in The Guardian newspaper, and several months later he was offered a publishing contract by The Little Brown Book Group. Over the following six months Colin was offered a further 14 book deals, eventually agreeing terms with Michael Joseph: an imprint of Penguin Random House.
From NLS/BARD/LOC:
Molly: the true story of the amazing dog who rescues cats DB118789
Butcher, Colin. Reading time: 9 hours, 51 minutes.
Read by Colin Butcher.
Biography
Animals and Wildlife
“As a veteran of the Royal Navy and longtime police officer, Colin Butcher was no stranger to dangerous situations. But a career in uniform can wear anyone down, so, in 2003, Colin left the force to start his own private detective agency, specializing in helping reunite people with their missing pets. And yet, despite his hundreds of successes, there were still heartbreaking cases where Colin couldn’t find the missing on his own. He knew he needed a partner. When Colin first met Molly, his friends doubted that she would be up for the job. Where Colin was battle-tested, Molly was young and inexperienced. She was willful, wayward, and stubborn. But Colin could tell that Molly was unusually charismatic and intelligent. He decided to take a risk and bring on Molly for training. Yes, Molly is no ordinary deputy, but a black Cocker Spaniel, and this is no ordinary detective agency. Trained by the top canine behavioral experts at Medical Detection Dogs, Molly can find missing cats-who are uniquely skilled at eluding humans-by detecting a unique scent signature, and she has been wildly successful. The work is not always easy. Molly has faced hardships ranging from a near-fatal snakebite to the challenge of winning over Colin’s girlfriend, Sarah. But through it all, Colin and Molly share an enduring love and affection. More than a working relationship, Molly is part of the family. Together, they are the Sherlock and Watson of missing pets.” — Provided by publisher. Unrated. Commercial audiobook.
Downloaded: April 11, 2024
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