“My Lovely Wife” (2019, 374 pages in paperback) is a love story, a debut novel by Samantha Downing. I don’t usually read love stories. In fact, the last one that I read was more than 50 years ago: “Love Story,” by Erich Segal. It was a soppy tale, all the rage of the year, and the source of the even soppier declaration, “Love means never having to say you’re sorry.” So, why did I read this one? There’s a simple answer: It’s different. It’s the story of Tobias (at least that’s

H.hristov, Wikimedia Commons Taboulleh salad goes great with garbanzo-based falafel when tucked into pocket bread. Many of us decide to enjoy a barbecue for Memorial Day, and that is great. For anyone who is considering trying something different this year, I would like to share my own meal plan. I confess, however, that I have not yet decided if I am going to use this meal plan for Memorial Day or Father’s Day. Since Memorial Day (May 30) is coming up sooner, Father’s Day be

For The Madera Tribune The Southern Hotel, shown in this 1905 photograph, was normally a quiet place. In 1903, however, the proprietor, J.M. Hambleton, became an unknowing participant in one of the wildest scams that was ever attempted in Madera. It’s a pity we don’t know the rest of the story. Historians have to be careful about putting a period at the end of their stories. They almost never get all of the facts. A prime example of this can be found in a tale I wrote a few y

Courtesy of Ethan Smith Jadan Walbridge (07) leads Kyle Keller (12) in the Pro Late Models at the Madera Speedway on Saturday. Jadan Walbridge outlasted Kyle Keller in the rematch from their classic on April 30 at Madera Speedway, with Walbridge taking the Military Tribute Night round four for the Lunkerdaddy Pro Late Models. Each had to overcome challenges to emerge as the top-two contenders to win the 80-lap contest Saturday night and then engaged in an exciting battle to t

Possibly the most common jury instruction in courtrooms across America goes basically like this (specific language may vary a little): “If you catch a witness lying about anything, you can assume they are lying about everything else they said.” But both in California and in Congress, Republicans en masse are apparently ignoring that edict, offering standing ovations to Kevin McCarthy, the Bakersfield congressman and Republican leader in the House of Representatives who desper

Wendy Alexander/The Madera Tribune Firefighters walk past one of two homes on Riverview Drive that was destroyed by fire on Tuesday evening. A blaze that started in the Fresno River spread to Riverview Drive and destroyed two homes and damaged two others. The fire originally started behind Lowe’s on the north side of the Fresno River on Tuesday afternoon. According to Cal Fire Battalion Chief Anthony Garcia, units were dispatched at 4:54 pm. The fire started from an area wher

Candidates for local offices gathered at the Madera County Farm Bureau sales barn Tuesday evening to give voters one more chance to decide how they are going to vote in the upcoming June election. Farm Bureau Executive Director Christina Beckstead once again moderated the event as 12 aspirants for political offices turned out to unveil their reasons for running. These included Board of Supervisors, District 1 candidates Michelle Stephens, Jordan Wamhoff, and Andy Wheeler; Boa

There was a tremendous amount of emotion, anger, and sadness at the Madera City Council meeting. Because the meeting was held the night immediately following the terrible fire in the Fresno River, completely destroying two houses and damaging two others on Riverview Drive, residents wanted solutions and answers during Wednesday’s meeting. During the public comment portion of the meeting, the first person to speak was Madera City Manager, Arnoldo Rodriguez. He explained about