It’s That Time Again: My Year in Review (May 2025–April 2026)
Last year’s update (until 30 April 2025) is HERE, and the running page of past and present updates is HERE.
I never celebrated this milestone. Again. I’m not the best at celebrating anything really. And it’s so important.
Many many things changed in my author career over the last year and I think it’s going to be a very slight post… But let’s not revel in old habits and review this year.
As always, the inspiration for posts like this comes from The Creative Penn with Joanna Penn, Sacha Black, and the SPA Girls. More on that over on my TIMELINE page.
**WARNING!!** Possible Spoilers. I can’t help myself when I try to convey a point, but I’ll put ** before and after what could be spoilers.
Welcome, dear reader!
A local coffee shop in our town put this book on offer a few years ago. Written by a local writer about our beautiful town. Unfortunately out of print. And somewhat outdated.
Book details: Magaliesberg Kaleidoscope by Willie Meyer TITLE - Magaliesberg Kaleidoscope AUTHOR - Willie Meyer GENRE - Non-fiction, Essays YEAR PUBLISHED - 2012 PAGE COUNT - 229 RATING ELSEWHERE - N/A
The edition I read 2012 Paperback edition ISBN 978-0-620547-10-9 Published by Yesterday's Classics, Chapel Hill, North Carolina MY RATING - 3 Stars
Description on Groep 7 Drukkers
The Magaliesberg between what is now Pretoria and Rustenburg, and the valleys surrounding it, have been home to man and his ancestors for literally millions of years. The mountains were already ancient when the first humanoids with their clumsy gait and crude implements scavenge in the valleys for the remains of the prey of the sabre-toothed tiger and the giant hyena. In historic times the rugged rock faces impassively witnessed the arrival of the cattle herding immigrants from East Africa, the marauding impis from Natal and itinerant farmers from the Cape. They witnessed the Dificane, the Boer civil war, the first and second Anglo Boer Wars and the construction of man-made features that changed the nature of man’s pursuits in the valleys and surrounding hills. This book is about just some of these people and their exploits.
My initial thoughts and what I expected
We’ve been living in this area for nearly 20 years now. Although I know bits and bobs about this area, I definitely know too little. So I hoped this would be a good way to start that particular discover.
I don’t know the writer. And I think this was the only book he’s ever published. According to Magaliesberg Meander, the book is based on a series of Kormorant feature articles by the author. Kormorant is a local newspaper.
So essentially, now real expectation
‘The joke,’ he said, ‘is as invisinle as a weathercock on a steeple.’
Two Gentlemen of Verona
What says I about MAGALIES KALEIDOSCOPE BY WILLIE MEYER
This was a fun read. The author has a no-nonsense way of writing. Every essay focused on one aspect of our area. It started sharing small tidbits about a time before it became a settlement, a neighbourhood, and a town. He wrote about the Genl Hendrik Schoeman. This boer general was instrumental in the run-up to the Anglo-Boer War. As well as the subsequent wars. His farm became our town.
Other than the versions we were taught at school, I’ve never actually taken the time to educate myself. About that war, the people who lived here and so much more about our history. The author managed to let every essay highlight something. About the people, the history, the justices, the struggles, the developments, and the progress.
We like to think that this moment in time is the first time that horrible things happen. Or that good things came to be with a lot of labour and pain and jumping through hoops. But reading this book I realised that it is just not true. This area had ginormous struggles and successes even halfway through the 1800’s!
Doesn’t it just help to give one a bit of perspective? Today is not the worst it’s going to be. And it’s also not the best it’s going to be.
The books ends with a brief overview of the Hartbeespoort Dam. And the struggles we’re still facing around this body of water. The pollution, the constant struggle to keep it from falling deeper and deeper into the toxic situation it’s teetering on.
What says others
Sadly, I could not find reviews or recommendations by others about this book. I’m going to assume that it was more for ‘friends and family’ that this book was published.
At least it’s recommended reading if you want to know more about the Magalies, the mountain range surrounding our town. A list I would like to invest in as part of my education process.
Where to find the author and other books I read by the author
There’s no website or author platform to learn more about this author that I could find. If you know where to reach him or more of his books, please email me at anne@annecwest.co.za.
**WARNING!!** Possible Spoilers. I can’t help myself when I try to convey a point, but I’ll put ** before and after what could be spoilers.
Welcome, dear reader!
I haven’t done one of these posts in a while. And by deduction, I haven’t read much since early last year. What better way to start reading than a book from our home library and a favourite author!
I was introduced to this particular book when we used the Ambleside Online suggestions for the Charlotte Mason Curriculum in our homeschool journey.
Book details: Beautiful Stories from Shakespeare BY E Nesbit (William Shakespeare) TITLE - Beautiful Stories from Shakespeare AUTHOR - E Nesbit (William Shakespeare) GENRE - Children's Fiction; Anthology; YEAR PUBLISHED - 2006 PAGE COUNT - 262 RATING ELSEWHERE - 4.1 TO 4.6 Stars
The edition I read 2006 Paperback edition ISBN 978-1599150291 Published by Yesterday's Classics, Chapel Hill, North Carolina MY RATING - 3 Stars
Description on Google Books
Beautiful Stories From Shakespeare by E. Nesbit: This enchanting collection brings to life some of William Shakespeare’s most beloved plays through captivating storytelling. E. Nesbit skillfully retells the timeless tales, making them accessible to readers of all ages and immersing them in the beauty and depth of Shakespeare’s works.
My initial thoughts and what I expected
I expected a watered-down version of Shakespeare. I expected a dumbing down of Shakespeare’s prose. I basically expected versions of Shakespeare’s works.
Shakespeare is credited with an incredible amount of ‘new’ words and sayings. I love the whit and humor with which he both compliments and insults the powers that be in that particular time in history. I came to know Shakespeare as a master political commentator. I find it also fascinating that he didn’t lose his head because of his open criticism.
Oops! Wrong country…
But you know what I mean. Life was fickle. Much like it is today, I suppose.
‘The joke,’ he said, ‘is as invisinle as a weathercock on a steeple.’
Two Gentlemen of Verona
What says I about BEAUTIFUL STORIES FROM SHAKESPEARE by E NESBIT
That brings me to this book, then.
This book is a republishing of the 1907 edition. According to the publisher, this edition is an unabridged edition of that publication. And that I can’t fault.
As for the author, I love E Nesbit’s writing.
What I found in reading this book is that it’s not really Shakespeare. It’s not the ‘difficult’ language. It’s not the ‘pithy’ and snide commentary that I know and love so much of Shakespeare. I also found the stories rushed. Details are shirked in some way. It did allow for some interesting debrief conversations with my kiddos when they also tried to figure out how we got to the particular conclusion of the stories.
BUT before you hate on me, this is written for our little people. And little people don’t even use the English language like their grandparents, so Shakespeare will most definitely not land even close to our young ones. And their ability to maybe fill in the ‘next logical step’ is probably not that sharp yet. So the fantastical, ‘she just fell madly in love, and they lived happily ever after,’ will be completely plausible. My very critical thinkers, with their own love for great literature, the classics and Shakespeare, definitely gauged that the stories were ‘dumbed down’.
This book is generally classified as a middle school age group, which I believe is around 12 to 15 years old. Sadly, I would disagree, since most of the kiddos I know in this age group will probably miss the stories in total. I would say young adults will probably understand it better.
However, if Shakespeare is new to you. And you are aware that his use of English is wildly different from the contemporary use of our language, please read this book.
Shakespeare loved to apply leaps of creative liberty to resolving conflict or outsmarting opponents, or securing the affection of a love interest. He most definitely did not take the logical paths and conventional steps to end his stories, and that is definitely different from contemporary authors. E Nesbit managed to stay true to that.
AND OF COURSE, anything to get young ones into Shakespeare! Readers shirk on their Shakespearean exposure and I think one’s definitely poorer for it. Therefore, please read this book!
It’s a quick read. It’s an easy read. And Shakespeare’s unique contribution to the English language do actually shine through in many of the stories.
They were both rich, and I suppose they were as sensible, in most things, as other rich people.
Romeo & Juliet
What says others
‘Gorgeous retelling. Perfect for children becoming acquainted with Shakespeare, Living Book Press
‘Get acquainted with Shakespeare’s beautiful stories in this easy to read/ easy to listen to book.’ Goodreads
Some other feedback on the Nesbit and other editions Well Trained Mind
The women replied only by vanishin, as though suddenly mixed with air.
Macbeth
Where to find the author and other books I read by the author
Unfortunately the author, E Nesbit. is long since not in this world anymore but you can read more about her on the Wikipedia page.
And then of course, Mr William Shakespeare himself, has a home on WilliamShakespeare.net and Shakespeare.org.uk. On most historical and reference website you’ll find some information about him as well.
It’s time for another Week in the Lifevideo from me.
I neglected to record most of what I did this week. I’ve only been editing Silver Murder… I would love to say I’m close to being done, but that would be a lie! I might write fast but I edit slow. So we learn.
The unedited edition of Silver Murder is staying available for free on the blog, so have a read. Yes, there’s plot holes. Yes, there’s inaccuracies. Yes, there’s typos or grammatical mistakes. Even AI software doesn’t catch all the mistakes…
I slowed down on my Amazon obsessing. The week when they slow down their algorithm machine is the week when I threw everything in. Go figure. So I’m trying not to get too depressed. There’s always something to learn, I suppose.
It’s available on Amazon and through KU! If not, go and grab that and please please please (don’t let me beg! it’s ugly…) leave a review or a star rating. It really helps.
That’s it for today.
Cheers! Anne
**Please send me an email with your feedback at anne@annecwest.co.za. Comments vanish and get missed, hence emails.**
Last time I told you that I loved making my own. I think this edition I made in Gimp. A program I’m sadly not proficient at.
The idea looked much better in my head than in reality. And then I learned blending of images. Oh happy days!
Attempt 2Attempt 3
Even though these flowery editions of the series never saw the light of day, I did like it.
Looking at it now, it looks more like women’s fiction or tragedies. Maybe gothic, just way too colourful!Then of course these book covers for Jack & Jool
I think I’ll always experiement with designing my book covers. Especially when I’m starting on a project. My publisher might have something to say about it. But just look at this collection of covers!
Working with a book cover designer
One of the most difficult thing I found when I worked with this designer was the brief. What do I tell the designer? In my head I see an image. In my heart I feel something else.
In reality, there’s a few pointers:
If you take a snapshot of the top 100 book covers in the genre, will your covers stand out?
What are the basic elements on each and every book cover?
Forget about the ‘message’, hints or otherwise, you wanted to communicate.
With these 3 pointers in front of me, all images and feelings flew out the window.
Standing out is not the objective. In my mind it says ‘pick me!’ For readers it says ‘something’s off here… ew’ and they scroll past. Bummer. But so we learn.
The Cover Reveal
And that brings me to the exciting part.
Without delaying any further, here is the new cover for Jack & Jool, the second book in my The Unknown Seriesof sweet Regency historical romances.
I do love it. I got to add a little bit about Jool, my female protagonist, her fiery red hair and her horse on the cover! But purely because it worked. Very happy about it.
It’s genre-specific and it fits beautifully into the world of top 100 sweet Regency romances.
What’s Next?
Next time is the third book in The Unknown Series. You can find it on Amazon already but I bet you forgot about the previous covers.
In the meantime, here’s how you can dive into the story:
If you enjoyed it, please leave a star rating or review—it makes all the difference.
And don’t forget, there’s a bonus short story waiting for you at the end of the book.
Let’s Chat
What do you think of the new cover? Do you enjoy seeing the behind-the-scenes of an author’s creative process? I’d love to hear your thoughts—feel free to drop me an email anytime.
Thanks for being part of this journey with me.
Until next time.
Cheers!
**Please send me an email with your feedback at anne@annecwest.co.za. Comments vanish and get missed, hence emails.**
It’s time for another Week in the Lifevideo from me.
Editing. Editing. Editing!
The end.
Last week I finally got butt in chair to edit Silver Murder. It’s exhausting, but it’s actually such a great exercise. I forgot a bit of the intricacies, and I noticed a lot of mistakes.
On the blog, you’re finding the unedited edition of Silver Murder, so it will give you a good idea of the story, but the edited version will definitely be much better.
I slowed down on my Amazon obsessing. The week when they slow down their algorithm machine is the week when I threw everything in. Go figure. So I’m trying not to get too depressed. There’s always something to learn, I suppose.
Last week I shared a blogpost about the evolution of Frances & Gilbert’s bookcover. Paving the way to hell with good intentions, I wanted to share Jack & Jool’s bookcover evolution as wel. But here we are. It should be coming soon… I hope.
It’s available on Amazon and through KU! If not, go and grab that and please please please (don’t let me beg! it’s ugly…) leave a review or a star rating. It really helps.
That’s it for today.
Cheers! Anne
**Please send me an email with your feedback at anne@annecwest.co.za. Comments vanish and get missed, hence emails.**
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