Diana Marcum (1963–2023)

The memoir part of living in Belize on a butterfly farm is a fascinating glimpse into a different world and way of living. The author did a great job of bringing the various players to life and illustrating the challenges and joys of raising butterflies. The ending captures yet another experience of the descent of the Covid-19 pandemic upon the world.

A friend gave me this book because my husband and I raise local butterflies and moths and I took it along on our vacation to Costa Rica where we saw Blue Morpho butterflies in the wild (and some other wildlife that the author mentions). The Fallen Stones is an interesting memoir with some background thrown in about the butterfly farm in Belize that Diana Marcum visited on vacation and then stayed at for a few months. (The book blurb makes it sound like she and her partner were there for a show more long time, but the hurricane mentioned in the book blurb took place long before they arrived and they were back in the U.S. before the pandemic shut everything down.) show less

The Tenth Island: Finding Joy, Beauty and Unexpected Love in the Azores 🍒🍒🍒🍒
By Diana Mercum
2018
Little A Books

Diana Marcums life changes when she discovers a group of immigrants from the Azorean Islands living in the Central Valley of California. They migrated to North America fleeing a Portuguese dictator and a massive volcanic eruption, between 1950 and 1980.

Her energy and fascination can be felt throughout her travels to the 9 Islands and learning of their formation, cultures, show more lifestyles and people. She learns of a culture that makes her question her own....a land she never knew existed and a land she can not forget.

" The Tenth Island is what you carry inside you. Its what's left when everything falls away. Those of us who live between worlds just know the Tenth Island better. No matter where I have lived--I have never left my Island. "
She never forgot these words.

Captivating and Recommended! show less

This is the author's memoir describing her love affair with the island of Terciera and the people of the Azores. A journalist in southern California, dissatisfied with her job, her attention was caught by a farmer plowing with oxen and old time equipment. In the course of writing a feature about him, she learned about the Azorean people living in California. The more time she spent with these folks, who had fled Terceira following a catastrophic earthquake, the more committed she became to show more visiting the island. One thing led to another, and eventually she spent several long stays there (and eventually bought a house there, although that is not covered in her book). Markum's descriptions of the island and its culture ring very true, and as a frequent visitor myself, this book made me very homesick. show less