Mary and Lou and Rhoda and Ted
This is the history of the Mary Tyler Moore show. Forty years ago the tv networks were very strict on what tv characters could and could not do or be. Mary Richards originally was supposed to be a divorced women starting a new life in Minneapolis. The networks fought and Mary ended up starting her new life as a women who just left a long term relationship. The book concentrates on how all the characters came about and how they got the perfect actor/actress to play the parts. Originally Gavin McCloud audtioned for the part of Lou Grant. He thought he was better suited to play Murray and insisted he tested for that part. The book also touches on the fact that The Mary Tyler Moore Show was the first tv show that used multiple women comedy writers. Comedy writers at the time were usually men. This show also changed the way women were portrayed on tv.
It's all about a conspiracy theory...
This was NOT what I expected.
Maybe it's me, but I thought this was a true story, and that the author/authors were stated as such because the letters were written between Tara Young & Blake Watson. It wasn't until I read the copyright page, that the book is self published and is copyrighted by Young/Watson. There is also a disclaimer at the bottom of the page. Quote, "Though much of the information contained in Postmark 9/11 can be researched and found to be factual, it is a work of fiction."
Maybe somewhere in this a "real" author would emerge, but not in the "Dear Reader: On February 21, 2012 a young lady, whose identity we’ve chosen to keep private, arrived in our office with a box of letters . . .. Who is "our" offices? And nothing about an author who wrote all these letters.
Read more»This book barely got a 1 star rating.
Ellie's friend, Lucy, who is living is England, is murdered in front of her 8 year old daughter, Sophie. Ellie immediately leaves Boston to be with Sophie, and Lucy's husband, Greg.
Ellie decides she is going to stay in England, leave her husband, Phillip, who incidently, stayed behind in Boston. Her reason? "I don't know."
I thought the entire story was such a joke. She doesn't have a reason other than "I don't know"? But ~ Ellie does feel she has to stay to help Sophie through this traumatic time. I get that. But to leave her husband? Quit her job? But, oh, she would like to see the sights and see more of her brother Mikey (a grown man). And then throw in her globe-trotting, psychologist mother who is commitment phobic, who has an off again/on again relationship with their father, and they want to get married again, but then her mother decides to take a trip to Peru, because she's not sure.
I can't believe I wasted my time trudging through this book in hopes that it would get better.
For those who are commitment phobic, don't know how to have adult conversations and bury their head in "The Secret Garden", and have major communication issues ~ then this is your book.
This book is told from the viewpoint of Eve, who, at the start of the book, is telling her grandson about the memories she has of Marryat Island Ballroom and Lodge, which was owned by her uncle. She has gone back there to retrieve a wooden box which is very special to her as it holds some small items that carry nostalgic and precious meaning for her. The Lodge is set to be torn down and her grandson takes her to find the box she left behind. Eve lived there for some time in 1931 after her father lost his job at Ford Motor Company. The country is in the midst of the Great Depression, and prohibition is in force. Her uncle offers Eve's family room and board in exchange for help with the place, which is bustling despite the Depression. Eve loves living there, until she learns some secrets that ruin her idyllic view of her uncle and her family.
Prohibition plays a huge part in this story, as does Jones, her cousin who happens to be albino. She didn't know of Jones' existence as he was kept hidden away, but she doesn't see him as "different" and helps him to be more at ease with people. Also playing a role is Link, a man who presents himself as a hobo looking for food. Her uncle always feeds those who need it, and he feeds Link as he does many of the men who live down the road in a shantytown. Most lost their jobs and are trying to find work to support their families left behind.
I loved this book and hated to see it end. It vividly describes the Lodge, the dances held in the pavillion, the innocence lost, the cool swims in the river. It's a great summer read.
Mr. Perry, the author, has degress from Cornell University, and from the University of Rochester. His work history is long in assorted jobs from maintenance man to univeristy administrator. He also has written for tv. He has written other novels. This is the first novel from Mr. Perry that I have read.
The beginning of the book gained my interest as he described Native American Spiritual rituals. But I stopped reading the novel at page 79. No longer interested in spending my time reading a horror story that took the reader into a black, ugly tunnel. I felt there was no reason to finish this novel as the theme of story turned into something like to news at times. Dreadful, not wanting to know what was going to happen next as each page became worse and worse.
My time on this earth is valuable. Reading a book full of horrible things that humans can do to each other, all in the name of money was not good use of my time.
I would not recommen the novel to others. There are way to many other great books that can build characters with a storyline not needing to go down a horrific path that was only going to get worse.
Ms. Kingsolver has written a few novels. I had read her novel "The Bean Tree". She has won National Humanities Award from her writings.
I thought the "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle" was rich with information on our food supply. Researching the foods sold in the supermarkets in the United States provided a hard look at what our diet consists of, how money influences what we eat by a select number of large food corporations. By the time I finished reading the book, I started planting heirloom seeds for my own garden, deciding to frequent the local farm market as my main source of nutrition.
I liked the idea of differnt websites noted in the book that provided additional, in-depth information on topics from recipes to gardening. The author was honest in that some of the changes were difficult to make but will worth the end result.. Why would a large food cooperation be interested in healthy food when they can process food at a low cost, selling it to consumers at a high rate of return.
Read more»Mr. Burpo wrote an inspirational book on the experience of his child while sick. This is the first book Mr. Burpo who is a minister has written. It is an easy read. The concept of heaven was strong within the entire story backed with readings from the Bible.
It was a frightening book when describing the illness of his son. However, as his son's health improved bits and pieces of his son discussing the experiences he encountered in a matter-of-fact tone. It was heartwarming, provided an experience that some day all people will experience, death.
I thought it was a believeable story. The author laid out the story, letting the reader decide. A difficult task when his son offer input that he was not famaliar with.
I recommend the book for all. Rather you have a spiritual or religious belief, or for those that do not. I didn't feel as though the author was trying to prove anything. Just relay his son's responses to his grave illness from the past.
Ms. Kingsolver's first novel. She has authored friction writing, poet, journalist, is a biologist, and human-right activist. This book, "The Bean Tree" is the first material I have read from Ms. Kinsolver's writing activities.
"The Bean Tree" is a creative novel centered around a young girl growing up, moving away from mom. I believe that there were several situations that would not be possible such as the condition of the car, how she obtained and finally adopted a child. If there is one item that I believe Ms. Kingsolver's writing could of improved on was within the development of Taylor's mother.
The only other comment, I have is that raising a child as a single parent is not easy. At times the text presented such a situation as a bet to easy when in fact, raising a child is not such an easy task. I do believe that the author used humor in situations within the story line to make Taylor's world more believeable.
With Heft, Liz Moore has deftly woven together the stories of two men--and in telling their stories, she lets two women's lives unfold in the margins so that the book ultimately gives insight in fragments of the lives of a woman, her son, her former professor, and a young pregnant woman attached to the professor at first only by chance.
The narrative opens with a description of Arthur Opp, in his own words, in which he says, "The first thing you must know about me is that I am colossally fat."
What I discovered, though, when I put down the book last night was that in fact Arthur Opp's girth was only the most visible.tangible weight in this novel. Each of the characters carries his or her own weight, and the metaphor of Arthur's body--by the end--in some ways seemed like the least significant of these weights, even for Arthur.
Read more»I Can Barely Take care of Myself
Jen Kirkman is a writer and a frequent guest on my favorite late night show, "Chelsea Lately". She has made a decision to never have kids and has stuck with that promise to herself. She gives an explanation of "who is going to take care of you in your old age?" Her answer was Servants. To the statement "you'd be such a good mom!", she says "Really, you know me so well".
Jen's memoir is a great read, even for us who has raised children.
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