I just finished Undaunted Courage by Stephn E. Ambrose. Phew. THAT was a haul. Don't get me wrong, I love history. I was a history major. I also like long books. This was a long book. Not as long as Lewis and Clark's journey, it just seemed like it. Sometimes even vaunted historians can be a little....well, stuck in the minutiae.
Not that the details of the Lewis and Clark Expedition weren't interesting, it's just there were so many of them. I think my problem is that I USUALLY prefer history written as fiction, or through the eyes of the participants. I have read many of the Shaara books, starting with Michael Shaara's Pulitzer Prize winning Killer Angels, the riveting story of Gettysburg as told through the Civil War generals. His son Jeffrey went on to write the prequel and sequel to Killer Angels, but to date my favorite of his books is Rise to Rebellion, which is about the Revolutionary War. It will make you proud to be an American. I also enjoyed No Less than Victory. This is part of Jeffrey Shaara's WWII series, telling the story of the Battle of the Bulge through the eyes of the soldiers who took part. He researched real letters and correspondence, photographs and reports, but his most interesting sources were the live interviews he did with veterans of that brutal battle. Now THAT is living history. And for me, a much more interesting read.
I will say that I learned a TON about Lewis and Clark that had not been taught to me in school. Or that I'd been taught, learned for the test and promptly forgot. (For instance, did you know that only 1 man died, and it was from appendicitis?) So if you love Lewis and Clark, read this book! Or, just check them out on Google.
Sunday, July 31, 2011
Saturday, July 30, 2011
The Dog Who Came in from the Cold
Alexander McCall Smith continues to astound me. With this latest installment of the Corduroy Mansion series, he has written 33 books since 1998! That doesn't include the 25 children's books and 3 short story collections, (since 1980), OR the 12 academic texts. (He has a Ph.D. in law.) His mind is just BURSTING with great ideas.
One of his greatest has to be Freddie de la Hay. Freddie is an immensely interesting character. He is also a dog. A Pimlico Terrier to be precise, which is a happy coincidence, because he and his master live in the Pimlico neighborhood of London in the slightly-worse-for-wear mansion block nicknamed "Corduroy Mansions". Many other characters abound in the converted flats, but Freddie is the star of this book. Why? Because Freddie becomes a spy for MI6. Does he save the world? Does he get involved with a svelt female Pimlico Terrier double agent? Do they call him "F"? You'll have to read it to find out.
The Corduroy Mansion series which Freddie inhabits is written and originally published as a serial, so part of the charm is that each chapter can stand on its own as a little story within the bigger picture. (One of my other FAVORITE McCall book series is 44 Scotland Street, which is also written as a serial.) So, I hope you get to know Pimlico and Freddie in The Dog Who Came in from the Cold, and I hope you'll be glad you did.
Cheerio!
One of his greatest has to be Freddie de la Hay. Freddie is an immensely interesting character. He is also a dog. A Pimlico Terrier to be precise, which is a happy coincidence, because he and his master live in the Pimlico neighborhood of London in the slightly-worse-for-wear mansion block nicknamed "Corduroy Mansions". Many other characters abound in the converted flats, but Freddie is the star of this book. Why? Because Freddie becomes a spy for MI6. Does he save the world? Does he get involved with a svelt female Pimlico Terrier double agent? Do they call him "F"? You'll have to read it to find out.
The Corduroy Mansion series which Freddie inhabits is written and originally published as a serial, so part of the charm is that each chapter can stand on its own as a little story within the bigger picture. (One of my other FAVORITE McCall book series is 44 Scotland Street, which is also written as a serial.) So, I hope you get to know Pimlico and Freddie in The Dog Who Came in from the Cold, and I hope you'll be glad you did.
Cheerio!
Monday, July 11, 2011
A Little House Marathon
I just finished reading the above.
I still love them!
If you've never read Laura Ingalls Wilder's books, start now.
No butter churning required.
Monday, June 27, 2011
Looking for Laura
When I heard about The Wilder Life, My Adventures in the Lost World of Little House on the Prairie, By Wendy McClure, I ran to Barnes and Noble like a Sooner racing into Oklahoma to stake a homestead claim. (Too much? Possibly.) Well, I did order it on Amazon without a second thought to what it was about. After all, I LOVED Laura Ingalls Wilder and the Little House books, and when it arrived and I saw its Tiffany blue cover with the first page of Little House in the Big Woods open to a Garth Williams original illustration I KNEW I would love this, too. So much for judging a book by its cover.
OK, I didn't NOT like this book. In fact, the first chapter is hilarious, bringing back memories of my own childhood days of Laura re-enactments. At that point I could really relate to Wendy McClure and her obsession with all things LHOTP. But somewhere on her road trip to see all of the "real" sights in the nine Little House books, she got a little too wordy and introspective. In the end, her journey makes sense, as does her tendency to ramble, but she often took the long way around the barn.
Am I glad I read The Wilder Life? Yes! Am I going to buy a butter churn? NO. If I happen to be in De Smet, SD, will I be excited to see the real Little Town on the Prairie? Probably! Anyway, I definitely am going to reread my 1971 boxed set of the series, and perhaps I'll find my own inner Laura.
As Ma would say, "All's well that ends well!"
Mary Kay
OK, I didn't NOT like this book. In fact, the first chapter is hilarious, bringing back memories of my own childhood days of Laura re-enactments. At that point I could really relate to Wendy McClure and her obsession with all things LHOTP. But somewhere on her road trip to see all of the "real" sights in the nine Little House books, she got a little too wordy and introspective. In the end, her journey makes sense, as does her tendency to ramble, but she often took the long way around the barn.
Am I glad I read The Wilder Life? Yes! Am I going to buy a butter churn? NO. If I happen to be in De Smet, SD, will I be excited to see the real Little Town on the Prairie? Probably! Anyway, I definitely am going to reread my 1971 boxed set of the series, and perhaps I'll find my own inner Laura.
As Ma would say, "All's well that ends well!"
Mary Kay
Sunday, June 26, 2011
The Brothers of Baker Street
We've had graduation, vacation, orientation, and now the realization that I haven't posted in almost a month! Actually, things have been a little crazy, so I haven't been reading as much as usual. BUT, I did manage to finish Michael Robertson's next book.
The Brothers of Baker Street is the sequel to The Baker Street Letters. This delightful new series is set in London at the address of the fictional Sherlock Holmes. Except many people are still sending him letters. And the Heath brothers are required to answer them as part of their lease agreement. Answer, but not act upon, which would make for a very boring story. So OF COURSE they act, and we get to ride along with Reggie, Nigel and the spirit of Sherlock as they tackle their newest mystery. This one involves a Black Cab murderer, a ruthless newspaper/gossip rag owner and a relative of Professor Moriarty. (Or so they claim!) You'll have to use all of your powers of deduction to figure this one out.
Ignore the red herrings and give The Baker Street Letters and The Brothers of Baker Street a try. You won't be sorry!
The Brothers of Baker Street is the sequel to The Baker Street Letters. This delightful new series is set in London at the address of the fictional Sherlock Holmes. Except many people are still sending him letters. And the Heath brothers are required to answer them as part of their lease agreement. Answer, but not act upon, which would make for a very boring story. So OF COURSE they act, and we get to ride along with Reggie, Nigel and the spirit of Sherlock as they tackle their newest mystery. This one involves a Black Cab murderer, a ruthless newspaper/gossip rag owner and a relative of Professor Moriarty. (Or so they claim!) You'll have to use all of your powers of deduction to figure this one out.
Ignore the red herrings and give The Baker Street Letters and The Brothers of Baker Street a try. You won't be sorry!
Monday, May 30, 2011
The Girl Who Chased the Moon
My daughter gave this book to me for mother's day, and I'm SO glad she did! The Girl Who Chased the Moon by Sarah Addison Allen is delightful. If YOU decide to read this book, you will be transported to the small southern town of Mullaby, North Carolina, a place filled with gentle giants, magical wallpaper, delectable cakes, delicious BBQ and mysterious family secrets. I can't really tell you more than that without ruining the story, but I can say that I will be reading more of Sarah Addison Allen's books. I hope I will enjoy them as much as this one. Now I have to go bake a cake.
mk
mk
Saturday, May 21, 2011
Unbroken
It seems strange to think of it now, but when I was born in 1960, WWII had only been over for 15 years. Memories of the war were living things, the soldiers and civilians involved still mostly young. My father was relatively lucky to be assigned to a fast troop transport ship in the Atlantic. My uncle was in the Army in the Pacific, not such an easy assignment, but they both came out alive. Compared to others, they were the lucky ones. Compared to Louis Zamperini, they were on a cake walk. Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand, is the true story of how Zamperini spent the war, and how it changed him forever.
Louis Zamperini was born in 1917 in New York, but his family moved to Torrance, CA in 1919 to help Louis recover from pneumonia. He was a fearless baby who turned into the neighborhood hell-raiser. His older brother Pete literally saved him from a lifetime of delinquency when he introduced him to track. Louis became a star at Torrance High School, where he was known in all the LA newspapers as "The Torrance Tornado". In fact, he was so good he qualified for the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, rooming with Jesse Owens! After the Olympics he attended USC (FIGHT ON!!!) on a track scholarship, where he would hold the NCAA record for the mile for the next fifteen years. He was a sure bet to medal in the 1940 Olympics, but then war came.
Louis was trained as a bombardier on the B-24 Liberator, also known as "The Flying Coffin", and stationed on Oahu. He and the rest of his crew survived run after bombing run, as those all around them disappeared into the Pacific. That all changed on May 27, 1943, when their plane went down on a rescue mission. What follows is an amazing tale of human physical and mental endurance through horrible thirst and near-starvation, shark attacks and typhoons, torture and deprivation in Japanese prison camps. How Louis survived, conquered his post-war demons and ultimately thrived is the stuff of legend. And guess what? He's still alive and kicking at 94!
So, stop what you are doing and read this book. It is now one of my favorites!
P.S.: If this story sounds familiar, that is because CBS did a profile about him for the 1998 Olympics in Nagano, Japan. You can find it on youtube, but read the book first!
Louis Zamperini was born in 1917 in New York, but his family moved to Torrance, CA in 1919 to help Louis recover from pneumonia. He was a fearless baby who turned into the neighborhood hell-raiser. His older brother Pete literally saved him from a lifetime of delinquency when he introduced him to track. Louis became a star at Torrance High School, where he was known in all the LA newspapers as "The Torrance Tornado". In fact, he was so good he qualified for the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, rooming with Jesse Owens! After the Olympics he attended USC (FIGHT ON!!!) on a track scholarship, where he would hold the NCAA record for the mile for the next fifteen years. He was a sure bet to medal in the 1940 Olympics, but then war came.
Louis was trained as a bombardier on the B-24 Liberator, also known as "The Flying Coffin", and stationed on Oahu. He and the rest of his crew survived run after bombing run, as those all around them disappeared into the Pacific. That all changed on May 27, 1943, when their plane went down on a rescue mission. What follows is an amazing tale of human physical and mental endurance through horrible thirst and near-starvation, shark attacks and typhoons, torture and deprivation in Japanese prison camps. How Louis survived, conquered his post-war demons and ultimately thrived is the stuff of legend. And guess what? He's still alive and kicking at 94!
So, stop what you are doing and read this book. It is now one of my favorites!
P.S.: If this story sounds familiar, that is because CBS did a profile about him for the 1998 Olympics in Nagano, Japan. You can find it on youtube, but read the book first!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)