"I think you'll really like it, Cheryl."
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I first read Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre a few months ago on my Kindle while on the treadmill. I can't believe I had never read it, but better late than never, right? I loved it, and so when I heard that there was a retelling of Jane Eyre titled The...moreI first read Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre a few months ago on my Kindle while on the treadmill. I can't believe I had never read it, but better late than never, right? I loved it, and so when I heard that there was a retelling of Jane Eyre titled The Flight of Gemma Hardy, I was excited to read it.
The story's setting has been moved to Scotland and Iceland in the late 1950s, early 1960s. Gemma is an orphan, whose mother's brother and family took her in when she was a young child after her father died. Her mother died when Gemma was just a toddler.
Gemma's uncle, a minister, loved her and treated her well, but when he died in a tragic accident, his family began to treat Gemma badly. Her aunt and three cousins treated her worse than a servant, because according to them, Gemma was freeloader who contributed nothing to the household.
When Gemma was ten, her evil aunt sent her to a boarding school. It was hard to believe, but school was worse than living with her cruel aunt and cousins. The students beat and stole from her. The head of the school humiliated her in front of everyone. She was a 'scholarship' student, so she earned her keep by working like a dog.
She had only one friend, and studied hard, hoping someday to get a job as a teacher and return to her homeland of Iceland and find her real family. When the school is forced to close, Gemma takes the only job she can get as a tutor for a young girl on an estate on the Orkney Islands in Scotland, owned by the wealthy and mysterious Mr. Sinclair.
So the first part of the novel hews very closely to Jane Eyre; if you read that book, you pretty much knew everything that was going to happen. This puzzled me somewhat, thinking that it isn't difficult to take the plot of a long beloved classic and make a few differences, updating it.
There is a big mystery in Jane Eyre, a big secret that Mr. Rochester kept from Jane that caused her to flee. Mr. Sinclair has a secret in this novel too, and this is where the author diverges from Miss Bronte's book and creates her own story.
Gemma falls in love with Mr. Sinclair, agrees to marry him, but when his secret is revealed, she runs away. I didn't truly understand why Gemma ran away, as Mr. Sinclair did not have a mad wife in the attic, but his dishonesty drove her away nonetheless.
Her troubles begin when she is robbed and has no money or place to go. She, like Jane, is rescued by a mystery man, the local postman. His sister and her friend take Gemma in, and after a while, Gemma feels like she belongs.
She finds a job as a tutor for a young boy, and comes to care for the boy and his family. While Gemma feels that she has found her place in life, she still feels insecure, like it could all be taken away from her in a moment. She longs to go home to Iceland.
Gemma makes a few bad decisions, but ends up discovering her parents' family in Iceland. This part of the book really tugged at me, and the setting in Iceland added a unique aspect to the book. I have never read anything set in Iceland, and it made me curious to learn more about it.
I liked the second half of the book better than the first; Livesey creatively uses the Jane Eyre template to build a new story, with a scrappy young heroine who appeals to the reader. I fell in love with the people of Aberfeldy, the town in which Gemma ends up. And Gemma's reunion with her family is so touching. The ending is familiar to readers of Jane Eyre; how could it be any other?
I loved the unique setting of Scotland and Iceland, although it seemed that the time of the 1950s and '60s was less relevant to the story. The Flight of Gemma Hardy is a terrific companion read to Jane Eyre, and Gemma is a worthy successor to the great 19th century heroines in literature.(less)
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"Yes, Jessica, I definitely plan on looking for those books at my local library bookstore."
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With the Superbowl but a few weeks away, today's book review is The Pittsburgh Steelers- The Official Team History by Abby Mendelson. The Steelers have won six Superbowls, more than any other franchise in history.
I'm not a huge football fan; usually...moreWith the Superbowl but a few weeks away, today's book review is The Pittsburgh Steelers- The Official Team History by Abby Mendelson. The Steelers have won six Superbowls, more than any other franchise in history.
I'm not a huge football fan; usually I read and cook dinner while the guys watch the games on Sunday. But one of my son's is a Steelers fan, and I do remember back in the 1970s when I was a kid, how exciting it was to watch Terry Bradshaw and the Steel Curtain play.
Mendelson was a sports reporter in Pittsburgh, and this book is pretty comprehensive. He starts out with a chapter on Art Rooney, called the Chief, the man who purchased the Steelers franchise (then called the Pirates, like the baseball team) for $2500 during the Great Depression.
The Rooney family still owns the Steelers, and Rooney's son Dan followed in his footsteps. Art Rooney became a beloved figure in Pittsburgh, but he retained his common man touch. If anyone needed a few dollars or a kind word, he gave it. Yet he was tough with his own children, believing in corporal punishment.
Mendelson paints a vivid portrait of the fascinating Rooney, interspersing photos and anecdotes throughout the text. He doesn't seem to meet an anecdote he doesn't like about Rooney, filling the text with several similar anecdotes about his various kindnesses to players and others. Less could have been more in this regard.
The Steelers are unique in that the same family has owned the franchise since 1933. That quality also extended to the coaches for the Steelers; they tended to stay a long time as well. Two successful coaches for the Steelers- Chuck Noll and Bill Cowher- are also profiled in great detail.
Although both coaches were successful, each winning Superbowls, they had very different coaching styles. Noll was a product of the 1950s, and he expected that his players would go out and do their job, without much praise from him. Noll "was all business; he came to get the job done, he came to win". He coached the Steelers from 1969-1991, through some disastrous seasons and some legendary years.
Cowher followed Noll in 1992, but he was a much more emotional coach. He believed in talking to the players, getting to know them. Like Noll, he believed that having a good work ethic was key, that practices were important, and getting the most of out each player would lead to success.
I particularly enjoyed the section on the 1970s Steelers, when they dominated the league with such incredible talent as Terry Bradshaw, Lynn Swann, Franco Harris, Mean Joe Greene, and Rocky Bleier. There is a very shocking photo of three linebackers- Andy Russell, Jack Ham and Jack Lambert- who each weighed about 220 pounds. Today, high school linebackers weigh 250+.
I also liked the section on the Steeler fans, especially on the bars near the stadium that cater to them, places like Froggy's and Owney McManus'. They are die-hard fans, and some of those anecdotes about them are priceless.
This is the fourth edition of the book, but it seems like the latest incarnation of the Steelers, who won the Superbowl XL in 2006, get short shrift. Mendelson does recap every game of that season, but the 2006-2010 Steelers only get one chapter. We don't really get to know Coach Mike Tomlin and quarterback Ben Rothlisberger as well as their predecessors.
The Pittsburgh Steelers- The Official Team History overall does a great job documenting one of the most legendary franchises in all of sports. From their rocky start and many losing seasons to the record-breaking six Superbowl trophies, from the fascinating owner Art Rooney to incredible coaches Chuck Noll and Bill Cowher to unforgettable players like Joe Greene, Franco Harris and Ben Rothlisberger, this book covers it all with amazing photos, anecdotes and a storied history. It's a must-have not only for Steeler fans, but for all football fans.(less)
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I put The Homecoming of Samuel Lake on my Most Compelling Books of 2011 list. The story begins with the patriarch of the Moses family killing himself at the annual family reunion. Set in Arkansas in the 1950s, Samuel Lake is a preacher who has once a...moreI put The Homecoming of Samuel Lake on my Most Compelling Books of 2011 list. The story begins with the patriarch of the Moses family killing himself at the annual family reunion. Set in Arkansas in the 1950s, Samuel Lake is a preacher who has once again lost his job and retreats back home to his wife Willadee's family to regroup.
Samuel and Willadee have a wonderful marriage, they are very supportive of each other. They have three young children, Swan being the only girl. Samuel used to date Bernice, who later married Toy, Willadee's brother. Bernice is still in love with Samuel, and decides to use her beauty and feminine wiles to get Samuel back.
Samuel sets up a tent revival, hoping to get enough people to come and perhaps getting a permanent preaching job out of it. Willadee works during the day at her father's bar, Never Closes, which is attached to their home, and also houses the grocery store that Willadee's mother runs.
Swan and her brothers find Blade, a mysterious young boy, hiding in their barn and discover that he has been badly abused by his father, Ras Ballenger. Ballenger is evil personified, and every time he makes an appearance in the novel, I got chills. He beat his wife, sons, and the horses that he was supposed to be training. He is one bad, bad man.
When Swan's family takes the young boy in, Ballenger swears vengeance against the Moses/Lake family, and waiting for his plan to take place ratchets up the tension in this heartbreaking, beautifully crafted novel. I finished the book on the treadmill and almost had to get off because I was sobbing so hard.
I loved the characters in this book, with Toy being my favorite. He is man of few words, so when he speaks it is powerful. He also has a sense of sadness about him. Seriously injured in WWII, there is a question of whether or not he killed a man involved with his wife while he overseas. He forms strong bonds with the children, and his tenderness with them melts your heart. His evolution is moving, and Toy is a truly unforgettable literary creation.
So many of the characters are well-drawn- Willadee, Swan, Samuel, Blade, Bernice, even Ras. The way the Lake family lived their faith was inspirational. They loved God and each other, and tried hard to embody their faith everyday. I liked the way that Wingfield wrote how important it was to the family and the story.
The difficulty of being married plays a large role in the book. Willadee and Samuel's marriage is tested, but is strong. Contrast that with Toy and Bernice's unhappy, lonely marriage and the sadness that Willadee's mother feels about how the last years of her marriage unfolded. I think the author is saying that marriage is something that needs to be cared for and tended if it is to survive.
My favorite lines from the book are from Willadee and Toy's mother, about Blade's effect on Toy:
"She had no idea that Swan was also doing something special for Toy, or that Toy's life was changing in ways he could have never anticipated. All she knew was that this little boy was doing a kindness for her own little boy- the man who had been her little boy- and her gratitude knew no bounds."
As a mother of two sons, those lines killed me.
I could go on and on about this book, but all I really need to tell you is that if you love beautifully crafted books, with a compelling story and characters that feel so real, you will love The Homecoming of Samuel Lake. I almost wish I were reading again for the first time.(less)
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Gun Games is the 20th mystery written by Faye Kellerman featuring LAPD detective Pete Decker and his wife Rina Lazarus. It is the first one in the series that I have read, and now I must keep my eye out for the other 19 books when I pop into the many...moreGun Games is the 20th mystery written by Faye Kellerman featuring LAPD detective Pete Decker and his wife Rina Lazarus. It is the first one in the series that I have read, and now I must keep my eye out for the other 19 books when I pop into the many bookstores and thrift stores I frequent.
I didn't really get to know that much about Decker and his wife because this book focused on fifteen-year-old Gabriel Whitman, a young man whose father is a mob scion, who among many other illegal activities, runs whorehouses in Nevada. Gabe's mother fled to India leaving her son behind.
Gabe is a musical prodigy and a social loner, living with the Deckers. One day he is harassed at a coffee house by some tough kids with a gun, and he manages to diffuse the situation with his extensive knowledge of guns and his ability to think quickly on his feet.
After that incident, he goes to a different coffeehouse and meets a fourteen-year-old Persian Jewish girl named Yasmine. Yasmine wants to be an opera singer, and she and Gabe bond over their love of music and soon fall in love. They must hide their relationship from her parents, who would never let her date anyone who was not Jewish.
Meanwhile, Lt. Decker and his comrades are investigating two teen suicides at the local private school, the same one that boys who harassed Gabe attend. Although they were labeled suicides, Decker believes that there is more going on, and his team noses around.
Kellerman knows how to write scenes that make your heart pound, but it is her characters, especially young Gabe and Yasmine, whom I found compelling. She really got into the heads of these two teens, and her description of them falling in love really hit their target.
She writes entire sections of their text messages to each other, the preferred manner of communication for today's teens. You could actually feel them falling in love with each other with each text, and Kellerman perfectly captures the all-consuming feelings of first love. The methods of communication may have changed over the years, but teen love is still a heady mix of hormones and emotions.
I liked her characterization of the parents in her novel. The mother of a boy who was believed to have committed suicide was dumbfounded to discover certain things about her son. We all want to believe we know our children, but this book may disabuse you of that comforting feeling.
I recognized many of the parents in the scene at the police station. Some people like to complain about the portrayal of people of faith in media, but Kellerman did an admirable job with her depiction. The churchgoing parents of one troubled girl were the only ones who demanded that their child be held (somewhat) accountable. Decker and his wife regularly attend Jewish services, as does Yasmine's family. Religion is not a dirty word in this novel.
Gun Games successfully combines a cracker-jack mystery, albeit with some convenient coincidences, with a realistic depiction of teen love. (Although we don't want to believe fourteen and fifteen-year-olds have sex, many are. God help us.) If you are the parents of teens, this book will make you sweat.(less)
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Sometimes a book evokes a time and a place so well, the reader feels like she's been dropped into it. That is the feeling I had reading Marjorie Reynold's The Starlite Drive-in.
Set in the hot, dusty summer of 1956 in a small Indiana town, I felt like...moreSometimes a book evokes a time and a place so well, the reader feels like she's been dropped into it. That is the feeling I had reading Marjorie Reynold's The Starlite Drive-in.
Set in the hot, dusty summer of 1956 in a small Indiana town, I felt like I had to turn on the air conditioning to cool off, even though it was a cold winter day in New York City where I was reading the novel.
The book opens in the 1990s, where human remains are found at the old drive-in that Callie Anne's dad ran in the 1950s. Callie Anne, her dad Claude, and her mom Teal lived in a house on the drive-in property, and practically their entire lives revolved around around the drive-in.
For Teal, her entire life revolved around her house. Something happened to Teal a few years back; she became severely agoraphobic, unable to leave her home. This also meant that Claude and Callie Anne were stuck there too, something for which Claude resented Teal. He treated his wife and daughter poorly, yelling at them, talking down to them, calling them names; they walked on eggshells around Claude.
One day, a drifter named Memphis got a job working at the drive-in. Callie Anne, just beginning adolescence, fell hard for the good-looking, mysterious man. Memphis was a quiet man, but he had a connection with Teal. He didn't like the way Claude treated Teal, and began to fall in love with her. His presence at the drive-in changed everything for Callie Anne's family that summer.
Reynold's novel cast a spell on the reader. The characters are fleshed out and interesting, from the major ones like Callie, Memphis, Teal and Claude to the minor ones, like Teal's strong-willed sister Bliss, and Virgil, the young man who worked at the drive-in and with whom Callie begins a tender relationship. I liked how most of the characters were good at heart, but people with flaws, desires and hopes.
Although the story is told from Callie Anne's point of view, it was Teal's journey that moved me most. She went from a timid, lonely woman to someone who blossomed as she attempted to overcome her agoraphobia and open herself up to love. I loved her inner strength.
There is some action in the book, even a few scenes that will make you hold your breath. The story reminded me of The Last Picture Show (the movie, as I have never read the book), even down to the movie reference in the titles. It has a small 1950s town, characters with secrets, illicit love and a languid pace.
I think Callie summed it all up best when she said "I didn't know how to express what was really bothering me. It was tied up with loving Charlie Memphis and losing a dream and thinking life was too complicated and hard on people. There was even something to do with responsibility, but I couldn't make sense of it."
Life was hard on the people on The Starlite Drive-in, just like it is on many people. I have a feeling I won't soon forget them.(less)
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I'm not a bird watcher, but I know people who do enjoy the hobby a great deal. The Crossley ID Guide to Eastern Birds by Richard Crossley bills itself as a "book for beginners, experts, and everyone in between."
His stated goal is to "use unique photo...moreI'm not a bird watcher, but I know people who do enjoy the hobby a great deal. The Crossley ID Guide to Eastern Birds by Richard Crossley bills itself as a "book for beginners, experts, and everyone in between."
His stated goal is to "use unique photographs and page layouts to show birds as we really see them in the wild." I think this book will appeal more to the expert, as the information with the photos is very detailed, and probably more detailed than newbie birders are seeking.
In the introduction, Crossley explains how to use the book to its best advantage, and has a section titled "How to Be a Better Birder", which explains what to look for and how to take field notes.
The photos are spectacular, and I like how the photos are set in the habitat of the bird. For each bird, there is a description, along with a map showing where you will find the bird. The photos themselves almost seem 3D, like you can reach out and actually touch the bird.
This book would make a fantastic gift for the more serious birder, but the beginner will be in thrall of the luscious photos. I could see someone absolutely losing themselves for hours in the stunning pictures and illustrations.(less)
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It's a common experience to get home from work and have to get dinner on the table pronto because someone has baseball practice, someone else has to go to work, someone has a meeting. Robin Miller, host of the Food Network's Quick Fix Meals, has a so...moreIt's a common experience to get home from work and have to get dinner on the table pronto because someone has baseball practice, someone else has to go to work, someone has a meeting. Robin Miller, host of the Food Network's Quick Fix Meals, has a solution for us with her book
Robin Takes 5: 500 recipes, 5 ingredients or less, 500 calories or less, 5 nights a week at 5PM.
Five hundred recipes is a lot, and many of them can be repetitive (and a good number of them use mustard for some reason), but I found several recipes that I will use. I'm trying to get more fiber in our diet, and Miller has some good recipes using all kinds of canned beans.
I know my college aged sons would enjoy Chicken Nacho Dinner, made by topping corn tortilla chips with a can of black beans, shredded chicken, shredded cheese and salsa and baking for 10 minutes. It also has 6g of fiber. I love that there are so many recipes in this book that have lots of fiber, including Cheese Tortellini with Wild Mushroom Gravy (9g), Pasta Spirals with White Beans, Broccoli and Parmesan (9g) and Penne with Zucchini-Roasted Garlic Sauce (8g), and one that I have already tried, Tuscan Chicken with White Beans, Tomatoes and Oregano (5g) that was really tasty and reminded me of one of our favorite dinners at an Italian restaurant we frequent. Next time, I would cook the chicken breasts whole, instead of dicing them, but another good thing about this book is that it is easy to tweak recipes to your own liking.
The book is divided into eight chapters, like Soups, Stews & Chowders, Pasta, Risotto & Rice, Chicken & Turkey, Side Dishes and Desserts. Now that fall is here, I can't wait to try Carmelized Onion Soup with Melted Swiss & Croutons, Wild Mushroom Soup, and Corn Chowder with Shrimp.
I made Chocolate Raspberry Sorbet, which was simply adding hot fudge sauce and mini chocolate chips to your favorite store bought raspberry sorbet and refreezing. It got rave reviews from two gentlemen who love gourmet foods, and had them fooled. One recipe I did make, Butterscotch Brownies, did not turn out as I hoped, but you can't win them all.
I like that the nutritional information for each recipe is located in a prominent box to the left of the recipe. It makes it so easy to compare and find what you're looking for, whether's it's calorie counts, carb counts or fiber content.
Robin Takes 5 is perfect for busy moms and dads, for people just learning how to cook, and college students. It has easy, clear-to-understand instructions and uses ingredients that most people already have in their pantry. If you want to make healthy, easy dinners for your family, instead of picking up fast food, pick up Robin Takes 5; your family will thank you.(less)
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![Grace [Eventually] by Anne Lamott](http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1166504427s/12542.jpg "Grace [Eventually] by Anne Lamott")
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