BOOK REVIEW: Casting Off

The term “casting off” can have several meanings. To a fisherman it can mean to place his boat in the water; to a knitter it can mean the beginning of putting yarn on the needle. It can also mean to move beyond the hurt of the past and get on with the future.  Nicole R. Dickson’s novel CASTING OFF has as many levels to it as the term as meanings.

Rebecca and her six-year-old daughter Rowan have arrived on a small island off the coast of Ireland. Rebecca has received a grant to do a book on the history of the patterns of the traditional fisherman hand-knit sweaters. She and her daughter have been on the move since Rowan’s father died almost six years earlier.

Keeping Rowan safe has been the number one priority in Rebecca’s life and the relaxed life on the small island is very hard for her. Her daughter has more freedom than Rebecca is ready for and she does not understand that the people are always taking care of each other.

As the village embraces her and her daughter, Rebecca tries to keep Rowan away from Sean Morahan. He is a cantankerous old fisherman and despite his attempts to scare Rowan off and Rebecca’s fear, the old man and the young girl become friends.

The two stories, Rebecca’s and Sean’s, almost parallel. We learn that her relationship with Rowan’s father had been very abusive, although it is not until near the end that we learn how bad it had been. Sean also has a past that he constantly relives. He blames his own cruel behavior for the death of his sons and their mother.

The author may have meant the story to revolve around Rebecca, but I was more involved with Sean and his past. His dead sons were so much still with him. His pain over past hurts were so real and so crippling.

I do not knit and I would imagine that a person who does would get even more out of this book. The author explains knitting terms and then ties them into the fabric of the story in a very original way. Saying that, I was very touched by the characters and the way they helped each other grow. I am passing my copy to all of my friends. This would be a terrific choice for a book group.

BOOK REVIEW: The Sign

THE SIGN by Raymond Khoury is a fast moving thriller that might not be for everyone. If you have read Khoury before, you know that he is not afraid to cover controversial subjects.

Journalist Grace Logan is in Antarctica with a scientific expedition. They are there to witness the melting of the large ice shelves for a live television piece on Global warming. As they are filming a spectacularly large chunk falling into the ocean, a massive, shimmering sphere of light suddenly appears above them. Thanks to Grace’s live report this mysterious light is seen all over the world.

After a second sphere appears at the North Pole, Grace is sent to Egypt to investigate the sphere’s third appearance. In Egypt, Grace meets Father Jerome. Father Jerome has left his well known work with orphanages in the poorest of poor areas to live in a cave in the desert. The media grabs hold of the idea that the mysterious light is a sign from God that Father Jerome is the new prophet with the message to stop killing the earth, to put an end to global warming.

Meanwhile, back in Boston, Matt Sherwood has been mourning his scientist brother Danny’s death. Danny had been working on a secret project in a remote area in South America when his helicopter crashed and all on board were killed. Now Matt finds evidence that Danny might be alive, but this information puts Matt and those around him in danger.

The book switches locations chapter by chapter and in the beginning the introduction to so many characters was a little confusing and slowed the book down. Once each character became clear, the booked moved rapidly.

This book is definitely a thriller, but it is also a chance for the author to express his personal views on global warming, religion in politics, how easy it is to start a religious war, and some other controversial subjects. At first, I found myself in agreement with many of the philosophies of the bad guys until they showed how even things that start out well can be corrupted.

If you have read Raymond Khoury’s The Last Templar, you will find THE SIGN equally fascinating for its subject matter alone. I am ready for his next publication.

MOVIE REVIEW: One For The Money

Ladies, lets be honest with each other. We read the books and now the main reason that we went to see the movie ONE FOR THE MONEY was to see Ranger and Morelli. Ever since Janet Evanovich first introduced us to Stephanie Plum with her bizarre family and friends, the question has been, “ Ranger or Morelli?”

It took me several scenes to accept Jason O’Mara as Joseph Morelli. Come on, an Italian stud with blue eyes? That was not how I pictured him. Soon I was convinced. This is a fairly new actor who bares watching.

Ranger had to have been difficult to cast. Every woman that I talked to had her own fantasy of the mysterious Ranger. Daniel Sunjata was a good choice. He certainly met the physical qualifications and the possibilities were there. Time did not allow for much development of the character. As with most of the characters, I am not sure if someone who had not read the books would have understood him.

I know that it is hard for a book to be condensed into a movie and many things have to be dropped, but I missed the humor that Grandma Mazur brought to the books. Debbie Reynolds could have taken this role and run with it. Three short scenes were not enough. We never got to see her at a funeral. Seeing the turkey get shot almost made up for that oversight.

Sherri Shepherd was a good choice as Lulu. I was afraid that they would go “Hollywood” on us and cast Halle Berry.

Katherine Heigl was better casting as Stephanie Plum than I expected. Seeing her learn to shoot and watching the spunk it took to deal with the men in her life made it believable that she could save the day at the end.

I enjoyed the movie ONE FOR THE MONEY. I understand that it is impossible to live up to what a reader sees when reading a book and I should not compare, but is hard not to, especially when the books are special. I am always interested in hearing from those who see the movie and have not read the book.
Now to get back to the original question: Ranger or Morelli? I took a very informal poll as I was leaving the lobby after the show. The majority had the same problem as Stephanie--They would find it hard to say no to either.

BOOK REVIEW: The Season of Second Chances

THE SEASON OF SECOND CHANCES by Diane Meier fits my requirements for a book very well: character growth, good descriptions, and food for thought. The fact that the protagonist loved literature just added that bit of cream on the top.

Joy Harkness has been teaching literature at Columbia for fifteen years. In those fifteen years, she has not become close to anyone; she has not really made any friends and her life centers around her work. Teaching suits her personality; she is entertained by each year’s class and gets a new batch each September, not having to actually relate to any of them on a personal level.

Having read Kerouac, Salinger, and Allen Ginsberg, she had always dreamed of the woman that she would become if she lived in Manhattan, but instead of becoming the energetic woman depicted in the TV ads, she was stuck in the same daily, isolated routine.

When Amherst recruited her to join their faculty and help develop a new system of teaching the classics, she jumped at the chance to move to Massachusetts.

Once there, she finds herself the owner of an ancient house that needs work and love, pursued by middle-aged Romeos, tangled in the personal lives of new friends, and getting romantically involved with the young man who is helping to make her house a true home.

The author allows Joy to narrate her story. Because we see the people around her through Joy’s eyes, we quickly learn to not quite trust her descriptions of them. As Joy grows and sees things in a more realistic way, we learn more about her new, and old, friends.

Near the end of the book, Joy comments that the stories of Emma Bovary, Jay Gatsby, Othello, Hester Prynne, etc. had been so compelling that they allowed her to put off creating her own story. That described Joy extremely well.

At first, I did not think that I would enjoy the book because I could not warm up to Joy, but that was obviously the author’s intention. As Joy changed, so did my feelings about her change. I ended up rooting for her through the bad love affairs and her opening up to new people and situations.
Meier has written a tight book that moves well. Her use of the renovation of the house to show Joy’s growth was cleverly done as were the characters around Joy, both in her new and old life.

BOOK REVIEW: I Had Brain Surgery, What’s Your Excuse?

The title I HAD BRAIN SURGERY, WHAT'S YOUR EXCUSE? did get my attention, especially when I saw that it had been written by Suzy Becker. I was familiar with Ms Becker’s work as a cartoonist and with her earlier book, All I Need To Know I Learned From My Cat. In other words, I was expecting a very funny read. Actually I ended up with an illustrated memoir about…you guessed it, her brain surgery.

It is hard to put the book into any type of classification. It is full of humor because Suzy has the talent to see humor in any situation, especially if it involves herself. The book is also a very honest memoir of a person going through what was a very traumatic experience. The simple removal of a mass on her brain caused some loss of word usage and motor skills. This was devastating to a woman who depended on both in her career.

Suzy had always been an exceptionally healthy, athletic person. She played volleyball regularly and organized, as well as rode in, the yearly Ride Far, a bike marathon for adults and children with AIDS.
On April 27, 1999, she received a letter informing her that she was being offered an appointment to join a community of three dozen scholars, artists, and scientists who would be working on individual projects at the Bunting Institute on the campus at Radcliffe. In May of 1999, she had the seizure that triggered the test that led to her surgery.

As part of her healing program and because she had continued with her plans to attend Radcliffe, Suzy wrote the journal that became I HAD BRAIN SURGERY, WHAT'S YOUR EXCUSE?
 
The book is illustrated with nearly 400 cartoons, charts and silly graphs. As Suzy recovers her health, we can see the improvement in her words and her art, making her development much more real to the reader.
This book would be inspiring to any patient going through a difficult recovery, not just brain surgery. Suzy Becker is likeable, never overly sentimental, and always brutally honest.

THEATER/EVENT: Humpty Dumpty is Missing! or The Mysterious Case of the Fallen Egg

Bald Eagle Area Drama Club will be presenting HUMPTY DUMPTY IS MISSING! or THE MYSTERIOUS CASE OF THE FALLEN EGG February 3rd and 4th in the School Auditorium to a delighted audience for Parents' Night.  The cast consisted of mainly 6th, 7th and 8th grade students with members of the seniors high school drama club serving as interns on the various tech crews. It made for an enjoyable evening.

First of all the choice of play was perfect. It called for a large cast in many small roles. This gave quite a few budding actors a chance to have their first chance on stage. Though to be honest it was hard to tell who the newbies were.

The lines were full of puns, some of them terrible--just the way I like them. My favorite was when Handsome Prince, who had come to Rapunzel’s castle to paint the local scenery, informed us that he was no longer Handsome Prince, but wanted to be known as The Artist Formally Known As Handsome Prince.

The cast was too large to give individual credit in this small space, plus I feel that we will be seeing most of them in future shows, but several really stood out.

Matthew Blaylock starred as Sammy Scoop, Private Eye--with minors in ear, nose and throat-- with impressive stage presence. This audience member really appreciates being able to understand the lines, especially when the show depends on word play for its humor.

Alice, from Dallas, his secretary, was played by Chelcie Goss. Again the voice carried, the lines were clear, and Ms Goss knows when to punch the joke line.

All of the storybook characters came off as expected; Phoebe McClincy was contrary as Mistress Mary, Peter Rabbit, Michael Bailey, looked mischievous enough to be raiding the local carrot patch, and the Troll, Savannah Elder, was definitely capable of making her Toll House cookies with eels ( they are easy to swallow because they just slide down). Mother Hubbard and Mother Goose, Mariah Houck and Alice Statham, cleared up the mystery to everyone’s satisfaction, as true mothers do.

Faculty Director Lindsey Allison and Technical Director Eric M. Brinser are to be congratulated for bringing so much out of such a young group. Of course this gives them an even larger pool of talent for their Spring Musical, Bye, Bye, Birdie.  Personally, I can’t wait.

If you are not including our local high school drama departments on your schedule, you are missing a fun, inexpensive evening. Don't forget to catch THIS tonight or tomorrow night.  You won't be disappointed.

BOOK REVIEW: The Book Thief (redux)

ed note:  Pat first reviewed this book back in June 2010.  She has told me several times that this is on her top favorite books of all time.  Not a small task to make that list!  She is republishing the review to coincide with the 2012 Centre County Reads program. 

This year's book selected by Centre County Reads is one of my personal favorites. In fact, their yearly selections have met with my approval since the beginning of the program.  THE BOOK THIEF, by Markus Zusak, is a brilliant choice. It is one of the books that though written for the youth market, has universal appeal.

There are so many things that I would like to share about THE BOOK THIEF, but here is what I wrote when I first read it:

THE BOOK THIEF by Markus Zusak is not a happy book. But then, what would you expect from a book that takes place in Nazi Germany and is narrated by Death.

Twelve year old Liesel Meminger and her six year old brother were being taken to the small town of Molching, near Munich to foster parents by their mother, during the trip, the little boy dies. At the quick burial along the way, Liesel finds a book dropped in the snow by one of the gravediggers. Putting it in her jacket, she has stolen her first book. This becomes her only touch with her dead brother.

Liesel is delivered to her foster parents, Hans and Rosa Hubermann. Hans is a quiet man who makes a meager living painting homes of the wealthier residents of the town. Rosa does laundry for those who can still afford it.

Hans teaches Liesel to read from the book that she had stolen, ‘The Grave Digger’s handbook’. The book has come to stand for the last time she saw her brother and mother. Her next stolen book is taken from the large bonfire that the Nazis used to burn the dangerous books owned by the Jews of the community.

Liesel uses stealing books as a type of comfort as life get more precarious in the small town. Her reading becomes important to her neighbors as she reads to them in the basements used as bomb shelters during air attacks.

The neighbors themselves become an important part of the story. Liesel’s friend Ruby is obsessed with the image of Jesse Owens. So much so that he paints himself black and trains as a runner. The woman who lives next door hates Rosa Hubermann and never passes by without spitting on the Hubermann’s door. By the time her son is killed in Russia, we know her well enough to cry with her.
We have to mention the important Jew hiding in the Hubermann’s basement. To tell you too much about him would ruin the story for you.

All of the characters are so well defined that we could be living on Himmel Street and watch its demise with them. The plot of THE BOOK THIEF is what would be expected, a young girl during the Nazi uprising in Germany. If you are thinking, ‘Another story of the human ability to overcome adversities.’ You could be right, except in this book, we learn how tired Death gets picking up souls too soon and too often. We also learn how important words can be-- from Hitler’s use of words to stir up a nation to words saving a young girl’s life on Himmel Street.

I have to admit that I finished this book with tears running down my cheeks. It is brilliantly written. Using Death as the narrator keeps it from getting overly sentimental, in fact Death may have a bit of a sense of humor. I highly recommend it to anyone who appreciates a well written book about the human condition.