Biography, Autobiography, Memoir discussion
Biography, Autobiography, and Memoir read in 2018
Mod
1 star
Did not draw me into the story and left me s..."
Agree. I only got a few pages in and quit.
Wow, SouthWest Zippy! You've been busy! :) Thanks for all the great reviews.
Koren wrote: "SouthWestZippy wrote: "1 star
Did not draw me into ..."
I should have quit. "Sigh"
Diane wrote: "Wow, SouthWest Zippy! You've been busy! :) Thanks for all the great reviews."You are very welcome. I am getting back into my reading habits and having so much fun trying to figure out what to read next.
Julie wrote: "SouthWestZippy wrote: "
3 stars
This book picks up where Angela's Ashes left off. It was a fascinating yet slow read. The story just did not fly off the pages for me,..."
So far Teacher Man has been my favorite by Frank McCourt. I gave it five stars.
Mod
3 stars
This book picks up where Angela's Ashes left off. It was a fascinating yet slow read. The story just did not fly off the..."
So glad to see you back. I was starting to wonder if you had abandoned us.
I loved all the Frank McCourt books and was sad when he passed away a few years ago.
I recently selected this biography from the new books shelf at my local public library. Like many, I love love loved du Maurier's REBECCA when I was a teen. i have not read other biographies of her, but found this one fascinating for many reasons: the extent to which her settings and characters were conjured from her own life, how fast she wrote each book, her aggressiveness in pursuing her goals, etc.. Apparently, it has elicited some controversy among reviewers, some of those stating it is not an "authentic" biography. The author of the biography has achieved some prominence as a fiction author (Sarah's Key especially) Has anyone else read Manderly Forever? The title of the biography was well selected and with a bit of irony, given the info about the reception of duMaurier's slew of books.
The Hawke Memoirs
Author: Bob Hawke
2 Stars
Bob Hawke is an Australian politician who was the 23rd Prime Minister of Australia, serving from 1983 to 1991. He held office as the leader of the Labor Party (the oldest political party in Australia, a moderately liberal party, formed to represent the interest of ordinary working people).
Hmmm ... my impression of this book is that Bob Hawke thinks that Bob Hawke can do no wrong. If he should just 'happen' to do a bit of wrong, then he devotes a brief paragraph to it, and quickly moves back to his 'Hawke as Hero' thread.
I'm not into politics. This review is not based on anything political that Hawke did, or didn't do. I don't give a fig which party he represented, etc. etc. My review is based on the take-away feelings I got from reading his version of his political life, and a VERY tiny bit about his personal life.
Maybe he was the great man he thinks he was, and maybe he wasn't. Even is he was, there was surely a less ego-driven way of telling his story, one would hope.
2 Stars = Blah. It didn't do anything for me.
Bernice wrote: "I recently selected this biography from the new books shelf at my local public library. Like many, I love love loved du Mau..."
No but I have read other biographies about Daphne du Maurier many years ago now. She liked to write about dark side of life, and it seems some biographers question her sexual orientation. Not sure about that, but gave up reading du Maurier after a while because many of her stories were too dark and depressing. Sometimes you just want to read about the light instead of the dark.
Rebecca is a haunting novel, but when I really think about it how did she (the second mrs de winter) end up marrying a murderer twice her age in the first place, and where exactly are her parents?! Or the rest of her family?
All very good questions about the second Mrs. While I was reading this new bio, I could not recall if the novel REBECCA explained how the second wife met Max. Wondered if I read the book today, would I still love it...
A Dialogue with Depression
Author: Om Devi
2 Stars
This is a self-published book by Om Devi, in which she relates her observation of her husband’s depression, which led to his suicide. He was a physician, and they were married for 30+ years. Apparently, he was depressed for decades of that time. She had no real understanding of what he was going through, and struggled to learn, to grasp some insight, that might help them cope. He tried to commit suicide about 10 years before his successful attempt. She says it was then that she first became acquainted with 'clinical depression'. At some point, he moved to another city, and they had only minimal contact.
I did not really enjoy the way the book was organised. She is a photographer, and nearly every other page is a photograph. They are not examples of stunning photography. They are fairly plain, and look like something you'd see if you did a Google image search for 'umbrellas', or 'tree bark'. Some pages have a photo on one page, and one line of text on the facing page.
She includes verbatim text messages between herself, and her husband. Sometimes it is just heaps of boring items. For example, "Her: Plane on time." "Him: Just got off freeway." "Her: Okay." and so forth, and so on. It would be one thing if the conversation were leading somewhere, but it's not.
I admire her for trying to share her experience so that others might learn from it. I do know a bit about the topic, and I am not treating her experience, or his, lightly. The page where she learns of his suicide was heart-rending.
But due to the layout of the book, and the way she shares, it just didn't move me to give it more stars.
2 Stars = Blah. It didn't do anything for me.
Koren wrote: "SouthWestZippy wrote: "Julie wrote: "SouthWestZippy wrote: "3 stars
This book picks up where Angela's Ashes left off. It was a fascinating yet slow read. The story j..."
So glad to see you back. I was starting to wonder if you had abandoned us.
I would do no such thing. :0)
I have just had a lot on my plate. Three deaths(In-Laws and Sister In Law) close together, their two houses filled with things to deal with then sell houses plus on top of all that of my Mothers health issues(ended up putting her in a home) as well as my own health issues, well like a said a lot on my plate.
It is good to be back into a reading and posting pattern.
The bad on this is I AM ADDING books to my already mountain of TBR books. LOL
The Zoo: The Wild and Wonderful Tale of the Founding of London Zoo: 1826-1851
Isobel Charman
4/5 stars
Charman does a wonderful job in describing the beginnings of the London Zoo. Each chapter highlights a different time period and a individual or individuals who were involved with the zoo during that time period including, a zoo keeper, a founder, gardener and an animal doctor. Even Charles Darwin gets a chapter for he was a corresponding member of the zoo and used the resources of the zoo in his work and research. I think I was most shocked at the deaths of a lot of the animals that came to live in the zoo and how the zoo personal tried everything they could think of to prevent the loss of the exotic animals.
Mod
3 stars
This book picks up where Angela's Ashes left off. It was a fascinating yet slow rea..."
So sorry to hear of your troubles. Reading is my drug. Hope things have calmed down now.
Diane wrote: "A Dialogue with Depression
Author: Om Devi
2 Stars
This is a self-published book by Om Devi, in which she relates..."
It sounds...depressing.
Diane wrote: "
A Dialogue with Depression
Author: Om Devi
2 Stars
Selina wrote: It sounds...depressing.
It was, Selina. I know she probably did her best to share with the world, but I didn't feel she did a very good job of it.
There Was a Little Girl: The Real Story of My Mother and Me by Brooke ShieldsI dont know too much about Brooke Shields except she was big in the 80s and was a child actress and model with stunning looks. I didnt know she had a controlling mother either who was an alcoholic...this book is rather heartbreaking because basically her mum pimped her out to movies and stardom and pocketed the proceeds. Brooke examines her intense relationship with her mother and does some soul searching after she dies.
I would recommend to anyone who has to deal with a bossy controlling mother and has had problems with codependence. Brooke had a huge burden of looking after her mother and picking up the pieces when her mom began drinking. She both adored and hated her mother, who was wonderful when sober but a hard case when she was drunk.
I wonder now how it was possible that her mother got custody of Brooke but her parents divorced when she was five months old, if her dad knew the extent of his exes problem but I suppose it wasnt till many years later the drinking started affecting her life. Brooke being her only daughter didnt go live with her dad who had other children and remarried. Her mum also did not remarry so she was kind of her mothers only resource...she became her manager and got her into movies and modelling. Brooke didnt question her mothers tactics and had blind faith and hope that her mother would stop drinking but she never did. She looked for approval but would never get it. Brooke also mentions her brief marriage to Andre Agassi, her first love Dean Cain, and her second marriage and birth of two daughters.
A sad read. But very brave of Brooke to share her story. I wouldnt say its as dramatic as Mommie Dearest, she wasnt a stage mother in that vein but it seems to be a thing with mothers and daughters who become actresses and disentangling those toxic relationships and questionable choices those mothers make sending their daughters out into the world.
Just an aside: I am part of Brooke Shields's generation and it was almost unheard-of for a dad to get custody in a divorce in those days. The assumption was that children (especially babies) need their mothers, not their fathers.
3 stars
The book walks you through many of the startup heartaches, dealing with people who discard animals like trash when they no longer want or need them and money issues. If you can handle animal abuse stories you might want to stay clear of this book, there is not many of them but enough to show you the need for such a place. Good book overall but does get into unnecessary details. The unnecessary details are in the friends' stories who started the Animal Sanctuary and dealing with people. I wanted more animal stories but again good book overall.
Gitchie Girl: The Survivor's Inside Story of the Mass Murders that Shocked the Heartland, Phil and Sandy Hamman3 stars
This is the moving, often very powerful story of the only survivor of the 1973 Gitchie Manitou massacre and how it changed her life. The book has its flaws -- I thought the writing was strikingly clumsy for such a short read, penned by two English teachers! -- but it stands as a testament to a person's power to endure and ultimately make peace with unbearable events. It's also an object lesson in the human capacity for cruelty and stupidity, but the lesson here is that you can finally get it to make sense and survive.
Mod
3 stars
The author has devoted her life to being a spiritual advisor to people on death row. I have also read two books by her that deal with men on death row that have been unjustly accused. Her books will make you re-think the death penalty. This book has been made into a movie, which I have not seen, but will look for it.
Mod
3 stars
I couldn't read this book without wondering what might have been. I've read every book that Hillary Clinton has written so the beginning of the book was a bit of a drag, as she tells us her past history once again in this book. If you followed the campaign you are not going to find a whole lot here that you dont already know, except you will find out her personal thoughts. There is nothing too surprising here. I got this as an ebook download from the library so it was ok, but I'm glad I didn't spend money on it just to find out a bunch of stuff I already knew.
Mod
5 stars
The author did something I wish I had done when I was younger. She worked and saved her money to travel until she ran out of money and then she would work until she had enough money to travel some more. She did this several times and went to some interesting places, traveling to Latin America, Laos, Bangladesh, India, Sudan, Syria, and Pakistan. And then she decided to go to Somalia, even though she knew it was a dangerous place to go. She was kidnapped and held captive for a year and almost died several times. The writing flows and you want to keep on reading to see what happened to her, even though you know she survives, after all, she wrote the book! Excellent read!
We Pointed Them North: Recollections of a Cowpuncher
1 star
Not all Cowboys lived this way. If you want to read a book about a self-centred, no morals, shot at the hip with a temper, disregard for life(human or animal) then this is a book for you. Yes, life was hard for Cowboys but why make it worse for yourself with stupid choices? I don't feel sorry for people who do things that make them have to look over their shoulder or run most of their life for the things they have done. Hope I never come across a book like this one again, I will not make myself finish it like I did this one.
Mod
4 stars
The author tells the story of his eccentric spinster great aunt, who inherited a fortune and didn't really do much with her life except give her money away and buy expensive things. Although she is a likeable person, the more interesting story lies in how her father accumulated his fortune. At the turn of the century he bought and invested heavily in copper mining. It made me sad when they talked about how the land was decimated and polluted and the fat cats in their ivory towers didn't care as long as a buck was being made. Some areas are still dealing with this pollution today. I'm not so sure times have changed very much in that regard. This was a very small portion of the book and yet it was what stood out in my mind the most.
Koren wrote: "Empty Mansions: The Mysterious Life of Huguette Clark and the Spending of a Great American Fortune by Bill Dedman and Paul Clark Neweller4 stars
The author tells the story of his ..."
This has been on my list for awhile. I'm glad you like it.
Last Chance to See: In the Footsteps of Douglas Adams
Author: Mark Carwardine
4 Stars
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Mark has a pleasantly amusing way of sharing their adventures, and Stephen as the fish-out-of-water sidekick is a hoot. As Mark said, "No one believed me when I said I was going to the Amazon with Stephen Fry. It must have seemed about as likely as taking Johnny Rotten to the opera, or joining the Dalai Lama for a week of downhill skiiing in Holland." (pg 12)
Of course, the book is not about the human shenanigans ... interesting as they may be ... it's about the wonderful animals who live in constant threat of extinction. Written twenty years after the original journey of Douglas Adams and Mark Carwardine, this book retraces their steps. It was a 145,000 kilometres (90,000 miles) trip to 8 countries on 5 continents.
If you're interested in threatened species around the world, you're going to enjoy this. Lots of food for thought. The hardback edition has gorgeous photos. I don't read on Kindle, so, no idea how it looks on there.
4 Stars = It touched my heart, and/or gave me much food for thought.
Bridge Across My Sorrows by Christina NobleI could put this also under the 'Mommie Dearest' category dealing with an alcoholic dad, poverty in Ireland and the death of the mother...Christina's story is even more shocking than Angela's Ashes but its all a precursor not to her becoming a writer or teacher but a humanitarian looking after street children in Vietnam, as she knew that life in Ireland, had lived it and breathed it and found the strength and inspiritation to rise above it. She was given a dream about children in Vietnam needing her so she went there without knowing any Vietnamese, or any money, and just showed love to these street children who had been neglected and abandoned just like she was.
The sequel to this memoir is 'Mama Tina' which I am going to read next.
Pilgrimage: My Journey to a Deeper Faith in the Land Where Jesus Walked by Lynn AustinThis memoir is written by a Christian novelist (I hadnt read any of her books though) as she goes on a two week tour of the Holy Land. I enjoyed reading about her journey from south to north and the insights shes picked up from it from scripture and how this trip showed her the things she needed to let go of and not be afraid of change or get too comfortable. The author was an empty nester who was still worrying and holding on to her ideals of children/grandchildren which I suspect mothers do a lot, they just expect their children to be giving them grandchildren straight away so they dont have to stop being a mother and step outside their comfort zone. She had got stuck in a rut, but journeying in the Holy land meant seeing how God views life and that we cant avoid suffering or hard times but we still need to trust Him.
I haven't been to Israel myself but I like reading books about it and seeing the roots of faith and the evidence all around. There's also prayers she prayed at the end of each chapter so it was quite an intense journey she went on, examining her faith and her heart at each stage.
Mud and Colour Man The Morris and James story by Nick Charlton, Anthony Morris and Barbara ReardonMorris and James is a pottery business and factory located just 40 minutes north of Auckland that is kind of like a destination with a cafe and showroom, specialising in large pots, tiles and platters. The pots are hand thrown and glazed and can be abit wonky. You can go on a factory tour there and find out how they make all their pots from the clay on site. This book is the story of the guy who founded it, Ant Morris. With his wife Sue James. Its got a lot of pictures, but the biography is rather...exhausting!
It seems Ant has a very contradictory personality and the way his business got started is kind of fascinating but also a bit Steve Jobs like..eccentric and passionate. One of the author is a pyschotherapist and theres lots and lots of psychoanlysis in this book! The main conflict seems to be the desire to just be hands on, a potter, and also to run a profitable business at the same time. And to get everyone else on board with a vision he finds hard to articulate (as Ant is dyslexic). It turns out Ant has lots of passion and drive but very little business sense! He goes through two wives, both divorce when they cant handle him anymore and he has four children. The sons are all geared up to take over the business but the existing staff clash with them and so they end the relationship and leave. Then he gets a stroke. Ai! But the Morris and James brand is famous all over the country and the story follows the business as it grows, then theres a fire, goes into recievership and recovers again.
Theres a bit of detail how the pots are made too but its not giving away all the trade secrets, understandably. The thing is these pots are really expensive and heavy, so I dont have any. But its interesting to read about since Ive always wondered with all this clay soil what to do with it. Its not the best for gardening...
At the end of the book Ant does a post script and writes that hes retired and making a non denominational chapel out of mudbricks. That he's now found peace is his life. Hooray.
Eugenia
Author: Mark Tedeschi
3 Stars = I liked the book. I enjoyed it. I'm glad I read it.
Eugenia Falleni was an Australian woman, who felt like she should have been born a man. Therefore, she chose to live as a man, in all areas of life, and did so for several decades. When she was charged with the murder of her 'wife', her private life became public knowledge. The book describes the life of such a woman, trying to exist in a society that would have found her to be 'a monster', if they had known her secrets. It also tells of her murder trial in Sydney in 1920.
The author, Mark Tedeschi, is Senior Crown Prosecutor for New South Wales, Australia, which means he knows all the ins-and-outs of the legal proceedings, and tends to go on about them a bit more than necessary. I did appreciate some of the explanations, but at other times he just made me weary.
If you have any interest in learning about how a transgender person had to live in the late 19th/early 20th centuries, you will enjoy this. Also, if you are interested in legal proceedings in Australia during the early 20th century, you will enjoy this.
The Story of the Trapp Family Singers
Author: Maria Augusta von Trapp
3 Stars = I liked the book. I enjoyed it. I'm glad I read it.
Remember the movie The Sound of Music? Well, this book was written by the real Maria von Trapp, about their real life ... not what you saw in the movie. Regarding the movie, her youngest son, Johannes, said, "This was the Hollywood version, of the Broadway version, of the German film version, of the book that my mother wrote." That sums it up quite nicely! So many things were changed, added, or omitted, that the movie barely resembles the real story. I won't go into all the differences, but they were numerous. Since I enjoy nonfiction much more than fiction, this book hit the spot for me. I enjoyed reading about what really happened, instead of watching Hollywood's fictional creation.
I thought Maria told their story in a very pleasant, friendly, and interesting manner. It was intriguing to see how moving to America affected them, as I'm sure it was quite a cultural shock. Learning of all the things they did, in addition to singing, was nice, too.
I'll say one thing ... she has more energy in her little finger, than I have in my entire body! That goes for all the other family members, too!
If you have an interest in the famous movie, or the von Trapp family, you will enjoy this book. As most of you know, they were a Catholic family, and she does share how their faith impacted their lives, at different points along the way. She's not overbearing with it, just slips it in there. So, if you're interested in reading about a family that leans on their faith, you'll enjoy this book. If you're not religious, you won't be put off by her unpretentious insertions.
One Man's War
Author: Stan Arneil
5 Stars = It made a significant impact on my heart, and/or mind. It moved me. I won't forget it.
During World War II Stan was a member of the Australian Eighth Division, stationed in Singapore. He was there, unfortunately, when the Allied Forces surrendered Singapore to the Imperial Japanese Army on 15 February 1942. All troops immediately became Prisoners of War.
This book is Stan's diary of his life from the fall of Singapore in 1942, to his eventual return to Australia on 9 October 1945. Stan wrote, "The recording of the facts became not so much an obsession with me but a lifeline which gave me a link with my home. As the years rolled over our heads and our numbers decreased all the time the journal became more and more important to me as a means of telling someone, sometime, of the facts which unfolded before us daily." (pg 2)
He survived Changi prison camp, and work on the Burma-Thailand railway. He survived horrible tropical diseases, and afflictions. He survived the agony of watching other soldiers dying like flies all around him.
At first, I thought this might be a 'dry' read, as diaries often are, but it is definitely not. Stan writes quite well, despite the hellish conditions, and his thoughts drew me into his existence as a POW. I have read several books about the POWs who worked on the Burma-Thailand railway, and this diary can easily stand amongst the best of those.
Mod
3 stars
For me the back cover was a spoiler. The beginning of the book would have been a lot more interesting if I hadn't read the back cover that told me right away that the person stalking this lady was....herself. After the police figure out who did it the rest was pretty much downhill. Mostly her visits with the psychiatrist. I think this would make a good premise for a one hour cop show on tv where we didn't find out who did it until the end and then skip all the psychiatrist visits. She did have a traumatic childhood (not a spoiler either as it tells us this on the front cover), but I have certainly read about people that had it a lot worse then she did.
Mama Tina by Christina NobleThe Christina Noble Story continues...carrying on from Bridge Across My Sorrows Christina's work with the street children of Vietnam - she openes a medical and social centre for them and talks about writing her first book and all the fundraising she needs to do to keep the centre running. Many people are touched by her story and of the Vietnamese children who survive appalling poverty and abuse and go to help.
She loves them gives them education, care, lifts their spirits with song and throws parties, helps parents get jobs, gives children bicycles and visits to the beach.
Then she gets a prompt to go to Mongolia which is also reeling from political instability and has many children in need...orphans and abused children because of the sex trade are a big problem. She starts a project to build a children's village there.
What an amazing lady with a huge heart - all the children call her 'Mama Tina'. She's no saint like Mother Teresa - but she does get to meet Mother Teresa anyway, as well as the President of Ireland.
I've just read "AChristmas Memory" by Truman Capote. A little out of season - so much to read - it was tagged onto the end of a copy I recently acquired of "Breakfast at Tiffany's" and is a short, short story so a quick read. It can be purchased separately I gather. Anyway, it's a charming tale and autobiographical in nature.
A Certain Light
Author: Cynthia Banham
3 Stars = I liked the book. I enjoyed it. I'm glad I read it.
Cynthia was involved in a horrific plane crash, that altered her body, and her life, permanently. Ten years later she is finally able to write her story, spurred on by her research into her family's WWII history, and the parallels she sees between them.
I felt that Cynthia wrote with a clear voice about her life, without getting sidetracked by unnecessary details (as many memoirs seem to do). She's very honest, and up front, about the emotions, the choices, and the pain she and her family have been through. She made me care about her, and that's what the best memoirs do.
If you like to read memoirs about overcoming adversity, you'll like this one.
A Christmas memory deals with the childlike nature of old age and the onset of dementia and is a fairly quick read with delightful details
Fractured
Author: Ruth Dee
3 Stars = I liked the book. I enjoyed it. I'm glad I read it.
For personal reasons, the author has chosen to use the pseudonym 'Ruth Dee'. The abuse she suffered was ... there is no word that can adequately describe ... hideous and vile. It makes my mind reel to even try to put it down in words here. As a coping response her mind created alternate personalities (Multiple Personality Disorder) to try to deal with it all. She managed to coexist with her 'alters' until her late 50s when she had a breakdown. She no longer needed their intervention, but she was unable to stop their participation in her life. Through therapy she finally began to mesh the pieces together again.
I felt that 'Ruth' spoke about her life in a down-to-earth manner. She worked for many years in education, was married, and had children ... all while dealing with the 'alters'. Amazing.
If you have trouble reading about child abuse (especially sexual abuse), you might not wish to read this book. The abuse is horrific, and begins at a VERY young age.
If you have an interest in Multiple Personality Disorder, you would probably find this book intriguing.
If you enjoy memoirs that are about overcoming extreme adversity, and emerging on the other side, you would like this book.
My copy of this book (same ISBN) has a different cover. I'd add a photo in my review, if I knew how to do so! ... lol
Mod
5 stars
If you are a fan of the show Fixer Upper, then you will enjoy getting to know the stars of the show. How and where they were raised, met, and raised their family, their values and how they started their businesses. This book will give you a warm, fuzzy feeling. They are such likeable people. This is what drives me when reading a memoir is when I feel like the author(s) are someone I would like to meet and get to know.
Texas Blood: Seven Generations Among the Outlaws, Ranchers, Indians, Missionaries, Soldiers, and Smugglers of the Borderlands2 stars
Roger D. Hodge tries to walk you through his adventure on figuring out his family history by retracing their steps while visiting places they lived, worked etc... plus he gives you a peek into his childhood and memories. The over-the-top details just kill the stories for me. I did find much of it fascinating just wish he would have stuck to his families history and not try and write a full history lesson with each area he visited. The pictures sprinkled throughout the book were fun to look at, nice touch.
Mod
Playing with Fire: The 1968 Election and the Transformation of American Politics by Lawrence O'Donnell
I was 12 during the 1968 election so I remember some of the events, the big ones like the Kennedy and Martin Luther King assassinations. I remember liking Hubert Humphrey, mainly because he was a home state boy. This is a very detailed look at that election that was different from any election before it. The author has his own show on MSNBC.
Mod
4 stars
My advice would be to not read The Magnolia Story and Capital Gaines back to back. A lot of the story is the same in both books. However, this book is Chip speaking instead of both Chip and Joanna and there is a lot more introspection and inspirational quotes. This guy could do great on the motivational speaking tours. So if you want to read a book with the theme of never giving up, this is a good one, especially if you like their show Fixer Upper.
The Happy Isles of Oceania: Paddling the Pacific
Author: Paul Theroux
4 Stars = It touched my heart, and/or gave me much food for thought.
This book seems more pensive than Paul's usual fare, and that may be due to that fact that he set out on this trip right after he, and his wife, separated. So, he was downhearted, and at loose ends emotionally. I think it made him more in tune with his fellow man, looking outward at them from his inner place of sad solitude. He didn't write in a depressing manner, far from it. I felt it was a journey that was close to his heart, in many ways, and somehow he translated that deepness to the written pages. It is nothing like those angsty books that women seem to write after a relationship break up (thank goodness!).
He visited 51 islands in the Pacific, with nothing more than a collapsible kayak, a tent, and a sleeping bag. Since he's traveling 'slow', he really gets to rub elbows with the common folks. As always, he's deals out his views with a point blank honesty, which some folks don't like, but I do. It makes him 'real'. He's just being himself, not trying to impress anyone.
If you like Theroux's books, you'll probably really enjoy this one. If you've never read Theroux, this might be a good one to start with.
If you're interested in the Pacific Islands (including Australia and New Zealand, of course), you'll probably enjoy this book.
Monique and the Mango Rains: The Extraordinary Story of Friendship in a Midwife's House in Mali
Author: Kris Holloway
4 Stars = It touched my heart, and/or gave me much food for thought.
This was a very good book. As the blurb says, it's about Monique, a Mali midwife, and Kris, an aid worker for the U.S. Peace Corps. Kris does an excellent job of pulling us into her life in Mali. She gets to know the folks in the village very well, and so does the reader ... which is nice. Monique is a rare gem of a woman. She's working hard, under brutally trying circumstances, to improve the lives of her people. The friendship that grows between the two woman is deep, and sincere.
If you want to read about midwifing (and just living!) under primitive conditions, you'll like this book.
If you'd enjoy reading about the nitty-gritty of the daily life of the inhabitants of a village in Mali, you'll enjoy this.
Diane wrote: "[book:Monique and the Mango Rains: The Extraordinary Story of Friendship in a Mi..."
Both books sound very interesting. I think I will add Theroux to my reading list- I have not read anything by him.
Mod
3 stars
I have to say, I 'm not a huge fan of Alec Baldwin and haven't seen very many of the movies he has been in, but I do love his impersonation of Donald Trump, which led me to buy this book. I really liked the first part of the book when he talks about his childhood and early adult years. Was surprised he didn't say very much at about his equally famous brothers, in fact, barely mentions their names. The middle of the book he talks about his movies and television shows, but mostly just sings the praises of his fellow cast mates. Towards the end he talks about his political views, which some may find off-putting if they dont have the same views. I found some of the book interesting and some of it was a yawner.
Diane wrote: "The Happy Isles of Oceania: Paddling the Pacific
Author: Paul Theroux
4 Stars = It touched my heart,..."
hmm, always interested in travellers writing about my own country...what did he think of it, did he like New Zealand?
Confessions of an English Opium Eater
Author: Thomas de Quincey
1 Star = Yuck. I wish I hadn't wasted my time reading it.
I finally finished this! I have started reading it several times, and just couldn't get into it. But today I finished it! Hooray! As you can tell, I did not like it.
One example of a very long rambling sentence: "I do not often weep: for not only do my thoughts on subjects connected with the chief interests of man daily, nay hourly, descend a thousand fathoms “too deep for tears;” not only does the sternness of my habits of thought present an antagonism to the feelings which prompt tears—wanting of necessity to those who, being protected usually by their levity from any tendency to meditative sorrow, would by that same levity be made incapable of resisting it on any casual access of such feelings; but also, I believe that all minds which have contemplated such objects as deeply as I have done, must, for their own protection from utter despondency, have early encouraged and cherished some tranquillising belief as to the future balances and the hieroglyphic meanings of human sufferings."
I do realise it was published in 1821, and written in that period's style. No excuse! Mary Shelley published Frankenstein in 1823, and it is very readable.
I also realise that the author wrote while using opium. No excuse! Charles Dickens used opium, and he was still able to write things that made sense.
The only 'entertaining' bit was where he tells about the dreams/nightmares he had as a result of opium, and you have to get to the end of the book to read those.
If you're a fan of Thomas de Quincey, I suppose you'd enjoy this book.
If you love reading run-on sentences, you'd probably like this book.
If you're looking for a first-hand report of the pain/pleasure of opium addiction written in a readable style, this is probably not the book you're looking for.
Biography, Autobiography, Memoir
Books mentioned in this topic
The Gardens That Mended a Marriage (other topics)Fortunate Isle: A Memoir of Tenerife (other topics)
I Am Matthew (other topics)
A Cat in the Window (other topics)
Good Stuff: A Reminiscence of My Father, Cary Grant (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Derek Tangye (other topics)Jennifer Grant (other topics)
Derek Tangye (other topics)
Howard Carter (other topics)
Jan Ruff-O'Herne (other topics)
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3 stars
This book picks up where Angela's Ashes left off. It was a fascinating yet slow read. The story just did not fly off the pages for me, I found myself waiting..."
I loved Angela Ashes but I did not care for Tis. Maybe because his first book was so good, I had very high expectations for his second book.