June J. McInerney

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Monday, May 5, 2014

Wake Up, Little Susie
I was weaned on the music of Frank Sinatra wafting through the house from the portable Hi-Fi in the dining room. I spent my pre-teen years listening to The Everly Brothers; grooved as an adolescent on Elvis Presley; and when I finally learned to play the guitar, was enamored of Joan Baez, The Weavers, Peter, Paul, and Mary (I once met her in a Shopwell supermarket.); and the Mommas and the Poppas. Well, actually, the list of my favorite artists could go on and on...The Kingston Trio…Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel...The Smothers Brothers...Janis Ian...The Doors...The Beatles…You know, all those popular singers and groups that appealed to the young and the young at heart.

But the one song that plays in my mind most often is "Wake Up, Little Susie" by The Everly Brothers. Probably because it was the very first song I heard and remembered playing on the radio from a very, very young age. Actually, it was my much older cousin who would sing it to me each morning when we summered at Saratoga Lake. I can still hear her laughing and singing the lyrics as she jostled me out of bed for yet another day of swimming and hiking. Its words are inanely unsophisticated, yet couched in a catchy tune. Not great music by any means, but still…

The Awakening of Miss Prim , Natalia Sanmartin Fenollera's first literary endeavor, reminds me of the essence of this song – the call from an outside force or person to rise one's self out of unconsciousness and become aware. While the singer is rousing his girlfriend because they both fell asleep and she has to be home before her curfew, the author rouses her main protagonist, Prudencia Prim, as well as her readers, from the somnambulance of indifference and the unawareness of the true meaning of love. This novel, of course, imparts a vastly deeper meaning than the simple, pubescent lyrics.

I could go on and on with the metaphors and analogies, but I think you will capture the drift as you read my review of this intriguing and refreshing novel at www.authorexposure.com. Now is your chance to open your eyes blurred by reading too many schlocky juvenile popular romance novels and awaken to the adult beauty of good literature.

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June J. McInerney, the host of this Literary Blog, is an author, poet, and librettist. Her currently published works include a novel, a book of spiritual inspirations, two volumes of poetry, stories for children (of all ages) and a variety of children's musicals. Her titles include:

Miss Elmira's Secret Treasure: A Novel of Phoenixville during the Early 1900s

Colonial Theatre: A Novel of Phoenixville during the Roarin' 20s

Phoenix Hose, Hook & Ladder: A Novel of Phoenixville during World War I

Columbia Hotel: A Novel of Phoenixville during the Early 1900s

the Schuylkill Monster: A Novel of Phoenixville in 1978

The Prisoner's Portrait: A Novel of Phoenxville during World War II

Forty-Thirty

Rainbow in the Sky

Meditations for New Members

Adventures of Oreigh Ogglefont

The Basset Chronicles.

Cats of Nine Tales

Spinach Water: A Collection of Poems

Exodus Ending: A Collection of More Spiritual Poems

We Three Kings

Beauty and the Beast

Bethlehem

Noah's Rainbow

Peter, Wolf, and Red Riding Hood

Originally from the New York metropolitan area, June currently lives near Valley Forge Park in Pennsylvania with her constant and loving companions, FrankieBernard and Sebastian Cat. She is currently working on her sixth novel.

June's novels can be purchased at amazon.com, through Barnes and Noble,
at the Historical Society of the Phoenixville Area,
and the Gateway Pharmacy in Phoenixvile, PA.

For more information about her musicals, which are also available on amazon.com,

please access www.stagedoormusicals.com.