Extraordinary, Ordinary People

In reading biographies and memoirs, I am always taken aback by how many varied people the subject knew. Condoleezza Rice is no different. Rice knew the girls killed in 16th St. Baptist Church bombing in Birmingham in 1963. She was friends with Denver Broncos players. She took a class taught by Madeleine Albright's father. And then, of course, there's all the political figures she met in her roles in the Reagan and Bush (41, she doesn't go into 43's administration) presidencies. 

This memoir, while including Rice's jobs, both academic and political, is the story of her family and the impact of her parents. Rice grew up in Birmingham, then moved to Denver when her father got a job at the University of Denver. After getting her PhD at the University of Denver, she went to Stanford. She also had several periods in Washington, D.C. As it's a story about her family, the book ends when her father dies. It doesn't include the last 15 years of her life. 

One of the funniest stories Rice related was when the Berlin Wall fell. She was working at the National Security Council. They were scooped by CNN and learned about the events on TV like the rest of America.

At the end, when her father dies, he knew she was going to become National Security Adviser, but never knew she would also become Secretary of State. This reminded me a little of Obama's grandmother dying just before the 2008 elections. Rice's father gave so much towards Rice's success that it's sad he never got to see her as Secretary of State. 

Rice's mother died of a brain tumor at 61, which hit a little close to home as my mother-in-law recently passed away from the same thing at 60. I cried through most of that chapter. 

I listened to the audio book, which Rice narrated. I liked the fact that it felt like she was talking to me.

All in all, Rice has a fascinating story. She has been a witness to many important historical events. I don't know what she's been up to in the past few years, but it's probably as diverse and interesting as everything in Extraordinary, Ordinary People.  

One downside of most non-fiction audio books is the lack of pictures included in the paper version. Luckily, my library had a copy of Extraordinary, Ordinary People. One notable exception: Tina Fey's Bossypants, which included some great photos in a PDF.

The Reading Promise

What a disappointment. I love reading and books, so a book about reading is a sure winner, right?

The idea of this book had such promise, but the execution was dismal. The book had parts about the reading promise, but a lot of other parts that were just stories about the author's life and not related to books or reading. I found the narrator to be too precocious and her father to be a bit of a martyr about being a single parent and being a school librarian.

I read to my daughter, but probably should read more. I picked this up thinking that it would give me inspiration. Instead it just wasted some of my limited reading time.

I know parents who still read to their tweens and teens. I remember loving being read to. Having a streak like Ozma and her father is something to aim for, but sadly this book didn't entertain.

Wild

My book club chose Wild by Cheryl Strayed as a recent read. While I'd heard plenty about it and usually enjoy outdoor adventure stories, I hadn't been interested enough in it to want to read it.

But, I found it on my library's ebook selection so I checked it out.

The first bit was kinda painful. Strayed spends a great deal of time talking about what led her to take off on her crazy journey along the Pacific Crest Trail. She fell apart when her mother died and started making really bad decisions: cheating on her husband, doing heroin, etc. With her divorce finalized and the rest of her life in shambles, she heads off to hike the PCT for months.

When she started, she hardly had any business being on the trail. She was ill prepared and had a very tough time. As she continued on her trip, she learned from other hikers and became fairly adept at backpacking. She met friends along the way and sorted out her emotional issues.

I ended up liking the book more by the end. However, if it was not a book club read, I wouldn't have picked it up in the first place, nor would I have finished it. I'm glad I finished it, but if I'd been reading it on my own I wouldn't have made it. I just couldn't empathize with her in the beginning. I didn't want to read about someone whose life had gotten so awful in part because of her really poor life choices.

Obviously Strayed has moved on from her low points and there's redemption in that. As an adventure story, it isn't as exciting as I was hoping. There's lots of other books about being outdoors that are much more upbeat. If you are looking for one, Bill Bryson's A Walk in the Woods is great. It's humorous so it's coming from a different place, but covers the same ground about a clueless hiker.

Seriously...I'm Kidding

I have had an overflow of audible credits so I was looking for some funny quick listens and picked out Seriously...I'm Kidding by Ellen DeGeneres. At just over three hours, it was very quick.

It's really very fluffy and hilarious. I laughed out loud at several things. There were a couple serious topics that offered some food for thought, especially after not getting a job I really wanted.

Overall, it's a worth the time as long as you understand what it is going in. Ellen narrates the book, which added to my enjoyment of it.

Laughing Without an Accent

I've used Firoozeh Dumas's Funny in Farsi in class before. It's wonderful. Dumas writes hilarious stories about her Iranian family. Her family moved to the United States when Dumas was in elementary school.

Her books cover many topics. Laughing Without an Accent includes a wonderful story about her uncle's funeral and life. It's so full of love. If you need something funny, but with some weight, you should pick up Dumas's books. I listened to this audio book and kept exercising to keep listening! High praise that a book makes up for the torture that is running.

Black Like Me

This is a book everyone should read. The more I learn about the civil rights era and the time before it, the more horrified I am. This book is the memoirs of John Howard Griffin and the time he spent passing as a black man in the South. Griffin, a white man, dyed his skin and was able to fool people in to thinking he was black to see how blacks were really treated.

 

The treatment he received from whites was horrible. He was treated as if he were a child. He was asked all kinds of sexual questions from whites' beliefs that blacks were hyper sexual. He felt that he was in danger on many instances. He wasn't welcome in white stores and waiting rooms, even though he was paying the same amount for a ticket or wanted to purchase the same goods as whites. Griffin could never stop moving. A black man standing or sitting could easily attract unwanted police attention.

A telling incident happened when Griffin was riding a bus. The bus driver refused to stop where Griffin asked to be let out. Griffin spoke of his helplessness of not being able to do anything, even get mad, much less get off the bus, while the driver acted like such a jerk. 

One of the things I found really interesting was how the blacks Griffin interacted with felt such a connection with each other. I do suppose, though, that if the color of your skin is all anyone can see, it also strongly connects you with others who look like you. The people Griffin met talked about their status in society quite a bit.

Not surprisingly, the treatment he received after this book was published wasn't much better. He and his family became virtual outcasts in their hometown. People were horrified by a white man telling such a story.

It's quite a different book from The Help. But if you liked The Help and want to know more about how blacks were treated during that time period, you should definitely pick this up. This was a quick and powerful read.

Love at First Bark

Love at First Bark by Julie Klam is a memoir of working with dog rescues. My husband and I have been volunteering as a foster family through a basset hound rescue for almost three years. I was interested in reading someone else's thoughts on these experiences.

One thing that really seemed crazy was Klam's own dogs--dogs that had accidents all over the house all the time. This horrified me. She talked about how potty training dogs in NYC is difficult, especially if you live on the fifth or sixth floor of a walk-up like she did. I think that would be extremely hard, but I really can't imagine my dogs shitting all over my house all the time. (Incidentally, potty training is a great reason to get a rescue, you can pick a dog that's already trained!)

Overall, the book was interesting, but nothing special. I'm sure there's a better book about being a dog rescuer out there. 

Shit My Dad Says

I thought I would find this funny in a college frat boy sort of way, but I thought it was much more than that. It was a family memoir and Halpern's dad's love for his son is apparent. Funny, but also genuine and loving. I highly recommend it!

It Is Well with My Soul

It is Well with My Soul is a memoir by Ella Mae Cheeks Johnson about her long 106 year life. Johnson gained attention in 2008 when she attended Obama's Inauguration. Evan and I also attended the inauguration and were on the same plane as Johnson. We sat in the row behind her as people around us asked her questions about life and her thoughts on Obama. For me, it was a really cool way of starting out our trip, thinking about this black woman who had seen so many changes in society that lead her to where she was that day.


The book was very short, but was interesting considering the wide time span it covered. It focused a lot on her life rather than what she saw in society. It was enjoyable, but I would have been a bit disappointed by it had I not met her because I would have preferred the book to have discussed Johnson's reflections on changes she saw in the the US through the many events she experienced.

The Gulag Archipelago

Yes, that does say abridged. Despite being an abridged version of The Gulag Archipelago, the book I read still had 500+ pages. for years, I've been thinking that I needed to read The Gulag Archipelago, but I never got around to it since it's such a beast. When I found this edition, I picked it up and had no more excuses.

The Gulag Archipelago was written by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn. Solzhenitsyn spent time in the Soviet gulags (work camps) because he spoke against Stalin. Many others were in the gulags for no real reason- a family member had made negative comments about Stalin, someone had been tricked or tortured in to falsely accusing them of some offense.

The stories Solzhenitsyn tells speak about how the gulags are horrible. One of the saddest parts, though there were too many to count, was the story of WW2 veterans who were sent to the gulags becuase they had been taken as POWs by the Germans instead of fighting to the death. Life in the gulags was extremely difficult and millions of people died from overwork, starvation, or preventable diseases.

It was a long hard read, but very worthwhile to spend time on. Stalin was truly evil. His people suffered so much under his rule.

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle is one of those books that is so inspiring. I have enjoyed Michael Pollan's books about food, so I wasn't surprised to enjoy Kingsolver's addition to the genre.

Last summer, Evan and I got a CSA share and drowned in the amount of food we received. This year we decided not to do it, but our local farmers' market will be starting soon so we can buy local veggies at it. My dad has had a garden for more years than I've been around and I've been experimenting in my own. I was interested to read about Kingsolver's gardening.

Kingsolver's book is a memoir about how her family ate local for a year. This included meat. They were living on a family farm and were able to grow a significant amount of food, both for immediate use and to store for the winter. They also bought food at their farmers' market.

One of the criticisms of Animal, Vegetable, Miracle that I read before reading the book said that Kingsolver's experience was totally unrealistic and that she was preachy about it. To say it is unrealistic totally misses the point. Obviously we don't all live on a farm and can't grow food like she was able to. Duh. I've read plenty of memoirs, most commonly travel memoirs that are totally unrealistic for me, but are still fun to read about and put ideas in my head. This book made me think about what I could do. I didn't think Kingsolver was preachy. She laid information out in a clear, readable way.

I loved Animal, Vegetable, Miracle. It was inspiring. If you are interested in food, you should pick it up.

Bossypants

If you didn't love Tina Fey as Sarah Palin during the 2008 elections, I'm sorry. You must not have a sense of humor. If you didn't enjoy those segments you won't enjoy her book. Otherwise, definitely pick it up!

Tina Fey is hilarious. Her book, Bossypants, is a memoir of growing up and her life in showbiz. My husband loves 30 Rock and I watch it as much as I watch any TV show, so when we were getting ready for a long car trip, I figured we'd both enjoy this.

And we both did! We went to Yellowstone for the weekend and the drive flew by. We laughed out loud and found segments that were really insightful. She had great stories to share. Her thoughts on women comedians were interesting. She asks why she was perceived as mean for her imitations of Palin, while the men who had performed skits of Ford, Clinton, Bush, etc were just funny. I don't know why I'd never thought of it that way, but duh.

Fey narrates the audio version, which I'm sure made it even more enjoyable. The audio version came with a pdf of pictures that she talks about in the book, so you aren't missing out of them. (This is one pet peeve I have of audio books, not being able to see the pictures that were published as a part of the paper book.) The audio book also has the actual SNL clips of her and Amy Poehler doing Palin and Hillary Clinton.

The Cat Who Covered the World

I don't read pet stories very often. I can't handle when the pet dies.

I thought that The Cat Who Covered the World sounded fun though. Henrietta, the main catracheter (ha), was owned by a family of a New York Times reporter, so she followed them around the world. There were funny parts of the story. When the Wren family lived Moscow she was able to eat Russian caviar.

Henrietta sounded like a fun cat, but I really had a hard time liking her owners. We don't let our cat out because I'm worried she get hit by car or munched on by one of the many wild creatures around here. Henrietta's owners let her out in Beijing and Cairo. She disappeared for a month in Cairo before she showed up near starving.

It was a fun story, but I was left a bit disconcerted by the lack of care that I felt like Henrietta's owners gave her.

In the Basement of the Ivory Tower

I'm posting this now, before I read it, because I'm afraid I'll have to say too much (too much that I shouldn't say) to post a review of it. I think my experiences teaching are going to make it a very interesting read.

Escape and other FLDS stories

Oh my goodness. Escape is horrifyingly terrifying. Jessop was raised in the FLDS group in southern Utah/northern Arizona. She was married to a 50 year old when she was 18 because it was destined by God. She lived through years of abuse from her husband and his other wives. She has 8 children (her husband had over 50 kids when she escaped). Her last 4 pregnancies were life threatening due to placental abruptions, however, her husband was reluctant to let her get proper medical care. Nor was she even allowed birth control when risky pregnancies were a possibility.

I've previously read Under the Banner of Heaven by Jon Krakauer and recently read Stolen Innocence by Elissa Wall. The lives people lead in the FLDS are so unlike our own and so lacking in basic human rights. Jessop quotes the Utah Attorney General as saying there's a corner of Utah that is worse than the Taliban, and after having read these stories, it has got to be comparable. All 3 of these books are fascinating (yet horrifying) reads.

Wait for Me! and other Mitford family books

I think the Mitford family is fascinating. They were such a part of history. The Mitfords were an upper class family who seemed to be around every important person and event in England from the 1920s on.

I've read the non-fiction book The Sisters which first introduced me to the family. I also have read The Pursuit of Love and Love in a Cold Climate by Nancy Mitford. Those two books are on the 1001 Books You Must Read list and are stories based on the family. The Mitfords show up in other works of literature. Sir Oswald Mosley (sister Diana's husband) has been mentioned in the Maisie Dobbs series.

I really enjoyed the first part of Wait for Me! The book is the memoir of the youngest Mitford daughter, Deborah, who became Duchess of Devonshire. The first half is about Debo's childhood, teen, and early adult years and has lots of great stories about her family members.

However, when it got to the point where her father-in-law, the Duke of Devonshire, died and the family had to pay death taxes it went downhill quickly for me. They had to pay 80% taxes, which yes, is a huge portion of their wealth. But when she's saying how they had to sell off 42,000 acres here and another 11,000 there and all these fabulous works of art. Boo freaking hoo. She even had a catty remark about how a Rembrandt they had to sell was only a drawing/practice/etc and consequently not worth as much as previously thought and haha on the government for that. They still were beyond wealthy and didn't have to work. They even left England to live at their castle in Ireland because they didn't like the socialist/Labour governments of the time.

I had a really hard time caring about her after that point in the book and didn't finish it. I'm sure there were stories that were more interesting towards the end, but I just really didn't want to listen to the author anymore.

The Sisters by Mary Lovell is a great book about all the Mitford girls which you should definitely pick up. It's a great biography as well as covering so much history. I don't recommend Wait for Me! unless the money stuff won't bother you. Debo is not my favorite Mitford.

Shattered Dreams

I have such mixed feelings about this book. I was so frustrated for--and with--the author. I know some of my feelings are blaming the victim, but she stays in the marriage so long yet tells her husband over and over and over she is going to leave, is mad, etc yet never does anything. The constant awful story/whining/author frustration was annoying to read knowing she wasn't going to do anything about it. She constantly would tell her husband she wouldn't do something (go to the wedding with the 3rd wife, for example) then she'd change her mind and do what he wanted.

In some ways, I think the culture of polygamists is so foreign to me that it's hard for me to put myself in the author's shoes to even understand her life or the way of thinking that got her there.

The author was born into polygamy, so she was indoctrinated into the belief that she would be going against God not to be in plural marriage. Yet, she allows herself to be treated terribly (guilt trip over getting her tubes tied so she doesn't die in childbirth?! after 13 kids?!) and live in horrible poverty in the name of God. I can't imagine that God wants one to live such a horrid life.

Verlan, her husband, was such a moron. He believed in plural marriage but practiced it at the expense of his family's health: mental, physical, economic, educational. His view was definitely quantity over quality. He never seemed to have any empathy for his wives, and 5 of them had left him by the time of his death.

I felt sorry for the author, but it was a frustrating read. If you are interested in learning about Mormon polygamists, this is a good book to read, but keep in mind the author's experiences ended in 1981. Jessop's story is more current. But, I couldn't put Spencer's book down.

Dirty Sexy Politics

For those of you who know my political leanings, you might be surprised but I LOVED this book. I read a blurb about the book and thought it sounded good despite the fact she is John McCain's daughter. I downloaded a sample for my Kindle and really enjoyed it, so I bought it.

She's so honest about this-is-who-I-am even how it doesn't fit the Republican party. She's pro life, but very pro contraceptives and is against abstinence only teaching. She's supports gay marriage calling it the civil rights movement of this generation, and is not particularly fond of the conservative Christian movement in the party, wonders why the Reps write off young voters and say silly anti-intellectual things. Plus, she doesn't seem to think very much of Palin. She sounds kind of liberal by my description, but mainly she seemed like an honest, candid moderate.

Even being the candidate's daughter, Meghan was carefully watched to make sure she fit the image that the campaign wanted. She writes, "I needed to be fixed-improved upon or polished up-or sent to Siberia. That was the basic message." She graduated from Columbia, which was maligned as a socialist school by her father during the election, which highlights how she felt she was treated.

She has lots of great insight about politics, campaigns, and the Republican party. It's also a great story about accepting yourself as you are--even when there's lots of pressure that you aren't ok as is.

I want to be her BFF. She's awesome. Her honesty and humor were great!

I'd love to hear what some of my more conservative friends think about it.

Garlic and Sapphires

I love food. When my online book club selected this for our monthly read, I was really excited.

It didn't disappoint. Anytime we travel, I like going to fancy restaurants and finding interesting meals to eat. I enjoyed reading about the meals that Reichl ate. (But, really, can you talk about foie gras one more time?)

In order to maintain her anonymity as a food critic for the NY Times, Reichl wore disguises. Her reviews covered the food, as well as the service. She was treated very differently based on the costume she had on and when she was recognized. The reviews of the service were to me the most interesting part.

The book also includes several recipes. I haven't tried any yet, but plan on it.

Annie's Ghosts

One of the categories for the book challenge is book with ghosts or psychics. I chose Annie's Ghosts as a different type of ghost: those that reside in our family histories, the ghosts of the past.

Author Steve Luxenberg found out, at the end of his mother's life, that she wasn't an only child like she'd always said she was. She'd obviously kept the secret for a reason so Luxenberg didn't question his mother. But, after her death, he wanted to know what happened to Annie, the aunt he never knew. The book is the story of tracking down Annie and guessing why his mother never told anyone about her sister.

Annie had been committed to a mental hospital when she was 21, which made it even harder for Luxenberg to beleive since Annie had been part of her sister's life for 20 years. The book is several different things: a memoir of the author's family, a mystery of what happened to Annie, and a history of mental health resources in the 20th century.

In the process of finding Annie, Luxenberg uncovered other, totally unexpected, family secrets. He also told the story of an aunt who escaped the Nazis in WWII. I liked hearing the family's history and Luxenberg's reaction to it.

This was a really fascinating read. I really was interested in the changes in the mental health world. Luxenberg's mother kept her sister a secret because of the shame involved. Annie and others were locked up and forgotten about. Luxenberg had a difficult time tracing Annie because even on paper she was lost. While Luxenberg was able to uncover a great deal of information, the book shows how history is lost over time.