Title: Caveat Emptor
Author: Ruth Downie
Dates Read: 1/17-1/23/2012
Date Published: January, 2012
Pages: 352 (but I prefer the audiobooks!)
Synopsis: Ah, Russo and Tilla, still being their wonderful selves, have returned to Brittania. With no work as a doctor in sight, Russo finds a job as an investigator.
Review: This is Downie's best mystery, but she doesn't lose her deft hand at presenting a fascinating Roman world, either. While I was disappointed that she once again separated Tilla and Russo for much of the book, they were nevertheless as charming as always. I bought this on my Kindle when it came out, but ended up listening to the audiobook, because Simon Vance's wry presentation is absolute perfection.
Stars: ****/5
Keywords: History, Mystery
Showing posts with label Books: History. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Books: History. Show all posts
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Thursday, January 12, 2012
04 of 2012: My Name is Mary Sutter
Title: My Name is Mary Sutter
Author: Robin Oliveira
Dates Read: 1/7-1/10/2012
Date Published: March, 2011
Pages: 384
Synopsis: Mary Sutter is a midwife who wants to be a surgeon. After repeated rejections, she finds her chance in the horrors of the Civil War.
Review: This book was very uneven. The portions telling Mary's story were intriguing. Oliveira created a sassy and intelligent woman who stands against the horrors of war with bravery. However, about halfway through the book she begins delving into scenes without Mary, but with real historical figures. These chapters lost me, since they lacked the emotional resonance of the chapters with Mary. They dragged, and made me lose interest and skim through most of the second half of the book.
Stars: **/5 because of the uneven second half
Keywords: Books: Historical
Author: Robin Oliveira
Dates Read: 1/7-1/10/2012
Date Published: March, 2011
Pages: 384
Synopsis: Mary Sutter is a midwife who wants to be a surgeon. After repeated rejections, she finds her chance in the horrors of the Civil War.
Review: This book was very uneven. The portions telling Mary's story were intriguing. Oliveira created a sassy and intelligent woman who stands against the horrors of war with bravery. However, about halfway through the book she begins delving into scenes without Mary, but with real historical figures. These chapters lost me, since they lacked the emotional resonance of the chapters with Mary. They dragged, and made me lose interest and skim through most of the second half of the book.
Stars: **/5 because of the uneven second half
Keywords: Books: Historical
Friday, August 19, 2011
16: The Molly Murphy Books
I successfully leant this book to my mother using Kindle’s newish lending option! Of course, it was one of only a teenie number of my Kindle books available for lending, but such is life 0_~
Mom likes to get things a year or so after I do, when they’ve been improved. So she bought her Kindle at the beginning of December and now she’s in love with the thing. Can’t say as I blame her! If anyone out there has sight problems and it’s come between you and your reading, take it from my one-eyed mother than the Kindle is a blessing (or any e-reader). You have so much more control over the size of the text that I think it’s really excellent for those whose eyes might tire or strain reading standard text size in paper books.
Murphy’s Law
Rhys Bowen
Published: 2001
Why?: Bowen is an author would a good sense of humor, and she also writes engagingly spunky female characters who invariably get themselves into trouble! This is the first book in her Molly Murphy series, and she does an excellent job both in making a likable character and immersing the reader into the world of New York around 1910. It’s the details that make this book so real: prices, ways of living, and the Irish society of NYC in this time period are woven neatly into the narrative.
(On a purely biased level, it's a little disappointing that the romance of the series had to be introduced first thing, and it gets a bit annoying around book three, but it smooths out later).
Molly is also a lot of fun, polite and yet sassy, outgoing but uncertain. Her natural curiosity gets her into plenty of trouble, but she has the brains to get herself out of it most of the time. The mystery is deft enough for interest, written in the classic style that is more about snooping around than the gore and science of death and murder. The story is quite reminiscent of British mysteries along the lines of Agatha Christie, but the American location gives it its own flavor and feel.
Gist: Molly Murphy has made a mistake: defending herself from a nobleman. She finds herself on the run, and circumstances bring her to America. While at Ellis Island, she becomes the inadvertent witness to a murder that will change her life as much as immigrating did.
Perfect For: Ages 13+
Genres: Fiction, Novel
Keywords: Mystery, Drama, History
Mom likes to get things a year or so after I do, when they’ve been improved. So she bought her Kindle at the beginning of December and now she’s in love with the thing. Can’t say as I blame her! If anyone out there has sight problems and it’s come between you and your reading, take it from my one-eyed mother than the Kindle is a blessing (or any e-reader). You have so much more control over the size of the text that I think it’s really excellent for those whose eyes might tire or strain reading standard text size in paper books.
Murphy’s Law
Rhys Bowen
Published: 2001
Why?: Bowen is an author would a good sense of humor, and she also writes engagingly spunky female characters who invariably get themselves into trouble! This is the first book in her Molly Murphy series, and she does an excellent job both in making a likable character and immersing the reader into the world of New York around 1910. It’s the details that make this book so real: prices, ways of living, and the Irish society of NYC in this time period are woven neatly into the narrative.
(On a purely biased level, it's a little disappointing that the romance of the series had to be introduced first thing, and it gets a bit annoying around book three, but it smooths out later).
Molly is also a lot of fun, polite and yet sassy, outgoing but uncertain. Her natural curiosity gets her into plenty of trouble, but she has the brains to get herself out of it most of the time. The mystery is deft enough for interest, written in the classic style that is more about snooping around than the gore and science of death and murder. The story is quite reminiscent of British mysteries along the lines of Agatha Christie, but the American location gives it its own flavor and feel.
Gist: Molly Murphy has made a mistake: defending herself from a nobleman. She finds herself on the run, and circumstances bring her to America. While at Ellis Island, she becomes the inadvertent witness to a murder that will change her life as much as immigrating did.
Perfect For: Ages 13+
Genres: Fiction, Novel
Keywords: Mystery, Drama, History
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
15: Daily Life in Medieval Times
I took my camera to work and, in classic fashion, it's still in my desk drawer. Smooth, right?
Daily Life in Medieval times
Francis and Joseph Gies
Published: 2005
Why?: I was raised on stories of English history. Instead of “Little Red Riding Hood” or “Goldilocks,” Mom told me and my brother stories about the Henries, Stephens, and Jameses who ruled the Isle over the centuries. I don’t remember a time when I couldn’t list the wives of Henry VIII, or I didn’t know that Medieval castles stank to high heaven! This is what happens when your mother is both a gifted storyteller and a history teacher of the first order. Mom definitely did her work with me – I am an unashamed Anglophile and history nerd. I have a collection of books about life in both medieval and renaissance England (as well as across Europe, including France and Germany), and this is one of the best. It’s easy to read, chock-full of information, well-illustrated, and written in accessible language. This is a book meant to be educational without falling into the often over- convoluted realm of “scholarly” writing.
Gist: Daily Life in Medieval Times is a combination of previous works by the Gieses: Life in a Medieval Castle, Life in a Medieval City, and Life in a Medieval Village. Each book used a real location as a jumping-off point for introducing the culture of the times: Chepstow Castle in Wales, the city of Troyes in France, and the village Elton in England. They include loads of details, from wagons to hair to privies to social interactions, and give as close to a complete image as you can get of life long ago.
Perfect For: Ages 15+, fans of history, renaissance fair goers, costumers
Ye Olde Trivia: It doesn't appear that this collection is currently available new, but there are used sellers. Also, the separate books are available, and are often at Barnes and Nobles as bargain books, published by that company.
Genres: Nonfiction, History
Keywords: History, Illustrated
Daily Life in Medieval times
Francis and Joseph Gies
Published: 2005
Why?: I was raised on stories of English history. Instead of “Little Red Riding Hood” or “Goldilocks,” Mom told me and my brother stories about the Henries, Stephens, and Jameses who ruled the Isle over the centuries. I don’t remember a time when I couldn’t list the wives of Henry VIII, or I didn’t know that Medieval castles stank to high heaven! This is what happens when your mother is both a gifted storyteller and a history teacher of the first order. Mom definitely did her work with me – I am an unashamed Anglophile and history nerd. I have a collection of books about life in both medieval and renaissance England (as well as across Europe, including France and Germany), and this is one of the best. It’s easy to read, chock-full of information, well-illustrated, and written in accessible language. This is a book meant to be educational without falling into the often over- convoluted realm of “scholarly” writing.
Gist: Daily Life in Medieval Times is a combination of previous works by the Gieses: Life in a Medieval Castle, Life in a Medieval City, and Life in a Medieval Village. Each book used a real location as a jumping-off point for introducing the culture of the times: Chepstow Castle in Wales, the city of Troyes in France, and the village Elton in England. They include loads of details, from wagons to hair to privies to social interactions, and give as close to a complete image as you can get of life long ago.
Perfect For: Ages 15+, fans of history, renaissance fair goers, costumers
Ye Olde Trivia: It doesn't appear that this collection is currently available new, but there are used sellers. Also, the separate books are available, and are often at Barnes and Nobles as bargain books, published by that company.
Genres: Nonfiction, History
Keywords: History, Illustrated
Saturday, August 13, 2011
13. The Help
I went to see The Help this afternoon! I was a little terrified of watching it, because I read and loved the book before the movie was even announced. I'm pleasantly surprised, though! The various storylines are well presented, I laughed and sniffled at all the right parts, and I was blessed with a huge audience of people who'd obviously read the book (there was a lot of preemptive clapping!). With the exception of Skeeter (Emma Stone), I found all the casting spot on. She was just a bit too...blah and not spunky enough for me (I'd worried about her being too petite and pretty for the role; having seen the film, the real problem was in the presentation of the character as a whole just not matching how I imagined her at all). The others were great, especially Viola Davis (Abileen), Jessica Chastain (Celia), Octavia Spencer (Minnie - she and Chastain were perfect in their scenes together!), and Bryce Howard (the easy-to-hate Millie). I definitely suggest the movie - but read the book first!
The Help
Kathryn Stockett
Published: 2009
Why?: My mother suggested this book to me. She listened to the excellent audio version, and spoke about how it took her back to the racial tensions of her childhood. She was never of the class to have full-time maids who raised your children, but she knew people who did. She also lived through the tumultuous days of the Civil Rights Movement, standing with the oppressed. The book touched her deeply, but also allowed me some insight into a time which, blessedly, seems so bizarre to my generation.
Stories of the days when the civil rights movement was new sometimes lack a core of great and engaging characterization; this is not at all the case with The Help. Novels written by different characters also often lack distinct voices among those characters. Written from multiple perspectives, each woman is given a voice and diction of her own. The story unfurls from multiple perspectives, showing both sides of the white South: those pleased with the status quo and those, like my mother’s family, who weren’t. The African-American population of the book is beautifully written, illustrating the fear and danger inherent in this fledgling movement, as well as the strange and layered relationships to be found between black maids and their white employers.
Gist: A young woman who longs to be a journalist convinces a small group of black maids to tell her about their experiences. Layers of truth are slowly revealed, and the depth of feeling between these women who raised generations of upper-middle class and high class white children and the families they worked for gradually reveal themselves.
Perfect For: ages 16+
Genres: Fiction, Novel
Keywords: Drama, History
The Help
Kathryn Stockett
Published: 2009
Why?: My mother suggested this book to me. She listened to the excellent audio version, and spoke about how it took her back to the racial tensions of her childhood. She was never of the class to have full-time maids who raised your children, but she knew people who did. She also lived through the tumultuous days of the Civil Rights Movement, standing with the oppressed. The book touched her deeply, but also allowed me some insight into a time which, blessedly, seems so bizarre to my generation.
Stories of the days when the civil rights movement was new sometimes lack a core of great and engaging characterization; this is not at all the case with The Help. Novels written by different characters also often lack distinct voices among those characters. Written from multiple perspectives, each woman is given a voice and diction of her own. The story unfurls from multiple perspectives, showing both sides of the white South: those pleased with the status quo and those, like my mother’s family, who weren’t. The African-American population of the book is beautifully written, illustrating the fear and danger inherent in this fledgling movement, as well as the strange and layered relationships to be found between black maids and their white employers.
Gist: A young woman who longs to be a journalist convinces a small group of black maids to tell her about their experiences. Layers of truth are slowly revealed, and the depth of feeling between these women who raised generations of upper-middle class and high class white children and the families they worked for gradually reveal themselves.
Perfect For: ages 16+
Genres: Fiction, Novel
Keywords: Drama, History
Sunday, August 07, 2011
10: The Short and Bloody History...
I had a grand time with my second 30% book haul today (with bonus tax free day!), but I did manage to get a papercut on my eyeball.
Don't ask.
Also, don't try it, because it's not a very nice experience.
It's ridiculously humid today, so I still can't get any shots outside. WHY must it be both 100 degrees heat index AND dripping with moisture?! EGADS.
The Short and Bloody History of Knights, Spies, and Pirates
John Farman
Published: 2000
Why?: This little bargain book is a lot of fun, full of easily-accessible and amusing historical information. When I was a kid, I was determined I would write fun and entertaining historical documentaries when I grew up, for use in schools. Though I do a bit of that in my classes (readers’ theatre, anyone?), I haven’t left school for Hollywood quite yet (*g*). So, I’ll stick to buying books that educate and amuse, and adding to my knowledge of history that way.
Gist: The title gives you a pretty good idea, you know! Though not in-depth, the historical and biographical sketches are fun and appear largely accurate.
Perfect For: Historians with a need for a giggle.
Genres: Nonfiction, History
Keywords: Humor
Don't ask.
Also, don't try it, because it's not a very nice experience.
It's ridiculously humid today, so I still can't get any shots outside. WHY must it be both 100 degrees heat index AND dripping with moisture?! EGADS.
The Short and Bloody History of Knights, Spies, and Pirates
John Farman
Published: 2000
Why?: This little bargain book is a lot of fun, full of easily-accessible and amusing historical information. When I was a kid, I was determined I would write fun and entertaining historical documentaries when I grew up, for use in schools. Though I do a bit of that in my classes (readers’ theatre, anyone?), I haven’t left school for Hollywood quite yet (*g*). So, I’ll stick to buying books that educate and amuse, and adding to my knowledge of history that way.
Gist: The title gives you a pretty good idea, you know! Though not in-depth, the historical and biographical sketches are fun and appear largely accurate.
Perfect For: Historians with a need for a giggle.
Genres: Nonfiction, History
Keywords: Humor
Saturday, August 06, 2011
09: Spoon River Anthology
Having attended the cast party for the local play I sang in this afternoon, I was inspired to post my first collection of poems! I first read this book in an awesome hybrid American lit/American history/performance class in high school (I *desperately* want to teach a class like this one day, but for British history and lit!). We performed it, and the next year I came back to direct the thing for that year's class. I played Minerva and the drunk parson my year, and the year I directed the teachers also talked me into playing Minerva's dad. Thank goodness I watched enough Red Dwarf to have a passably horrible British accent!
Spoon River Anthology
Edgar Lee Matthews
Published: 1915
Look! I'm getting my shelves back in order! I love this process, because I'm a dweeb. I'd've finished by now if I hadn't decided to reorganize most of them...
Why?: In high school, I was part of a class that inspired a lot of my teaching, called American Studies. This class combined American history and literature, with an emphasis on acting and creativity. We had debates as historical figures, reenacted major events in history, and traveled in imaginary prairie schooners across the western plains. We also put on plays, including an adaptation of Spoon River Anthology. The haunting, free form poems have stuck with me, and I still love to flip through and delve into this world of life and death that Masters so beautifully constructed. Unlike many books of poetry, Spoon River must be read in its entirety for all the layers of meanings and relationships to reveal themselves. A fine, upstanding family doctor is revealed to have helped a young girl end her life, and pages later her father speaks as well of being an outsider in Spoon River. Masters’ use of language is beautiful, and although this is a collection of poems told by the dead, the focus is still on life, with all its beauty and ugliness.
Gist: In a cemetery in Spoon River, the dead rise and tell of their lives. Some led everyday lives, other incredible ones. There are mothers, fathers, politicians, doctors, and factory workers, each sharing his or her story. The stories intertwine as well, so you might learn that the town’s favorite son in, in fact, the illegitimate son of a grieving mother, or a couple who appear deeply in love…actually are!
I'm amazed I got this picture without one or three cat noses in it. This is my office chair, which they consider THEIR office chair. I'm allowed to rent it from time to time in return for their room and board.
Quote: From “21. Minerva Jones” This was one of the parts I played in high school, and it’s still one of the most heart-breaking poems in the collection.
And I sank into death, growing numb from the feet up, / Like one stepping deeper and deeper into a stream of ice. / Will some one go to the village newspaper, / And gather into a book the verses I wrote –I/ thirsted so for love! /I hungered so for life!
Bonus Trivia: A number of composers have written music for the Spoon River Anthology, from classical to alternative country to playwrights. It has been adapted by American, British, and Spanish composers. Spoon River is available free on-line.
All the pictures are bad because I'm taking them in the middle of the night! But you can see my copy here, which is highlighted with the poems that were included the year I directed the play version of the collection.
Perfect For: Ages 15+, poetry fans
Genres: Fiction, Poetry
Keywords: Drama, History, Romance, Humor
Spoon River Anthology
Edgar Lee Matthews
Published: 1915
Look! I'm getting my shelves back in order! I love this process, because I'm a dweeb. I'd've finished by now if I hadn't decided to reorganize most of them...
Why?: In high school, I was part of a class that inspired a lot of my teaching, called American Studies. This class combined American history and literature, with an emphasis on acting and creativity. We had debates as historical figures, reenacted major events in history, and traveled in imaginary prairie schooners across the western plains. We also put on plays, including an adaptation of Spoon River Anthology. The haunting, free form poems have stuck with me, and I still love to flip through and delve into this world of life and death that Masters so beautifully constructed. Unlike many books of poetry, Spoon River must be read in its entirety for all the layers of meanings and relationships to reveal themselves. A fine, upstanding family doctor is revealed to have helped a young girl end her life, and pages later her father speaks as well of being an outsider in Spoon River. Masters’ use of language is beautiful, and although this is a collection of poems told by the dead, the focus is still on life, with all its beauty and ugliness.
Gist: In a cemetery in Spoon River, the dead rise and tell of their lives. Some led everyday lives, other incredible ones. There are mothers, fathers, politicians, doctors, and factory workers, each sharing his or her story. The stories intertwine as well, so you might learn that the town’s favorite son in, in fact, the illegitimate son of a grieving mother, or a couple who appear deeply in love…actually are!
I'm amazed I got this picture without one or three cat noses in it. This is my office chair, which they consider THEIR office chair. I'm allowed to rent it from time to time in return for their room and board.
Quote: From “21. Minerva Jones” This was one of the parts I played in high school, and it’s still one of the most heart-breaking poems in the collection.
And I sank into death, growing numb from the feet up, / Like one stepping deeper and deeper into a stream of ice. / Will some one go to the village newspaper, / And gather into a book the verses I wrote –I/ thirsted so for love! /I hungered so for life!
Bonus Trivia: A number of composers have written music for the Spoon River Anthology, from classical to alternative country to playwrights. It has been adapted by American, British, and Spanish composers. Spoon River is available free on-line.
All the pictures are bad because I'm taking them in the middle of the night! But you can see my copy here, which is highlighted with the poems that were included the year I directed the play version of the collection.
Perfect For: Ages 15+, poetry fans
Genres: Fiction, Poetry
Keywords: Drama, History, Romance, Humor
Saturday, July 30, 2011
06: The 19th Wife
The play opened last night, and even for a one-scene character, it's a long time and a lot of work! Hopefully I can get some pics...but we have a matinee and an evening performance, so who knows?! Hey hey hey, looks like I made a few!
The 19th Wife
Avid Eberschoff
Published: 2009
Why?: My friend Brenda (she’s like a friend-in-law, because she’s my mother’s best friend and I claim her too!) lent us a pile of books because she knows the way to our hearts. Out of the pile, this is the one that grabbed me and wouldn’t let go. The two stories meld together seamlessly, and the parallels between a modern gay man and a 19th century polygamist bride are drawn without preaching or shoving it down your throat. This is an engrossing novel both in the modern day murder mystery and the fictionalization of a real woman of the past.
Gist: The 19th Wife follows two storylines: the first is about a Lost Boy – a boy kicked out of polygamist sects, apparently to lower the competition for young brides. Now a young man on the streets, Jordan Scott finds out that his mother has been arrested for the murder of his father. Deftly intertwined with this modern-day narrative is the story of Anne Eliza Young, revealed through everything from Wikipedia entries to diary excerpts.
Bonus Trivia: This book was turned into a movie by Lifetime TV, but I haven’t seen it.
Perfect For: Ages 17+
Yes, Bob's tongue is sticking out. This could be because I interrupted his reading, or it COULD be that he wanders around like this all the time.
Genres: Fiction, Novel
Keywords: Drama, History, Mystery
The 19th Wife
Avid Eberschoff
Published: 2009
Why?: My friend Brenda (she’s like a friend-in-law, because she’s my mother’s best friend and I claim her too!) lent us a pile of books because she knows the way to our hearts. Out of the pile, this is the one that grabbed me and wouldn’t let go. The two stories meld together seamlessly, and the parallels between a modern gay man and a 19th century polygamist bride are drawn without preaching or shoving it down your throat. This is an engrossing novel both in the modern day murder mystery and the fictionalization of a real woman of the past.
Gist: The 19th Wife follows two storylines: the first is about a Lost Boy – a boy kicked out of polygamist sects, apparently to lower the competition for young brides. Now a young man on the streets, Jordan Scott finds out that his mother has been arrested for the murder of his father. Deftly intertwined with this modern-day narrative is the story of Anne Eliza Young, revealed through everything from Wikipedia entries to diary excerpts.
Bonus Trivia: This book was turned into a movie by Lifetime TV, but I haven’t seen it.
Perfect For: Ages 17+
Yes, Bob's tongue is sticking out. This could be because I interrupted his reading, or it COULD be that he wanders around like this all the time.
Genres: Fiction, Novel
Keywords: Drama, History, Mystery
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