Evan Ronan

When you've been gifted with a wild imagination, anything can happen. This book is a great example of where an abundant flight of imagination can take you. Readers are introduced to Aoife Finley, pronounced Eef-uh, daydreamer extraordinaire. The extraordinary events in the book all started when Erica saw the Lady in Green. No one was supposed to see the Lady in Green because she was a product of Aoife's imagination. That was the first inkling that something was very wrong in Paxsum, Aoife's imaginary world.

Aoife created Paxsum probably when she lost her mother many years ago. It was her way of coping with sad reality, but was also a way to connect her to her father, who wisely encouraged Aoife to use her imagination. Imagination created her first group of friends...Al the industrial-sized recycling container in her yard, B the barbecue on the back deck, and Rosie the sled. In the early days of loss, she talked with her friends daily.

Now that she was a little bit older, some of her classmates in school were her friends. Slob, a.k.a Sam, was her best friend. They could talk about anything, and he even understood her imaginary world and her imaginary friends because he was also fluent in imagination. His imaginary person was Steel Sunday, a structural engineer who went on adventures as if he were another Indiana Jones. Slob (a name given to him based on Bob the Builder) spent most of his waking time building things from blocks. He understood Aoife and so they spent time together, sometimes in silence that was comfortable. Others in her class were mostly annoyances such as Erica (nicknamed The Bank of Erica), Nestor (nicknamed Binky), Kris Miller (nicknamed Killer), and Robin (nicknamed Snail-smeller). Erica used to be a close friend, when suddenly she turned her back and became Aoife's arch enemy. But it was these friends, when push came to shove, that saved not only Aoife's imaginary world, but also the real world around them.

This book is one designed for the YA category. Because of some serious threats to children in the imaginary town of Paxsum, I do not recommend reading this to children younger than 4th grade. It also may not appeal to upper age teens or older because the classroom scenario seems to center around 5th or 6th grade age-range interactions. I used to teach middle school age YA, and I believe this story is perfect for that spectrum. However, upper age students such as those who need lower reading level, high interest material would find this perfect as well.

Not only is this book about the imagination, it also features how friendship develops, what it is and what it is not, its imperfections, and its character. For the young readers, there's a lot of action, imaginative events, suspense, and a little bit of danger. The author's sense of humor adds a lot to this story. I loved the giggles and I can't even tell you how many times I've read this story all the way through. It was that good.

The one thing I loved most about this book is that it is not entirely dark in nature. So much of today's literature is so dark, even among children's books, that I'm happy when I run across something truly light-hearted and "childish". Yes, there were characters with bad attitudes, but they changed eventually. Good characterization is also a hallmark in this book. Aoife especially had some life lessons to learn, but the way it happens is entirely painless to the reader (No groaning in the peanut gallery, please. I really do love books with substance). Two thumbs and two big toes up for this first work from the pen of Evan Ronan. I sincerely hope he has many more books like this to offer us!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary review copy of this book from the author. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."… (more)

In this time when all authors are only thinking about writing endless series, it is very nice to read a book that has a beginning, a middle and an end.
The author did an amazing job creating a set of characters that were very well built and in special our heroine, Aoife. She is an amazing girl, with an incredible imagination. All her friends (Al, lady in green, etc..) are trying to help her to save her imaginary world to collapse in its interaction with the real world. Joining this group are some of her classmates from school. The plot is very well constructed and the story develops in a nice pace. At the end we stay cheering for Aoife and her group to achieve their goal, through loyalty and friendship.
More than a young adult novel, this book will satisfy readers from all ages.
I received an electronic copy of the book from the author, but I was not requested to provide a positive review. Opinion expressed here is my own.… (more)

It has been four months of mind numbingly boring work since Morale Was Down. Nothing remarkable has gone on as things have been their usual daily boring routine. Avoid as much work as possible and stay out of the eyes of the bosses is still the basic plan and it works. Today is Friday and that means, unsurprisingly, that reports are down. Reports are always down on Fridays. You have also just been informed by e-mail memo to everyone in the building that due to ongoing issues with the aging plumbing system resulting in low water pressure, you are to use as little toilet paper as possible and flush often to reduce the chances of clogs. That is ridiculous, but it is what it is. There are also too many passwords, Stacy is being incredibly difficult, and you have paperwork to finish once you ease into your day by surfing around on Facebook for a bit.

That plan is disrupted by Bob who can’t be trusted and yet tells you that Alan wants a meeting. If Bob is not screwing with you, as he often does, the fact that Alan wants a meeting can’t be good. You could check if your voicemail was working, but your password that worked last night is no longer valid. That means you can’t access your voicemail. Then Alan, Vice President of Technology and Finance Operations, actually walks into your office and catches you swearing at your phone. He most definitely wants you to come to his office for a meeting in a little over an hour. Things are about to get very weird. Good thing you did solve the theft of the Stromboli four months ago.

Second in the planned Close of Business trilogy, Effective Immediately is another funny mystery. Like the first one there is plenty of adult language as well as humor. In fact there are about 17,000 words in this short story and many of them are funny regarding the corporate life. The tale takes shots at numerous folks you will recognize from corporate life, but these same folks are also present in retail, academia, and elsewhere. Along the way it solves two mysteries while also explaining why you never go to the restroom on the same floor you work on---if you can help it.

Effective Immediately
Evan Ronan
Calhoun Publishing
December 2014
ASIN: B00R5JO42Y
E-Book
66 Pages (estimated)
$0.99

Material supplied by the author in exchange for my objective review.

Kevin R. Tipple ©2015… (more)

Morale is always down and the complaining is always up no matter where you work. In this case you work in an office on the 3rd floor. You know things are not better anywhere else because the green pastures elsewhere you hear about through the rumor mill don’t exist.

Besides, if you were somewhere else you would not have a note on the fridge about a fellow employee taking Marvin’s Stromboli. The fact somebody took it is not good. That does not help morale. As a middle manager, you know you have no authority to do much of anything. Your job is to keep the morale of your team up and things like this are not good. You also know that when the boss tells you to make some discreet inquires about the missing sandwich you have to do it. This is not the first food related item to go missing though this is the first you have heard of it. When she wants to you identify the serial food taker by the close of business you know this Monday is worse than normal.

Featuring some adult language and plenty of humor this short story written in the second person works very well. Filled with characters that work in every environment, Morale Was Down is quirky and a good read.

Morale Was Down
Evan Ronan
Calhoun Publishing
October 2014
ASIN: B00OR9O1O6
E-Book
39 Pages (estimated)
$0.99

Material supplied by the author in exchange for my objective review.

Kevin R. Tipple ©2014… (more)