FRI: My Book World | Christopher Brown, Tropic of Kansas
TUES: A Writer's Wit | Maureen F. McHugh
WEDS: A Writer's Wit | Frederick Douglass
THURS: A Writer's Wit | Susan Brownmiller
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FRI: My Book World | Christopher Brown, Tropic of Kansas TUES: A Writer's Wit | Maureen F. McHugh WEDS: A Writer's Wit | Frederick Douglass THURS: A Writer's Wit | Susan Brownmiller
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THURS: A Writer's Wit | Martin Buber FRI: My Book World | Christopher Brown, Tropic of Kansas Coming Next:
WEDS: A Writer's Wit | Laura Ingalls Wilder THURS: A Writer's Wit | Martin Buber FRI: My Book World | Christopher Brown, Tropic of Kansas MY BOOK WORLDEgan, Jennifer. Manhattan Beach. New York: Scribner, 2017. From the Acknowledgements section of this novel, one may deduce that Egan took up to a decade to produce it. The tome is a historical novel of epic proportions set during WW II, with so much to research, right? A young woman works at a dull job measuring manufactured parts to make sure their sizes are correct. This woman named Anna is bored; rides a bike during her forty-five-minute lunch rather than choke down a sandwich from home with the marrieds, women who belittle her ambitions. She establishes a rapport with her supervisor, however, and with his help, goes on to become a diver, the first woman in New York to don a 250-pound diving suit and repair the skins of warships. Egan’s research makes her underwater scenes some of the most realistically invigorating I’ve ever read. Meanwhile, Anna maintains a home life: a beautiful mother who is a former performer, a somewhat peripatetic father who deserts the family without explanation, and a sister disabled with an unnamed affliction (one might deduce the child is stricken with cerebral palsy), but that the disease is unidentified adds to its mystery, makes the child a wondrous, angel-faced enigma, whom Anna misses achingly when her sister dies. As the father has already disappeared from the scene, her mother moves to her childhood home in Minnesota, leaving Anna the family apartment to herself. A third strand of the novel concerns itself with Anna’s father who crosses paths with a man from the underbelly of New York. Yet these men both maintain at least a superficial appearance of respectability, until the dirty business of doing illegal acts finally destroys them both. To avoid more spoilers, suffice it to say that each man winds up having a profound effect on Anna’s life. A father who leaves to service the war effort with the merchant marines. And the other man, the mystery man little Anna meets in the very first scene of the novel, well, his role is profound, too. The conclusion of the novel, rather than serving as the denouement (neatly tying up loose ends like an Agatha Christie mystery), acts more like a coda (featuring extensions or reelaborations of earlier themes) you might note at the end of a musical composition. It serves more as the logical culmination to the crazed life a young woman lives in the 1940s, at the height of a war altering life worldwide. To me, Manhattan Beach should also be a Pulitzer Prize-winner, like Egan’s A Visit from the Goon Squad (superbly noted for its nonlinear spectacularism). But what do I know. I’m merely a faithful reader of Egan’s work, madly in love with her intelligence, her perfect sentences, her mastery of structure, and most important, her incorruptible and universal understanding of the human condition. Brava! Coming Next:
TUES: A Writer's Wit | Christopher Marlowe WEDS: A Writer's Wit | Laura Ingall's Wilder THURS: A Writer's Wit | Martin Buber FRI: My Book World | Christopher Brown, Tropic of Kansas Coming Next:
FRI: My Book World | Jennifer Egan, Manhattan Beach TUES: A Writer's Wit | Christopher Marlowe WEDS: A Writer's Wit | Laura Ingalls Wilder THURS: A Writer's Wit | Martin Buber Coming Next:
THURS: A Writer's Wit | S. J. Perelman FRI: My Book World | Jennifer Egan, Manhattan Beach
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WEDS: A Writer's Wit | Laura Lippman THURS: A Writer's Wit | S. J. Perelman FRI: My Book World | Jennifer Egan, Manhattan Beach
MY BOOK WORLDStreisand, Barbra. My Name Is Barbra. New York: Viking, 2023. Wow! How do I begin? Full disclosure: I’ve been a fan of Barbra Streisand since 1962 when I was fourteen, and, from the speaker of an AM radio, emanated this crystalline voice. It lifted me across the room like a wonderful fragrance. I thought, God, I’ve got to hear more of her. And so I did. Decades of albums later (most of which I own in one medium or another). I bought both the hardcover ($31) and the Audible version ($61) of this book, so you know I’m serious when I declare I’m a fan. Her work has always cost more than that of other artists, and I’ve always paid it. You get what you pay for, and her case it is great artistry. This memoir might better be subtitled as an autobiography because it covers every minute, every inch of her life—album by album, show or concert by concert, and film by film. At first, I am a bit disconcerted, as I follow along in the hardcover, that she does not read the text word for word. Her prose is quite engaging—rich and varied. But she adds so many asides, creating more of a conversational tone in her book, that I’m grateful for the audio version, as well. It must have taken her months to make the Audible recording, and yet her voice never wavers (except by way of certain emotions); it sounds as if she recorded the 900+ pages (48+ hours) in one smooth session. This woman does nothing by half. And perhaps that is the crux of Streisand’s book: She means to tell her own story her own way, after decades of being misrepresented and misquoted again and again. Myth Number One: Barbra is hard to work with. Nope. She quotes from directors, actors, and other professionals she’s collaborated with that because of her exacting nature, she is a joy to work with. Because she collects discerning individuals around her, she creates a fine synergy, by which the highest quality is sought after by all. Exceptions exist, like the late Ray Stark, producer, to whom Streisand is tied for her first five films. He is a lying, conniving person who cheats her in several ways, and she can’t wait to be free of him. In some ways (creativity mainly), her career does not begin until he’s nowhere near her career. Myth Number Two: Barbra loves to perform. For the first time, I learn that every time she must appear before a live crowd to sing, the experience frightens her to death. She loves performing in the studio, making albums. She is deeply emersed when appearing in or directing a film. Yet, later in her career, she does “conquer her fears,” a line of dialog I borrow from her concert in New York’s Central Park (1967). Over time, she learns to trust her audience, to include them as a collective partner. Myth Number Three: Barbra is a cold b———. You should read all the adoring notes, letters, and reviews that people write. You should hear of the friendships she develops with other actors, directors, musicians, artists, and professionals close to her. Marty, her agent (manager?), at ninety-something, is still with her. Renata, her personal assistant-housekeeper-chef-chauffeur has remained with her for over sixty years. You don’t retain that kind of loyalty by being unkind. Then there is the personal. Barbra confesses (we’ve always guessed) how the loss of her father at an early age affects her entire life. She describes the rocky but loving relationship with a mother who, it turns out, is so jealous of her own daughter’s success that she often turns a cold shoulder to Barbra—even skipping an important performance in Las Vegas to play the slots with her friends. Barbra shares the details of the romances in her life (those whom she loved and those who loved her): Omar Shariff, Marlon Brando, and others not so well known. An entire chapter she devotes to her husband of twenty-five years: (hello, gorgeous) James Brolin. Though she may have had an editor to help her shape the book (what published writer doesn’t?), Streisand’s prose, both conversational and formal at times, is her own. After all, the woman has written screenplay treatments, screenplays, and another book besides. (Songs!) Like everything else she does, Streisand approaches this book with love and exacting detail. If you like her at all, or if you are curious, pony up and either read or listen to the book (or both, as I did). You won’t be disappointed. Oh, and as a bonus, whenever Barbra Streisand explains how a certain album is developed, she includes sound snippets from the tracks to demonstrate what she is talking about. Sublime. Sublime. Sublime. Sit in on the best master class ever! Coming Next: TUES: A Writer's Wit | John Dufresne WEDS: A Writer's Wit | Laura Lippman THURS: A Writer's Wit | S. J. Perelman FRI: My Book World | Jennifer Egan, Manhattan Beach
FRI: My Book World | Barbra Streisand, My Name Is Barbra
TUES: A Writer's Wit | John Dufresne WEDS: A Writer's Wit | Laura Lippman THURS: A Writer's Wit | S. J. Perelman Coming Next:
THURS: A Writer's Wit | Joe Conason FRI: My Book World | Barbra Streisand, My Name Is Barbra
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WEDS: A Writer's Wit | Edith Wharton THURS: A Writer's Wit | Joe Conason FRI: My Book World | Barbra Streisand, My Name Is Barbra
my book worldHighsmith, Patricia. Edith’s Diary. New York: Atlantic Monthly, 1989 (1977). An interesting interior novel. A middle-aged woman’s life is plagued with any number of problems, least of which is that her husband divorces her. At the same time, she keeps a diary that reflects a much happier version of her life—so much so that by the end, her behavior seems bizarre (at least to her ex-husband and others who think she should see a shrink). As a reader I never see the deterioration, however. I believe she’s merely frustrated with all that life has thrown at her. Coming Next: TUES: A Writer's Wit | Karen Abbott WEDS: A Writer's Wit | Edith Wharton THURS: A Writer's Wit | Joe Conason FRI: My Book World | Barbra Streisand, My Name Is Barbra Coming Next:
FRI: My Book World | Patricia Highsmith, Edith's Diary TUES: A Writer's Wit | Karen Abbott WEDS: A Writer's Wit | Edith Wharton THURS: A Writer's Wit | Joe Conason
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THURS: A Writer's Wit | A. A. Milne FRI: My Book World | Patricia Highsmith, Edith's Diary Coming Next:
WEDS: A Writer's Wit | Newton Minow THURS: A Writer's Wit | A. A. Milne FRI: My Book World | Patricia Highsmith, Edith's Diary
MY BOOK WORLDMaddow, Rachel. Prequel: An American Fight Against Fascism. New York: Crown, 2023.
This cautionary tale should be read by every adult in America. It should be taught in every college America history class. It should be available to all public libraries. Why? Essentially because Maddow painstakingly tells the story of German Nazis who, in the 1930s and 1940s, make plans to sweep America up into its fascist web. And the main players happen to be American citizens who in various ways enable the Germans: congresspeople and other public figures. Maddow provides lists of the good guys and the bad (some are even women). She carefully lays out for readers how all this takes place. The most important message, however, is, for the most part, unwritten. She, by the title she uses, would like for us to see that it could happen again. There are people in congress, just as eighty years ago, who would like to enable a fascist-leaning leader to become president. And we must stop them. Coming Next: TUES: A Writer's Wit | Susan Sontag WEDS: A Writer's Wit | Newton Minow THURS: A Writer's Wit | A. A. Milne FRI: My Book World | Patricia Highsmith, Edith's Diary Coming Next:
FRI: My Book World | Rachel Maddow, Prequel TUES: A Writer's Wit | Susan Sontag WEDS: A Writer's Wit | Newton Minow THURS: A Writer's Wit | A. A. Milne Coming Next:
THURS: A Writer's Wit | Diana Gabaldon FRI: My Book World | Rachel Maddow, Prequel Coming Next:
WEDS: A Writer's Wit | David Wong THURS: A Writer's Wit | Diana Gabaldon FRI: My Book World | Rachel Maddow, Prequel
McBride, James. The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store. New York: Riverhead, 2023. This novel has a well-earned spot on Goodreads.com “Historical Fiction” shortlist for 2023. Early in the twentieth century, in Pottstown, PA, a certain intersectionality occurs between the African Americans, Jewish Americans, and the whites of the town, and, as one can imagine, it isn’t always pretty. The Jewish and the Blacks do all right—they’re both outliers confined to the town’s Chicken Hill neighborhood—but interactions with white citizens are to be guarded, mostly because of past transgressions against minorities. The titular grocery store is the center of Chicken Hill activity for a long time, until the beautiful but lame woman owner dies. Her husband continues to run it, but the establishment is not the same. There are a number of villains, but the main one, a doctor, gets his in the end. And one of the town’s victims, a boy who loses his hearing in a childhood accident, is rescued from an insane asylum and smuggled to South Carolina to live out his life there. McBride has a magnificent story to tell, and he removes himself from it so that just the story remains. All in all, a very satisfying read. Coming Next: TUES: A Writer's Wit | Pam Houston WEDS: A Writer's Wit | David Wong THURS: A Writer's Wit | Diana Gabaldon FRI: My Book World | Rachel Maddow, Prequel Coming Next:
FRI: My Book World | James McBride, The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store TUES: A Writer's Wit | Pam Houston WEDS: A Writer's Wit | David Wong THURS: A Writer's Wit | Diana Gabaldon Coming Next:
THURS: A Writer's Wit | Natalie Goldberg FRI: My Book World | James McBride, The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store My faithful readers! I am back. A WRITER'S WIT
Coming Next:
WEDS: A Writer's Wit | J. R. R. Tolkien THURS: A Writer's Wit | Natalie Goldberg FRI: My Book World | James McBride, The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store Sometimes bloggers sort of disappear from their work, and I don't want to do that. For health reasons, I am suspending publication of my blog until further notice. I will resume posting as soon as possible and will notify my subscribers at that time. Everyone enjoy a wonderful holiday season! RJ [Below c1956]
MY BOOK WORLDMcQuiston, Casey. Red, White & Royal Blue. New York: St. Martin’s, 2019. In many ways, this is a commercial romance novel, but for once, it is about two young men, not a heterosexual couple. And not two ordinary men, but one is His Royal Highness, Prince Henry of the UK, and the other is Alex, the First Son of the United States (FSOTUS)—whose mother is elected the first female president. In a way, the two men have known each other, at least by sight, since they were children. The inciting incident, as how-to-write-novels will tell, you occurs when Alex attends the royal wedding of Henry’s brother in the UK. During a tussle, the two fall into the £75,000 wedding cake. To make amends, Alex flies back to the UK for photo ops to demonstrate to the public how the two really are fine friends after all. While visiting a primary school where Prince Henry (BTW he’s gorgeous, like a young Prince William) volunteers. Alex is impressed with the prince’s sincere largesse, but when firecrackers are mistaken for gunfire, the two are shoved into a dark, cramped, custodial closet (so symbolic), where once again they argue. Sometime later, New Year’s maybe, Henry sails the Atlantic (by air) to appear at Alex’s party held at the White House. At one point, Henry feels left out and ventures onto the snow-covered lawn, and Alex eventually joins him, where Henry plants a big one on Alex’s mouth: the real inciting incident, perhaps. Alex, also a handsome physical specimen combining the best of his mother’s Anglo and his father’s Mexican heritage, is stunned but suddenly realizes he may be bisexual. All I’ve describe so far, of course, is plot, but McQuiston adeptly creates well-rounded characters whom you care for. She creates a future in which the US not only reelects the first woman president but also one in which people of all ethnic groups hold important positions in government, both in the US and in the UK. And . . . the state of Texas finally turns blue, handing the president the final thirty-eight electoral votes that send her over the finish line. It is a future many of us have held dear in our hearts for decades, and McQuiston makes it happen realistically (but with a bit of whimsy, of course). For that alone, I am most grateful. She also writes several of the most romantic yet erotic sex scenes I’ve ever read—ones that, however, do not detract from the importance of the novel. Kudos to the author, and may we hope for a sequel, in which Prince Henry and FSOTUS marry and have (or adopt) children? A bonus chapter from Henry’s POV may suggest that. We’ll have to wait and see! Coming Next: Nov. 23: HAPPY THANKSGIVING! TUES Nov. 28 : A Writer's Wit | Rita Mae Brown WEDS Nov. 29: A Writer's Wit | Peter Cameron THURS Nov. 30: A Writer's Wit | Mark Twain FRI: My Book World | Jennifer Egan, Manhattan Beach |
AUTHOR
Richard Jespers is a writer living in Lubbock, Texas, USA. See my profile at Author Central:
http://amazon.com/author/rjespers Archives
March 2024
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