Helen Keller's autobiography, The Story of My Life is a selection later this year for one of my book clubs, so I'm digging in now. I haven't gotten very far, in fact her teacher and friend Anne Sullivan has just arrived on the scene.
Her tone is surprisingly casual about everything. Like, "Yeah, so I went blind and deaf, but anyway..."
The image I always have of her is the epic food fight she and Anne Sullivan have in the movie The Miracle Worker. Keller, in my mind, was a child who was the absolute picture of brattiness. Understandably so, considering she could not properly communicate with those around her. But her own account makes it sound as if her tantrums were not much worse than those of normal children, or at least normal children with really bad tempers. I should know, I was one.
Having only encountered Keller through the parts I've seen of the movie and the basic knowledge that most people have of her story, I was pleasantly surprised by her autobiography. She has an engaging voice and the book has made her more real to me than anything else I've ever heard or seen about her.
Monday, July 18, 2016
Wednesday, March 9, 2016
What's That Book? It worked, do it again!
Thank you, whatsthatbook.com. The book I was looking for yesterday is Captives of Time by Malcolm Bosse. It took less than 24 hours to get the correct response.
And thank you, Squish, for answering my question. I've posted another query now and have high hopes for this one as well. The question I answered was confirmed as correct as well, which pleases me. I don't understand how that process works and wasn't able to find it on the FAQs. I'm guessing the site admins approve the answers since I don't see any way for me to tell Squish that they identified the book I was looking for.
And thank you, Squish, for answering my question. I've posted another query now and have high hopes for this one as well. The question I answered was confirmed as correct as well, which pleases me. I don't understand how that process works and wasn't able to find it on the FAQs. I'm guessing the site admins approve the answers since I don't see any way for me to tell Squish that they identified the book I was looking for.
Tuesday, March 8, 2016
What's That Book? Well, what is it?!
I have a few books I've been trying to identify for years now. These are books I read in middle school and I cannot remember the titles for the life of me.
A plea on this blog did once get me a response through Facebook and my trusty high school English teacher, but there's another book that's been bugging me lately.
Casting around online, I found and decided to join www.whatsthatbook.com and post on there.
Here's what I said:
I probably read this in the late 1990s and I'm guessing it was published within ten years before that. Young adult fiction, but rather mature subjects. A teenage girl is orphaned and has to take care of her younger brother. They are traveling on foot and she meets a young man who wants to be a knight and seduces her. He's later murdered.
She is raped by two men and I think her brother might die later in the book. I'm pretty sure she has sex for money at least once. (This is definitely not a book I should have been allowed to get my hands on at that age, but it was in the YA section of the library...) The plague is coming through and I think she is living in a town and working as a servant when this happens.
The edition I read was hardback and the cover was rusty red and had sort of a creepy medieval woodcut feel and there may have been a picture of a clock somewhere on the front.
But before I posted my question, I answered one for someone else or at least gave it my best stab. The search functions aren't great, but a lot of people seem to have gotten answers to their book quandaries. Here's hoping I'll be one of them.
That being said, if you have any idea what book I'm talking about, please let me know!
A plea on this blog did once get me a response through Facebook and my trusty high school English teacher, but there's another book that's been bugging me lately.
Casting around online, I found and decided to join www.whatsthatbook.com and post on there.
Here's what I said:
I probably read this in the late 1990s and I'm guessing it was published within ten years before that. Young adult fiction, but rather mature subjects. A teenage girl is orphaned and has to take care of her younger brother. They are traveling on foot and she meets a young man who wants to be a knight and seduces her. He's later murdered.
She is raped by two men and I think her brother might die later in the book. I'm pretty sure she has sex for money at least once. (This is definitely not a book I should have been allowed to get my hands on at that age, but it was in the YA section of the library...) The plague is coming through and I think she is living in a town and working as a servant when this happens.
The edition I read was hardback and the cover was rusty red and had sort of a creepy medieval woodcut feel and there may have been a picture of a clock somewhere on the front.
But before I posted my question, I answered one for someone else or at least gave it my best stab. The search functions aren't great, but a lot of people seem to have gotten answers to their book quandaries. Here's hoping I'll be one of them.
That being said, if you have any idea what book I'm talking about, please let me know!
Wednesday, February 3, 2016
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies...the Movie
I was lucky enough to see a preview screening of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies last night. Based on the smash hit book by Seth Grahame-Smith, it comes to theaters February 5, 2016.
What you need to know: Doctor Who works for Cersei Lannister. Meanwhile, Tywin Lannister has five daughters who are definitely dangerous enough to be on Game of Thrones. More than one actor from Bridget Jones's Diary shows up. Heads explode. Got it?
I read the book ages ago, so I really can't say how closely the movie follows the original plot. And I don't know how much that really matters in a case like this. In a packed theater of men and women of all ages, everyone seemed to have a good time. There's intrigue and entrails, romance and violence, and so many misunderstandings between characters, you'll think you're watching Shakespeare.
Seriously, this is an exciting movie whether you read the book or not and whether you like zombies or not (as I've mentioned before, I'm sick and tired of them). As long as you can handle people's faces falling off, you'll be fine.
If you like reading this type of thing, Grahame-Smith's Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter and Unholy Night are good choices as well. And I think I heard something about some lady named Jane Austen writing a similar book.
What you need to know: Doctor Who works for Cersei Lannister. Meanwhile, Tywin Lannister has five daughters who are definitely dangerous enough to be on Game of Thrones. More than one actor from Bridget Jones's Diary shows up. Heads explode. Got it?
I read the book ages ago, so I really can't say how closely the movie follows the original plot. And I don't know how much that really matters in a case like this. In a packed theater of men and women of all ages, everyone seemed to have a good time. There's intrigue and entrails, romance and violence, and so many misunderstandings between characters, you'll think you're watching Shakespeare.
Seriously, this is an exciting movie whether you read the book or not and whether you like zombies or not (as I've mentioned before, I'm sick and tired of them). As long as you can handle people's faces falling off, you'll be fine.
If you like reading this type of thing, Grahame-Smith's Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter and Unholy Night are good choices as well. And I think I heard something about some lady named Jane Austen writing a similar book.
Tuesday, February 2, 2016
The Boys in the Boat: Five star review!
Daniel James Brown has written an engaging, fascinating, touching book. The Boys in the Boat is the best book I've read in a long time. We're reading it for one of my book clubs and I remember voting for it when we selected our books for the year (I like boys, I like boats, what's not to like?) but I had no idea what a wonderful experience I was getting myself into. Well done, me.
The subtitle says it all: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics. What more do you need to know? A few more things, actually. Yes, there were nine of them in the boat as it raced toward the finish line, but then there were the amazing coaches who pushed them beyond any imaginable limits, the rowing genius who built their lightning fast shell, their families and their girlfriends who struggled and hoped along with them as the country was clawing its way out of the Depression. There were also the countless fans who followed their races and cheered them on in an era when rowing was one of the biggest sports around.
Brown's writing is so rich in detail and relevant facts that it feels like reading Eric Larson, which is high praise indeed. I have no interest in sports in general, but rowing has such a aura about it. It's a sport of the monied and well-bred. But as Brown shows us, sometimes it pays off to be an outsider. The boys in this particular boat were from humble origins, some of them working every free minute to earn their way through school at the University of Washington. By the end of it, you'll want to shake hands with every last one of them or maybe hug them and bake them pie.
Check out the book trailer on Goodreads.
Rating: 5 stars
Genre: nonfiction
Recommended for fans of: nonfiction, history, WWII, sports, the Olympics, the Pacific Northwest, manliness, America
The subtitle says it all: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics. What more do you need to know? A few more things, actually. Yes, there were nine of them in the boat as it raced toward the finish line, but then there were the amazing coaches who pushed them beyond any imaginable limits, the rowing genius who built their lightning fast shell, their families and their girlfriends who struggled and hoped along with them as the country was clawing its way out of the Depression. There were also the countless fans who followed their races and cheered them on in an era when rowing was one of the biggest sports around.
Brown's writing is so rich in detail and relevant facts that it feels like reading Eric Larson, which is high praise indeed. I have no interest in sports in general, but rowing has such a aura about it. It's a sport of the monied and well-bred. But as Brown shows us, sometimes it pays off to be an outsider. The boys in this particular boat were from humble origins, some of them working every free minute to earn their way through school at the University of Washington. By the end of it, you'll want to shake hands with every last one of them or maybe hug them and bake them pie.
Check out the book trailer on Goodreads.
Rating: 5 stars
Genre: nonfiction
Recommended for fans of: nonfiction, history, WWII, sports, the Olympics, the Pacific Northwest, manliness, America
Thursday, October 8, 2015
Ghosts in Irish Houses: Halloween 2
Halloween 2015: Day 8
For a truly bizarre read, pick up Ghosts in Irish Houses by James Reynolds. Illustrated by the author, it features numerous stories about a wide variety of hauntings. It's everything from ghosts who have killed multiple people to a glove that reappears decades after its owner loses it or some such drivel. I'm not sure if Reynolds just wasn't a great writer or if the stories are so weird that they don't come across well. Either way, it's a bit of a slog to get through the whole thing. Also, many of the accompanying sketches, which are usually of the main character in the story, are mediocre at best.
There is a pretty interesting recurring theme of strong women in many of the stories. There are warrior queens and vicious murderesses galore.
My favorite story is about a birthday party that could have come straight from Game of Thrones. It went about like this:
"Hey, hated enemy. I know you slaughtered my warrior queen mother and her army back in the day, but while you're travelling through town, do you want to spend the weekend at my house?"
"Sure, guy who has probably gotten over me killing his mom. Thank you for your hospitality."
"No problem. And since you're here, please help us celebrate my oldest son's birthday."
"That was a great party, but I'm really old and I need to go to bed now. Also, my men are wondering why you wouldn't let them bring their swords into the party."
"No reason. But before you go to bed--" STAB STAB STAB
"Curse your sudden but inevitable betrayal! Agh!"
"Well that was fun. This one's for you, Ma. Oops the neighbors are coming. Better hide all these bodies under the floor. I'm sure they won't haunt the castle and kill everyone who disturbs their resting place. Happy birthday, Junior!"
For a truly bizarre read, pick up Ghosts in Irish Houses by James Reynolds. Illustrated by the author, it features numerous stories about a wide variety of hauntings. It's everything from ghosts who have killed multiple people to a glove that reappears decades after its owner loses it or some such drivel. I'm not sure if Reynolds just wasn't a great writer or if the stories are so weird that they don't come across well. Either way, it's a bit of a slog to get through the whole thing. Also, many of the accompanying sketches, which are usually of the main character in the story, are mediocre at best.
There is a pretty interesting recurring theme of strong women in many of the stories. There are warrior queens and vicious murderesses galore.
My favorite story is about a birthday party that could have come straight from Game of Thrones. It went about like this:
"Hey, hated enemy. I know you slaughtered my warrior queen mother and her army back in the day, but while you're travelling through town, do you want to spend the weekend at my house?"
"Sure, guy who has probably gotten over me killing his mom. Thank you for your hospitality."
"No problem. And since you're here, please help us celebrate my oldest son's birthday."
"That was a great party, but I'm really old and I need to go to bed now. Also, my men are wondering why you wouldn't let them bring their swords into the party."
"No reason. But before you go to bed--" STAB STAB STAB
"Curse your sudden but inevitable betrayal! Agh!"
"Well that was fun. This one's for you, Ma. Oops the neighbors are coming. Better hide all these bodies under the floor. I'm sure they won't haunt the castle and kill everyone who disturbs their resting place. Happy birthday, Junior!"
Thursday, October 1, 2015
The Cask of Amontillado: Halloween 1
Halloween, 2015: Day 1
I like to celebrate Halloween. A lot. Starting on the first day of October, in fact. My desk at work is already decorated and I'm considering my costume options (I'm thinking Shriner).
In preparation for this festive day, I will cram my blog with as much creepy fun as I can. I'll be reviewing and posting about all the atmospheric and unsettling books and stories I can think of. What better way to start off than with the master himself, Edgar Allan Poe?
Click here for one of my personal favorites--The Cask of Amontillado. Check out the rest of PoeStories.com for more stories and poems by the original emo kid as well as biographical information and a list of the delicious and eccentric words he used.
I like to celebrate Halloween. A lot. Starting on the first day of October, in fact. My desk at work is already decorated and I'm considering my costume options (I'm thinking Shriner).
In preparation for this festive day, I will cram my blog with as much creepy fun as I can. I'll be reviewing and posting about all the atmospheric and unsettling books and stories I can think of. What better way to start off than with the master himself, Edgar Allan Poe?
Click here for one of my personal favorites--The Cask of Amontillado. Check out the rest of PoeStories.com for more stories and poems by the original emo kid as well as biographical information and a list of the delicious and eccentric words he used.
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