Title: Serendipity House
Author: Joyce DeBacco
ISBN: 978-1-935013-98-3
Genre: women’s fiction w/romance
Publisher: Wild Child Publishing
Price: List $5.95 e-book only
Reviewed by Meg Kinsella of The Romance Studio
5 hearts out of 5
Sylvie Gardner is running from a controlling mother and a wedding she has discovered she doesn't want when she finds Serendipity House. Alexander Clemenceau is the private investigator hired by her ex-fiance to find her. Serendipity House is a bit rundown and full of unique seniors but Sylvie now has a place to find herself and perhaps the trust to love someone.
Joyce DeBacco has done a wonderful job of dealing with such deep emotional issue as mother-daughter conflicts. She does an excellent job in making you both see and feel with the heroine who feels she has never made her mom happy. We have all had the experiences she describes so accurately in the book. This book deals with all the different interpersonal relationships we have and we see Sylvie grow and become a stronger better person through these relationships. I really enjoyed this book even when I was cringing from reading some of the conversations between mothers and daughters. I felt a bit like I was sitting in the corner listening.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
Wednesday, 14 July 2010
Tuesday, 13 July 2010
Sculpting the Heart's Poetry While Conversing With the Masters
Sculpting the Heart's Poetry While Conversing With the Masters
By Joyce White
Reviewed by Molly Martin for Amazon
Joyce White's Sculpting the Heart's Poetry While Conversing With the Masters offers first some thoughts regarding Feminist Mythology.
Setting the tone is the first poem entitled Women in which all nuances of women are introduced from the kisses and tears, to rivalry, Caffeine, Nicotine and Prozac to an understanding that women have too many dimensions to simply set down on paper.
Poet White explains in Bird of God how she goes about constructing her rhythmical pieces.
Interspersed among the poetic odes in the work Sculpting the Heart's Poetry is found artwork including pen and ink drawings, photography and artwork created by the Masters. I found one photograph in particular to be... More >be particularly compelling, entitled A Family's Hands we see a grouping of hands including one of a baby and continuing on to the veined and conceivably arthritic hand of perhaps the oldest member of the family.
What daughter, I ponder might not find something with which to agree or to enjoy while reading the words of the four stanzas entitled Turning Into Mom.
Birthdays, Happy Children, and Becoming a Poem are some of the gentle, well crafted odes comprising Chapter 1 Feminist Mythology.
In the second Chapter of the book is found a collection of writer White's conversations with the Masters. From Zeus, Hermes, Dionysus and the First New Year Baby to Saint Raphael, and Madonna and Jesus and angels; poet White talks of love and flowers, and feeling loved, the thousand artists eyes. She tells of Artists who write and paint and create.
White tells of Raphael who comes to heal, and of angels who bless with celestial knowledge and of Jesus and the melodic music of Mozart and how angels fly and, Hermes. Hermes, the keeper of the in between, is chosen to report, record, and transport the dead.
Picasso is discussed in Chapter 3. That Poet White harbors a good bit of interest, caring and perhaps love for this artiste is very evident as the reader undertakes the works included in this series.
Picasso was born in Spain, moved to France and enjoyed a reputation as a renowned theater designer, draftsman, and sculptor, and, he was likely the greatest printmaker of his era and beyond.
White tells how Picasso's paintings fill her head, she relates that the artist's favorite model was Olga, and tells us something of that woman from her 22 inch waist to her dancing to unheard melodies, and while she looks a little odd in her cubic form, HE, no doubt, thought her perfectly constructed.
And one of my favorite paint artists, Van Gogh, is addressed in Chapter 4 which is introduced with a Chagall collage presented in muted magenta and lavender and is created by versifier White herself.
'There is beauty and bravery and achievement in Van Gogh's Starry Night.' I must agree.
Aphrodite and Venus and Marilyn Monroe, and Botticelli all become part of what we females are, we are women.
Chapter 5 leads the reader to Drama, Drama, Drama and tears like polliwogs, I think that is one of my favorite lines in the this section, and maybe even the work as a whole. Tears like polliwogs, what visual portrayals fill the senses. That, and poet White's assertion that if it looks and sounds like a poem, it is cause a smile. There is hope for all of us then, isn't there?
Money, Grammar and Endless love and barking Yorkies and graying hair and lips that taste of chocolate, White weaves visions with words.
Only a bard would recognize so easily that moths live, work and die much as do humans. She watches a spider spinning a web, and plays what if with white on white.
White pigeons hide from white cats and white birds search for white worms, and, she asks the question could we learn if white chalk wrote on a white chalkboard. We CAN live without a good many things we think we just have to have, but, can we actually live without red, orange, yellow, green, blue, black and brown?
I have cats, I particularly enjoyed the Ballet of Cats, 'by day they sit and stare in unison. They achieve lift off, twitch tails, and maybe even hiss ad stew. They are, cats by day and tigers by night.'
And Chapter 6 is filled with The Circle of Life. Works include evocative narrative of An Alcoholic, the delicate lilt Blossoms Praying, and mischevious First Dirty Word summing up a youngster's growing up, a Cowboy's Moonlight Ride, Hermit Poets and Ribbons, Bows and Lace present a slice of life across generations, times, places and gender.
Who should live and Who should die is a thought provoking discussion especially for those of us who have had, or may have soldier fathers, brothers, husbands, or today moms and sisters.
Growing Love, and The glass Dancer complete the work.
Rhymster White has crafted an eclectic, balanced work trailing across a myriad of themes. The work is wordsmith in content, wordsmith in beauty. That White has come through sorrow, enjoyed beauty and finds worthwhile in much is evidenced in her odes, stanzas and poems.
Lyricist Joyce White has strengthened herself using spiritual standards directing the core values set down in use of art therapy for sculpting the heart and thus the emotional wellbeing of the self. White employs these values creatively as a way to promote healing and growth and self awareness.
Renewal of verve, optimism, self discovery, moving on following tragedy or even a happy life changing event are all recurrent themes running through her work. White's Sculpting the Heart's Poetry thrusts wellness and good heartedness to the forefront. Sharing pain, hurt and happiness is therapeutic, liberating and cathartic White fosters integrity and wellbeing through the curative acts of creativity.
God focused dreams, work and doing embracing a belief of duality, harmonizing radiance and dark through verse and conversing with our spiritual leader fills our essence with the healing, joy and motivation to move forward with renewed vigor and self awareness in the face of the upsets we all face in life.
Filled with a poignant, ethereal quality the written works offered by White are counter balanced nicely with various depictions of art work including sculpture, pictures of various medium and photographs, all in all she has taken an eclectic set of materials and woven them into an affirmation of women in whole and the individual woman who may be reading.
Happy to recommend Joyce White's Sculpting the Heart's Poetry while conversing with the Masters.
For review I received an ARC from the author.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
By Joyce White
Reviewed by Molly Martin for Amazon
Joyce White's Sculpting the Heart's Poetry While Conversing With the Masters offers first some thoughts regarding Feminist Mythology.
Setting the tone is the first poem entitled Women in which all nuances of women are introduced from the kisses and tears, to rivalry, Caffeine, Nicotine and Prozac to an understanding that women have too many dimensions to simply set down on paper.
Poet White explains in Bird of God how she goes about constructing her rhythmical pieces.
Interspersed among the poetic odes in the work Sculpting the Heart's Poetry is found artwork including pen and ink drawings, photography and artwork created by the Masters. I found one photograph in particular to be... More >be particularly compelling, entitled A Family's Hands we see a grouping of hands including one of a baby and continuing on to the veined and conceivably arthritic hand of perhaps the oldest member of the family.
What daughter, I ponder might not find something with which to agree or to enjoy while reading the words of the four stanzas entitled Turning Into Mom.
Birthdays, Happy Children, and Becoming a Poem are some of the gentle, well crafted odes comprising Chapter 1 Feminist Mythology.
In the second Chapter of the book is found a collection of writer White's conversations with the Masters. From Zeus, Hermes, Dionysus and the First New Year Baby to Saint Raphael, and Madonna and Jesus and angels; poet White talks of love and flowers, and feeling loved, the thousand artists eyes. She tells of Artists who write and paint and create.
White tells of Raphael who comes to heal, and of angels who bless with celestial knowledge and of Jesus and the melodic music of Mozart and how angels fly and, Hermes. Hermes, the keeper of the in between, is chosen to report, record, and transport the dead.
Picasso is discussed in Chapter 3. That Poet White harbors a good bit of interest, caring and perhaps love for this artiste is very evident as the reader undertakes the works included in this series.
Picasso was born in Spain, moved to France and enjoyed a reputation as a renowned theater designer, draftsman, and sculptor, and, he was likely the greatest printmaker of his era and beyond.
White tells how Picasso's paintings fill her head, she relates that the artist's favorite model was Olga, and tells us something of that woman from her 22 inch waist to her dancing to unheard melodies, and while she looks a little odd in her cubic form, HE, no doubt, thought her perfectly constructed.
And one of my favorite paint artists, Van Gogh, is addressed in Chapter 4 which is introduced with a Chagall collage presented in muted magenta and lavender and is created by versifier White herself.
'There is beauty and bravery and achievement in Van Gogh's Starry Night.' I must agree.
Aphrodite and Venus and Marilyn Monroe, and Botticelli all become part of what we females are, we are women.
Chapter 5 leads the reader to Drama, Drama, Drama and tears like polliwogs, I think that is one of my favorite lines in the this section, and maybe even the work as a whole. Tears like polliwogs, what visual portrayals fill the senses. That, and poet White's assertion that if it looks and sounds like a poem, it is cause a smile. There is hope for all of us then, isn't there?
Money, Grammar and Endless love and barking Yorkies and graying hair and lips that taste of chocolate, White weaves visions with words.
Only a bard would recognize so easily that moths live, work and die much as do humans. She watches a spider spinning a web, and plays what if with white on white.
White pigeons hide from white cats and white birds search for white worms, and, she asks the question could we learn if white chalk wrote on a white chalkboard. We CAN live without a good many things we think we just have to have, but, can we actually live without red, orange, yellow, green, blue, black and brown?
I have cats, I particularly enjoyed the Ballet of Cats, 'by day they sit and stare in unison. They achieve lift off, twitch tails, and maybe even hiss ad stew. They are, cats by day and tigers by night.'
And Chapter 6 is filled with The Circle of Life. Works include evocative narrative of An Alcoholic, the delicate lilt Blossoms Praying, and mischevious First Dirty Word summing up a youngster's growing up, a Cowboy's Moonlight Ride, Hermit Poets and Ribbons, Bows and Lace present a slice of life across generations, times, places and gender.
Who should live and Who should die is a thought provoking discussion especially for those of us who have had, or may have soldier fathers, brothers, husbands, or today moms and sisters.
Growing Love, and The glass Dancer complete the work.
Rhymster White has crafted an eclectic, balanced work trailing across a myriad of themes. The work is wordsmith in content, wordsmith in beauty. That White has come through sorrow, enjoyed beauty and finds worthwhile in much is evidenced in her odes, stanzas and poems.
Lyricist Joyce White has strengthened herself using spiritual standards directing the core values set down in use of art therapy for sculpting the heart and thus the emotional wellbeing of the self. White employs these values creatively as a way to promote healing and growth and self awareness.
Renewal of verve, optimism, self discovery, moving on following tragedy or even a happy life changing event are all recurrent themes running through her work. White's Sculpting the Heart's Poetry thrusts wellness and good heartedness to the forefront. Sharing pain, hurt and happiness is therapeutic, liberating and cathartic White fosters integrity and wellbeing through the curative acts of creativity.
God focused dreams, work and doing embracing a belief of duality, harmonizing radiance and dark through verse and conversing with our spiritual leader fills our essence with the healing, joy and motivation to move forward with renewed vigor and self awareness in the face of the upsets we all face in life.
Filled with a poignant, ethereal quality the written works offered by White are counter balanced nicely with various depictions of art work including sculpture, pictures of various medium and photographs, all in all she has taken an eclectic set of materials and woven them into an affirmation of women in whole and the individual woman who may be reading.
Happy to recommend Joyce White's Sculpting the Heart's Poetry while conversing with the Masters.
For review I received an ARC from the author.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
Monday, 12 July 2010
Twenty Short Stories Let You Travel the World
Lost Angel Walkabout: One Traveler’s Tales
By Linda Ballou
ISBN: 978-1449971526
May 2010
Reviewed by Barbara Milbourn, a writer and editor in Nashville, Tennessee
In roughly twenty short stories, travel writer Linda Ballou takes us with her up active volcanoes in Costa Rica, down hundred-mile rivers in the Yukon Territory, over combination jumps and oxers in Ireland, beneath the Sea of Cortez, and along unforgettable jaunts through deserts, woods, peaks, and valleys in both hemispheres. Her tales span years of traveling—sometimes alone, occasionally with her mother or life partner, and often with others in search of soft adventure. Brimming with action, intelligence, regional history, funny mishaps or tight squeezes, each story is set against a backdrop of nature’s jaw-dropping beauty. Ballou aims to share her world view, and through her Eco-alerts make the reader care more deeply about our vanishing resources and places of wild beauty.
Living in greater Los Angeles among millions of other lost angels keeping pace in a hurried world, Linda Ballou makes no bones about her need to seek equilibrium, solitude, and salvation in the sublimity of nature. Forget thousand-thread count sheets at luxury hotels or shopping for the latest bling. Like the great figures liberally noted in her pieces—Robert Frost, Jack London, John Steinbeck, John Muir—Ballou prefers the great outdoors and is intimately acquainted with it. She is a naturalist, a thoughtful traveler, one caring toward the environment and sensitive to local populations both near and far. And, she is a meticulous researcher.
Lost Angel Walkabout is richly detailed and poetic. It gifts the reader with the depth of observation in the clear and careful naming of the world around us—places, peoples, plants, birds, mountain ranges, animals, and sea creatures. More satisfying than naming is storytelling the authentic connection made with the inhabitants of land, sea, and sky; ravens and great spirits, fin whales the size of city buses, or Native Americans forced to flee their land. Because the author has connected deeply, so does the reader. Something is gathered from every place visited, and it seems impossible not to connect with our own highest and best self through Ballou’s experiences—not to mention wanting to get up and go there.
Linda Ballou keeps good company too and includes interviews with renowned travel writer Tim Cahill and endurance rider Lari Shea. Like her travel writing hero Tim Cahill, Ballou sees humor in many of the predicaments she stumbles into, or out of, or overboard after.
Don’t be surprised to find her on the back of a galloping horse yelling “Yee Haw!” and let out a yell yourself.
Autographed copy with free shipping is available.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
By Linda Ballou
ISBN: 978-1449971526
May 2010
Reviewed by Barbara Milbourn, a writer and editor in Nashville, Tennessee
In roughly twenty short stories, travel writer Linda Ballou takes us with her up active volcanoes in Costa Rica, down hundred-mile rivers in the Yukon Territory, over combination jumps and oxers in Ireland, beneath the Sea of Cortez, and along unforgettable jaunts through deserts, woods, peaks, and valleys in both hemispheres. Her tales span years of traveling—sometimes alone, occasionally with her mother or life partner, and often with others in search of soft adventure. Brimming with action, intelligence, regional history, funny mishaps or tight squeezes, each story is set against a backdrop of nature’s jaw-dropping beauty. Ballou aims to share her world view, and through her Eco-alerts make the reader care more deeply about our vanishing resources and places of wild beauty.
Living in greater Los Angeles among millions of other lost angels keeping pace in a hurried world, Linda Ballou makes no bones about her need to seek equilibrium, solitude, and salvation in the sublimity of nature. Forget thousand-thread count sheets at luxury hotels or shopping for the latest bling. Like the great figures liberally noted in her pieces—Robert Frost, Jack London, John Steinbeck, John Muir—Ballou prefers the great outdoors and is intimately acquainted with it. She is a naturalist, a thoughtful traveler, one caring toward the environment and sensitive to local populations both near and far. And, she is a meticulous researcher.
Lost Angel Walkabout is richly detailed and poetic. It gifts the reader with the depth of observation in the clear and careful naming of the world around us—places, peoples, plants, birds, mountain ranges, animals, and sea creatures. More satisfying than naming is storytelling the authentic connection made with the inhabitants of land, sea, and sky; ravens and great spirits, fin whales the size of city buses, or Native Americans forced to flee their land. Because the author has connected deeply, so does the reader. Something is gathered from every place visited, and it seems impossible not to connect with our own highest and best self through Ballou’s experiences—not to mention wanting to get up and go there.
Linda Ballou keeps good company too and includes interviews with renowned travel writer Tim Cahill and endurance rider Lari Shea. Like her travel writing hero Tim Cahill, Ballou sees humor in many of the predicaments she stumbles into, or out of, or overboard after.
Don’t be surprised to find her on the back of a galloping horse yelling “Yee Haw!” and let out a yell yourself.
Autographed copy with free shipping is available.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
Saturday, 10 July 2010
So, What Do YOU Know about Javelinas?
TITLE: Javelina (Have-uh-WHAT?)
AUTHOR: Gene K. Garrison
ISBN: 978-1-4528725-3-7
GENRE: Children's
Synopsis:
This 38-page book about javelinas, wild pig-like animals that roam the Sonoran Desert in Arizona and Mexico, is chock-full of of excellent photographs.
The author took 20 of them. Another photographer, Al Brown, is credited with 12. This is the second edition, revised. Six pages have been added and the photographs upgraded.
Keep in mind that the book is nonfiction. There are no talking beasts. They simply live their lives raising families, foraging for food, avoiding enemies, napping wherever they please, and raiding gardens. They are not cuddly, sweet pets. They can be fierce when they need to be, and not everyone is pleased to see them around. There are others, however, who feel privileged to observe this animals in action.
The author, Gene K. Garrison, is one of the latter. She kept a camera on a cabinet beneath a window and very quietly, and without any sudden movements, picked it up whenever she noticed wildlife at a small waterhole outside. That's how the closeups came into being. She said, "I didn't mind being patient because I was having fun." Al Brown, too, enjoyed photographing javelinas in his yard. His were not as skittish as Garrison's, probably because they had been born in a neighborhood where houses were closer together.
Here's an excerpt:
They hear every sound —
footsteps making crunching noises
on gravel, squirrels scurrying,
a turtle plodding across the land.
They smell all of these things,
including us.
There is also a vocabulary list at the back of the book with phonetic pronunciation and definitions that children can understand. In some cases, adults could use a little help in this area. For instance," MESQUITE (mes-KEET) — a desert tree with fern-like leaves."
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
AUTHOR: Gene K. Garrison
ISBN: 978-1-4528725-3-7
GENRE: Children's
Synopsis:
This 38-page book about javelinas, wild pig-like animals that roam the Sonoran Desert in Arizona and Mexico, is chock-full of of excellent photographs.
The author took 20 of them. Another photographer, Al Brown, is credited with 12. This is the second edition, revised. Six pages have been added and the photographs upgraded.
Keep in mind that the book is nonfiction. There are no talking beasts. They simply live their lives raising families, foraging for food, avoiding enemies, napping wherever they please, and raiding gardens. They are not cuddly, sweet pets. They can be fierce when they need to be, and not everyone is pleased to see them around. There are others, however, who feel privileged to observe this animals in action.
The author, Gene K. Garrison, is one of the latter. She kept a camera on a cabinet beneath a window and very quietly, and without any sudden movements, picked it up whenever she noticed wildlife at a small waterhole outside. That's how the closeups came into being. She said, "I didn't mind being patient because I was having fun." Al Brown, too, enjoyed photographing javelinas in his yard. His were not as skittish as Garrison's, probably because they had been born in a neighborhood where houses were closer together.
Here's an excerpt:
They hear every sound —
footsteps making crunching noises
on gravel, squirrels scurrying,
a turtle plodding across the land.
They smell all of these things,
including us.
There is also a vocabulary list at the back of the book with phonetic pronunciation and definitions that children can understand. In some cases, adults could use a little help in this area. For instance," MESQUITE (mes-KEET) — a desert tree with fern-like leaves."
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
Friday, 9 July 2010
Deb Hockenberry Recommends "Feisty Family Values"
TITLE: Feisty Family Values
AUTHOR: B.D. Tharp
PUBLISHER: Five Star (ME),
February 17, 2010
FORMAT: Hardcover
PRICE: $25.95, £18.39
PAGES: 271
ISBN-10: 159414849X
ISBN-13: 9781594148491
Reviewed by Deborah Hockenberry, Independent Reviewer
A cab stops in front of the Victorian mansion in a well-to-do neighborhood in Wichita, Kansas. The passenger fumbles through her wallet for the correct fare. Finding everything but thirty cents, she dives into her cracked vinyl purse in search of it. The passenger walks up the steps of the mansion to see if her cousin, Regina, will take her in. But why is she here?
Regina, a bitter lady, a snob and born with a silver spoon in her mouth, hesitantly lets her poor relation in. After all, Annabelle is family. Regina is sure that her cousin’s stay will only be temporary. It has to be temporary! What will the neighbors think and how did Annabelle get that black eye? Tillie joins Regina at the door and makes up Regina’s mind for her.
Tillie is Regina’s best friend. She also lives in the old Victorian. Tillie is the total opposite of Regina. She’s full of life, accepts people for who they are, never hesitates to tell Regina what she thinks and is also a gourmet cook. In short, she’s one feisty lady!
Annabelle is different from either Regina or Tillie. Life has made her a timid creature so she doesn’t really speak up much. She is so eager to please her cousin that she’s even willing to learn to cook the way Tillie does! Will Annabelle overcome her shyness?
Will these three women be able to live together as a family unit? After all, each lady is in her 60’s and life has made each totally different from the other.
What’s happening to Regina’s perfect life? Now, there’s a cat in the house not to mention the chaos of Annabelle’s three grandchildren that are there periodically. What has made Regina so bitter? We don’t find this out until the end of the book. To complicate matters even more, a hunk of a man moves in right across the street from the ladies. All three ladies fall for their handsome neighbor. Will he fall for one of them?
I highly recommend Feisty Family Values. This is a very compelling and relatable tale that I had trouble putting down. Everyone knows people like Regina, Tillie, and Annabelle.
B.D. Tharp’s book deals with cancer, parental abuse, child abuse, love in your 60’s and more. Not only did she touch on some very real issues in her book but she wrote a very entertaining one. Feisty Family Values keeps you turning the pages!
If you’d like to learn more about the author please visit her website at: http://bdtharp.com.
----
The reviewer is Deb Hockenberry who blogs at http://thebumpyroadtopublishing.blogspot.com. Her reviews also appear at http://debsbookreviews.blogspot.com.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
AUTHOR: B.D. Tharp
PUBLISHER: Five Star (ME),
February 17, 2010
FORMAT: Hardcover
PRICE: $25.95, £18.39
PAGES: 271
ISBN-10: 159414849X
ISBN-13: 9781594148491
Reviewed by Deborah Hockenberry, Independent Reviewer
A cab stops in front of the Victorian mansion in a well-to-do neighborhood in Wichita, Kansas. The passenger fumbles through her wallet for the correct fare. Finding everything but thirty cents, she dives into her cracked vinyl purse in search of it. The passenger walks up the steps of the mansion to see if her cousin, Regina, will take her in. But why is she here?
Regina, a bitter lady, a snob and born with a silver spoon in her mouth, hesitantly lets her poor relation in. After all, Annabelle is family. Regina is sure that her cousin’s stay will only be temporary. It has to be temporary! What will the neighbors think and how did Annabelle get that black eye? Tillie joins Regina at the door and makes up Regina’s mind for her.
Tillie is Regina’s best friend. She also lives in the old Victorian. Tillie is the total opposite of Regina. She’s full of life, accepts people for who they are, never hesitates to tell Regina what she thinks and is also a gourmet cook. In short, she’s one feisty lady!
Annabelle is different from either Regina or Tillie. Life has made her a timid creature so she doesn’t really speak up much. She is so eager to please her cousin that she’s even willing to learn to cook the way Tillie does! Will Annabelle overcome her shyness?
Will these three women be able to live together as a family unit? After all, each lady is in her 60’s and life has made each totally different from the other.
What’s happening to Regina’s perfect life? Now, there’s a cat in the house not to mention the chaos of Annabelle’s three grandchildren that are there periodically. What has made Regina so bitter? We don’t find this out until the end of the book. To complicate matters even more, a hunk of a man moves in right across the street from the ladies. All three ladies fall for their handsome neighbor. Will he fall for one of them?
I highly recommend Feisty Family Values. This is a very compelling and relatable tale that I had trouble putting down. Everyone knows people like Regina, Tillie, and Annabelle.
B.D. Tharp’s book deals with cancer, parental abuse, child abuse, love in your 60’s and more. Not only did she touch on some very real issues in her book but she wrote a very entertaining one. Feisty Family Values keeps you turning the pages!
If you’d like to learn more about the author please visit her website at: http://bdtharp.com.
----
The reviewer is Deb Hockenberry who blogs at http://thebumpyroadtopublishing.blogspot.com. Her reviews also appear at http://debsbookreviews.blogspot.com.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
Wednesday, 7 July 2010
Bengal Book Award Winner Historically Accurate
River Passage
by p.m. terrell
Bengal Book Award
River Passage by p.m. Terrell recently won Best Fiction and Drama for 2010 in the Bengal Book Awards. The Nashville Metropolitan Government Archives has determined that River Passage is so historically accurate they have entered Ms. Terrell's original manuscript into the Archives for future researchers and historians.
River Passage is based on the true story of the Donelson journey that left Virginia bound for Fort Nashborough (now Nashville, TN) in the fall of 1779. Their goal was to bring businessmen and community leaders westward to expand America. Terrell's ancestors, the Neely family, were on that expedition. The trip was expected to take four weeks. Instead, more than four months after they left, a ragtag group of survivors limped into Fort Nashborough with a harrowing tale. Their river journey had taken them through hostile Indian Territory at the height of the Chickamauga Indian War. They also faced frostbite, near starvation, disease, deadly rapids --and a mutiny. The Indians attacked them over hundreds of miles, capturing some of the settlers, killing or wounding others, and leaving a few to tell the tale.
For more information about the journey, visit http://maryneely.com/journey.htm and for more information about the author, visit www.pmterrell.com.
Terrell is also the author of the historical suspense Songbirds are Free acclaimed suspense/thrillers Exit 22, Ricochet, Kickback, and The China Conspiracy and four nonfiction how-to books on using computers.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
by p.m. terrell
Bengal Book Award
River Passage by p.m. Terrell recently won Best Fiction and Drama for 2010 in the Bengal Book Awards. The Nashville Metropolitan Government Archives has determined that River Passage is so historically accurate they have entered Ms. Terrell's original manuscript into the Archives for future researchers and historians.
River Passage is based on the true story of the Donelson journey that left Virginia bound for Fort Nashborough (now Nashville, TN) in the fall of 1779. Their goal was to bring businessmen and community leaders westward to expand America. Terrell's ancestors, the Neely family, were on that expedition. The trip was expected to take four weeks. Instead, more than four months after they left, a ragtag group of survivors limped into Fort Nashborough with a harrowing tale. Their river journey had taken them through hostile Indian Territory at the height of the Chickamauga Indian War. They also faced frostbite, near starvation, disease, deadly rapids --and a mutiny. The Indians attacked them over hundreds of miles, capturing some of the settlers, killing or wounding others, and leaving a few to tell the tale.
For more information about the journey, visit http://maryneely.com/journey.htm and for more information about the author, visit www.pmterrell.com.
Terrell is also the author of the historical suspense Songbirds are Free acclaimed suspense/thrillers Exit 22, Ricochet, Kickback, and The China Conspiracy and four nonfiction how-to books on using computers.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
Tuesday, 6 July 2010
Movies, Trivia and an Egyptian God?
Serket's Movies: Commentary and Trivia on 444 Movies
By Cory Hamblin
RoseDog Books
ISBN: 978-1-4349-9605-3
Reviewed by Wesley Britton
It’s difficult to pin down the intended audience for this collection of capsule movie reviews. It’s clearly not researchers. I’m not sure it’s film buffs either. In fact, author Cory Hamblin candidly admits he’s not a film expert, “just a guy from a small town who enjoys watching movies.” Admitting his major source is his aunt’s DVD collection, he adds that he’s not interested in films with political messages. “Most Americans from small towns . . . are just looking to have an enjoyable experience at the movies. What we would like to see are more movies with positive portrayals of America, our military, families, men, and God.” Illustrating the informal nature of his reviews, Hamblin states the title of the book draws from his “online moniker”: “Serket is the name of one of the earliest recorded Egyptian kings . . . it has no direct correlation to the contents of the book.”
Hamblin also stated his choice of movies had much to do with the amount of trivia he could find on them, and trivia is really what his book is all about. The “commentary” is about as long as your average Tweet. A case in point is Hamblin’s overview of A Beautiful Mind which reads, in whole:
This is a noteworthy movie based on a true story. Brilliant mathematician
John Nash (Russell Crowe) is on the brink of international acclaim when he becomes entangled in a mysterious conspiracy. Only his devoted wife (Jennifer Connelly) can help him.
I have a bachelor’s degree in economics, and during my last
Semester I took a class on industrial organization. We learned
about game theory and the Nash equilibrium.
The film was inspired by the bestselling, Pulitzer Prize-nominated
1998 book by Sylvia Nasar. The scene in the movie in
which mathematics professors ritualistically present pens to Nash
was completely fabricated. No such custom exists. What it symbolizes
is that Nash was accepted and recognized in the mathematics
community. The scene in the movie when Nash thanks his
wife, Alicia, for her continued support during his illness is also
fictional. At the Nobel Prize award ceremony, His Majesty, the king of
Sweden, hands each laureate a diploma, a medal, and a document
confirming the prize amount. The laureates do not give acceptance
speeches. Laureates are each invited to give an hour-long
lecture; however, the Nobel committee did not ask Nash to do so,
due to concerns over his mental health.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
By Cory Hamblin
RoseDog Books
ISBN: 978-1-4349-9605-3
Reviewed by Wesley Britton
It’s difficult to pin down the intended audience for this collection of capsule movie reviews. It’s clearly not researchers. I’m not sure it’s film buffs either. In fact, author Cory Hamblin candidly admits he’s not a film expert, “just a guy from a small town who enjoys watching movies.” Admitting his major source is his aunt’s DVD collection, he adds that he’s not interested in films with political messages. “Most Americans from small towns . . . are just looking to have an enjoyable experience at the movies. What we would like to see are more movies with positive portrayals of America, our military, families, men, and God.” Illustrating the informal nature of his reviews, Hamblin states the title of the book draws from his “online moniker”: “Serket is the name of one of the earliest recorded Egyptian kings . . . it has no direct correlation to the contents of the book.”
Hamblin also stated his choice of movies had much to do with the amount of trivia he could find on them, and trivia is really what his book is all about. The “commentary” is about as long as your average Tweet. A case in point is Hamblin’s overview of A Beautiful Mind which reads, in whole:
This is a noteworthy movie based on a true story. Brilliant mathematician
John Nash (Russell Crowe) is on the brink of international acclaim when he becomes entangled in a mysterious conspiracy. Only his devoted wife (Jennifer Connelly) can help him.
I have a bachelor’s degree in economics, and during my last
Semester I took a class on industrial organization. We learned
about game theory and the Nash equilibrium.
The film was inspired by the bestselling, Pulitzer Prize-nominated
1998 book by Sylvia Nasar. The scene in the movie in
which mathematics professors ritualistically present pens to Nash
was completely fabricated. No such custom exists. What it symbolizes
is that Nash was accepted and recognized in the mathematics
community. The scene in the movie when Nash thanks his
wife, Alicia, for her continued support during his illness is also
fictional. At the Nobel Prize award ceremony, His Majesty, the king of
Sweden, hands each laureate a diploma, a medal, and a document
confirming the prize amount. The laureates do not give acceptance
speeches. Laureates are each invited to give an hour-long
lecture; however, the Nobel committee did not ask Nash to do so,
due to concerns over his mental health.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
Sunday, 4 July 2010
Entertainment Host Reviews Eric Clapton's Autobiography
Clapton: The Autobiography
By Eric Clapton
New York: Random House, 2007
Reviewed by Wesley Britton. Originally for Wesley Britton’s Entertainment Scrapbook
Every once in a while, I have time to pick up a book not related to radio interviews or my other projects. As a result, this review is a bit behind the curve. Well, perhaps your own bookshelf is like mine—here is a pile of must-reads, here are titles that just arrived in the mailbox, and over here are books I’m eager to read when I’m caught up with all the obligatory work. Ah, the desk is clear tonight—why not spend a few hours with ole EC who, even if he’s not God, is at least in the pantheon of those who once seemed to be messengers from above?
Of course, the story of Eric Clapton is more than well known—and he’s not alone. Memoirs of rock stars, especially those written by icons of the ‘60s, tend to follow a similar arc. First, we’re often told about the working-class backgrounds of young boys sparked into life when they heard the records of their idols. For British youth, these usually meant blues masters like Robert Johnson or early rockers like Chuck Berry and Little Richard. Then, the autobiographies trace how the devotees bought their first instruments, practiced diligently on them, knocked about with friends in various ensembles, and then recount how they came to fame with hit records and life on the road.
Then, too often, fame brings the excesses of sexual, alcoholic, and/or drug addictions. Years, decades go by with music taking a back seat to the pursuit of the highest highs accompanied by the lowest lows. Finally, the addictive cycle is broken and the musician finds peace, stability, self-awareness, and rehabilitation. And gratitude they survived at all.
Such is the tale of Eric Clapton who candidly admits, again and again in his memoirs, that his road was one paved with bad choices. Sharing all but the most graphic of details, “Slowhand” (who gives new meaning to the moniker by revealing he typed out the MS using one finger on his computer) talks about his painful childhood as a virtual orphan raised by his grandparents and how the blues became his lifeblood. From his earliest days, Clapton was a mix of a strong ego—being such a purest he left the Yardbirds when they went commercial—and a man plagued with deep feelings he was unworthy of romantic relationships that could blend sex with friendship. The latter would become a recurring pattern in his life, resulting in a string of liaisons doomed by first heroine and then alcohol.
As a result, the story of Clapton’s life begins with a slow building of energy filled with youthful excitement, idealism, and then stories of playing with the legends of his day, Cream, John Mayall, Jimi Hendrix. The rise in his fortunes hits its top with the Delany and Bonnie-inspired first solo album and the powerful creativity of Derek and the Dominoes. From that point forward, twenty years go by as nearly as painful to read about as they must have been to experience. One wonders how Clapton was able to produce any music at all during these years and it’s not surprising much of his output from the late ‘70s forward was so lean and limp in both the studio and on stage. Clapton himself expresses little pride in much of his work during this period. For example, he spends more time talking about his affair with Yvonne Elliman than the hours he spent in the studio producing 461 Ocean Boulevard. Then again, considering the amount of intoxicants in his system, it’s difficult to see how much he could remember as his abilities declined and his obsession with Patti Boyd Harrison went every which way but right.
Finally, with age comes wisdom and freedom from the old patterns. After kicking his sexual and substance dependencies, Clapton turns his attentions to helping other addicts and investing time and money in genuinely making this world a better place. Once again, Clapton’s writing style takes on an uplifting tone even if the final chapters are filled with descriptions of sailing, beaches, and fly-fishing that read like extended blog entries.
Frankly, this is an autobiography likely to interest Eric Clapton fans and few others. Fortunately, Clapton has legions of admirers and rightly so—but they’d be better rewarded playing the music than delving into the missteps of an obsessed lover who confesses to sleeping with an overweight “witch” because she claimed to have the power to return “Layla” to his bed. Did we really need to know this? Perhaps it’s just me, but I’m not interested in the details of sexual dysfunction—it’s the music I want to know about. There are nuggets, as when Clapton shares the humorous origins of “Wonderful Tonight,” his response to Patti taking too long to get ready to go out. But the humor dissipates when we learn Clapton had difficulty playing the song after his break-up because of its associations with “Nell”—the name Clapton gave Patti to distinguish his Pattie from the person once wedded to George Harrison. I was happy to learn Clapton thought as little of “I Shot The Sheriff” as I did, a song I never thought was worthy of the airplay it earned. Of course, it’s impossible not to feel the pain Clapton suffered over the death of his son, Conner. But such anecdotes and revelations are scattered in between lengthy descriptions of revolving bed-mates and drinking binges, making much of the book easier to skim than digest whole. In the end, I was filled with relief—both for Clapton himself and for me, the reader
---
Reviewer Dr. Wesley Britton is co-host of online radio’s “Dave White Presents” which features interviews with a wide range of entertainers. Past programs are archived at www.audioentertainment.org/dwp. He is also author of four books on espionage and runs www.spywise.net. Wes teaches English at Harrisburg Area Community College.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
By Eric Clapton
New York: Random House, 2007
Reviewed by Wesley Britton. Originally for Wesley Britton’s Entertainment Scrapbook
Every once in a while, I have time to pick up a book not related to radio interviews or my other projects. As a result, this review is a bit behind the curve. Well, perhaps your own bookshelf is like mine—here is a pile of must-reads, here are titles that just arrived in the mailbox, and over here are books I’m eager to read when I’m caught up with all the obligatory work. Ah, the desk is clear tonight—why not spend a few hours with ole EC who, even if he’s not God, is at least in the pantheon of those who once seemed to be messengers from above?
Of course, the story of Eric Clapton is more than well known—and he’s not alone. Memoirs of rock stars, especially those written by icons of the ‘60s, tend to follow a similar arc. First, we’re often told about the working-class backgrounds of young boys sparked into life when they heard the records of their idols. For British youth, these usually meant blues masters like Robert Johnson or early rockers like Chuck Berry and Little Richard. Then, the autobiographies trace how the devotees bought their first instruments, practiced diligently on them, knocked about with friends in various ensembles, and then recount how they came to fame with hit records and life on the road.
Then, too often, fame brings the excesses of sexual, alcoholic, and/or drug addictions. Years, decades go by with music taking a back seat to the pursuit of the highest highs accompanied by the lowest lows. Finally, the addictive cycle is broken and the musician finds peace, stability, self-awareness, and rehabilitation. And gratitude they survived at all.
Such is the tale of Eric Clapton who candidly admits, again and again in his memoirs, that his road was one paved with bad choices. Sharing all but the most graphic of details, “Slowhand” (who gives new meaning to the moniker by revealing he typed out the MS using one finger on his computer) talks about his painful childhood as a virtual orphan raised by his grandparents and how the blues became his lifeblood. From his earliest days, Clapton was a mix of a strong ego—being such a purest he left the Yardbirds when they went commercial—and a man plagued with deep feelings he was unworthy of romantic relationships that could blend sex with friendship. The latter would become a recurring pattern in his life, resulting in a string of liaisons doomed by first heroine and then alcohol.
As a result, the story of Clapton’s life begins with a slow building of energy filled with youthful excitement, idealism, and then stories of playing with the legends of his day, Cream, John Mayall, Jimi Hendrix. The rise in his fortunes hits its top with the Delany and Bonnie-inspired first solo album and the powerful creativity of Derek and the Dominoes. From that point forward, twenty years go by as nearly as painful to read about as they must have been to experience. One wonders how Clapton was able to produce any music at all during these years and it’s not surprising much of his output from the late ‘70s forward was so lean and limp in both the studio and on stage. Clapton himself expresses little pride in much of his work during this period. For example, he spends more time talking about his affair with Yvonne Elliman than the hours he spent in the studio producing 461 Ocean Boulevard. Then again, considering the amount of intoxicants in his system, it’s difficult to see how much he could remember as his abilities declined and his obsession with Patti Boyd Harrison went every which way but right.
Finally, with age comes wisdom and freedom from the old patterns. After kicking his sexual and substance dependencies, Clapton turns his attentions to helping other addicts and investing time and money in genuinely making this world a better place. Once again, Clapton’s writing style takes on an uplifting tone even if the final chapters are filled with descriptions of sailing, beaches, and fly-fishing that read like extended blog entries.
Frankly, this is an autobiography likely to interest Eric Clapton fans and few others. Fortunately, Clapton has legions of admirers and rightly so—but they’d be better rewarded playing the music than delving into the missteps of an obsessed lover who confesses to sleeping with an overweight “witch” because she claimed to have the power to return “Layla” to his bed. Did we really need to know this? Perhaps it’s just me, but I’m not interested in the details of sexual dysfunction—it’s the music I want to know about. There are nuggets, as when Clapton shares the humorous origins of “Wonderful Tonight,” his response to Patti taking too long to get ready to go out. But the humor dissipates when we learn Clapton had difficulty playing the song after his break-up because of its associations with “Nell”—the name Clapton gave Patti to distinguish his Pattie from the person once wedded to George Harrison. I was happy to learn Clapton thought as little of “I Shot The Sheriff” as I did, a song I never thought was worthy of the airplay it earned. Of course, it’s impossible not to feel the pain Clapton suffered over the death of his son, Conner. But such anecdotes and revelations are scattered in between lengthy descriptions of revolving bed-mates and drinking binges, making much of the book easier to skim than digest whole. In the end, I was filled with relief—both for Clapton himself and for me, the reader
---
Reviewer Dr. Wesley Britton is co-host of online radio’s “Dave White Presents” which features interviews with a wide range of entertainers. Past programs are archived at www.audioentertainment.org/dwp. He is also author of four books on espionage and runs www.spywise.net. Wes teaches English at Harrisburg Area Community College.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
Wednesday, 30 June 2010
Can a Book Be a Vacation? Holly Weiss Thinks So
Crestmont
By Holly Weiss
Historical Fiction
ISBN 978-1-935188-10-0
Publication May 2010
StarPublish LLC
Reviewed by Betsy Rider, owner of Indie Bookstore, Otto Bookstore, Williamsport, PA
Can a Book Be a Vacation?
Take one with Holly Weiss in 1920’s Eagles Mere in the new book, Crestmont.
Four years ago, Holly Weiss, a music teacher and former opera singer, stayed at the Crestmont in Eagles Mere. She was captivated by the peaceful ambiance of today’s Inn and by the rich history of the founder and previous owners. So she wrote a book about them, filling out the known facts with fictionalized motivations and relationships.
After briefly sketching the Native American legend about the creation of the unique spring-fed lake from the tears of the mourning Great Spirit, Weiss re-creates the inspiration of William Warner, a visitor from Germantown who saw a challenge in the cyclone ravaged hill-top overlooking the crystal clear lake. Warner, who was driven by a need for excellence in all his endeavors, planned the Crestmont and hired two hundred carpenters to complete it in a year’s time. It was to be the very best in accommodations and in service. His staff was trained to anticipate every need and whim of the guests. His memory of the desires of the previous years’ visitors never failed to impress one and all.
According to Weiss’ fictionalized time-line, when Warner’s health deteriorated slightly more than a decade after the opening, his daughter, Margaret Woods and her husband, William, continued his legacy of outstanding hospitality. When Margaret Woods died in 1941, her daughter, Peg Dickerson, ran it until her health gave out, thus seeing it through three generations of the same family. It was sold in 1977 to a couple who replaced the “Big House” with condominiums.
But I get ahead of myself. The owning and running of the legendary Crestmont is only the background for a moving story of Gracie Antes, a young girl trying to find her place in the world outside her repressive family upbringing in Moravian Bethlehem. She could sing. She knew it, even if nobody else did. But she needed money to follow her dream of singing in the Vaudeville circuit. So she answered an ad for summer employment at the Crestmont in Eagles Mere. She left her home and didn’t tell anyone she was still alive for a month and even then she didn’t tell them where she was working.
Gracie grew from a shy, young dreamer with a pocket full of words she needed to look up and a notebook nowhere near full of the names of the friends she made, to an assured young woman who found her family and place in Eagles Mere, where she discovered singing was only one of her many talents.
Even more compelling for me was the character development of Margaret Woods, who was drowning in her father’s legacy of outstanding service to their clientele. She never took time for herself and didn’t discover until long after his death that her father had found a retreat in an attic hideaway. That he needed respite from his responsibilities too. When a mistake made by Gracie sends her into a debilitating depression, she barely copes until her family and a favorite older employee gradually help her recover her former energy.
The book is filled with just enough other characters to welcome you into their world: PT, the young manager of the Inn’s bowling alley (and all around go-fer) who escapes his murky past by pouring himself into his piano jazz; Dorothy, a teacher who leaves her classroom to wait on the pampered rich and oversee the young staff; Bessie, an angry housemaid who hides her hurt under her anger; Mrs. Cunningham, an elderly blind lady who needs Gracie’s help and care while providing love and understanding in return; and the most famous guest, Rosa Ponselle, an opera singer who also takes Gracie under her wing.
The author has researched her material with the same kind of thorough care that the legendary Inn provided. Her knowledge of the American culture of the “Roaring Twenties” serves her well. She liberally sprinkles references to neighboring towns and events. Her pace is leisurely and her characters lovable. Readers will feel refreshed after their vacation, reading “Crestmont.”
--
Holly Weiss will be signing her book at the Otto Bookstore in Williamsport, PA, this Friday. Learn more about Crestmont on the bookstore's Web site www.ottobookstore.com
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
By Holly Weiss
Historical Fiction
ISBN 978-1-935188-10-0
Publication May 2010
StarPublish LLC
Reviewed by Betsy Rider, owner of Indie Bookstore, Otto Bookstore, Williamsport, PA
Can a Book Be a Vacation?
Take one with Holly Weiss in 1920’s Eagles Mere in the new book, Crestmont.
Four years ago, Holly Weiss, a music teacher and former opera singer, stayed at the Crestmont in Eagles Mere. She was captivated by the peaceful ambiance of today’s Inn and by the rich history of the founder and previous owners. So she wrote a book about them, filling out the known facts with fictionalized motivations and relationships.
After briefly sketching the Native American legend about the creation of the unique spring-fed lake from the tears of the mourning Great Spirit, Weiss re-creates the inspiration of William Warner, a visitor from Germantown who saw a challenge in the cyclone ravaged hill-top overlooking the crystal clear lake. Warner, who was driven by a need for excellence in all his endeavors, planned the Crestmont and hired two hundred carpenters to complete it in a year’s time. It was to be the very best in accommodations and in service. His staff was trained to anticipate every need and whim of the guests. His memory of the desires of the previous years’ visitors never failed to impress one and all.
According to Weiss’ fictionalized time-line, when Warner’s health deteriorated slightly more than a decade after the opening, his daughter, Margaret Woods and her husband, William, continued his legacy of outstanding hospitality. When Margaret Woods died in 1941, her daughter, Peg Dickerson, ran it until her health gave out, thus seeing it through three generations of the same family. It was sold in 1977 to a couple who replaced the “Big House” with condominiums.
But I get ahead of myself. The owning and running of the legendary Crestmont is only the background for a moving story of Gracie Antes, a young girl trying to find her place in the world outside her repressive family upbringing in Moravian Bethlehem. She could sing. She knew it, even if nobody else did. But she needed money to follow her dream of singing in the Vaudeville circuit. So she answered an ad for summer employment at the Crestmont in Eagles Mere. She left her home and didn’t tell anyone she was still alive for a month and even then she didn’t tell them where she was working.
Gracie grew from a shy, young dreamer with a pocket full of words she needed to look up and a notebook nowhere near full of the names of the friends she made, to an assured young woman who found her family and place in Eagles Mere, where she discovered singing was only one of her many talents.
Even more compelling for me was the character development of Margaret Woods, who was drowning in her father’s legacy of outstanding service to their clientele. She never took time for herself and didn’t discover until long after his death that her father had found a retreat in an attic hideaway. That he needed respite from his responsibilities too. When a mistake made by Gracie sends her into a debilitating depression, she barely copes until her family and a favorite older employee gradually help her recover her former energy.
The book is filled with just enough other characters to welcome you into their world: PT, the young manager of the Inn’s bowling alley (and all around go-fer) who escapes his murky past by pouring himself into his piano jazz; Dorothy, a teacher who leaves her classroom to wait on the pampered rich and oversee the young staff; Bessie, an angry housemaid who hides her hurt under her anger; Mrs. Cunningham, an elderly blind lady who needs Gracie’s help and care while providing love and understanding in return; and the most famous guest, Rosa Ponselle, an opera singer who also takes Gracie under her wing.
The author has researched her material with the same kind of thorough care that the legendary Inn provided. Her knowledge of the American culture of the “Roaring Twenties” serves her well. She liberally sprinkles references to neighboring towns and events. Her pace is leisurely and her characters lovable. Readers will feel refreshed after their vacation, reading “Crestmont.”
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Holly Weiss will be signing her book at the Otto Bookstore in Williamsport, PA, this Friday. Learn more about Crestmont on the bookstore's Web site www.ottobookstore.com
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The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
Tuesday, 29 June 2010
Practitioner Describes the Art of Dreaming
Title – The Sorcerer’s Dream: An Initiation into the Sorcerer’s World
Author – Alysa Braceau, Dreamshield
Genre or category - Religion & Spirituality
ISBN – 978-1609101565
About The Sorcerer’s Dream: An Initiation into the Sorcerer’s World
This is the autobiographical story of a young woman bumping into the enigmatic sorcerer Running Deer and her initiation into the sorcerer’s world and mastering conscious dreaming. It takes the reader throughout the magic realms of the unknown and gives a new approach to the traditional training of women sorcerers.
The riveting autobiographical account The Sorcerer’s Dream written by Dreamshield takes the reader throughout the magic realms of the unknown and mastering conscious dreaming. This book, following the traditions of Carlos Castaneda and others, gives a new approach to the traditional training of women sorcerers.
The author describes her initiation into the surrealistic world of dreaming and magic, following the teachings of ‘Man of Knowledge’ Running Deer. In the heart of Amsterdam, a thrilling stride unfolds in obtaining the knowledge of the Second Reality on the way to the ultimate goal: finding the Totality of the Self!
The combination of unusual instructions and experiences within the sorcerer’s world and the level-headedness of a very Dutch woman offers the reader excitement and contemplation on the way to the source of this reality, finding the ultimate self through the experiences and understanding of Dreamshield herself. Up until the last page the reader remains intrigued whether Dreamshield will reach her goal.
Right by the author’s side or facing her stands the character of Running Deer. Sometimes mysterious, then challenging, strict as a guru, or vulnerable as a visitor in a foreign country. However, the precise description of these distinctive steps on the road to her initiation stand like milestones in the landscape of this unique history.
About Alysa Braceau, Dreamshield
Dreamshield (Alysa Braceau) studied social work and is a freelance journalist who writes for newspapers and magazines. She has a healing practice and gives workshops about the Art of Mastering Conscious Dreaming and Dream Healing.
About this first publication she says: "The theme of these passed four-and-a-half years have been the sorcerers tradition. I have carefully recorded my personal experiences which has finally led to this book. Apart from that, writing it has given me great pleasure. The Sorcerer's Dream has become more than a personal account because the interested reader is presented with the technique to learn and practice the North American tradition of the Art of Dreaming (the skill of conscious dreaming) him/herself.
---
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
Author – Alysa Braceau, Dreamshield
Genre or category - Religion & Spirituality
ISBN – 978-1609101565
About The Sorcerer’s Dream: An Initiation into the Sorcerer’s World
This is the autobiographical story of a young woman bumping into the enigmatic sorcerer Running Deer and her initiation into the sorcerer’s world and mastering conscious dreaming. It takes the reader throughout the magic realms of the unknown and gives a new approach to the traditional training of women sorcerers.
The riveting autobiographical account The Sorcerer’s Dream written by Dreamshield takes the reader throughout the magic realms of the unknown and mastering conscious dreaming. This book, following the traditions of Carlos Castaneda and others, gives a new approach to the traditional training of women sorcerers.
The author describes her initiation into the surrealistic world of dreaming and magic, following the teachings of ‘Man of Knowledge’ Running Deer. In the heart of Amsterdam, a thrilling stride unfolds in obtaining the knowledge of the Second Reality on the way to the ultimate goal: finding the Totality of the Self!
The combination of unusual instructions and experiences within the sorcerer’s world and the level-headedness of a very Dutch woman offers the reader excitement and contemplation on the way to the source of this reality, finding the ultimate self through the experiences and understanding of Dreamshield herself. Up until the last page the reader remains intrigued whether Dreamshield will reach her goal.
Right by the author’s side or facing her stands the character of Running Deer. Sometimes mysterious, then challenging, strict as a guru, or vulnerable as a visitor in a foreign country. However, the precise description of these distinctive steps on the road to her initiation stand like milestones in the landscape of this unique history.
About Alysa Braceau, Dreamshield
Dreamshield (Alysa Braceau) studied social work and is a freelance journalist who writes for newspapers and magazines. She has a healing practice and gives workshops about the Art of Mastering Conscious Dreaming and Dream Healing.
About this first publication she says: "The theme of these passed four-and-a-half years have been the sorcerers tradition. I have carefully recorded my personal experiences which has finally led to this book. Apart from that, writing it has given me great pleasure. The Sorcerer's Dream has become more than a personal account because the interested reader is presented with the technique to learn and practice the North American tradition of the Art of Dreaming (the skill of conscious dreaming) him/herself.
---
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
Monday, 28 June 2010
Summer Reading: Short Stories for Beach or Bedtime
Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered
By Carolyn Howard-Johnson
Publisher AmErica House
From Amazon.com's Reviews
"as evocative as music, November 24, 2002 (Copyright 2001)
Review by Mary Ann Mitchell originally for Amazon
Carolyn Howard-Johnson's, "Harkening," is as evocative as music. She uses words like an invocation, calling the past into the present so vividly that the memory is more alive and true in its re-visioning than it ever was in the living.
In her story, "Summerville," for example, she describes and recaptures each moment with an innocence that ony a nine year old could know, but with the poetry and wisdom that no nine year old could ever articulate.
In, "Grandma's Slip," one of my favorites, she captures the reader in a moment so transparent and exquisite it's painful, as only love can be. The moment when a great-grandmother, a grandmother, and a grandson, for one instant, can see through their generational differences and touch that "soft" something that connects them, that connects us all.
""Beautiful," she said, her voice soft like the tissue that had whispered like water." And all three of them are lifted, in that moment, into that beauty, and the reader is lifted along with them.
The whole book is about what bridges those gaps that separate us from each other and our world. Those gaps of age, gender, religion, time and place. Carolyn Howard-Johnson weaves them all together with her words, as perfectly as Mom Bertie sews together her quilts. "Harkening" is an act of redemption, bringing the past into the present and making it whole.
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The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
Saturday, 26 June 2010
Wesley Britton Loves to Revisit Rock 'n Roll
Psychedelic Days (1960-1969)
By Patrick Campbell-Lyons
GRA Publishing, Nov 25 2009
$19.99
Review by: Wesley Britton originally posted at Wesley Britton’s Entertainment Scrapbook
Like everyone else, I’m sure, when I pick up a biography or history dealing with rock ‘n roll, I choose titles about performers, bands, or periods I’m interested in. Normally, I’m looking for the behind-the-scenes stories about how classic music came to be, whether written by stars like Eric Clapton, session musicians like Vic Flick, or historians who’ve done their due diligent homework.
But, last month, I received a review copy of a book called Psychedelic Days written by a performer from a band I never heard of—the British Nirvana of the late ‘60s. I had absolutely no pre-conceived ideas about the book as, then and now, I’ve never heard a bar of their music. But, as revealed in Patrick Campbell-Lyons’s fast-paced (240 pages) memoir, I’m far from being alone, at least in the states. While the original Nirvana made waves internationally, because Bell Records in the U.S. released the debut album with no publicity whatsoever, it disappeared without a trace, the band not even knowing an American version had been issued. So when I began reading the text of PD, what I knew about Nirvana wouldn’t fill a back-cover publicity blurb.
So here’s a bit of history: While a number of musicians came and went on stage and in the studio, Nirvana was essentially Irish guitarist Patrick Campbell-Lyons and Greek composer/ keyboardist Alex Spyropoulos. Before ELO and the “progressive rock” of the ‘70s, they fused rock ensembles with baroque instruments for a then fresh approach in popular music. Their Oct. 1967 album, The Story of Simon Simopath, is widely regarded as a predecessor to concept albums by the likes of The Who and The Kinks. The LP was produced by Chris Blackwell for his then-new Island Records, and Blackwell and his legendary label play a prominent role in Psychedelic Days.
Apparently a moderately commercial success, Nirvana’s single “Rainbow Chaser” was their biggest hit in 1968, the first rock single to use flange from beginning to end (flange being the sound you hear in the Small Faces “Itchycoo Park.”)Nirvana was nonetheless a critical favorite and the group was part of the heady days of late ‘60s counter-culture. So, while Campbell-Lyons’ memoir is told from a performer’s point-of-view, the tale is essentially a whirlwind tour of what life was like experiencing the exuberance of the times in England, Greece, France, South America, Morocco, and points in between. Campbell-Lyons paints a wide canvas of just how interconnected youth culture was around the world. No matter where you hailed from, you didn’t need to be Jimi Hendrix or Mick Jagger to have a good time, and Campbell-Lyons and most of the cast of players in his book were indeed having the times of their lives. The first paragraph sets the stage:
For me and Nirvana, the ‘60s were a trip indeed. Immigration blues, Paddies, navvies, booze, dope deals, thrills and pills, rhythm & blues, guitars and groupies, Mods and Rockers, free love and flower power, bohemian swagger boys and gypsy princesses, Ealing Art College, the local scenesters at Jim Marshall’s Music Store in Hanwell, Speedy Keen, Mitch Mitchell, John McVie, Cliff Barton, Jimmy Royal, Ron Wood and Kim Gardner with the Birds, the boss guitar man Terry Slater, Pete Townshend, Pete Meaden, Vic Griffiths (the best harp player in West London), the legendary Ealing Club, the Rolling Stones, the Speakeasy in Margaret Street W1, the Limbo Club in Soho, the Bluebeat Jukebox, Blackbombers in Hyde Park, 51 Club Great Newport Street, La Gioconda Café, Denmark Street and the Tin Pan Alley publishing houses, Regent Sound, St. Martins, the musical >>Hair>>, >>You Can All Join In>>, Jimi Hendrix, Guy Stevens, Mickie Most, Hamburg’s Star Club, Paris, Belgium, Rio de Janeiro with Jimmy Cliff, Stockholm, Tangiers and the “happenings” of Morocco, Island Records and Chris Blackwell, Alex Spyropoulos and I creating the band Nirvana.
Like I said, that’s just the first paragraph, and the roller-coaster ride to follow is just what the title claims—Psychedelic Days. This is one reason readers unfamiliar with a band pretty much a footnote in rock history would enjoy this trip. It’s not an introspective personal odyssey chronicling inner torments or regrets about any addictive excesses. It’s not a vanity trip either, but rather a lively series of vivid observations from the inside looking out. That alone is something different in the genre of rock memoirs. Yes, the book has the perfect title—it’s about a time that remains unique, whether you were a concert attendee or standing behind a mic. It looks at these heady days from a perspective I’ve not encountered before, that is how the youth scene expressed itself all over the world.
If you can get homesick for an era, this book can do that. If you weren’t there, well, this is a time capsule you’ll enjoy swallowing. For more details and ordering information:
www.psychedelicdays.com/PatrickBio.html
To read some samples from the book:
blogs.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.ListAll&friendID=85882077
Now, to see if I can track down some of this unheard music—
---
Reviewer Dr. Wesley Britton is co-host of online radio’s “Dave White Presents” which features interviews with a wide range of entertainers. Past programs are archived at www.audioentertainment.org/dwp. He is also author of four books on espionage and runs www.spywise.net. Wes teaches English at Harrisburg Area Community College.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
By Patrick Campbell-Lyons
GRA Publishing, Nov 25 2009
$19.99
Review by: Wesley Britton originally posted at Wesley Britton’s Entertainment Scrapbook
Like everyone else, I’m sure, when I pick up a biography or history dealing with rock ‘n roll, I choose titles about performers, bands, or periods I’m interested in. Normally, I’m looking for the behind-the-scenes stories about how classic music came to be, whether written by stars like Eric Clapton, session musicians like Vic Flick, or historians who’ve done their due diligent homework.
But, last month, I received a review copy of a book called Psychedelic Days written by a performer from a band I never heard of—the British Nirvana of the late ‘60s. I had absolutely no pre-conceived ideas about the book as, then and now, I’ve never heard a bar of their music. But, as revealed in Patrick Campbell-Lyons’s fast-paced (240 pages) memoir, I’m far from being alone, at least in the states. While the original Nirvana made waves internationally, because Bell Records in the U.S. released the debut album with no publicity whatsoever, it disappeared without a trace, the band not even knowing an American version had been issued. So when I began reading the text of PD, what I knew about Nirvana wouldn’t fill a back-cover publicity blurb.
So here’s a bit of history: While a number of musicians came and went on stage and in the studio, Nirvana was essentially Irish guitarist Patrick Campbell-Lyons and Greek composer/ keyboardist Alex Spyropoulos. Before ELO and the “progressive rock” of the ‘70s, they fused rock ensembles with baroque instruments for a then fresh approach in popular music. Their Oct. 1967 album, The Story of Simon Simopath, is widely regarded as a predecessor to concept albums by the likes of The Who and The Kinks. The LP was produced by Chris Blackwell for his then-new Island Records, and Blackwell and his legendary label play a prominent role in Psychedelic Days.
Apparently a moderately commercial success, Nirvana’s single “Rainbow Chaser” was their biggest hit in 1968, the first rock single to use flange from beginning to end (flange being the sound you hear in the Small Faces “Itchycoo Park.”)Nirvana was nonetheless a critical favorite and the group was part of the heady days of late ‘60s counter-culture. So, while Campbell-Lyons’ memoir is told from a performer’s point-of-view, the tale is essentially a whirlwind tour of what life was like experiencing the exuberance of the times in England, Greece, France, South America, Morocco, and points in between. Campbell-Lyons paints a wide canvas of just how interconnected youth culture was around the world. No matter where you hailed from, you didn’t need to be Jimi Hendrix or Mick Jagger to have a good time, and Campbell-Lyons and most of the cast of players in his book were indeed having the times of their lives. The first paragraph sets the stage:
For me and Nirvana, the ‘60s were a trip indeed. Immigration blues, Paddies, navvies, booze, dope deals, thrills and pills, rhythm & blues, guitars and groupies, Mods and Rockers, free love and flower power, bohemian swagger boys and gypsy princesses, Ealing Art College, the local scenesters at Jim Marshall’s Music Store in Hanwell, Speedy Keen, Mitch Mitchell, John McVie, Cliff Barton, Jimmy Royal, Ron Wood and Kim Gardner with the Birds, the boss guitar man Terry Slater, Pete Townshend, Pete Meaden, Vic Griffiths (the best harp player in West London), the legendary Ealing Club, the Rolling Stones, the Speakeasy in Margaret Street W1, the Limbo Club in Soho, the Bluebeat Jukebox, Blackbombers in Hyde Park, 51 Club Great Newport Street, La Gioconda Café, Denmark Street and the Tin Pan Alley publishing houses, Regent Sound, St. Martins, the musical >>Hair>>, >>You Can All Join In>>, Jimi Hendrix, Guy Stevens, Mickie Most, Hamburg’s Star Club, Paris, Belgium, Rio de Janeiro with Jimmy Cliff, Stockholm, Tangiers and the “happenings” of Morocco, Island Records and Chris Blackwell, Alex Spyropoulos and I creating the band Nirvana.
Like I said, that’s just the first paragraph, and the roller-coaster ride to follow is just what the title claims—Psychedelic Days. This is one reason readers unfamiliar with a band pretty much a footnote in rock history would enjoy this trip. It’s not an introspective personal odyssey chronicling inner torments or regrets about any addictive excesses. It’s not a vanity trip either, but rather a lively series of vivid observations from the inside looking out. That alone is something different in the genre of rock memoirs. Yes, the book has the perfect title—it’s about a time that remains unique, whether you were a concert attendee or standing behind a mic. It looks at these heady days from a perspective I’ve not encountered before, that is how the youth scene expressed itself all over the world.
If you can get homesick for an era, this book can do that. If you weren’t there, well, this is a time capsule you’ll enjoy swallowing. For more details and ordering information:
www.psychedelicdays.com/PatrickBio.html
To read some samples from the book:
blogs.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.ListAll&friendID=85882077
Now, to see if I can track down some of this unheard music—
---
Reviewer Dr. Wesley Britton is co-host of online radio’s “Dave White Presents” which features interviews with a wide range of entertainers. Past programs are archived at www.audioentertainment.org/dwp. He is also author of four books on espionage and runs www.spywise.net. Wes teaches English at Harrisburg Area Community College.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
The Smothers Brothers Story Reviewed by Wesley Britton
Dangerously Funny: The Uncensored Story of the Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour
By David Bianculli
Touchstone Books, Dec. 2009
ISBN-10: 1439101167
ISBN-13: 978-1439101162
Reviewed by: Wesley Britton originally posted at Wesley Britton’s Entertainment Scrapbook
Books about the stars of stage and screen do run a wide gamut. There are over-priced volumes devoted to a specific actor, director, film, TV series. There are fan-oriented overviews of any given production complete with opinionated episode guides and production notes. There are memoirs and quasi-memoirs by performers, their families, or those who knew them. There are academic studies analyzing entertainment and how contributors have been influenced by or how they helped shape popular culture. Only every once in a while do we get a title that deserves the term “definitive,” that is, a focused history/biography that will become a standard reference that future writers will have to pour over should they take up the challenge of expanding on such books.
Such is the case of David Bianculli’s Dangerously Funny. It’s not surprising that a major publisher issued this contribution rather than a small house devoted to their genres of choice—The Smothers Brothers were and are an act worthy of serious consideration and Bianculli gave the act their honest and sometimes painful due. After all, while the classic late ‘60s “Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour” remains the high watermark for both the act and their place in cultural history, Tom and Dick’s legacy is worthy of attention for both what came before and after their legendary entertainment challenge to network decision making.
In fact, while the book’s title implies the “Comedy Hour” is the principal subject of the overview, Bianculli offers considerable background on the brothers formative years and the creative milieu in which they developed. Had they never hosted the “Comedy Hour,” Tom and Dick would still have played an important role in musical trends as they were true pioneers in the early days of the “folk revival.” Their interest in what is now dubbed “World Music” helped the new genre expand the pool of “traditional” standards heard all across America. In addition, their stage act was a transitional presence that bridged the generation of radio and stage vaudeville singers and comics with the “hip” interests of Baby Boomers purchasing vinyl albums and watching their favorite performers on TV variety shows. While Bianculli doesn’t make this connection, I was often reminded of the development of the Marx Brothers; the earlier ensemble started out as a musical group doing comedy and turned into a comedy group that sometimes played music. Likewise, the Smothers started out doing folk music akin to the Kingston Trio and ended up using the music to frame their comic routines. Likewise, Harpo Marx picked up the harp to have an instrument like his brothers as playing the instrument added $5.00 to the group’s appearance fees; Dick Smothers picked up the bass mainly as a prop while his brother taught him how to play it.
Then came the “Comedy Hour” and its importance cannot be understated. But can the circumstances of its creation, evolution and ultimate demise be clearly understood? In the hands of David Bianculli, we get the sense we’re hearing stories we’ve been hearing for years but in a context that is balanced, copiously researched, and drawn from primary sources like Tom Smothers himself. For example, the myth is that CBS was so loopy and narrow-minded that cancelling the “Comedy Hour” was a disastrous decision akin to NBC’s recent late night debacles. But, just as the evidence shows Decca Records had good reasons to reject The Beatles, the full story of the “Comedy Hour” demonstrates both sides of the controversy contributed to an almost inevitable parting of the ways. For their part, the network was flat-footed dealing with a younger audience seeking television with a freshness and variety showcasing younger faces and concerns. On the other side, Tom Smothers, in particular, made a point of challenging the hand that fed him so often and so stubbornly that the higher-ups almost yearned for an excuse to get this monkey off their backs. As a result, the so-called reasons for cancelling the show—an alleged late delivery of a particular episode—was simply a means to give executives an out to get relief from the ongoing battles over program content.
Bianculli, of course, isn’t championing network decision making but rather, as with the rest of his history, presenting the contexts of a multi-faceted career from a wide menu of perspectives. The Brothers obviously didn’t operate in a vacuum, and Bianculli is often at his best bringing in stories that flesh out how the Smothers Brothers fit into the continuum of both music and television. For example, he retells the story of Jack Paar briefly leaving “The Tonight Show” over NBC’s censorship of one joke several years before the Smothers Brothers entered the censorship fray. Bianculli sketches how Hal Holbrook had to wrestle with CBS over material he wanted to include in his “Mark Twain Tonight” special. He discusses the changing climate in tastes that contributed to the “Generation Gap” of the 1960s and how the brothers changed their program from a variety hour that mixed the old with the up-and-coming into a full-fledged participant of the “Counter Culture.”
The aftermath of the “Comedy Hour” cancellation might seem like a long denouement with two failed series in the 70s and 80s, but there are lessons here as well. For example—at least in my opinion—the Brothers were at their creative zenith when they came back to CBS in the late 80s with a superb re-invention of their earlier show, only to be undone by a Writers Strike and no fault of their own. (That is my most fervent DVD request—for the brothers to issue a full set of that outstanding series.) Not to overstate the case, one might be forgiven for coming away from this book seeing brother Dick as a virtual sideman to Tom, a performer more into his hobbies and outside interests than being a cultural motor. That’s not a criticism of the team’s straight man, rather a reality of what Dick did and didn’t do over the years.
Gratefully, when talking about the Smothers Brothers, comedy can’t be avoided, and there are plenty of laughs along the way, most notably the re-tellings of some of the benign and caustic routines they performed on stage and TV. This is an important book, an entertaining book, and readable for fans of the act, of an era, of television, and no library shelf should neglect it. To paraphrase Dick Cavett describing DVD releases of his own show, if you need more than the Smothers Brothers to entertain you, than I can’t help you very much.
---
Dr. Wesley Britton is co-host of online radio’s “Dave White Presents” which features interviews with a wide range of entertainers. Past programs are archived at www.audioentertainment.org/dwp. He is also author of four books on espionage and runs www.spywise.net. Wes teaches English at Harrisburg Area Community College.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
By David Bianculli
Touchstone Books, Dec. 2009
ISBN-10: 1439101167
ISBN-13: 978-1439101162
Reviewed by: Wesley Britton originally posted at Wesley Britton’s Entertainment Scrapbook
Books about the stars of stage and screen do run a wide gamut. There are over-priced volumes devoted to a specific actor, director, film, TV series. There are fan-oriented overviews of any given production complete with opinionated episode guides and production notes. There are memoirs and quasi-memoirs by performers, their families, or those who knew them. There are academic studies analyzing entertainment and how contributors have been influenced by or how they helped shape popular culture. Only every once in a while do we get a title that deserves the term “definitive,” that is, a focused history/biography that will become a standard reference that future writers will have to pour over should they take up the challenge of expanding on such books.
Such is the case of David Bianculli’s Dangerously Funny. It’s not surprising that a major publisher issued this contribution rather than a small house devoted to their genres of choice—The Smothers Brothers were and are an act worthy of serious consideration and Bianculli gave the act their honest and sometimes painful due. After all, while the classic late ‘60s “Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour” remains the high watermark for both the act and their place in cultural history, Tom and Dick’s legacy is worthy of attention for both what came before and after their legendary entertainment challenge to network decision making.
In fact, while the book’s title implies the “Comedy Hour” is the principal subject of the overview, Bianculli offers considerable background on the brothers formative years and the creative milieu in which they developed. Had they never hosted the “Comedy Hour,” Tom and Dick would still have played an important role in musical trends as they were true pioneers in the early days of the “folk revival.” Their interest in what is now dubbed “World Music” helped the new genre expand the pool of “traditional” standards heard all across America. In addition, their stage act was a transitional presence that bridged the generation of radio and stage vaudeville singers and comics with the “hip” interests of Baby Boomers purchasing vinyl albums and watching their favorite performers on TV variety shows. While Bianculli doesn’t make this connection, I was often reminded of the development of the Marx Brothers; the earlier ensemble started out as a musical group doing comedy and turned into a comedy group that sometimes played music. Likewise, the Smothers started out doing folk music akin to the Kingston Trio and ended up using the music to frame their comic routines. Likewise, Harpo Marx picked up the harp to have an instrument like his brothers as playing the instrument added $5.00 to the group’s appearance fees; Dick Smothers picked up the bass mainly as a prop while his brother taught him how to play it.
Then came the “Comedy Hour” and its importance cannot be understated. But can the circumstances of its creation, evolution and ultimate demise be clearly understood? In the hands of David Bianculli, we get the sense we’re hearing stories we’ve been hearing for years but in a context that is balanced, copiously researched, and drawn from primary sources like Tom Smothers himself. For example, the myth is that CBS was so loopy and narrow-minded that cancelling the “Comedy Hour” was a disastrous decision akin to NBC’s recent late night debacles. But, just as the evidence shows Decca Records had good reasons to reject The Beatles, the full story of the “Comedy Hour” demonstrates both sides of the controversy contributed to an almost inevitable parting of the ways. For their part, the network was flat-footed dealing with a younger audience seeking television with a freshness and variety showcasing younger faces and concerns. On the other side, Tom Smothers, in particular, made a point of challenging the hand that fed him so often and so stubbornly that the higher-ups almost yearned for an excuse to get this monkey off their backs. As a result, the so-called reasons for cancelling the show—an alleged late delivery of a particular episode—was simply a means to give executives an out to get relief from the ongoing battles over program content.
Bianculli, of course, isn’t championing network decision making but rather, as with the rest of his history, presenting the contexts of a multi-faceted career from a wide menu of perspectives. The Brothers obviously didn’t operate in a vacuum, and Bianculli is often at his best bringing in stories that flesh out how the Smothers Brothers fit into the continuum of both music and television. For example, he retells the story of Jack Paar briefly leaving “The Tonight Show” over NBC’s censorship of one joke several years before the Smothers Brothers entered the censorship fray. Bianculli sketches how Hal Holbrook had to wrestle with CBS over material he wanted to include in his “Mark Twain Tonight” special. He discusses the changing climate in tastes that contributed to the “Generation Gap” of the 1960s and how the brothers changed their program from a variety hour that mixed the old with the up-and-coming into a full-fledged participant of the “Counter Culture.”
The aftermath of the “Comedy Hour” cancellation might seem like a long denouement with two failed series in the 70s and 80s, but there are lessons here as well. For example—at least in my opinion—the Brothers were at their creative zenith when they came back to CBS in the late 80s with a superb re-invention of their earlier show, only to be undone by a Writers Strike and no fault of their own. (That is my most fervent DVD request—for the brothers to issue a full set of that outstanding series.) Not to overstate the case, one might be forgiven for coming away from this book seeing brother Dick as a virtual sideman to Tom, a performer more into his hobbies and outside interests than being a cultural motor. That’s not a criticism of the team’s straight man, rather a reality of what Dick did and didn’t do over the years.
Gratefully, when talking about the Smothers Brothers, comedy can’t be avoided, and there are plenty of laughs along the way, most notably the re-tellings of some of the benign and caustic routines they performed on stage and TV. This is an important book, an entertaining book, and readable for fans of the act, of an era, of television, and no library shelf should neglect it. To paraphrase Dick Cavett describing DVD releases of his own show, if you need more than the Smothers Brothers to entertain you, than I can’t help you very much.
---
Dr. Wesley Britton is co-host of online radio’s “Dave White Presents” which features interviews with a wide range of entertainers. Past programs are archived at www.audioentertainment.org/dwp. He is also author of four books on espionage and runs www.spywise.net. Wes teaches English at Harrisburg Area Community College.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
Friday, 25 June 2010
Psychiatrist Tells Her Own Harrowing Tale
The Most Revolutionary Act: Memoir of an American Refugee
By Dr Stuart Jeanne Bramhall
Review by Stuart Kreisman, author of Dick Cheney's Diary originally for Amazon.com
A simple sit-in at an administration building becomes the catalyst for a surreal, Kafkaesque, hellish fifteen years for Dr. Stuart Jeanne Bramhall in her compelling new book The Most Revolutionary Act: Memoir of an American Refugee. Dr. Bramhall, a practicing Seattle-based psychiatrist tells in chilling detail how attending a seemingly innocent meeting to protest racial abuse at a local school triggers a covert government plot to destroy the cause and her life.
Dr. Bramhall's work confirms the myth of the "Vast right wing conspiracy" that was dismissed by the mainstream media when it was coined by then first Lady Hillary Clinton. It is a country where no person or secret is safe. People who you trust are not to be trusted. Harassment, violence and murder are tools used to subvert the Progressive agenda and the people who advocate it.
Lest you think The Most Revolutionary Act: Memoir of an American Refugee is just tell the story of one woman's struggle to fight the system, it is much more than that. Dr. Bramhall's amazing tale also involves the Kennedy assassination, the government's "War" on AIDS, the plot against single player healthcare, suppression of African Americans and much more. Paranoia is real. Schizophrenia is not just a mental disorder, it' a weapon.
A psychological thriller of the first order, The Most Revolutionary Act: Memoir of an American Refugee is also a cautionary tale. CIA and FBI operatives are indeed among us. Opposing the agenda of Corporate America is not tolerated. Those that try fight the good fight, but the establishment will stop at nothing to stay in power. Dr. Bramhall's harrowing tale is testament to that.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
By Dr Stuart Jeanne Bramhall
Review by Stuart Kreisman, author of Dick Cheney's Diary originally for Amazon.com
A simple sit-in at an administration building becomes the catalyst for a surreal, Kafkaesque, hellish fifteen years for Dr. Stuart Jeanne Bramhall in her compelling new book The Most Revolutionary Act: Memoir of an American Refugee. Dr. Bramhall, a practicing Seattle-based psychiatrist tells in chilling detail how attending a seemingly innocent meeting to protest racial abuse at a local school triggers a covert government plot to destroy the cause and her life.
Dr. Bramhall's work confirms the myth of the "Vast right wing conspiracy" that was dismissed by the mainstream media when it was coined by then first Lady Hillary Clinton. It is a country where no person or secret is safe. People who you trust are not to be trusted. Harassment, violence and murder are tools used to subvert the Progressive agenda and the people who advocate it.
Lest you think The Most Revolutionary Act: Memoir of an American Refugee is just tell the story of one woman's struggle to fight the system, it is much more than that. Dr. Bramhall's amazing tale also involves the Kennedy assassination, the government's "War" on AIDS, the plot against single player healthcare, suppression of African Americans and much more. Paranoia is real. Schizophrenia is not just a mental disorder, it' a weapon.
A psychological thriller of the first order, The Most Revolutionary Act: Memoir of an American Refugee is also a cautionary tale. CIA and FBI operatives are indeed among us. Opposing the agenda of Corporate America is not tolerated. Those that try fight the good fight, but the establishment will stop at nothing to stay in power. Dr. Bramhall's harrowing tale is testament to that.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
Monday, 21 June 2010
That's Entertainment! Horror Films, History and Scream Queens.
Book Review: Confessions of a Scream Queen
By Matt Beckoff
Bear Manor Media
ISBN-13: 973-1-59393-539-9
Reviewed by: Wesley Britton
For fans of nostalgia and entertainment, small presses like Bear Manor Media fill niches no other publishers will touch. For example, BMM books run the range from memoirs by child stars of the 1930s to extremely well-researched histories of radio, film, and TV series, to collections of interviews with actors from a variety of genres. As a result, many of these books appeal to specific audiences hungry for insights into the films and shows that influenced them years ago. These are readers who enjoy nostalgia conventions where they visit autograph tables and meet participants from the thrilling days of yesteryear. These buffs provide many bit or retired actors a second career—telling old stories for enthusiastic fans of projects completed before many of them were born.
So, typically, Bear Manor Media’s Confessions of a Scream Queen is a book for a particular—and loyal--fan base, in this case lovers of horror and Sci-Fi movies. In this collection, interviewer Matt Beckoff has assembled a sort of mini-con in print with 15 actresses recalling their most famous or infamous roles. Many of these ladies had careers and parts as hit-and-run as some of these interviews. As a result, with a few exceptions, film students will not get in-depth behind-the-scenes discussions of how horror films came to be. Instead, we get snapshots, glimpses into how the acting profession has changed since the early days of talking pictures to the present. One theme resonating through this book as a whole is how these working girls once found roles in pictures that none expected to have long-shelf lives, only to be happily surprised to learn they still have fans hoping to both see their work again and again and learn more about them personally long after the camera stopped rolling. For others, with more diverse resumes, their surprise is how they’ve become “Scream Queens” at all as their roles in horror movies are but a small section of their credits.
Appropriately beginning with the first talkies, Beckoff spoke with Carla Laemmle, Lupita Tovar, Janet Ann Gallow, and Elena Verdego who worked with the likes of Lon Chaney and Bela Lugosi in the early horror films of Universal Studios. These are the shortest discussions in the book as these actresses had the shortest time on screen—first, young actresses who rarely spent time with the leading men, then married and raised families, and years later discovered themselves cult favorites. Then Beckoff moved into the noir era with Colleen Gray who appeared in such films as Kiss of Death, working with directors like Henry Hathaway and actors including Richard Widmark.
The book kicks into a higher gear with Kathleen Hughes as she appeared in a number of horror/Sci-Fi projects like IT Came From Outer Space and Judith O’Dea (Night of the Living Dead). Some devotees might be disappointed Hammer Films were represented by only one alumni--Ingrid Pitt (Vampire Lovers, Countess Dracula, Wicker Man). But “slasher” fans get Marilyn Burns (Texas Chain Saw Massacre), Betsy Palmer (Friday the 13th), and P. J. Soles (Carrie, Halloween). This trio are extremely erudite about the roles that made them famous and their appreciation for the audience response ever after. In fact, readers might raise an eyebrow to hear these actresses revealing how much professionalism they brought to movies none thought were more than a paycheck for a few weeks work.
For the wider film audience, the nuggets in the collections are conversations with actresses whose careers ran a wide range of genres such as Karen Black, Jessica Harper, and Dee Wallace. Black, for example, reminisced about her work on Five Easy Pieces, her time with Hitchcock in Family Plot, and her role as a country singer in Nashville. The final interview in the group, with Adrienne Barbeau, is the perfect finale as, in this crowd, she seems the Queen of Queens. After all, she not only appeared in four major John Carpenter films, she was married to him.
This isn’t a tome for research libraries, but it’s one to take with you for autographs at all those conventions. It’s enjoyable, and even more so for the pictures contributed by the interviewees and new photos taken by Beckoff—making this package attractive for every heterosexual male alive. Well, considering the subject matter, alive might be too restrictive an adjective. This collection was clearly a labor of love as Beckoff obviously did his homework and preparation by seeing all the movies and reading past interviews, some apparently twenty years old. So the book might not be indispensible reading, but it might give readers new appreciation for “Scream Queens”—even those who never did scream on-screen.
Order this book at bearmanormedia.bizland.com
----
Dr. Wesley Britton is the author of four books on fictional espionage, owner of www.spywise.net, and co-host of the online radio show, “Dave White Presents” on KSAV.org and available for download.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
By Matt Beckoff
Bear Manor Media
ISBN-13: 973-1-59393-539-9
Reviewed by: Wesley Britton
For fans of nostalgia and entertainment, small presses like Bear Manor Media fill niches no other publishers will touch. For example, BMM books run the range from memoirs by child stars of the 1930s to extremely well-researched histories of radio, film, and TV series, to collections of interviews with actors from a variety of genres. As a result, many of these books appeal to specific audiences hungry for insights into the films and shows that influenced them years ago. These are readers who enjoy nostalgia conventions where they visit autograph tables and meet participants from the thrilling days of yesteryear. These buffs provide many bit or retired actors a second career—telling old stories for enthusiastic fans of projects completed before many of them were born.
So, typically, Bear Manor Media’s Confessions of a Scream Queen is a book for a particular—and loyal--fan base, in this case lovers of horror and Sci-Fi movies. In this collection, interviewer Matt Beckoff has assembled a sort of mini-con in print with 15 actresses recalling their most famous or infamous roles. Many of these ladies had careers and parts as hit-and-run as some of these interviews. As a result, with a few exceptions, film students will not get in-depth behind-the-scenes discussions of how horror films came to be. Instead, we get snapshots, glimpses into how the acting profession has changed since the early days of talking pictures to the present. One theme resonating through this book as a whole is how these working girls once found roles in pictures that none expected to have long-shelf lives, only to be happily surprised to learn they still have fans hoping to both see their work again and again and learn more about them personally long after the camera stopped rolling. For others, with more diverse resumes, their surprise is how they’ve become “Scream Queens” at all as their roles in horror movies are but a small section of their credits.
Appropriately beginning with the first talkies, Beckoff spoke with Carla Laemmle, Lupita Tovar, Janet Ann Gallow, and Elena Verdego who worked with the likes of Lon Chaney and Bela Lugosi in the early horror films of Universal Studios. These are the shortest discussions in the book as these actresses had the shortest time on screen—first, young actresses who rarely spent time with the leading men, then married and raised families, and years later discovered themselves cult favorites. Then Beckoff moved into the noir era with Colleen Gray who appeared in such films as Kiss of Death, working with directors like Henry Hathaway and actors including Richard Widmark.
The book kicks into a higher gear with Kathleen Hughes as she appeared in a number of horror/Sci-Fi projects like IT Came From Outer Space and Judith O’Dea (Night of the Living Dead). Some devotees might be disappointed Hammer Films were represented by only one alumni--Ingrid Pitt (Vampire Lovers, Countess Dracula, Wicker Man). But “slasher” fans get Marilyn Burns (Texas Chain Saw Massacre), Betsy Palmer (Friday the 13th), and P. J. Soles (Carrie, Halloween). This trio are extremely erudite about the roles that made them famous and their appreciation for the audience response ever after. In fact, readers might raise an eyebrow to hear these actresses revealing how much professionalism they brought to movies none thought were more than a paycheck for a few weeks work.
For the wider film audience, the nuggets in the collections are conversations with actresses whose careers ran a wide range of genres such as Karen Black, Jessica Harper, and Dee Wallace. Black, for example, reminisced about her work on Five Easy Pieces, her time with Hitchcock in Family Plot, and her role as a country singer in Nashville. The final interview in the group, with Adrienne Barbeau, is the perfect finale as, in this crowd, she seems the Queen of Queens. After all, she not only appeared in four major John Carpenter films, she was married to him.
This isn’t a tome for research libraries, but it’s one to take with you for autographs at all those conventions. It’s enjoyable, and even more so for the pictures contributed by the interviewees and new photos taken by Beckoff—making this package attractive for every heterosexual male alive. Well, considering the subject matter, alive might be too restrictive an adjective. This collection was clearly a labor of love as Beckoff obviously did his homework and preparation by seeing all the movies and reading past interviews, some apparently twenty years old. So the book might not be indispensible reading, but it might give readers new appreciation for “Scream Queens”—even those who never did scream on-screen.
Order this book at bearmanormedia.bizland.com
----
Dr. Wesley Britton is the author of four books on fictional espionage, owner of www.spywise.net, and co-host of the online radio show, “Dave White Presents” on KSAV.org and available for download.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
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