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Book Review: As Is: Confessions of a True Fatty

Four stars The author sells herself short in that she assumes all her readers face the same challenges with weight that she describes. In fact, her message is appropriate for anyone who hasn’t yet discovered his or her authentic self. Wagner’s challenge is her addiction to food which she uses to compensate when she feels unappreciated. But she doesn’t stop battling. She also doesn’t blame others. In this, her book is a pattern for what others who use substances or activities to screen out discomfort can do to take responsibility for their lives.

In addition, she tells the story of a Palestinian Christian family, led by her immigrant father, a story of successful businesses, a story most Americans haven’t heard, but should. It presents another facet of the complicated image of Arabs, one at odds with the predominant, one-dimensional narrative so many Americans are satisfied to accept.

Book Review: Shooting Saddam

Five Stars Dennis Lynch tells the story of his three trips between 2005 and 2006 to Baghdad to oversee the videography and recording of the trial of Saddam Hussein and his co-defendants. A well-written account, he relates his impressions of the trip, the environment, and the events with a sense of humor alongside a genuine respect for the gravity of what he was doing and for the people he met. Putting aside the few minor errors in his report, I was impressed with his research and desire to understand the larger story that his unique and up-close view fits within. I recommend the book highly.

The cover and title are my favorite of the year.

The minor error I found most curious is Lynch’s reference to Al-Zarqawi changing his name from Ahmad to Abu after Muhammad the Prophet’s successor. “Abu” means “father of” and is not a name by itself. It is used, along with the name of the oldest son, to denote the man is a parent of a son. “Um” is the feminine form. Names formed with “Abu” for the father or “Um” for the mother plus the first name of the oldest son is known as a kunya. Al Zarkawi was known as Abu Musab, which translates as “father of Musab.” According to my research, Al Zarkawi had two wives and several children, including at least three sons, making it entirely normal for him to use his kunya, Abu Musab.

Dennis will be one of three debut memoir writers on a panel at the San Diego Writers/Editors Guild on Monday, March 28, 2016, at 6:30 p.m.

Book Review: Fourteen

Four stars This coming-of-age tale of three years in the life of Leslie Johansen, from age 12 to 15, centers on her father’s planned around-the-world sailing adventure with Leslie and her two sisters, one older and one younger, as his crew. Leslie’s father had sole custody of the three girls after the parents divorced when Leslie was seven. His changeable moods challenged all three girls, but as his favorite, a label that Leslie alternately was proud and ashamed of, the brunt of his attention fell on her.

Father and daughters spent two years to ready the 45-foot sailboat, Aegir, with Dad training the three girls to handle the boat in all types of situations. In 1975, they set sail from Oceanside, California, heading for Tahiti.

Leslie Nack courageously shares with her readers her teen fears, dreams, and discouragements both before the family set off on their trip and during the days and nights they were confined to the 45-feet length of the ship. Her descriptions of the ocean’s many facets made me feel as though I were on the ship with her through the rain, storms, and even the doldrums. She provided just enough sailing terminology to ensure I respected her experience without confusing me – a non-sailor – so I could enjoy, or fear, the experience with her. Even her conflicting and alternating feelings of love and fear of her father resonated with my memory of my 14-year-old self. A real page-turner from beginning to end.

Leslie will be one of three debut memoir writers on a panel at the San Diego Writers/Editors Guild on Monday, March 28, 2016, at 6:30 p.m.

Book Review: Imperfect Birds

It’s summer in Marin County. Seventeen-year-old Rosie is getting ready for her senior year, making horrible choices which lead to lies and manipulation. But her mother and step-father have their own problems. Both recovering alcoholics–or worse–Elizabeth doesn’t want to see Rosie’s drug use and promiscuity, and James sees it but doesn’t want to upset his relationship with Elizabeth.

The only likable characters in this book were the bit players–Elizabeth’s friends, Rae and Lank, and Rae’s pastoral boss, Anthony.

I tried very hard to like this book because it was loaned to me by a friend who supports my own writing attempts. But if I have to write stories like this one to succeed, I’ll fail.

I wanted to slap the three main characters to wake them up, to make them stop repeating the same lies, the same acceptance of the lies, the same manipulation of friends, the same being manipulated by friends. Maybe it is because my own teenage years and my parents’ reactions to my form of rebellion were so very different from Rosie’s and her parents’. I could not sympathize or empathize with any of the characters.

“Powerful and painfully honest. . .Lamott’s observations are pitch-perfect.” So says The New York Times, according to the book’s cover. Lamott’s prose is excellent. I could visualize Elizabeth’s exhaustion at trying to save Rosie and James’s frustration with Elizabeth’s lack of willingness to see, hear, and recognize the truth of what was right in front of her. But this was a book with a bloated middle. Even more frustrating is that there really wasn’t an ending, just a transition to what may turn out to be another book. It was my hope for a resolution to the gnawing repetition that kept me turning pages.

I haven’t read anything else by Lamott. After reading this one, I’ll not likely seek out another.

In the end, I was left. . . .

Book Review: The Accidental Truth

Five Stars Lauri Taylor’s story of discovering her mother’s secrets and the secrets surrounding her death is masterfully told. Taylor unveils the distress of her mother’s disappearance and then the discovery that her body has been found in Mexico, bringing the reader with her for the suspenseful ride. The death is ruled suspicious, then a murder. Each step in this journey affects Taylor, her husband, their children, her sisters, and especially her nephew and mother’s business partner. The story serves as a gripping reminder that families come in many sizes and shapes and that the connections are important, even when they have been tested to the point of near breaking. It is more than just a tale of what happened to her mother. It is a story of what she learned and how she has put those lessons into practice to help others heal from devastating life choices.

Lauri will be one of three debut memoir writers on a panel at the San Diego Writers/Editors Guild on Monday, March 28, 2016, at 6:30 p.m.

Book Review: The Black Velvet Coat

Five Stars Two for one! The two tales interwoven in this debut novel are connected through a black velvet coat, something that was ordinary in the life of Sylvia, the central character of one of the tales, and extraordinary in the life of Anne, the central character in the other tale. No matter how different their circumstances, both women share the experience of facing challenge and each needs lessons on how to stand on their own, to make their ways in the world as independent and fulfilled women.

This book inspired and intrigued me in several ways. The stories take place largely in San Francisco, my favorite city, one I had hoped to return to, but haven’t yet. One of the characters speaks a version of British English shared by my husband. How else can I explain her use of the term gobsmacked, one I hear often from my husband? I also made a black velvet coat for the doll I plan to give my granddaughter for Christmas. After meeting the author, I added a sparkly snowflake pin to the finished coat.

I loved this book.

Making it Big as an Author

I’ve been following Queen of Blank since last year’s NaNoWriMo. While we are at least a generation apart in age, I feel we are sharing the same larger soul. Maybe you’ll feel the same.

The Caffeinated Writer

FROM TROY & LAURICE.jpg

At work today, my coworker made a jab about my lack of progress on any of my writing lately. Part of me needs to be jabbed on occasion.

Not with anything sharp or pointy though. Not the literal jabbing. Please.

We got to talking about how hard it was to really “make it big” as an author these days. The market is saturated with books, and unless you can land publication with a huge publishing house, the odds are definitely stacked against you.

(For the record, I am NOT bashing self-publishing by any means. So please don’t take it that way.)

It is definitely possible to make it big in self-publishing. It’s just really, really hard. You have to do everything for yourself.

But for many, it’s our only option when it becomes obvious that the big publishing houses aren’t willing to take many chances on new authors.

The chances…

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Book Review: The Execution of Noa P. Singleton

An unforgettable and unpredictable debut novel of guilt, punishment, and the stories we tell ourselves to survive.

Five Stars Those words are part of the marketing package for the novel. I couldn’t have said it better myself. But I didn’t realize it would be unforgettable until I finished it. And its unpredictability explains why it took me a long time to get past the first chapter. But every time I logged on to Goodreads, I would be reminded it was still there, waiting for me to finish. I am very glad I picked it up again.

This is a mystery about a murder on many levels. Did Noa really murder Sarah? Why didn’t she say anything in her own defense during her trial? Why did Sarah’s mother change her opinion of the death penalty? Did the fact that her father was absent, and therefore unknown to Noa during childhood, play a role in the events? What does the P in her name stand for? Some of these questions remain at the end of the book, but enough are answered for the reader to be satisfied. For the story to stick and poke at memories and childhood secrets.

The most important questions all begin with Why. Why did Noa say nothing in her own defense? Why is she so determined not to satisfy Sarah’s mother’s curiosity about the event? Why does Noa lie? Why did she drop out of Penn? Those questions remain largely unanswered, only hinted at. And that is the strength of the book. Because we don’t get those answers from Noa, we end up asking similar ones about our own lives. Those questions raise thoughts of own own guilt, our own family relationships as well as our relationships with others. Those questions bring up thoughts of what we might have done differently. For those reasons, this book will stay with me for at least as long as the 450-some days it took me to finish reading it.