By the time I was one-third of the way through this book, I realized that the title was a bit misleading. There is more about Beevor’s adult years documented here than childhood ones, but the constant theme is more about the area, the land, and the people, so not quite living up to my primary expectation was easy to forgive.

The travel descriptions, both in- and out-of-country were well-done; I had a very good feel for the scenery and the physical experience, and, the historical and geographic knowledge shared here definitely heightened my appreciation for my ancestor’s homeland. The thing that makes this travel book special is that it was written by someone who has lived her research; and yes, you can tell the difference.

Also emotionally moving was her portrayal of the scope of wartime (political birth, hardships, and rebuilding). I have to say that I personally feel fortunate that my family emigrated to America well before this time, but I also have to wonder how well my distant cousins survived.

The list of Beevor’s family and friends reads like a Who’s Who of the literary and art circles of the time. In some sections, it seemed as though every other page had some reference to an author, artist, or book I wanted to follow up on; this book could really have used a good indexing.

The sad end to the “castles” truly made me melancholy for everything that’s been lost due to war.

[originally posted to Momma Writes About Books

In this collection, science-fiction author Willis gives us 8 Christmas-themed stories, some of which build on traditional stories: A Christmas Carol, the Nativity, and Miracle on 34th Street. I enjoyed these very much (not a bad one in the bunch, IMO), as I’ve gotten a bit jaded over hearing the same old mushy tales over the years. A few of these had an actual science-fiction flavor, which I especially appreciated, as this is what I was expecting from Willis.

Not a book for the too-traditional-minded; most of these stories need a notched-up openmindedness to truly enjoy them. While there were some very nice lessons, I found only one truly quoteable passage among them: “There are things you don’t ask for because you know you can’t have them, and then there are things so far outside the realm of possibility, it would never even occur to you to want them.”

[posted originally to Momma Writes About Books]

It’s been a few years since I finished Bluejay Shaman, so I thought I’d move along with this short series, and this on also helps me toward the Seconds Challenge, which ends soon.

With this book, I learned a little about the art world (and again feel grateful I’ve nothing to do with it), and a little more about arson investigations (although I’m sure they come off better in real life). The mystery itself got a bit out of hand, however, and the relationship closure was awfully harsh. I found the protagonist to be little more stereotypical than necessary—I find it hard to believe that Nordic stoicism won’t call a slut to the carpet for knowingly using the wrong bed. Ew! I’m also getting impatient with characters who tough it out through concussions. For Pete’s sake, can’t authors write some believable recovery time?

A short little book that chronicles a family’s history (covering 5 generations) through yearly holiday-time (news)letters. A long with the good times and bad, the author also shows the progression of technology, religious adherence, and societal expectations.

Far from being a perfect family, those portrayed here have very authentic problems, trials, and failings. Of course, we do not get to know the characters very deeply, as only so much reality can go into a Christmas letter. Many of the letters include a recipe; funny [because I am a real recipe hound], none of them were noteworthy enough for me to copy before I send this on. I’m guessing they are Very Southern in nature, and I’ve yet to really find that particular cuisine enjoyable. YMMV.

Having read the book (long) after I’d seen the movie, I can see why Irving might have had good reason to not give his full authorization/blessing to the screenplay of Simon Birch (based partly on A Prayer for Owen Meany). The two versions of CHR are pretty disparate. I definitely preferred the book for its bigger scope, its better-developed characters, and the historical context of women’s rights regarding pregnancy. My only caveat regards the extremely graphic nature of the abortion procedures. The squeamish reader may need to skim over these passages; they do, however, make a dramatic impact within the story, and, in my opinion, are very integral to it.

Many of the situations (regarding orphans and abortions) discussed in this book help make a very strong case for choice. With the precarious position this choice has in our country, even after so many years of safety, perhaps it is time for another wave of readers to get inspired by CHR, or perhaps one of the movie channels could air the movie (which doesn’t do such a bad job of addressing the issue); I doubt any of the honchos of the broadcast networks would have the guts to show it.

Complete review, including quotes, is here

I’m not sure how I feel about my chosen reading sequence. I was originally going to read my non-fiction titles on Elizabeth Short, but when I came across the Book-to-Movie Challenge, I decided to bump this one up the pile. Besides, I felt like I’d kept it on my shelf long enough; I really need to get more of my BookCrossing trades moving on.

Anyway, I have no idea how much of this book is based on the facts of the case, and I’m not certain that it matters. As a stand-alone murder mystery, the plot works just fine; twists galore and loose ends wrapped up nicely. I will say that I thought that the first 60 or so pages, while well-written, didn’t seem relevant to the story. This was frustrating while I was slogging through Ellroy’s character development, but now that I’ve finished, I can see that he needed that space to also set up a few important plot points.

Ellroy’s novel read with a very Spillane-like cadence, but the fast-paced plot served to make this distraction fade away. His character were well-drawn, and easy enough to track [I personally have a problem doing this—an effect of MommyBrain, I’m certain].

[read for the Armchair Traveller Challenge]

I was surprised but delighted to find this on the dollar clearance rack at HPB a few years ago, as this title kept popping up as a good read on the BookCrossing forums. And, I believe it was the first book I pulled off the shelf as I was searching for enough titles to satisfy the Armchair Traveler Challenge. Overall, I enjoyed the book, so I hope the author’s made some money from it (my love for used books notwithstanding). Hawks writes good characters, beautiful setting description, and decent dialogue. When I’d finished, I wished for a little more connection between his thoughts on departure and arrival. This was also a fairly quick read, thank goodness, and not so heavy on the philosophy that I had to break for “ponder time.”

Quotes that made me think, or laugh, or roll my eyes:

“… ‘if onlys’ are inevitable. The trick is to be masters of our own destiny in so far as we have control, and take the rest on the chin with a wry smile. But we must go for it.”

“…I felt I was headed for the kind of big-time embarassment which leaves a scar on your soul and can disrupt sleep patterns.”

“Anyone who packs two days before departure should seek counselling. Balanced people are still shoving stuff into their bag as they are leaving the house. That’s normal.”

“Taxi-drivers are the same throughout the world—great levellers. Never mind that [someone famous] has jumped into the cab, they’ll get no specialist treatment, none whatsoever. The driver will bore them just as sh*tless as you and me.”

“Of all the romantic and heroic ways to leave this world, being part of a controlled explosion with a large kitchen appliance rated very poorly. Folk songs and poems were unlikely to be written, and not just because ‘fridge’ is a very difficult word to find a rhyme for.”

“This was Irish traditional music as I had hoped to see and hear it, spontaneous and from the heart, and not produced for the sake of the tourist industry. No question of being paid, or any requirement to perform for a certain amount of time. This was self-expression, not performance.”

Tom: “Where are you headed?”
Tony: “I don’t really know.”
Tom: “Well, isn’t that true of all of us?”
Tom delivered building supplies and pearls of wisdom.

“I began to wonder whether my ‘fridge journey’ could be considered an allegory for life. I decided that there was some persuasive evidence. Each day I was faced with a number of choices, some were easy and others were harder. I had learned not to worry; to make my choice and allow things to happen. When things…weren’t good…then they were character building. There weren’t any wrong or right paths to choose, just different ones, and where they led was governed by the attitude adopted towards them. What else? I couldn’t manage alone.”

“I had become unnerved by the eye thing. Some different form of communication had just gone on, and although the meaning seemed clear enough, history had shown that this was a language I was well capable of misinterpreting. Most girls [speak the language fluently]. Boys don’t speak it at all, but just understand a smattering of key words. Their job is not to make a pig’s ear of the translation. They normally fail quite spectacularly.”

I found this at a garage sale last month, and hadn’t really planned to read it anytime soon, but last night, I had an itch that couldn’t be relieved with anything that I should be reading.

“278 outspoken, indecent, and overdressed dogs” grace these pages, and several of them made me laugh out loud. Some are in store-bought/ready-made costumes, others in adapted human-wear, and others are simply “in” whatever they got into (like toothpaste). Each dog’s hobby is also included; none of them seem to match their costume, and include:

admiring rock gardens
barking in tongues
designing rubber toys
Motown historian
belly dancing
scrimshaw

From the back cover:
“Mans best friend? Think again. Behind those loving eyes and wagging tail lurks a very different dog. A dog with a dark side. A bad dog.
Here, in all their glory, are hundreds of bad dogs, with bad tempers and bad breath.
Smart-asses, stoners, thugs, cranks, lechers, hellions… makes you wonder what your pet’s really burying in the backyard.”

Nine months (a human gestation) in the life of a New York nanny, who is making her way through graduate school. Although fiction, and by two authors, the reader will be amazed at how they were able to integrate their experiences into one thoroughly sick family.

One can only hope to the powers that be that no child ever goes through all the head-games played out here. And one would also hope that, in real life, bosses such as these would never have any long-term help; that their employees would have the sense to leave. Unfortunately, there are people who are just that desperate for work. And the off-the-books salary system just asks for abuse.

I’ve heard a few complaints about this book I’d like to address:
1) “The nanny didn’t really seem ‘in it’ for the kid”
The fact that she gave up so much of her time (I believe she starts out at 15 hours per week, and at some point goes up to 60 hours during her school breaks) to give this child a proper amount and quality of attention, and the giving of a nickname (two, really, when shortened to his initial) shows an increasing bond between the two. She took her charge to her grandmother’s for a decent Christmas celebration. She stayed up all night with his croup bout. Now, that’s dedication beyond a “paycheck” job.

2) “The nanny was just in it to be the next Mrs. X.”
Oh, PLEASE. What little she saw of Mr. X., the treatment she received from him, not to mention her disgust at walking in while “Chicago” was being done on his desk. I think not.

Now, to bring it back to what I got from this book. There were some very touching slice-of-life moments. I was frustrated by Nanny’s spine issues (not HAVING one), but could empathize with being in that position at that age. This book wasn’t relevant to my life now, but it sure makes me appreciate the people I nannied for.

Spatula, indeed.

At least she got a puppy and a boyfriend out of it.

[originally posted to Bookcrossing, 3/21/03]

Loved this book when it came out 5 [wow!] years ago. Took more liquids through my nostrils than I’m sure is healthy. Was banned from reading it in the staff room during my lunch break [f*wit boss].

Classic ChickLit

[orig. post at Bookcrossing 2/26/03]