Throwback Thursday #12 – Froelich’s Ladder

Posted July 14, 2022 by elzaread in Throwback Thursday / 8 Comments

Greetings you guys! Yes, I know we’ve promised to do a throwback Thursday more regularly, but books tend to get in the way of that. Last week Thursday, we were busy planning our Throwback Thursday post and just quickly wanted to make sure that we have all our previous Throwback Thursday posts updated on the WordPress site. While updating 11/22/63, we remember we still have The Pink Suit on our TBR and well, the rest is history.

But welcome to our version and latest edition of Throwback Thursday!

  • The Chocolate Lady’s #Throwback Thursday takes place on the Thursday before the first Saturday of every month. Yes, there is a linky and it will remain open until she uploads the new one. Thank Goodness. My first and last sometimes gets very confused.
  • Your post must highlight one of your previously published book reviews and Davida encourages other participants to do the same.
  • Add the link to your post and remember to link back to The Chocolate Lady’s Book Blog And do not forget to #ThrowbackThursday!

 

The 12th review my Mommy has written, was on a book she enjoyed ever so much and she is actually quite sad to see that it never really took off as well as she anticipated:

Throwback Thursday #12 – Froelich’s LadderFroelich's Ladder by Jamie Yourdon
Published by Forest Avenue Press on August 2016
Genres: Fiction
Pages: 248
Format: ARC
Source: Forrest Avenue Press
Buy on Amazon
Goodreads

Uncle Froelich nurses a decades-old family grudge from his perch atop a giant ladder. When he’s discovered missing, his nephew embarks on a rain-soaked trek across a nineteenth century Pacific Northwest landscape to find him, accompanied by an ornery girl with a most unfortunate name. In their encounters with Confederate assassins, European expatriates, and a general store magnate, this fairytale twist on the American dream explores the conflicts between loyalty and ambition and our need for human connection, even at the highest rungs.

To this day, my Mommy enjoys a Tall Tale and Froelich’s Ladder was one of the best ones she’s ever read. Here’s an excerpt from her review for you:

Froelich’s Ladder is a Tall tale/Folk tale set in the Oregon Territory and features an eccentric cast of rather believable characters and grazing clouds.

Note: a “Tall Tale” is an account that is fanciful and difficult to believe. Normally accompanied by exaggerated facial expressions and large amounts of liquor.

One of the similarities between fairy tales and folk tales is that living quarters are never questioned. Whether it’s a beanstalk, a tower, a peach or a shoe – we accept it as appropriate living arrangements.

In this delightful tale, Froelich finds himself perch atop the fourth largest ladder in the world, built by himself and his brother, Harald. After a feud between the two brothers regarding the two most fought over issues in recorded history (1. Who’s in charge 2. A woman), Froelich jumped on his high horse, or in this case his high ladder, and could not be persuaded to climb down – come rain or shine.

Seeing that he was normally a bit under the weather, he maintained a large herb garden between the rungs for all his ailments. As the forest grew between the two brothers, they ended up relying on the only means of communication between them, TAP. Borrowing from Morse code, they used thumps and vibrations to form combinations of words. Until one day Froelich literally disappears into thin air (aka the clouds).

You can find our full review, first published July 31st 2016, here

Froelich’s Ladder was published by Forest Avenue Press and my Mommy still has contact with the Publisher, Laura Stanfill. In fact, we are eager to start reading Laura’s  debut novel Singing Lessons for the Stylish Canary that was published earlier this year. We just know that we are going to enjoy it!

Books from the Backlog

We love to combine Throwback Thursday with  Books from the Backlog, hosted by Carole’s Random Life of Books.  We are ever so happy that we’ve also discovered Bookshelf Fantasies has a similar meme, called Shelf Control. Two birds with one stone. Sorting out the blog reviews, plus sorting out our TBR pile. Books from the Backlog is a fun way to feature some of those neglected books sitting on your bookshelf unread.  If you are anything like me, you might be surprised by some of the unread books hiding in your stacks.

 

Seeing that my Mommy’s home library is finally done, it’s going to be so much easier to sort through our physical TBR. The electronic one is still debatable. But we will get to it as well eventually.
The 12th book on our TBR shelf, is one that I find very hard to believe we haven’t read yet and you are probably going to be just as stunned!

 

A literary sensation and runaway bestseller, this brilliant debut novel tells with seamless authenticity and exquisite lyricism the true confessions of one of Japan’s most celebrated geisha.

Speaking to us with the wisdom of age and in a voice at once haunting and startlingly immediate, Nitta Sayuri tells the story of her life as a geisha. It begins in a poor fishing village in 1929, when, as a nine-year-old girl with unusual blue-gray eyes, she is taken from her home and sold into slavery to a renowned geisha house. We witness her transformation as she learns the rigorous arts of the geisha: dance and music; wearing kimono, elaborate makeup, and hair; pouring sake to reveal just a touch of inner wrist; competing with a jealous rival for men’s solicitude and the money that goes with it.

In Memoirs of a Geisha, we enter a world where appearances are paramount; where a girl’s virginity is auctioned to the highest bidder; where women are trained to beguile the most powerful men; and where love is scorned as illusion. It is a unique and triumphant work of fiction—at once romantic, erotic, suspenseful—and completely unforgettable.

In my Mommy’s defense, Memoirs of a Geisha has been on her TBR for years yes, but she only bought a copy of the book earlier this year at a yard sale and then all the books were in storage. Hopefully we will get to it soon enough.

 

Have you read Memoirs of a Geisha? Of course you have…. What was notable for you? If you are in the mood for a fun Tall Tale – do give Frolich’s Ladder a try! I promise it won’t disappoint.

Have a wonderful Thursday!

 

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8 responses to “Throwback Thursday #12 – Froelich’s Ladder

  1. Thanks for the intro to Frolich’s Ladder. Oh yes, I loved Memoirs of a Geisha. I knew little of Japan so the whole background and setting of the geisha world and the time period captivated me.