I Shouldn't Even Be Doing This: And Other Things That Strike Me As Funny.
Newhart, Bob.
New York : Hyperion, c2006.
Beginning with his 1960 Grammy-winning album, The Button Down Mind of Bob Newhart, the comedian's 46-year career has included nightclub standup, TV series (The Bob Newhart Show), animation voices (The Simpsons), feature films (Catch-22, Elf)—and now his first book. At age 77, Newhart is clearly in his anecdotage, with mirthful memories of his successes and failures. Treating the reader almost as a personal friend, Newhart covers everything in this guided tour through his button-down brain, from his 43-year marriage and fear of flying to fatherhood, Vegas, sitcoms, golf and assorted antics with celebrity pals. Aware that digression is the better part of valor, he interrupts the low-key autobiographical flow with amusing asides, and this rambling look at "the absurdist side of life" is just as effective in print as on TV, adding depth and dimension to the familiar image of Newhart as a frustrated, flawed everyman. In the tradition of Max Eastman's Enjoyment of Laughter (1936) and Steve Allen's The Funny Men (1956), he analyzes and compares comedy styles. The hilarity is heightened as he reveals how he created his best satirical sketches. Influenced by H. Allen Smith, Robert Benchley, James Thurber and Max Shulman, Newhart himself has now joined that lofty pantheon
Review from Publisher Weekly
My Father's Secret War
Franks, Lucinda.
New York: Hyperion, c2007.
One day, while trying to straighten up her elderly father's apartment, Franks discovered Nazi military paraphernalia, inspiring the Pulitzer-winning reporter and novelist (Wild Apples) to investigate what he really did during the Second World War. The painstaking inquiries are hampered by his reluctance to discuss his work in military intelligence, attached to the navy's Bureau of Ordnance. Some of that reluctance may have to do with the onset of dementia tearing away his memories, but he's also profoundly traumatized by some of his missions. In one moving passage, he is persuaded to describe his experience as one of the first American observers at a liberated concentration camp, every sentence still painful to get out even 50 years later. As Franks perseveres with her questions, she begins to understand how those experiences shaped their disintegrating postwar family life, but she acknowledges how difficult it is to achieve closure with this past, especially when she's afraid to confront the reality of his present condition. Even the most painful moments—as when she throws a particularly harrowing revelation back in her father's face to score revenge for adolescent resentments—are recounted with unflinching honesty as the military history takes a backseat to the powerful family drama.
Review from Publishers Weekly Review
The Lost Painting
Harr, Jonathon.
New York: Random House, c2005.
Summary: Details the discovery of 'The Taking of Christ' by Carravagio. Partially art history, partially a detective story about the search. Reminiscent of a PBS documentary.
Review submitted by TLC
Somewhat of a slow story if you are not an art lover, but the part about how a painting is restored does spark interest for the reader.
Review submitted by Barry
If you have any interest in classical painting, art restoration or european history you'll probably enjoy this well researched book. Harr tells the tale of the search for a lost 'classic' by the Italian painter Carvaggio that reads for the most part like a fictional whodunnit novel. The book falls a bit flat though when describing some of the real life characters and their personal relationships. Overall an enjoyable book.
The Girls Who Went Away: The Hidden History of Women Who Surrendered Children for Adoption in the Decades Before Roe v. Wade
Fessler, Ann.
New York: Penguin Press, 2006.
Fessler's book is the culmination of interviews with more than 100 women who had been forced to give up their children for adoption between the end of World War II and Roe v. Wade (1973). The book discusses all facets of the complex issue, including the women's discovery that they were pregnant out of wedlock, going away to maternity homes to deliver the babies, and later searching for their adult children. Fessler (photography, Rhode Island Sch. of Design) successfully intertwines the women's personal stories with descriptive text, placing the accounts in historical context. An adoptee herself, she begins and ends the book with the search for her own birth mother. She points out that although the circumstances of the women she interviewed varied (generally, they had answered queries Fessler had placed in newspapers), they all shared a sense of overwhelming loss and isolation in their grief. Thought-provoking and thoroughly researched, this book is recommended for all libraries.
Review from Library Journal -- Nicole Mitchell, Birmingham, AL
My Life as a Furry Red Monster: What Being Elmo Has Taught Me About Life, Love, and Laughing Out Loud
Clash, Kevin with Brozek, Gary.
New York: Broadway Books, c2006.
It's hard to believe, but it's been more than 20 years since beloved preschooler icon Elmo made his debut on Sesame Street—in fact, Clash wasn't even the first puppeteer to try his hand at bringing the "baby monster" to life. It was Clash, though, who gave the character the high-pitched voice and distinctive laugh that quickly endeared him to young viewers and eventually led to his own spinoff series. When he writes about Elmo, in fact, he verges on describing the Muppet as if it possesses its own personality. Clash's working relationship with Elmo is used as a starting point to discuss basic themes like love, tolerance and courage, but it's the story of his life before meeting his furry partner that often holds the most interest. He talks with obvious affection about his childhood growing up in an African-American suburb of Baltimore, encouraged from a early age to follow his talent for designing and performing with puppets. Though generally upbeat, this is no sugar-coated tale; Clash describes his initial struggles to make a name for himself on other children's shows, and speaks frankly about the toll performing on Sesame Street took on his marriage.
Publishers Weekly Review
The Secret
Byrne, Rhonda.
New York; Toronto: Atria Books, 2006.
So, this is a really beautiful book. Fantastic cover, gorgeous paper but what's with the icons next to people's names?? They were distracting while I was reading, and I just couldn't figure out what some of them were supposed to represent. I did like the summaries at the end of every chapter as a way of reinforcing the message.
What is the message you ask? Well, apparently it really was a secret because the trailer for the movie and the first Amazon reviews I read a couple of month ago were so vague, it was frustrating! I didn't have much interest in it but I decided to read the book because I wanted to start our new web site off with something that lots of people seemed interested in (if the hold lists are any evidence) and would hopefully feel inspired to Comment on below.
The Secret is the Law of Attraction - "like attracts like" and our thoughts are magnets and we're transmission towers. I could sort of buy into this but I perceived it more simply as the power of positive thinking and using visualization. It makes sense that the more positive you are about something, the more you'll do things to achieve that goal whether it's being positive with people who can help you, or creating a plan to get you where you want. My personal experiences have shown me that thinking negatively can have negative consequences but I really can't accept this book's premise that everything has happened because I'm attracting negative thoughts, feelings and events.
Many other reviews I've since read point to the same things that bothered me as I was reading. I was even compelled to text someone when I read on page 59 that "Food cannot cause you to put on weight, unless you think it can." I'm sorry, I know feelings of happiness and depression can affect how much or how little I eat but even if I'm euphoric and visualizing myself at my perfect weight, eating burgers every day is going to make me fat. That's just a scientific fact. And I didn't really like the message to ignore overweight people or walk away from conversations with those who are sick. I get that you need to remain positive and this could have an adverse effect on your progress but it seemed a little callous to me.
Some of the stories in here were inspirational and I've had talks with people in the library who say this has worked for people they know. I'm not entirely convinced but there are a lot of people out there who benefit from this type of motivational self-help. What do you think?
For commuters, we have the book on cd.
Don't forget to check out our movie reviews. I'll be posting a review of the DVD soon.