Over the weekend I participated in an Author Fair at the Joliet Public Library, an event they hold every year that’s sponsored by three libraries in the area. This was my first year there but what a fun day, with a variety of authors and a steady stream of patrons filing through (despite the lovely […]

I feel like I’ve just returned from my research trip, talking about the places I’ve been and sharing my pictures. It was so much fun to relive that trip! But even as I took a little portion of recent days to revisit those places, I’ve been continuing with my work-in-progress. In fact, I turned in […]

Back in Brussels for the last full day of our trip, we visited the American Embassy so I could visualize the neighborhood for my Book Two project. And to buy some chocolate to take home! Of all the embassies, the American one had the most visible security, with blockades set up in front of the […]

With so many of the streets of Paris blocked off because of the Tour d’France, just walking from one spot to another took quite some time. We only had time for one museum, and I had to make a choice. Either the Louvre, where I wanted to at least see the Mona Lisa, or the […]

I must say, after Brussels and each and every other charming little town we drove through in Belgium and Northern France, Paris wasn’t as exciting as it might have been had we begun our journey there. Can you believe I’m saying that? Paris, not the most romantic, beautiful, memorable city in the world? It was […]

From Albert we drove to Amiens, stopping at Thiepval along the way. The Thiepval Monument really is enormous, and can be seen far in advance of any approach since it’s on high ground. I couldn’t look at high ground anywhere along the Somme River or Front Line without imagining it might have been the place […]